Naperville residents who pay about $100 for their electric bill can expect to pay as much as $11 more per month, after the Naperville City Council agreed Tuesday night to raise its electric service rates by 2 percent.
The 2 percent increase is on top of the already 9.25 percent planned increases that are scheduled to go into effect May 1. The city is one of the few towns in the state that purchases its power whole sale.
In the summer of 2006, the city agreed to a new four-year agreement with electricity providers J. Aron and Company/Goldman Sachs that would lock a fixed billing schedule through 2011.
Council members considered the agreement a sound move considering the volatility of energy rates over the past few years.
But the unanticipated 2 percent raise was necessary to cover the costs of two new transmission-related charges from Common Wealth Edison so the company could upgrade its system. The costs total $2.5 million annually.
"We had to pass these costs on to the city," Councilman Robert Fieseler said Monday before the Council Meeting.
Industrial costumers will have to dig even deeper in their pockets with rates climbing nearly 34 percent this spring.
Still, the city says that the higher costs should not dismiss the fact that because electricity is locally controlled, residents are assured high quality service. Outages are usually restored within 2 to 3 hours, since city's crews are on call 24 hours a day.
We should put a cap on how much Common Wealth Edison can pass on to the public. I mean, this is a cash cow, and they're always crying broke or trying to justify these raises.
I understand the council had to do what it did, but it's frustrating when your utility bills are hundreds of dollars.
It's getting tired. I'm looking at rates from years ago and it's nearly the same amount of living expenses as they are now. It would be nice if we can start to develop more suitable and dependable energy alternatives.
Forgive me for beefing about this one, but come on already. Next up: property taxes.
What else can we milk from our pockets?