Politics & Government

Want To Pay Less On Electric Bill? Vote 4/9

Niles will be asking residents, in a referendum question, whether they want to join together to get a volume discount on energy bills. ComEd will still respond to outages.

 

In an attempt to save residents money on their electric bills, the village of Niles has placed a ballot question on the April 9 election ballot.

It will ask voters if they want to join in electrical aggregation, which means that residents and small businesses in the village would combine their purchasing power to get a better rate on electricity.

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In a public information meeting Monday, Niles acting assistant village manager Cathy Doczekalski told the audience that if the referendum passes on April 9, then the village would go through a competitive bid process to get the best prices on electricity.

Emmit George, a consultant with Energy Choices, Inc., said that residents in Oak Park saved about $200 on energy costs in their first year of an aggregation program.

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Trustee Rosemary Palicki, who was in the audience, said she has saved $10 to $12 per month after she signed up her household with an alternate electricity provider. That would total $120 to $144 annually.

George said that a household's actual savings cannot be predicted, however, because many factors, including as the price of electricity as a commodity in a given year, come into play.

George said buying green energy would also be an option, and Trustee Louella Preston, who was in the audience, asked the price. Green energy, which may be generated from solar or wind energy, or simply purchased in the form of green energy credits, has traditionally been more expensive but the price is coming down, he said.

Niles residents would also be able to opt out of the village's electricity agreement. For those who remain in it, expected to be the majority, ComEd would still respond to power outages.

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