Politics

Mrvan asks FERC for federal probe of NIPSCO after August derecho outages

The Highland Democrat’s Sept. 10 letter seeks a joint FERC-NERC review of storm readiness, vegetation spending, and restoration timelines that left tens of thousands in Lake and Porter counties dark for nearly two weeks.

Sara Y. · Sept. 12, 2026 · Northwest Indiana

HIGHLAND, Ind. — U.S. Rep. Frank J. Mrvan has asked federal energy regulators to open a joint investigation into Northern Indiana Public Service Company’s preparation for and response to the Aug. 11 derecho that produced the largest outage event in the utility’s history, according to a letter dated Sept. 10 and released through local outlets.

In the letter to Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chair Laura V. Swett, the Highland Democrat requested that FERC work with the North American Electric Reliability Corporation to review whether NIPSCO and its parent company, NiSource, met federal reliability standards. Mrvan also asked for recommendations to improve grid reliability and storm resilience.

The derecho produced peak winds of about 100 to 110 mph across parts of Lake and Porter counties and caused nearly 375,000 customer outages on NIPSCO’s system, the letter states. Tens of thousands of residents went without power for nearly two weeks. Gary, Lake Station, Portage, and Munster were among the hardest-hit communities and among the last restored, Mrvan wrote.

“For nearly two weeks, too many Northwest Indiana families were literally left in the dark,” Mrvan wrote. The letter cites lost food, home flooding and mold, business losses, and interrupted access to medical equipment and medications.

Key facts

• About $2.3 billion toward infrastructure replacement since 2016
• About $81 million toward vegetation management from 2023 through 2025

Mrvan argued those investments deserve scrutiny given the scale and length of the outages. He listed six review areas: storm preparedness, grid resilience and system design, vegetation management and maintenance, restoration performance, comparison with other utilities hit by the same storm, and whether recent capital spending produced adequate resilience.

A federal Major Disaster Declaration for Indiana was approved Aug. 25, the letter notes. Separately, the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor has petitioned the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission to examine NIPSCO’s storm restoration practices — a state track Mrvan said he supports while arguing federal review is still warranted.

That state push began earlier. Region News Source reported Aug. 24 that Gov. Mike Braun directed the OUCC to file a complaint and petition seeking an IURC investigation into NIPSCO’s preparation and response, including vegetation management and whether ratepayer-funded tracker spending was used as intended. At peak, about 301,000 of NIPSCO’s roughly 500,000 customers were without power, Region News Source reported, citing the governor’s office. “NIPSCO has failed to keep its end of the bargain,” Braun said in that account.

On Sept. 10, FOX 32 Chicago reported that IURC Chairman Anthony Swinger intends for the commission to move forward with an investigation, though formal steps — including a prehearing conference — had not yet been scheduled. NIPSCO declined to comment to FOX 32 that day. WFYI reported Sept. 11 that NIPSCO had not yet formally responded to Mrvan’s federal request.

Local political pressure has also mounted. FOX 32 reported the Lake County Council voted unanimously that week to urge the IURC to reject a proposed NIPSCO rate increase, and that organizers planned a Saturday protest outside NIPSCO’s Gary headquarters. Valparaiso resident Sue Baxter, helping organize the event, told the station the protest was about recovery speed, vegetation and easement maintenance, preparedness, restoration procedures, rates, and communication with customers and local governments. Gary mayoral candidate Preston Ruby said he planned to attend and questioned whether residents should have waited more than two weeks for power.