Public Act 095-0048
 
HB0295 Enrolled LRB095 04479 DRJ 24526 b

    AN ACT concerning public aid.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Energy Assistance Act is amended by changing
Section 13 as follows:
 
    (305 ILCS 20/13)
    (Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2007)
    Sec. 13. Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund.
    (a) The Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund is
hereby created as a special fund in the State Treasury. The
Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund is authorized
to receive moneys from voluntary donations from individuals,
foundations, corporations, and other sources, moneys received
pursuant to Section 17, and, by statutory deposit, the moneys
collected pursuant to this Section. The Fund is also authorized
to receive voluntary donations from individuals, foundations,
corporations, and other sources, as well as contributions made
in accordance with Section 507MM of the Illinois Income Tax
Act. Subject to appropriation, the Department shall use moneys
from the Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund for
payments to electric or gas public utilities, municipal
electric or gas utilities, and electric cooperatives on behalf
of their customers who are participants in the program
authorized by Section 4 of this Act, for the provision of
weatherization services and for administration of the
Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund. The yearly
expenditures for weatherization may not exceed 10% of the
amount collected during the year pursuant to this Section. The
yearly administrative expenses of the Supplemental Low-Income
Energy Assistance Fund may not exceed 10% of the amount
collected during that year pursuant to this Section.
    (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 16-111 of the
Public Utilities Act but subject to subsection (k) of this
Section, each public utility, electric cooperative, as defined
in Section 3.4 of the Electric Supplier Act, and municipal
utility, as referenced in Section 3-105 of the Public Utilities
Act, that is engaged in the delivery of electricity or the
distribution of natural gas within the State of Illinois shall,
effective January 1, 1998, assess each of its customer accounts
a monthly Energy Assistance Charge for the Supplemental
Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund. The delivering public
utility, municipal electric or gas utility, or electric or gas
cooperative for a self-assessing purchaser remains subject to
the collection of the fee imposed by this Section. The monthly
charge shall be as follows:
        (1) $0.40 per month on each account for residential
    electric service;
        (2) $0.40 per month on each account for residential gas
    service;
        (3) $4 per month on each account for non-residential
    electric service which had less than 10 megawatts of peak
    demand during the previous calendar year;
        (4) $4 per month on each account for non-residential
    gas service which had distributed to it less than 4,000,000
    therms of gas during the previous calendar year;
        (5) $300 per month on each account for non-residential
    electric service which had 10 megawatts or greater of peak
    demand during the previous calendar year; and
        (6) $300 per month on each account for non-residential
    gas service which had 4,000,000 or more therms of gas
    distributed to it during the previous calendar year.
    (c) For purposes of this Section:
        (1) "residential electric service" means electric
    utility service for household purposes delivered to a
    dwelling of 2 or fewer units which is billed under a
    residential rate, or electric utility service for
    household purposes delivered to a dwelling unit or units
    which is billed under a residential rate and is registered
    by a separate meter for each dwelling unit;
        (2) "residential gas service" means gas utility
    service for household purposes distributed to a dwelling of
    2 or fewer units which is billed under a residential rate,
    or gas utility service for household purposes distributed
    to a dwelling unit or units which is billed under a
    residential rate and is registered by a separate meter for
    each dwelling unit;
        (3) "non-residential electric service" means electric
    utility service which is not residential electric service;
    and
        (4) "non-residential gas service" means gas utility
    service which is not residential gas service.
    (d) At least 45 days prior to the date on which it must
begin assessing Energy Assistance Charges, each public utility
engaged in the delivery of electricity or the distribution of
natural gas shall file with the Illinois Commerce Commission
tariffs incorporating the Energy Assistance Charge in other
charges stated in such tariffs.
    (e) The Energy Assistance Charge assessed by electric and
gas public utilities shall be considered a charge for public
utility service.
    (f) By the 20th day of the month following the month in
which the charges imposed by the Section were collected, each
public utility, municipal utility, and electric cooperative
shall remit to the Department of Revenue all moneys received as
payment of the Energy Assistance Charge on a return prescribed
and furnished by the Department of Revenue showing such
information as the Department of Revenue may reasonably
require. If a customer makes a partial payment, a public
utility, municipal utility, or electric cooperative may elect
either: (i) to apply such partial payments first to amounts
owed to the utility or cooperative for its services and then to
payment for the Energy Assistance Charge or (ii) to apply such
partial payments on a pro-rata basis between amounts owed to
the utility or cooperative for its services and to payment for
the Energy Assistance Charge.
    (g) The Department of Revenue shall deposit into the
Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund all moneys
remitted to it in accordance with subsection (f) of this
Section.
    (h) (Blank).
    On or before December 31, 2002, the Department shall
prepare a report for the General Assembly on the expenditure of
funds appropriated from the Low-Income Energy Assistance Block
Grant Fund for the program authorized under Section 4 of this
Act.
    (i) The Department of Revenue may establish such rules as
it deems necessary to implement this Section.
    (j) The Department of Healthcare and Family Services
Economic Opportunity may establish such rules as it deems
necessary to implement this Section.
    (k) The charges imposed by this Section shall only apply to
customers of municipal electric or gas utilities and electric
or gas cooperatives if the municipal electric or gas utility or
electric or gas cooperative makes an affirmative decision to
impose the charge. If a municipal electric or gas utility or an
electric cooperative makes an affirmative decision to impose
the charge provided by this Section, the municipal electric or
gas utility or electric cooperative shall inform the Department
of Revenue in writing of such decision when it begins to impose
the charge. If a municipal electric or gas utility or electric
or gas cooperative does not assess this charge, the Department
may not use funds from the Supplemental Low-Income Energy
Assistance Fund to provide benefits to its customers under the
program authorized by Section 4 of this Act.
    In its use of federal funds under this Act, the Department
may not cause a disproportionate share of those federal funds
to benefit customers of systems which do not assess the charge
provided by this Section.
    This Section is repealed effective December 31, 2013 2007
unless renewed by action of the General Assembly. The General
Assembly shall consider the results of the evaluations
described in Section 8 in its deliberations.
(Source: P.A. 94-773, eff. 5-18-06; 94-793, eff. 5-19-06;
94-817, eff. 5-30-06; revised 8-3-06.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.