Oak Lawn Voters Say 'Yes' to Electrical Aggregation
Binding referendum passes in Oak Lawn by 57 percent. Alsip turns electrical aggregation referedum down; Worth passes it in close vote.
Oak Lawn voters approved a binding referendum giving village officials the authority to negotiate a lower electrical rate with an alternative energy supplier on Tuesday’s ballot.
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The measure passed by 57-percent, with 11,561 voters saying "yes" to electrical aggregation to 8,547 "no" votes.
Electrical aggregation is said to save households and small commercial businesses an average of $200 to $400 per year on their electricity bills. ComEd rates increased from 7.9 cents to 8.3 cents per kilowatt-hour in October. Aggregation programs typically lock in rates of 4.5 centers to 4.9 cents per unit of electricity.
The program is open to Oak Lawn’s 19,000 households and businesses. Customers who choose to participate in the program will still receive their monthly electric bill from ComEd, which will continue to charge fees for delivery and transmission of service.
Before municipalities can enter into electrical aggregation agreements, the issue must be approved by a referendum. Residents and businesses that don’t wish to participate in the aggregation program had 30 days to “opt out.”
To find out what happens next in the aggregation process after a referendum is passed, visit the Citizens Utility Board.
Results of Other Nearby Referenda:
Village of Alsip, Electrical Aggregation
- YES – 2,570
- NO -- 3,625
Village of Alsip, Motor Vehicle Stickers
- YES – 1,385
- NO – 5,016
Village of Worth, Electrical Aggregation
- YES – 1,591
- NO – 1,521
tmarc75
8:31 am on Thursday, November 8, 2012
Thuis was worded poorly on the ballot, in my opinion.
Auto Batteries Inc.
2:27 am on Friday, November 9, 2012
How very slick. Have a vote on an issue when the public has no resources while voting for our leaders. Show me the fine print. There is only one company that supplies electricity correct? Com Ed. Everyone should opt. out in my opinion. How is adding a third party to handle billing suppose to lower my electric bill? Are they doing this for free? Not a chance. So the Village of Oak Lawn must be getting some kick back for screwing the public once again. The next time you see Com Ed in your neighborhood go outside and talk to them. They are friendly and will tell you the nightmare of a third party getting involved with your electricity. Such as, the third party keeps poor records. Therefore not notifying Com Ed. that their customer has paid. So Com Ed is misinformed and shuts off the power to many customers that have actually paid their bill. Oops. Sorry. You get what you pay for. And if you have someone at home that requires some type of life support that requires electricity... well the risk does not out weigh the benefit.
Auto Batteries Inc.
7:33 am on Friday, November 9, 2012
Sorry, the benefits don't outweigh the risk... It was late :)
tony ac
8:08 am on Friday, November 9, 2012
anything bob streit and dennis brennen (from oak lawn) is involved with, should automatically raise a red flag
keep an eye on this one in oak lawn you know anything big bobby has his hands in winds up badly and profittable for him only