Power referendum wins easily in Oak Park

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Tuesday, April 5th, 2011 8:12 PM

Updated: Tuesday, April 5th, 2011 10:58 PM

By Marty Stempniak

Staff Reporter

Click here to see the results.

Oak Park voters convincingly passed a referendum Tuesday, which may eventually open the door for cleaner power sources in the village — such as wind and solar.

With 43 of 45 precincts reporting, the referendum appeared to have electrified voters, capturing 66.2 percent of the vote (5,908), according to the Cook County Clerk's Office.

With the yes vote, village hall will now seek competitive bids for energy providers on the open market. Residents will then be able get a cheaper, more environmentally-friendly source of power, unless they choose to "opt out" of the program and continue receiving energy from the current provider, Exelon.

ComEd, meanwhile, will continue to administer power and provide customer service to residents, such as billing and responding to power outages, according to the village.

Reader Comments

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David Pope from Oak Park

Posted: Wednesday, April 6th, 2011 10:08 PM

The language on the ballot was required under Illinois state law (as a statutory requirement). Most folks I know agree that it was not as clear as we would have liked, but again there wasn't much choice regarding the language. The upshot is that the Village can now pursue competitive pricing in order to help hold down (and prospectively reduce) electric rates for all residents and businesses here in Oak Park. Ohio municipalities have seen 15% to 20% average savings on electric rates.

Fingers Crossed from OP

Posted: Wednesday, April 6th, 2011 5:07 AM

I've long been a supporter of electric choice, so this should have been an easy "yes" vote. But something about the ballot language freaked me out...I ended up voting for the measure, but left concerned that the Village may not be well-suited to pull this together. I hope someone in the village knows what they're doing on this....or what could be a great benefit for Oak Parkers may end up being a problem.

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