ComEd bills to go down $2-3 in February
State regulators gave the green light Thursday for ComEd to lower residential monthly bills by between $2 and $3.
The Illinois Commerce Commission approved ComEd's petition seeking to pass along about $200 million in tax savings to customers in 2018. ComEd residential customers can expect to see an estimated $2 to $3 decrease on the average monthly bill specifically related to the tax savings. Bills are expected to decrease in February.
ComEd's voluntary proposal was prompted by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that went into effect Jan. 1. The new law decreased the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, reducing the amount of federal income tax ComEd will pay. ComEd expedited the filing of its plan with the ICC to allow customers to see the savings beginning in February. Without action by ComEd, customers would not realize savings from the tax cut until 2020.
"The new tax plan presented an important opportunity to work with our regulators and stakeholders to produce a solution that accelerates the delivery of real savings to our customers," said ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore. "We're grateful to the ICC for their rapid action and the positive outcome."
With the enactment of the Smart Grid Law in 2011, the Illinois General Assembly established a performance-based formula ratemaking model that ensures cost savings such as those incurred through the federal tax changes are passed on to ComEd customers. ComEd is nearing completion of the smart grid program and will complete the installation of nearly 4 million smart meters this year.