Pryor asks IURC to deny city-IPL rate hike for car-share program
For immediate release:
June 17, 2014
INDIANAPOLIS – State Rep. Cherrish Pryor (D-Indianapolis) today asked state regulators to deny an Indianapolis Power & Light Company (IPL) rate increase to help pay for the BlueIndy all-electric car share program, stating that ratepayers should not be asked to subsidize a private project.
The City of Indianapolis has requested that the utility seek approval for a plan to ask that all IPL ratepayers—including those who live outside Marion County—provide up to $16 million to extend electric distribution and service lines and help pay for the installation of charging facilities for the vehicles throughout the city. The project, initiated by the Bollore Group from France, could start up before the end of this year.
Because of the time frame in getting the program off the ground, the city and IPL are asking that the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) act upon the rate increase as quickly as possible.
But Pryor said there are too many questions about the project to justify speedy approval of a request that asks ratepayers to finance a service that has absolutely nothing to do with delivering safe, affordable and reliable electricity.
In a letter to the Office of the Utility Consumer Counselor, Pryor said supporters of the request have failed to offer cohesive justification for why the program would be good for ratepayers. She noted there had been no independent analysis of many factors, including the cost of the service to ratepayers, and that none of the charging facilities outlined in the request would be located in areas of the city where minorities and people on low incomes live.
By asking that the request be handled as quickly as possible, Pryor said the city is “requesting the rate increase behind the backs of ratepayers and without giving them an opportunity to provide input. It is particularly outrageous that this demand is being made of ratepayers who do not even live within Indianapolis or Marion County. [Get a list of locations for the proposed electric car rental kiosks.] I believe that is the living definition of taxation without representation.”
She noted that IPL has received approval for more than $1.7 billion in cost recovery in the last four years, while some customers have seen bills increase by as much as 50 percent over the past decade.
“It is immoral to assume that Hoosiers in my district can bear the brunt of these increases for the sake of the profitability of a French Fortune 500 corporation,” Pryor said in her letter. “Sadly, those asking for a rate increase to benefit this company have not stepped up to ask for a minimum wage increase for their employees or others. None were at the State Capitol this session asking to keep the Energize Indiana program, which helps to lower electric bills.”
Pryor also emphasized that backers of the project had no guarantees that it would be a success.
“Gut feelings should not be used as a standard when asking for people’s hard-earned dollars,” she said. “As a matter of fact, if the advocates of this program were so sure of the success, then they would be confident of moving forward without asking ratepayers to subsidize the project.
“This request would set a terrible precedent,” Pryor added. “Ratepayers currently pay for service they use. This request, if approved, tells businesses they don’t need to take on any fiscal risk because ratepayers and/or taxpayers will foot the bill.”
Instead of approving the request, Pryor said the city should conduct a feasibility analysis of the project that considers other private options for financing and gives the people of Indianapolis and Marion County full opportunities to examine the plans and weigh in on its merits.