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News :: Miscellaneous |
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Illinois-American Water Co. Requests Rate Increases For All Service Areas |
Current rating: 0 |
by Nancy Dietrich
(No verified email address) |
16 Nov 2002
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Illinois-American Water Company has requested rate increases for all I-AWC service areas, which includes a 20.22% increase for customers in Champaign County. |
Illinois-American Water Company recently filed an across-the-board rate increase with the Illinois Commerce Commission for customers in all I-AWC operating
districts. In addition to Champaign County, areas affected by the increase would include Alton, Cairo, Peoria, Interurban (East St. Louis area), Pekin, Lincoln,
Pontiac, Streator, Sterling, and all districts in the Chicago Metro Division.
According to Rate Case information obtained from the Illinois-American Water Company office in Champaign, proposed rate increases are as follows:
District Proposed rate increase
Interurban, Alton, Cairo: 22.58%
Pekin: 8.28%
Lincoln: 13.25%
Champaign County 20.22% ($4.51/month, or approx. $54/year increase)
Streator 39.28%
Pontiac 22.60%
Sterling 51.26%
Chicago Metro Approximately 30% (dollar amounts vary by service district)
These rate increases have been filed for residential, industrial, and commercial
customers, and will become effective around August, 2003.
Also according to the Rate Case information, reasons the I-AWC gives for the rate increases are as follows:
1. Heightened security since September 11, 2001. Details on what has been done to increase security are confidential.
2. Continued infrastructure investments and improvements.
3. Rising labor, pension and insurance costs.
In a paragraph from docket information in the Illinois Commerce Commission
website on this case also states ..."the requested increase is necessary ....to provide the Company with an opportunity to earn a fair return on its investment in utility plant."(sic) Also according to ICC docket information, the increase will raise I-AWC revenues by approximately $36,256,254, or 24.96%, and will affect slightly
over 300,000 customers.
Customers affected by these increases can call the Illinois Commerce Commission to give input and/or to express opinions at 1-800-524-0795.
Rate Case 2002-2003 information, from which info in this article was found, is available from the Illinois-American Water Company, Champaign branch office, 201 Devonshire, Champaign, or contact Customer Service for an office in your
district: 1-800-422-2782.
To view the Illinois-American Water Company docket on file with the Illinois Commerce Commission, log onto the ICC website at http://eweb.icc.state.il.us/e-docket/
Enter into the "Browse Docket" section, and type in the docket number: 02-0690(must enter the hyphen). Some information from this article was found in the cover letter of this docket. |
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Same Old Stuff |
by Peter Miller
(No verified email address) |
Current rating: 0
16 Nov 2002
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IAWC "merged" with Northern Illinois Water Company in the spring of 2000. When the newspaper reported on the merger, I responded with the following letter to the editor:
To the Editor:
Mergers and acquisitions are so common these days, we almost don't notice them. Our government used to regulate megabusinesses because we understood that the interests of big business usually aren't the interest of citizens. Nonetheless, buyouts continue with public relations officers rolling out the standard arguments: bigger corporations lower costs, are more efficient, and provide better service. In my experience none of these things is true.
Take the recent acquisition of the Northern Illinois Water Company by Illinois-American Water Company. The new company is "the largest investor-owned water utility business in the country," meaning that it's responsible more to its shareholders than the residents of the 870 communities whose water the company controls.
What changes should we expect? Lower cost due to higher efficiency? Not a chance. As soon as the NIWC sign came down, the new company announced a price increase: your water bills are rising by 9.3%. Despite the price hike, the company fired dozens of people. How about better service? Only if you consider a centralized tele-service system an improvement.
Since the merger led to higher prices, poorer service, and job cuts, too (if fewer people have jobs, then shouldn't prices DROP?), then why was it approved? A small number of owners can steal a bundle from a captive water market in east-central Illinois.
The same thing has happened in numerous other industries, notably cable TV and banking. We need to change course and regulate businesses that have only one thing in mind: profit. We, the people should come first.
-Peter Miller |
