Full Text of SB3170 97th General Assembly
SB3170 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012 SB3170 Introduced 2/1/2012, by Sen. Suzi Schmidt SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
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Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. Provides that township boards may adopt ordinances under which they may aggregate residential and small commercial retail electrical loads located within the township. Effective immediately.
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| | A BILL FOR |
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| 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 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 electrical load by | 8 | | municipalities , townships, and counties. | 9 | | (a) The corporate authorities of a municipality , township | 10 | | board, or county board of a county
may
adopt an ordinance under | 11 | | which it may aggregate in accordance with this
Section | 12 | | residential and small commercial retail electrical loads | 13 | | located, respectively, within the
municipality , the township, | 14 | | or the unincorporated areas of the county and, for that | 15 | | purpose, may solicit bids and enter into service
agreements to | 16 | | facilitate
for those
loads the sale and purchase of electricity | 17 | | and related services and equipment. | 18 | | The corporate authorities , township board, or county
board | 19 | | may also exercise such authority jointly with any other | 20 | | municipality , township, or county.
Two or
more
municipalities , | 21 | | townships, or counties, or a combination of both, may initiate | 22 | | a
process
jointly to authorize aggregation by a majority vote | 23 | | of each particular
municipality , township, or
county as |
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| 1 | | required by this Section. | 2 | | If the corporate authorities , township board, or the county | 3 | | board seek to operate the aggregation program as an opt-out | 4 | | program for residential and small commercial retail customers, | 5 | | then prior to the adoption of an ordinance with respect to | 6 | | aggregation of residential and small commercial retail | 7 | | electric loads, the corporate authorities of a municipality , | 8 | | the township board, or the county board of a county shall | 9 | | submit a referendum to its residents to determine whether or | 10 | | not the aggregation program shall operate as an opt-out program | 11 | | for residential and small commercial retail customers. | 12 | | In addition to the notice and conduct requirements of the | 13 | | general election law, notice of the referendum shall state | 14 | | briefly the purpose of the referendum. The question of whether | 15 | | the corporate authorities , the township board, or the county | 16 | | board shall adopt an opt-out aggregation program for | 17 | | residential and small commercial retail customers shall be | 18 | | submitted to the electors of the municipality , township board, | 19 | | or county board at a regular election and approved by a | 20 | | majority of the electors voting on the question. The corporate | 21 | | authorities , township board, or county board must certify to | 22 | | the proper election authority, which must submit the question | 23 | | at an election in accordance with the Election Code. | 24 | | The election authority must submit the question in | 25 | | substantially 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? | 5 | | The election authority must record the votes as "Yes" or "No". | 6 | | If a majority of the electors voting on the question vote | 7 | | in the affirmative, then the corporate authorities , township | 8 | | board, or county board may implement an opt-out aggregation | 9 | | program for residential and small commercial retail customers. | 10 | | A referendum must pass in each particular municipality , | 11 | | township, or county that is engaged in the aggregation program. | 12 | | If the referendum fails, then the corporate authorities , | 13 | | township board, or county board shall operate the aggregation | 14 | | program as an opt-in program for residential and small | 15 | | commercial retail customers. | 16 | | An
ordinance under this Section shall specify whether the | 17 | | aggregation will occur
only with
the prior consent of each | 18 | | person owning, occupying, controlling, or using an
electric | 19 | | load
center proposed to be aggregated. Nothing in this Section,
| 20 | | however,
authorizes the aggregation of electric loads that are | 21 | | served or authorized to be served by an electric cooperative as | 22 | | defined by and pursuant to the Electric Supplier Act or loads | 23 | | served by a municipality that owns and operates its own | 24 | | electric distribution system. No
aggregation shall take
effect | 25 | | unless
approved by a majority of the members of the corporate | 26 | | authority , township board, or county board voting upon the |
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| 1 | | ordinance.
| 2 | | A governmental aggregator under this Section is not a | 3 | | public utility or an
alternative retail electric supplier.
| 4 | | (b) Upon the applicable requisite authority under this | 5 | | Section, the corporate
authorities , the township board, or the | 6 | | county board, with assistance from the Illinois Power Agency, | 7 | | shall develop a plan of operation and
governance for the
| 8 | | aggregation program so authorized. Before adopting a plan under | 9 | | this Section,
the
corporate authorities , township board, or | 10 | | county board shall hold at least 2 public hearings on
the plan.
