Indy councilors say AES settlement is 'far too generous' to company

By Tyler Fenwick

All but two Indianapolis city-county councilors have signed a letter criticizing a proposed deal with AES Indiana that would raise electric rates.

The settlement was announced last week and was agreed to by the city of Indianapolis, along with companies including Walmart and Eli Lilly. The agreement would result in a typical residential customer paying about $10 more every month on their electric bill, according to AES.

The agreement is not final. It would need approval from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. AES’ original request, which is still on the table, would increase monthly bills by about $21.

Democratic and Republican councilors quickly opposed the deal. They sent a letter to the regulatory commission and the Office of Utility Consumer Counselor, which represents the public in rate cases, asking for public hearings.

“As elected representatives of the people of Marion County, we are deeply disappointed in the announced settlement, which is far too generous to AES Indiana and harmful to our constituents,” the letter says.
 

The letter was signed by 23 of the 25 councilors as of Wednesday morning. Democrat Carlos Perkins, who hadn’t signed on, told Mirror Indy on Wednesday afternoon that he does support the letter. The other councilor, Democrat Leroy Robinson, did not respond to Mirror Indy’s request for comment in time for publication.

Prior to the settlement announcement, all 25 councilors passed a resolution earlier in October urging AES to withdraw its rate increase request.

City says the deal would save taxpayers millions

Some have focused their criticism on the city of Indianapolis.

Councilor Jesse Brown, a Democrat, said in a post on Facebook that Mayor Joe Hogsett is “making it more likely that your rates go up” by agreeing to a settlement that would increase rates.

When announcing the settlement last week, the city’s Department of Public Works said it would “save millions of dollars for taxpayers.”

But after being criticized for agreeing to a deal that would raise electric rates, the city of Indianapolis posted to its Facebook page that it didn’t negotiate the residential rate increase.

The all-caps post said the city only has the authority to negotiate the electric rates for streetlights. The settlement would increase what the city pays for street lighting by 6.4%, about half of what AES requested.

The announcement from the Department of Public Works mentioned the rate for street lighting, but it also celebrated other aspects of the agreement — including that AES wouldn’t raise its base rate again until at least 2030.

The settlement would increase rates for large commercial and industrial companies by 3.2% and 4.1%, respectively. The increase for residential customers would be 6.5%.

What’s next?

It could take months before the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission makes a decision on the settlement. The commission could approve, deny or modify the agreement.

The Office of Utility Consumer Counselor has asked the commission to hold at least one public hearing for people to weigh in on the settlement.

Mirror Indy, a nonprofit newsroom, is funded through grants and donations from individuals, foundations and organizations.

Mirror Indy local government reporter Peter Blanchard contributed reporting.

Mirror Indy reporter Tyler Fenwick covers housing and labor. Contact him at 317-766-1406 or tyler.fenwick@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @ty_fenwick and Bluesky @tyfenwick.bsky.social.