Indiana General Assembly
Pro-Consumer Voting Percentages
& Campaign Contributions
| 2021 | 98% | $0 | Cumulative: | 98% | |
| 2022 | 92% | $0 |
CAC considers that 80% is a passing grade for the legislators, meaning that if their Pro-Consumer Voting Percentage is 80% or above, they are working to protect consumers in the Indiana Statehouse. If their percentage is below 80%, they are not working to protect consumers.
The cumulative voting record percentage represents voting records from the last 10 years.
Campaign contribution information comes from followthemoney.org, and includes money taken from the Energy and Natural Resources industries, including: utilities, coal, mining, oil, natural gas, steel, and environmental services & equipment.
The campaign contributions represent money taken in the previous 11 years.
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Senator Fady Qaddoura (D-Indianapolis, District 30)
2022 Campaign Contributions: $0
2012 - 2022
2022 Pro-Consumer Voting Percentage: 92%
For bill details, visit our 2022 Indiana General Assembly page.
HB1111: Utility Regulatory Commission Reporting and Rules
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
IURC agency bill, authorizes FERC Order 2222 rulemaking
Committee Votes on HB1111: none
Senate Floor Votes on HB1111: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
HB1196: Homeowners Associations and Solar Power
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
HB1196 makes it harder for Homeowners Associations to prohibit residents from adding solar panels.
Committee Votes on HB1196: none
Senate Floor Votes on HB1196: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
HB1209: Carbon Sequestration Projects
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
Outlines a framework for entities conducting carbon capture and sequestration in Indiana (CCS - underground storage of toxic, liquefied, and highly pressurized carbon dioxide). Addresses issues related to CCS, including mineral rights, pore space ownership, permitting for pipelines and storage related activities, and creates the carbon storage facility trust fund. Seeks to protect adjacent landowners with notification and compensation - with “forced pooling” if 60% of the pore space area approves. It does not speak to the controversial immunity provisions. However, it does require that the State of Indiana assume ownership and the associated liability 10 years after a certificate of completion is issued by DNR.
Committee Votes on HB1209: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
Senate Floor Votes on HB1209: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
HB1221: Electric Vehicles and Electricity Pricing
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
As introduced, HB1221 exempted (non-utility) owners and hosts of EVs and EV charging stations from regulation by IURC, authorizes hosts and owners of EV supply equipment who make the equipment available to the public to charge by the kwh, defines an electric utility “EV pilot” program for jurisdictional utilities, authorizes utilities to file for approval of pilot programs, authorizes the IURC to approve the pilot programs and the associated cost recovery. It was amended in the Senate Utilities Committee to require that any businesses that host EV chargers purchase the electricity for the chargers from the monopoly utility that is the provider for their geographical region. This means that they cannot generate their own electricity for the EV chargers (even if they are already generating their own electricity).
Committee Votes on HB1221: none
Senate Floor Votes on HB1221: 1 vote, Anti-Consumer
SB147: Underground Pumped Storage Hydropower
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
Adds underground pumped hydro to the definition of clean energy and renewable energy.
Committee Votes on SB147: none
Senate Floor Votes on SB147: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
SB265: Carbon Sequestration Pilot Project
Status: Died in the House
HB1249 & SB265 are being pushed by a privately-owned corporation known as Wabash Valley Resources who is claiming that they will develop the largest carbon capture and sequestration project (CCS) ever in the US. They opine that it is a climate change mitigation strategy, but the best way to mitigate climate change is to NOT produce carbon dioxide in the first place.
Committee Votes on SB265: none
Senate Floor Votes on SB265: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
SB271: Small Modular Nuclear Reactors
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
SB271 will shift the financial risk to captive consumers by extending the subsidy that is Construction Work in Progress (CWIP) to Small Modular Nuclear Reactors (SMRs - baby nukes). CWIP allows utilities to charge ratepayers for power plants while they are under construction, before they are producing any electricity, and even if they NEVER produce any electricity. It should be noted that this technology is in no way commercially viable at this current moment in time. No public utility in the U.S. has built any SMRs, and there are no operating SMRs in the U.S. at all.
