Sen. Andy Manar

Filed: 4/15/2015

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 418

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 418 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Energy Assistance Act is amended by
5changing Section 13 as follows:
 
6    (305 ILCS 20/13)
7    (Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2018)
8    Sec. 13. Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund.
9    (a) The Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund is
10hereby created as a special fund in the State Treasury. The
11Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund is authorized
12to receive moneys from voluntary donations from individuals,
13foundations, corporations, and other sources, moneys received
14pursuant to Section 17, and, by statutory deposit, the moneys
15collected pursuant to this Section. The Fund is also authorized
16to receive voluntary donations from individuals, foundations,

 

 

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1corporations, and other sources, as well as contributions made
2in accordance with Section 507MM of the Illinois Income Tax
3Act. Subject to appropriation, the Department shall use moneys
4from the Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund for
5payments to electric or gas public utilities, municipal
6electric or gas utilities, and electric cooperatives on behalf
7of their customers who are participants in the program
8authorized by Sections 4 and 18 of this Act, for the provision
9of weatherization services and for administration of the
10Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund. The yearly
11expenditures for weatherization may not exceed 10% of the
12amount collected during the year pursuant to this Section,
13except that amounts in excess of 10% collected in a given year
14may be expended from the Fund if they represent funds from
15previous years or if they represent amounts deposited into the
16Fund from the Energy Efficiency Portfolio Program. The yearly
17administrative expenses of the Supplemental Low-Income Energy
18Assistance Fund may not exceed 10% of the amount collected
19during that year pursuant to this Section, except when unspent
20funds from the Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund
21are reallocated from a previous year; up to 10% of those
22reallocated funds may be spent in the year they are
23reallocated.
24    (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 16-111 of the
25Public Utilities Act but subject to subsection (k) of this
26Section, each public utility, electric cooperative, as defined

 

 

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1in Section 3.4 of the Electric Supplier Act, and municipal
2utility, as referenced in Section 3-105 of the Public Utilities
3Act, that is engaged in the delivery of electricity or the
4distribution of natural gas within the State of Illinois shall,
5effective January 1, 1998, assess each of its customer accounts
6a monthly Energy Assistance Charge for the Supplemental
7Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund. The delivering public
8utility, municipal electric or gas utility, or electric or gas
9cooperative for a self-assessing purchaser remains subject to
10the collection of the fee imposed by this Section. The monthly
11charge shall be as follows:
12        (1) $0.48 per month on each account for residential
13    electric service;
14        (2) $0.48 per month on each account for residential gas
15    service;
16        (3) $4.80 per month on each account for non-residential
17    electric service which had less than 10 megawatts of peak
18    demand during the previous calendar year;
19        (4) $4.80 per month on each account for non-residential
20    gas service which had distributed to it less than 4,000,000
21    therms of gas during the previous calendar year;
22        (5) $360 per month on each account for non-residential
23    electric service which had 10 megawatts or greater of peak
24    demand during the previous calendar year; and
25        (6) $360 per month on each account for non-residential
26    gas service which had 4,000,000 or more therms of gas

 

 

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1    distributed to it during the previous calendar year.
2    The incremental change to such charges imposed by this
3amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly shall not (i) be
4used for any purpose other than to directly assist customers
5and (ii) be applicable to utilities serving less than 100,000
6customers in Illinois on January 1, 2009.
7    In addition, electric and gas utilities have committed, and
8shall contribute, a one-time payment of $22 million to the
9Fund, within 10 days after the effective date of the tariffs
10established pursuant to Sections 16-111.8 and 19-145 of the
11Public Utilities Act to be used for the Department's cost of
12implementing the programs described in Section 18 of this
13amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly, the Arrearage
14Reduction Program described in Section 18, and the programs
15described in Section 8-105 of the Public Utilities Act. If a
16utility elects not to file a rider within 90 days after the
17effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th General
18Assembly, then the contribution from such utility shall be made
19no later than February 1, 2010.
20    (c) For purposes of this Section:
21        (1) "residential electric service" means electric
22    utility service for household purposes delivered to a
23    dwelling of 2 or fewer units which is billed under a
24    residential rate, or electric utility service for
25    household purposes delivered to a dwelling unit or units
26    which is billed under a residential rate and is registered

