Bill Text: IL SB1802 | 2011-2012 | 97th General Assembly | Engrossed

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

---

Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. In provisions concerning the aggregation of retail electrical load of residential and small commercial retail customers by municipalities and counties, provides that any aggregation program that operates as an opt-out program shall apply solely to residential and small commercial retail customers that are taking service from the electric utility through fixed-price bundled service tariffs. Provides that the corporate authorities or the county board shall allow new residents outside of an opt-out period and non-applicable residential and small commercial retail customers who were not eligible to receive the opt-out notice to affirmatively commit to the terms and conditions of an opt-out program at any time during the length of the program under a process disclosed in the plan of operation and governance. Sets forth provisions concerning the plan of operation and governance for an opt-out program. Sets forth provisions concerning requests made by the corporate authorities or the county board in the aggregate area for certain information from the electric utility related to applicable residential and small commercial retail customers in the aggregate area. Provides that the Illinois Commerce Commission shall adopt rules to implement the provisions of the amendatory Act, including, but not limited to, protection of customers already under contract with an alternative retail electric supplier, utility processes for enrollment of opt-out customers, minimum disclosure requirements for opt-out aggregation programs and licensing of municipalities. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2011-06-30 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 97-0074 [SB1802 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2011-SB1802-Engrossed.html

---

SB1802 Engrossed LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
AN ACT concerning State government.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Power Agency Act is amended by
changing Section 1-92 as follows:
(20 ILCS 3855/1-92)
Sec. 1-92. Aggregation of retail electrical load of
residential and small commercial retail customers by
municipalities and counties.
(a) The corporate authorities of a municipality or county
board of a county may adopt an ordinance under which it may
aggregate, in accordance with this Section, residential and
small commercial retail electrical loads of applicable
residential and small commercial retail customers located,
respectively, within the municipality or the unincorporated
areas of the county and, for that purpose, shall may solicit
bids and enter into service agreements to facilitate for those
loads the sale and purchase of electricity and related services
and equipment through a competitive procurement process. For
purposes of this Section, small commercial retail customers of
an electric utility that on December 31, 2010 provided electric
service to at least 2,000,000 customers in Illinois shall be
those customers of the watt-hour only delivery service class.

SB1802 Engrossed - 2 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
For purposes of this Section, small commercial retail customers
of an electric utility that on December 31, 2010 provided
electric service to 2,000,000 or fewer customers but more than
100,000 customers in Illinois shall be those customers of an
electric utility consuming 15,000 kilowatt-hours or less of
electricity annually in its service area. Applicable
residential and small commercial retail customers in an
aggregation program shall not include customers of an
alternative retail electric supplier that is not the chosen
supplier of the aggregation program or customers participating
in a residential real-time pricing program or Percentage of
Income Payment Plan (PIPP) unless those customers
affirmatively choose to join the aggregation program.
If the corporate authorities or the county board seek to
operate the aggregation program as an opt-out program, then the
program applies solely to residential and small commercial
retail customers that are taking service from the electric
utility through fixed-price bundled service tariffs or taking
electric supply service offered by an alternative retail
electric supplier from an expiring or current aggregation
program. The corporate authorities or the county board shall
allow new residents outside of an opt-out period, and
non-applicable residential and small commercial retail
customers who were not eligible to receive the opt-out notice,
to affirmatively commit to the terms and conditions of an
opt-out program at any time during the length of the program

SB1802 Engrossed - 3 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
under a process disclosed in the plan of operation and
governance.
The corporate authorities or county board may also exercise
such authority jointly with any other municipality or county.
Two or more municipalities or counties, or a combination of
both, may initiate a process jointly to authorize aggregation
by a majority vote of each particular municipality or county as
required by this Section.
If the corporate authorities or the county board seek to
operate the aggregation program as an opt-out program for
residential and small commercial retail customers, then prior
to the adoption of an ordinance with respect to aggregation of
residential and small commercial retail electric loads, the
corporate authorities of a municipality or the county board of
a county shall submit a referendum to its residents to
determine whether or not the aggregation program shall operate
as an opt-out program for residential and small commercial
retail customers.
In addition to the notice and conduct requirements of the
general election law, notice of the referendum shall state
briefly the purpose of the referendum. The question of whether
the corporate authorities or the county board shall adopt an
opt-out aggregation program for residential and small
commercial retail customers shall be submitted to the electors
of the municipality or county board at a regular election and
approved by a majority of the electors voting on the question.

