EVANSVILLE — With rates high − and likely to go even higher − the Evansville City Council has agreed to intervene in a CenterPoint Energy case in front of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission.
The council discussed the move during its meeting Monday evening. Missy Mosby, D-Second Ward, and Ron Beane, R-At-Large, were not present.
Democrats Zac Heronemus, Third Ward; Alex Burton, Fourth Ward; Jim Brinkmeyer, Sixth Ward; and Kaitlin Moore, At-Large; along with Republican Angela Koehler Lindsey, Fifth Ward; voted in favor of intervening. Republican Jonathan Weaver, At-Large, voted against.
The current understanding with the vote is that the City Council will officially act as an intervenor in CenterPoint's electric base rate case, which the city tentatively expects to be filed sometime in December.
Utility rates, specifically gas and electric, are top of mind for residents throughout the city. Councilors heard from those in their wards (and the rest of the city) about rising rates during candidate forums and other gatherings leading up to the recent city election.
CenterPoint last had its base rates approved in 2011, according to the Office of Utility Consumer Counselor. Those rates cover most of a utility’s operating and maintenance costs.
While the city council has not intervened in cases before, both Mayor Lloyd Winnecke's administration and previously Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel's have.
Burton said utility costs are a top-three complaint from residents in his ward.
"I understand (CenterPoint) is a company (and) it has to make a profit," he said. "But at some point something more has to be done."
Burton said the high cost of utilities − coupled with high rent and and increasing cost of living − have a lot of residents' paychecks going mostly to cover rent and CenterPoint bills.
This leaves less for food and other necessities, he said.
"We all feel it," he said. "There's no escaping it."
Even as a city, Burton said the council has to approve appropriations for the year to cover those higher costs.
"It's taxing everybody," he said.
As an intervenor, the council will be able to file testimony in the case, as well as participate in the hearings. However, they will also have to hire an attorney.
City Council attorney Joshua Claybourn said they would need to find an attorney who specializes in the cases, which won't be cheap.
Still, Heronemus said there would need to be appropriations made to cover the costs. He said even if they had pushed the discussion to the Nov. 27 meeting, the cost estimates wouldn't have been known in full.
"Another question would be, what's the cost of inaction?" he said. "To our city coffers, to our residents' coffers."
Trockman said with utility rates the way they are for the city, it's the council's responsibility to do something.
"At the very least we could explore intervening," he said. "I think it's the one step we haven't taken that we have in our toolbox."