Bill Text: IL HB5760 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Public Utilities Act. Allows the Illinois Commerce Commission to deny a license for an agent, broker, or consultant engaged in the procurement or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties if the Commission determines the applicant has failed to demonstrate that the applicant possesses the necessary competence or is unlikely to fulfill the applicant's ongoing obligations as an agent, broker, or consultant. Provides that violations of the provisions related to the licensure of agents, brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties shall be as follows: (1) for a first violation, the Commission may, in addition or as an alternative to the suspension of a license, impose a fine up to $5,000 per violation; (2) for a second violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may (rather than shall) suspend the license of the person or entity for a period of not less than 6 months and, in addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $10,000 per violation; and (3) for a third or subsequent violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may (rather than shall) suspend the license of the disciplined person or entity for a period of not less than 2 years and, in addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $20,000 per violation.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-04-05 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB5760 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB5760-Introduced.html

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103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB5760 Introduced , by Rep. Eva-Dina Delgado SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
220 ILCS 5/16-115C
Amends the Public Utilities Act. Allows the Illinois Commerce Commission to deny a license for an agent, broker, or consultant engaged in the procurement or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties if the Commission determines the applicant has failed to demonstrate that the applicant possesses the necessary competence or is unlikely to fulfill the applicant's ongoing obligations as an agent, broker, or consultant. Provides that violations of the provisions related to the licensure of agents, brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties shall be as follows: (1) for a first violation, the Commission may, in addition or as an alternative to the suspension of a license, impose a fine up to $5,000 per violation; (2) for a second violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may (rather than shall) suspend the license of the person or entity for a period of not less than 6 months and, in addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $10,000 per violation; and (3) for a third or subsequent violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may (rather than shall) suspend the license of the disciplined person or entity for a period of not less than 2 years and, in addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $20,000 per violation.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning regulations.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Public Utilities Act is amended by changing
Section 16-115C as follows:
(220 ILCS 5/16-115C)
Sec. 16-115C. Licensure of agents, brokers, and
consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail
electricity supply for third parties.
(a) The purpose of this Section is to adopt licensing and
code of conduct rules in a competitive retail electricity
market to protect Illinois consumers from unfair or deceptive
acts or practices and to provide persons acting as agents,
brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of
retail electricity supply for third parties with notice of the
illegality of those acts or practices.
(a-5) All third-party sales representatives engaged in the
marketing of retail electricity supply must, prior to the
customer signing a contract, disclose that they are not
employed by the electric utility operating in the applicable
service territory.
(b) For purposes of this Section, "agents, brokers, and
consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail

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electricity supply for third parties" means any person or
entity that attempts to procure on behalf of or sell retail
electric service to an electric customer in the State.
"Agents, brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement
or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties" does
not include the Illinois Power Agency or any of its employees,
any entity licensed as an alternative retail electric supplier
pursuant to 83 Ill. Adm. Code 451 offering retail electric
service on its own behalf, any person acting exclusively on
behalf of a single alternative retail electric supplier on
condition that exclusivity is disclosed to any third party
contracted in such agent capacity, any person acting
exclusively on behalf of a retail electric supplier on
condition that exclusivity is disclosed to any third party
contracted in such agent capacity, any person or entity
representing a municipal power agency, as defined in Section
11-119.1-3 of the Illinois Municipal Code, or any person or
entity that is attempting to procure on behalf of or sell
retail electric service to a third party that has aggregate
billing demand of all of its affiliated electric service
accounts in Illinois of greater than 1,500 kilowatts.
(c) No person or entity shall act as an agent, broker, or
consultant engaged in the procurement or sale of retail
electricity supply for third parties unless that person or
entity is licensed by the Commission under this Section or is
offering services on their own behalf under 83 Ill. Adm. Code

