Some question fees imposed on Illinois districts by energy consortium
The Illinois Association of School Boards, the Illinois Association of School Business Officials and the Illinois Association of School Administrators set up a non-profit energy company in 1999 to help school districts get better deals on electricity and gas. But to the surprise of many school officials, the Illinois Energy Consortium, as the company is called, has been charging the districts fees that have nothing to do with utility service. The financial details are disclosed in a lawsuit. About $4.5 million in fees has been collected from school districts in the last three years; the bulk of it went to the consortium's creators. The consortium says it has saved districts and taxpayers money by getting them lower utility rates. But several school officials say they are astonished by the amount of fees the three associations has received.