Full Text of SB2783 95th General Assembly
SB2783eng 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| AN ACT concerning regulation.
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| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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| represented in the General Assembly:
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| Section 5. The Public Utilities Act is amended by changing | 5 |
| Sections 19-105, 19-110, 19-115, 19-120, and 19-125 as follows:
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| (220 ILCS 5/19-105)
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| Sec. 19-105. Definitions. For the purposes of this Article, | 8 |
| the following
terms shall be defined as set forth in this | 9 |
| Section.
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| "Alternative gas supplier" means every person, | 11 |
| cooperative, corporation,
municipal corporation, company, | 12 |
| association, joint stock company or
association, firm,
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| partnership, individual, or other entity, their lessees, | 14 |
| trustees, or receivers
appointed by
any court whatsoever, that | 15 |
| offers gas for sale, lease, or in exchange for other
value
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| received to one or more customers, or that engages in the | 17 |
| furnishing of gas to
one or
more customers, and shall include | 18 |
| affiliated interests of a gas utility,
resellers,
aggregators | 19 |
| and marketers, but shall not include (i) gas utilities (or any
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| agent of the gas
utility to the extent the gas utility provides | 21 |
| tariffed services to customers
through an
agent); (ii) public | 22 |
| utilities that are owned and operated by any political
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| subdivision, public institution of higher education or |
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| municipal corporation
of this State, or public utilities that | 2 |
| are owned by a political
subdivision, public institution of | 3 |
| higher education, or municipal corporation
and operated by any | 4 |
| of its lessees or operating agents; (iii)
natural gas | 5 |
| cooperatives that are not-for-profit corporations operated for
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| the purpose of administering, on a cooperative basis, the
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| furnishing of natural gas for the benefit of their members who
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| are
consumers of natural gas; and (iv) the ownership or | 9 |
| operation
of a facility that sells compressed natural gas at | 10 |
| retail to the public for use
only as a motor vehicle fuel and | 11 |
| the selling of compressed natural gas at
retail to the public | 12 |
| for use only as a motor vehicle fuel.
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| "Gas utility" means a public utility, as defined in Section | 14 |
| 3-105 of this
Act,
that
has a franchise, license, permit, or | 15 |
| right to furnish or sell gas
or transportation services to
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| customers within a service area.
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| "Residential customer" means a customer who receives gas | 18 |
| utility service for
household purposes distributed to a | 19 |
| dwelling of 2 or fewer units which is
billed under
a | 20 |
| residential rate or gas utility service for household purposes | 21 |
| distributed to
a dwelling
unit or units which is billed under a | 22 |
| residential rate and is registered by a
separate meter
for each | 23 |
| dwelling unit.
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| "Sales agent" means any employee, agent, independent | 25 |
| contractor, consultant, or other person that solicits | 26 |
| customers to purchase, enroll in, or contract for alternative |
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| gas service on behalf of an alternative gas supplier. | 2 |
| "Service area" means (i) the geographic area within which a | 3 |
| gas utility was
lawfully entitled to provide gas to customers | 4 |
| as of the effective date
of this
amendatory
Act of the 92nd | 5 |
| General Assembly and includes (ii) the location of any
customer | 6 |
| to
which the gas utility was lawfully providing gas utility | 7 |
| services on such
effective date.
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| "Small commercial customer" means a nonresidential retail | 9 |
| customer of
a
natural gas utility
who is identified by the | 10 |
| alternative gas supplier, prior
to becoming a customer of the | 11 |
| alternative gas supplier, as
consuming 5,000 or fewer therms of | 12 |
| natural gas
during the previous year; provided that any | 13 |
| alternative gas
supplier may remove the customer from | 14 |
| designation as a "small
commercial customer" if the customer | 15 |
| consumes more than 5,000 therms
of natural gas in any calendar | 16 |
| year after becoming a customer of the
alternative gas supplier.
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| "Tariffed service" means a service provided to customers by | 18 |
| a gas
utility as
defined by its rates on file with the | 19 |
| Commission pursuant to the provisions of
Article IX
of this | 20 |
| Act.
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| "Transportation services" means those services provided by | 22 |
| the gas utility
that
are necessary in order for the storage, | 23 |
| transmission and distribution systems
to
function so that
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| customers located in the gas utility's service area can receive | 25 |
| gas from
suppliers other
than the gas utility and shall | 26 |
| include, without limitation, standard metering
and billing
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| services.
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| (Source: P.A. 94-738, eff. 5-4-06.)
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| (220 ILCS 5/19-110)
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| Sec. 19-110. Certification of alternative gas suppliers.
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| (a) The provisions of this Section shall apply only to | 6 |
| alternative gas
suppliers
serving or seeking to serve | 7 |
| residential or small commercial customers and
only to the | 8 |
| extent such
alternative gas suppliers provide services to | 9 |
| residential or small
commercial customers.
