Indiana households served by AES Indiana are strained by higher electric bills, even as the utility's $71 million rate increase returns to dispute.
For customers already dealing with rising living costs, that means the financial impact could arrive well before any final resolution.
Here's what to know
The latest proceedings over AES Indiana's rate hike are underway. Lawyers for the utility, the Indiana Office of Consumer Counselor, Citizens Action Coalition, the city of Indianapolis, and several industrial customers have agreed to a schedule that calls for a one-day hearing in early March.
That timetable, as the Indiana Capital Chronicle reported, means the reconsideration and rehearing will run into the spring.
After the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission approved the increase in June by a 3-1 vote, Gov. Mike Braun criticized the decision and directed Utility Consumer Counselor Abby Gray to pursue a review.
Andy Zay, who was fired from the commission, has said the request was on track to be denied before he was dismissed and another commissioner resigned. The reconstituted IURC voted 3-1 to revisit the case.
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Customers are still seeing the increase roll out in two stages while the dispute remains unresolved. IURC spokesman Ben Gavelek said the first phase began July 27 and adds less than $1 a month for a household using 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity. AES Indiana estimates the second phase, scheduled for January, will add about $8.50 per month.
More background
The Indiana Capital Chronicle reported that AES Indiana serves more than 500,000 customers in the Indianapolis metro area.
The dispute reflects a broader tension in utility cases nationwide: Regulators may revisit a rate decision, but customers may still be required to pay the higher amount in the meantime.
In practical terms, customers in the Indianapolis area could see higher winter bills before the rehearing process is complete, during a season when energy use often rises.
What's being done?
The rehearing gives Citizens Action Coalition, the city of Indianapolis, and industrial customers an opportunity to contest the increase and help build the record before regulators take another look.
Refunds may become part of the outcome if the commission's order is overturned.
"Rates go into effect, even with an appeal pending, unless a request to stay the rates is made to the appellate court, and subject to refund if the court eventually determines to overturn the Commission's order," Gavelek wrote, per the Indiana Capital Chronicle. "The OUCC did not request that the rate increase be stayed pending their request for reconsideration and their notice of appeal."
Where can I learn more?
The AES Indiana case is part of a wider fight over rising utility bills. These stories cover challenges to electric rate increases, customer backlash, and mounting household costs in Indiana and beyond.
• In Indiana, watchdogs say Hoosiers shouldn't pad shareholders' pockets through AES's $71 million increase.
• Across the U.S., utilities are seeking record-breaking $31 billion in rate hikes from customers.
• Utilities opened 2026 by pursuing $9.4 billion in rate hikes as household power costs climbed.
• In Florida, power bills rose sharply while the state's attorney general stayed out of rate fights.
• In West Virginia, Appalachian Power customers challenged an 'experimental' rate hike that the utility defended.
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