AmerenUE Launches $3 Million 'Clean Slate' Program for Low-Income Elderly/Disabled...

AmerenUE Launches $3 Million 'Clean Slate' Program for Low-Income
Elderly/Disabled Customers

ST. LOUIS, June 30 /PRNewswire/ -- AmerenUE today announced it is giving $3
million to needy customers to help them get a fresh start in managing their
utility payments.

Called "Clean Slate," the program will help qualified customers pay off their
past-due utility bills. The $3 million from AmerenUE will first be earmarked
to help low-income elderly and low-income disabled UE customers who have
fallen behind on their bills. Any remaining funds will be directed to assist
other low-income customers. This effort is fully funded by UE; customers will
not be charged for the program.

"Our goal is to reach customers who literally have to choose each month
between paying for utilities and paying for food, medicine or other essential
services," said Warner Baxter, AmerenUE president and chief executive officer.
"It is part of our ongoing efforts to listen, respond and deliver to our
customers -- especially our most vulnerable customers, who are experiencing
significant challenges during these difficult economic times."

"With past Clean Slate programs, we have helped nearly 8,000 customers take
steps to regain financial stability. We all know times are especially
challenging right now, and this is another way we are helping our customers,"
added Richard Mark, AmerenUE Senior Vice President, Energy Delivery.

Customers must apply at a participating Clean Slate agency, which may define
age limits and eligibility using poverty guidelines and other circumstances.
Participating agencies can be found on Ameren's Web site,
www.ameren.com/cleanslate , or by calling the United Way Information and
Referral number, 1-800-427-4626. In addition, Ameren's automated voice
response program offers information to customers who call into the Customer
Contact Centers. Customers can dial 314-342-1111, or toll-free
1-800-552-7583, and choose menu option number "4." Then enter "2" and the ZIP
Code when prompted.

With the program announced today, each qualified potential participant who is
an active UE customer is being asked to pay 10 percent of the delinquent
amount on his or her bill to qualify for a Clean Slate pledge that will cover
the rest of the outstanding balance.

Inactive qualified customers -- those who have been disconnected for
nonpayment -- will be required to pay 20 percent of their arrearages. Once
the qualified customer has paid that portion, Clean Slate will pay the entire
balance on a UE customer's account.

Through Clean Slate, eligible customers also can sign up for UE's Budget
Billing program, which allows them to pay a regular monthly amount -- avoiding
the peaks that come with either summer air conditioning or winter heating.

Other available assistance includes:

-- Dollar More, the state's largest privately funded energy assistance
program.
-- Meet the Heat, UE's effort to reach out to low-income and elderly
customers and provide them with information about how to stay safe in
summer heat.
-- Be Cool, UE's annual ENERGY STAR(R)-qualified air conditioner
giveaway program. Late last week, UE distributed 400 energy efficient
window-unit air conditioners to social service agencies across the
state
and the metropolitan St. Louis area.
-- Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP funds are
administered by state agencies to help eligible low-income households,
elderly persons and people with disabilities pay for energy services.
-- The Low Income Weatherization Program. UE provides funding for 13
Community Action Agencies and the Urban League to help eligible
customers weatherize their homes.

-- Third-Party Notification. UE will attempt to contact a designated
third-party of a registered elderly person or a customer with
disabilities before disconnecting service for nonpayment of utility
bills. The designated third-party will receive copies of all bills and
disconnect notifications.

Information about all of these programs can be found at www.ameren.com.

With residential electric retail rates that are approximately 40 percent below
the national average, AmerenUE provides electricity and natural gas to 1.2
million customers in Missouri. With assets of approximately $23 billion,
Ameren Corporation (www.ameren.com) serves 2.4 million electric customers and
one million natural gas customers in a 64,000-square-mile area of Missouri and
Illinois.

SOURCE AmerenUE

Tim Fox of AmerenUE, +1-314-554-4335