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| (b) An alternative gas supplier must obtain a certificate | 11 |
| of service
authority from the Commission in accordance with | 12 |
| this Section before serving
any customer or other user located | 13 |
| in this State. An alternative gas supplier
may request, and the | 14 |
| Commission may grant, a certificate of service authority
for | 15 |
| the entire State or for a specified geographic area of the | 16 |
| State. A
person, corporation, or other entity acting as an | 17 |
| alternative gas supplier on
the effective date of this | 18 |
| amendatory Act of the 92nd General Assembly shall
have 180 days | 19 |
| from the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 92nd
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| General Assembly to comply with the requirements of this | 21 |
| Section in order to
continue to operate as an alternative gas | 22 |
| supplier.
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| (c) An alternative gas supplier seeking a certificate of | 24 |
| service authority
shall
file with the Commission a verified | 25 |
| application containing information showing
that the
applicant |
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| meets the requirements of this Section. The alternative gas | 2 |
| supplier
shall
publish notice of its application in the | 3 |
| official State newspaper within 10
days following
the date of | 4 |
| its filing. No later than 45 days after the application is
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| properly filed with the
Commission, and such notice is | 6 |
| published, the Commission shall issue its order
granting or | 7 |
| denying the application.
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| (d) An application for a certificate of service authority | 9 |
| shall identify the
area or
areas in which the applicant intends | 10 |
| to offer service and the types of services
it intends
to offer. | 11 |
| Applicants that seek to serve residential or small commercial
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| customers within a
geographic area that is smaller than a gas | 13 |
| utility's service area shall submit
evidence demonstrating | 14 |
| that the designation of this smaller area does not
violate | 15 |
| Section 19-115. An
applicant may
state in its application for | 16 |
| certification any limitations that will be imposed
on the | 17 |
| number
of customers or maximum load to be served.
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| (e) The Commission shall grant the application for a | 19 |
| certificate of service
authority if it makes the findings set | 20 |
| forth in this subsection based on the
verified
application and | 21 |
| such other information as the applicant may submit.
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| (1) That the applicant possess sufficient technical, | 23 |
| financial, and
managerial resources and abilities to | 24 |
| provide the service for which it
seeks a certificate of | 25 |
| service authority. In determining the level of
technical, | 26 |
| financial, and managerial resources and abilities which |
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| the
applicant must demonstrate, the Commission shall | 2 |
| consider
the characteristics, including the size and | 3 |
| financial sophistication of the
customers that the | 4 |
| applicant seeks to serve, and shall consider whether the
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| applicant seeks to provide gas using property, plant, and | 6 |
| equipment that it
owns, controls, or operates.
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| (2) That the applicant will comply with all applicable | 8 |
| federal, State,
regional, and industry rules, policies, | 9 |
| practices, and procedures
for the use, operation, and | 10 |
| maintenance of the safety, integrity, and
reliability of | 11 |
| the gas transmission system.
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| (3) That the applicant will comply with such | 13 |
| informational or reporting
requirements as the Commission | 14 |
| may by rule establish.
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| (4) That
the area to be served by the applicant and any | 16 |
| limitations it proposes on the
number of customers or | 17 |
| maximum amount of load to be served meet the provisions
of | 18 |
| Section 19-115, provided, that if the applicant seeks to | 19 |
| serve an area
smaller than the service area of a gas | 20 |
| utility or proposes other limitations
on the number of | 21 |
| customers or maximum amount of load to be served, the
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| Commission can extend the time for
considering such a | 23 |
| certificate request by up to 90 days, and can schedule
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| hearings on such a request.
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| (5) That the applicant will comply with all other | 26 |
| applicable laws and
rules.
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| (6) That the applicant and the applicant's sales agents | 2 |
| will comply with all applicable federal, State, and | 3 |
| industry rules, policies, practices, and procedures for | 4 |
| marketing and soliciting customers. | 5 |
| (f) The Commission shall have the authority to promulgate | 6 |
| rules
to carry out the provisions of this Section. Within 30 | 7 |
| days after the
effective date of this amendatory Act of the | 8 |
| 92nd General Assembly, the
Commission shall adopt an emergency | 9 |
| rule or rules applicable to the
certification of those gas | 10 |
| suppliers that seek to serve residential customers.
Within 180 | 11 |
| days of
the effective
date of this amendatory Act of the 92nd | 12 |
| General Assembly, the Commission shall
adopt
rules that specify | 13 |
| criteria which, if met by any such alternative gas
supplier, | 14 |
| shall
constitute the demonstration of technical, financial, | 15 |
| and managerial resources
and
abilities to provide service | 16 |
| required by item (1) of subsection (e) of this
Section,
such as | 17 |
| a
requirement to post a bond or letter of credit, from a | 18 |
| responsible surety or
financial
institution, of sufficient | 19 |
| size for the nature and scope of the services to be
provided,
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| demonstration of adequate insurance for the scope and nature of | 21 |
| the services to
be
provided, and experience in providing | 22 |
| similar services in other
jurisdictions.
