Abstract
State by state the role of generation, transmission, and distribution is becoming more dynamic and market driven as regulated electric monopolies shed their vertically integrated structures and reinvent themselves for the competitive marketplace. California's turbulent move to an open electricity market provides a good example of how this process can go wrong. This Note highlights some of the key developments in California's recent energy troubles, and considers the unique challenges for the Illinois electricity market. Borders concludes that through new federal and state transmission policy, heightened demand response, and consumer education programs, regulators can ensure that the market sends price signals to customers and that customers will have the means to respond to market information. Once provided with adequate transmission, pervasive demand response technologies, and a heightened understanding of the structure of electricity markets, consumers will have the tools necessary to purchase electricity from diverse suppliers, react quickly to market fluctuations, and stimulate a vibrant power market at the wholesale and retail levels.
Recommended Citation
William A. Borders,
Learning from the Storm: Lessons for Illinois Following California's Experience with Electricity Restructuring,
77
Chi.-Kent L. Rev.
333
(2001).
Available at:
https://scholarship.kentlaw.iit.edu/cklawreview/vol77/iss1/14
