As officials in Naperville, Illinois, continue to push for the development of the city's electric grid, a judge recently ruled against allowing voters to decide whether to halt the project.
The Naperville Sun reports that DuPage Circuit Court Judge Bonnie Wheaton issued a verdict on Tuesday that effectively prevents opponents of the city's smart grid project from placing the question on the March ballot. Opponents of the smart grid project had hoped to insert the non-binding referendum onto this year's ballot as a means of drumming up support against it.
The judge noted in her ruling that she decided to prohibit the referendum from being appearing on the ballot because there were issues as to whether voters who had signed the petition were Naperville residents, among other concerns. The group, Naperville Smart Meter Awareness, argued that the smart grid upgrade project would infringe upon residents' privacy.
More specifically, opponents contended that by modernizing its electric grid and implementing smart grid technologies, Naperville would gain access to potentially sensitive data. They said that the installation of smart meters in homes would provide utility officials with an inordinate amount of information about a homeowner's energy use, and that such data could be exploited.
Nevertheless, backers of the project have continued to push for a resolution to critics' objections. Naperville officials affirmed the upgrade project – which will cost an estimated $22 million – would place the city at the forefront of the nation in its adoption of energy efficiency and utility technologies.
What's more, they noted it would also help reduce overall electricity consumption rates. Utility officials backing the project asserted that they would be able to more effectively monitor the electric grid as a result of the construction project, immediately identifying and patching power supply disruptions before they affect customers.
The Naperville Electoral Board also rejected critics' pleas, with the organization lending its approval to the smart grid modernization campaign. Illinois has become one of the first states in the U.S. to invest in the development of its antiquated electric grid. Commonwealth Edison, based in the state, is currently spending more than $2.6 billion to upgrade its power supply network, and Chicago officials recently supported a similar project in the Second City.
The Obama Administration has also urged state leaders to invest more in smart grid technologies.