By Sarah Loesch, Evansville Courier & Press - To read full article click here.
Published 4:19 am CT March 5, 2024; Updated 8:33 am CT March 5, 2024
Vanderburgh County Commissioner Mike Goebel
Commissioner Mike Goebel spoke at the 6 p.m. meeting, after having passed out copies of the commissioner's resolution to the hundreds gathered.
Goebel said the rate increase would put "tremendous" hardship on low-income, fixed-income and truly any income Vanderburgh County residents.
"This increase will also hinder what we hope to be a growth of population, expansion and growth of business," he said. "But when people look at what we have to pay, compare it to other communities in other states, that growth is going to be stopped."
Goebel said every elected body in Evansville opposes the increase, noting the city council, commissioners and county council.
"Thank you for hearing us," Goebel said to the IURC members present. "Hopefully you'll do the right thing, as so many people have said to you today. People are hurting, and we just want what's right."
Photo Credit MaCabe Brown / Courier & Press
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EVANSVILLE — Hundreds of people showed up to the public field hearing Thursday on CenterPoint Energy's request to raise base electric rates, including multiple elected officials, some of whom also testified on record.
The Courier & Press took note of who was in attendance. There was Mayor Stephanie Terry, as well as Evansville City Council members Missy Mosby, Mary Allen, Courtney Johnson, Paul Green, Jim Brinkmeyer, Alex Burton, Angela Koehler Lindsey, Paul Green and Zac Heronemus. City clerk Laura Windhorst was also present.
On the county side, all three Vanderburgh County Commissioners – Cheryl Musgrave, Mike Goebel and Justin Elpers – joined the fray. Vanderburgh County Council members spotted were Jill Hahn, Joe Kiefer and Nick Iaccarino. Pigeon Township Trustee Ruby McGlown attended as well.
State Rep. Ryan Hatfield was also present at the hearing. He reached out to the Courier & Press and said he has also submitted written opposition.
Here's what the Evansville and Vanderburgh County officials who testified on the record said on Thursday.
Evansville Mayor Stephanie Terry
Terry was the first person to address the four of five Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission members present at the 2 p.m. session of the public field hearing.
Terry said CenterPoint Energy's request to raise rates is the single-most discussed issue since she took office Jan. 1. Residents are calling the mayor's office, sending emails and commenting on every social media post the administration writes. The traveling city hall held last week at the CK Newsome Center brought comments as well.
Terry called CenterPoint an "important corporate citizen" in Evansville, but said that doesn't change the fact that many of the residents can't afford the proposed increase.
"In short, I am concerned that approving this rate case will have a negative impact on our residents, and that it will have a negative impact on our city," Terry said. "This is what our residents are telling us everyday."
Vanderburgh County Commission President Cheryl Musgrave
Musgrave shared the commissioner's recently passed resolution in opposition to the CenterPoint rate increase, entering it into the public record as she began her comments at the 2 p.m. session Thursday.
"Vanderburgh County has 171,000 proud residents: all of whom work hard to make this community a great community and make it their home," Musgrave said. "The rate increases are making that far more difficult."
Musgrave said it is "phenomenally difficult" for residents to make ends meet, and she urged the IURC members to compare the income locally to other parts of the state.
Highlighting the end point of the commission's resolution, Musgrave asked for the rate increase to be denied, and for IURC members to advocate for the exemption of all utilities from sales tax.
Evansville City Councilor Mary Allen
Small business owner and Evansville City Councilor At-Large Mary Allen testified Thursday evening, speaking as a customer and resident.
She asked the IURC to say no to the increase and to follow their mission statement to "make decisions in the public interest to ensure the utilities provide safe and reliable service at just and reasonable rates."
"Residents are struggling to afford utilities at the current rate." Allen said. "You've heard the stories, you'll hear more."
Allen said there are people not wanting to move here due to utility costs, and friends who have their own small business are struggling to survive.
"This isn't only a hit on our individuals and families," she said, "but to our growth and economy as a whole."
Referring back to the commission's mission statement, Allen said CenterPoint's requested increase is neither just nor reasonable.
As a business owner, she understands costs for infrastructure. But unlike CenterPoint, a normal business can't pass their heftiest costs onto the customer. That would price out customers and send them hunting for another business.
But with CenterPoint, which has a monopoly in the Evansville area, finding another business isn't an option.
"We're captive consumers and we're quite helpless," she said. "That's why we have you. That's why we need you, truly: to regulate, to police. For us – for the people in our community."
Evansville City Councilor Angela Koehler Lindsey
Fifth Ward city councilor Angela Koehler Lindsey said she is bombarded with concerns about the current cost of utility bills and the potential for the rate increase to be approved.
Speaking as a private citizen and customer, Koehler Lindsey asked the IURC to listen to everyone testifying against the hike and make the decision to reject it.
"Enough is enough," she said. "Our residents deserve relief, not additional financial burdens."
Evansville City Councilor Zac Heronemus
Third Ward councilor and current city council president Zac Heronemus testified to the struggles Evansville has. He included a personal story from when he and his wife first made the city their home.
Living in a rehabbed shotgun house on Culver Drive, Heronemus and his wife never had a utility bill that didn't nearly rival their $750 rent from August to February.
"It was a shock," he said. "It was a shock for many reasons."
In his professional life working in the nonprofit sector, Heronemus said he sees many struggling with the decisions of what to prioritize. Daycare or utilities; medicine or utilities, food or utilities.
"We have over 3,000 evictions in our community annually," he said. "Many of those are lease violations due to utilities being shut off."
Heronemus asked the IURC to "unequivocally" deny the rate increase in its entirety.
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