Flider takes case against Ameren rate hike to ICC
Decatur Tribune, Online Edition
Decatur Tribune, Online Edition
“It is important to ensure that the ICC directly hears our opposition to Ameren’s rate increase request well before they make a judgment on the matter in late April,” said Flider. “At a time when many are facing budget problems and being asked to cut back, we cannot afford to watch as Ameren continues to raise their prices and ask for more. We need to be proactive.”
Flider has been working to oppose Ameren’s latest request for a rate increase since the company first submitted the request in June 2009. Flider requested a Decatur hearing of the ICC regarding the rate increase where over 150 local residents gathered at the Decatur library to express their opinions and ask questions. He is also passing petitions. Now, Flider is taking his opposition to Springfield, where he and other local citizens will testify before the commissioners of the ICC. Flider also sponsored legislation in 2007 which requires the ICC to accept public comment and testimony before making decisions on rate requests. Flider and others believe that at a time when everyone is being forced to cut back, Ameren is not doing their part.
Ameren’s current request for a rate increase of $162 million was filed before the ICC in June 2009, just a few months after being granted a rate increase of $162 million in October of 2008. In October 2009, the Citizens Utility Board, AARP, the Attorney General’s Office, and Flider joined together to announce the findings of a study by a Madison, Wisconsin based firm that showed of the 115 electric utility companies in the nation, Ameren fell in the bottom 3rd of most wasteful companies.
“I will be joining Rep. Flider in Springfield so that the ICC can hear the voices of older Americans in opposition to rate increases,” said Diane Drew, Executive Director of the Community Home Environmental Learning Project (CHELP). “Those that I work directly with, and many in our community, cannot afford to pay more for their utilities. At the same time, we are frustrated that government doesn’t see the faces of the people affected. We appreciate that Rep. Flider is helping us take the opportunity to show the ICC the true impact of Ameren’s greed on our families.”
For more information on attending the ICC hearing or to pass petitions in opposition to the Ameren’s rate increase, contact Rep. Flider’s district office at (217) 428-2708.