Full Text of SB1802 97th General Assembly
SB1802eng 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning State government.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Illinois Power Agency Act is amended by | 5 | | changing Section 1-92 as follows: | 6 | | (20 ILCS 3855/1-92) | 7 | | Sec. 1-92. Aggregation of retail electrical load of | 8 | | residential and small commercial retail customers by | 9 | | municipalities and counties. | 10 | | (a) The corporate authorities of a municipality or county | 11 | | board of a county
may
adopt an ordinance under which it may | 12 | | aggregate , in accordance with this
Section , residential and | 13 | | small commercial retail electrical loads of applicable | 14 | | residential and small commercial retail customers located, | 15 | | respectively, within the
municipality or the unincorporated | 16 | | areas of the county and, for that purpose, shall may solicit | 17 | | bids and enter into service
agreements to facilitate
for those
| 18 | | loads the sale and purchase of electricity and related services | 19 | | and equipment through a competitive procurement process . For | 20 | | purposes of this Section, small commercial retail customers of | 21 | | an electric utility that on December 31, 2010 provided electric | 22 | | service to at least 2,000,000 customers in Illinois shall be | 23 | | those customers of the watt-hour only delivery service class. |
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| 1 | | For purposes of this Section, small commercial retail customers | 2 | | of an electric utility that on December 31, 2010 provided | 3 | | electric service to 2,000,000 or fewer customers but more than | 4 | | 100,000 customers in Illinois shall be those customers of an | 5 | | electric utility consuming 15,000 kilowatt-hours or less of | 6 | | electricity annually in its service area. Applicable | 7 | | residential and small commercial retail customers in an | 8 | | aggregation program shall not include customers of an | 9 | | alternative retail electric supplier that is not the chosen | 10 | | supplier of the aggregation program or customers participating | 11 | | in a residential real-time pricing program or Percentage of | 12 | | Income Payment Plan (PIPP) unless those customers | 13 | | affirmatively choose to join the aggregation program. | 14 | | If the corporate authorities or the county board seek to
| 15 | | operate the aggregation program as an opt-out program, then the | 16 | | program applies solely to residential and small commercial | 17 | | retail customers that are taking service from the electric | 18 | | utility through fixed-price bundled service tariffs or taking | 19 | | electric supply service offered by an alternative retail | 20 | | electric supplier from an expiring or current aggregation | 21 | | program. The corporate authorities or the county board shall | 22 | | allow new residents outside of an opt-out period, and | 23 | | non-applicable residential and small commercial retail | 24 | | customers who were not eligible to receive the opt-out notice, | 25 | | to affirmatively commit to the terms and conditions of an | 26 | | opt-out program at any time during the length of the program |
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| 1 | | under a process disclosed in the plan of operation and | 2 | | governance. | 3 | | The corporate authorities or county
board may also exercise | 4 | | such authority jointly with any other municipality or county.
| 5 | | Two or
more
municipalities or counties, or a combination of | 6 | | both, may initiate a
process
jointly to authorize aggregation | 7 | | by a majority vote of each particular
municipality or
county as | 8 | | required by this Section. | 9 | | If the corporate authorities or the county board seek to | 10 | | operate the aggregation program as an opt-out program for | 11 | | residential and small commercial retail customers, then prior | 12 | | to the adoption of an ordinance with respect to aggregation of | 13 | | residential and small commercial retail electric loads, the | 14 | | corporate authorities of a municipality or the county board of | 15 | | a county shall submit a referendum to its residents to | 16 | | determine whether or not the aggregation program shall operate | 17 | | as an opt-out program for residential and small commercial | 18 | | retail customers. | 19 | | In addition to the notice and conduct requirements of the | 20 | | general election law, notice of the referendum shall state | 21 | | briefly the purpose of the referendum. The question of whether | 22 | | the corporate authorities or the county board shall adopt an | 23 | | opt-out aggregation program for residential and small | 24 | | commercial retail customers shall be submitted to the electors | 25 | | of the municipality or county board at a regular election and | 26 | | approved by a majority of the electors voting on the question. |
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| 1 | | The corporate authorities or county board must certify to the | 2 | | proper election authority, which must submit the question at an | 3 | | election in accordance with the Election Code. | 4 | | The election authority must submit the question in | 5 | | substantially the following form: | 6 | | Shall the (municipality or county in which the question | 7 | | is being voted upon) have the authority to arrange for the | 8 | | supply of electricity for its residential and small | 9 | | commercial retail customers who have not opted out of such | 10 | | program? | 11 | | The election authority must record the votes as "Yes" or "No". | 12 | | If a majority of the electors voting on the question vote | 13 | | in the affirmative, then the corporate authorities or county | 14 | | board may implement an opt-out aggregation program for | 15 | | residential and small commercial retail customers. | 16 | | A referendum must pass in each particular municipality or | 17 | | county that is engaged in the aggregation program. If the | 18 | | referendum fails, then the corporate authorities or county | 19 | | board shall operate the aggregation program as an opt-in | 20 | | program for residential and small commercial retail customers. | 21 | | An
ordinance under this Section shall specify whether the | 22 | | aggregation will occur
only with
the prior consent of each | 23 | | person owning, occupying, controlling, or using an
electric | 24 | | load
center proposed to be aggregated. Nothing in this Section,
| 25 | | however,
authorizes the aggregation of electric loads that are | 26 | | served or authorized to be served by an electric cooperative as |
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| 1 | | defined by and pursuant to the Electric Supplier Act or loads | 2 | | served by a municipality that owns and operates its own | 3 | | electric distribution system. No
aggregation shall take
effect | 4 | | unless
approved by a majority of the members of the corporate | 5 | | authority or county board voting upon the ordinance.
