On December 16, 1997, the State of Illinois implemented a plan to deregulate Commonwealth Edison ("Com-Ed"). Under this plan, Com-Ed no longer generates electricity for its customers but continues to provide power generated by others through its distribution system. Deregulation means that power can be purchased through any of the 23 Illinois Commerce Commission approved power suppliers. From 1997 until 2009 various customer classes where given the ability to choose their own electric supplier.
On August 10, 2009, Governor Quinn signed into law Public Act 096-0176, amending the original Illinois electric deregulation legislation. This is the last part of the Deregulation Process, until this Act was amended, only larger customers such as industrial, commercial, and governmental entities could participate. Three fourths of this commercial load is currently purchased from sources other than ComEd. The new law allows municipalities to transfer their residents' and small business owners' electric accounts to alternative electric suppliers.
On April 5th, 2011, voters in 20 communities in Illinois approved the referendum giving their municipalitity the authority to arrange for the supply of their electricity. To date, 19 of these communities have signed contracts with an alternate energy retail supplier. To view a complete list of these communities visit pluginillinois.org.
Many communities in Illinois have placed the Aggregation Referendum on the ballot for the March 20, 2012 Primary Election. To see list of communities in Will County, click here. To see a list of communities statewide, click here.