Committee Votes on SB271: none
Senate Floor Votes on SB271: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
SB272: Wastewater Infrastructure
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
Adopts the recommendations of the Wastewater Task Force.
Committee Votes on SB272: none
Senate Floor Votes on SB272: 2 votes, both Pro-Consumer
SB273: Financing of Water and Wastewater Utility Assets
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
Provides a new tracker to the water/wastewater utilities to “to permit a utility to recover increased costs resulting from referenda or from decisions made by elected officials or governmental entities.”, provides the water and wastewater utilities additional trackers under certain circumstances.
Committee Votes on SB273: none
Senate Floor Votes on SB273: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
SB411: Commercial Solar and Wind Energy (siting bill)
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
Creates default standards for the siting of commercial-scale wind and solar projects, creates incentives for communities to become solar-energy ready and wind-energy ready communities.
Committee Votes on SB411: none
Senate Floor Votes on SB411: 2 votes, both Pro-Consumer
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Senator Fady Qaddoura (D-Indianapolis, District 30)
2021 Campaign Contributions: $0
2011 - 2021
2021 Pro-Consumer Voting Percentage: 98%
For bill details, visit our 2021 Indiana General Assembly page.
HB1164: Various Utility Matters
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
HB1164 expanded the authority of telecommunication providers to place small cell (5G) wireless structures, generally defined as 50 ft. or less, in communities, and prohibits those communities from imposing any restrictions on the height of the structures or the distance between each structure. The bill effectively grants telecommunication providers eminent domain to place 5G towers and infrastructure in public right of ways. The bill also further diminishes IURC authority over telecommunications providers by eliminating certain reporting requirements, such as filing their tariffs or information regarding the services they offer.
Committee Votes on HB1164: none
Senate Floor Votes on HB1164: 8 votes, all Pro-Consumer
HB1191: Local unit power to prohibit utility connection
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
Because of climate change, there is a movement by cities and towns in certain parts of the country to ban natural gas hookups for new construction in order to move away from fossil fuels and to electrify America to enable a shift to 100% renewable energy. While there is no municipality in Indiana talking about this, the intent of this bill is to circumvent the possibility of this happening in Indiana. The reality is that HB1191 only protects monopoly utilities; nothing in this bill protects the rights of private property owners to generate their own energy or lease (or not lease) their land to third parties for energy generation. It does little or nothing to advance renewable energy in Indiana; in fact, it flies in the face of policies designed to mitigate the impact of the existential threat of climate change. HB1191 is short-sighted and forecloses the opportunity to have a meaningful dialogue around long-term policies designed to address climate change and climate justice.
Committee Votes on HB1191: none
Senate Floor Votes on HB1191: 5 votes, all Pro-Consumer
HB1287: Water or wastewater service
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
HB1287 is a continuation of the policy conversation related to ensuring that all Hoosiers have access to clean water and functioning sewers. The bill is designed to make extending water and wastewater service more affordable for unserved or underserved communities by eliminating deposit requirements for customers under certain circumstances.
Committee Votes on HB1287: none
Senate Floor Votes on HB1287: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
HB1381: Commercial wind and solar standards and siting
Status: Died in the Senate
HB1381 would have created default standards for the siting of commercial scale solar and wind projects in an effort to expand investments in clean and renewable energy in Indiana. The bill would have voided the ordinances adopted by certain counties which prohibit, or otherwise restrict, the development of renewable energy in Indiana, if those ordinances established siting requirements that were more restrictive than the standards that would have been established in the bill.
Committee Votes on HB1381: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
Senate Floor Votes on HB1381: none – HB1381 was never called down for a third reading vote in the Senate.
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
HB1449 established stronger standards for broadband service by increasing the requirements related to the speed of the connection. The bill also prioritized public school corporations, rural health centers, and homes with k-12 students for the purposes of awarding grants from the rural broadband fund. The bill also authorized funds from the rural broadband fund to be used for financial assistance for customers who otherwise would not be able to afford the service.