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451. A license granted pursuant to this Section is not
property, and the grant of a license to an entity does not
create a property interest in the license.
(d) The Commission shall create requirements for licensure
as an agent, broker, or consultant engaged in the procurement
or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties, and
may, in its discretion, deny a license if the Commission
determines the applicant has failed to demonstrate that the
applicant possesses the necessary competence or is unlikely to
fulfill the applicant's ongoing obligations as an agent,
broker, or consultant. The requirements which shall include
all of the following criteria:
(1) Technical competence.
(2) Managerial competence.
(3) Financial responsibility, including the posting of
an appropriate performance bond.
(4) Annual reporting requirements.
(e) Any person or entity required to be licensed under
this Section must:
(1) disclose in plain language in writing to all
persons it solicits (i) before July 1, 2011, the total
anticipated remuneration to be paid to it by any third
party over the period of the proposed underlying customer
contract and (ii) on or after July 1, 2011, the total price
per kilowatt-hour, and the total anticipated cost,
inclusive of all fees or commissions received by the

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licensee, to be paid by the customer over the period of the
proposed underlying customer contract;
(2) disclose, if applicable, to all customers, prior
to the customer signing a contract, the fact that they
will be receiving compensation from the supplier;
(3) not hold itself out as independent or unaffiliated
with any supplier, or both, or use words reasonably
calculated to give that impression, unless the person
offering service under this Section has no contractual
relationship with any retail electricity supplier or its
affiliates regarding retail electric service in Illinois;
(4) not utilize false, misleading, materially
inaccurate, defamatory, or otherwise deceptive language or
materials in the soliciting or providing of its services;
(5) maintain copies of all marketing materials
disseminated to third parties for a period of not less
than 3 years;
(6) not present electricity pricing information in a
manner that favors one supplier over another, unless a
valid pricing comparison is made utilizing all relevant
costs and terms; and
(7) comply with the requirements of Sections 2EE, 2FF,
2GG, and 2HH of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business
Practices Act.
(f) Any person or entity licensed under this Section shall
file with the Commission all of the following information no

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later than March of each year:
(1) A verified report detailing any and all
contractual relationships that it has with certified
electricity suppliers in the State regarding retail
electric service in Illinois.
(2) A verified report detailing the distribution of
its customers with the various certified electricity
suppliers in Illinois during the prior calendar year. A
report under this Section shall not be required to contain
customer-identifying information.
A public redacted version of the verified report may
be submitted to the Commission along with a proprietary
version. The public redacted version may redact from the
verified report the name or names of every certified
electricity supplier contained in the report to protect
against disclosure of competitively sensitive market share
information. The information shall be afforded proprietary
treatment for 2 years after the date of the filing of the
verified report.
(3) A verified statement of any changes to the
original licensure qualifications and notice of continuing
compliance with all requirements.
(g) The Commission shall have jurisdiction over
complaints, including on the Commission's own motion, for
violations of this Section. The findings of a violation of
this Section by the Commission shall result in discipline on a

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progressive scale. For a first violation, the Commission may,
in its discretion, suspend the license of the person or entity
for a period of no less than one month and, in addition or as
an alternative, impose a fine up to $5,000 per violation. For a
second violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may
shall suspend the license of the person or entity for a period
of not less than 6 months and, in addition or as an
alternative, impose a fine up to $10,000 per violation. For a
third or subsequent violation within a 5-year period, the
Commission may shall suspend the license of the disciplined
person or entity for a period of not less than 2 years and, in
addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $20,000 per
violation. Notwithstanding the minimum progressive
suspensions, the Commission shall have authority, in its
discretion, to impose whatever reasonable disciplinary
measures it deems appropriate for any violation, including,
but not limited to, terminating the license of the person or
entity.
(h) This Section shall not apply to a retail customer that
operates or manages either directly or indirectly any
facilities, equipment, or property used or contemplated to be
used to distribute electric power or energy if that retail
customer is a political subdivision or public institution of
higher education of this State, or any corporation, company,
limited liability company, association, joint-stock company or
association, firm, partnership, or individual, or their

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