The Indiana House Utilities, Energy and Telecommunications Committee heard various amendments to House Bill 1002 — one of the body’s priority bills for the legislative session.
House Bill 1002 — authored by state Rep. Alaina Shonkwiler, R-Noblesville — offers multiple solutions to rising electricity bills, including automatically placing residential ratepayers on budget billing and prohibiting utilities from disconnecting low-income customers’ services during periods with extreme heat warnings. The bill also ties utility profits to performance metrics, including affordability and service restoration.
Ratepayers must be placed on budget billing plans on July 1, if the legislation is passed, according to Post-Tribune archives.
“House Bill 1002 introduces performance-based ratemaking in a limited and incremental way, not as a replacement for traditional regulation but as an evolution to it,” Shonkwiler said. “Under this approach, utilities continue to be regulated by the commission, and a portion of their financial outcomes are linked to how well they perform against clearly defined metrics.”
State Reps. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso, and Jim Pressel, R-Rolling Prairie, co-authored House Bill 1002, according to the Indiana General Assembly website.
In July, the Citizens Action Coalition found that statewide electric utility bills have increased by more than $28 per month, or 17.5%, according to Post-Tribune archives. NIPSCO residential customers were hit hardest, with about a $50 per month, or 26.7% increase, in one year.
The House committee heard multiple amendments to the electric utility legislation.
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One amendment removed the phrase “budget-based billing” from the bill and replaced it with “levelized-billing plans.” The amendment also says that an electricity supplier must file a customer affordability report and service restoration performance report with the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission by March 1 for a multi-year rate plan.
The IURC can, at any time, examine the rates under the multi-year rate plan, conduct periodic reviews with public hearings and comments, and adjust base rates or performance incentive mechanisms. The amendment was approved by the committee.
Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington, told Soliday that he appreciated the amendment but added that some committee members still have concerns with House Bill 1002.
“I think it goes a long way to addressing a lot of our concerns,” Pierce said. “Some of them, I think, were significant enough that they kept us from supporting the bill. … But you’ll see from our amendments, that more can be done to provide relief.”
Pierce introduced multiple amendments, including one that would not collect the 7% sales tax for residential ratepayers. He believes that since electricity is a necessity, the sales tax should be removed.
“I think this would give immediate relief to people who are suffering under these high bills,” Pierce said.
The sales tax amendment failed on Tuesday.
Democrats introduced two amendments that passed during Tuesday’s committee meeting, including one that would allow the Office of the Utility Consumer Counselor to look at residential trends when setting rates, such as the “ebbs and flows of the economy” and the number of outages during a quarter. Pierce introduced the amendment.
“Those kinds of data, I think, could be really helpful,” Pierce said. “Having that come in on a quarterly basis to be able to essentially see how people are doing, basically, would be helpful to all of us.”
Rep. Carey Hamilton, D-Indianapolis, introduced an amendment that would prohibit an electric utility from terminating eligible residential services from June 1 to Sept. 23. The amendment would replace language that would prohibit termination during extreme heat.
Customers who have applied for a heating assistance program are eligible, according to the amendment.
“I worry that there are many nearly equally dangerous heat days that will not be covered and put people at risk,” Hamilton said. “Even when a day is declared, someone could have their utilities turned off the day before and not have them restarted in time. This is just a cautionary amendment to provide more protection for our most vulnerable Hoosiers.”
Rep. Cherrish Pryor, D-Indianapolis, also introduced multiple amendments during the committee meeting, including a failed one that would prohibit utilities from impacting credit scores.
Pryor also introduced an amendment that would prohibit companies from charging reconnection fees for electric, gas or water fees. That amendment also failed to pass the committee.
“I think it’s important because right now, utilities don’t even have to get out of their office in order to reconnect, but they’re still charging a reconnection fee,” Pryor said. “I think a lot of money could stay in ratepayers’ pockets and potentially help them pay some of the other bills they have.”
The House Utilities, Energy and Telecommunications Committee is expected to talk more about House Bill 1002 at a later date.