John C. Griffith, the CEO of American Water Works, took home more than $7 million in 2025. Former CEO M. Susan Hardwick earned $6.3 million. Chief Operating Officer Cheryl Norton earned $6.3 million, according to a proxy statement the company filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC] in March.
Now, the Citizens Utility Board [CUB] said its subsidiary Illinois American Water is trying to overcharge Illinois customers by more than $50 million through a rate hike request before state regulators.
The consumer advocacy group is urging state regulators to reject both the rate increase and a proposed deal that would give the company a near-monopoly on private water in Illinois.
Illinois American Water is the largest investor-owned water and wastewater utility in the state, serving about 1.3 million residents in 148 communities, including Peoria, Pekin, Dunlap, East Peoria, Washington and others in the tri-county region.
CUB filed expert testimony last week identifying at least $54 million in what it calls unjust charges buried inside Illinois American Water's pending $142.4 million rate hike request before the Illinois Commerce Commission.
If approved, the increase would be the company's fourth rate hike in a decade.
"Some of the most unhappy utility customers that call CUB are Illinois American customers," said Jim Chilsen, CUB's director of communications. "Their bills have escalated alarmingly over the last decade, and now they [Illinois American Water] want to make it even worse."
The board estimates that a typical residential water customer using 3,500 gallons per month would pay about $14 more per month if the full rate hike is approved. Typical wastewater customers could see an additional $28 per month increase. Chilsen cautioned those are rough averages; actual impacts will vary by service area and usage.
The salary of Illinois American Water's own president, Rebecca Losli, is not publicly disclosed. As a private subsidiary, the company is not required to file compensation reports with the SEC.
The shareholders
The bulk of CUB's challenge — about $30.8 million — targets what it describes as an excessive profit rate for shareholders. Illinois American Water is asking regulators to raise its return on equity from 9.84% to 10.75%. Chilsen called that figure the highest ever sought by a utility in Illinois.
Meanwhile, parent company American Water reported more than $1 billion in profit in each of the last two years.
"There's a difference between reasonable and radical," Chilsen said. "A 10.75% return on equity is radical."
CUB argues the rate should actually go down, to about 9.45%.
The testimony also challenges $4.7 million in executive bonuses that CUB said customers shouldn't be forced to cover. Chilsen noted that under the utility's proposal, the company would collect that money from ratepayers even if it failed to hit the profit targets the bonuses are tied to.
"These executive bonuses would go for reaching profit goals that have absolutely no benefit for their customers," Chilsen said.
CUB is also pushing to strip out a proposed two-step rate structure that would deliver a second wave of increases to customers in 2028. That accounts for another $14.9 million in the group's tally.
A fourth issue involves how the utility calculates per-customer water usage. CUB argues Illinois American Water is understating how much water it expects to sell, which inflates the rates it claims it needs to charge. Correcting that assumption, the group said, would cut the hike by an additional $3.9 million.
A broader consolidation concern
The rate case is unfolding alongside a separate and potentially larger fight over market control. Illinois American Water's parent company, American Water, has announced plans to purchase Essential Utilities, the parent of Aqua Illinois, the state's second-largest private water utility. American Water is also seeking ICC approval to buy Prairie Path Water Co.
CUB filed separate testimony in April urging regulators to reject both acquisitions. If approved, the group estimates more than 99.99% of regulated private water and wastewater customers in Illinois would be served by American Water affiliates.
"That level of market concentration is highly troubling," Chilsen said.
Illinois American Water has already been expanding aggressively at the local level. The company and Aqua Illinois have purchased 61 municipal water and wastewater systems across the state since 2013, passing along more than $411.5 million in acquisition costs directly to customers, a practice CUB said is enabled by state law.
Illinois American Water is currently pursuing a deal to acquire a wastewater system in Pekin, where it already provides water service.
"This is a company that doesn't need a rate hike of that amount by any stretch of the imagination," Chilsen said.
What customers can do
Chilsen suggested consumers against the rate hike sign an online petition or call the Illinois Commerce Commission
"We recommend that — it's highly important that regulators hear from real people who are impacted," he said.
The ICC is expected to issue a final ruling on the Essential Utilities acquisition by Nov. 5, and on the rate hike by Dec. 18.
Illinois American Water previously said the rate hike was intended pay for $577 million in water and wastewater system investments through December 2027.
The company did not respond to a request for comment.
