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Q&A: Electricity Price Spike in Central and Southern Illinois

What’s happening to Ameren customers?   Since June 1, 2022, the price for electricity has more than doubled for Ameren customers across Central and Southern Illinois, and that’s expected to cost customers hundreds of dollars in higher power bills over the next year. What is Ameren’s electricity price? As of Jan.…...

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Q&A: High natural gas bills in Illinois

Natural gas bills are at their highest level in years, and the two major reasons are: overly aggressive spending by gas utilities and skyrocketing supply prices. Read our Q&A to get the details. How expensive has this been for consumers?    People in Illinois who heat their homes with natural…...

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Want to get more involved with CUB? Run for a CUB board position

CUB’s Board of Directors is elected by members from each Congressional District—and all districts are currently up for election, as prescribed by the CUB Act.  Nominating petitions are due January 30, 2023, and the election will be held May 31. If you are interested in running for the CUB Board,…...

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Solar group buy program helps 76 properties go solar  ($71,000 in potential first-year savings)

A special program that CUB works on ended 2022 with 76 properties contracted to install solar panels in the coming months–a potential total savings of more than $71,000 for participants in the first year alone. After a year of elevated global energy costs, these Chicago-area residents are moving toward renewable…...

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Special Report: Municipal aggregation protecting customers from high prices–but what happens when the contracts end?

About 8 out of 10 electricity deals negotiated by communities across Illinois are saving residents money at a time of spiking energy prices. But dozens of those contracts, most in the central and southern parts of the state, are ending in December or January, exposing customers to higher power prices–for…...

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Goodbye formula rates: CUB helps cut Ameren’s final “formula” hike by millions

In the final ruling under an anti-consumer “formula” rate-setting system, the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) granted Ameren Illinois a $61 million electric delivery rate hike, after CUB and other consumer advocates helped knock about $22 million off the proposed increase. “While we’re glad Ameren didn’t get the $83 million rate…...

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December natural gas prices fall for many utilities–although they’re still painfully high

For the second straight month, natural gas prices have dropped for all or most of Illinois’ utilities. But most gas customers are still paying about double or worse than they did just two years ago for the volatile fossil fuel. “Nobody has a crystal ball, but we’re thankful for this…...

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Get ready for 2023 with CUB’s money-saving events in December

This is a roundup of free events taking place throughout the rest of 2022. This year, CUB’s outreach team staffed over 350 events across the state. As consumer advocates, we’ll never give up—and that’s why we’ll continue putting on events dedicated to saving you money and keeping you up-to-date on…...

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ComEd gets $199 million increase in final formula-rate case

The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) has granted ComEd a $198.9 million rate hike, the third-highest and last increase under the company’s anti-consumer formula rate system that was at the heart of its corruption scandal. “This is a parting shot from a system that was a bad deal for customers from…...

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Sunshine & poses: Skokie resident’s solar snapshot wins CUB’s Clean Energy Scavenger Hunt

Congratulations to Robert of Skokie for winning CUB’s Clean Energy Scavenger Hunt! We asked for clean energy-themed photos, and his picture was randomly selected out of all the submissions to win $100. Check out his winning photo, featuring his brother in front of a school outfitted with solar panels in…...

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