Another state committee plans to discuss NIPSCO and its response to prolonged Northwest Indiana power outages following the Aug. 11 derecho.
The statehouse’s Interim Study Committee on Energy, Utilities, and Telecommunications will meet at 9 a.m. Wednesday in Indianapolis. The commission will hear several presentations about extreme weather events, vegetation management and outage response, as well as comments by officials, legislators and the public before a committee discussion and vote on a final report.
The committee will also review annual reports from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission and Office of the Utility Consumer Counselor, according to the meeting agenda available on the Indiana General Assembly website.
Purdue University Professor Dan Chavas will present the committee with information about derechos and their characteristics. Brian Thiry, director of strategic engagement for ReliabilityFirst, will present on vegetation management and its importance in fixing power outages, and Luke Wilson, chief policy director for the Indiana Office of Energy Development, will present on other states’ responses to outages, including Michigan and Tennessee.
State Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso, is the committee’s chair, and state Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford, will be vice chair. The committee is made up of 12 other state legislators, including state Sen. Mark Spencer, D-Gary.
Soliday did not respond to a request for a phone interview about the meeting, including why it’s being held in Indianapolis rather than Northwest Indiana.
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“After such an unprecedented event, it is important for us to understand what happened, what worked and what needs to be improved to better respond before the next major storm,” Soliday said in a Saturday news release. “Some Hoosiers went weeks without electricity, placing an incredible burden on residents. Our goal is to handle events like this quickly and more efficiently in the future.”
On Aug. 27, Soliday called for the IURC to commission an “independent, third-party review” of utilities’ response to power outages, according to a previous news release.
“Residents across Northwest Indiana are facing significant hardships from the prolonged power outages following the recent storms,” Soliday said. “These were historic, catastrophic storms that tested the state and our region’s readiness and response. Hoosiers deserve to know what worked, what didn’t and what needs to improve before the next storm.”
NIPSCO was unable to comment on the committee meeting before Post-Tribune deadline Monday.
According to Post-Tribune archives, the IURC announced last week that members will begin their investigation into NIPSCO this week. On Aug. 25, the OUCC filed a petition to investigate, and NIPSCO filed a response to the petition on Aug. 28, saying it agreed “to a limited scope” in the investigation.
A previous NIPSCO statement said that the company will cooperate with the investigation.
“This was an unprecedented storm that caused extraordinary damage across northern Indiana,” the statement said. “We are committed to cooperating with the IURC in the investigation that was commenced today, including providing information regarding our storm preparation and response, as well as our operations and ongoing efforts to serve our customers safely and reliably.”
Northwest Indiana leaders — including Gary Mayor Eddie Melton, Portage Mayor Austin Bonta and Lake Station Mayor Bill Carroll — supported the announced investigation.
“An independent, fact-based investigation is the right step to determine what happened, what could have been done differently, and what must change going forward,” Melton said in a previous statement. “I have already communicated the city’s priorities directly to NIPSCO, and I will continue to advocate for greater accountability, stronger infrastructure, improved emergency response, and a more reliable energy system for the people of Gary.”
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