Consumer Victories Archives | Citizens Utility Board

CUB Reacts To ICC Making Significant Cut To Nicor Gas Rate Hike

Elizabeth — Wed, 19 Nov 2025 20:34:03 +0000

CUB issued the following statement responding to the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) ruling on Nicor Gas’ rate-hike request: Any heating bill increase is too much for Nicor’s 2.3 million customers, who have been hit with four previous rate hikes in the last eight years – a period when profits for the utility’s parent company have totaled an astronomical $25 billion. It’s beyond troubling that a corporation getting so fat on its own prosperity continues to demand ever greater financial sacrifices from its customers. Against this backdrop, we’re thankful that state regulators responded by derailing Nicor’s bid to raid consumers for costs that were blatantly inflated and unwarranted. In shrinking Nicor’s requested $314 million increase by about half, the ICC’s ruling today exceeds the reduction recommended by two administrative law judges last month by an ample margin and reaffirms the Commission’s commitment to holding utilities accountable for every expense they attempt to charge consumers. With winter heating season in full force, and prices for groceries and health care putting a squeeze on household budgets, conditions for consumers are extremely fragile. We urge state regulators to continue to crack down on profit-mongering by Illinois’ gas utilities so no one is forced to choose between paying for fuel to heat or food to eat. Background: On Nov. 19, 2025, the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) issued a final order in Nicor Gas’ request for a state-record $314.3 million rate hike (Docket #25-0055). The order reduced Nicor’s rate hike by 47 percent, or $146.5 million, making the final increase $167.8 million. Among the proposals in Nicor’s rate-hike request, CUB challenged the utility’s attempt to capture an outrageous 10.35 percent Return on Equity (ROE), or profit rate for shareholders. The ICC’s final order reduced the ROE to 9.6 percent. This is Nicor’s fifth rate hike since 2017. Between 2017 and 2024, the utility has raised delivery rates by 114 percent, totaling $747 million, and its parent, Southern Co., has raked in about $25 billion in profits. Today’s increase adds to the total rate hikes since 2017. This increase impacts delivery rates, which take up about a third to a half of gas bills. It’s what Nicor charges customers to cover the costs of delivering gas to homes—plus a profit. The original rate hike was expected to hit customers with an average bill increase of about 9.28 percent, or about $7.70 per month. The ICC order means bills will still go up, but not as much as Nicor wanted. Warning: Even customers who pay an alternative gas supplier still pay Nicor’s delivery charges. So customers should beware of any sales representative who says they can avoid the rate hike by going with an alternative supplier. All Nicor customers pay these higher rates. Customers having trouble paying their bills should contact their utility to find out about assistance available, and the Help Illinois Families call center, at 1-833-711-0374, to learn more about the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Nicor is Illinois’ largest gas utility, serving 2.3 million residential, public sector and business customers.

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CUB Reacts To ICC Making Significant Cut To Ameren Gas Rate Hike

