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Water

Last chance: Fight terrible water bill

A few weeks ago we told you that a terrible bill—an update to the Water Privatization Act—had to be passed again by the Illinois General Assembly because of a legal technicality. Here’s why the bill is terrible: It allows Illinois’ biggest private water monopolies (Illinois American and Aqua) to march…...

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The bad water bill is now law. So now what?

Earlier this month Gov. Bruce Rauner signed House Bill 4508 — which means any publicly owned water system in Illinois could now be targeted by profit-driven private water utilities. The bill doubles down on previous legislation that allowed Aqua Illinois and Illinois American Water to impose automatic rate hikes to…...

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CUB reacts to Gov. Rauner signing HB 4508, bad water bill

Statement by Bryan McDaniel, CUB’s Director of Governmental Affairs: We are disappointed that the General Assembly passed and, now, Gov. Bruce Rauner has signed House Bill 4508. CUB fought vigorously to improve this bill, arguing that customers of Illinois American Water and Aqua Illinois should not be forced to finance…...

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CUB calls on governor to veto a bad water bill

CUB made headlines this week when the watchdog group stood with state senators and suburban mayors to ask Gov. Bruce Rauner to veto House Bill 4508, legislation that will give special treatment to Illinois’ most powerful private water companies and opens the door for higher water rates for people across the…...

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CUB, suburban leaders urge Gov. Rauner to veto HB 4508

Suburban Chicago leaders and the state’s top consumer watchdog group on Monday urged Gov. Bruce Rauner to veto a bill that will give special treatment to Illinois’ most powerful private water companies, making it easier for them to buy municipal water systems and slap their customers with higher rates. At…...

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Water efficiency pays, just ask this CUB volunteer

Water efficiency does pay, at least that’s what CUB volunteer Joseph Chang thinks. Joseph, an environmental project engineer with a background in water and waste engineering, came to CUB in February. He was looking for a way to put his data analytics background to good use in an area of…...

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Save water and money with Chicago’s MeterSave program

The City of Chicago offers residential single-family and two-flat homeowners the option of having a water meter installed to help them save water–and money–through the MeterSave program. Water bills in homes without meters are tied to to various factors, from building size to number of plumbing fixtures. But with a water…...

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Urge Governor Rauner to veto House Bill 4508

The Illinois House and Senate have passed a bill that could raise water rates for many Illinois consumers. House Bill 4508 renews old legislation that allows Illinois American Water and Aqua Illinois–the big corporations pushing the bill–to raise existing customers’ rates in order to bankroll the purchase of municipal water…...

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CUB: Cut water rate hike by 60%

Expert testimony filed by CUB and other groups found that Illinois American Water’s $43 million rate-hike request should be slashed by more than 60 percent. “The expert testimony clearly shows that Illinois American’s rate-hike proposal is bloated,” CUB Executive Director David Kolata said. “Among other things, the analysis reveals that…...

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CUB’s summer vacation

“You have made a tremendous difference in our lives. You made us feel like someone is looking out for the little guys.” Two young parents, for whom CUB helped get the gas turned back on, said those kind words to us in a recent email. We live for helping Illinois…...

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