CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM
ACTION REQUESTED:title
Receive the report on the Naperville Electric Utility’s background and operations
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DEPARTMENT: Electric Utility
SUBMITTED BY: Brian Groth, Electric Utility Director
BOARD/COMMISSION REVIEW:
N/A
BACKGROUND:
For 125 years, the Electric Utility has provided reliable electric service to Naperville’s residential and business communities. As a municipally owned utility, day-to-day operations are overseen by a professional director. The City Council receives recommendations from the Public Utilities Advisory Board and ultimately serves in a role similar to that of a privately-owned utility’s board of directors.
With several key decision points coming up over the next year, utility staff has prepared a series of presentations to provide the City Council with relevant information on historical decisions, how the utility operates, how customer energy usage has evolved over the past two decades, and potential options for the utility’s long-term energy needs.
The goal of sharing the information is to put the City Council in the best position to make strategic decisions at the appropriate times. This includes the utility’s upcoming rate study to determine rates for 2025-2028 and how to fulfill energy supply and required service needs after September 2035.
DISCUSSION:
The April 16 presentation focuses on the various components of owning a municipal utility such as day-to-day operations, administrative functions and long-term planning.
Specifically, the discussion addresses the division of labor between in-house staff and contractors, including functions handled by IMEA, the City’s current power provider. Also, long-term planning considerations and strategies on how to balance various components as decision-makers will be presented.
The accompanying PowerPoint presentation will be included with the Agenda Q&A that is published on Monday, April 15.
FISCAL IMPACT:
N/A