The Finance Director is responsible for general supervision of the accounting, fiscal services and inventory management divisions of the utility, as well as the commercial office. The person in this position is appointed by the General Manager with the approval of the Mayor of Springfield.

Craig E. Burns was appointed Finance Director effective April 1, 2004. He has worked for the utility since 1982 in the positions of Financial Analyst, Economic Planner, Supervisor of Fiscal Services, and Financial Planning Coordinator.

Craig holds a Bachelor of Arts in urban planning from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana and a Master of Public Administration Degree from Sangamon State University (now the University of Illinois at Springfield). He is a graduate of the Public Power Executive Development Program sponsored by the University of Missouri-Columbia and the American Public Power Association. He also has successfully completed the "Leadership Springfield" program sponsored by the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce.