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90_HB0279
New Act
Creates the Propane Education and Research Act. Provides
that propane industry organizations may conduct a referendum
for the creation of an Illinois Propane Education and
Research Council. The Council shall consist of 12 members
and shall develop programs to enhance consumer and employee
safety and training, to provide for research and development,
and to inform and educate the public about safety and other
issues associated with the use of propane. Provides for
assessments on odorized propane which are to be collected by
the entity which is the owner of odorized propane at the time
of odorization or at the time of import of odorized propane
and paid to the Council on a monthly basis. Those assessed
may apply for and receive a refund from the Council in the
amount of the assessment. No assessment funds may be used
for lobbying. The price of propane shall be determined by
market forces and assessment fees may not be passed on to
consumers.
LRB9001301SMcc
LRB9001301SMcc
1 AN ACT regarding assessments on the propane industry.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5 Illinois Propane Education and Research Act of 1997.
6 Section 5. Definitions. In this Act, unless the context
7 otherwise requires:
8 "Council" means a Propane Education and Research Council
9 created pursuant to Section 10 of this Act.
10 "Director" means Director of Agriculture.
11 "Education" means any action to provide information
12 regarding propane, propane equipment, mechanical and
13 technical practices, and propane uses to consumers and
14 members of the propane industry;
15 "Industry" means those persons involved in the
16 production, transportation, and sale of propane, and the
17 manufacture and distribution of propane utilization
18 equipment;
19 "Industry trade association" means an organization exempt
20 from tax, under Section 501(c)(3), or (6) of the Internal
21 Revenue Code of 1986, representing the propane industry;
22 "Odorized propane" means propane which has an odorant
23 added to it;
24 "Producer" means the owner of propane at the time it is
25 recovered at a gas processing plant or refinery; irrespective
26 of the state where production occurs;
27 "Propane" means a hydrocarbon whose chemical composition
28 is predominately C3H8, whether recovered from natural gas or
29 crude oil, and includes liquified petroleum gases and
30 mixtures thereof;
31 "Public member" means a member of the Council other than
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1 a representative of producers or retail marketers
2 representing significant users of propane, public safety
3 officials, state regulatory officials, or other groups
4 knowledgeable about propane;
5 "Qualified industry organization" means the Illinois
6 Propane Gas Association, the National Propane Gas
7 Association, the Gas Processors Association, a successor
8 association of these associations, or any other propane
9 industry organization;
10 "Research" means any type of study, investigation or
11 other activities designed to advance the image, desirability,
12 usage, marketability, efficiency, and safety of propane and
13 to further the development of such information;
14 "Retail marketer" means a person engaged primarily in the
15 sale of odorized propane to the ultimate consumer or to
16 retail propane dispensers; and
17 "Retail propane dispenser" means a person who sells
18 odorized propane to the ultimate consumer but is not engaged
19 primarily in the business of such sales.
20 Section 10. Referendum; creation and termination of a
21 program.
22 (a) Qualified industry organizations may conduct at
23 their own expense, a referendum among producers and retail
24 marketers for the creation of an Illinois Propane Education
25 and Research Council. The Council, if established, shall
26 reimburse the qualified industry organizations for the cost
27 of the referendum accounting and documentation. The
28 referendum shall be conducted by an independent auditing firm
29 agreed to by the qualified industry organizations. Voting
30 rights in the referendum shall be based on the volume of
31 propane produced or odorized propane sold in the previous
32 calendar year. Upon approval of those persons representing
33 two-thirds of the total volume of propane voted in the retail
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1 marketer class and two-thirds of all propane voted in the
2 producer class, the Council shall be established, and shall
3 be authorized to levy an assessment on odorized propane in
4 accordance with Section 20. All persons voting in the
5 referendum shall certify to the independent auditing firm the
6 volume of propane represented by their vote.