| 6 | | A governmental aggregator under this Section is not a | 7 | | public utility , agent, broker, consultant, or an
alternative | 8 | | retail electric supplier. Nothing in this Section prohibits a | 9 | | governmental aggregator from retaining the services of an | 10 | | agent, broker, or consultant. | 11 | | (a-5) A governmental aggregator must utilize the services | 12 | | of a qualified expert for the execution of a competitive | 13 | | procurement process to meet the supply needs of its | 14 | | aggregation. The qualified expert must be separate from, and | 15 | | maintain no business relationship with, any other consultant | 16 | | providing services to the governmental aggregator. A qualified | 17 | | expert, as evidenced by a certified affidavit, must have: | 18 | | (1) direct previous experience administering | 19 | | large-scale competitive procurement processes; | 20 | | (2) an advanced degree in economics, mathematics, | 21 | | engineering, or a related area of study; | 22 | | (3) ten years of experience in the electricity sector, | 23 | | including risk management experience; | 24 | | (4) expertise in credit and contract protocols; | 25 | | (5) adequate resources to perform and fulfill the | 26 | | required functions and responsibilities, including a |
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| 1 | | bidding and posting process that provides complete | 2 | | auditable communication and bidding recording functions; | 3 | | and | 4 | | (6) the absence of a conflict of interest and | 5 | | inappropriate bias for or against potential bidders as | 6 | | evidenced by an affidavit certifying that the expert does | 7 | | not maintain compensation or agency agreements with any of | 8 | | the bidders participating in the procurement event. | 9 | | (a-10) The Director of the Illinois Power Agency shall | 10 | | provide governmental aggregators and other interested parties | 11 | | with the names of experts deemed as qualified by the Agency to | 12 | | serve as the procurement administrators for the most recent | 13 | | Agency-administered procurement events.
| 14 | | (b) Upon the applicable requisite authority under this | 15 | | Section, the corporate
authorities or the county board, with | 16 | | assistance from the Illinois Power Agency, shall develop a plan | 17 | | of operation and
governance for the
aggregation program so | 18 | | authorized. | 19 | | For an opt-out program, the plan shall specify the process | 20 | | and associated timelines for applicable residential and small | 21 | | commercial retail customers choosing to opt out of the program | 22 | | as well as for non-applicable customers affirmatively choosing | 23 | | to join the aggregation program. The plan for an opt-out | 24 | | program shall ensure that applicable residential and small | 25 | | commercial retail customers are explicitly allowed through | 26 | | written or electronic notice the opportunity to opt out of the |
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| 1 | | aggregation program at a minimum of once every 3 years with no | 2 | | penalty, with the right to opt out to either (i) the electric | 3 | | utility if bundled retail electric service is still offered to | 4 | | that customer class pursuant to Section 16-103 of the Public | 5 | | Utilities Act, (ii) an electric utility's residential | 6 | | real-time pricing rate, if available, or (iii) an electric | 7 | | supply service offered by an alternative retail electric | 8 | | supplier certified by the Commission. The plan for the | 9 | | aggregation program shall not conflict with or otherwise | 10 | | abrogate any existing contracts between an alternative retail | 11 | | electric supplier and residential and small commercial retail | 12 | | customers. | 13 | | Before adopting a plan under this Section,
the
corporate | 14 | | authorities or county board shall hold at least 2 public | 15 | | hearings on
the plan.
Before the first hearing, the corporate | 16 | | authorities or county board shall
publish notice of
the | 17 | | hearings once a week for 2 consecutive weeks in a newspaper of | 18 | | general
circulation
in the jurisdiction. The notice shall | 19 | | summarize the plan and state the date,
time, and
location of | 20 | | each hearing.