SB1802 Engrossed - 4 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
The corporate authorities or county board must certify to the
proper election authority, which must submit the question at an
election in accordance with the Election Code.
The election authority must submit the question in
substantially the following form:
Shall the (municipality or county in which the question
is being voted upon) have the authority to arrange for the
supply of electricity for its residential and small
commercial retail customers who have not opted out of such
program?
The election authority must record the votes as "Yes" or "No".
If a majority of the electors voting on the question vote
in the affirmative, then the corporate authorities or county
board may implement an opt-out aggregation program for
residential and small commercial retail customers.
A referendum must pass in each particular municipality or
county that is engaged in the aggregation program. If the
referendum fails, then the corporate authorities or county
board shall operate the aggregation program as an opt-in
program for residential and small commercial retail customers.
An ordinance under this Section shall specify whether the
aggregation will occur only with the prior consent of each
person owning, occupying, controlling, or using an electric
load center proposed to be aggregated. Nothing in this Section,
however, authorizes the aggregation of electric loads that are
served or authorized to be served by an electric cooperative as

SB1802 Engrossed - 5 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
defined by and pursuant to the Electric Supplier Act or loads
served by a municipality that owns and operates its own
electric distribution system. No aggregation shall take effect
unless approved by a majority of the members of the corporate
authority or county board voting upon the ordinance.
A governmental aggregator under this Section is not a
public utility, agent, broker, consultant, or an alternative
retail electric supplier. Nothing in this Section prohibits a
governmental aggregator from retaining the services of an
agent, broker, or consultant.
(a-5) A governmental aggregator must utilize the services
of a qualified expert for the execution of a competitive
procurement process to meet the supply needs of its
aggregation. The qualified expert must be separate from, and
maintain no business relationship with, any other consultant
providing services to the governmental aggregator. A qualified
expert, as evidenced by a certified affidavit, must have:
(1) direct previous experience administering
large-scale competitive procurement processes;
(2) an advanced degree in economics, mathematics,
engineering, or a related area of study;
(3) ten years of experience in the electricity sector,
including risk management experience;
(4) expertise in credit and contract protocols;
(5) adequate resources to perform and fulfill the
required functions and responsibilities, including a

SB1802 Engrossed - 6 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
bidding and posting process that provides complete
auditable communication and bidding recording functions;
and
(6) the absence of a conflict of interest and
inappropriate bias for or against potential bidders as
evidenced by an affidavit certifying that the expert does
not maintain compensation or agency agreements with any of
the bidders participating in the procurement event.
(a-10) The Director of the Illinois Power Agency shall
provide governmental aggregators and other interested parties
with the names of experts deemed as qualified by the Agency to
serve as the procurement administrators for the most recent
Agency-administered procurement events.
(b) Upon the applicable requisite authority under this
Section, the corporate authorities or the county board, with
assistance from the Illinois Power Agency, shall develop a plan
of operation and governance for the aggregation program so
authorized.
For an opt-out program, the plan shall specify the process
and associated timelines for applicable residential and small
commercial retail customers choosing to opt out of the program
as well as for non-applicable customers affirmatively choosing
to join the aggregation program. The plan for an opt-out
program shall ensure that applicable residential and small
commercial retail customers are explicitly allowed through
written or electronic notice the opportunity to opt out of the

SB1802 Engrossed - 7 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
aggregation program at a minimum of once every 3 years with no
penalty, with the right to opt out to either (i) the electric
utility if bundled retail electric service is still offered to
that customer class pursuant to Section 16-103 of the Public
Utilities Act, (ii) an electric utility's residential
real-time pricing rate, if available, or (iii) an electric
supply service offered by an alternative retail electric
supplier certified by the Commission. The plan for the
aggregation program shall not conflict with or otherwise
abrogate any existing contracts between an alternative retail
electric supplier and residential and small commercial retail
customers.
Before adopting a plan under this Section, the corporate
authorities or county board shall hold at least 2 public
hearings on the plan. Before the first hearing, the corporate
authorities or county board shall publish notice of the
hearings once a week for 2 consecutive weeks in a newspaper of
general circulation in the jurisdiction. The notice shall
summarize the plan and state the date, time, and location of
each hearing. Any load aggregation plan established pursuant to
this Section shall:
(1) provide for universal access to all applicable
residential customers and equitable treatment of
applicable residential customers;
(2) describe demand management and energy efficiency
services to be provided to each class of customers; and