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| (Source: P.A. 92-529, eff. 2-8-02; 92-852, eff. 8-26-02.)
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| (220 ILCS 5/19-115)
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| Sec. 19-115. Obligations of alternative gas suppliers.
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| (a) The provisions of this Section shall apply only to | 3 |
| alternative gas
suppliers
serving or seeking to serve | 4 |
| residential or small commercial customers and
only to the | 5 |
| extent such
alternative gas suppliers provide services to | 6 |
| residential or small
commercial customers.
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| (b) An alternative gas supplier shall:
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| (1) comply with the requirements imposed on public | 9 |
| utilities by Sections
8-201 through 8-207, 8-301, 8-505 and | 10 |
| 8-507 of this Act, to the
extent that these Sections have | 11 |
| application to the services being
offered by the | 12 |
| alternative gas supplier; and
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| (2) continue to comply with the requirements for | 14 |
| certification stated
in
Section 19-110 ; .
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| (3) comply with complaint procedures established by | 16 |
| the Commission; | 17 |
| (4) file with the Commission, within 5 business days | 18 |
| after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 95th | 19 |
| General Assembly, a copy of bill formats, standard customer | 20 |
| contract and customer complaint and resolution procedures, | 21 |
| and the name and telephone number of the company | 22 |
| representative whom Commission employees may contact to | 23 |
| resolve customer complaints and other matters, and file | 24 |
| updated information within 5 business days after changes in | 25 |
| any of the requirements of this item (4); and | 26 |
| (5) maintain a customer call center where customers can |
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| reach a representative and receive current information, | 2 |
| and notify customers no less often than once every 6 months | 3 |
| on how to reach the call center. | 4 |
| (c) An alternative gas supplier shall obtain verifiable | 5 |
| authorization from a
customer, in a form or manner approved by | 6 |
| the Commission, before the customer
is
switched from another | 7 |
| supplier.
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| (d) No alternative gas supplier shall:
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| (1) enter into or employ any
arrangements which have | 10 |
| the effect of preventing any customer from having
access to
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| the services of the gas utility in whose service area the | 12 |
| customer is located;
or
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| (2) charge customers for such access ; or . | 14 |
| (3) bill for goods or services not authorized by the | 15 |
| customer.
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| (e) An alternative gas supplier that is certified to serve | 17 |
| residential
or small commercial customers shall not:
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| (1) deny service to a customer or group of customers | 19 |
| nor
establish any differences as to prices, terms,
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| conditions, services, products, facilities, or in any | 21 |
| other respect, whereby
such denial or differences are based | 22 |
| upon race, gender, or income; or
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| (2) deny service based on locality, nor establish any | 24 |
| unreasonable
difference as to prices, terms, conditions, | 25 |
| services, products, or facilities
as
between localities ; .
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| (3) include in any agreement a provision that obligates |
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| a customer to the terms of the agreement if the customer | 2 |
| moves outside the State of Illinois or moves to a location | 3 |
| without a choice program or location where the customer | 4 |
| will not require natural gas service; or | 5 |
| (4) assign the agreement to any alternative natural gas | 6 |
| supplier unless: | 7 |
| (A) the supplier is an alternative gas supplier | 8 |
| certified by the Commission, | 9 |
| (B) the rates, terms, and conditions of the | 10 |
| agreement being assigned do not change during the | 11 |
| remainder of the time covered by the agreement, | 12 |
| (C) the customer is given no less than 30 days | 13 |
| prior written notice of the assignment and contact | 14 |
| information for the new supplier, and | 15 |
| (D) the supplier assigning the contract provides | 16 |
| contact information that a customer can use to resolve | 17 |
| a dispute. | 18 |
| (f) An alternative gas supplier shall comply with the | 19 |
| following requirements
with respect to the marketing, | 20 |
| offering, and provision of products or services:
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| (1) Any marketing materials which make statements | 22 |
| concerning prices,
terms, and conditions of service shall | 23 |
| contain information that
adequately discloses the prices, | 24 |
| terms and conditions of the products
or services.
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| (2) Before any customer is switched from another | 26 |
| supplier, the
alternative gas supplier shall give the |
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| customer written information
that adequately discloses, in | 2 |
| plain language, the prices, terms, and
conditions of the | 3 |
| products and services being offered and sold to the
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| customer.
