HB3404 EnrolledLRB102 13143 SPS 18486 b

1    AN ACT concerning regulation.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Pembroke Township Natural Gas Investment Pilot Program Act.
 
6    Section 5. Definitions. In this Act:
7    "Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic
8Opportunity.
9    "Qualifying gas pipeline project" means the construction
10or installation of gas equipment used in connection with the
11distribution and delivery of natural gas in Pembroke Township.
 
12    Section 10. Pembroke Township Natural Gas Investment Pilot
13Program.
14    (a) The Department shall create the Pembroke Township
15Natural Gas Investment Pilot Program for a duration of 5
16years. The Program shall provide that the Department shall
17distribute grants, subject to appropriation, from moneys in
18the Pembroke Township Natural Gas Investment Fund for the
19conversion of appliances to be compatible with natural gas.
20    (b) The Department shall adopt rules for the
21administration of the Program. At a minimum, the rules shall
22require that the applicant for the grants demonstrate that the

 

 

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1grants will result in the conversion of necessary equipment to
2have the ability to utilize natural gas. The rules shall allow
3for conversion grants awarded to residents of Pembroke
4Township and to Pembroke Township to provide assistance for
5the use of natural gas and shall ensure that the applicant
6complies with all other requirements of the rules.
7    (c) A grantee must maintain all records as required by
8rule. The records shall be subject to audit by the Department,
9by an auditor appointed by the Department, or by a State
10officer authorized to conduct audits.
11    (d) Eligible applicants under this Program may include a
12nonprofit or community action association that will help the
13residents of Pembroke with the convergence of natural gas
14services in the residents' homes. Notwithstanding any
15provision of law to the contrary, an entity regulated under
16the Public Utilities Act may serve as a grantee under this Act.
 
17    Section 15. Pembroke Township Natural Gas Investment Pilot
18Program Fund. The Pembroke Township Natural Gas Investment
19Pilot Program Fund is created as a special fund in the State
20treasury. Subject to appropriation, all moneys in the Fund
21shall be used by the Department to fund grants for qualified
22utility infrastructure projects. The Department may accept
23private and public funds, including federal funds, for deposit
24into the Fund. Earnings attributable to moneys in the Fund
25shall be deposited into the Fund.
 

 

 

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1    Section 20. Data collection and reporting. The Department
2shall collect data regarding the successes and challenges of
3the Pembroke Township Natural Gas Investment Pilot Program and
4shall submit an annual report to the Governor and the General
5Assembly by March 1 of each year beginning in 2022 until the
6Pilot Program terminates. The report shall: (i) make a
7recommendation as to whether the Pilot Program should
8continue; (ii) provide cost estimates, including the average
9per person costs; and (iii) recommend ways in which the Pilot
10Program can be improved to better address the needs for
11natural gas distribution.
 
12    Section 90. The State Finance Act is amended by adding
13Section 5.935 as follows:
 
14    (30 ILCS 105/5.935 new)
15    Sec. 5.935. The Pembroke Township Natural Gas Investment
16Pilot Program Fund.
 
17    Section 95. The Public Utilities Act is amended by
18changing Section 8-406 and by adding Section 8-406.2 as
19follows:
 
20    (220 ILCS 5/8-406)  (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 8-406)
21    Sec. 8-406. Certificate of public convenience and

 

 

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1necessity.
2    (a) No public utility not owning any city or village
3franchise nor engaged in performing any public service or in
4furnishing any product or commodity within this State as of
5July 1, 1921 and not possessing a certificate of public
6convenience and necessity from the Illinois Commerce
7Commission, the State Public Utilities Commission or the
8Public Utilities Commission, at the time this amendatory Act
9of 1985 goes into effect, shall transact any business in this
10State until it shall have obtained a certificate from the
11Commission that public convenience and necessity require the
12transaction of such business. A certificate of public
13convenience and necessity requiring the transaction of public
14utility business in any area of this State shall include
15authorization to the public utility receiving the certificate
16of public convenience and necessity to construct such plant,
17equipment, property, or facility as is provided for under the
18terms and conditions of its tariff and as is necessary to
19provide utility service and carry out the transaction of
20public utility business by the public utility in the
21designated area.
22    (b) No public utility shall begin the construction of any
23new plant, equipment, property or facility which is not in
24substitution of any existing plant, equipment, property or
25facility or any extension or alteration thereof or in addition
26thereto, unless and until it shall have obtained from the

 

 

