Two Illinois Commerce Commission administrative law judges issued a recommendation Monday to slash a proposed $314 million Nicor Gas rate increase by more than a third.

The proposed order authorized a downsized $204 million rate increase for Nicor, which pending commission approval, would show up on the gas bills for the utility’s 2.3 million customers in suburban Chicago and northern Illinois beginning in January.

The ICC is expected to issue a final ruling by Nov. 24.

“This is another step in the rate request process, and we are reviewing the proposal from the administrative law judges,” Nicor spokeswoman Jennifer Golz said Tuesday.

Nicor filed in January for the largest gas rate increase in Illinois history, saying it needed to replace aging infrastructure and update technology to

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