Huntley Considers Joining Electric Aggregation Consortium

Huntley continues making plans to move ahead with an electric aggregation effort if voters approve a March 20 referendum question.

Those plans include joining a consortium made up of neighboring village and cities. The Northern Illinois Governmental Electric Aggregation Consortium would spearhead negotiations with providers to secure lower rates and be the contracting party.

NIGEAC would also prepare education and public relations documents about the Joint Power Supply Bid, according to officials. The Consortium would include Algonquin, Johnsburg, Lake In The Hills, Lakewood, Genoa, Marengo, McHenry and Woodstock, McCullom Lake, Ringwood and Spring Grove.

The consortium would represent more than 300,000 households and business throughout northern Illinois.

Huntley village trustees will vote on the intergovernmental agreement on Feb. 24.

Joining the consortium is part of a process leading up to the March referendum. Voters will be asked: “Shall the Village of Huntley have the authority to arrange for the supply of electricity for its residential and small commercial retail customers who have not opted out of such program?”

Officials cannot campaign for the referendum, but the village has provided information about electric aggregation and the referendum.

However, Trustee Pam Fender questioned whether there is enough awareness about the referendum.

“My worry is no one knows this is happening,” Fender said. “No one is talking about it. No one knows about it.”

Fender said the materials the village has sent out to residents are not easy to read and have a lot of confusing legal terms.

“We need to put this in very simple language,” she said, adding she is worried voters will see the referendum, think it’s about taxes and vote no without realizing what the village is trying to do.

Read said a consultant working with the village has found people start talking about the issue right before the election. The village, she said, has been aggressive getting information out.

Sun City neighborhoods are talking about the referendum and are asking Trustee Harry Leopold about the topic. Some Sun City residents contract with a supplier and have two-year contracts. Leopold asked if people initially opt-out of the electric aggregation, could they opt in down the road. Read said residents could decide to participate at any time but would have to wait about a month for the transition to take place.

If the referendum is approved, new lower rates could go into effect by July, officials said.