Clean Energy Jobs Act Archives | Citizens Utility Board

Why we urge Illinois to pass strong energy legislation

Sophia — Wed, 28 Jul 2021 14:33:26 +0000

The consumer watchdog Citizens Utility Board, or CUB, is fighting to get a comprehensive, equitable energy bill passed in Illinois. A strong, pro-consumer energy bill would: Launch a responsible plan to fight climate change and work toward 100 percent clean energy by 2045. (This is an urgent need for our planet and our bottom lines. A CUB study found that unchecked climate change could lead to $10.9 billion in higher electric bills over the next 30 years.) Support low-cost clean energy and give a boost to the solar energy market. Solar has boomed in Illinois—making the state a national leader—but has sputtered after incentives from an earlier law, the Future Energy Jobs Act, ran out. Supporting clean energy creates jobs for communities that need it the most—including those abandoned by the coal industry. Replace the unfair electric formula rate-setting system with one that can provide more oversight. Allow state regulators to open an investigation into how to fairly compensate ComEd customers for the utility’s corruption scandal. (CUB is fighting in federal court for a refund, but we need to fight this battle on multiple fronts.) Create an independent ethics monitor at the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) to rein in utilities. Also, require utilities to have an ethics compliance officer at their headquarters. Pave the way for cleaner, more affordable electric transportation options. Expand energy efficiency programs that have already helped lower energy bills by billions of dollars. Please, share this on your social media channels and send a message to your legislators to push a strong energy bill over the finish line this summer. For a more detailed update on developments in Springfield, please read our WatchBlog article and watch our Facebook Live.

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Working for historic energy legislation in Springfield

Sophia — Mon, 26 Jul 2021 16:00:42 +0000

Negotiations to pass legislation that would secure clean, affordable energy for Illinois and hold utilities accountable have been extended in Springfield, and at press time, negotiators were hopeful a strong bill could be passed this year, if not before the end of the summer. “I want to thank the CUB supporters who have sent thousands of messages to Springfield leaders in favor of strong clean energy legislation,” CUB Executive Director David Kolata said. “We appreciate your patience—we’re closer than ever to passing a strong, pro-consumer energy bill.” How did we get here? For two-and-a-half years, CUB has fought for strong clean energy legislation called the Clean Energy Jobs Act, or CEJA. The ComEd corruption scandal ramped up efforts to pass the bill. At the heart of the scandal, the company won an unfair “formula” rate-setting process that has led to hundreds of millions of dollars in rate hikes. CEJA was one of a handful of energy bills proposed in 2021. As negotiations continued, Gov. J.B. Pritzker championed a compromise proposal that shared many provisions with the bill CUB supported. Why do we like the compromise proposal? The proposal would: Launch a responsible plan to fight climate change and work toward 100 percent clean energy by 2045. Support low-cost clean energy and give a boost to the solar energy market. Solar has boomed in Illinois—making the state a national leader—but has sputtered after incentives from an earlier law, the Future Energy Jobs Act, ran out. Supporting clean energy creates jobs for communities that need it the most—including those abandoned by the coal industry. Replace the unfair electric formula rate-setting system with one that can provide more oversight. Allow state regulators to open an investigation into how to fairly compensate ComEd customers for the utility’s corruption scandal. Create an independent ethics monitor at the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) to rein in utilities. Pave the way for cleaner, more affordable electric transportation options. Expand energy efficiency programs that have helped lower bills by billions of dollars. So what’s left to do? Various sides have reached agreement on almost all the provisions in what would be a final bill, but at press time negotiations continued over the schedule for closing fossil fuel power plants, and a bill had not been officially introduced. Why is it important that we keep fighting? The impact of pollution on our environment is one of the biggest threats to our well-being, and it also is terrible for our electricity bills. (Read about our research on the $10.9 billion cost of climate change.) Also, ComEd’s corruption scandal heightens the urgency to pass legislation to hold utilities accountable. The New York Times recently reported on the potentially devastating consequences of climate change in Chicago, such as fluctuations in the water levels of Lake Michigan that could spark widespread flooding and property damage. In fact, the Chicagoland area has already seen instances of extreme weather with tornadoes touching down in Naperville and Rogers Park over the last year. Extreme weather has also picked up nationwide with an unprecedented Texas deep freeze, flooded subway stations in New York City, and record-breaking heat […]

