(a) The director shall be entitled to appear, as a party or otherwise, on behalf of the consumers of this state of services provided by any person, firm, or corporation subject to the jurisdiction of the commission in all proceedings before the commission which may involve or affect rates for service or services of utilities and in all other proceedings before the commission under its regulatory jurisdiction over utilities.

(b) The director may also appear in the same representative capacity in similar administrative proceedings affecting the consumers of this state before any federal administrative agency or body which has regulatory jurisdiction over rates, services, and similar matters with respect to public utility services provided by any public utility doing business in this state.

(c) The director shall be authorized in the same representative capacity to initiate proceedings, by complaint or otherwise, before any federal or state administrative agency before which he or she is otherwise authorized to appear, with respect to matters properly within the cognizance of those agencies.

(d) The director shall be authorized in the same representative capacity to initiate or intervene as of right or otherwise appear in any judicial proceeding involving or arising out of any action taken by an administrative agency in a proceeding in which the director is authorized to appear under subsection (a), (b), or (c) of this Code section.