DeLaney slams Braun’s latest utility commission shuffle

Yesterday, Gov. Mike Braun had Andy Zay fired. Zay was initially appointed chairman of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) in January after resigning from his seat in the Indiana State Senate. The governor demoted Zay to commissioner in June after he presided over the Commission’s decision to approve a rate increase sought by AES Indiana.

State Rep. Ed DeLaney (D-Indianapolis) released the following statement:

“Gov. Braun wanted a reason to appear tough on utility rate increases, and Andy Zay was available to carry out this strategy.

“Braun took a page out of Washington’s playbook for executive overreach. He didn’t even do it in the open. Instead, the announcement initially came from a state personnel department bureaucrat, followed by hours of radio silence from the Governor’s office.

“This was Gov. Braun's own appointee, named to a term of office and thrown out the minute he cast a vote that could make the governor nervous. That is the type of behavior found in a banana republic. Hoosiers want stability and faith in their government, but the governor just told them that he will change Indiana’s rules and traditions on a whim.

"Imagine the outrage if a Democrat governor were behaving this way. Apparently, free markets and limited government only matter to this crowd when Democrats are in office.”