In early August, Indiana Electric Cooperatives provided the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency with comments on the agency’s proposed repeal of the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards for Fossil Fuel-Fired Electric Generating Units, otherwise known as the power plant rule.
As not-for-profit organizations, our priority is delivering safe, reliable, and affordable power to rural communities. We believe decisions about energy resources should be guided by cooperative boards elected by local members, not by broad federal mandates that overlook legal precedent, technology readiness, and system reliability. This is why active, unified advocacy by IEC is essential — ensuring the voices of our member cooperatives and their consumers are heard when policies that affect their daily lives are being made.
The 2024 EPA power plant rule is unlawful, unrealistic, and harmful to affordability and reliability. It conflicts with the Clean Air Act and Supreme Court rulings, stretching EPA’s authority beyond what Congress has granted. The rule depends on unproven technologies like carbon capture and hydrogen co-firing, which lack the infrastructure and feasibility to be deployed at scale within the required timelines. Through advocacy, we can continue to highlight these shortcomings and push for realistic, balanced approaches that recognize the needs of Indiana’s communities.
If enforced, the rule would undermine essential baseload power resources, straining an electric grid already under stress and driving up costs for consumers. This would increase the risk of blackouts and harm the economic well-being of rural communities.
IEC supports repealing the rule and instead urges policies that encourage diverse, reliable energy generation shaped by market forces, new technologies, and member-driven choices. Advocacy at the state and federal level will remain critical to securing fair policies that protect affordability and reliability for the 1.3 million Hoosiers we serve.