Final Decision on Proposed Utility Rate Raise to be this Winter - wlfi.com

Final Decision on Proposed Utility Rate Raise to be this Winter | Local | wlfi.com

Indiana American Water
The company asked for an increase of more than 30-percent in April, to raise more than 86-million dollars.

West Lafayette, Ind. (WLFI) — State regulators recommend a much smaller rate increase for the Indiana American Water Company. The company asked for an increase of more than 30 percent in April, to raise more than 86 million dollars.

Indiana American Water was asking for an increase of 31.1 percent. But during a hearing in July, the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor recommended cutting that to 6.6 percent.

OUCC spokesperson Olivia Rivera says the agency looks at the best and most financially advisable options for companies asking for rate hikes.

This part of the process took about three months. They had a number of experts come in to review the case. Rivera says 11 witnesses filed testimony.

Rivera says they went through 1300 pages of testimony before making a recommendation.

"Overall there was just a number of areas that we were able to find ways that the utility might be able to reduce those costs," Rivera said.

Rivera says the water company also wanted to rebuild two treatment facilities, which the OUCC had concerns about.

The OUCC just makes recommendations. Cases like this one usually follow a 300-day timeline and the final decision will be made by the Indiana Regulatory Commission.

The final answer from the IURC is likely to come in January of 2024.