|
|||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | AN ACT concerning utilities.
| ||||||
2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| ||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
| ||||||
4 | Section 5. The Public Utilities Act is amended by changing | ||||||
5 | Section 16-115C as follows: | ||||||
6 | (220 ILCS 5/16-115C) | ||||||
7 | Sec. 16-115C. Licensure of agents, brokers, and | ||||||
8 | consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail | ||||||
9 | electricity supply for third parties. | ||||||
10 | (a) The purpose of this Section is to adopt licensing and | ||||||
11 | code of conduct rules in a competitive retail electricity | ||||||
12 | market to protect Illinois consumers from unfair or deceptive | ||||||
13 | acts or practices and to provide persons acting as agents, | ||||||
14 | brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of | ||||||
15 | retail electricity supply for third parties with notice of the | ||||||
16 | illegality of those acts or practices. | ||||||
17 | (a-5) All third-party sales representatives engaged in the | ||||||
18 | marketing of retail electricity supply must, prior to the | ||||||
19 | customer signing a contract, disclose that they are not | ||||||
20 | employed by the electric utility operating in the applicable | ||||||
21 | service territory. | ||||||
22 | (b) For purposes of this Section, "agents, brokers, and | ||||||
23 | consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | electricity supply for third parties" means any person or | ||||||
2 | entity that attempts to procure on behalf of or sell retail | ||||||
3 | electric service to an electric customer in the State. "Agents, | ||||||
4 | brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of | ||||||
5 | retail electricity supply for third parties" does not include | ||||||
6 | the Illinois Power Agency or any of its employees, any entity | ||||||
7 | licensed as an alternative retail electric supplier pursuant to | ||||||
8 | 83 Ill. Adm. Code 451 offering retail electric service on its | ||||||
9 | own behalf, any person acting exclusively on behalf of a single | ||||||
10 | alternative retail electric supplier on condition that | ||||||
11 | exclusivity is disclosed to any third party contracted in such | ||||||
12 | agent capacity, any person acting exclusively on behalf of a | ||||||
13 | retail electric supplier on condition that exclusivity is | ||||||
14 | disclosed to any third party contracted in such agent capacity, | ||||||
15 | any person or entity representing a municipal power agency, as | ||||||
16 | defined in Section 11-119.1-3 of the Illinois Municipal Code, | ||||||
17 | or any person or entity that is attempting to procure on behalf | ||||||
18 | of or sell retail electric service to a third party that has | ||||||
19 | aggregate billing demand of all of its affiliated electric | ||||||
20 | service accounts in Illinois of greater than 1,500 kW. | ||||||
21 | (c) No person or entity shall act as an agent, broker, or | ||||||
22 | consultant engaged in the procurement or sale of retail | ||||||
23 | electricity supply for third parties unless that person or | ||||||
24 | entity is licensed by the Commission under this Section or is | ||||||
25 | offering services on their own behalf under 83 Ill. Adm. Code | ||||||
26 | 451. |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | (d) The Commission shall create requirements for licensure | ||||||
2 | as an agent, broker, or consultant engaged in the procurement | ||||||
3 | or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties, which | ||||||
4 | shall include all of the following criteria: | ||||||
5 | (1) Technical competence. | ||||||
6 | (2) Managerial competence. | ||||||
7 | (3) Financial responsibility, including the posting of | ||||||
8 | an appropriate performance bond. | ||||||
9 | (4) Annual reporting requirements. | ||||||
10 | (e) Any person or entity required to be licensed under this | ||||||
11 | Section must: | ||||||
12 | (1) disclose in plain language in writing to all | ||||||
13 | persons it solicits the price per kilowatt-hour, and the | ||||||
14 | total anticipated cost, inclusive of all fees received by | ||||||
15 | the licensee, to be paid by the customer total anticipated | ||||||
16 | remuneration to be paid to it by any third party over the | ||||||
17 | period of the proposed underlying customer contract; | ||||||
18 | (2) disclose, if applicable, to all customers, prior to | ||||||
19 | the customer signing a contract, the fact that they will be | ||||||
20 | receiving compensation from the supplier; | ||||||
21 | (3) (2) not hold itself out as independent or | ||||||