7 (b) On the Council's own initiative, or on petition to
8 the Council by producers and retail marketers representing
9 35% of the volume of propane in each class, the Council
10 shall, at its own expense, hold a referendum to be conducted
11 by an independent auditing firm selected by the Council, to
12 determine whether the industry favors termination or
13 suspension of the Council. Termination or suspension shall
14 not take effect unless it is approved by persons representing
15 more than one-half of the total volume of odorized propane in
16 the retail marketer class and more than one-half the total
17 volume in the producer class.
18 Section 15. Illinois Propane Education and Research
19 Council.
20 (a) The qualified industry organizations shall select
21 all retail marketers, public, and producer members of the
22 Council. The producer organizations shall select the
23 producer members of the Council, the retail marketer
24 organizations shall select retail marketer members, and all
25 qualified industry organizations shall jointly select the
26 public members. Vacancies in the unfinished terms of Council
27 members shall be filled in the same manner as were the
28 original appointments.
29 (b) In selecting members of the Council, the qualified
30 industry organizations shall give due regard to selecting a
31 Council that is representative of the industry, including
32 representation of:
33 (1) gas processors and oil refiners among
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1 producers;
2 (2) interstate and intrastate operators among
3 retail marketers;
4 (3) large and small companies among producers and
5 retail marketers, including agricultural cooperatives;
6 and
7 (4) diverse geographic regions of the State.
8 (c) The Council shall consist of 12 members, with 5
9 members representing retail marketers, 5 members representing
10 producers, and 2 public members. Other than the public
11 members, Council members shall be full-time employees or
12 owners of businesses in the industry or representatives of
13 agricultural cooperatives. No employee of a qualified
14 industry organization shall serve as a member of the Council,
15 and no member of the Council may serve concurrently as an
16 officer of the board of directors of a qualified industry
17 organization or other trade association. Only one person at
18 a time from any company or its affiliate may serve on the
19 Council.
20 (d) Council members shall receive no compensation for
21 their services, nor shall Council members be reimbursed for
22 expenses relating to their service, except that public
23 members, upon request, may be reimbursed for reasonable
24 expenses directly related to their participation in Council
25 meetings.
26 (e) Council members shall serve terms of 3 years and may
27 not serve more than 2 full consecutive terms. Members
28 filling unexpired terms may serve not more than a total of 7
29 consecutive years. Former members of the Council may be
30 returned to the Council if they have not been members for a
31 period of 2 years. Initial appointments to the council shall
32 be for terms of 1, 2, and 3 years staggered to provide for
33 the selection of 4 members each year.
34 (f) The Council shall develop programs and projects and
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1 enter into contracts or agreements for implementing this Act,
2 including programs to enhance consumer and employee safety
3 and training, to provide for research and development of
4 clean and efficient propane utilization equipment, to inform
5 and educate the public about safety and other issues
6 associated with the use of propane, and to provide for the
7 payment of the costs thereof with funds collected pursuant to
8 this Act. The Council shall coordinate its activities with
9 industry trade associations and others as appropriate to
10 provide efficient delivery of services and to avoid
11 unnecessary duplication of activities.
12 (g) Issues related to research and development, safety,
13 education, and training shall be given priority by the
14 Council in the development of its programs and projects.
15 (h) The Council shall select from among its members a
16 Chairperson and other officers as necessary, may establish
17 committees and subcommittees of the Council, and shall adopt
18 rules and bylaws for the conduct of business and the
19 implementation of this Act. The Council shall establish
20 procedures for the solicitation of industry comment and
21 recommendations on any significant plans, programs, and
22 projects to be funded by the Council. The Council may
23 establish advisory committees of persons other than Council
24 members.
25 (i) At the beginning of each fiscal period, the Council
26 shall prepare a budget plan for the next fiscal period,
27 including the probable cost of all programs, projects, and
28 contracts and a recommended rate of assessment sufficient to
29 cover such costs. Following review and comment, the Council
30 shall submit the proposed budget to the Director. The
31 Director may recommend programs and activities considered
32 appropriate, after public comment.
