Ill. House OKs Electric Rate Freeze

The House voted 92-5 on Tuesday to roll back rate increases that took effect in January and freeze them at the lower levels for at least three years. It's the second time in two months the House has overwhelmingly backed a rate freeze.

But the measure faces little hope as it heads to the Senate, where President Emil Jones remains opposed to it.

Some supporters weren't swayed by Jones' opposition, saying lawmakers owed it to constituents back home to act and, hopefully, spur progress.

"We have an opportunity to protect our people," said Rep. John Bradley, D-Marion. "If it gets people to the bargaining table, so be it. If it doesn't, we've done the right thing."

Bradley and other downstate legislators have been under tremendous pressure in recent weeks to help consumers stunned by soaring electric rates.

Rates were expected to rise an average of 22 percent for ComEd customers and average of 55 percent for Ameren customers when a 10-year rate freeze ended at the beginning of the year.

But some residents and businesses in Ameren's territory have complained that their bills doubled or tripled under the new rates.

The House conducted a 13-hour hearing last week to hear horror stories about rising rates and grill utility executives about why some bills are so much higher than expected.

Critics argued Tuesday that reinstating the rate freeze will only cause consumers more long-term pain by sending Ameren and ComEd into bankruptcy. ComEd is a subsidiary of Exelon Corp.

Some said the vote was designed to score political points for supporters, not provide real relief for consumers.

"This has been a comedy of errors, and we will probably be compounding it today," said Rep. Bill Black, R-Danville.

In a statement issued Tuesday, ComEd said a rate freeze extension could cost the company $1.4 billion a year.

"Unequivocally, a rate freeze extension is irresponsible policy, illegal and threatens our ability to provide reliable service to our customers," said ComEd president Barry Mitchell in the statement.

Ameren spokesman Leigh Morris echoed those sentiments late Tuesday, saying a rate freeze would have "dire financial consequences."

"Ameren Illinois utilities are spending up to $1 billion more for electricity than we did in 2006," Morris said. "We need to be able to recover those costs through our rate structure."

Some legislators also urged Gov. Rod Blagojevich to help broker an agreement among legislative leaders, while others suggested the Illinois Commerce Commission should do more to provide relief.

The ICC opened an investigation into rate increases last week but warned it wouldn't be able to act as quickly as lawmakers could.