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1Commission a certificate that public convenience and necessity
2require such construction. Whenever after a hearing the
3Commission determines that any new construction or the
4transaction of any business by a public utility will promote
5the public convenience and is necessary thereto, it shall have
6the power to issue certificates of public convenience and
7necessity. The Commission shall determine that proposed
8construction will promote the public convenience and necessity
9only if the utility demonstrates: (1) that the proposed
10construction is necessary to provide adequate, reliable, and
11efficient service to its customers and is the least-cost means
12of satisfying the service needs of its customers or that the
13proposed construction will promote the development of an
14effectively competitive electricity market that operates
15efficiently, is equitable to all customers, and is the least
16cost means of satisfying those objectives; (2) that the
17utility is capable of efficiently managing and supervising the
18construction process and has taken sufficient action to ensure
19adequate and efficient construction and supervision thereof;
20and (3) that the utility is capable of financing the proposed
21construction without significant adverse financial
22consequences for the utility or its customers.
23    (c) After the effective date of this amendatory Act of
241987, no construction shall commence on any new nuclear power
25plant to be located within this State, and no certificate of
26public convenience and necessity or other authorization shall

 

 

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1be issued therefor by the Commission, until the Director of
2the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency finds that the
3United States Government, through its authorized agency, has
4identified and approved a demonstrable technology or means for
5the disposal of high level nuclear waste, or until such
6construction has been specifically approved by a statute
7enacted by the General Assembly.
8    As used in this Section, "high level nuclear waste" means
9those aqueous wastes resulting from the operation of the first
10cycle of the solvent extraction system or equivalent and the
11concentrated wastes of the subsequent extraction cycles or
12equivalent in a facility for reprocessing irradiated reactor
13fuel and shall include spent fuel assemblies prior to fuel
14reprocessing.
15    (d) In making its determination under subsection (b) of
16this Section, the Commission shall attach primary weight to
17the cost or cost savings to the customers of the utility. The
18Commission may consider any or all factors which will or may
19affect such cost or cost savings, including the public
20utility's engineering judgment regarding the materials used
21for construction.
22    (e) The Commission may issue a temporary certificate which
23shall remain in force not to exceed one year in cases of
24emergency, to assure maintenance of adequate service or to
25serve particular customers, without notice or hearing, pending
26the determination of an application for a certificate, and may

 

 

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1by regulation exempt from the requirements of this Section
2temporary acts or operations for which the issuance of a
3certificate will not be required in the public interest.
4    A public utility shall not be required to obtain but may
5apply for and obtain a certificate of public convenience and
6necessity pursuant to this Section with respect to any matter
7as to which it has received the authorization or order of the
8Commission under the Electric Supplier Act, and any such
9authorization or order granted a public utility by the
10Commission under that Act shall as between public utilities be
11deemed to be, and shall have except as provided in that Act the
12same force and effect as, a certificate of public convenience
13and necessity issued pursuant to this Section.
14    No electric cooperative shall be made or shall become a
15party to or shall be entitled to be heard or to otherwise
16appear or participate in any proceeding initiated under this
17Section for authorization of power plant construction and as
18to matters as to which a remedy is available under The Electric
19Supplier Act.
20    (f) Such certificates may be altered or modified by the
21Commission, upon its own motion or upon application by the
22person or corporation affected. Unless exercised within a
23period of 2 years from the grant thereof authority conferred
24by a certificate of convenience and necessity issued by the
25Commission shall be null and void.
26    No certificate of public convenience and necessity shall

 

 

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1be construed as granting a monopoly or an exclusive privilege,
2immunity or franchise.
3    (g) A public utility that undertakes any of the actions
4described in items (1) through (3) of this subsection (g) or
5that has obtained approval pursuant to Section 8-406.1 of this
6Act shall not be required to comply with the requirements of
7this Section to the extent such requirements otherwise would
8apply. For purposes of this Section and Section 8-406.1 of
9this Act, "high voltage electric service line" means an
10electric line having a design voltage of 100,000 or more. For
11purposes of this subsection (g), a public utility may do any of
12the following:
13        (1) replace or upgrade any existing high voltage
14    electric service line and related facilities,
15    notwithstanding its length;
16        (2) relocate any existing high voltage electric
17    service line and related facilities, notwithstanding its
18    length, to accommodate construction or expansion of a
19    roadway or other transportation infrastructure; or
20        (3) construct a high voltage electric service line and
21    related facilities that is constructed solely to serve a
22    single customer's premises or to provide a generator
23    interconnection to the public utility's transmission
24    system and that will pass under or over the premises owned
25    by the customer or generator to be served or under or over
26    premises for which the customer or generator has secured

 

 

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1    the necessary right of way.
2    (h) A public utility seeking to construct a high-voltage
3electric service line and related facilities (Project) must
4show that the utility has held a minimum of 2 pre-filing public
5meetings to receive public comment concerning the Project in
6each county where the Project is to be located, no earlier than
76 months prior to filing an application for a certificate of
8public convenience and necessity from the Commission. Notice
9of the public meeting shall be published in a newspaper of
10general circulation within the affected county once a week for
113 consecutive weeks, beginning no earlier than one month prior
12to the first public meeting. If the Project traverses 2
13contiguous counties and where in one county the transmission
14line mileage and number of landowners over whose property the
15proposed route traverses is one-fifth or less of the
16transmission line mileage and number of such landowners of the
17other county, then the utility may combine the 2 pre-filing
18meetings in the county with the greater transmission line
19mileage and affected landowners. All other requirements
20regarding pre-filing meetings shall apply in both counties.
21Notice of the public meeting, including a description of the
22Project, must be provided in writing to the clerk of each
23county where the Project is to be located. A representative of
24the Commission shall be invited to each pre-filing public
25meeting.
26    (i) For applications filed after the effective date of