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| (3) The alternative gas supplier shall provide to the | 6 |
| customer:
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| (A) accurate, timely, and itemized billing | 8 |
| statements that describe
the products and services
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| provided to the customer and their prices
and that | 10 |
| specify the
gas consumption amount and any service
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| charges and taxes; provided that this item (f)(3)(A) | 12 |
| does not apply to small
commercial customers;
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| (B) an additional
statement, at least annually, | 14 |
| that adequately discloses the average
monthly prices, | 15 |
| and the terms and conditions, of the products and
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| services sold to the customer; provided that this item | 17 |
| (f)(3)(B) does not
apply to small commercial | 18 |
| customers;
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| (C) refunds of any deposits with interest within 30 | 20 |
| days after the
date
that the customer changes gas | 21 |
| suppliers or discontinues service if the customer
has | 22 |
| satisfied all of his or her outstanding financial | 23 |
| obligations to the
alternative gas supplier at an | 24 |
| interest rate set by the Commission which shall
be the | 25 |
| same as that required of gas utilities; and
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| (D) refunds, in a timely fashion, of all undisputed |
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| overpayments upon
the oral or written request of the | 2 |
| customer.
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| (4) An alternative gas supplier and its sales agents | 4 |
| shall refrain from any direct marketing or soliciting to | 5 |
| consumers on the gas utility's "Do Not Contact List", which | 6 |
| the alternative gas supplier shall obtain each month from | 7 |
| the gas utility in whose service area the consumer is | 8 |
| provided with gas service. | 9 |
| (5) An alternative gas supplier and its sales agents | 10 |
| shall not utilize false, misleading, materially | 11 |
| inaccurate, or otherwise deceptive language or materials | 12 |
| in soliciting or providing services. | 13 |
| (6) An alternative gas supplier and its sales agents | 14 |
| shall not misrepresent the affiliation of any alternative | 15 |
| supplier with the gas utility, governmental bodies or | 16 |
| consumer groups. | 17 |
| (7) If any sales solicitation, agreement, contract, or | 18 |
| verification is translated into another language and | 19 |
| provided to a customer, all of the documents must be | 20 |
| provided to the customer in that other language. | 21 |
| (8) Any sales solicitation shall adequately disclose | 22 |
| the prices, terms, and conditions of the products and | 23 |
| service. | 24 |
| (9) Any agreement that contains an early termination | 25 |
| clause shall disclose the amount of the early termination | 26 |
| fee, provided, however, that any early termination fee or |
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| penalty shall not exceed $50. | 2 |
| (10) Within one day after electronic receipt of a | 3 |
| customer switch from the alternative gas supplier and | 4 |
| confirmation of eligibility, the gas utility shall provide | 5 |
| the customer written notice confirming the switch. The | 6 |
| alternative gas supplier shall provide each customer the | 7 |
| opportunity to rescind its agreement without penalty | 8 |
| within 14 business days after the date on the gas utility | 9 |
| notice to the customer. The alternative gas supplier shall | 10 |
| disclose to the customer all of the following: | 11 |
| (A) that the gas utility will send a notice | 12 |
| confirming the switch; | 13 |
| (B) that from the date the utility issues the | 14 |
| notice confirming the switch, the customer shall have | 15 |
| 14 business days to rescind the switch without penalty; | 16 |
| (C) that the customer shall contact the gas utility | 17 |
| or the alternative gas supplier to rescind the switch; | 18 |
| and | 19 |
| (D) the contact information for the gas utility. | 20 |
| The alternative gas supplier disclosure shall be | 21 |
| included in its sales solicitations, contracts, and all | 22 |
| applicable sales verification scripts. | 23 |
| (g) An alternative gas supplier may limit the overall size | 24 |
| or availability
of
a
service offering by specifying one or more | 25 |
| of the following:
| 26 |
| (1) a maximum number
of
customers and maximum amount of |
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| gas load to be served;
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| (2) time period during which
the
offering will be | 3 |
| available; or
| 4 |
| (3) other comparable limitation, but not including
the
| 5 |
| geographic locations of customers within the area which the | 6 |
| alternative gas
supplier is
certificated to serve.
| 7 |
| The alternative gas supplier shall file the terms and
| 8 |
| conditions of
such service offering including the applicable | 9 |
| limitations with the Commission
prior to
making the service | 10 |
| offering available to customers.
| 11 |
| (h) Nothing in this Section shall be construed as | 12 |
| preventing an alternative
gas
supplier that is an affiliate of, | 13 |
| or which contracts with,
(i) an industry or
trade
organization | 14 |
| or association,
(ii) a membership organization or association | 15 |
| that
exists for
a purpose other than the purchase of gas, or
| 16 |
| (iii) another organization that
meets criteria
established in a | 17 |
| rule adopted by the Commission from offering through the
| 18 |
| organization
or association services at prices, terms and | 19 |
| conditions that are available
solely to the
members of the | 20 |
| organization or association.
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| (Source: P.A. 92-529, eff. 2-8-02; 92-852, eff. 8-26-02.)
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| (220 ILCS 5/19-120)
| 23 |
| Sec. 19-120. Commission oversight of services provided by | 24 |
| gas
suppliers.
| 25 |
| (a) The provisions of this Section shall apply only to |
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| alternative gas
suppliers
serving or seeking to serve | 2 |
| residential or small commercial customers and
only to the | 3 |
| extent such
alternative gas suppliers provide services to | 4 |
| residential or small
commercial customers.
