[DEC. 5, 2002]  CILCO gas customers will see their monthly bills go up in the winter of 2003-04 if the company is granted the rate increase it is requesting from the Illinois Commerce Commission.

The Central Illinois Light Company filed a request on Nov. 22 to increase its base rates for natural gas service by almost 5 percent, according to company spokesman Mark Martin. If approved, residential customers would see their bill go up about 12.5 cents per day or between $3.50 and $4 a month. Currently average yearly residential gas costs are about $897; with the proposed increase, costs would be $942, Martin said.

Customers will not see a raise in base rates this winter, because the ICC usually takes about 11 months to decide to grant an increase. Also, there is "no guarantee" that CILCO will get the increase it is asking for, according to Martin.

However, customers can expect to see somewhat higher gas prices this winter because of a raise in the purchase gas adjustment, or PGA, which is the price utility companies pay the pipelines for natural gas.

Several months ago, utilities were told the PGA would be 15 percent to 20 percent more this winter than in the winter of 2001. The PGA is a charge companies like CILCO do pass on to their customers. "By federal law, we cannot add charges to what the pipeline charges us, but we can pass those charges along to the customers," Martin said.

[Average annual residential natural gas bill]

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He pointed out that the high gas prices in the winter of 2000 came from an increase in the PGA, not in the company’s base rate. "There are only so many gas pipelines that supply us. If it is costing us 65 cents a therm to buy gas, we pass that on to you. If it is costing us $1 a therm, as it did in the winter of 2000, we pass that on as well."

The only charge the company can raise is the base rate, which has remained the same since 1994, he said. He cited increases in expenses for operations and maintenance, along with an investment of over $84 million dollars in the gas distribution system, as the reasons for the rate increase. It is only the third such increase in 20 years, he said.

CILCO serves about 205,000 customers throughout central Illinois, including Logan County, Peoria and Tazewell counties, and the Springfield area.

[LDN and CILCO media release]

[DEC. 5, 2002]  The new Logan County Board gathered Monday evening to set a few things in order. In a reorganizational meeting the new board members received committee assignments and their term of office.

Because of the county going to district rather than at-large representation, there was something a little new this time around. Two- and four-year terms were drawn for each county board member. County Clerk Sally Litterly read off all the names and new Sheriff Steve Nichols drew the numbers two or four. For each district, one name got a four-year and the other got a two-year term. This will protect each district from starting with all-new representation at each election.

Mitch Brown

Lloyd Hellman

David Hepler

Dick Logan

Gloria Luster

Patrick O’Neill

Robert Farmer

Paul Gleason

Charles Ruben

John Stewart

Dale Voyles

Terry Werth

In his first official act as new county board chairman, Dale Voyles announced committee assignments.

Committees
(First person named is chairman of each committee.)

Airport/farm: Werth, Ruben, Farmer, Hellman, Voyles

Animal: O’Neill, Ruben, Hepler, Stewart, Werth, Voyles

Buildings and grounds: Logan, Brown, Stewart, Werth, Voyles

Finance: Ruben, Gleason, Hellman, Logan, Farmer, Voyles

Health: Luster

Insurance/legislative: Gleason, Brown, Ruben, Luster, Stewart, Voyles

Law enforcement/ESDA: Logan, Farmer, Brown, Stewart, Hellman, Voyles

Liquor: Luster, Hepler, Werth, Brown, Farmer, Voyles

Road and bridge: Hellman, Werth, Farmer, O’Neill, Brown, Voyles

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District 1:  Lloyd E. Hellman, chair, 104 Prairie Lane, Emden, IL  62635;  376-3827

District 1:  Charles Ruben, 2409 1000th Ave., Hartsburg, IL  62643;  642-5388

District 2:  Robert Farmer, 1209 700th Ave., Lincoln, IL 62656;  735-1179

District 2:  Richard E. Logan, 21 Illini Drive, Lincoln, IL 62656;  (work) 732-2323; 732-8114

District 3:  Gloria Luster, vice chair, 106 N. Marion St., Mount Pulaski, IL 62548;  (cell) 737-0349; 792-5275

District 3:  John Stewart, 1617 900th St., Mount Pulaski, IL  62548;  792-3444

District 4:  David R. Hepler, 119 Lincoln Ave., Lincoln, IL 62656;  (work) 735-4451; 732-8586

District 4:  Terry W. Werth, 123 Lincoln Ave., Lincoln, IL 62656;  732-9314

District 5:  Patrick O’Neill, 210 N. State St., Lincoln, IL  62656;  732-9337

District 5:  Dale Voyles, 543 11th St., Lincoln, IL 62656;  (cell) 871-0057; 732-7901

District 6:  William "Mitch" Brown, 1372 1850th St., Lincoln, IL 62656;  732-2268

District 6:  Paul E. Gleason, 1621 Rutledge Drive, Lincoln, IL 62656;  735-9111

[Jan Youngquist]

Union filing suit to block lease that
would give college control of Zeller site

[DEC. 5, 2002]  SPRINGFIELD -- The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees plans to file a lawsuit that would void a lease just signed by Illinois Central College in East Peoria, union officials said Monday. The agreement gives the school a 20-year, $1-a-year lease on the former Zeller Mental Health Center property.

"We believe that Central Management Services did not have the statutory authority to enter into the lease," said Henry Bayer, AFSCME’s executive director.

The union has been fighting to save Zeller, which was closed in August as part of Gov. George Ryan’s sweeping cuts in services.

Bayer said state property may be leased only after it has been deemed "surplus," and regulatory guidelines require that the property must have been unused by the state for three years. He noted the regulations require also that such property be leased at fair market value.

"A dollar a year is hardly fair market value for a $20 million facility," Bayer observed. "Virtually giving away valuable property when the state faces a fiscal crisis makes no sense, particularly when the giveaway will make it more difficult for a new administration to restore badly needed mental health services."

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Peoria is already feeling the effects of Zeller’s closure, Bayer said, adding that a new governor "should not have roadblocks put in his way by a lame-duck administration."

AFSCME attorney Stephen A. Yokich filed the suit this Tuesday in Peoria County Circuit Court. Yokich said the union would also seek a temporary restraining order against college officials if they begin altering the property until the suit can be heard. Dr. John Erwin at ICC has said he doesn't anticipate making any structural changes to the property while the suit is pending.

[AFSCME Council 31 press release]

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