22 | unaffiliated with any supplier, or both, or use words | ||||||
23 | reasonably calculated to give that impression, unless the | ||||||
24 | person offering service under this Section has no | ||||||
25 | contractual relationship with any retail electricity | ||||||
26 | supplier or its affiliates regarding retail electric |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | service in Illinois; | ||||||
2 | (4) (3) not utilize false, misleading, materially | ||||||
3 | inaccurate, defamatory, or otherwise deceptive language or | ||||||
4 | materials in the soliciting or providing of its services; | ||||||
5 | (5) (4) maintain copies of all marketing materials | ||||||
6 | disseminated to third parties for a period of not less than | ||||||
7 | 3 years; | ||||||
8 | (6) (5) not present electricity pricing information in | ||||||
9 | a manner that favors one supplier over another, unless a | ||||||
10 | valid pricing comparison is made utilizing all relevant | ||||||
11 | costs and terms; and | ||||||
12 | (7) (6) comply with the requirements of Sections 2EE, | ||||||
13 | 2FF, 2GG, and 2HH of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive | ||||||
14 | Business Practices Act. | ||||||
15 | (f) Any person or entity licensed under this Section shall | ||||||
16 | file with the Commission all of the following information no | ||||||
17 | later than March of each year: | ||||||
18 | (1) A verified report detailing any and all contractual | ||||||
19 | relationships that it has with certified electricity | ||||||
20 | suppliers in the State regarding retail electric service in | ||||||
21 | Illinois. | ||||||
22 | (2) A verified report detailing the distribution of its | ||||||
23 | customers with the various certified electricity suppliers | ||||||
24 | in Illinois during the prior calendar year. A report under | ||||||
25 | this Section shall not be required to contain | ||||||
26 | customer-identifying information. |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | A public redacted version of the verified report may be | ||||||
2 | submitted to the Commission along with a proprietary | ||||||
3 | version. The public redacted version may redact from the | ||||||
4 | verified report the name or names of every certified | ||||||
5 | electricity supplier contained in the report to protect | ||||||
6 | against disclosure of competitively sensitive market share | ||||||
7 | information. The information shall be afforded proprietary | ||||||
8 | treatment for 2 years after the date of the filing of the | ||||||
9 | verified report. | ||||||
10 | (3) A copy of its verified financial statement. | ||||||
11 | (3) (4) A verified statement of any changes to the | ||||||
12 | original licensure qualifications and notice of continuing | ||||||
13 | compliance with all requirements. | ||||||
14 | (g) The Commission shall have jurisdiction over | ||||||
15 | disciplinary proceedings and complaints for violations of this | ||||||
16 | Section. The findings of a violation of this Section by the | ||||||
17 | Commission shall result in a progressive disciplinary scale. | ||||||
18 | For a first violation, the Commission may, in its discretion, | ||||||
19 | shall suspend the license of the person so disciplined for a | ||||||
20 | period of no less than one month. For a second violation within | ||||||
21 | a 5-year period, the Commission shall suspend the license for | ||||||
22 | the person so disciplined for a period of not less than 6 | ||||||
23 | months. For a third or subsequent violation within a 5-year | ||||||
24 | period, the Commission shall suspend the license of the | ||||||
25 | disciplined person for a period of not less than 2 years. | ||||||
26 | (h) This Section shall not apply to a retail customer that |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | operates or manages either directly or indirectly any | ||||||
2 | facilities, equipment, or property used or contemplated to be | ||||||
3 | used to distribute electric power or energy if that retail | ||||||
4 | customer is a political subdivision or public institution of | ||||||
5 | higher education of this State, or any corporation, company, | ||||||
6 | limited liability company, association, joint-stock company or | ||||||
7 | association, firm, partnership, or individual, or their | ||||||
8 | lessees, trusts, or receivers appointed by any court whatsoever | ||||||
9 | that are owned or controlled by the political subdivision, | ||||||
10 | public institution of higher education, or operated by any of | ||||||
11 | its lessees or operating agents. | ||||||
12 | (Source: P.A. 95-679, eff. 10-11-07.)
| ||||||
13 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
14 | becoming law.
|