Utilities Legislation - Illinois

REGULATION-TECH Amends the Public Utilities Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the reading of meters. House Amendment No. 1 Deletes reference to: 220 ILCS 5/8-302Adds reference to: 220 ILCS 5/16-131 new Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Amends the Electric Service Customer Choice and Rate Relief Law of 1997 in the Public Utilities Act. Provides that the Illinois Commerce Commission shall implement and maintain a consumer education program for energy [...]

show full description

NET METERING PILOT PROGRAMS Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that an electric utility must establish a "net metering" pilot program for its retail customers that own and operate a solar or wind electrical generating facility with a capacity of not more than 40 kilowatts located on the customer's premises and intended to offset part of the customer's electrical requirements. Requires separate pilot programs for residential and business customers. Provides that an electric utility that has conducted a net electrical energy metering pilot program for either its residential or business customers, or both, that was initiated before the effective date of this amendatory Act need only file a report of the results of the program with the Illinois Commerce Commission. Provides that the electric utility must report the results of the pilot program to the Illinois Commerce Commission by July 1, 2008. Requires the Commission to provide a summary and an analysis of the reports to [...]

show full description

SCH CD-CONTRACTS Amends the School Code. With respect to school districts other than Chicago, requires that certain contracts involving an expenditure in excess of $25,000 or a lower amount as required by local policy (rather than $10,000) be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder. Makes changes concerning the exceptions to this requirement, including an exception for contracts for services of corporations possessing a high degree of professional skill where ability and fitness play an important part, contracts for food services, contracts for utilities and related services when the cost is less than that offered by a local distribution company, and contracts for repair, maintenance, remodeling, renovation, or construction involving an expenditure not to exceed $50,000 (rather than $20,000). Adds an exception for contracts for the provision of motor vehicle fuel. Effective immediately. House Amendment No. 1

show full description

UTILITIES-ELECTRICITY RATES Amends the Electric Service Customer Choice and Rate Relief Law of 1997 in the Public Utilities Act. Changes the definition of "mandatory transition period" to include the period from the effective date through the date on which the Illinois Commerce Commission has approved declarations of competitive service for all classes of service offered in the service areas of all electric utilities that, on December 31, 2005, served at least 100,000 customers. Requires the Commission to order certain utilities to file and implement tariffs to reinstate all 2006 rates within 10 days after the effective date. Prohibits the Commission from taking certain actions prior to 2010 with respect to (i) initiating, authorizing, or ordering any change by way of increase or (ii) in approving an application for a merger, imposing a condition requiring any filing for an increase, decrease, or change in or other review of a utility's rates or enforcing such a condition. Requires [...]

show full description

UTILITIES-PAYS PILOT PROGRAM Amends the Public Utilities Act. Creates the pay as you save pilot program. Requires the Illinois Commerce Commission to develop and implement a pay as you save pilot program. Requires the Commission to determine, with consultation from the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, which energy efficiency products are eligible for the program. Allows residential electric utility customers to purchase approved energy products that reduce electricity consumption with no up-front payments. Requires participating electric utility customers to assign their meter to the pay as you save pilot program so that the cost of the energy efficiency products are paid over time on the electric utility customer's utility bill, even if the initial customer moves from the household. Requires an electric utility that serves more than 100,000 customers to attempt to enroll not less than 100 households in the program. Requires an electric utility that serves 2,000,[...]

show full description

UTILITIES-ENERGY EFFICIENCY Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that any electric or gas public utility with fewer than 200,000 customers in Illinois as of January 1, 2007 that offers energy efficiency programs to its customers in a state adjacent to Illinois may seek the approval of the Illinois Commerce Commission to offer the same or comparable energy efficiency programs to its customers in Illinois. Provides that if a utility shall submit certain information to the Commission for each program it offers. Specifies guidelines for the approval of each program. Provides that a public utility providing approved energy efficiency programs may recover the reasonable costs of such programs through an automatic adjustment clause tariff filed with and approved by the Commission. Provides that each year the Commission shall initiate a review to reconcile any amounts collected with the actual costs and to determine the adjustment to the annual tariff factor to match annual expenditures.[...]

