100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
HB3657

 

Introduced , by Rep. Tony McCombie

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
220 ILCS 5/8-406  from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 8-406

    Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that no public utility shall begin the construction of any nuclear power plant extension, alteration, or addition unless and until it has obtained from the Illinois Commerce Commission a certificate that public convenience and necessity require such construction. Removes a provision that prohibits the issuance of a certificate of public convenience and necessity by the Commission regarding the construction of any new power plant within this State until the Director of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency finds that the United States Government has identified and approved a demonstrable technology or means for the disposal of high level nuclear waste, or until such construction has been specifically approved by a statute enacted by the General Assembly. Effective immediately.


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A BILL FOR

 

HB3657LRB100 06998 RJF 17051 b

1    AN ACT concerning regulation.
 
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 8-406 as follows:
 
6    (220 ILCS 5/8-406)  (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 8-406)
7    Sec. 8-406. Certificate of public convenience and
8necessity.
9    (a) No public utility not owning any city or village
10franchise nor engaged in performing any public service or in
11furnishing any product or commodity within this State as of
12July 1, 1921 and not possessing a certificate of public
13convenience and necessity from the Illinois Commerce
14Commission, the State Public Utilities Commission or the Public
15Utilities Commission, at the time this amendatory Act of 1985
16goes into effect, shall transact any business in this State
17until it shall have obtained a certificate from the Commission
18that public convenience and necessity require the transaction
19of such business.
20    (b) No public utility shall begin the construction of any
21new plant, equipment, property or facility which is not in
22substitution of any existing plant, equipment, property or
23facility or any extension or alteration thereof or in addition

 

 

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1thereto, unless and until it shall have obtained from the
2Commission a certificate that public convenience and necessity
3require such construction. Whenever, after a hearing, the
4Commission determines that any new construction or the
5transaction of any business by a public utility will promote
6the public convenience and is necessary thereto, it shall have
7the power to issue certificates of public convenience and
8necessity. The Commission shall determine that proposed
9construction will promote the public convenience and necessity
10only if the utility demonstrates: (1) that the proposed
11construction is necessary to provide adequate, reliable, and
12efficient service to its customers and is the least-cost means
13of satisfying the service needs of its customers or that the
14proposed construction will promote the development of an
15effectively competitive electricity market that operates
16efficiently, is equitable to all customers, and is the
17least-cost least cost means of satisfying those objectives; (2)
18that the utility is capable of efficiently managing and
19supervising the construction process and has taken sufficient
20action to ensure adequate and efficient construction and
21supervision thereof; and (3) that the utility is capable of
22financing the proposed construction without significant
23adverse financial consequences for the utility or its
24customers.
25    (c) After the effective date of this amendatory Act of
261987, no construction shall commence on any new nuclear power

 

 

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1plant to be located within this State, and no certificate of
2public convenience and necessity or other authorization shall
3be issued therefor by the Commission, until the Director of the
4Illinois Environmental Protection Agency finds that the United
5States Government, through its authorized agency, has
6identified and approved a demonstrable technology or means for
7the disposal of high level nuclear waste, or until such
8construction has been specifically approved by a statute
9enacted by the General Assembly.
10    No public utility shall begin the construction of any
11nuclear power plant extension, alteration, or addition unless
12and until it has obtained from the Commission a certificate
13that public convenience and necessity require such
14construction. Whenever, after a hearing, the Commission
15determines that any new construction or the transaction of any
16business by a public utility will promote the public
17convenience and is necessary thereto, it shall have the power
18to issue certificates of public convenience and necessity. The
19Commission shall determine that proposed construction will
20promote the public convenience and necessity only if the
21utility demonstrates: (1) that the proposed construction is
22necessary to provide adequate, reliable, and efficient service
23to its customers and is the least-cost means of satisfying the
24service needs of its customers or that the proposed
25construction will promote the development of an effectively
26competitive electricity market that operates efficiently, is

 

 

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1equitable to all customers, and is the least-cost means of
2satisfying those objectives; (2) that the utility is capable of
3efficiently managing and supervising the construction process
4and has taken sufficient action to ensure adequate and
5efficient construction and supervision thereof; and (3) that
6the utility is capable of financing the proposed construction
7without significant adverse financial consequences for the
8utility or its customers.
9    As used in this Section, "high level nuclear waste" means
10those aqueous wastes resulting from the operation of the first
11cycle of the solvent extraction system or equivalent and the
12concentrated wastes of the subsequent extraction cycles or
13equivalent in a facility for reprocessing irradiated reactor
14fuel and shall include spent fuel assemblies prior to fuel
15reprocessing.
16    (d) In making its determination, the Commission shall
17attach primary weight to the cost or cost savings to the
18customers of the utility. The Commission may consider any or
19all factors which will or may affect such cost or cost savings,
20including the public utility's engineering judgment regarding
21the materials used for construction.
22    (e) The Commission may issue a temporary certificate which
23shall remain in force not to exceed one year in cases of
24emergency, to assure maintenance of adequate service or to
25serve particular customers, without notice or hearing, pending
26the determination of an application for a certificate, and may

