Christiane Rey, a representative of SODAC in Illinois, told the Illinois Commerce Commission at its Aug. 7 open meeting that the commission should press Commonwealth Edison Co. (ComEd) to employ more renewable energy and to consider customer affordability as the grid expands.
Rey said she spoke on behalf of a retired social worker and relayed the case of one household she described as typical: “I only want the air when I just can’t breathe,” Rey said, quoting the resident she referenced. She said the resident, whom Rey identified as a woman in her 60s raising three grandchildren, has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and coronary heart disease and cannot afford to run air conditioning consistently.
The comments cited recent record capacity prices in PJM and federal regulatory pressure on clean‑air standards and asked the commission to direct ComEd to emphasize renewable energy in planning. Rey also thanked the commission for a 2023 directive requiring ComEd to refile its GRID plan to address affordability and environmental justice components of the Clean Jobs and Climate Act (CJA).
Rey said rising utility bills impose a “ripple effect” on households on fixed incomes and urged the commission to use its regulatory influence to seek solutions she described as “more economical and better for our health and the health of the planet, such as renewable energies.”
Rey’s remarks came during the meeting’s public comment period; commissioners did not respond to her comments on the record and proceeded to the agenda.