Opposition lining up against Ameren rate hike request
By Tony Reid, The Decatur Herald & Review
August 26, 2011, Springfield—The battle to cut off Ameren Illinois' bid to win electricity and natural gas delivery rate hikes worth $90 million a year is growing more intense.

A new coalition of opponents is urging consumers to speak out at a public hearing on Tuesday in Springfield, or they can protest online at a new website: www.StopAmeren.com.

Read the full story on The Decatur Herald & Review website.


The coalition includes Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, along with the Citizens Utility Board watchdog group and AARP.

The utility board and AARP sent leading representatives to Decatur on Thursday to argue that not only does Ameren Illinois not deserve a raise, but it's already so profitable it ought to be handing consumers more than $2 million in rate cuts instead.

"Consumers are bracing for another possible recession, and therefore, this is not the time for Ameren to greedily demand that we pay more," said Nancy Funk, a volunteer legislative lobbyist for AARP who lives in Decatur. "This is, in my estimation, simply immoral and unacceptable."

When Ameren first announced the proposed rate hikes earlier this year, it had originally planned to ask for more than $110 million but later scaled that back to $90 million.

The utility said it felt the pain of strapped customers but had to focus on the bottom line.

"...We must have the financial ability to provide a safe and reliable energy delivery system that will accommodate future economic growth and development," said Craig Nelson, the company's senior vice president.

Broken down by household, if Ameren Illinois got the full $90 million it would mean the typical customer in the former territory of Illinois Power would pay $3.78 more a month for electricity delivery and $3.69 a month extra for the piping of natural gas.

The state's power system regulator, the Illinois Commerce Commission, is considering the utility's rate case, and it's the ICC that has scheduled Tuesday's public hearing, which starts at 1 p.m. in the commission's main hearing room at 527 E. Capitol Ave. Utility customers who show up can sign in and tell an administrative law judge involved in the rate case what they think about the increase. The judge is due to make a recommendation to the ICC by Nov. 15, and the ICC will issue its decision by mid January.

The ICC also has its own web address for comments at www.icc.illinois.gov, where remarks can be left under the public comment section, or consumers can call 1-800-524-0795. The www.StopAmeren.com site also links with the ICC site.

The coalition of opposition insists the utility is hitting consumers up for too much profit at a time when unemployment is high and money is tight. The Citizens Utility Board said an analysis of Ameren Illinois' numbers show its seeking a profit rate for shareholders equal to 11 percent on its electricity deliveries and 10.75 percent for piping natural gas.

"Ameren made over $650 million in profits last year, and its Illinois-specific profits were up over 60 percent," said David Kolata, the utility board's executive director. "Meanwhile, the economy in Illinois, particularly in Central and Southern Illinois, continues to struggle. This would be the worst possible time for a rate increase."

Ameren Illinois also faces opposition from the ICC's own expert staff, which crunched the utility's numbers recently and recommended slashing the $90 million it seeks down to $6 million instead.

But whatever the ICC ultimately decides, the rate case before it represents only one front in the utility's campaign to get what it sees as adequate funding and rewards for the job it has to do. Ameren Illinois has backed a bill that would streamline the rate-making process, allowing for quicker rate reviews the utility said would make for a more "predictable" rate-setting process.

The proposed law has cleared both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly, but Gov. Pat Quinn has gone on record as saying he doesn't like it and has hinted he will use his veto pen. Ameren Illinois said the fight won't be over if he does, and intends to push for an override vote in the legislature's fall veto session.