CHICAGO - As if checking accounts weren't tight enough already, Illinoisans face an 8 percent hike in their energy bills, thanks to the Obama Administration's EPA regulations.
Exelon Senior Vice President Kathleen Barron told the Illinois Commerce Commission rate hikes would be necessary to keep the state’s nuclear plants running to help meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) greenhouse gas regulations for existing power plants. Chicago Business reports:
Citing estimates from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on how much more nuclear plants should be paid for their output in light of their carbon-free emissions, Ms. Barron told commissioners an increase of about $6 per megawatt-hour would improve the company’s financial picture in Illinois.
There remain questions about ways the state could help Exelon generate more revenue in Illinois, where some of its plants are losing money. But no one disagrees on who would supply the money: ratepayers. A $6-per-megawatt-hour increase in power prices would raise the energy price currently charged by Commonwealth Edison Co. by eight percent. Downstate, where power prices are significantly lower than in the Chicago area, the percentage increase would be significantly more.
The pain felt from the Administration’s climate regulations doesn’t stop at the meter. Higher energy prices will squeeze both production and consumption. Since energy is a critical input for most goods and services, Americans will be hit repeatedly with higher prices as businesses pass higher costs onto consumers. If a company has to absorb the costs, profit margins would shrink and prevent businesses from investing and expanding. Cumulatively, the results will be less income for households, less output from businesses, and longer unemployment lines.
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