Resources
Municipal Aggregation FAQ
What is a municipal aggregation program?
Illinois law allows municipalities and counties to negotiate the purchase price of electricity on behalf of residential and small business utility customers living within their borders. While these governmental entities choosing community aggregation would be responsible for negotiating the price of power from a supplier other than the traditional utility, your utility would still be responsible for delivering that power to your home and billing you for it.
Who is eligible to participate in this program?
All residential and small commercial accounts that are under 15,000 kWh annually can participate.
How are residential and small commercial accounts enrolled in this program?
All residential and small commercial accounts are enrolled if eligible by notifications received in the mail by the chosen supplier by the municipality.
What if you are already with an alternative supplier? Will you receive a notification?
All residential and small commercial accounts that are already with an alternative supplier will receive a notification. This type of notification is only to let you know about this program. You are not automatically enrolled in the program. If you want to opt in your can by following the instructions on the notification you received.
What if you decide to opt out once you receive the notification from the chosen supplier?
If you decide to opt out once you receive the notification from the supplier, you will stay with the utility and not switch.
What if I decide to opt out during the term of the program that was signed by the municipality?
If you decide to opt out during the term of the program and was served by the program for at least one billing cycle, then your account will go back to the utility on the next available meter read. You will receive a notification from the utility saying you need to choose an alternative supplier within sixty days of going back to the utility. If you do not choose an alternative supplier, then your account will have to stay with the utility for another ten months for a total of twelve months until you are able to look at or go with an alternative supplier. This is called the BGS holdover language in the tariffs.
What is the utility rate to compare vs. what the municipalities contracted rate?
This information will be shown on the notification that is mailed to you from the chosen supplier. In addition, you can go to Plug Into Illinois at https://plugin.illinois.gov/municipal-aggregation.html for more information.
What happens when the current municipal aggregation program ends?
Once the current municipal aggregation program ends, your local municipality along with their electric broker will be evaluating on pricing beyond the current contract end. They may enter another contract right away or they may decide to hold and let the accounts go back to the utility for up to sixty days and try to put in place a new contract.
Who invoices for the electricity each month?
All invoices will remain with the utility for both the commodity as well as the delivery and taxes each month. Under the section for the electric supply, you will see the chosen supplier on this section along with the fixed rate that the program was entered.
Can you still pay with ACH with your utility?
Yes.
Can you stay on budget billing?
Yes.
If there is an outage, who do you contact?
All power outages or any issue with delivery of power to your house or business, you still contact your utility company.
What is a BGS holdover?
Yes, you can choose an alternative supplier either on your own or go with the municipal aggregation program in place if there is one going on at that time.
After a BGS holdover is complete can you choose an alternative supplier at that time?
A BGS holdover is language in the tariffs of your utility that says, if a customer was with an alternative supplier and they left, then they will need to choose an alternative supplier within sixty days. If an alternative supplier is not chosen by the end of the sixty days, then the customer must stay with the utility for another ten months for a total of twelve months. A customer during this period of holdover cannot choose an alterative supplier until their holdover terms are complete.
Are there any penalties or charges if you opt out of a municipal aggregation program?
No, there are no penalties or charges if you opt out of a municipal aggregation program at any time.
If you have questions about the municipal aggregation program, who do you contact?
You can contact the supplier at the contact information or the notification sent to you by the chosen supplier. In addition, you can contact your local municipality or go to their website for more information.
What if you have a space heat account with your utility?
You will want to review what you are currently paying for this rate as it is different than the regular bundled rates that are used to compare for this program.
What if you have on-site solar or community solar, can you participate in this type of program?
Yes, you can participate with this type of program even if you already have on-site solar or community solar associated with your account with the utility.
Why do municipalities or counties participate in municipal aggregation programs?
Municipalities and counties choose to look at these types of programs to help their residents and small commercial accounts regulate or provide stable pricing during the term of the contract. The goal is to provide better rates than what the utility has to offer.
Do the rates change during the year with the utility?
Yes, rates change during the year with the utility. The rate changes in some cases, every three months. The rates change every June 1st with the utility. There are a summer rate and a non-summer rate. In addition, the transmission charges can also change during the term of the year. The rate to compare will change based on these movements with the utility.