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| (b) The Commission shall have jurisdiction in accordance | 6 |
| with the provisions
of Article X of this Act to entertain and | 7 |
| dispose of any complaint against any
alternative
gas supplier | 8 |
| alleging that:
| 9 |
| (1) the alternative gas supplier has violated or is
in
| 10 |
| nonconformance with any applicable provisions of Section | 11 |
| 19-110 or Section
19-115;
| 12 |
| (2) an alternative gas supplier has failed to provide | 13 |
| service in
accordance with the
terms of its contract or | 14 |
| contracts with a customer or customers;
| 15 |
| (3) the
alternative
gas supplier has violated or is in | 16 |
| nonconformance with the transportation
services tariff
of, | 17 |
| or any of its agreements relating to transportation | 18 |
| services with, the gas
utility or
municipal system | 19 |
| providing transportation services; or
| 20 |
| (4) the
alternative gas
supplier has violated or failed | 21 |
| to comply with the requirements of Sections
8-201
through | 22 |
| 8-207, 8-301, 8-505, or 8-507 of this Act as made | 23 |
| applicable to
alternative gas
suppliers.
| 24 |
| (c) The Commission shall have authority after notice and | 25 |
| hearing held on
complaint or on the Commission's own motion to | 26 |
| order any or all of the following remedies, penalties, or forms |
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| of relief :
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| (1) order an alternative gas supplier to cease and | 3 |
| desist, or correct,
any violation of or nonconformance with | 4 |
| the provisions of Section
19-110 or 19-115;
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| (2) impose financial penalties for violations of or | 6 |
| nonconformances
with the provisions of Section 19-110 or | 7 |
| 19-115, not to exceed (i)
$10,000 per occurrence ; or | 8 |
| (3) impose financial penalties for violations of or | 9 |
| nonconformances with the provisions of Section 19-110 or | 10 |
| 19-115, not to exceed (ii) $30,000 per day for those | 11 |
| violations or
nonconformances which continue after the | 12 |
| Commission issues a
cease-and-desist order; or and
| 13 |
| (3) alter, modify, revoke, or suspend the certificate | 14 |
| of service
authority
of an alternative gas supplier for | 15 |
| substantial or repeated violations of
or nonconformances | 16 |
| with the provisions of Section 19-110 or 19-115.
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| (c-5) The Commission shall have the authority to | 18 |
| investigate, upon complaint or on its own motion, the marketing | 19 |
| practices of any alternative gas supplier that has been granted | 20 |
| a certificate of service authority. As used in this subsection | 21 |
| (c-5), "marketing practices" includes, but is not limited to, | 22 |
| all oral, written, and electronic communications made by the | 23 |
| alternative gas supplier to any person for the purpose of | 24 |
| selling gas service to the person. If, after notice and | 25 |
| hearing, the Commission finds that an alternative gas supplier | 26 |
| has engaged in any deception, fraud, false pretense, false |
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| promise, or misrepresentation or the concealment, suppression | 2 |
| or omission of any material fact in its marketing practices, | 3 |
| whether or not any person has in fact been misled, deceived or | 4 |
| damaged thereby, the Commission may order any or all of the | 5 |
| following remedies, penalties, or forms of relief: | 6 |
| (1) order an alternative gas supplier to cease and | 7 |
| desist, or correct, any marketing practices found to have | 8 |
| been deceptive, fraudulent, or containing a false promise | 9 |
| or misrepresentation, or that concealed, suppressed, or | 10 |
| omitted any material fact; | 11 |
| (2) impose financial penalties on the alternative gas | 12 |
| supplier for engaging in marketing practices found to have | 13 |
| been deceptive, fraudulent, or containing a false promise | 14 |
| or misrepresentation, or that concealed, suppressed, or | 15 |
| omitted any material fact, not to exceed $10,000 per | 16 |
| occurrence; | 17 |
| (3) impose financial penalties on the alternative gas | 18 |
| supplier for engaging in marketing practices found to have | 19 |
| been deceptive, fraudulent, or containing a false promise | 20 |
| or misrepresentation, or that concealed, suppressed, or | 21 |
| omitted any material fact, not to exceed $30,000 per day | 22 |
| for those violations or nonconformances that continue | 23 |
| after the Commission issues a cease and desist order; or | 24 |
| (4) revoke or suspend the certificate of service | 25 |
| authority of the alternative gas supplier for repeated | 26 |
| violations in which the Commission has found that the |
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| alternative gas supplier has engaged in marketing | 2 |
| practices that are deceptive, fraudulent, or containing a | 3 |
| false promise or misrepresentation, or that concealed, | 4 |
| suppressed, or omitted any material fact. | 5 |
| (d) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit, | 6 |
| restrict, or
mitigate
in
any way the power and authority of the | 7 |
| State's Attorneys or the Attorney
General under the Consumer | 8 |
| Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act.
