Proposed Illinois law would protect consumers from private utility price gouging
A proposed Illinois law hopes to create more oversight on private companies to protect consumers from skyrocketing utility prices.
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A proposed Illinois law hopes to create more oversight on private companies to protect consumers from skyrocketing utility prices.
An Illinois consumer watchdog group is pushing for new state legislation to prevent utility companies from charging customers tens of millions of dollars in hidden fees on their electric, water, and natural gas bills.
Protesters on Tuesday were set to crank up the heat on Peoples Gas, over a just-announced rate hike that would add another $10 to $11 a month to utility bills. Lauren Victory reports.
ComEd said the spike, combined with an unseasonably warm June, raised the average bill by more than $67. Megan De Mar reports.
Power lines are working overtime with the heat, and some are concerned that blackouts are possible with so much air conditioning running at homes and businesses. Marissa Sulek reports.
The Citizens Utility Board said ComEd is not to blame for the spike, The watchdog group blames the regional grid operator, PJM, for what it calls “years of bad policy.”
This week, Chicagoans saw the coldest winter weather of the season so far, which was likely to have impacted consumers’ gas bills. But so could the nearly $13 billion proposal for gas line replacement — which could have Chicagoans seeing record-breaking increases for the next 15 years. Marissa Sulek reports.
Peoples Gas says replacing the pipes is an urgent safety matter.
The hike was fueled mainly by the company's Safety Modernization Program to replace nearly 2,000 miles of dangerous, old, deteriorating natural gas pipes.
The Illinois Public Interest Research Group and other organizations are seeking to educate the public about where their money is actually going. Megan Hickey reports.
State legislation was passed to pave the way for providers like AT&T to end servicing traditional copper landlines. After the AT&T cell service outage last week, some say landlines are more important than they are being given credit for. CBS 2's Charlie De Mar reports.
The $402 million dollar rate hike Peoples Gas is requesting could increase customers' bills by about $140 a year. Advocates said families on the South Side and West Side are already struggling to keep up with payments.
"Failure to invest in infrastructure is the kind of thing that happened in Texas two winters ago during their harsh winter storm. There was no heat and more than 240 people lost their lives."
ComEd is asking for a rate change, but they didn't call it a hike. In fact, in plain English it says, "Customer bills not expected to increase as part of the filing." CBS 2's Andrew Ramos reports.
The bitter blast means many of us are trying to stay warm inside and that means higher gas bills.
Cathryn Harris' power went out, her sump pumps broke, then her basement flooded - and ComEd admitted the outage was because of a failed underground power line. But that's not enough to get the utility giant to pay for damages.
If you're struggling to pay your utility bills during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Citizens Utility Board, or CUB, wants to remind you there is help available.
Get ready for a summer of ripoffs. In the last four years, Illinois residents have overpaid more than $600 million for electricity, and it's about to get worse.
CUB said technology is allowing scam artists to make thousands of calls a minute, and the calls have reached an "alarming level." The telecom services firm YouMail estimates there were a record 47.8 billion automated calls in 2018 -- most scam calls or telemarketers.
A consumer advocacy group is pushing a proposal to protect customers shopping for alternative electric and gas companies.
The Citizens Utility Board, AARP and the Illinois Public Interest Research Group are teaming up in opposition to proposed legislation in the Illinois General Assembly to would let AT&T get rid of traditional landline phones.
The Citizens Utility Board said it has seen a 65% increase in complaints and questions this winter about unregulated natural gas suppliers.
The Citizens Utility Board (CUB) released Tuesday its first-ever guide to help TV viewers cut costs.
Top officers of Peoples Gas "knowingly misled" state regulators about the ballooning cost of a multibillion-dollar upgrade program to pave the way for a 2015 merger, according to a complaint filed by Attorney General Lisa Madigan and a utility watchdog.
It's unusual for three utilities and the Citizens Utility Board to come together for a single news conference, but they did just that Friday to try to prevent customers from being scammed.
Dansby Swanson hit a two-run homer and Matt Shaw and Happ added solo shots for Chicago in Game 2.
Chicago police said officers found a man unresponsive lying on the tracks inside the train tunnel just after 10 a.m. on Saturday
The Bulls missed four shots on their next possession, including three straight at point-blank range by Leonard Miller, before Booker made a 3 to make 117-108 with 1:33 remaining.
Amaya's hard shot to right-center field off Connor Brogdon (2-1) scored pinch-runner Dylan Carlson from second base.
Miguel Vargas had an RBI triple, and Lenyn Sosa and Austin Hays each drove in a run as the White Sox opened 3-0 at home for the first time since 2004.
A U.S. crew member who went missing when an F-15E fighter jet was shot down over a remote area of Iran has been rescued by U.S. forces.
President Trump ordered the Department of Homeland Security to find a way to pay "each and every employee" of the agency.
The Illinois Accountability Commission is asking the federal officials who ran Operation Midway Blitz to testify at two hearings on federal agents' tactics during last year's immigration crackdown in Chicago.
Officials from 23 states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit seeking to block President Trump's executive order that aims to restrict mail voting.
A federal judge on Friday rejected efforts by the Justice Department to revive two subpoenas it served to the Federal Reserve.
A passenger on an American Airlines flight from New York to Chicago has been charged with making a false bomb threat that forced an emergency landing at Detroit Metro Airport last month, according to a federal criminal complaint.
Skyrocketing property taxes continue to be a hot-button issue in Cook County — particularly since last fall, when many residents saw their tax bills increase by 100% or more.
Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias this weekend issued a warning about a surge in text messages that falsely claim to come from his office or the DMV within it.
Tenants at a South Loop luxury high-rise that has been plagued with problems like broken elevators are vowing to fight five-day eviction notices.
It's become an annual March Madness tradition at CBS Chicago, pitting our city's best eateries in direct competition in a foodie bracket challenge. We did pizza, we've done Italian beef, we've done Chicago dogs. This year, we're taking flight with wings.
Allergy season is here, and the dreaded pollen can trigger sneezing, congestion, wheezing, and shortness of breath.
Northwestern Medicine and the American Red Cross teamed up for a community blood drive in Chicago on Monday morning.
Ending domestic violence is the goal of groups and advocates all over the world, and some experts in Chicago say it is time to become less reactive and more proactive when it comes to the people causing harm.
A new Iowa law bans local nondiscrimination protections on the basis of gender identity after the state became the first in the U.S. to roll back its civil rights code last year.
Food containing norovirus may smell and taste normal but still cause serious illness if consumed, FDA warns.
A new restaurant has joined the busy stretch of Halsted Street toward the south end of Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood that is also home to Alinea and Boka.
The federal government is suing Illinois, Connecticut and Arizona over efforts to regulate prediction market operators such as Kalshi and Polymarket.
The owners of the popular Uncommon Ground restaurant, live music venue, and brewery in Chicago's Wrigleyville community announced this week that they're looking for a successor to take over the business.
Chicago consistently ranks in the top three cities in Fortune 500 company headquarters, and now a competition has been launched to build on Chicago's power in business.
The flagship Ann Sather restaurant on Belmont Avenue in Chicago's Lakeview community will be moving later this year, a restaurant representative said Tuesday.
"Beverly Hills, 90210" actress Tori Spelling was involved in a two-car crash in Temecula on Thursday night, according to her manager and Riverside County Sheriff's Office officials.
Chicago blues legend Muddy Waters' birthday is Saturday, and in his memory his eldest son is putting on a concert in Chicago.
A federal judge in New York has tossed out actor Blake Lively's sexual harassment claims against actor Justin Baldoni over their roles in the movie "It Ends With Us," but left intact a claim for retaliation.
Atlanta rapper Gucci Mane was lured to a Dallas studio for a meeting, then allegedly kidnapped and robbed by a group including rappers Pooh Shiesty and Big30.
When Jean-Luc Godard's "Hail Mary" opened in Chicago on April 4, 1986, it drew a throng of angry protesters who considered the film an affront to their faith.
Chicago police officers say they found a man unresponsive lying on the tracks inside the train tunnel just after 10 a.m. on Saturday.
It was open to people of all faiths to pray and reflect on the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The victims self-transported to a local hospital with reported injuries, according to Illinois State Police.
The Chicago-born pope emphasized easter’s message of hope to the crowd of thousands in St. Peters Square.
"Tuesday will be power plant day and bridge day," the president wrote on social media. "You'll be living in hell - JUST WATCH" .. ending his post with "Praise be to Allah."
A man riding a bike was killed early Sunday morning when a sport-utility vehicle hit him on Chicago's Southwest Side.
A U.S. crew member who went missing when an F-15E fighter jet was shot down over a remote area of Iran has been rescued by U.S. forces.
"Beverly Hills, 90210" actress Tori Spelling was involved in a two-car crash in Temecula on Thursday night, according to her manager and Riverside County Sheriff's Office officials.
A man was found shot to death in the South Austin neighborhood on Chicago's West Side early Sunday.
Chicago police said officers found a man unresponsive lying on the tracks inside the train tunnel just after 10 a.m. on Saturday
A Morgan Park family is still in shock after a staggering 300% spike in their latest property tax bill, and the man poised to take over as Cook County Assessor at the end of the year says it's an error he wants to make sure doesn't happen again.
Researchers at the University of Chicago have built a "self-driving" lab that uses robotics and artificial intelligence to accelerate work that would take humans weeks or months to complete.
Johnson said the position was temporary, but when the chief homelessness officer was first appointed, she told CBS News Chicago that her role was funded for three years, not two.
A former stand-out college football star with a criminal history has been convicted of sexually abusing foster children who were in the care of a Chicago facility at the center of a massive investigation.
Two more women have filed lawsuits against Massage Envy, accusing the company of failing to protect them against sexual assaults by two of their therapists.
Dansby Swanson hit a two-run homer and Matt Shaw and Happ added solo shots for Chicago in Game 2.
The Bulls missed four shots on their next possession, including three straight at point-blank range by Leonard Miller, before Booker made a 3 to make 117-108 with 1:33 remaining.
Amaya's hard shot to right-center field off Connor Brogdon (2-1) scored pinch-runner Dylan Carlson from second base.
Miguel Vargas had an RBI triple, and Lenyn Sosa and Austin Hays each drove in a run as the White Sox opened 3-0 at home for the first time since 2004.
UCLA finished the season 37-1 by defeating the three-time national champion South Carolina Gamecocks.
A man was due in court Sunday after being arrested and charged with hitting a woman with a vehicle last week and then running off in Chicago's South Austin neighborhood.
A man was stabbed to death in a fight in Chicago's Washington Heights neighborhood early Sunday morning.
Two people were injured early Sunday in a shooting on the Bishop Ford Freeway alongside Chicago's Pullman community.
A man was found shot to death in the South Austin neighborhood on Chicago's West Side early Sunday.
The president of Wisconsin's largest mosque was detained by federal immigration agents, drawing accusations from local officials and religious leaders that the arrest was motivated by his statements against Israel.
