The ”plan” proposed by the Illinois Commerce Commission staff to fine Commonwealth Edison $500 to $2,000 each time for an outage of 12 hours or more, even if caused by weather, would be one more bureaucratic and counterproductive burden upon a utility already whiplashed by politically influenced regulators egged on by self-serving lawyers of the Citizens Utility Board.
These regulators, who previously agreed that two nuclear plants should be built and now say they are unnecessary, have made the utility industry in Illinois a crapshoot for investors. This instability may ultimately result in a declining level of service because of lowered capital spending if not a lower level of maintenance.
As a senior citizen I have seen my modest investment in Edison decrease by 50 percent in value and may see my dividend cut as well.
If the hostile climate for utilities in Illinois does not change, customers of Edison and Illinois Power will see the inevitable results in brownouts and blackouts.
