98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014
HB2623

 

Introduced 2/21/2013, by Rep. Mike Fortner

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
20 ILCS 3855/1-92

    Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. Provides that a municipality or other aggregator of electrical load has the authority to require disclosure of the source of the power utilized under the aggregation.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning regulation.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Power Agency Act is amended by
5changing Section 1-92 as follows:
 
6    (20 ILCS 3855/1-92)
7    Sec. 1-92. Aggregation of electrical load by
8municipalities, townships, and counties.
9    (a) The corporate authorities of a municipality, township
10board, or county board of a county may adopt an ordinance under
11which it may aggregate in accordance with this Section
12residential and small commercial retail electrical loads
13located, respectively, within the municipality, the township,
14or the unincorporated areas of the county and, for that
15purpose, may solicit bids and enter into service agreements to
16facilitate for those loads the sale and purchase of electricity
17and related services and equipment.
18    The corporate authorities, township board, or county board
19may also exercise such authority jointly with any other
20municipality, township, or county. Two or more municipalities,
21townships, or counties, or a combination of both, may initiate
22a process jointly to authorize aggregation by a majority vote
23of each particular municipality, township, or county as

 

 

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1required by this Section.
2    If the corporate authorities, township board, or the county
3board seek to operate the aggregation program as an opt-out
4program for residential and small commercial retail customers,
5then prior to the adoption of an ordinance with respect to
6aggregation of residential and small commercial retail
7electric loads, the corporate authorities of a municipality,
8the township board, or the county board of a county shall
9submit a referendum to its residents to determine whether or
10not the aggregation program shall operate as an opt-out program
11for residential and small commercial retail customers.
12    In addition to the notice and conduct requirements of the
13general election law, notice of the referendum shall state
14briefly the purpose of the referendum. The question of whether
15the corporate authorities, the township board, or the county
16board shall adopt an opt-out aggregation program for
17residential and small commercial retail customers shall be
18submitted to the electors of the municipality, township board,
19or county board at a regular election and approved by a
20majority of the electors voting on the question. The corporate
21authorities, township board, or county board must certify to
22the proper election authority, which must submit the question
23at an election in accordance with the Election Code.
24    The election authority must submit the question in
25substantially the following form:
26        Shall the (municipality, township, or county in which

 

 

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1    the question is being voted upon) have the authority to
2    arrange for the supply of electricity for its residential
3    and small commercial retail customers who have not opted
4    out of such program?
5The election authority must record the votes as "Yes" or "No".
6    If a majority of the electors voting on the question vote
7in the affirmative, then the corporate authorities, township
8board, or county board may implement an opt-out aggregation
9program for residential and small commercial retail customers.
10    A referendum must pass in each particular municipality,
11township, or county that is engaged in the aggregation program.
12If the referendum fails, then the corporate authorities,
13township board, or county board shall operate the aggregation
14program as an opt-in program for residential and small
15commercial retail customers.
16    An ordinance under this Section shall specify whether the
17aggregation will occur only with the prior consent of each
18person owning, occupying, controlling, or using an electric
19load center proposed to be aggregated. Nothing in this Section,
20however, authorizes the aggregation of electric loads that are
21served or authorized to be served by an electric cooperative as
22defined by and pursuant to the Electric Supplier Act or loads
23served by a municipality that owns and operates its own
24electric distribution system. No aggregation shall take effect
25unless approved by a majority of the members of the corporate
26authority, township board, or county board voting upon the

 

 

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1ordinance.
2    A governmental aggregator under this Section is not a
3public utility or an alternative retail electric supplier.
4    For purposes of this Section, "township" means the portion
5of a township that is an unincorporated portion of a county
6that is not otherwise a part of a municipality. In addition to
7such other limitations as are included in this Section, a
8township board shall only have authority to aggregate
9residential and small commercial customer loads in accordance
10with this Section if the county board of the county in which
11the township is located (i) is not also submitting a referendum
12to its residents at the same general election that the township
13board proposes to submit a referendum under this subsection
14(a), (ii) has not received authorization through passage of a
15referendum to operate an opt-out aggregation program for
16residential and small commercial retail customers under this
17subsection (a), and (iii) has not otherwise enacted an
18ordinance under this subsection (a) authorizing the operation
19of an opt-in aggregation program for residential and small
20commercial retail customers as described in this Section.
21    (b) Upon the applicable requisite authority under this
22Section, the corporate authorities, the township board, or the
23county board, with assistance from the Illinois Power Agency,
24shall develop a plan of operation and governance for the
25aggregation program so authorized. Before adopting a plan under
26this Section, the corporate authorities, township board, or

 

 

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1county board shall hold at least 2 public hearings on the plan.
2Before the first hearing, the corporate authorities, township
3board, or county board shall publish notice of the hearings
4once a week for 2 consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general
5circulation in the jurisdiction. The notice shall summarize the
6plan and state the date, time, and location of each hearing.
7Any load aggregation plan established pursuant to this Section
8shall:
9        (1) provide for universal access to all applicable
10    residential customers and equitable treatment of
11    applicable residential customers;
12        (2) describe demand management and energy efficiency
13    services to be provided to each class of customers; and
14        (3) meet any requirements established by law
15    concerning aggregated service offered pursuant to this
16    Section.
17    (c) The process for soliciting bids for electricity and
18other related services and awarding proposed agreements for the
19purchase of electricity and other related services shall be
20conducted in the following order:
21        (1) The corporate authorities, township board, or
22    county board may solicit bids for electricity and other
23    related services. The bid specifications may include a
24    provision requiring the bidder to disclose the source of
25    electricity being provided.
26        (1.5) A township board shall request from the electric