Elizabeth — Wed, 19 Nov 2025 20:26:28 +0000

CUB issued the following statement Wednesday in response to the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC)’s ruling on Ameren Illinois’ gas rate-hike request: Any heating bill increase is too much for Ameren’s more than 800,000 gas customers, who have already been hit by four rate hikes in the last seven years – a period when profits for the utility’s gas operations have ballooned by a whopping 112 percent. At a time when Ameren is experiencing such unbridled prosperity, it shouldn’t be forcing its customers into more economic hardship. Against this backdrop, we’re thankful that state regulators responded by derailing Ameren’s bid to raid consumers for costs that were blatantly inflated and unwarranted. In shrinking Ameren’s requested $129 million increase by more than 40 percent, the ICC’s ruling today exceeds the reduction recommended by two administrative law judges last month by an ample margin and reaffirms the Commission’s commitment to holding utilities accountable for justifying every expense they attempt to charge consumers. With winter heating season in full force, and prices for groceries and health care putting a squeeze on household budgets, conditions for consumers are extremely fragile. We urge state regulators to continue to crack down on profit-mongering by Illinois’ gas utilities so no one is forced to choose between paying for fuel to heat or food to eat. Background: On Nov. 19, 2025, the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) issued a final order in Ameren Illinois’ proposal (Docket #25-0084) for a $128.8 million rate hike. The order reduced Ameren’s rate hike by 43 percent, or $55.8 million, making the final increase about $73 million. Among the proposals in Nicor’s rate-hike request, CUB challenged the utility’s attempt to capture an outrageous 10.7 percent Return on Equity (ROE), or profit rate for shareholders. The ICC’s final order reduced the ROE to 9.6 percent. This is Ameren’s fourth rate hike since 2018. In that time, the gas utility has raised delivery rates by $202 million, or 50 percent. Plus, the utility’s parent company, Ameren, has increased profits by 45 percent for a total of $6.9 billion, and Ameren Illinois’ gas segment has seen its profits more than double. Today’s increase adds to the total rate hikes since 2018. This increase, which will take effect before the end of the year, impacts delivery rates. Delivery rates, which take up about a third to a half of gas bills, are what the utilities charge customers to cover the costs of delivering gas to homes—plus a profit. The original rate hike was expected to hit customers with an average bill increase of roughly $8-$10 per month. The ICC order means bills will still go up, but not as much as Ameren wanted. Customers having trouble paying their bills should contact their utility to find out about assistance available. They also can call the Help Illinois Families call center, at 1-833-711-0374, to learn more about the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Ameren Illinois delivers gas to more than 800,000 customers in Illinois. The electric and gas utility covers more than 1,200 communities and 43,700 square miles in Illinois.

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Making a Difference: CUB Consumer Advocacy team’s good work saves people money

Jim Chilsen — Fri, 17 Jan 2025 12:51:45 +0000

CUB’s Consumer Advocacy team spends most of their days answering people’s calls and emails about utility bills and service. In 2024, this team (Annie, Danielle, Sandra) handled more than 1,600 consumer inquiries, saving individual utility customers a total of $48,054. Below are examples of people whom we’ve advocated for in their complaints against electric, gas, water or telecom/cable companies: Dave of Homer Glen: Illinois American Water bill cut by $3,059. Rakesh of Round Lake: ComEd bill cut by $2,346. Lesley of Chicago: Peoples Gas bill cut by $1,199. Francis of Chicago: ComEd bill cut by $823. Chelsea of Tolono: Clearview Electric bill cut by $739. Amy of Chicago: AT&T bill cut by $705. Cristobalina of Niles: Indra Energy bill cut by $700. Brian and Marci of Freeport: ComEd bill cut by $545. Ashley of Chicago: Peoples Gas bill cut by $466. Mary of Carol Stream: ComEd bill cut by $463. Steven of Belleville: Illinois American Water bill cut by $111. Matthew of Frankfort: Comcast/Xfinity bill cut by $100. Rose of Chicago: Verizon Wireless bill cut by $51. Paula of Benton: Frontier/Citizens Communications bill cut by $50. If you ever have a question or complaint about your utility bills, and contacting your utility hasn’t helped… Consider calling CUB’s Consumer Hotline, at 1-800-669-5556; or Fill out CUB’s online complaint form at CitizensUtilityBoard.org.

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Support CUB on Giving Tuesday

