Within the next five months, President-elect Donald Trump could appoint a majority of the board for the Tennessee Valley Authority, the nation's largest government-owned utility.
The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports three Democratic members of the board are leaving Tuesday after the Republican-controlled Senate failed last year to confirm President Barack Obama's reappointment of the three directors.
Combined with two additional board vacancies this year, Trump could appoint a majority of the nine-member board as soon as May 18.
Trump has pledged to reform how government works and repeatedly said he would revive America's coal industry by changing some regulations on fossil fuels.
TVA serves more than 9 million people including Kentucky and Tennessee.