| 11 | | Before the first hearing, the corporate authorities , township | 12 | | board, or county board shall
publish notice of
the hearings | 13 | | once a week for 2 consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general
| 14 | | circulation
in the jurisdiction. The notice shall summarize the | 15 | | plan and state the date,
time, and
location of each hearing.
| 16 | | Any load aggregation plan established pursuant to this Section | 17 | | shall: | 18 | | (1) provide for universal
access to all applicable | 19 | | residential customers and equitable treatment of | 20 | | applicable
residential customers; | 21 | | (2) describe demand management and energy efficiency | 22 | | services to be
provided to each class of customers;
and | 23 | | (3) meet any requirements established by law
| 24 | | concerning aggregated service offered pursuant to this | 25 | | Section. | 26 | | (c) The process for soliciting bids for electricity and |
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| 1 | | other related services and awarding proposed agreements for the | 2 | | purchase of electricity and other related services shall be | 3 | | conducted in the following order: | 4 | | (1) The corporate authorities , township board, or | 5 | | county board may solicit bids for electricity and other | 6 | | related services. | 7 | | (2) Notwithstanding Section 16-122 of the Public | 8 | | Utilities Act and Section 2HH of the Consumer Fraud and | 9 | | Deceptive Business Practices Act, an electric utility that | 10 | | provides residential and small commercial retail electric | 11 | | service in the aggregate area must, upon request of the | 12 | | corporate authorities , the township board, or the county | 13 | | board in the aggregate area, submit to the requesting | 14 | | party, in an electronic format, those account numbers, | 15 | | names, and addresses of residential and small commercial | 16 | | retail customers in the aggregate area that are reflected | 17 | | in the electric utility's records at the time of the | 18 | | request. Any corporate authority , township board, or | 19 | | county board receiving customer information from an | 20 | | electric utility shall be subject to the limitations on the | 21 | | disclosure of the information described in Section 16-122 | 22 | | of the Public Utilities Act and Section 2HH of the Consumer | 23 | | Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act, and an electric | 24 | | utility shall not be held liable for any claims arising out | 25 | | of the provision of information pursuant to this item (2). | 26 | | (d) If the corporate authorities , township board, or county |
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| 1 | | board operate under an opt-in program for residential and small | 2 | | commercial retail customers, then the corporate authorities , | 3 | | township board, or county board shall comply with all of the | 4 | | following: | 5 | | (1) Within 60 days after receiving the bids, the | 6 | | corporate authorities , township board, or county board | 7 | | shall allow residential and small commercial retail | 8 | | customers to commit to the terms and conditions of a bid | 9 | | that has been selected by the corporate authorities , | 10 | | township board, or county board. | 11 | | (2) If (A) the corporate authorities , township board, | 12 | | or county board award proposed agreements for the purchase | 13 | | of electricity and other related services and (B) an | 14 | | agreement is reached between the corporate authorities , | 15 | | township board, or county board for those services, then | 16 | | customers committed to the terms and conditions according | 17 | | to item (1) of this subsection (d) shall be committed to | 18 | | the agreement. | 19 | | (e) If the corporate authorities , township board, or county | 20 | | board operate as an opt-out program for residential and small | 21 | | commercial retail customers, then it shall be the duty of the | 22 | | aggregated entity to fully inform
residential and small | 23 | | commercial retail customers in advance that they have the right | 24 | | to opt out of the aggregation program.
The disclosure shall | 25 | | prominently state all charges to be made and
shall include
full | 26 | | disclosure of the cost to obtain service pursuant to Section |
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| 1 | | 16-103 of the Public Utilities Act, how
to access it,
and the | 2 | | fact that it is available to them without penalty, if they are
| 3 | | currently receiving
service under that Section. The Illinois | 4 | | Power Agency shall furnish, without charge, to
any citizen a
| 5 | | list of all supply options available to them in a format that
| 6 | | allows
comparison of prices and products. | 7 | | The Illinois Power Agency shall provide assistance to | 8 | | municipalities, townships, counties, or associations working | 9 | | with municipalities to help complete the plan and bidding | 10 | | process. | 11 | | This Section does not prohibit municipalities or counties | 12 | | from entering into an intergovernmental agreement to aggregate | 13 | | residential and small commercial retail electric loads.
| 14 | | (Source: P.A. 96-176, eff. 1-1-10; 97-338, eff. 8-12-11.)
| 15 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 16 | | becoming law.
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