Committee Votes on HB1449: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
Senate Floor Votes on HB1449: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
HB1520: Electric utility reliability adequacy metrics
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
This bill was the result of a recommendation from the Energy Task Force. The bill requires that the utilities operate and maintain their power plants using “good utility practices”. It requires that the utilities file a report with the IURC detailing the resources that they own and operate, or otherwise procure under contract in the markets, to serve their customers with reliable energy. And the bill empowers the IURC to order the utilities to acquire or construct resources should the IURC determine that the utilities do not have adequate resources to serve their customers. CAC believes that this bill is unnecessary, as it’s the utilities legal obligation to serve the customers, and the bill is redundant, as the utilities are already required to do short-term and long-term planning at the IURC and must meet reliability requirements established by the grid operators and the Federal government. The bill creates additional and unneeded bureaucracy and regulation and may ultimately create unnecessary legislative intrusion into the markets depending on how the bill is implemented and used.
Committee Votes on HB1520: none
Senate Floor Votes on HB1520: 1 vote, Anti-Consumer
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
HB1581 is the bill that creates the new legislative district maps based on the 2020 census. These maps will go into effect on the date of the 2022 election. The maps for the Indiana State Representatives and Indiana's 9 Congressional Districts were drawn by the Indiana House Republicans. The map for the Indiana State Senators was drawn by the Indiana Senate Republicans.
Committee Votes on HB1581: 4 votes, all Pro-Consumer
Senate Floor Votes on HB1581: 9 votes, all Pro-Consumer
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
SB352 is designed to bring more transparency to, as well as streamline the application process at the Office of Community and Rural Affairs for providers seeking to provide broadband service to unserved or underserved communities.
Committee Votes on SB352: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
Senate Floor Votes on SB352: 2 votes, both Pro-Consumer
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
SB359 required INDOT to create a broadband corridor program, the Dig Once Program, in the continued effort to further enable to deployment of broadband service to unserved and underserved communities.
Committee Votes on SB359: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
Senate Floor Votes on SB359: 2 votes, both Pro-Consumer
Status: Died in Conference Committee
This bill was pushed by Wabash Valley Resources, and would have granted eminent domain to private corporations to force Hoosier property owners to allow dangerous carbon dioxide waste to be stored long-term underneath their properties without their consent. This bill put Hoosiers on the hook for the long-term costs and liabilities associated with any problems which can occur as a result of storing carbon dioxide waste underground.
Committee Votes on SB373: none
Senate Floor Votes on SB373: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
SB377 created the Indiana Broadband Connectivity Program in the continued effort to further enable to deployment of broadband service to unserved and underserved communities. The program established a public portal through which individuals may report that they do not have access to broadband service that meets the minimum requirements related to the speed of the connection. The program would allow broadband providers to bid every 3 months for grants to provide service to those individuals who currently lack an adequate connection.
Committee Votes on SB377: 1 vote, Pro-Consumer
Senate Floor Votes on SB377: 2 votes, both Pro-Consumer
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
Across the country and in Indiana, utilities are finding it cheaper to invest in new renewables than it is to keep operating their current generation assets, most notably their aging coal plants. However, with traditional utility financing, customers often do not see big savings in the short term from cheaper energy, and may instead see their rates spike. Utilizing securitization could lower the costs to customers by reducing the interest rate and spreading out the timeline which customers would pay for the unrecovered costs related to the coal plant being retired. Additionally, proceeds from securitization could provide needed financial assistance for both the communities who will lose tax revenues when these coal plants retire, and the workers who will need help transitioning to new employment.
Committee Votes on SB386: none
Senate Floor Votes on SB386: 2 votes, both Pro-Consumer
SB389: Repeals state regulated wetlands law
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Holcomb
Repeals the law requiring a permit from the department of environmental management for wetland activity in a state regulated wetland. Makes corresponding changes to eliminate references to that law. States that the repeal of that law is not intended to affect: (1) the regulation in Indiana under the federal Clean Water Act of the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States; or (2) the authorization of the state of Indiana to administer the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit program.
Committee Votes on SB389: none
Senate Floor Votes on SB389: 3 votes, all Pro-Consumer
