Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced on Friday that he plans to restart “working group” discussions with the goal of passing strong clean energy legislation, possibly in the Fall Veto Session. As Crain’s Chicago Business reports, a working group—which includes consumer advocates, renewable power producers, environmental advocates, the utility industry and more—had…...
The clock is ticking: pass CEJA and save our power bills
When the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission voted 2-1 in favor of a proposal pushed by out-of-state power generators, the clock started ticking. The commission’s December 2019 decision overhauls the rules that govern the price we pay for electricity — it would ultimately prop up fossil fuel companies and force consumers…...
Help the environment and cut your costs with ComEd’s Time-of-Day pricing program
With the introduction of smart meters across Illinois, consumers have more options when it comes to how they use and pay for electricity. ComEd’s new Time-of-Day Pricing Program—which charges different electric rates during different periods of the day—is one such option. So how does the Time-of-Day program work? Most customers…...
Tell the White House: Illinois wants clean and affordable energy
We talk a lot about how some energy regulators appointed by President Trump have voted to revamp a special electricity market called the “capacity market.” And for months we’ve been warning that this development at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) could slam most Illinois consumers with up to $1.7…...
News you can use during a power outage
Storms that ripped through Illinois this week–more than 10 confirmed tornadoes in northern Illinois, including one in Chicago–left more than 800,000 ComEd customers and about 55,000 Ameren customers without power. If you are one of the unlucky ones who may not have power until Saturday, here are some helpful resources:…...
CEJA update focuses on utility accountability, jobs and economic recovery
As Illinois faces a three-pronged storm — the COVID-19 pandemic, racial and economic injustice, and utility corruption — the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition announced a new and stronger version of the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA) that doubles down on utility accountability reforms, equitable job creation and economic recovery. The…...
CUB-Northwestern partnership yields new outreach materials
A class of Northwestern undergraduate students worked with CUB over the spring semester to fill gaps in the utility watchdog’s outreach efforts. Although COVID-19 and Illinois’ stay-at-home order caused the student teams to rethink aspects of their projects, CUB now has new and improved outreach materials, as well as new…...
