With Chicago families already ailing from a decade of spiraling heating bills, an alliance of consumer and public-interest groups Wednesday launched a major advertising blitz aimed at thwarting a threat by Peoples Gas that would usher in an onslaught of record-breaking rate hikes over the next 15 years. (View a PDF…...
News Release: Groups deliver more than 5,000 public comments calling for reform of Peoples Gas pipe replacement program
As utility regulators at the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) near a final decision on its year-long investigation into the troubled Peoples Gas pipeline-replacement program, consumer and environmental organizations delivered more than 5,000 public comments calling for reform. “On behalf of AARP’s 250,000 members in Chicago and all older adults in…...
CUB statement: Regulatory judges’ proposed order would give Peoples Gas ‘license to inflict staggering rate hikes’
On Tuesday, administrative law judges for the Illinois Commerce Commission issued a Proposed Order in the regulatory body’s investigation (Docket No. 24-0081) into Peoples Gas’ System Modernization Program (SMP), a comprehensive overhaul of Chicago’s underground gas pipes that has been engulfed in controversy since its inception. (Read a pdf of…...
Peoples Gas Customers Face Onslaught of Record-Breaking Rate Hikes Under Disputed Pipe-Replacement Program, Report Finds
A controversial proposal by Peoples Gas to continue overhauling its network of underground pipes would leave Chicagoans inundated by recurring rounds of record-breaking rate hikes over the next 15 years, a landmark report released Tuesday found. Meanwhile Peoples customers would continue to incur charges associated with the pipe-replacement program for…...
News Release: Groups launch city-wide campaign to engage Chicagoans on Peoples Gas pipe replacement investigation
CHICAGO – A coalition of consumer, environmental and environmental justice organizations gathered outside Peoples Gas headquarters today to announce an intensive grassroots campaign to educate and engage thousands of Chicagoans on the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) investigation into the troubled Peoples Gas pipe replacement program. (Read the full news release…...
Buried in $493M in overdue bills: ICC database shows urgency of Illinois reining in big utilities
In one month alone, major electric, gas and water utilities in Illinois reported that more than 1.3 million of their customers were buried in $493.6 million in debt, according to April numbers the companies were required to file with the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC). “A lot has changed over the…...
Statement: CUB applauds ICC for holding the line on Peoples Gas, as regulators thwart utility’s renewed bid for inflated spending on pipe-replacement
CHICAGO—Last November, the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) reduced Peoples Gas’ proposed rate hike by about $100 million and ordered the utility to pause its controversial and financially bloated pipe-replacement program – known as the System Modernization Program (SMP) – pending further review to determine whether it could substantiate the need…...
CUB applauds regulators for rejecting Peoples Gas “theatrics,” as ICC opposes latest bid to additional rate hike
The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) Thursday unanimously derailed a request by Peoples Gas to claw back $134 million of disallowed funding for its pipeline-replacement program in 2024. If approved, the motion would have added about $8 million to the record $300 million rate hike the utility received last month. Peoples Gas executives threatened…...
CUB slams irresponsible Peoples Gas motion
The following is a statement from Citizens Utility Board (CUB) Executive Director Sarah Moskowitz reacting to a motion filed by Peoples Gas today seeking to get permission from the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) to claw back $134 million of disallowed funding for its pipeline-replacement program in 2024. If approved, this…...
Joint release: Advocates urge Chicago City Council members to oppose record Peoples Gas rate-hike proposal as decision by state regulators looms
With Peoples Gas customers already reeling from a heating-bill crisis that has inflicted its harshest impacts on Black and Brown families, members of the ChicagoCity Council can support their constituents by urging state regulators to reject the utility’s pending bid for a record rate hike, consumer advocates told members of…...