Any load aggregation plan established pursuant to | 21 | | this Section shall: | 22 | | (1) provide for universal
access to all applicable | 23 | | residential customers and equitable treatment of | 24 | | applicable
residential customers; | 25 | | (2) describe demand management and energy efficiency | 26 | | services to be
provided to each class of customers ;
and |
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| 1 | | (3) meet any requirements established by law
| 2 | | concerning aggregated service offered pursuant to this | 3 | | Section. | 4 | | (c) The process for soliciting bids for electricity and | 5 | | other related services and awarding proposed agreements for the | 6 | | purchase of electricity and other related services shall be | 7 | | conducted in the following order: | 8 | | (1) The corporate authorities or county board shall may | 9 | | solicit bids for electricity and other related services | 10 | | through a competitive procurement process . | 11 | | (2) Notwithstanding Section 16-122 of the Public | 12 | | Utilities Act and Section 2HH of the Consumer Fraud and | 13 | | Deceptive Business Practices Act, an electric utility that | 14 | | provides residential and small commercial retail electric | 15 | | service in the aggregate area must, upon request of the | 16 | | corporate authorities or the county board in the aggregate | 17 | | area, submit to the requesting party, in an electronic | 18 | | format, those account numbers, names , and addresses of | 19 | | applicable residential and small commercial retail | 20 | | customers in the aggregate area of the municipality or | 21 | | unincorporated areas of the county that are reflected in | 22 | | the electric utility's records at the time of the request. | 23 | | An electric utility shall exclude any customer already | 24 | | switched to an alternative retail electric supplier, any | 25 | | customer participating in a residential real-time pricing | 26 | | program, and any customer participating in a Percentage of |
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| 1 | | Income Payment Plan from the information provided to the | 2 | | corporate authority or county board in the aggregate area. | 3 | | Upon receiving enrollments from an opt-out aggregation, an | 4 | | electric utility shall design system processes to reject | 5 | | any opt-out aggregation enrollment that would result in the | 6 | | switch of a customer already under service with an | 7 | | alternative retail electric supplier, participating in a | 8 | | residential real-time pricing program, or participating in | 9 | | a Percentage of Income Payment Plan. Any corporate | 10 | | authority or county board receiving customer information | 11 | | from an electric utility shall only disclose the | 12 | | information for the purpose of the opt-out aggregation of | 13 | | electric power supply and shall be subject to the | 14 | | limitations on the disclosure of the information described | 15 | | in Section 16-122 of the Public Utilities Act and Section | 16 | | 2HH of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices | 17 | | Act, and an electric utility shall not be held liable for | 18 | | any claims arising out of the provision of information | 19 | | pursuant to this item (2). | 20 | | (d) If the corporate authorities or county board operate | 21 | | under an opt-in program for residential and small commercial | 22 | | retail customers, then the corporate authorities or county | 23 | | board shall comply with all of the following: | 24 | | (1) Within 60 days after receiving the bids, the | 25 | | corporate authorities or county board shall allow | 26 | | residential and small commercial retail customers to |
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| 1 | | commit to the terms and conditions of a bid that has been | 2 | | selected by the corporate authorities or county board. | 3 | | (2) If (A) the corporate authorities or county board | 4 | | award proposed agreements for the purchase of electricity | 5 | | and other related services and (B) an agreement is reached | 6 | | between the corporate authorities or county board for those | 7 | | services, then customers committed to the terms and | 8 | | conditions according to item (1) of this subsection (d) | 9 | | shall be committed to the agreement. | 10 | | (e) If the corporate authorities or county board operate as | 11 | | an opt-out program for residential and small commercial retail | 12 | | customers, then it shall be the duty of the aggregated entity | 13 | | to fully inform
applicable residential and small commercial | 14 | | retail customers in advance that they have the right to opt out | 15 | | of the aggregation program.
The disclosure shall prominently | 16 | | state all charges to be made and
shall include
full disclosure | 17 | | of the cost to obtain service pursuant to Section 16-103 of the | 18 | | Public Utilities Act, how
to access it,
and the fact that it is | 19 | | available to them without penalty, if they are
currently | 20 | | receiving
service under that Section. | 21 | | The Illinois Commerce Commission shall adopt emergency | 22 | | rules to implement the provisions of this amendatory Act of the | 23 | | 97th General Assembly, including, but not limited to, | 24 | | protection of customers (i) already under contract with an | 25 | | alternative retail electric supplier, (ii) participating in a | 26 | | residential real-time pricing program, or (iii) participating |
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| 1 | | in a Percentage of Income Payment Plan, utility processes for | 2 | | enrollment of opt-out customers, and minimum disclosure | 3 | | requirements for opt-out aggregation programs within 45 days | 4 | | after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th | 5 | | General Assembly. | 6 | | The Illinois Power Agency shall furnish, without charge, to
| 7 | | any residential and small commercial retail customer citizen a
| 8 | | list of all supply options available to them in a format that
| 9 | | allows
comparison of prices and products. | 10 | | The Illinois Power Agency shall provide assistance to | 11 | | municipalities, counties, or associations working with | 12 | | municipalities to help complete the plan and bidding process. | 13 | | This Section does not prohibit municipalities or counties | 14 | | from entering into an intergovernmental agreement to aggregate | 15 | | residential and small commercial retail electric loads.
| 16 | | Any aggregation program plan adopted prior to the effective | 17 | | date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly shall | 18 | | not be exempt from the provisions of this amendatory Act of the | 19 | | 97th General Assembly. | 20 | | (Source: P.A. 96-176, eff. 1-1-10.)
| 21 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 22 | | becoming law.
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