advertisement

Electricity referendums to appear on Kane ballots

Voters in 16 towns, plus those in unincorporated Kane County, will get to decide March 20 whether they want those governments to negotiate the purchase of electricity on their behalf.

The referendums are about electrical aggregation. By aggregating the residential and small business electrical demand, these governments may be able to negotiate a lower price with electricity suppliers that is lower than that offered by ComEd to individual buyers.

Besides Kane County, towns having such referendums are Algonquin, Barrington Hills, Big Rock, Campton Hills, Carpentersville, East Dundee, Elgin, Gilberts, Hampshire, Huntley, Hoffman Estates, Maple Park, Montgomery, Pingree Grove, South Elgin and West Dundee.

In April 2011 voters gave Sugar Grove, North Aurora and Elburn the power to negotiate such contracts. In each case, the resulting bids for electricity came in lower than ComEd's.

There are two other referendums on the ballot.

Voters in Campton Hills will advise village authorities whether to investigate the purchase of tornado/emergency warning sirens. They will also advise whether the village board should ask the U.S. Postal Service to keep the Wasco Post Office open. Neither vote is binding.

Voters in Elburn will be asked to establish a property tax to collect money for the police pension fund. When the village grew past 5,000 residents, state law required it to switch police officers over from the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund to a village-run fund. The tax is for the village's contribution to the fund; the officers will have to contribute 9.1 percent of their gross pay. If voters refuse to establish the tax, the village would have to pay its portion out of other revenues.

The tax, at 8.68 cents per $100 of equalized assessed valuation, would cost the owner of a $200,000 house about $52 next year, assuming the homeowner has taken the standard homestead exemption. The village's tax levy for the IMRF would be reduced, however, Village President Dave Anderson said.