Record-setting rate hike sought by ComEd is more than $914M too high, utility watchdog argues

A utility watchdog group says ComEd’s record-setting $1.5 billion rate hike request for the next four years is $914 million more than it needs to be. (Pat Nabong/Sun-Times)

The record-high $1.5 billion rate increase that ComEd is asking state regulators to approve should be slashed by more than 60%, according to consumer advocates who say the unprecedented hike would amount to a “blank check” for a utility that previously admitted its role in a Springfield bribery scheme. 

The Citizens Utility Board filed testimony Monday with the Illinois Commerce Commission challenging the increase request filed in January by ComEd, whose hefty ask would bolster its bottom line more than the clean-energy priorities they’ve claimed, according to the utility watchdog group.