Staff Reports

State District 44 Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford, will serve on the Interim Study Committee on Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications during the summer and fall to help shape policy for the 2021 legislative session.

“This year’s study committee will be a bit different than in year’s past,” Koch said in a news release. “Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the study committee will receive a report submitted by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission outlining which, if any, operations or services were reduced or suspended during the pandemic.”

The report will also highlight preparations to address future emergencies and recovery efforts, as well as recommendations, if any, to the legislature that help ensure the agency is prepared in future emergencies, he said.

When the part-time legislature is not in session, lawmakers serve on interim study committees that meet to review issues designated by the General Assembly during the prior legislative session.

Study committee topics are assigned by the bipartisan Legislative Council, comprised of 16 voting members — eight from the Senate and eight from the House of Representatives.

To view interim committee agendas and stream hearings online, visit iga.in.gov. To view a list of topics that will be examined, visit bit.ly/interimtopics.

District 44 includes all of Lawrence and Brown counties and parts of Bartholomew, Jackson and Monroe counties.

Koch holds a graduate certificate in energy policy planning from the University of Idaho and serves as co-chair of the National Conference of State Legislatures energy supply task force. He also is a member of the Federal Communications Commission consumer advisory committee and the National Council on Electricity Policy executive committee. He focuses on energy, water and telecommunications policy interactions in Indiana and nationally.