On same day Mike Madigan convicted, ComEd announced $1 billion + in profits

With the conviction of long-time Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan on ten felony counts, a sad chapter in the annals of Illinois political corruption is coming to a close. 

It’s notable that the jury found Mr. Madigan guilty on all of the ComEd-related charges, while failing to reach unanimity on other charges. And while his confidant Mike McClain was not convicted by this jury, he was by another, along with three other ComEd executives and lobbyists, known as the “ComEd four.”

While ComEd executives and lobbyists have been convicted, as has Mr. Madigan, the utility itself received relatively light punishment: a deferred prosecution agreement requiring cooperation and improvements to ethics policies and internal controls, and a $200 million fine. 

On the other hand, ComEd has been able to maintain the key public policies it won through its scheme, and the associated boost is guaranteed annual profits that dwarf the $200 million fine it paid. 

On the same day the jury reached its verdict, Exelon, ComEd’s parent company, filed its annual report to federal financial regulators, revealing that ComEd made $1.066 billion in profits in 2024, the second consecutive year the utility made more than $1 billion in profit. 

One can compare this figure to ComEd’s $416 million in profits in 2011, the year it passed the Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act (EIMA), the most important policy it won over the course of its corrupt scheme. Or compare the decade leading up to the passage of EIMA, wherein ComEd made less in profits over ten years ($2.878 billion, 2002-2011) than it did over the past three years ($3.073 billion 2022-2024).

2023 was the last year of the “formula rate” regime ComEd won through its scheme, and 2024 began the new rate-setting process, multi-year rate plans, as outlined in the 2021 Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA). But as Illinois PIRG said at the time, rather than ending formula rates, CEJA extended them, and unnecessarily carried over key formula rate policies into the new rate setting regime. 

It’s unfortunate that ComEd has not only escaped meaningful punishment, but has been rewarded with favorable public policy. But just as the Illinois General Assembly passed and extended formula rate policies, it can end them. It should.