 

 

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1this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly, the
2Commission shall by registered mail notify each owner of
3record of land, as identified in the records of the relevant
4county tax assessor, included in the right-of-way over which
5the utility seeks in its application to construct a
6high-voltage electric line of the time and place scheduled for
7the initial hearing on the public utility's application. The
8utility shall reimburse the Commission for the cost of the
9postage and supplies incurred for mailing the notice.
10(Source: P.A. 99-399, eff. 8-18-15.)
 
11    (220 ILCS 5/8-406.2 new)
12    Sec. 8-406.2. Certificate of public convenience and
13necessity; extension of utility service area and facilities to
14serve designated hardship areas.
15    (a) This Section is intended to provide a mechanism by
16which a gas public utility may extend its service territory
17and gas distribution system to provide service to designated
18low-income areas whose residents do not have access to natural
19gas service and must purchase more costly alternatives to
20satisfy their energy needs.
21    (b) In this Section:
22    "Designated hardship area" is limited to Pembroke
23Township, if the Township meets certain requirements. Any
24"designated hardship area" only applies to the specific
25community of Pembroke within the scope of the Project.

 

 

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1Pembroke Township will only be categorized as a "designated
2hardship area" if it meets the following requirements:
3        (1) the area is designated as a qualified census tract
4    by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development as
5    published in the most current Federal Register; if the
6    U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development ceases to
7    make this designation, then at least 25% of the households
8    in the area are at or below the poverty level; and
9        (2) the area is not currently served by a gas utility.
10    "Hardship area facilities" means all gas distribution
11system facilities that are proposed to be constructed or
12extended and used to serve the designated hardship area,
13through and including retail gas meters. "Hardship area
14facilities" includes the capacity to address reasonably
15foreseeable growth in areas adjacent to or in the vicinity of
16the designated hardship area.
17    (c) A gas public utility may apply for a certificate of
18public convenience and necessity pursuant to this Section to
19increase its gas service territory and extend its gas
20distribution system to serve a designated hardship area. An
21application under this Section shall include all of the
22following:
23        (1) a description of the designated hardship area and
24    its relationship to the existing gas distribution system
25    of the applicant;
26        (2) a showing that the designated hardship area meets

 

 

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1    the criteria for being a designated hardship area under
2    subsection (b) of this Section;
3        (3) a description of the hardship area facilities
4    proposed to serve the designated hardship area;
5        (4) a projection of the costs to construct and deploy
6    the hardship area facilities;
7        (5) a showing that the estimated cost to construct and
8    deploy the hardship area facilities is equal to or less
9    than 250% of the amount allowed under the gas utilities'
10    then current tariffs to provide standard service to extend
11    main and services; and
12        (6) a statement to confirm that the public utility has
13    held at least 2 pre-filing public meetings in the
14    community and considered public input from those meetings
15    when developing and implementing its plans.
16    (d) The Commission shall, after notice and hearing, grant
17a certificate of public convenience and necessity under this
18Section if, based upon the application filed with the
19Commission and the evidentiary record, the Commission finds
20that all of the following criteria are satisfied:
21        (1) the area to be served is a designated hardship
22    area;
23        (2) the proposed hardship area facilities will provide
24    adequate, reliable, and efficient gas delivery service to
25    the customers within the designated hardship area and are
26    the least-cost means of providing such gas delivery

 

 

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1    service to these customers;
2        (3) the public utility is capable of efficiently
3    managing and supervising the construction of the hardship
4    area facilities and has taken sufficient action to ensure
5    adequate and efficient construction and supervision of the
6    construction;
7        (4) the public utility is capable of financing the
8    construction of the hardship area facilities without
9    significant adverse financial consequences for the utility
10    or its customers;
11        (5) the estimated cost to construct and deploy the
12    hardship area facilities is equal to or less than 250% of
13    the amount allowed under the gas utilities then current
14    tariffs to provide standard service to extend main and
15    services;
16        (6) the public utility can guarantee that residents of
17    Hopkins Park who choose to opt out of converting to a
18    natural gas delivery service will not be assessed any
19    charges relating to the pipeline construction or any other
20    fees relating to the designated hardship area facilities;
21        (7) the public utility disclosed to the Commission the
22    mapping of the proposed pipeline and infrastructure
23    management requirements within the designated hardship
24    area; and
25        (8) the public utility has guaranteed that, before
26    implementation, it will disclose to the Commission the

 

 

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1    cost to the utility for customers of Hopkins Park to
2    utilize gas services.
3    (e) The Commission shall issue its decision with findings
4of fact and conclusions of law granting or denying the
5application no later than 120 days after the application is
6filed.
 
7    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
8becoming law.