James Crawford needs his electricity. The 61-year-old lifelong Hartford resident depends on an oxygen machine to assist with his chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, a condition that can make it hard to breathe. As a person suffering from several medical conditions while on a fixed income, Crawford also depended on the Percentage of Income…...
CUB staffer teaches her brother that being efficient pays
By Samantha Vercellino For years, Atukwe Newell listened to his younger sister (and CUB Staffer) Yami Newell, talk about the benefits of being energy efficient. But he wasn’t sold. Now he’s biting his tongue and singing his sister’s praises after she helped him cut his electricity usage about 50 percent…...
An electric deal from…..Comcast?
By Samantha Vercellino Everybody knows that Comcast bundles cable, Internet and phone services, but did you know the company now sells electricity, too? Recently, a CUB staffer found a pitch for Comcast’s Energy Rewards plan in his email inbox. We decided to take a closer look at the deal. These…...
Energy Efficiency: the Road to Savings
With the release of the federal Clean Power Plan (CPP) to reduce carbon emissions 32 percent nationally by 2030, the country is abuzz with energy efficiency talk. We all know that practicing energy efficiency is an important step to reducing harmful pollution, but did you also know these three facts? 1.) Energy efficiency…...
The time is ripe for the Illinois Clean Jobs Bill
History was made earlier this week when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) unveiled the Clean Power Plan to reduce carbon emissions by nearly one-third by 2030. Today in Chicago, U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley, U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush, and Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan joined the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition (of which…...
Give your AC a helping hand during heat waves
Twenty years ago, I was struggling through the infamous 1995 heatwave…by cuddling with frozen vegetables. As a cub reporter for The Associated Press in Milwaukee, I spent my days (July 11-27, 1995) helping to record a heart-breaking toll: 85 heat-related deaths in Milwaukee, another 465 in Chicago. My nights were…...
Good riddance to obnoxious exit fees
In the General Assembly’s spring session, CUB championed the only major energy legislation to get passed—a bill that says sayonara to bad fees. State lawmakers unanimously approved a bill (HB 3766) that would cap exit fees charged by alternative power suppliers. Residential and small-business customers get slapped with these fees when…...
