INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Gov. Mike Braun is calling for a state investigation into NIPSCO following widespread and prolonged power outages that left hundreds of thousands of Northwest Indiana residents without electricity after the devastating Aug. 11 severe weather event.
Braun announced Monday that he has directed the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor (OUCC) to file a complaint and petition with the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC), seeking a formal investigation into NIPSCO’s preparation for and response to the storm.
The investigation would focus on several areas, including NIPSCO’s vegetation management and maintenance of utility rights-of-way, as well as whether money previously approved by state regulators for infrastructure and reliability improvements was used as intended.
“NIPSCO is a monopoly utility that Hoosiers pay every month with the expectation that it will use its considerable resources to maintain its system, prepare for severe weather and restore service as quickly as possible when disaster strikes,” Braun said. “NIPSCO has failed to keep its end of the bargain.”
Braun said the investigation should determine whether NIPSCO completed the work it told customers and regulators it would perform using ratepayer-funded investments.
The announcement comes nearly two weeks after the Aug. 11 derecho and tornadoes caused catastrophic damage across Northwest Indiana. At the peak of the event, approximately 301,000 of NIPSCO’s roughly 500,000 customers were without power, making it the largest outage event in the utility’s history.
According to the governor’s office, approximately 10,000 Hoosiers remained without power Monday morning.
The storm caused extensive damage to the electrical system across Lake and Porter counties, with trees and large limbs bringing down power lines and utility poles. NIPSCO previously reported hundreds of damaged transmission and distribution poles as crews from across the country were brought into Northwest Indiana to assist with restoration.
Braun stressed that his criticism is directed at NIPSCO management rather than the thousands of utility workers and state employees who have spent nearly two weeks working throughout the disaster area.
“The crews on the ground, representing both state agencies and utility workers, have done an extraordinary job,” the governor’s office said. “However, NIPSCO management has failed to deliver adequate solutions.”
State agencies have also been directed to take extraordinary measures to assist restoration efforts, including clearing roads, alleys and storm debris to provide utility crews access to damaged infrastructure.
The requested investigation will specifically examine whether NIPSCO adequately maintained vegetation and cleared rights-of-way to protect its infrastructure from severe weather. Regulators would also review whether money authorized through IURC-approved trackers was actually spent for its approved purposes.
The OUCC represents Indiana utility consumers in cases before the IURC, while the IURC regulates the state’s investor-owned utilities and has authority over rates, charges and utility service.
The investigation request represents a significant escalation in scrutiny of NIPSCO’s response as Northwest Indiana continues recovering from one of the most destructive severe-weather events the Region has experienced in years.
Region News Source will continue following the investigation and the ongoing restoration and recovery efforts across Northwest Indiana. As of today less than 10,000 customers remain without power on day 13.