Jim Chilsen — Tue, 03 Dec 2024 06:01:12 +0000

Tuesday, Dec. 3 is Giving Tuesday, the international day for supporting nonprofits. And it’s a good day to support CUB’s work for clean energy, consumer protections and lower utility bills! Plus, today you could win an iPad! There are two ways to enter CUB’s Giving Tuesday iPad Giveaway: 1) Give a donation of any amount. 2) Fill out the form here, without giving a donation to CUB. By filling out this form or giving a donation, you will be entered in the giveaway for the chance to be randomly selected to win the following prizes: 1 of 2 iPads. (There’s also a third prize: 4 Chicago White Sox tickets.) In total, three winners will be randomly selected on Wednesday, Dec. 4. (Please read the terms and conditions here.) Together, with the support of Illinois consumers, CUB accomplished a lot in 2024, our 40th anniversary. But our work is far from over. Too many people are having a hard time affording their bills. Please consider supporting CUB’s free services on Giving Tuesday. If you can’t give a donation, please consider taking other actions: Call our Consumer Hotline, 1-800-669-5556, if you ever have a question or complaint about your utility bills or service. Follow CUB on social media! Join CUB’s e-newsletter list (it’s free)! Volunteer for CUB (call 1-800-669-5556 and ask for Matt)! Thanks for all that you do. We appreciate you!

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Chicago Sun-Times: Here’s how the Citizens Utility Board has saved Illinois consumers billions (The group turned 40 this year but not everyone knows about the CUB’s role in representing ratepayers.)

Jim Chilsen — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 21:27:41 +0000

By Stephanie Zimmerman Chicago Sun-Times Utility bills can be confusing, but the nonpartisan Citizens Utility Board of Illinois has helped save consumers an estimated $20 billion in blocked rate hikes and refunds over the past 40 years. Yet not everyone knows about the group’s role in representing ratepayers, says CUB’s Executive Director Sarah Moskowitz. Sometimes she gets confused looks when she explains that CUB was created by the Illinois Legislature but isn’t funded by the state. “I think a lot of people don’t know that we exist or what it is that we do,” says Moskowitz, who started answering phones for CUB’s consumer hotline in 2000 and rose through the ranks as she earned her graduate degree in social service administration from the University of Chicago. Created by the state Legislature to be a voice for consumers in utility matters, CUB weighs in on proposed rate hikes by electric, gas and water utilities statewide. It also helps educate consumers, from warning people about shady alternative energy sellers to giving tips for lowering cellphone costs, getting heating discounts and obtaining solar power. CUB started in 1984, and within a year, it had won state reforms requiring audits of utility plant construction costs and other spending. Two years later, it notched its first win against a proposed ComEd rate increase that saved consumers $1.9 billion. The group helped pass the 2021 Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, which set a goal of having 100% carbon-free energy in Illinois by 2045. Last year, CUB’s challenges to proposed electric and natural gas rate increases throughout Illinois helped slice $1.6 billion from a record $2.9 billion in proposed rate increases. The organization also has sharply criticized the massive pipeline replacement project by Peoples Gas, an undertaking that was budgeted at $2 billion in 2007 and is now at $11 billion with only about 38% of the work completed, according to a recent report. Apart from a $100,000 loan when it launched, which was repaid with interest, the consumer group doesn’t get state funding. The bulk of the group’s $2.2 million in revenue — including for the related CUB Consumer Education and Research Fund — came from grants, donations and memberships, according to its 2023 tax filings. While it has faced criticism in the past for taking large donations from foundations funded by utilities including ComEd, the group’s biggest donor, at just over $1 million, in 2023 was the U.S. Energy Foundation, founded by the MacArthur and Rockefeller foundations and the Pew Charitable Trusts to help reduce energy use and promote renewable sources. Other donations last year included $115,000 from the Joyce Foundation and $75,000 from Crown Family Philanthropies. CUB is keeping an eye on reliability and affordability as Illinois transitions toward more renewable energy sources, Moskowitz says. “We want to make sure that vulnerable customers and customers who don’t have the up-front capital to make those investments aren’t left behind,” she says. To mark its 40th anniversary, CUB has been holding at least 300 online and in-person events around the state — offering tips on how to save energy at home as well as utility bill clinics, where people can bring in […]

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CUB helps consumer get $23,288 refund!