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Illinois consumers rally to pass CEJA: “A bill for Illinoisans historically and systematically shut out and forgotten”

Hannah — Mon, 26 Apr 2021 20:52:33 +0000

Consumers from across the state gathered on Zoom and Facebook today for a virtual environmental justice lobby day in support of the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA), comprehensive energy legislation currently before the Illinois General Assembly. The second virtual lobby day, today’s event saw Illinois residents meeting with their legislators over Zoom calls and urging them to ensure the concerns of marginalized communities are addressed in upcoming legislation. Consumers also gathered at a virtual rally to discuss current environmental justice bills, including CEJA. “CEJA is a bill for Illinoisans historically and systematically shut out and forgotten. CEJA is unapologetically a bill for workers and contractors who identify as Black, Indigenous and people of color,” said Hilary Scott-Ogunrinde, a rally speaker from Macedonia Development in East Saint Louis. “CEJA is a bill for urban Illinois, for rural Illinois. It’s a bill for blue collar and white collar workers.” The clean energy legislation is the most pro-consumer energy plan in Springfield. It would require ComEd to give a refund to customers for its corruption scandal, implement a historic expansion of energy efficiency, and end an unfair rate-setting system that has opened the door to a decade of Ameren and ComEd rate hikes. CEJA would also put the Illinois Power Agency in charge of managing a key part of the electricity market in ComEd territory, creating the opportunity to save consumers money while greatly expanding clean energy investment. At its center, CEJA promotes racial and socioeconomic equity through programs designed to address some of the structural barriers that have kept Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) businesses and communities from receiving the benefits of clean energy policies. For example, CEJA would establish an equity points system that rewards companies based on how closely they follow various equity actions, such as maintaining a Black, Indigenous and people of color workforce. Among other provisions, it would also help develop and fund clean energy entrepreneurship and business development in BIPOC communities. More generally, the bill would implement various goals and standards for the state, such as a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants that most often impact BIPOC and environmental justice communities the worst. “We are here today because we care about leaving an Illinois that my sons, and your sons and daughters, and your grandchildren can thrive in,” Scott-Ogunrinde said. “We are here to act, we are here to build clean, green thriving communities throughout the entire state of Illinois.” Today’s rally kicked off the Illinois Clean Job Coalition’s Week of Action, five days worth of events and actions to make your support for clean, affordable energy and environmental justice clear to your elected officials. Below are other actions to take throughout the week. Hold Utilities Accountable for Their Actions: The House Energy and Environment Committee is holding an important hearing on how future legislation, including CEJA, can hold large utility companies more accountable to the people they serve in light of ComEd corruption. Catch the hearing live at 4:30 pm on Tuesday to follow the latest updates on utility accountability, a critical component of the Clean Energy Jobs Act. Tune in […]

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$2.3 trillion infrastructure package tackles internet access, EVs, grid modernization

Hannah — Tue, 06 Apr 2021 15:36:02 +0000

The White House released its economic development strategy, a $2.3 trillion package that focuses on post-pandemic economic recovery, job development and infrastructure upgrades. Dubbed the American Jobs Plan, the proposal also includes key utility provisions, including a path to 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2035. CUB breaks down some of the utility-related highlights: Expanding access to affordable Internet The American Jobs Act would expand broadband infrastructure to underserved areas to reach 100 percent high-speed coverage. Financial support would also be available to help modernize broadband networks owned by local governments, nonprofits and cooperatives. Why CUB likes this: Millions of Americans can’t use broadband internet, even if the appropriate infrastructure exists where they live. CUB has fought for stronger internet laws at the state level because we know costly internet bills and equipment can be hard to afford on a fixed budget. The pandemic further emphasized this digital divide, turning homes into offices and classrooms. We’d like to see more detail on how the Administration would close the gap, but we like that it aims to reduce the cost of broadband across the board. Water infrastructure upgrades Upgrading and modernizing America’s water infrastructure is essential to community health, especially as lead pipes and lines still service six to ten million homes in the US. The plan would fund $45 billion in water infrastructure grants through the Environmental Protection Agency. According to the plan, this investment will reduce lead exposure in homes and more than 400,000 schools and childcare facilities across the country. It will also scale up existing, successful programs, including $56 billion in grants and low-cost flexible loans to states, Tribes, territories and disadvantaged communities across the country. Small water systems and household well and wastewater systems will also see funding. Why CUB likes this: We just did a statewide campaign introducing a new interactive tool that tracks how expensive privatization can be for water customers across Illinois. Cash-strapped municipalities may sell their systems to a private water company because they’re looking for ways to make expensive upgrades to their aging public water systems. Proposals like this give these communities more options to make upgrades rather than just selling their systems to a private company that’s likely to charge its customers more for water. Electric vehicles President Biden is proposing a $174 billion investment in the electric vehicle (EV) market to spur domestic production and create jobs. Consumers will also get rebates and tax incentives to buy American-made EVs. An increase in EV production must be accompanied by an increase in charging stations. The plan promises a national network of 500,000 new EV chargers by 2030. Through the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy, 50,000 diesel transit vehicles will be electrified, as will 20 percent of school buses. The federal fleet, including the United States Postal Service, will also make steps to electrification. Why CUB likes this: In our “ABCs of EVs” series, CUB argues how EVs can reduce costs and pollution for everyone, and we support provisions in Illinois’ proposed Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA) that would make that happen. Supportive national policy can’t replace CEJA–we need […]

