EVANSVILLE – In a move he called “a little bit unprecedented,” Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission chairman Andy Zay announced during a news conference Wednesday morning that he and other commissioners will hold an “investigative inquiry” into the affordability crisis inundating Indiana ratepayers.
The inquiry will take place March 24 in the IURC’s hearing room in Indianapolis. The commission is asking the five largest investor-owned utilities in the state – that includes CenterPoint – to come before the commissioners and answer questions about how much they charge and how transparent they are with consumers in how they reach that number.
The news conference itself was a rare swerve for the IURC. Zay said they’re “not typically an outward facing agency.” And the inquiry will arrive as Indiana residents pay some of the highest energy bills in the country.
Evansville-area residents alone saw their bills leap by nearly 25% last summer after the IURC greenlit yet another hike in CenterPoint costs – this time in the latest electric base rate case. And another surge could be coming soon. CenterPoint will submit numbers for “phase two” of the jump sometime around March 1.
“The IURC by its nature is typically a reactive agency. Causes and cases are brought before us where we are challenged with discerning between the ratepayer and the success of the utility,” Zay said in his opening remarks Wednesday. “Certainly we want our ratepayers’ costs to be as little as possible, but we also want our utilities to be successful – when we turn the switch, the lights come on.
“That balance feels dramatically out of whack right now for many, many Hoosiers.”
In a statement to the Courier & Press, CenterPoint said they plan to attend the hearing.
“CenterPoint Energy appreciates the Commission’s continued focus on energy affordability for all Hoosiers,” the statement read in part. “We remain committed to delivering reliable and safe service and continuing the work needed to help manage costs over time.”
On Wednesday, Zay said he expects officials from all five Indiana investor-owned utilities – CenterPoint, Duke Energy, AES Indiana, NIPSCO, and Indiana Michigan Power – to show.
Zay said the IURC is seeking an “open dialogue” on affordability and the transparency of rates. But they’ll allegedly use the hearings to look at themselves, too.
“On reflection, (we want to) understand better what we’ve done right and what we’ve done wrong as a commission to set a tone for what will come next,” he said.
“This is the beginning, not the end, of a process.”
Evansville has been plagued by high CenterPoint rates for years
Affordability concerns are nothing new for Evansville’s CenterPoint customers.
Area residents have paid either the highest or close to the highest residential electric rates in the state for more than a decade, at least. And in recent years, natural gas prices have become a problem each winter, too, thanks to an array of “distribution and service charges” multiple times more expensive than the gas costs themselves.
During a packed IURC field hearing on CenterPoint’s latest base-electrical case at Old National Events Plaza on Feb. 29, 2024, multiple ratepayers who testified said they were sometimes forced to choose between buying medicine and food or paying their high CenterPoint bills.
Now it seems the rest of the state is catching up.
Zay’s announcements comes just a few days after both the Indiana House and Senate passed HB 1002. Co-authored by Evansville Rep. Alex Burton, it would require investor-owned utilities to apply “levelized” billing plans to all active user accounts. That means each monthly would cost around the same, each month. Utilities could adjust that figure no more than twice a year to “reflect typical seasonal patterns of electricity usage.”
Among other things, the bill would also block utilities from shutting off services during abnormally hot days, and allow the IURC to potentially amend rates (but only with the utility’s consent) during a natural disaster, economic depression or “act of war.”
“HB1002 is a meaningful first step, and I’m committed to building on this progress with my colleagues. As Indiana moves toward performance-based ratemaking, we must stay disciplined about efficiency, responsible reporting and clear transparency for consumers,” Burton wrote in a statement earlier this week. “I’m going to keep pushing to make sure Hoosiers see the benefits.”
It’s currently awaiting Gov. Mike Braun’s signature.
The governor, too, has seemingly taken a harder stance against utility prices in recent months. After ignoring the Courier & Press’ questions on affordability in the wake of CenterPoint’s last electric rate bump, Braun has since pledged to address high energy costs.
Amid a flurry of retirements, Braun named three new people to the IURC board in December: former state senator and Vanderburgh County Councilor Bob Deig, who comes in as the Evansville-area’s first representative on the board since 2009; former Office of the Utility Consumer Counselor rep Anthony Swinger; and Zay himself, who made Wednesday’s announcement after only six weeks on the job.
“This is exactly what I expected to see from my new appointments to the IURC,” Braun was quoted as saying in a statement Wednesday morning, “and I expect Chairman Zay to keep the focus on addressing affordability, transparency, and reliability for ratepayers while holding investor-owned utilities accountable.”
Burton, too, praised the move in a statement of his own.
“Today’s announcement is the culmination of months of concerns raised by Hoosiers across the state. Rising energy costs are putting real pressure on families, which in turn is driving action in the legislature and at the IURC,” he’s quoted as saying. “This is one of several efforts with bipartisan support, and it is encouraging to see that alignment focused on addressing energy costs.”
Lawmakers and members of the OUCC are also expected to take part in March 24’s hearing. In the aftermath, Zay said he also hopes to tour the state and hear concerns directly from the ratepayers. In his statement, Burton said he’s already preparing for Zay to come to Evansville.
“Affordability is defined every month by Hoosiers when they receive that bill,” Zay said, “and whether that bill is affordable to them or not.”
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Indiana officials to hold rare ‘inquiry’ into high utility bills
Reporting by Jon Webb, Evansville Courier & Press / Evansville Courier & Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
