44th District weekly update

From Sen. Bill Brady          Send a link to a friend

[February 27, 2007] 

Governor must take action on electric rate crisis

Republican lawmakers are calling on Gov. Blagojevich and Democratic legislative leaders to take immediate action to solve Illinois' electric rate crisis.

At a state Capitol press conference Feb. 21, I joined several of my colleagues in asking the governor to convene a summit to determine how best to provide relief for utility customers whose electric bills skyrocketed in the month of January.

This issue should have been addressed in November during the fall veto session. Instead, we were subjected to a remarkable display of finger-pointing. We had Speaker Madigan saying, "I'm not doing this unless you do that"; President Jones saying, "I'm not doing this unless you do that"; the governor saying, "I am going to do something unless you do this." The end result was that nothing was done.

This lack of leadership has left Illinois residents and businesses vulnerable to skyrocketing rate increases. We need to do everything we can to ensure that Illinois has a reliable source of energy, but it also must be brought to the consumer in an affordable way.

Helping consumers cut energy costs

Higher electric rates in January and the extremely cold weather of the past few weeks are making more central Illinois consumers think about the need to cut energy use or use an alternative energy source.

I am introducing measures to help property owners who invest in their own energy-generation equipment and to allow consumers to phase in the high costs of energy-efficient appliances.

Senate Bill 43 requires an electric utility to establish a "net metering" pilot program for its retail customers that own and operate a solar-powered or wind-powered electrical generating facility. The legislation was suggested by Dan Mathis of Tremont, who says he has been interested in different types of energy sources since he was a teenager.

Senate Bill 112 requires the Illinois Commerce Commission to develop and implement a "Pay As You Save" pilot program to help residential electric utility customers purchase approved energy products that reduce electricity consumption with no upfront payments.

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Scholarship applications due March 16

Students who will be attending state universities in Illinois may submit applications for the General Assembly Scholarship program to my office through March 16.

Students whose permanent addresses lie within the 44th District are eligible. Eight one-year tuition waivers -- for fall 2007, spring 2008 and summer 2008 -- are available to students who will be attending state universities, with one specifically designated for a nursing student and one for the child of a veteran.

A panel of community and education leaders will evaluate applications and select scholarship recipients. I will not be involved in the decision-making process.

Students are encouraged to write to my office to request an application at 2203 Eastland Drive, Suite 3, Bloomington, IL 61704 (309-664-4440). All requests should include the student's home and school address (if applicable) and phone numbers.

General Assembly scholarships are presented by all Illinois lawmakers to college students across the state. Selection is based upon merit of the applicants.

Four local Main Street programs featured in Capitol

I was pleased to see Main Street programs from four 44th District communities featured as part of Illinois Main Street Day in the state Capitol Feb. 22.

Local officials and Main Street representatives from Taylorville, Lincoln, Bloomington and Decatur all had displays showcasing the many things that make their communities good places to work and do business. (See related article.)

The Illinois Main Street program is based on a national model that offers communities help with issues such as downtown improvements, historic preservation and economic development.

[Text from file received from Sen. Bill Brady]

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