In the summer of 1999, the lights went out in Chicago and many of its suburbs. The local electric utility was unable to provide reliable energy service to the metropolitan Chicago region. With the leadership of Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, the Mayors of the region immediately plugged themselves into the issue and met with the utility to devise a multi-year plan to upgrade the region’s transmission and distribution system. This high-powered plan cost over $3 billion dollars and the utility assumed the entire cost.
As part of its discussions with the electric utility company, the Mayors Caucus enlisted Argonne National Laboratory and the U.S. Department of Energy to assist in developing guidelines for municipal officials regarding the protection of the local electric infrastructure in the event of a power disruption. This important endeavor has since been expanded to assure the protection of other critical infrastructures, including natural gas, potable water, and telecommunications.
Copies of the various critical infrastructure reports are available by contacting Caucus staff.