Ameren rate increase challenged

" Look at the NICE web site. Guess what? they are backed by Integrys.
Integrys is a public company (Stock ticker TEG).

Why would a "for profit" company like Integrys be backing a non-profit organization like NICE?
hmmmm.....
Probably because Integrys intends to make a healthy profit from this!

5yr contract and $75 cancellation fee. Not NICE.

Ameren's margins are quite modest. 13% of your utility bill is profit. Of that 13%, ~4.3% goes to taxes (a good thing), ~6..8% necessarily gives shareholders a modest 4% return (remember they put out >$4B to help build the company's infrastructure). It leaves less than 2% for "fat". Ameren does have significant debt it could pay down. "

" Baseballer wrote-"If you think Ameren is making too much profit, buy some stock in the company as they pay a very nice dividend to shareholders......"

The stockholders do not gain as much from this as you think. It would be futile and frankly immoral to buy their stock while they continue to rape your nieghbors. "

" Man, was wayyy early. I meant to say:

So because they are greedy, we should just "buy their stock"? How about them just trying to make some money, not make ALL the money and pad the pockets of the people at the top.

sorry for the poor grammar before. Wow, I need some coffee. "

" If you think Ameren is making too much profit, buy some stock in the company as they pay a very nice dividend to shareholders...... or you could go back to lanterns and candlelights. "

So because they are greey, we shoul;d just "but their stock"? How about them just trying to make some money, not ,make ALL the money.

We need competition in here to run these crooks outta here! "

" Or we could just OPPOSE being raped by them.... "

" In these economic times any price increase of things we use daily is not popular and can bring out emotional frustration, this time pointed at Ameren. The rates Ameren charges are really very reasonable at 8.65 cents per kilowatt hour when compared to the rest of the U.S., according to the July quarterly rates at jea.com. I am supplied by Callaway Electric and this month's bill figured at 7.1 cents per KWH so I'm confident that Ameren does not charge double what Electric Coops charge. If you think Ameren is making too much profit, buy some stock in the company as they pay a very nice dividend to shareholders...... or you could go back to lanterns and candlelights. "

" Why are Ameren's rates already twice what 3-rivers charges?

Springfield owns its own utilities and their rates are very low with very good service. "

" Or you all can go live with Larry Rice.waaaaaaa "

" Ameren is the worst electric company known to man. Poor service, and higher prices. I bet the CEO's are still making record profits. "

" I HATE Ameren. There service is total S&^%T, there prices keep going up, and we as consumers have NO CHOICE. We can't go to 3 Rivers CooP for service. We are stuck with Ameren. JC needs to buy back the power lines from Ameren and then they can start a price war against the CoOps and Ameren for the JC business. "

" 12%!!! What, are they OUTOFTHEIRMINDS! I know I'll pay more for propane this year but at least they let me contract into a rate before they start increases.
And yeah, the Taum Sauk fiaso should not be recovered in rate increases, it should come from the salaries of the ones who knew or should have known.
The family that got washed away in the middle of a cold Dec. night should OWN that company. All because some idiot at the top was either not paying attention or knew and cared more about profits than whether babies and children are, one minute sleeping peacefully and the next, freezing in a field covered in mud. "

" ...and some questioned why there wasn't a bigger turnout for the "public" hearing on the increase. No amount of public opposition would have stopped the rate increase, so why waste our time. "

" Naaaww...They have to get their money back for Taum Sauk first. "