Full Text of HB1119 95th General Assembly
HB1119ham001 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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Consumer Protection Committee
Filed: 2/28/2007
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09500HB1119ham001 |
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LRB095 08557 MJR 32026 a |
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| AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 1119
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| AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 1119 by replacing | 3 |
| everything after the enacting clause with the following:
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| "Section 5. The Public Utilities Act is amended by changing | 5 |
| Section 16-128 as follows:
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| (220 ILCS 5/16-128)
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| Sec. 16-128. Provisions related to utility employees
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| during the mandatory transition period .
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| (a) The General Assembly finds:
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| (1) The reliability and safety of the electric system | 11 |
| has depended and depends on a
workforce of skilled and | 12 |
| dedicated employees, equipped with technical training
and | 13 |
| experience.
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| (2) The integrity and reliability of the system has
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| also requires
depended on the
industry's commitment to |
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LRB095 08557 MJR 32026 a |
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| invest in regular inspection and maintenance, to
assure | 2 |
| that it can withstand the demands of heavy service | 3 |
| requirements and
emergency situations.
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| (3) It is in the State's interest to protect the | 5 |
| interests of utility
employees who have and continue to | 6 |
| dedicate
dedicated themselves to assuring reliable service | 7 |
| to the
citizens of this State, and who might otherwise be | 8 |
| economically displaced in a
restructured industry.
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| The General Assembly further finds that it is
necessary to | 10 |
| assure that employees of electric utilities and employees of | 11 |
| contractors or subcontractors performing work on behalf of an | 12 |
| electric utility operating in the
deregulated industry have the | 13 |
| requisite skills, knowledge, training, experience, and
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| competence to provide reliable and safe electrical service
and | 15 |
| therefore that alternative retail electric suppliers shall be | 16 |
| required to
demonstrate
the competence of their employees to | 17 |
| work in the industry . | 18 |
| The General Assembly also finds that it is necessary to | 19 |
| assure that employees of alternative retail electric suppliers | 20 |
| and employees of contractors or subcontractors performing work | 21 |
| on behalf of an alternative retail electric suppliers operating | 22 |
| in the deregulated industry have the requisite skills, | 23 |
| knowledge, training, experience, and competence to provide | 24 |
| reliable and safe electrical service. | 25 |
| To ensure that these findings and prerequisites for | 26 |
| reliable and safe electrical service continue to prevail, each |
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LRB095 08557 MJR 32026 a |
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| alternative retail electric supplier, electric utility, | 2 |
| contractors, and subcontractor performing work on behalf of an | 3 |
| electric utility or alternative retail electric supplier must | 4 |
| demonstrate the competence of their respective employees to | 5 |
| work in the electric industry.
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| The knowledge, skill, training, experience, and competence | 7 |
| levels to be
demonstrated shall be consistent with those | 8 |
| generally required
of or by the electric utilities in this | 9 |
| State as of January 1, 2007, with respect to
their employees | 10 |
| and employees of contractors or subcontractors performing work | 11 |
| on their behalf . Nothing in this Section shall prohibit an | 12 |
| electric utility from establishing knowledge, skill, training, | 13 |
| experience, and competence levels greater than those required | 14 |
| as of January 1, 2007.
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| An adequate
Adequate demonstration of requisite knowledge, | 16 |
| skill , training, experience, and
competence shall include , at a | 17 |
| minimum,
such factors as completion or current participation | 18 |
| and ultimate completion by the
employee of an accredited or | 19 |
| otherwise recognized
apprenticeship program for the particular | 20 |
| craft, trade or
skill, or specified and several years of | 21 |
| employment with an electric
utility performing a particular | 22 |
| work function.
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| The Commission shall have an affirmative statutory | 24 |
| obligation to ensure that an electric utility is employing | 25 |
| employees, contractors, and subcontractors with employees who | 26 |
| meet the requirements of subsection (a) of this Section when |
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| installing, operating, and maintaining generation, | 2 |
| transmission, or distribution facilities and equipment within | 3 |
| this State.
