STATEHOUSE (Sept. 26, 2026) – State Rep. Ed Soliday (R-Valparaiso) said the Interim Study Committee on Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications, which he chairs, will meet next week to examine utility preparedness and response following the August derecho impacting Northwest Indiana.
The committee will meet on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, at 10 a.m. ET in the House Chamber at the Indiana Statehouse in Indianapolis.
Soliday called for the committee to study this topic last month following the derecho which caused prolonged power outages in the region.
"After such an unprecedented event, it is important for us to understand what happened, what worked and what needs to be improved to better respond before the next major storm," Soliday said. "Some Hoosiers went weeks without electricity, placing an incredible burden on residents. Our goal is to handle events like this quickly and more efficiently in the future"
During the meeting, lawmakers will review annual reports from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission and the Office of Utility Consumer Counselor, hear from academic and industry experts on the storm response, and open testimony to the public.
In his original call last month, Soliday also urged the IURC to contract with an independent, third-party to review preparedness and response efforts of regulated utilities and other critical responders. The IURC recently announced it has opened a docket case to investigate the response of the derecho.
The public is invited to testify at the Statehouse in Indianapolis during the meeting. The committee will also be livestreamed at iga.in.gov.
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State Rep. Ed Soliday (R-Valparaiso) represents House District 4,
which includes a portion of Porter County.
Click here to download a high-resolution photo.