show full description

TWP CD-SEWERAGE CHARGES Amends the Township Code. Provides that payment for delinquent charges for sewerage service to any premises may be enforced by discontinuing water service, sewerage service, or both to the premises. Provides that a water service provider shall discontinue water service to a premises upon receiving written notice from the township board or the township utility board that payments for sewerage service have become delinquent and shall not resume water service until the delinquency has been removed. Provides that the township board or township utility board may contract with privately owned public utilities for discontinuance of water service to delinquent premises. Provides that the township shall reimburse the water service provider for the costs of discontinuing and reestablishing water service. Effective immediately. Senate Floor Amendment No. 1 Provides that, during a hearing to request discontinuation of water service, the provider of [...]

show full description

CONDO-DISTRESSED PROPERTY Amends the Condominium Property Act. Provides procedures for addressing distressed condominium property that is a danger, blight, or nuisance to the surrounding community or the public and that is substantially unoccupied, without utilities, or in a serious negative condition. Provides a definition of "distressed condominium property". Provides that a municipality may file a petition in the circuit court and that if the court finds that a property is a distressed condominium property, the court may appoint a receiver to manage the property. Provides also that if a court finds that the property is not viable as a condominium, the court may deem that the entire property is owned in common by the unit owners and may authorize the receiver to sell the entire property without the consent of the unit owners. Provides that if the receiver sells the property pursuant to court authorization, the sale proceeds shall be paid to unit owners according to their respective [...]

show full description

UTILITIES-NET METERING Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that notwithstanding the definition of "eligible customer" in a specified provision, each electricity provider shall allow meter aggregation for the purposes of net metering eligible renewable electrical generating facilities owned or operated by school districts, community college districts, or units of local government pursuant to an intergovernmental agreement. Provides that electricity providers shall provide net metering to all parties to the intergovernmental agreement so that all energy produced by the eligible renewable electrical generating facilities is applied as a 1:1 kilowatt hour credit for each party to the intergovernmental agreement. Provides that electricity providers shall carry over any excess kilowatt-hour credits earned and apply those credits to subsequent billing periods to offset any customer-generated consumption until all credits are used or until the end of the annualized period. Provides [...]

show full description

UTILITIES-CUST COMPENSATION Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that in the event that more than 0.8% (rather than 30,000) of the total customers of an electric utility are subjected to a continuous power interruption of 4 hours or more that results in the transmission of power at less than 50% of the standard voltage, or that results in the total loss of power transmission, the utility shall be responsible for compensating customers affected by that interruption for 4 hours or more for all actual damages, which shall not include consequential damages, suffered as a result of the power interruption. Provides that in the event of a power surge or other fluctuation that causes damage and affects more than 0.8% (rather than 30,000) of the customers, the electric utility shall pay to affected customers the replacement value of all goods damaged as a result of the power surge or other fluctuation unless the utility can show that the power surge or other fluctuation was due to [...]

show full description

UTILITIES-ACCT-PROHIBIT MINOR Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that no account for a utility service by a public utility that serves over 2,000,000 residential customers shall be in the name of a person under the age of 18, unless that person is an emancipated minor. Provides that such a utility is not entitled to any payment on a service account transferred into the name of a person under the age of 18, unless that person is an emancipated minor. Provides that any utility that serves over 2,000,000 residential customers that unknowingly opens a service account in the name of or transfers a service account to a person under the age of 18 who is not an emancipated minor and reports a delinquent debt on the account to a credit reporting agency, collection agency, or person licensed to market utility services in the State of Illinois shall request that the delinquent debt report on the service account be removed from the minor's credit history as soon as possible after [...]

show full description