The consumer watchdog Citizens Utility Board (CUB) is working with five Chicagoland counties, renewable energy advocates and solar professionals to offer a program that can help homeowners install solar panels at a significant discount and reduce their electric bills by hundreds of dollars, CUB announced Thursday. The Solar Switch program…...
How to: Determine the right size of your room air conditioner
Choosing the right size room air conditioner can significantly impact its performance and efficiency. Contrary to popular belief, a larger unit doesn’t always mean better cooling. It’s crucial to ensure that the air conditioner size matches the room’s dimensions and uses. Here’s how to determine the optimal size for your…...
BREAKING: ComEd makes 4-year, $1.5 billion rate-hike request
ComEd will file with state regulators to hike its delivery rates by about $1.5 billion over four years beginning in 2024, Crain’s Chicago Business reported. In a statement, CUB promised to challenge the increase: “ComEd’s four-year, $1.5 billion request is terrible news on top of the record rate-hike requests that…...
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…...
Ameren offers $500,000 in assistance, and special payment plans have July 31 deadline
In a summer of skyrocketing power prices, Ameren Illinois announced it is using $500,000 in shareholder funds to give relief to electric customers–and until July 31 it is offering certain customers friendlier plans to pay off debt. The Residential Assistance Credit is in response to the highest electricity prices CUB…...
With energy prices skyrocketing, advocates urge power grid operator to stop delays on new generation
Illinois legislative leaders and CUB are urging the power grid operator in Central and Southern Illinois to fast track renewable energy projects that could reliably power 4.5 million homes and help relieve energy problems in the region. At a news conference July 21, legislative leaders criticized the Midcontinent Independent System…...
Crain’s Chicago Business: City of Chicago, Illinois AG call for far higher ComEd bribery rebate
The Illinois attorney general’s office and the city of Chicago yesterday urged the Illinois Commerce Commission to more than double the refund Commonwealth Edison should make to ratepayers over its admitted bribery scheme. In testimony filed with the ICC, the state’s chief consumer advocate, the city and the Citizens Utility…...