 

 

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1by regulation exempt from the requirements of this Section
2temporary acts or operations for which the issuance of a
3certificate will not be required in the public interest.
4    A public utility shall not be required to obtain but may
5apply for and obtain a certificate of public convenience and
6necessity pursuant to this Section with respect to any matter
7as to which it has received the authorization or order of the
8Commission under the Electric Supplier Act, and any such
9authorization or order granted a public utility by the
10Commission under that Act shall as between public utilities be
11deemed to be, and shall have except as provided in that Act the
12same force and effect as, a certificate of public convenience
13and necessity issued pursuant to this Section.
14    No electric cooperative shall be made or shall become a
15party to or shall be entitled to be heard or to otherwise
16appear or participate in any proceeding initiated under this
17Section for authorization of power plant construction and as to
18matters as to which a remedy is available under The Electric
19Supplier Act.
20    (f) Such certificates may be altered or modified by the
21Commission, upon its own motion or upon application by the
22person or corporation affected. Unless exercised within a
23period of 2 years from the grant thereof authority conferred by
24a certificate of convenience and necessity issued by the
25Commission shall be null and void.
26    No certificate of public convenience and necessity shall be

 

 

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1construed as granting a monopoly or an exclusive privilege,
2immunity or franchise.
3    (g) A public utility that undertakes any of the actions
4described in items (1) through (3) of this subsection (g) or
5that has obtained approval pursuant to Section 8-406.1 of this
6Act shall not be required to comply with the requirements of
7this Section to the extent such requirements otherwise would
8apply. For purposes of this Section and Section 8-406.1 of this
9Act, "high voltage electric service line" means an electric
10line having a design voltage of 100,000 or more. For purposes
11of this subsection (g), a public utility may do any of the
12following:
13        (1) replace or upgrade any existing high voltage
14    electric service line and related facilities,
15    notwithstanding its length;
16        (2) relocate any existing high voltage electric
17    service line and related facilities, notwithstanding its
18    length, to accommodate construction or expansion of a
19    roadway or other transportation infrastructure; or
20        (3) construct a high voltage electric service line and
21    related facilities that is constructed solely to serve a
22    single customer's premises or to provide a generator
23    interconnection to the public utility's transmission
24    system and that will pass under or over the premises owned
25    by the customer or generator to be served or under or over
26    premises for which the customer or generator has secured

 

 

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1    the necessary right of way.
2    (h) A public utility seeking to construct a high-voltage
3electric service line and related facilities (Project) must
4show that the utility has held a minimum of 2 pre-filing public
5meetings to receive public comment concerning the Project in
6each county where the Project is to be located, no earlier than
76 months prior to filing an application for a certificate of
8public convenience and necessity from the Commission. Notice of
9the public meeting shall be published in a newspaper of general
10circulation within the affected county once a week for 3
11consecutive weeks, beginning no earlier than one month prior to
12the first public meeting. If the Project traverses 2 contiguous
13counties and where in one county the transmission line mileage
14and number of landowners over whose property the proposed route
15traverses is one-fifth or less of the transmission line mileage
16and number of such landowners of the other county, then the
17utility may combine the 2 pre-filing meetings in the county
18with the greater transmission line mileage and affected
19landowners. All other requirements regarding pre-filing
20meetings shall apply in both counties. Notice of the public
21meeting, including a description of the Project, must be
22provided in writing to the clerk of each county where the
23Project is to be located. A representative of the Commission
24shall be invited to each pre-filing public meeting.
25    (i) For applications filed after the effective date of this
26amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly, the Commission

 

 

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1shall by registered mail notify each owner of record of land,
2as identified in the records of the relevant county tax
3assessor, included in the right-of-way over which the utility
4seeks in its application to construct a high-voltage electric
5line of the time and place scheduled for the initial hearing on
6the public utility's application. The utility shall reimburse
7the Commission for the cost of the postage and supplies
8incurred for mailing the notice.
9(Source: P.A. 99-399, eff. 8-18-15.)
 
10    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
11becoming law.