Bill Text: IL HB5760 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Amends the Public Utilities Act. Allows the Illinois Commerce Commission to deny a license for an agent, broker, or consultant engaged in the procurement or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties if the Commission determines the applicant has failed to demonstrate that the applicant possesses the necessary competence or is unlikely to fulfill the applicant's ongoing obligations as an agent, broker, or consultant. Provides that violations of the provisions related to the licensure of agents, brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties shall be as follows: (1) for a first violation, the Commission may, in addition or as an alternative to the suspension of a license, impose a fine up to $5,000 per violation; (2) for a second violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may (rather than shall) suspend the license of the person or entity for a period of not less than 6 months and, in addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $10,000 per violation; and (3) for a third or subsequent violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may (rather than shall) suspend the license of the disciplined person or entity for a period of not less than 2 years and, in addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $20,000 per violation.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-04-05 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB5760 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB5760-Introduced.html

103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB5760

Introduced , by Rep. Eva-Dina Delgado

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
220 ILCS 5/16-115C

Amends the Public Utilities Act. Allows the Illinois Commerce Commission to deny a license for an agent, broker, or consultant engaged in the procurement or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties if the Commission determines the applicant has failed to demonstrate that the applicant possesses the necessary competence or is unlikely to fulfill the applicant's ongoing obligations as an agent, broker, or consultant. Provides that violations of the provisions related to the licensure of agents, brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties shall be as follows: (1) for a first violation, the Commission may, in addition or as an alternative to the suspension of a license, impose a fine up to $5,000 per violation; (2) for a second violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may (rather than shall) suspend the license of the person or entity for a period of not less than 6 months and, in addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $10,000 per violation; and (3) for a third or subsequent violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may (rather than shall) suspend the license of the disciplined person or entity for a period of not less than 2 years and, in addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $20,000 per violation.
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A BILL FOR

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1 AN ACT concerning regulations.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The Public Utilities Act is amended by changing
5Section 16-115C as follows:
6 (220 ILCS 5/16-115C)
7 Sec. 16-115C. Licensure of agents, brokers, and
8consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail
9electricity supply for third parties.
10 (a) The purpose of this Section is to adopt licensing and
11code of conduct rules in a competitive retail electricity
12market to protect Illinois consumers from unfair or deceptive
13acts or practices and to provide persons acting as agents,
14brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of
15retail electricity supply for third parties with notice of the
16illegality of those acts or practices.
17 (a-5) All third-party sales representatives engaged in the
18marketing of retail electricity supply must, prior to the
19customer signing a contract, disclose that they are not
20employed by the electric utility operating in the applicable
21service territory.
22 (b) For purposes of this Section, "agents, brokers, and
23consultants engaged in the procurement or sale of retail

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1electricity supply for third parties" means any person or
2entity that attempts to procure on behalf of or sell retail
3electric service to an electric customer in the State.
4"Agents, brokers, and consultants engaged in the procurement
5or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties" does
6not include the Illinois Power Agency or any of its employees,
7any entity licensed as an alternative retail electric supplier
8pursuant to 83 Ill. Adm. Code 451 offering retail electric
9service on its own behalf, any person acting exclusively on
10behalf of a single alternative retail electric supplier on
11condition that exclusivity is disclosed to any third party
12contracted in such agent capacity, any person acting
13exclusively on behalf of a retail electric supplier on
14condition that exclusivity is disclosed to any third party
15contracted in such agent capacity, any person or entity
16representing a municipal power agency, as defined in Section
1711-119.1-3 of the Illinois Municipal Code, or any person or
18entity that is attempting to procure on behalf of or sell
19retail electric service to a third party that has aggregate
20billing demand of all of its affiliated electric service
21accounts in Illinois of greater than 1,500 kilowatts.
22 (c) No person or entity shall act as an agent, broker, or
23consultant engaged in the procurement or sale of retail
24electricity supply for third parties unless that person or
25entity is licensed by the Commission under this Section or is
26offering services on their own behalf under 83 Ill. Adm. Code