| 9 |
| (Source: P.A. 92-529, eff. 2-8-02; 92-852, eff. 8-26-02.)
| 10 |
| (220 ILCS 5/19-125)
| 11 |
| Sec. 19-125. Consumer education.
| 12 |
| (a) The Commission shall make available upon request and at | 13 |
| no charge, and
shall make available to the public
on the | 14 |
| Internet through the State of Illinois World Wide Web site:
| 15 |
| (1) a list of all certified alternative gas suppliers | 16 |
| serving residential
and
small commercial customers
within | 17 |
| the service area of each gas utility including, in the case | 18 |
| of the
Internet, computer links to available web sites of | 19 |
| the certified alternative
gas
suppliers;
| 20 |
| (2) a list of all certified alternative gas suppliers | 21 |
| serving residential
or
small commercial customers
that | 22 |
| have been found in the last 3 years by the Commission | 23 |
| pursuant to Section
10-108 to have failed
to provide | 24 |
| service in accordance with this Act;
| 25 |
| (3) guidelines to assist customers in determining |
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| which gas supplier is
most
appropriate for each
customer; | 2 |
| and
| 3 |
| (4) Internet links to providers of information
that | 4 |
| enables customers
to
compare prices and
services of gas | 5 |
| utilities and alternative gas suppliers, if and
when that | 6 |
| information is available.
| 7 |
| (b) In any service area where customers are able to choose | 8 |
| their natural gas
supplier, the Commission shall require gas | 9 |
| utilities and alternative gas
suppliers to inform customers of | 10 |
| how they may contact the Commission in order
to
obtain | 11 |
| information about the customer choice program.
| 12 |
| (c) The Commission shall make available in print, upon | 13 |
| request and at no charge, and on its World Wide Web site, | 14 |
| information on which customers of alternative gas suppliers | 15 |
| serving residential and small commercial customers may address | 16 |
| any complaint with regard to an alternative gas supplier's | 17 |
| obligations under Section 19-115 of this Article, including the | 18 |
| provision of service in accordance with the terms of its | 19 |
| contract, sales tactics, and rates. The Commission shall | 20 |
| maintain a summary by category and provider of all informal | 21 |
| complaints it receives pursuant to this Section, and it shall | 22 |
| publish the summary on a quarterly basis on its World Wide Web | 23 |
| site. Individual customer information shall not be included in | 24 |
| the summary. | 25 |
| (Source: P.A. 92-852, eff. 8-26-02.)
|
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| Section 10. The Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business | 2 |
| Practices Act is amended by adding Sections 2BBB, 2CCC, 2DDD, | 3 |
| and 2EEE as follows: | 4 |
| (815 ILCS 505/2BBB new)
| 5 |
| Sec. 2BBB. Natural gas provider selection. | 6 |
| (a) A natural gas provider shall not submit or execute a | 7 |
| change in a customer's selection of a provider of natural gas | 8 |
| service unless and until: | 9 |
| (1) the provider first discloses all material terms and | 10 |
| conditions of the offer to the customer; | 11 |
| (2) the provider has obtained the customer's express | 12 |
| agreement to accept the offer, after the disclosure of all | 13 |
| material terms and conditions of the offer, in a form that | 14 |
| meets the requirements of this Section; and | 15 |
| (3) the provider has confirmed the request for a change | 16 |
| in natural gas provider (i) using a letter of agency as | 17 |
| provided in subsection (b), (ii) using an independent | 18 |
| third-party verification as provided in subsection (c), | 19 |
| (iii) according to the provisions of subsection (d) of this | 20 |
| Section; or (iv) if enrollment is via the Internet, the | 21 |
| enrollment shall provide the necessary disclosures | 22 |
| required by this Section along with a suitable electronic | 23 |
| letter of agency as described in item (6) of subsection (b) | 24 |
| of this Section. | 25 |
| (b) Letter of agency. |
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| (1) A natural gas provider may obtain the necessary | 2 |
| confirmation from a customer for a change in natural gas | 3 |
| service by using a letter of agency as specified in this | 4 |
| subsection. Any letter of agency that does not conform with | 5 |
| this subsection is invalid. | 6 |
| (2) The letter of agency is not effective unless it has | 7 |
| been signed and dated by the customer requesting the | 8 |
| natural gas provider change. | 9 |
| (3) At a minimum, the letter of agency must be printed | 10 |
| with a print of sufficient size to be clearly legible and | 11 |
| must contain clear and unambiguous language that: | 12 |
| (A) confirms the customer's billing name and | 13 |
| address; | 14 |
| (B) confirms the customer's decision to change the | 15 |
| natural gas provider from the current provider to the | 16 |
| prospective provider; | 17 |
| (C) clearly and conspicuously discloses, in | 18 |
| writing, the terms, conditions, and nature of the | 19 |
| service to be provided to the customer, and directly | 20 |
| identifies or establishes the rates for the service | 21 |
| contracted for by the customer; and | 22 |
| (D) states that the customer understands that any | 23 |
