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CUB’s Free Wheaton Workshop Nov. 4 To Help Consumers Cut Phone, Energy Costs By Hundreds Of Dollars A Year
WHEATON, October 25, 2010—As part of a new campaign launched with the City of Wheaton, the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) will hold a free workshop to hand out money-saving light bulbs and help local residents cut their telephone, electric, and natural gas bills by potentially hundreds of dollars a year.
The event was first announced in an Oct. 18 news conference held by Wheaton Mayor Michael J. Gresk and CUB Executive Director David Kolata. They have spearheaded a campaign to help residents reduce their energy costs through Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) bulb giveaways and CUB’s free online service, www.CUBEnergySaver.com, which builds a customized money-saving energy plan for households. The “Cutting Utility Bills” (CUB) workshop is:
7 p.m., Thursday, November 4
The Wheaton Community Center 1777 S. Blanchard Rd. (at the corner of Blanchard & Naperville) Wheaton "As Wheaton families wrestle with the economy and CUB fights for consumers in about $1 billion in legal battles with Illinois utilities, people just want to save money,” CUB Executive Director David Kolata said. “There are a lot of ways Wheaton residents can trim their utility costs, and CUB knows all about them. You just can’t find a free service like this anywhere else.” CUB has been saving Illinois residents hundreds of dollars a year on their phone bills, and the consumer group has become one of Illinois’ best resources for energy-efficiency programs, including CUB Energy Saver (www.CUBEnergySaver.com), which so far has been showing families how to cut their utility bills by an average of about $200 a year. It also is the nation’s only online service that pays consumers, through a rewards program, for reducing their ComEd bills. Wheaton officials have said CUB Energy Saver fits in perfectly with their Turn Wheaton Green campaign to improve the environment. Residents who join and use www.CUBEnergySaver.com get a free CFL—and CUB has pledged to donate to Wheaton five more CFLs for each resident who signs up for the free online service. Plus, participants qualify for drawings to win a month of free electricity. All Wheaton residents are invited to the Nov. 4 workshop. At CUB’s event, consumers will hear an expert presentation on: *The low-cost Consumer’s Choice local-calling plans, which are under a price freeze for at least the next three years; avoiding unnecessary charges such as AT&T’s Line-Backer service; and getting an automatic $10 credit with one of the best long-distance deals in the nation. *The CUB Cellphone Saver, www.CUBCellphoneSaver.com, an online tool that automatically analyzes individual wireless bills. The Cellphone Saver, created by a Texas-based company called Validas, has been showing consumers how to cut their wireless bills by an average of more than $300 a year. *Great rebates and other incentives of up to $1,500 for making a home more energy efficient. CUB has created Illinois’ most comprehensive library of such incentives at www.CUBLiveWire.org. Attendees will have a chance to get more information specific to their own phone, electric, and gas bills in a Question & Answer session after the presentation. All participants will get a free CFL by showing up at the event (one per family). About CUB CUB is Illinois’ leading nonprofit utility watchdog organization. Created by the Illinois Legislature, CUB opened its doors in 1984 to represent the interests of residential and small-business utility customers. Since then, CUB has saved consumers more than $10 billion by helping to block rate hikes and secure refunds. For more information, call 1-800-669-5556 or visit www.CitizensUtilityBoard.org. About the Turn Wheaton Green Campaign In 2008, the City of Wheaton initiated the Turn Wheaton Green campaign to encourage residents and businesses to make environmentally friendly choices in their everyday lives. For more information, visit www.wheaton.il.us/green. |