SB1802 Engrossed - 8 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
(3) meet any requirements established by law
concerning aggregated service offered pursuant to this
Section.
(c) The process for soliciting bids for electricity and
other related services and awarding proposed agreements for the
purchase of electricity and other related services shall be
conducted in the following order:
(1) The corporate authorities or county board shall may
solicit bids for electricity and other related services
through a competitive procurement process.
(2) Notwithstanding Section 16-122 of the Public
Utilities Act and Section 2HH of the Consumer Fraud and
Deceptive Business Practices Act, an electric utility that
provides residential and small commercial retail electric
service in the aggregate area must, upon request of the
corporate authorities or the county board in the aggregate
area, submit to the requesting party, in an electronic
format, those account numbers, names, and addresses of
applicable residential and small commercial retail
customers in the aggregate area of the municipality or
unincorporated areas of the county that are reflected in
the electric utility's records at the time of the request.
An electric utility shall exclude any customer already
switched to an alternative retail electric supplier, any
customer participating in a residential real-time pricing
program, and any customer participating in a Percentage of

SB1802 Engrossed - 9 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
Income Payment Plan from the information provided to the
corporate authority or county board in the aggregate area.
Upon receiving enrollments from an opt-out aggregation, an
electric utility shall design system processes to reject
any opt-out aggregation enrollment that would result in the
switch of a customer already under service with an
alternative retail electric supplier, participating in a
residential real-time pricing program, or participating in
a Percentage of Income Payment Plan. Any corporate
authority or county board receiving customer information
from an electric utility shall only disclose the
information for the purpose of the opt-out aggregation of
electric power supply and shall be subject to the
limitations on the disclosure of the information described
in Section 16-122 of the Public Utilities Act and Section
2HH of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices
Act, and an electric utility shall not be held liable for
any claims arising out of the provision of information
pursuant to this item (2).
(d) If the corporate authorities or county board operate
under an opt-in program for residential and small commercial
retail customers, then the corporate authorities or county
board shall comply with all of the following:
(1) Within 60 days after receiving the bids, the
corporate authorities or county board shall allow
residential and small commercial retail customers to

SB1802 Engrossed - 10 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
commit to the terms and conditions of a bid that has been
selected by the corporate authorities or county board.
(2) If (A) the corporate authorities or county board
award proposed agreements for the purchase of electricity
and other related services and (B) an agreement is reached
between the corporate authorities or county board for those
services, then customers committed to the terms and
conditions according to item (1) of this subsection (d)
shall be committed to the agreement.
(e) If the corporate authorities or county board operate as
an opt-out program for residential and small commercial retail
customers, then it shall be the duty of the aggregated entity
to fully inform applicable residential and small commercial
retail customers in advance that they have the right to opt out
of the aggregation program. The disclosure shall prominently
state all charges to be made and shall include full disclosure
of the cost to obtain service pursuant to Section 16-103 of the
Public Utilities Act, how to access it, and the fact that it is
available to them without penalty, if they are currently
receiving service under that Section.
The Illinois Commerce Commission shall adopt emergency
rules to implement the provisions of this amendatory Act of the
97th General Assembly, including, but not limited to,
protection of customers (i) already under contract with an
alternative retail electric supplier, (ii) participating in a
residential real-time pricing program, or (iii) participating

SB1802 Engrossed - 11 - LRB097 09314 ASK 49449 b
in a Percentage of Income Payment Plan, utility processes for
enrollment of opt-out customers, and minimum disclosure
requirements for opt-out aggregation programs within 45 days
after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th
General Assembly.
The Illinois Power Agency shall furnish, without charge, to
any residential and small commercial retail customer citizen a
list of all supply options available to them in a format that
allows comparison of prices and products.
The Illinois Power Agency shall provide assistance to
municipalities, counties, or associations working with
municipalities to help complete the plan and bidding process.
This Section does not prohibit municipalities or counties
from entering into an intergovernmental agreement to aggregate
residential and small commercial retail electric loads.
Any aggregation program plan adopted prior to the effective
date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly shall
not be exempt from the provisions of this amendatory Act of the
97th General Assembly.
(Source: P.A. 96-176, eff. 1-1-10.)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.