| change in natural gas provider that the customer | 24 |
| chooses may involve a charge to the customer for | 25 |
| changing the customer's natural gas provider. | 26 |
| (4) Except as allowed in item (5), the letter of agency |
|
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| shall be a separate or easily separable document, | 2 |
| containing only the language described in item (3), and the | 3 |
| sole purpose of which is to authorize a natural gas | 4 |
| provider change. Except as allowed in item (5), the letter | 5 |
| of agency shall not be combined with inducements of any | 6 |
| kind in the same document. | 7 |
| (5) The letter of agency may be combined with a check | 8 |
| that contains only the required letter of agency language | 9 |
| prescribed in item (3) and the necessary information to | 10 |
| make the check a negotiable instrument. The letter of | 11 |
| agency check shall not contain any promotional language or | 12 |
| material. The letter of agency check shall contain, in | 13 |
| easily readable bold-face type on the face of the check, a | 14 |
| notice that the consumer is authorizing a change in natural | 15 |
| gas provider by signing the check. The letter of agency | 16 |
| language shall also be placed near the signature line on | 17 |
| the back of the check. | 18 |
| (6) A letter of agency shall not suggest or require | 19 |
| that a customer take some action in order to retain the | 20 |
| customer's current natural gas provider. | 21 |
| (7) If any portion of a letter of agency is translated | 22 |
| into another language, then all portions of the letter of | 23 |
| agency must be translated into that language. | 24 |
| (c) Third-party verification. | 25 |
| (1) A natural gas provider may obtain the necessary | 26 |
| confirmation from a customer for a change in natural gas |
|
|
|
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| service by using an appropriately qualified independent | 2 |
| third party, in accordance with this subsection, to confirm | 3 |
| the customer's oral authorization to change natural gas | 4 |
| providers. Third-party confirmation must include | 5 |
| appropriate verification data. The independent third | 6 |
| party: | 7 |
| (i) must not be owned, managed, controlled, or | 8 |
| directed by the provider or the provider's marketing | 9 |
| agent; | 10 |
| (ii) must not have any financial incentive to | 11 |
| confirm provider change requests for the provider or | 12 |
| the provider's marketing agent; and | 13 |
| (iii) must operate in a location physically | 14 |
| separate from the provider or the provider's marketing | 15 |
| agent. | 16 |
| (2) Automated third-party verification systems and | 17 |
| 3-way conference calls may be used for verification | 18 |
| purposes, so long as the other requirements of this | 19 |
| subsection (c) are satisfied. A provider or provider's | 20 |
| sales representative initiating a 3-way conference call or | 21 |
| a call through an automated verification system must drop | 22 |
| off the call once the 3-way connection has been | 23 |
| established. | 24 |
| (3) All third-party verification methods must elicit, | 25 |
| at a minimum, the following information: (i) the identity | 26 |
| of the customer; (ii) confirmation that the person on the |
|
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| call is authorized to make the provider change; (iii) | 2 |
| confirmation that the person on the call wants to make the | 3 |
| provider change; (iv) confirmation that service will | 4 |
| effectively switch service from any other alternative gas | 5 |
| supplier at service address and the switching could include | 6 |
| a cancellation fee from that alternative gas supplier; (v) | 7 |
| the service address of the service to be switched; and (vi) | 8 |
| the price of the service to be provided and the material | 9 |
| terms and conditions of the service being offered, | 10 |
| including whether any early termination fees apply. | 11 |
| (4) Third-party verifiers may not market the | 12 |
| provider's services by providing additional information, | 13 |
| including information regarding procedures to block or | 14 |
| otherwise freeze an account against further changes. | 15 |
| (5) All third-party verifications shall be conducted | 16 |
| in the same language that was used in the underlying sales | 17 |
| transaction and shall be recorded in their entirety. A | 18 |
| natural gas provider shall maintain and preserve audio | 19 |
| records of verification of customer authorization for a | 20 |
| minimum period of 2 years after obtaining the verification. | 21 |
| Automated systems must provide customers with an option to | 22 |
| speak with a live person at any time during the call. | 23 |
| (d) When a consumer initiates the call to the prospective | 24 |
| natural gas provider, in order to enroll the consumer as a | 25 |
| customer, the prospective natural gas provider must, with the | 26 |
| consent of the customer, make a date-stamped and time-stamped |
|
|
|
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| audio recording that elicits the entire call, which shall | 2 |
| include, but not be limited to, the following information: (i) | 3 |
| the identity of the customer; (ii) confirmation that the person | 4 |
| on the call is authorized to make the provider change; (iii) | 5 |