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1451. A license granted pursuant to this Section is not
2property, and the grant of a license to an entity does not
3create a property interest in the license.
4 (d) The Commission shall create requirements for licensure
5as an agent, broker, or consultant engaged in the procurement
6or sale of retail electricity supply for third parties, and
7may, in its discretion, deny a license if the Commission
8determines the applicant has failed to demonstrate that the
9applicant possesses the necessary competence or is unlikely to
10fulfill the applicant's ongoing obligations as an agent,
11broker, or consultant. The requirements which shall include
12all of the following criteria:
13 (1) Technical competence.
14 (2) Managerial competence.
15 (3) Financial responsibility, including the posting of
16 an appropriate performance bond.
17 (4) Annual reporting requirements.
18 (e) Any person or entity required to be licensed under
19this Section must:
20 (1) disclose in plain language in writing to all
21 persons it solicits (i) before July 1, 2011, the total
22 anticipated remuneration to be paid to it by any third
23 party over the period of the proposed underlying customer
24 contract and (ii) on or after July 1, 2011, the total price
25 per kilowatt-hour, and the total anticipated cost,
26 inclusive of all fees or commissions received by the

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1 licensee, to be paid by the customer over the period of the
2 proposed underlying customer contract;
3 (2) disclose, if applicable, to all customers, prior
4 to the customer signing a contract, the fact that they
5 will be receiving compensation from the supplier;
6 (3) not hold itself out as independent or unaffiliated
7 with any supplier, or both, or use words reasonably
8 calculated to give that impression, unless the person
9 offering service under this Section has no contractual
10 relationship with any retail electricity supplier or its
11 affiliates regarding retail electric service in Illinois;
12 (4) not utilize false, misleading, materially
13 inaccurate, defamatory, or otherwise deceptive language or
14 materials in the soliciting or providing of its services;
15 (5) maintain copies of all marketing materials
16 disseminated to third parties for a period of not less
17 than 3 years;
18 (6) not present electricity pricing information in a
19 manner that favors one supplier over another, unless a
20 valid pricing comparison is made utilizing all relevant
21 costs and terms; and
22 (7) comply with the requirements of Sections 2EE, 2FF,
23 2GG, and 2HH of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business
24 Practices Act.
25 (f) Any person or entity licensed under this Section shall
26file with the Commission all of the following information no

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1later than March of each year:
2 (1) A verified report detailing any and all
3 contractual relationships that it has with certified
4 electricity suppliers in the State regarding retail
5 electric service in Illinois.
6 (2) A verified report detailing the distribution of
7 its customers with the various certified electricity
8 suppliers in Illinois during the prior calendar year. A
9 report under this Section shall not be required to contain
10 customer-identifying information.
11 A public redacted version of the verified report may
12 be submitted to the Commission along with a proprietary
13 version. The public redacted version may redact from the
14 verified report the name or names of every certified
15 electricity supplier contained in the report to protect
16 against disclosure of competitively sensitive market share
17 information. The information shall be afforded proprietary
18 treatment for 2 years after the date of the filing of the
19 verified report.
20 (3) A verified statement of any changes to the
21 original licensure qualifications and notice of continuing
22 compliance with all requirements.
23 (g) The Commission shall have jurisdiction over
24complaints, including on the Commission's own motion, for
25violations of this Section. The findings of a violation of
26this Section by the Commission shall result in discipline on a

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1progressive scale. For a first violation, the Commission may,
2in its discretion, suspend the license of the person or entity
3for a period of no less than one month and, in addition or as
4an alternative, impose a fine up to $5,000 per violation. For a
5second violation within a 5-year period, the Commission may
6shall suspend the license of the person or entity for a period
7of not less than 6 months and, in addition or as an
8alternative, impose a fine up to $10,000 per violation. For a
9third or subsequent violation within a 5-year period, the
10Commission may shall suspend the license of the disciplined
11person or entity for a period of not less than 2 years and, in
12addition or as an alternative, impose a fine up to $20,000 per
13violation. Notwithstanding the minimum progressive
14suspensions, the Commission shall have authority, in its
15discretion, to impose whatever reasonable disciplinary
16measures it deems appropriate for any violation, including,
17but not limited to, terminating the license of the person or
18entity.
19 (h) This Section shall not apply to a retail customer that
20operates or manages either directly or indirectly any
21facilities, equipment, or property used or contemplated to be
22used to distribute electric power or energy if that retail
23customer is a political subdivision or public institution of
24higher education of this State, or any corporation, company,
25limited liability company, association, joint-stock company or
26association, firm, partnership, or individual, or their

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