Elmhurst gas customers would see about $2 added to their monthly bills instead of $6 under a settlement that cuts Nicor Gas's rate increase request by 63%.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul's office and consumer watchdog groups reached the deal with Nicor on Thursday, Sept. 10, cutting roughly $139 million from the utility's $221 million rate hike proposal, Capitol News Illinois reported. The remaining increase of $81.6 million still needs approval from the Illinois Commerce Commission, or ICC, before it can take effect.
Nicor filed the $221 million request in January, less than two months after state regulators approved a previous $168 million rate hike for the company. The original proposal represented a 14.5% increase over current rates for Nicor's 2.3 million customers across northern Illinois, including households in Elmhurst, Villa Park and Oakbrook Terrace.
A Nicor spokesperson told WTTW News the average monthly impact under the settlement would be $2.21 per month, or about 2.49% on a customer's total annual bill.
Lower fixed charge starts Nov. 16
One provision drawing attention from consumer advocates: the settlement lowers the monthly fixed gas delivery charge from $21.30 to $15.00, starting Nov. 16. Every Nicor customer pays that charge. It applies regardless of how much gas a household uses.
The lower fixed charge means most customers would see smaller bills during summer months, when gas use is low. It also ties more of the bill to actual consumption, giving households more control over what they pay.
"This is not a clear win for customers, it's compromise," Rob Kelter, a senior attorney at the Environmental Law & Policy Center, told Capitol News Illinois. "But I think it keeps moving us in a positive direction."
Under the settlement, Nicor also agreed to reduce its shareholder profit rate to 9.48%, down from the 10.35% it sought. The company pledged to consider alternatives to traditional pipeline replacement and agreed to withdraw its appeal of a prior-year rate case that regulators had cut by nearly 50%.
Raoul's office said dismissing the appeal shields customers from potential rate increases that could have followed a successful court challenge by Nicor.
Labor deal draws criticism
Raoul's office signed a separate agreement with Nicor committing the company to maintain 2026 union staffing levels through the end of 2027 and continue capital investment. Consumer and environmental advocates who joined the main settlement were not part of that side deal.
Abe Scarr, director of the Illinois Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), criticized the labor agreement, telling Capitol News Illinois that utility policy should not be based on job creation. "It's not a jobs program, it's a public service," Scarr said.
Kelter raised a similar concern, warning that locking in high capital spending could make it easier for Nicor to justify future rate increases rather than encouraging the company to find savings.
Drew Hill, a spokesperson for Raoul's office, said in an email to Capitol News Illinois that the supplemental deal ensures more of Nicor's revenue goes to workers' wages rather than shareholder profits.
The ICC must still approve the settlement before new rates take effect Nov. 16.