| confirmation that the person on the call wants to make the | 6 |
| provider change; (iv) the names of the providers affected by | 7 |
| the change; (v) the service address of the service to be | 8 |
| switched; and (vi) the price of the service to be provided and | 9 |
| the material terms and conditions of the service being offered, | 10 |
| including whether any early termination fees apply. A natural | 11 |
| gas provider must maintain and preserve the audio records | 12 |
| required under this subsection (d) for a minimum period of 2 | 13 |
| years. | 14 |
| (e) Complaints may be filed with the Illinois Commerce | 15 |
| Commission under this Section by a customer whose natural gas | 16 |
| service provider has been changed or affected by a natural gas | 17 |
| provider in a manner not in compliance with this Section. If, | 18 |
| after notice and hearing, the Commission finds that a natural | 19 |
| gas provider has violated this Section, the Commission may in | 20 |
| its discretion do any one or more of the following: | 21 |
| (1) Require the violating natural gas provider to | 22 |
| refund to the customer charges collected in excess of those | 23 |
| that would have been charged by the customer's authorized | 24 |
| natural gas provider. | 25 |
| (2) Require the violating natural gas provider to pay | 26 |
| to the customer's authorized natural gas provider the |
|
|
|
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| amount the authorized natural gas provider would have | 2 |
| collected for the customer's natural gas service. The | 3 |
| Commission is authorized to reduce this payment by any | 4 |
| amount already paid by the violating natural gas provider | 5 |
| to the customer's authorized provider for that natural gas | 6 |
| service. | 7 |
| (3) Require the violating natural gas provider to pay a | 8 |
| fine of up to $1,000 into the Public Utility Fund for each | 9 |
| repeated and intentional violation of this Section. | 10 |
| (4) Issue a cease and desist order. | 11 |
| (5) For a pattern of violation of this Section or for | 12 |
| intentionally violating a cease and desist order, revoke | 13 |
| the violating provider's certificate of service authority. | 14 |
| (f) For purposes of this Section and Sections 2CCC, 2DDD, | 15 |
| and 2EEE of this Act, "natural gas provider" means a "gas | 16 |
| utility" or an "alternative gas supplier", as those terms are | 17 |
| defined in Section 19-105 of the Public Utilities Act, and | 18 |
| "natural gas service" means natural gas service sold by a gas | 19 |
| utility or alternative gas supplier. | 20 |
| (815 ILCS 505/2CCC new)
| 21 |
| Sec. 2CCC. Natural gas service fraud; elderly persons or | 22 |
| disabled persons; additional penalties. | 23 |
| (a) With respect to unlawful advertising, sale, provider | 24 |
| selection, billings, or collections relating to the provision | 25 |
| of natural gas service, where the consumer is an elderly person |
|
|
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| or disabled person, a civil penalty of $50,000 may be imposed | 2 |
| for each violation of this Act. | 3 |
| (b) For the purposes of this Section: | 4 |
| "Elderly person" means a person 60 years of age or | 5 |
| older. | 6 |
| "Disabled person" means a person who suffers from a | 7 |
| permanent physical or mental impairment resulting from | 8 |
| disease, injury, functional disorder or congenital | 9 |
| condition. | 10 |
| "Natural gas service" has the meaning given that term | 11 |
| in Section 2BBB of this Act. | 12 |
| (815 ILCS 505/2DDD new)
| 13 |
| Sec. 2DDD. Natural gas service advertising. Any | 14 |
| advertisement for natural gas service that lists rates shall | 15 |
| clearly and conspicuously disclose all associated costs for | 16 |
| that service, including, but not limited to, access fees and | 17 |
| service fees. | 18 |
| (815 ILCS 505/2EEE new)
| 19 |
| Sec. 2EEE. Billing and collection practices of natural gas | 20 |
| providers. Each person selling transmission, distribution, | 21 |
| metering, or billing of natural gas service, or the commodity | 22 |
| of natural gas to be delivered to a customer through the | 23 |
| distribution system of a natural gas provider, shall display | 24 |
| the name, the toll-free telephone number of the natural gas |
|
|
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| provider, and a description of the services provided on all | 2 |
| bills submitted to customers of such services. All personal | 3 |
| information relating to the customer of transmission, | 4 |
| distribution, metering, or billing of natural gas service, or | 5 |
| the customer purchasing the commodity of natural gas to be | 6 |
| delivered through the distribution system of a natural gas | 7 |
| provider, shall be maintained by the service providers solely | 8 |
| for the purpose of generating the bill for the sales and | 9 |
| services, and shall not be divulged to any other persons with | 10 |
| the exception of credit bureaus, collection agencies, and | 11 |
| persons licensed to market natural gas service in this State, | 12 |
| without the verifiable consent, including written, | 13 |
| voice-recorded, or electronic signature, of the customer.
| 14 |
| Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 15 |
| becoming law.
|
|