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BREAKING: Clean Energy Jobs Act advances out of House committee

Jim Chilsen — Mon, 15 Mar 2021 17:11:05 +0000

The Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA) took an important step forward Monday, as members of the Illinois House Energy & Environment Committee voted it out of committee. CEJA now moves to the full Illinois House of Representatives for debate and a potential vote on the floor. In addition, a subject matter hearing on equity is scheduled for Wednesday, March 17 at 2:00 p.m. “We still have a lot of work to do to secure clean, affordable energy for Illinois consumers and hold utilities accountable, but this is a key step forward,” CUB Executive Director David Kolata said after the committee voted 18-11 to advance CEJA. Kolata urged Illinois consumers to send a message to their legislators to urge them to support CEJA (House Bill 804/Senate Bill 1718). CEJA now has more than 40 co-sponsors, including chief co-sponsor House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, a longtime champion of the measure. “The passage of this comprehensive energy package out of committee today marks a critical step forward and away from the days of backroom deals that put utility company profits before people,” said state Rep. Ann Williams, chief House sponsor of CEJA and chair of the House Energy & Environment Committee. “CEJA is the product of years of grassroots-driven conversations held in communities across Illinois.” CEJA would move Illinois to 100 percent clean energy by 2050, while protecting consumers power bills. CUB supports the legislation because it would: hold utilities accountable by ending formula rate increases that burden consumers and small businesses; implement electricity market reforms to protect customers from up to $1.7 billion in higher power bills over the next decade; promote policies to reduce expensive peak demand that increases consumers’ electric bills as well as expand cost-cutting efficiency programs, bringing about $700 to $800 million a year in utility bill savings; promote vehicle electrification and money-saving smart-charging policies, cleaning up the transportation sector that is now the biggest contributor to climate change. Additionally, CEJA would attract billions of dollars in private renewable energy investment to Illinois, and create thousands of clean energy jobs without raising taxes, hiking power bills, or giving bailouts to Exelon or fossil fuel companies. In a poll taken last May, 82 percent of Illinois voters surveyed said they support CEJA to aid in COVID recovery.

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CEJA sponsors reintroduce bill, pledge to pass legislation by May

