Governor Mike Braun has replaced the chairman of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC), appointing Commissioner Anthony Swinger to lead the agency just six months after naming former State Senator Andy Zay to the position.

Leadership Change

Braun announced the change Monday evening, stating that affordability is his top priority and he is confident Chairman Swinger will deliver on that priority for Hoosiers. Zay, a Huntington Republican and former state senator, will remain on the five-member commission, which regulates Indiana’s major utility companies and oversees rates for electricity, natural gas, water, and other services.

The leadership change comes days after the IURC approved a rate increase for AES Indiana. Regulators authorized approximately $70 million in additional annual revenue for the Indianapolis-based electric utility, significantly less than the nearly $193 million the company requested. Braun publicly criticized the decision following the ruling and called on regulators to reconsider the case, saying additional scrutiny was needed and that more reductions should be considered.

Zay was among the three commissioners who voted in favor of the AES rate increase. Swinger did not participate in the vote because of his previous work on the case while serving with the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor, the state agency that represents utility customers in regulatory proceedings.

Commission Makeup

The IURC plays a key role in determining how much Hoosiers pay for utility services by deciding whether companies can recover costs from customers and what rates utilities are allowed to charge. The shakeup comes amid broader questions about the future makeup of the commission. Commissioner David Veleta posted a message on LinkedIn Monday suggesting he may be preparing for a career change, writing that after 17 years at the IURC, including the last four as a commissioner, he was “ready for what’s next.”

Original reporting: WOWO News/Talk (Fort Wayne) — read the source article.