SB 46 – Storm Water Fee Exemptions
Authored by Sen. Aaron Freeman (R-Indianapolis)

The introduced bill provided that the board of a municipal department of storm water management, the board of a county department of storm water management or the board of public works of a consolidated city may not assess or collect user fees for the operation and maintenance of a storm water system with respect to: (1) property where religious services are held regularly; (2) property that belongs to a school corporation and is used for educational purposes; or (3) property that is assessed as agricultural land for property tax purposes.

Chamber Position: Oppose

The latest: The bill was heard in the Senate Local Government Committee on January 23 but no vote was taken. This Thursday, the bill was amended so that an interim committee would study stormwater fees. One part of the amendment directs the study committee to consider alleviating the financial burden of storm water fees assessed on property where religious services are held regularly or that belongs to a school corporation and is used for educational purposes. The amended bill passed out of committee by a vote of 9-1 and now is eligible for further action on the Senate floor.

Indiana Chamber action/commentary: The Chamber still opposes the bill because this issue has been addressed through the Chamber’s water study, the Indiana Finance Authority water study and the work of the 2019 Stormwater Task Force, which identified additional investment in stormwater infrastructure. The study committee could make recommendations that would shift costs to business property owners and residential property owners.

Bill Dealing With Shutdown of Electric Generation Significantly Amended

HB 1414 – Retirement of Electric Generation Facilities
Authored by Rep. Ed Soliday (R-Valparaiso)

This amended bill that passed out of committee on January 22 provided that a public utility may not retire, sell, transfer or terminate a lease with respect to an electric generation facility unless the public utility first obtains from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) a determination that the public convenience and necessity require the retirement, sale, transfer or lease termination. It also allowed a utility to earn an additional return on investment if it hit certain metrics.

Chamber position: Oppose

The latest: Four amendments to the bill were offered on the House floor on January 30. One of those was determined not to be eligible for a vote. One from Rep. Ryan Dvorak (D-South Bend), which offered to protect whale oil as a “legacy” source of lighting, failed. Meanwhile, Rep. Alan Morrison (R-Brazil) offered an amendment that would award high value workforce ready credit-bearing grants through the Indiana Commission for Higher Education, in conjunction with the Department of Workforce Development, to an applicant who is a dislocated coal mine employee if the applicant is otherwise eligible for a grant.  This amendment passed by a vote of 94-0.

Lastly, Rep. Soliday offered an amendment to his bill which removed the additional return on investment language.  It also requires a public utility to notify the IURC of its intent to retire, sell or transfer a reliable capacity resource with a capacity exceeding eighty (80) megawatts. It would require the IURC to conduct a public hearing and receive information concerning the reasonableness of the planned retirement, sale or transfer. Moreover, the IURC shall issue findings and conclusions concerning the reasonableness of the planned retirement, sale or transfer based on the information received.  This amendment passed by a voice vote. The bill is now eligible for further action – a final third reading floor vote – next week in the House.

Indiana Chamber action/commentary: Make no mistake, the amended bill is much better than the bill that passed out of committee. However, the bill still has the potential to interfere with the utilities’ ability to make business decisions and result in increased legal fees for the utility, the IURC and the Office of Utility Consumer Counselor –all ultimately paid for by customers.  We still believe that the prudent action should be to wait until the results of the Chamber’s energy study and the recommendations of the 21st Century Energy Task Force come out.

Resource: Greg Ellis at (317) 264-6881 or email: gellis@indianachamber.com