Hannah — Tue, 09 Feb 2021 21:51:51 +0000

Members of the Illinois General Assembly and the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition today reintroduced a stronger Clean Energy Jobs Act, with a pledge from bill sponsors to pass the comprehensive energy legislation in the General Assembly by May 2021. “The days of ComEd, Exelon, Ameren, and big fossil fuel companies meeting in a backroom to decide energy policy are over,” State Rep. Ann Williams said at the news conference held Tuesday morning. “We need to put the people of Illinois first, not utility company profits, and that’s what CEJA does.” The Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA) is the only bill in Springfield that moves Illinois to 100 percent clean energy by 2050, creates thousands of much-needed equitable jobs and holds utilities accountable without raising taxes, hiking electric bills, or giving bailouts to corrupt utility companies. (Sign our petition and tell your legislators we need CEJA now!) Supporters say the need for comprehensive, consumer-friendly energy legislation is urgent in the face of powerful polluters and the growing impact of climate change. Guadalupe Bueno didn’t have a choice to become a climate activist. Her hometown, Waukegan, is home to a coal plant and numerous superfund sites. In a video played at the news conference, Bueno said CEJA can’t wait, especially in communities like her own, left in the lurch when coal companies cut and run, leaving joblessness, contaminated work sites and property tax revenue deficits in their wake. But as CEJA’s House sponsor Williams points out, Illinois is up against three other major crises at the moment: COVID, social and economic injustice and corruption. While CEJA isn’t an answer to the state’s every woe, the bill does include provisions that will help Illinois communities recover from the pandemic, which has left many unemployed and struggling to afford their utility bills. This is especially true among Black and Latinx communities, which have been hit disproportionally hard by the pandemic. “Our communities have borne the brunt of the health problems associated with pollution, and we have taken a huge toll in death and joblessness from COVID-19. CEJA is a key component to economic recovery and building back better,” said State Rep. Kam Buckner, House chair of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus. “We don’t just want electric vehicle charging stations, rooftop and community solar, and energy efficiency projects completed in Black neighborhoods and communities. We want Black workers installing them, and we want Black-owned businesses designing the projects and getting them built,” said State Sen. Robert Peters, Senate chair of the Illinois legislative Black Caucus. “CEJA is the only comprehensive energy bill that delivers on that promise.” CUB supports the bill because it protects utility bills by expanding energy efficiency programs and implementing electricity market reforms. CEJA also is the only bill that calls for fair compensation for ComEd customers after federal prosecutors caught Illinois’ largest electric utility in a bribery scandal to pass legislation that led to a new system of setting rates and opened the door to multiple increases. CEJA would replace that system, called formula rates, with one that is more fair for consumers and better protects them from unfair rate hikes. […]

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Amid pandemic and ComEd corruption scandal, community advocates launch push for Clean Energy Jobs Act

Celeste — Tue, 09 Feb 2021 15:21:34 +0000

Legislative leaders along with a coalition of consumer and community advocates, including CUB, on Tuesday announced the reintroduction of the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA), aiming to pass Springfield’s most consumer-friendly energy bill by the end of May. Join the Fight for CEJA! Saying Illinois faces an economic and public health crisis, a racial and economic justice crisis, and a crisis of utility corruption, supporters of CEJA plan to file the bill in the Illinois House of Representatives this week. The bill was first introduced in 2019 and has wide support, but has faced delays caused by the pandemic. New leadership in Washington signals a renewed push for cleaner energy, but advocates say only states can ensure that utilities are held accountable and that the benefits of clean, affordable energy actually get delivered to residents. “The Legislature should enact the long-delayed Clean Energy Jobs Act, which would expand renewable energy, boost energy conservation, put more electric vehicles on the roads, provide support for displaced fossil fuel workers and their communities and steer jobs to economically challenged communities,” the Chicago Sun-Times wrote in a recent editorial. CEJA’s lead co-sponsors are state Rep. Ann Williams, chair of the House Energy Committee, and state Sen. Cristina Castro. Both wrote in a recent opinion piece in the Chicago Tribune that CEJA helps communities most in need, has strong support and puts people and policy before utility company profits—a key reform in the wake of ComEd’s corruption scandal. “The time to pass CEJA is now,” they wrote. CUB outlined the top reasons it supports the Clean Energy Jobs Act. It’s good for our utility bills. CEJA would: Expand natural gas efficiency programs, producing an estimated $700 million per year in consumer savings. Implement electricity market reforms to protect ComEd customers from up to $1.7 billion in higher electric bills due to a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ruling in 2019 to bail out polluting power plants. While new leadership at FERC promises changes, that will take time and Illinois need to act now to avoid higher costs. Secure savings. CEJA’s “consumer protection adjustment” guarantees cost savings for ComEd customers over what they currently pay for electricity. End formula rate hikes. Setting ComEd and Ameren rates by formula—a system that lacks adequate consumer protections—would be replaced with a system in which state regulators only approve utility programs and rates that are cost-effective. It holds utilities accountable. CEJA would: Create an independent monitor to ensure ethics compliance by all public utilities. Provide restitution for customers. In the wake of the ethics scandal, ComEd shareholders would have to repurpose ill-gained profits so they instead go to programs that serve communities in need. (CUB also is suing ComEd in federal court to win fair compensation for customers. See the Chicago Sun-Times story and read CUB’s complaint.) Prohibit the use of customer funds to cover expenses tied to federal ethics investigations. It cares about communities amid the pandemic. CEJA would: Create thousands of clean energy jobs. Direct jobs and job training to communities that need it the most, including communities of color and towns where big polluters have shuttered their […]

