(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Chicagoans could see massive hikes on their heating bills over the next 15 years if state regulators allow the Peoples Gas pipeline-replacement program to move forward, according to a new report from the Illinois’ Citizens Utility Board (CUB).
Tuesday’s announcement from CUB has sparked a war of words between the energy company and the state-funded consumer advocacy group, which bills itself as fighting for the rights of utility consumers in Illinois.
CUB said a proposal by Peoples Gas to continue overhauling its network of underground pipes would leave Chicagoans inundated by recurring rounds of record-breaking rate hikes over the next 15 years. The board called on state regulators to “put wise safeguards” on the company’s spending.
Abe Scarr, with the Illinois Public Interest Research Group, spoke to WBBM Newsradio about the findings.
“The Illinois Commerce Commission cannot accept the failing status quo,” Scarr said. “Instead, the commission should take this opportunity to overhaul the program, to reduce costs and better ensure public safety. Doing so allows us to stop wasting money on unnecessary fossil fuel infrastructure and instead work toward safer, cleaner ways to heat our homes.”
Peoples Gas spokesman David Schwartz disputed the findings of CUB’s report.
“CUB’s claims are false,” Schwartz said. “Natural gas heating remains the most affordable way to stay safe and warm by far. At the same time CUB is claiming to care about affordability, they fully support measures that would force Chicagoans to go all electric, a move that would double or triple Chicagoans’ heating bills.”
Peoples Gas also told WBBM that the study cited by CUB ignores experts who say there is an “urgent need” to continue replacing Chicago's corroding pipes, some of which date back as far as the 1800s. Proposals by consumer groups, the company said, would add more than $5 billion to the cost of construction.
In 2023, the Illinois Commerce Commission paused most spending on the pipeline program pending a state investigation of the plan to replace thousands of miles of the aging pipes that deliver natural gas to Chicago homes.
The commission, which has the final say on how much utilities can charge customers, granted Peoples Gas a record-breaking rate hike in the fall of 2023 — but cut off company spending on the replacement program, which Chairman Doug Scott said “is not justified.”
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
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