Residents Asked for Comments on IPL Rate Hike

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor (OUCC) is inviting consumer comments on Indianapolis Power & Light Company’s (IPL’s) request for a rate increase, aimed at facilitating the City of Indianapolis’ proposal to create an electric vehicle sharing program for public use.
IPL is seeking IURC approval of a $16 million rate increase to pay for certain start-up costs for BlueIndy, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Paris, France-based Bolloré Group. The program would be developed by the City and BlueIndy to offer cars for public use at kiosks with charging stations at more than 200 Marion County sites.
In its testimony, IPL estimates the proposal would raise an average residential customer’s bill (for 1,000 kilowatt hours) by 44 cents per month. The increase would cover approximately $3.7 million in unfunded program costs for providing electric line extensions to the charging sites and about $12.3 million for installing BlueIndy charging stations and related equipment.
Consumers may comment by:
• Speaking at the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission’s (IURC’s) public field hearing on Wednesday, August 13, 2014, or
• Sending written comments to the OUCC in advance of the public field hearing.
• The August 13 IURC public field hearing will be held in the Crispus Attucks Medical Magnet High School Auditorium (1140 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St. in Indianapolis) at 6:00 p.m. The OUCC will conduct an informational meeting at 5:30 p.m., immediately before the field hearing.
Oral and written consumer comments will be accepted during the hearing.
Comments carry equal weight whether they are oral or written, and will become part of the case’s evidentiary record.
Commissioners are not allowed to answer questions during the field hearing. However, OUCC and IURC staff will be available before, during and after the hearing.
More information on this case, including the OUCC’s testimony, is available online at www.in.gov/oucc/2798.htm.