Jim Chilsen — Tue, 28 May 2024 11:47:55 +0000

CUB’s Consumer Advocacy Department this past spring helped secure a $23,288 refund for a Chicago business owner. Annie Warnock, CUB’s Bilingual Consumer Rights Specialist, took on the case of a small-business owner who was “distraught and confused” over high electric bills. The owner discovered she was with an alternative electricity supplier she had never heard of and had not authorized–and yet she had been paying this company since 2020. (“Slamming” is when an account is illegally switched from the utility to another supplier.) Annie rolled up her sleeves and advocated for the customer. At first, the supplier offered to settle the case for $3,000. Not nearly enough. “We insisted that the enrollment was invalid,” Annie said. After weeks of back and forth, the supplier notified her of a big refund: $23,288.76, based on what the commercial account was charged versus utility supply rates. “OMG! I am very happy with the outcome of this case,” Annie wrote in an email to staff.

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CUB helps Sugar Grove couple secure a solar victory

Jim Chilsen — Mon, 22 Apr 2024 23:11:57 +0000

We wish you a Happy Earth Day. It’s the perfect day to share this story about a victory in helping people secure clean and affordable energy in Illinois: Becky and Mike just wanted to install solar panels, but a local ordinance banning panels on front- or street-facing roofs threatened to block 20 percent of their project, and an estimated $10,000 in potential savings. The Sugar Grove couple didn’t give up–they got to work. They paid $765 to file a petition to change the local zoning code, and spent about eight months researching solar law, attending public meetings and sparking other solar supporters to send letters urging the village board to change the rule. And on a recent night in Sugar Grove, it all paid off–the Village Board voted to change the code! Scott Allen, CUB’s renewable energy policy coordinator, spoke in support of Becky and Mike on TV and at the village meeting. “Everybody take note that organizing, and showing up and talking to your elected officials works,” Scott said in a celebratory video filmed with Becky and Mike after the meeting. Kudos to you, Becky and Mike. And thanks to all of you who support CUB’s advocacy. We’ve got a lot of work to do to make sure everyone has access to clean and affordable energy–but stories like this give us hope. Help support more victories for clean and affordable energy.

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Teacher says CUB website invaluable in battling alternative supplier ‘scamsters’

Sophia — Wed, 29 Mar 2023 19:19:23 +0000

Carolyn helps teach English as a second language–but her lessons have gone far beyond grammar. One day a student mentioned to the Champaign-area teacher that her utility bills had gone through the roof. What Carolyn uncovered was a problem all too common for Illinois consumers. A salesman from an alternative electric supplier had gone door to door at the student’s mobile home park and had signed up the student and many of her neighbors. The student said she had only given out her name (no bill), and hadn’t given permission to switch suppliers. CUB has warned Illinois consumers that people have lost more than $1 billion to alternative electric suppliers since 2015. In this case, the alternative supplier “deal,” which the student was signed up for in 2019, had made her bills “outlandishly high”–nearly $400 for a mobile home, in the winter months. Carolyn, with the assistance of the City of Champaign, helped her student switch to her town’s municipal electric aggregation program, a better deal, and has continued to use CUB’s online resources to educate others about the dangers of “scamsters” in the energy market. “This company took advantage of vulnerable people with limited English and low incomes who didn’t understand,” Carolyn wrote to CUB. “I’ve been helping her and others with their electric supply choices. [The CUB] website has been invaluable to me as I teach about these options.” Our website has many consumer education resources available: English: CitizensUtilityBoard.org Spanish: CitizensUtilityBoard.org/Espanol After visiting CUB’s website, if you still have questions about utility service or alternative suppliers, please reach out to CUB’s Consumer Hotline, at 1-800-669-5556.

