IURC Commissioner Vacancy: Braun's Fourth Appointee Becomes the Swing Vote

IURC Commissioner David Veleta submitted a formal resignation letter dated June 26, effective August 31 or sooner. Applications for his replacement closed July 7. Interviews are scheduled in Indianapolis on July 16.

Once that seat is filled, Governor Braun will have appointed four of five IURC commissioners. Indiana statute caps same-party commissioners at three, so the replacement must be a Democrat or independent, but Braun controls the selection. The practical question isn't the party label. It's whether the appointee functions as an independent check on the commission's direction or as an ideologically aligned pick who happens to carry a different registration.

The immediate stakes: the OUCC's rehearing petition deadline on AES Indiana's $71 million rate increase is also July 7. The new commissioner almost certainly will not be seated before the commission acts on that filing, meaning the AES rehearing could proceed with Chairman Swinger recused and a three-member effective quorum. The Duke Energy Cause No. 46038 appeal, which alleges an $89 million overcharge, is also in the queue. Watch the AES rehearing vote for the first read on how a reconstituted commission will behave.

If your utility contracts or energy procurement agreements haven't been reviewed against this regulatory backdrop, the time to do that is before the new commission starts acting, not after.