Battle over rate increase heats up

October 18, 2006 (WLS) -- The battle over the ComEd rate increase is heating up. Two top Illinois officials want some answers from ComEd. State Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn are both trying to short-circuit the big rate increase for the electric power utility.

Quinn is asking for emergency hearings into ComEd's relationship with a so-called consumer interest group that is backing the utility. Madigan says the multi-million dollar salaries paid to ComEd executives are a conflict of interest. ABC7 investigative reporter Chuck Goudie has exclusive details in this Intelligence Report.

Edison wants to charge about 25 percent more every time we switch on a light or run appliances. The huge rate increase comes at a time when huge executive paychecks paid to ComEd officials are raising questions about whether higher consumer rates will merely feed even higher salaries.

A TV commercial is featured on the website of an organization called CORE, Consumers Organized for Reliable Electricity. The group's aim is to promote the interest of electricity consumers. But, a spokeswoman for CORE admits, they are joined at the hip with an unlikely partner, ComEd.

"A large portion of it is funded by Commonwealth Edison -- I can't tell you how much," said Avis LaVelle, CORE media liaison.

Not only is CORE funded by ComEd, the I-Team has learned that CORE is actually a registered state of Illinois lobbyist, according to secretary of state records lobbyist registration records, the Consumers Organized for Reliable Electricity has one client, ComEd.

"There is something wrong if we are going to allow this one company with highly paid executives to raise the electric rates," said Quinn.

Over the weekend, Lt. Governor Pat Quinn raised his voice against ComEd compensating its top five executives nearly $47 million a year.

Quinn is raising the stakes in a letter to Illinois Commerce Commission Chairman Charles Box. The lieutenant governor is asking for emergency public hearings on Edison's executive compensation policy and on the so-called consumer interest group, CORE, that Quinn states "is acting solely in the financial interests of ComEd."

Attorney General Madigan said Wednesday that CORE is "a front group for ComEd" and that CORE has not registered with her office as is required by law for a non-profit organization.

Madigan says ComEd executives have a personal financial incentive to buy the most expensive electricity, because the more money ComEd brings in, the higher the stock option from parent company Exelon.

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