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CEJA set to deliver over $480 million in tax-related refunds

Elizabeth — Fri, 22 Jul 2022 16:51:04 +0000

ComEd customers will get $434 million and Ameren Illinois electric customers $50.8 million in refunds over the next three years, under a plan called for by the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) and OK’d by state regulators this summer. The case was tied to an ongoing dispute among the utilities and consumer advocates over how utilities should give customers a refund connected to the federal corporate tax cut that went into effect in 2018. In 2017, Congress approved cutting the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent. That left utilities with excess money (called “EDIT,” for excess deferred income taxes) since under their accounting procedures the higher taxes were included in the rates customers pay. The utilities wanted decades to return that money to customers–39 years in the case of ComEd and 35 years for Ameren. CUB and the Illinois Attorney General’s Office argued for just a few years. The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) ruled in the utilities’ favor several times on this issue, and the refunds–under the utilities’ preferred schedule–began in 2019. But consumer advocates added a provision in CEJA that required ComEd and Ameren to pass through a portion of the refunds by the end of 2025. The new ICC case set a timeline on how the money will be spread through the three years. The bulk of excess tax funds will still go to customers over decades—because federal tax law requires that the taxes associated with the refund be spread out over the course of the estimated life of physical assets (poles and other electric utility equipment). The CEJA provision concerned a subset of those funds—worth hundreds of millions of dollars—not subject to the federal code. “At a time of high energy prices across the globe, this is welcome news,” CUB Communications Director Jim Chilsen said in a statement. “We are thankful that other consumer advocates like Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul never gave up on this battle, fighting to ensure that electric customers received these refunds over just a few years, rather than the decades the utilities favored.”

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UPDATE: CEJA helps secure big tax-related refunds for ComEd, Ameren customers

Jim Chilsen — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 07:20:46 +0000

Update: On July 7th, the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) approved a schedule for hundreds of millions of dollars in tax refunds for ComEd and Ameren customers. The refunds will begin to flow back to consumers through their power bills in 2023. This is an update to the blog below, which was published earlier this year. ComEd customers would get $434 million and Ameren Illinois electric customers $50.8 million in refunds over the next three years as part of an Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) process that was required by the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA), groundbreaking energy legislation. The ICC is expected to make a final decision on the proposed refunds this summer. Read CUB’s Q&A: Why would electric customers get refunds? This is tied to an ongoing dispute among utilities in the state and consumer advocates like CUB and the Illinois Attorney General’s Office over how utilities should give customers a refund connected to the federal corporate tax cut that went into effect in 2018. Back in 2017, Congress approved cutting the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent (the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017). That left the utilities with excess money (technically called “EDIT,” for excess deferred income taxes) since under their accounting procedures the companies had already collected from customers to pay for taxes under the higher rate. However, the utilities supported giving that money back to customers over decades–more than 39 years in the case of ComEd and 35 years for Ameren. CUB and the Attorney General’s Office argued for a more reasonable time period–a few years. On this issue, the ICC ruled in the utilities’ favor several times, starting in 2018. The refunds–under the utilities’ preferred schedule–began in 2019. However, in 2021, consumer advocates added a provision in CEJA that required ComEd and Ameren, Illinois’ largest electric utilities, to pass through a portion of the refunds by the end of 2025. Now, in a case before the Illinois Commerce Commission, ComEd and Ameren have agreed in principle to a timeline on how the money will be spread through the three years. It’s subject to ICC approval and we expect the order this summer. When would consumers get the refunds? Here’s a breakdown of the refunds over three years, beginning in January 2023. Ameren Illinois ComEd 2023 $ 7,623,000 $ 65,100,000 2024 $ 22,869,000 $ 195,300,000 2025 $ 20,328,000 $ 173,600,000 TOTAL $ 50,820,000 $ 434,000,000 Note: The refunds would be spread out across all 12 months of each year. For ComEd, the 2023 and 2024 amounts are minimums. The amounts could be higher in those years, depending on if the company gets a large rate hike. The amount of the refund in those years may be adjusted to help offset increases. How would it show up on consumer bills? We don’t know how these refunds would be reflected on customer bills, but we will update this Q&A as soon as we do know. We are also crunching how many dollars this would mean for the average customer. Why would only a portion of the refund go to consumers in the […]

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