83% of Illinois Residents Want the Freedom to Choose Clean Energy

CHICAGO, May 30, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A new poll shows that Illinois residents overwhelmingly want to be able to choose their energy supplier, choose clean energy, and want more renewable energy in the Illinois power system. The poll commissioned by CleanChoice Energy, a renewable energy company that provides 100% clean electricity to customers across the country, was conducted by SurveyUSA. SurveyUSA interviewed 550 Illinois adults who rent or own their home, pay their utility bills, and have at least some input on the household choice of their utility company. Support for energy choice through Alternative Retail Energy Suppliers (ARES) cut across the typical partisan divide with both Republicans and Democrats overwhelmingly agreeing that they want to be able to choose clean energy. To date, CleanChoice Energy has helped Illinois residents reduce air and carbon pollution by over 462,600,00 pounds by switching to 100% renewable energy.

Highlights from the new survey:
83% of Illinois residents want to be able to choose clean, renewable energy as a source for their home.
79% of Illinoisans want to be able to choose who provides their electricity.
78% of Illinois residents would be interested in 100% of their electricity being renewable energy if provided the option.
81% of residents want the right to choose an alternative provider even if their city or town has selected a provider through a municipal aggregation program.
Illinois residents overwhelmingly support the renewable Alternative Retail Energy Supplier model for clean energy delivery (77%), more than rooftop solar (45%) and other home efficiency products and smart thermostats (62%).

Survey results can be found here.

The new polling bolsters the case that Illinois consumers are supportive of electricity supply options provided by Renewable Alternative Retail Energy Suppliers. The ability to choose clean energy is largely available to Illinoisans today because of the retail electricity market. Without the retail electricity market, hundreds of thousands of customers would not be empowered to choose their fuel mix. Other methods to choose clean energy include solar panels (accessible to only a small fraction homeowners) and community solar which is limited by the availability of projects. These latest polling results closely mirror results from other states and show the broad support residents have for energy choice. 

CleanChoice Energy provides 100% renewable retail electric supply to Illinois residents and businesses. The company has made social responsibility a core value and has provided over $1.5 million in support to more than 50 nonprofit environmental and social impact organizations. CleanChoice Energy's giving has powered it to the highest level of B Corp certification, with a company score 50 percent higher than the required score for B Corp certified companies. CleanChoice customers have avoided more than 3 billion pounds of carbon dioxide emissions?the equivalent of not burning more than 1.6 billion pounds of coal. 

About CleanChoice Energy

CleanChoice Energy is a renewable energy company empowering utility customers to cut emissions and support clean energy. The company provides renewable electricity to customers by supporting regional wind and solar farms in markets where customers have an energy supply choice and selling that clean power to homes and businesses. CleanChoice Energy makes it easy for customers to support local solar development by enabling them to participate in community solar markets. CleanChoice Energy is a Certified B Corporation, a member of the American Sustainable Business Council and the U.S. Green Building Council, and is certified with the highest available rating by Green America's Green Business Network, the first and largest network of socially and environmentally responsible business. For more information or to become a customer, visit www.cleanchoiceenergy.com.

SOURCE CleanChoice Energy