 

 

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1    utility those residential and small commercial customers
2    within their aggregate area either by zip code or zip codes
3    or other means as determined by the electric utility. The
4    electric utility shall then provide to the township board
5    the residential and small commercial customers, including
6    the names and addresses of residential and small commercial
7    customers, electronically. The township board shall be
8    responsible for authenticating the residential and small
9    commercial customers contained in this listing and
10    providing edits of the data to affirm, add, or delete the
11    residential and small commercial customers located within
12    its jurisdiction. The township board shall provide the
13    edited list to the electric utility in an electronic format
14    or other means selected by the electric utility and certify
15    that the information is accurate.
16        (2) Notwithstanding Section 16-122 of the Public
17    Utilities Act and Section 2HH of the Consumer Fraud and
18    Deceptive Business Practices Act, an electric utility that
19    provides residential and small commercial retail electric
20    service in the aggregate area must, upon request of the
21    corporate authorities, township board, or the county board
22    in the aggregate area, submit to the requesting party, in
23    an electronic format, those account numbers, names, and
24    addresses of residential and small commercial retail
25    customers in the aggregate area that are reflected in the
26    electric utility's records at the time of the request;

 

 

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1    provided, however, that any township board has first
2    provided an accurate customer list to the electric utility
3    as provided for herein.
4    Any corporate authority, township board, or county board
5receiving customer information from an electric utility shall
6be subject to the limitations on the disclosure of the
7information described in Section 16-122 of the Public Utilities
8Act and Section 2HH of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive
9Business Practices Act, and an electric utility shall not be
10held liable for any claims arising out of the provision of
11information pursuant to this item (2).
12    (d) If the corporate authorities, township board, or county
13board operate under an opt-in program for residential and small
14commercial retail customers, then the corporate authorities,
15township board, or county board shall comply with all of the
16following:
17        (1) Within 60 days after receiving the bids, the
18    corporate authorities, township board, or county board
19    shall allow residential and small commercial retail
20    customers to commit to the terms and conditions of a bid
21    that has been selected by the corporate authorities,
22    township board, or county board.
23        (2) If (A) the corporate authorities, township board,
24    or county board award proposed agreements for the purchase
25    of electricity and other related services and (B) an
26    agreement is reached between the corporate authorities,

 

 

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1    township board, or county board for those services, then
2    customers committed to the terms and conditions according
3    to item (1) of this subsection (d) shall be committed to
4    the agreement.
5    (e) If the corporate authorities, township board, or county
6board operate as an opt-out program for residential and small
7commercial retail customers, then it shall be the duty of the
8aggregated entity to fully inform residential and small
9commercial retail customers in advance that they have the right
10to opt out of the aggregation program. The disclosure shall
11prominently state all charges to be made and shall include full
12disclosure of the cost to obtain service pursuant to Section
1316-103 of the Public Utilities Act, how to access it, and the
14fact that it is available to them without penalty, if they are
15currently receiving service under that Section. The Illinois
16Power Agency shall furnish, without charge, to any citizen a
17list of all supply options available to them in a format that
18allows comparison of prices and products.
19    (f) Any person or entity retained by a municipality or
20county, or jointly by more than one such unit of local
21government, to provide input, guidance, or advice in the
22selection of an electricity supplier for an aggregation program
23shall disclose in writing to the involved units of local
24government the nature of any relationship through which the
25person or entity may receive, either directly or indirectly,
26commissions or other remuneration as a result of the selection

 

 

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1of any particular electricity supplier. The written disclosure
2must be made prior to formal approval by the involved units of
3local government of any professional services agreement with
4the person or entity, or no later than October 1, 2012 with
5respect to any such professional services agreement entered
6into prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of the
797th General Assembly. The disclosure shall cover all direct
8and indirect relationships through which commissions or
9remuneration may result, including the pooling of commissions
10or remuneration among multiple persons or entities, and shall
11identify all involved electricity suppliers. The disclosure
12requirements in this subsection (f) are to be liberally
13construed to ensure that the nature of financial interests are
14fully revealed, and these disclosure requirements shall apply
15regardless of whether the involved person or entity is licensed
16under Section 16-115C of the Public Utilities Act. Any person
17or entity that fails to make the disclosure required under this
18subsection (f) is liable to the involved units of local
19government in an amount equal to all compensation paid to such
20person or entity by the units of local government for the
21input, guidance, or advice in the selection of an electricity
22supplier, plus reasonable attorneys fees and court costs
23incurred by the units of local government in connection with
24obtaining such amount.
25    (g) The Illinois Power Agency shall provide assistance to
26municipalities, townships, counties, or associations working

 

 

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1with municipalities to help complete the plan and bidding
2process.
3    (h) This Section does not prohibit municipalities or
4counties from entering into an intergovernmental agreement to
5aggregate residential and small commercial retail electric
6loads.
7(Source: P.A. 96-176, eff. 1-1-10; 97-338, eff. 8-12-11;
897-823, eff. 7-18-12; 97-1067, eff. 8-24-12; revised 9-20-12.)