Tinley plugs into bundling

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Updated: January 23, 2012 4:02AM

Tinley Park residents soon may have the option to buy electricity at bulk rates.

Officials at Tuesday’s village board meeting discussed a referendum question that would ask voters if they want to aggregate household electric costs.

Aggregation would bundle residents’ bills and go to market in bulk for cheaper rates from a third-party supplier, instead of ComEd.

The move comes out of the Illinois Power Agency Act, which was amended by the state in 2009 to include single-family, multi-family and small businesses in the aggregation program. Municipalities and corporations already were allowed to join together to secure lower electric bills prior to the 2009 change.

In 2007, Tinley joined with 74 other communities as part of the Northern Illinois Municipal Electric Cooperative, and has saved more than $100,000 on electrical costs since, officials said.

This year was the first year communities could offer the group alternative to residents. Twenty-four municipalities placed the referendum question on ballots in April. Of those, 21 communities voted for aggregation.

Tinley Park is looking to follow suit with its own referendum question in March.

The vote would give Tinley Park authority to bid on electric rates for residents under an aggregated alliance. The deadline to put the question on the ballot is January.

If approved by voters in March, residents could see the first bills under the new system by 2013.

The electrical power would be produced by a company other than ComEd, but ComEd would continue to deliver the power to residents, read meters, bill residents and handle service disruptions. The power supply portion of the bill would reflect the new company supplying residents’ energy.

And that’s where the most noticeable difference would be, village officials contend. Communities that have already instituted aggregation programs are expected to see an estimated 15 to 20 percent decline in their residents’ annual electric bills, according to Tinley Park assistant village manager Steve Tilton. That amounts to about $175 to $200 in savings per year, he said.

The village also would have to decide whether it would do a stand-alone aggregation, or join forces with neighboring communities or other councils of government for aggregation.

If aggregate electricity comes to Tinley Park, residents would have an opportunity to opt out of the program and stay with ComEd.