 

 

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1    by a separate meter for each dwelling unit;
2        (2) "residential gas service" means gas utility
3    service for household purposes distributed to a dwelling of
4    2 or fewer units which is billed under a residential rate,
5    or gas utility service for household purposes distributed
6    to a dwelling unit or units which is billed under a
7    residential rate and is registered by a separate meter for
8    each dwelling unit;
9        (3) "non-residential electric service" means electric
10    utility service which is not residential electric service;
11    and
12        (4) "non-residential gas service" means gas utility
13    service which is not residential gas service.
14    (d) Within 30 days after the effective date of this
15amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly, each public
16utility engaged in the delivery of electricity or the
17distribution of natural gas shall file with the Illinois
18Commerce Commission tariffs incorporating the Energy
19Assistance Charge in other charges stated in such tariffs,
20which shall become effective no later than the beginning of the
21first billing cycle following such filing.
22    (e) The Energy Assistance Charge assessed by electric and
23gas public utilities shall be considered a charge for public
24utility service.
25    (f) By the 20th day of the month following the month in
26which the charges imposed by the Section were collected, each

 

 

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1public utility, municipal utility, and electric cooperative
2shall remit to the Department of Revenue all moneys received as
3payment of the Energy Assistance Charge on a return prescribed
4and furnished by the Department of Revenue showing such
5information as the Department of Revenue may reasonably
6require; provided, however, that a utility offering an
7Arrearage Reduction Program pursuant to Section 18 of this Act
8shall be entitled to net those amounts necessary to fund and
9recover the costs of such Program as authorized by that Section
10that is no more than the incremental change in such Energy
11Assistance Charge authorized by this amendatory Act of the 96th
12General Assembly. If a customer makes a partial payment, a
13public utility, municipal utility, or electric cooperative may
14elect either: (i) to apply such partial payments first to
15amounts owed to the utility or cooperative for its services and
16then to payment for the Energy Assistance Charge or (ii) to
17apply such partial payments on a pro-rata basis between amounts
18owed to the utility or cooperative for its services and to
19payment for the Energy Assistance Charge.
20    (g) The Department of Revenue shall deposit into the
21Supplemental Low-Income Energy Assistance Fund all moneys
22remitted to it in accordance with subsection (f) of this
23Section; provided, however, that the amounts remitted by each
24utility shall be used to provide assistance to that utility's
25customers. The utilities shall coordinate with the Department
26to establish an equitable and practical methodology for

 

 

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1implementing this subsection (g) beginning with the 2010
2program year.
3    (h) On or before December 31, 2002, the Department shall
4prepare a report for the General Assembly on the expenditure of
5funds appropriated from the Low-Income Energy Assistance Block
6Grant Fund for the program authorized under Section 4 of this
7Act.
8    (i) The Department of Revenue may establish such rules as
9it deems necessary to implement this Section.
10    (j) The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity may
11establish such rules as it deems necessary to implement this
12Section.
13    (k) The charges imposed by this Section shall only apply to
14customers of municipal electric or gas utilities and electric
15or gas cooperatives if the municipal electric or gas utility or
16electric or gas cooperative makes an affirmative decision to
17impose the charge. If a municipal electric or gas utility or an
18electric cooperative makes an affirmative decision to impose
19the charge provided by this Section, the municipal electric or
20gas utility or electric cooperative shall inform the Department
21of Revenue in writing of such decision when it begins to impose
22the charge. If a municipal electric or gas utility or electric
23or gas cooperative does not assess this charge, the Department
24may not use funds from the Supplemental Low-Income Energy
25Assistance Fund to provide benefits to its customers under the
26program authorized by Section 4 of this Act.

 

 

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1    In its use of federal funds under this Act, the Department
2may not cause a disproportionate share of those federal funds
3to benefit customers of systems which do not assess the charge
4provided by this Section.
5    This Section is repealed effective December 31, 2018 unless
6renewed by action of the General Assembly. The General Assembly
7shall consider the results of the evaluations described in
8Section 8 in its deliberations.
9(Source: P.A. 98-429, eff. 8-16-13.)".