Feel free to use the accompanying photo to practice making your "shocked face," because skyrocketing natural gas prices are about to really get your attention.
So here's the great news as we head into a holiday weekend where more Illinoisans will be driving somewhere than we have in a decade: The new gas taxes kick in today.
It appears that all the COVID-19 lockdowns happening around the globe have had a side benefit to consumers. Crude oil prices have dropped to their lowest numbers since June.
The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) says that several of Illinois' regulated utilities have agreed to another extension to keep residential consumers from being shut off.
The last time the national gas price average leading into the holiday was under $2/gallon was 17 years ago in 2003. That year motorists paid, on average, $1.50 to fill-up.
The average gas price has dipped below $2 a gallon, according to both the American Automobile Association (AAA) and the website GasBuddy, which track gas prices.