FROM INDIANA PUBLIC BROADCASTING

The chairman of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) will retire in January, creating a key vacancy on the five-member panel that regulates more than 600 electric, gas, water, and wastewater utilities across the state.

The IURC plays a critical role in ensuring utilities provide safe and reliable service at just and reasonable rates.

Kerwin Olson, executive director of the Citizens Action Coalition, said utility costs often make up a significant portion of household budgets. He noted the commission is currently considering major issues, including the retirement of coal plants and how to serve large data centers coming to Indiana.

Olson also called for greater transparency in the appointment process. Commissioners are nominated by a seven-member committee and then appointed by the governor. “We should be doing more with respect to letting the public be informed and involved in the process,” Olson said. “And, at a minimum, these commissioners should go before the General Assembly for an up-and-down approval vote so the public knows who these folks are.”

Commissioner Jim Huston, who was appointed by former Governor Mike Pence in 2014 and named chairman in 2016, is the official stepping down. All five current IURC commissioners will be up for re-appointment during Governor Mike Braun’s term.