33 (j) The Council shall keep minutes, books, and records
34 that clearly reflect all of the acts and transactions of the
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1 Council and make public such information. The books of the
2 Council shall be audited by a certified public accountant at
3 least once each fiscal year and at such other times as the
4 Council may designate. Copies of such audit shall be
5 provided to all members of the Council, all qualified
6 industry organizations, and to other members of the industry
7 upon request. The Director shall receive notice of meetings
8 and may require reports on the activities of the Council, as
9 well as reports on compliance, violations, and complaints
10 regarding the implementation of this Act.
11 Section 20. Assessments.
12 (a) The Council shall set the initial assessment at no
13 greater than 1/10 of 1 cent per gallon of odorized propane.
14 Thereafter, annual assessments shall be sufficient to cover
15 the costs of plans and programs developed by the Council.
16 The assessment shall not be greater than 1/2 cent per gallon
17 of odorized propane, unless approved by the majority of those
18 voting in a referendum in both the producer and retail
19 marketer class. In no case may the assessment be raised by
20 more than 1/10 of 1 cent per gallon of odorized propane
21 annually.
22 (b) The owner of odorized propane at the time of
23 odorization, or the time of import of odorized propane shall
24 make the assessment based on the volume of odorized propane
25 sold and placed into commerce. Assessments collected from
26 purchasers of propane are payable to the Council on a monthly
27 basis by the 25th of the month following the month of
28 collection. The assessment, when made, shall be listed as a
29 separate line item on the bill labeled "Illinois Propane
30 Education and Research Assessment".
31 (c) The Council may establish an alternative means of
32 collecting the assessment if another means is found to be
33 more efficient and effective. The Council may establish a
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1 late payment charge and rate of interest to be imposed on any
2 person who fails to remit or pay to the Council any amount
3 due under this Act.
4 (d) Pending disbursement pursuant to a program, plan, or
5 project, the Council may invest funds collected through
6 assessments, and any other funds received by the Council,
7 only in obligations of the United States or any agency
8 thereof, in general obligations of any State or political
9 subdivision thereof, in any interest-bearing account or
10 certificate of deposit of a bank that is a member of the
11 Federal Reserve System, or in obligations fully guaranteed as
12 to principal and interest by the United States.
13 Section 25. Refunds. A purchaser of propane who has an
14 assessment added as a line item to the sale price may, by
15 application in writing to the Council, secure a refund in the
16 amount added. The refund shall be payable when the
17 application has been made to the Council within 60 days after
18 the assessment. Interest shall be allowed and paid at the
19 rate of 6% per annum upon the total amount of such assessment
20 imposed by this Act, except that if any such assessment is
21 refunded within 90 days after an application for refund has
22 been made within the required 60 days after assessment or
23 within 90 days after the seller of the propane remits the
24 assessments collected to the Council, whichever is later, no
25 interest shall be allowed on such assessment. Each
26 application for refund by a purchaser of propane shall have
27 attached thereto proof of assessment charged.
28 Section 30. Compliance. The circuit court is vested
29 with the jurisdiction specifically to enforce this Act, and
30 prevent or restrain any person from violating any provisions
31 of this Act. A successful action for compliance under this
32 Section may also require payment by the defendant of the
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1 costs incurred by the Council in bringing the action.
2 Section 35. Lobbying restrictions. No funds collected
3 by the Council shall be used in any manner for influencing
4 legislation or elections, except that the Council may
5 recommend to the Director changes in this Act or other
6 statutes that would further the purpose of this Act.
7 Section 40. Pricing. In all cases, the price of propane
8 shall be determined by market forces. Consistent with the
9 antitrust laws, the Council may take no action, nor may any
10 provision of this Act be interpreted as establishing an
11 agreement to pass along to consumers the cost of the
12 assessment provided for in Section 20.
13 Section 45. Relation to other programs. Nothing in this
14 Act may be construed to preempt or supersede any other
15 program relating to propane education and research organized
16 and operated under the laws of the State of Illinois.