Electric Bill Savings Could Arrive By June

Highland Park City Council approved a new electrical provider Friday evening during a special board meeting. 

Following March 20’s election results , officials have selected the Chicago-based MCSquared to be a new energy supplier.

In September 2011, Highland Park joined forces with Deerfield Lake Forest, Lake Bluff, Skokie, Park Ridge, Northbrook and Glencoe to form a consortium to bargain with electric suppliers pending passage of the referendum.

Earlier:

Emily Palm, Assistant to the City Manager, hopes the program will be in place in June.

"By getting the customers online sooner we’re hoping they're realizing the savings sooner, especially during the summer season when bills tend to be highest." Palm said.

“We contacted other communities who’ve been through the process, like Lincolnwood who indicated they saved roughly 29 percent last year by pursuing this program,” Palm said. “That will vary this year depending on pricing.”

Meanwhile Commonwealth Edison will continue to deliver the power through its existing infrastructure, while the consortium will only purchase the electricity itself. "All outages will still be reported to and handled by ComEd." Palm added.

In anticipation of passage of the referendum, the eight communities issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to choose a supplier. MC Squared Energy Services was chosen, according to Palm.

After the rate has been secured in April, all Highland Park residents who have not signed their own contract with an electric supplier will receive a letter from the City explaining their options. If people do not specifically opt out of the program, MCSquared will automatically be their provider.

Editor's note: This article originally misidentified Emily Palm as Emily Taub. Patch apologizes for the error.