The electric rate freeze bill is in limbo as negotiations continue with Ameren and ComEd. Currently, the utilities have half a billion dollars on the table for immediate rebates to customers in exchange for the legislature discarding the idea of a rate freeze.
This is the right approach, in my opinion. The reason is simple: Do I want to see some money going immediately back to consumers to make up for the high rates they have paid since January, or do I want to cast a political vote for a rate freeze—knowing that it will not happen?
These are the facts. Passing a rate freeze will do nothing except send the issue to federal court, because the utilities have already prepared their lawsuit against the state of Illinois. Legal experts have told me that a temporary restraining order, or TRO, would most likely be issued, which would stop the state from enacting anything. It is also very questionable that the state could ever win such a lawsuit.
So when I balance getting some money back for consumers versus getting nothing back, the choice is easy.
Long term, the state of Illinois needs an effective energy policy. Here are a few ideas that are currently being discussed by some of the members of the Senate, including myself, who see this as an urgent need:
- Allow energy brokers to offer competing prices for electricity to residential consumers. Why, if Illinois deregulated electric rates in 1997, haven’t we allowed competition into the market? What we have had for the past nine-plus years is an unregulated monopoly.
- Encourage and allow aggregation in purchasing electricity to take place with cities, counties and other groupings throughout the state. Just because Ameren and ComEd have locked in high prices doesn’t mean those are the only places to buy electricity.
- Promote alternative generation of electricity that meets the long-term needs of the state. Wind farms, coal gasification, solar and geo-thermal are all sources of energy at which to look for the future. Several net metering bills, Senate Bill 680 and House Bill 1011, are currently working their way through both Chambers. These bills would reimburse consumers at a higher rate for producing and selling back their electricity to the utility companies through solar or wind generation.
- Encourage or even mandate energy conservation by everyone in Illinois. It has been proven that converting to florescent lighting over incandescent lighting saves tremendous amounts of energy.
- Explore re-regulation of the industry, or other strategies like an Illinois Power Authority, to have more public control over energy production in the state.
I would welcome your ideas as well. If you have a suggestion or comment, please email me at Dkoehler@senatedem.ilga.gov. We need to keep moving ahead so we aren’t faced with an even more serious energy crisis down the road. We need to keep the lights on and the profits reasonable, for everyone’s sake. IBI