Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission

The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) is the public utilities commission of the state of Indiana, led by five commissioners appointed by the governor.

The commission regulates electric, natural gas, telecommunications, steam, water and sewer utilities.

History

The commission was established by the Indiana General Assembly as the Railroad Commission in the late 1800s to regulate the railroads in the state.[1] On March 4, 1913, Governor Samuel M. Ralston signed the Shively-Spencer Utility Act giving it the additional authority to regulate electric, natural gas, water, private sewer, and telephone utilities along with common carriers (trucking) and renaming it as the Public Service Commission. The act replaced legislation from 1891 in which the state had given cities and towns the ability to contract with utilities for service and to set rates by local ordinance. Utilities with existing municipal franchises could surrender them and place themselves under the commission's regulation by accepting an "indeterminate permit".[2]

In 1987, the commission was given its current name of Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission.[1]

Divisions

Electric

The Electric Division of the IURC regulates five major investor owned electric utilities: Duke Energy Indiana, Indiana-Michigan Power, Indianapolis Power and Light Company, Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO), and Vectren Energy Delivery of Indiana.

In addition, nine of the 72 municipally-owned utilities operating in Indiana remain under the Commission's jurisdiction for rate regulation: Richmond Municipal, Anderson Municipal, Crawfordsville Municipal, Auburn Municipal, Frankfort Municipal, Lebanon Municipal, Tipton Municipal, Knightstown Municipal, Kingsford Heights Municipal, and Greenfield Mills, Inc. Power & Light.

Natural Gas

The Natural Gas division regulates the rates, charges, and terms of service for intrastate gas pipelines and LDCs. It inspects federal all intrastate natural gas facilities in accord with federal safety regulations. Additionally, the Natural Gas division reviews gas cost adjustments (GCAs), financial arrangements, service territory requests, and assists in investigatory proceedings when these docketed proceedings are filed with the Commission. It also analyzes various forms of alternative regulatory proposals, such as rate decoupling, rate adjustment mechanisms, and customer choice initiatives.

Telecommunications

The Communications Division monitors regulatory proceedings and policy initiatives at the federal, state, and local levels to determine the impact of those policies. The division implements universal service programs and provides recommendations on applications for certificates of territorial authority for communications service providers and state franchises for video service providers. The Communications Division also resolves carrier-to-carrier disputes, manages policies regarding telephone numbering resources (pursuant to federal and state law), protects consumers from unauthorized changes to their service, and implements universal service programs.

Water and wastewater

The Water and Sewer Division regulates 89 of the 555 water utilities and 45 of the 547 wastewater utilities in Indiana. Although the IURC regulates only a fraction of the water utilities, these entities serve approximately 45% of Indiana's water consumers. Approximately 85% of Indiana customers, however, are served by non-jurisdictional wastewater utilities.

Consumer Affairs

The Consumer Affairs Division resolves customer complaints by ensuring utility compliance with Commission rules and regulations by investigating consumer allegations and issuing timely determinations. The types of issues handled by the Consumer Affairs Division include: deposits, billing, termination of service, customer rights, and utility responsibilities.[1]

Legal

The IURC Legal Division aids in the development of the commissions “Rules and Regulations Concerning Practice and Procedure” as well as “Rules and Regulations and Standards of Service” to govern each type of utility through Title 170 of the Indiana Administrative Code. These changes follow a rulemaking process which, if applied to Indiana Code, require approval from the Governor and Attorney General.[1]

Commissioners

The five commissioners are appointed by the governor for four-year terms. No more than three of the commissioners can be from the same political party as the governor.[1]

Commissioner Appointment Departure
Thomas Duncan 1913 1917
John F. McClure 1913 1917
Charles J. Murphy 1913 1916
Charles A. Edwards 1913 1919
James L. Clark 1913 1919
Edwin M. Lee 1916 1917
E.I. Lewis 1917 1921
John W. McCardle 1917 1932
William J. Wood 1917 1918
Edwin Corr 1917 1919
Paul P. Haynes 1918 1921
Glen Van Auken 1919 1923
Fred Bates Johnson 1919 1921
Edgar M. Blessing 1921 1923
George M. Darnard 1921 1922
Maurice Douglas 1921 1925
Oscar Ratts 1922 1924
Samuel R. Artman 1923 1926
Frank Wampler 1923 1927
Frank T. Singleton 1924 1932
Clyde H. Jones 1925 1927
Howell Ellis 1926 1933
C.F. McIntosh 1927 1931
Harvey Harmon 1927 1929
Jere West 1929 1933
Harry K. Cuthbertson 1931 1932
Ralph M. Young 1932 1933
Perry McCart 1933 1940
Samuel L. Trabue 1933 1937
Moie Cook 1933 1940
Fred F. Bays 1937 1939
William A. Stuckey 1939 1944
Frederick F. Eichhorn 1941 1943
George M. Barnard 1941 1944
George N. Beamer 1943 1944
Hugh W. Abbett 1944 1945
unknown 1949 1953
Lawrence W. Cannon 1944 1951
unknown
Roscoe P. Freeman 1944 1945
unknown 1949 1951
Leroy E. Yoder 1945 1949
Lawrence E. Carlson 1945 1949
Crawford F. Parker 1951 1952
Wendell Tennis 1951 1957
Wallace Weatherholt 1952 1953
Warren Buchanan 1953 1957
M. Elliot Belshaw 1953 1957
Garland G. Skelton 1957 1958
Ira L. Haymaker 1957 1962
John W. Van Ness 1957 1959
Leslie Duvall 1958 1961
unknown 1985 1989
Robert S. Webb 1959 1961
unknown 1971 1971
C. Patrick Clancy 1961 1970
Merton Stanley 1961 1967
Phillip L. Bayt 1963 1969
Richard P. Stein 1967 1970
John L. Ryan 1969 1970
George B. Jeffrey 1970 1971
David J. Allen 1970 1975
William B. Powers 1971 1982
W.W. Hill, Jr. 1971 1974
Larry J. Wallace 1974 1984
James M. Plaskett 1975 1981
Peggy Boehm 1981 1985
William W. Montgomery 1982 1986
Michael G. Banta 1984 1985
Willis N. Zagrovich 1984 1989
Frederick L. Corban 1984 1995
Karl O'Lessker 1986 1990
Vicky A. Bailey 1986 1993
James R. Monk 1989 1993
G. Richard Klein 1990 2000
Mary Jo Huffman 1993 1998
John F. Mortell 1994 1997
Camie J. Swanson-Hull 1996 2004
William D. McCarty 1997 2005
David W. Hadley 2000 2006
Judith G. Ripley 1998 2005
Gregory D. Server 2005 2009
David Lott Hardy 2005 2010
Jeffrey L. Golc 2007 2010
Larry S. Landis 2003 2014
James Atterholt 2009 2014
David E. Ziegner 1990 Current
Carolene R. Mays 2010 2015
Carol A. Stephan 2014 2016
Angela Weber 2014 2018
Jim Huston 2014 Current
Sarah Freeman 2016 Current
Stefanie Krevda 2018 Current
David Ober 2018 Current

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "About the IURC". Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. December 17, 2020. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  2. ^ Rumer, Thomas A. (1983). Citizens Gas & Coke Utility : A History, 1851-1980. Indianapolis: Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library. pp. 81–82. Retrieved March 25, 2021.

External links

  • Official website
  • v
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