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CUB’s Capitol Report: Fighting rubber-stamped rate hikes, water privatization, and unfair gas charges in Springfield

Celeste — Wed, 20 Jan 2021 18:38:06 +0000

With Illinois’ new General Assembly taking up business in Springfield amid a pandemic, CUB’s Bryan McDaniel will be busy fighting for consumers on a number of important bills. Help CUB fight for lower utility bills “Fighting for consumer legislation in Springfield is always a challenge because energy, water, and internet company lobbyists are out in full force and they’ll do whatever they can to protect and increase their profits,” said Bryan, CUB’s director of governmental affairs. “Sometimes it takes several legislative sessions to pass good bills. But we don’t give up, because it’s about protecting consumers.” The following issues will be part of CUB’s pro-consumer agenda at the State Capitol. (We don’t have bill numbers for these legislative campaigns but we’ll update you as soon as we do.) Working for the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA) After delays caused by the pandemic and a scandal in which federal prosecutors accused ComEd of corruption, there is urgency to support CEJA. CUB calls CEJA the most consumer-friendly energy legislation in Springfield for a number of reasons, but most importantly the legislation would protect customers from a series of Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) rulings since 2019. Those rulings have Illinois on the verge of major changes to the electricity market. The market changes would shovel consumer money to fossil fuel power plants to the tune of up to $1.7 billion in higher electric bills for most Illinois consumers over the next decade. As a response, CEJA would put the Illinois Power Agency in charge of managing a key part of the electricity market in ComEd territory, called the capacity market, putting Illinois in control of its own clean energy policy and creating the opportunity to save consumers money while greatly expanding clean energy investment. CEJA also would: Implement a more fair and transparent electricity rate-setting system that would require ComEd and Ameren to prove how investments would make utility bills more affordable. (The current system, formula rates, is at the center of a ComEd corruption scandal. Formula rates make it too easy for the companies to get rubber-stamped rate hikes, and ComEd is accused of using illegal means to pass the legislation that created this rate-setting system.) Require ComEd to pay restitution for its corruption. Create an ethics monitor to hold all utilities more accountable. Expand energy efficiency programs that have already saved Illinois consumers billions of dollars on their utility bills. Ending an unnecessary natural gas bill surcharge While the legal team this year has been involved in about $400 million in rate cases before the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC), at the State Capitol CUB is taking on a special natural gas surcharge (the “Qualified, Infrastructure Plant” charge) that, as Bryan puts it, allows Ameren, Nicor Gas and Peoples Gas “to use consumers like an ATM machine.” The parent companies of those utilities have made billions of dollars in profits over the last five years, so they’ve been very successful at taking more consumer money. The utilities say the surcharge is necessary to pay for pipe replacement, but the companies are legally obligated to replace old pipes and respond to emergencies, […]

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CUB’s Consumer Agenda for 2021

