County Board Passes Measure to Allow Electricity Aggregation

The electricity aggregation trend in the county continues as the Will County Board passed an ordinance Thursday that will allow the Will County Governmental League to represent communities and negotiate lower electricity rates for them, said a TribLocal report.

The idea behind electricity aggregation is that there is strength in numbers, and the Will County Governmental League can negotiate a better deal than individual communities or residents because it would be buying power in bulk. .

The next step is for a county referendum to pass in March that would allow aggregation. After that, the board will hold at least two public hearings before the ordinance can go into effect, the report said.

The Lincoln-Way communities have been dealing with aggregation since the summer. . It's locked into a two-year term with Direct Energy, but the village could join the league after that expires.

. The Village Board will now hold a public hearing next month before it decides to pass a resolution to put an aggregation referendum on the March 20 ballot. If the referendum passes, the village is not obligated to join the league and can pursue aggregation on its own.

Mokena also has been discussing the possibility of electricity aggregation. .

If Frankfort or Mokena want a referendum, it needs to be turned in to the Will County Clerk's Office by Jan. 3 in order to be put on the March ballot.