Electric Aggregation Frequently Asked Questions
How can a community enroll residents without their approval? The aggregation program was voted on and passed by the residents of Village of Mahomet in November 2012 by referendum of the electors. The referendum stated:
"Shall the Village of Mahomet, Illinois, have the authority to arrange for the supply of electricity for its residential and small commercial retail customers who have not opted out of such program?
YES I NO."
Who is eligible for the municipal aggregation? Residential and small commercial customers (under 15000 kWh per year usage) located in the participating governmental entity boundaries may participate. Customers enrolled in real time pricing, Power Smart Pricing, electric space heat rate, or already being served by an alternative retail electric supplier are eligible under the law but are not automatically enrolled. If you are in one of these programs or with a different supplier, you will need to review your pricing and contractual obligations in order to determine which options are available to you at this time.
What action must I take to participate in the aggregation program and I want to have my electric supply included in the program?
Each eligible account holder will receive an opt-out letter. The account holders do not need to take any action to participate in the aggregation program and to get the negotiated electric supply rate.
How do I opt-out of an aggregation program?
The chosen supplier will send opt-out notices to all eligible residents and eligible small businesses within the municipality or county. You will need to fill out and return the opt-out notice to be excluded from the aggregation program. You may also do so by phone or on the supplier website.
Lately the prices have been going up, so how is Aggregation good for me?
The energy market has been extremely volatile since 2021. Having a fixed rate has its advantages and removes the everyday market volatility.
How do I compare the aggregation program pricing to the Ameren Illinois Price to Compare to figure out what is best for me?
You must make a decision that is best for you. The village is simply giving our residents a choice. You have the ability when you get an opt-out letter prior to a new aggregation contract effective date to evaluate the new price based on your previous year’s electric kWh usage. First go to https://plugin.illinois.gov/understanding-the-price-to-compare/price-to-compare-ameren-illinois.html and find Ameren Illinois Price to Compare. However, keep in mind that Ameren Illinois has a non-summer rate (January 1 to May 31) and a summer rate (June 1 to December 31). You are likely aware that you use most of your electricity for the year in the summer rate period and less during non-summer period. Ameren historically has much higher rates during summer than they do non-summer periods because of energy demand like your AC is operating and using a lot of electricity from June to September. However, for most of us, our furnace used during the winter and early spring typically uses natural gas thus less significant electric usage during the non-summer period. Price to compare for Ameren Illinois also include their transmission service charge. You can also click on their historical prices to compare so you can look back at trends
Price to Compare = Electric Supply Charges + Transmission Service Charge (not just the electric supply charge)
Each Ameren bill has your previous usage for the past year, and you can calculate using the new fixed aggregation rate and then compare it to your previous rate and see just how much price difference you should expect in a year. You can also make your own assumptions of what you think Ameren Illinois rates will be for the summer and non-summer rate period months and do a comparison to Ameren. This will give you more information in order to make the decision that is best for you.
Most of our recent contracts have an opt-out period in April and Ameren summer rates are usually not announced until the early part of May. You do have the option to wait to opt out until after you know what their summer rates will be but would still pay at least one month of the new aggregation program rates.
What does opt-out aggregation mean for customers that already have a contract with a supplier or are on Ameren's real time pricing programs?
If you are enrolled with a different alternative supplier or participate in one of the Ameren's residential real-time pricing programs at the time the opt-out notices are being sent out, you will not be included in your municipality's or county's aggregation program. You may receive a different notification letter (opt-in) about
the program than your neighbors, explaining that your electric supply will not be included in the program unless you request it to be. We suggest you check your rates and look to see if there are any penalties involved by canceling your current program
Who will send out my monthly bill and who do I pay? Do I still only get one? Yes, you will continue to receive one monthly bill from Ameren. The bill will include the charges for electricity supplied by us, as well as the delivery service charges from Ameren.
Can I stay on budget billing? Yes, your budget billing will not be affected by your participation in this program.
What if I decide to opt-out after the opt-out period? You may opt-out anytime during the term of the agreement with NO fee. However, if you opt-out and remain out of the program for a period of 60 days or more without choosing a new alternative supplier, you will be required by Ameren to stay with the Utility for one year regardless of the rate. Most of our recent contracts have an opt-out period in April and Ameren summer rates are usually not announced until the early part of May. You do have the option to wait to opt out until after you know what their summer rates will be but would still pay at least one month of the new aggregation program rates.
Do Municipal Electric Aggregations really work? Yes, the programs that Good Energy LP has overseen in Illinois have been very successful in several ways.
Nearly 80% of all eligible residential and small businesses participate in the programs.
Since the program’s inception, Good Energy, L.P. has secured the lowest group rate of any program in Ameren Utility history.
With our fixed pricing programs, residents know what their supply rate will be. This makes forecasting and budgeting households much easier.
Throughout the length of the program, participating customers have saved millions of dollars on energy costs. This benefits the residents and the area. It allows residents to purchase items they would much rather purchase, other than electricity. Allowing them to spend the savings in their local community therefore benefits the overall economic impact for the area.
How does municipal aggregations affect solar programs such as community solar and net solar participants?
Community solar customers can participate in the aggregation program and earn any discounts allocated to them. Those discounts will be applied to the aggregation program rate instead of the Utility rate.
How do new residents enroll in the aggregation program?
New residents or residents moving to new addresses within their community have two options to re-enroll. First, they may contact the aggregation Supplier by phone, email, or on their website and opt into the program. Two, periodically during the program the supplier will request a list of newly eligible accounts. Those customers will receive new opt-out notices and will automatically be enrolled if they do not opt-out of the program. We urge customers to enroll on their own and not wait for the supplier opt-out, which may take several months.
If I have previously opted out of the aggregation, do I have to opt out again?
Yes, new opt outs are sent out to customers each time there is a rate change, or a new supplier is chosen. State regulations require every customer who is eligible to participate in the program must receive new opt out notices even if they previously opted out of the program.
Does the aggregation prevent all portions of my bill from going up during the program period?
There are two portions of customer power bills, supply and delivery. Aggregation programs can only negotiate and bid the supply rate. The Utility company sets all delivery rates which are the same for both participating aggregation customers and non-participating customers.