Celeste — Mon, 04 Jan 2021 21:47:16 +0000

Report from David Kolata, CUB executive director Happy New Year, everyone. I thank you for your support of CUB and your interest in working for lower utility bills and cleaner energy. As we look ahead to 2021, I want to give you a report on the major challenges facing Illinois consumers. The issues below—in no particular order—are important to our bottom lines and our planet. Together, we will need to stand up for clean, affordable energy and consumer protections in 2021. A terrible FERC ruling: Over the last few years this has been a major concern for CUB. Certain members of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) voted in 2019 to revamp electricity market rules and bail out fossil fuel power plants. The move threatens to cost most Illinois consumers up to $1.7 billion in higher power bills over the next decade—and it would make climate change worse. How to fight it: CUB is working for the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA), comprehensive energy legislation proposed in Springfield that would, among other things, protect Illinois consumers from the damaging FERC ruling. ComEd corruption: ComEd has been fined $200 million by federal prosecutors, accused of using bribery to pass favorable legislation in Springfield. Yet, while the company has paid the federal government for its wrongdoing, consumers hurt by the company’s actions haven’t gotten one cent. How to fight it: CUB has partnered with former Gov. Pat Quinn and the consumer-rights law firm Edelson PC to sue ComEd in federal court, accusing it of bribery and racketeering activities. Our goal is to fight before anybody (the courts, the Illinois Commerce Commission and General Assembly) to win the most restitution possible for ComEd customers. The Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA) also has a provision that would require ComEd to pay restitution. In addition, CEJA contains provisions that would hold all utilities more accountable, by creating an ethics monitor, and replacing the legislation that allowed ComEd and Ameren to set rates by a formula. That formula rate legislation, which CUB has opposed multiple times and is at the center of the scandal, contained too few consumer protections against unfair rate hikes. CEJA would replace formula rates with a more fair and transparent system that would require ComEd and Ameren to prove how investments would make utility bills more affordable. Rate hikes: As the year begins, two of the state’s natural gas providers are threatening consumers with more than $100 million in combined rate hikes. How to fight it: CUB is currently before the Illinois Commerce Commission challenging Ameren Illinois’ natural gas rate-hike request of about $97 million (down from the original $102 million request) and North Shore Gas’ request of about $10 million. CUB is ready to mount similar challenges against any rate-hike request by Illinois utilities. Rising natural gas bills: A natural gas surcharge approved by the General Assembly years ago helps major utilities sidestep the regulatory process and raise heating bills, forcing many customers into financial crisis to cover billions of dollars in mismanaged utility spending. How to fight it: CUB, as part of a coalition of consumer advocates, has been working […]

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Mysterious group tries to derail clean energy legislation in Illinois

Jim Chilsen — Fri, 18 Dec 2020 14:25:26 +0000

A mysterious dark money group has reportedly spent more than $250,000 on social media and TV advertising designed to hurt efforts to pass strong clean energy legislation in Illinois, according to research by Capitol Fax and the Clean Jobs Coalition, of which CUB is a member. The shadowy group deceptively calls itself the Clean Energy Transition Project, but as Midwest Energy News reported it doesn’t propose any legitimate clean energy policies. The group doesn’t appear to have any grassroots membership and its main strategy seems to be to manipulate legitimate consumer anger over the ComEd scandal to try to kill pro-consumer legislation like the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA). Lacie Newton, a representative of the Clean Energy Transition Project, declined an interview with Midwest Energy News. But CEJA supporters told the publication that Newton’s group is merely a front for the fossil fuel industry. “They are definitely co-opting the messages of climate and clean energy,” said Illinois Environmental Council Executive Director Jen Walling. “They’re putting out negative and false information about our legislation.” The fossil fuel industry hates the Clean Energy Jobs Act, because it would be bad for their bottom line. The bill, which aims to secure 100 percent clean energy for Illinois by 2050, would expand energy efficiency programs that have already saved consumers billions of dollars. It also would implement energy market reforms that would protect ComEd customers from paying for a dirty energy bailout engineered by pro-coal forces on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Also, the bill contains strong utility accountability provisions that would give restitution to ComEd customers in the wake of the company’s bribery scandal and would eliminate the formula rates that are at the center of the controversy. The company has paid a $200 million federal fine after admitting to using bribery to pass legislation that dismantled consumer protections against unfair rate hikes. In addition to those pro-consumer provisions, CUB supports the legislation because it would draw billions of dollars in clean energy investment and jobs and represents the cheapest, fastest way for Illinois to get to 100 percent clean energy without raising power bills, hiking taxes or giving a bailout to big energy companies. State Rep. Ann Williams, a co-sponsor of CEJA, has sent a letter asking Newton to reveal the group’s funding and partnerships. Referring to a scandal in Ohio (the CUB there has been a voice for customers to get compensation), Rep. Williams, the chair of the Illinois House Energy & Environment committee, wrote: “We’ve watched the recent scandal play out in Ohio, where utilities and fossil fuel companies like First Energy and Murray Energy were found to be funneling money through shadowy front groups that look and operate a lot like yours. I certainly hope the Clean Energy Transition Project is not yet another conduit for dark money from dirty coal and gas companies or their allies to influence the legislative process anonymously.” When we fight for pro-consumer legislation, we expect to make enemies. This mysterious group is just a reminder of the fight we have on our hands to pass CEJA in 2021. Send a message to our state leaders […]

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