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| To implement this requirement for alternative retail | 5 |
| electric suppliers , the Commission, in
determining that an | 6 |
| applicant meets the standards for
certification as an | 7 |
| alternative retail electric supplier,
shall require the | 8 |
| applicant to demonstrate (i) that the
applicant is licensed to | 9 |
| do business, and bonded, in the State
of Illinois; and (ii) | 10 |
| that the employees of the applicant that
will be installing, | 11 |
| operating, and maintaining generation,
transmission, or | 12 |
| distribution facilities within this State, or
any entity with | 13 |
| which the applicant has contracted to perform
those functions | 14 |
| within this State, have the requisite knowledge, skills, | 15 |
| training, experience, and
competence to perform those | 16 |
| functions in a safe and
responsible manner in order to provide | 17 |
| safe and reliable
service, in accordance with the criteria | 18 |
| stated above.
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| (b) The General Assembly finds, based on experience in
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| other industries that have undergone similar transitions, that
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| the introduction of competition into the State's electric
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| utility industry may result in workforce reductions by
electric | 23 |
| utilities which may adversely affect persons who have
been | 24 |
| employed by this State's electric utilities in functions
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| important to the public convenience and welfare. The General
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| Assembly further finds that the impacts on employees and their
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| communities of any necessary reductions in the utility
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| workforce directly caused by this restructuring of the
electric | 3 |
| industry shall be mitigated to the extent
practicable through | 4 |
| such means as offers of voluntary
severance, retraining, early | 5 |
| retirement, outplacement and
related benefits. Therefore, | 6 |
| before any such reduction in the
workforce during the | 7 |
| transition period, an electric utility
shall present to its | 8 |
| employees or their representatives a
workforce reduction plan | 9 |
| outlining the means by which the
electric utility intends to | 10 |
| mitigate the impact of such
workforce reduction on its | 11 |
| employees.
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| (c) In the event of a sale, purchase, or any other transfer
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| of ownership during the mandatory transition period of one or
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| more Illinois divisions or business units, and/or generating
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| stations or generating units, of an electric utility, the
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| electric utility's contract and/or agreements with the
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| acquiring entity or persons shall require that the entity or
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| persons hire a sufficient number of non-supervisory employees
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| to operate and maintain the station, division or unit by
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| initially making offers of employment to the non-supervisory
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| workforce of the electric utility's division, business unit,
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| generating station and/or generating unit at no less than the
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| wage rates, and substantially equivalent fringe benefits and
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| terms and conditions of employment that are in effect at the
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| time of transfer of ownership of said division, business unit,
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| generating station, and/or generating units; and said wage
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| rates and substantially equivalent fringe benefits and terms
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| and conditions of employment shall continue for at least 30
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| months from the time of said transfer of ownership unless the
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| parties mutually agree to different terms and conditions of
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| employment within that 30-month period. The utility shall
offer | 6 |
| a transition plan to those employees who are not offered
jobs | 7 |
| by the acquiring entity because that entity has a need
for | 8 |
| fewer workers. If there is litigation concerning the
sale, or | 9 |
| other transfer of ownership of the electric utility's
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| divisions, business units, generating station, or
generating | 11 |
| units, the 30-month period will begin on the date
the acquiring | 12 |
| entity or persons take control or management
of the divisions, | 13 |
| business units, generating station or
generating units of the | 14 |
| electric utility.
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| (d) If a utility transfers ownership during the mandatory
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| transition period of one or more Illinois divisions, business
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| units, generating stations or generating units of an
electric | 18 |
| utility to a majority-owned subsidiary, that
subsidiary shall | 19 |
| continue to employ the utility's employees
who were employed by | 20 |
| the utility at such division, business
unit or generating | 21 |
| station at the time of the transfer under
the same terms and | 22 |
| conditions of employment as those employees
enjoyed at the time | 23 |
| of the transfer. If ownership of the
subsidiary is subsequently | 24 |
| sold or transferred to a third
party during the transition | 25 |
| period, the transition provisions
outlined in subsection (c) | 26 |
| shall apply.
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| (e) The plant transfer provisions set forth above shall not
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| apply to any generating station which was the subject of a
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| sales agreement entered into before January 1, 1997.
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| (Source: P.A. 90-561, eff. 12-16-97.)
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| Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 6 |
| becoming law.".
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