jswizzle3737/ontario_laws_and_regs huggingface dataset:
PART I ELECTRICITY VENDORS
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Continued financial assistance for certain ineligible accounts
 1.2 (1) This section applies to consumers who, on October 22, 2019, were receiving financial assistance in respect of an account that, as of November 1, 2019, is not an eligible account. O. Reg. 342/19, s. 2 (1). (2) A consumer referred to in subsection (1) is, despite subsection 1.1 (1), entitled to continue receiving financial assistance in accordance with this Part on and after November 1, 2019 until the following date: 1.  October 31, 2022, if the consumer meets the notice requirements of section 1.3 before February 1, 2020. 2.  January 31, 2020, if the consumer does not meet the notice requirements of section 1.3 before February 1, 2020. O. Reg. 342/19, s. 2 (1); O. Reg. 568/20, s. 1; O. Reg. 306/21, s. 1. (3) Despite subsection (1), the definition of eligible account in subsection 1 (1) of the Act is deemed, for the purposes of this Part, to include an account in respect of which there is an entitlement to financial assistance under this section, to the extent of the entitlement. O. Reg. 16/20, s. 1.
Financial assistance
 2. Except where the Act or this Regulation provides otherwise, a consumer who has an eligible account under this Part during a billing period is entitled to receive financial assistance in respect of the consumer’s costs of electricity during the billing period in an amount equal to 19.3 per cent of the base invoice amount determined in accordance with section 2.1 for the billing period in respect of the eligible account. O. Reg. 342/19, s. 3; O. Reg. 568/20, s. 2; O. Reg. 736/20, s. 1; O. Reg. 306/21, s. 2; O. Reg. 728/21, s. 1; O. Reg. 501/22, s. 1; O. Reg. 327/23, s. 1; O. Reg. 329/23, s. 1.
Flow through of financial assistance
 3. (1) This section applies to, (a)  a consumer to whom subsection 3 (7) of the Act applies; and (b)  a person who is entitled to receive a credit under subsection 3 (7) of the Act on an invoice issued by the consumer, an agent of the consumer or a unit sub-meter provider providing unit sub-metering for the consumer. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 3 (1). (2) Subject to subsection (3), the credit that the person is entitled to receive under subsection 3 (7) of the Act and the consumer or unit sub-meter provider is required to provide is equal to the amount of the financial assistance to which the consumer is entitled for a billing period in respect of the eligible account, multiplied by the ratio of the portion of the amount of the invoice for the billing period that is payable by the person to the total amount of the invoice for the billing period payable by the consumer. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 3 (2). (3) In the case of a person who receives rate assistance under the Ontario Electricity Support Program before March 1, 2020, the credit to which the person is entitled under subsection (2) shall be reduced by the following percentage of the amount received in assistance under that program: 1.  For assistance received before November 1, 2019, 8 per cent. 2.  For assistance received during the period beginning on November 1, 2019 and ending on the last day of the last invoice period, as defined in section 4, for which an invoice is issued to the person by the applicable unit sub-meter provider before March 1, 2020, 31.8 per cent. O. Reg. 16/20, s. 3. (4) Every unit sub-meter provider shall maintain an account that records, on a monthly basis and in respect of each consumer, the difference between the amount calculated under subsection (2) without reference to subsection (3), and the amount payable after subsection (3) is taken into account. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 3 (4); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 4 (2). (5) The unit sub-meter provider shall, before February 29, 2020, pay to the Minister of Finance any amount recorded in the account under subsection (4) before February 1, 2020 that has not been already been paid to that Minister. O. Reg. 342/19, s. 4 (3).
Financial assistance re fees and charges imposed by unit sub-meter providers
 4. (1) This section applies to, (a)  every unit sub-meter provider who provides unit sub-metering for a consumer to whom subsection 3 (7) of the Act applies; and (b)  every person to whom the unit sub-meter provider issues an invoice for electricity in respect of which a consumer is entitled to receive financial assistance under section 3 of the Act. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 4 (1); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 5 (1). (2) In this section, “fees and charges” means any fees and charges for unit sub-metering that appear on an invoice issued by a unit sub-meter provider; (“droits et frais”) “invoice period” means, in respect of an invoice for electricity issued to a person by a unit sub-meter provider, the period of time to which the invoice applies. (“période visée par la facture”) O. Reg. 363/16, s. 4 (2). (3) A person to whom an invoice is issued for an invoice period by a unit sub-meter provider is entitled to receive financial assistance equal to 19.3 per cent of the sum of the amount of fees and charges for the invoice period or, if the invoice period is not wholly in the eligible period, for the portion of the invoice period that is in the eligible period. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 4 (3); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 5 (2); O. Reg. 568/20, s. 3; O. Reg. 736/20, s. 2; O. Reg. 306/21, s. 3; O. Reg. 728/21, s. 1; O. Reg. 501/22, s. 2; O. Reg. 327/23, s. 2; O. Reg. 329/23, s. 2. (4) If an invoice period is not wholly within the eligible period, the amount of fees and charges for the portion of the invoice period that is in the eligible period is determined by multiplying the amount of the fees and charges for the invoice period by the ratio of the number of days in the invoice period that are in the eligible period to the total number of days in the invoice period. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 4 (4). (5) A unit sub-meter provider may make a reasonable estimate of, (a)  the volume of electricity used by a consumer during a portion of a billing period; and (b)  the portion of an amount that relates to electricity consumption during a portion of a billing period. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 4 (5). (6) Every unit sub-meter provider shall maintain an account that records, on a monthly basis and in respect of each consumer, the amounts paid by the unit sub-meter provider as financial assistance under this section. O. Reg. 342/19, s. 5 (3).
Explanation of calculation of credit
 5. (1) The issuer of an invoice that includes a credit for financial assistance shall, if requested by the person liable to pay the invoice, explain how the amount of the financial assistance on the invoice has been calculated. (2) If an invoice issued by an electricity vendor or unit sub-meter provider contains a credit for more than one billing period or invoice period, the issuer of the invoice shall provide, if requested by the person liable to pay the invoice, a break-down of the amount of the credit between periods.
Payments directly to consumers
 6. (1) In this section, “issuer” means an electricity vendor, consumer, agent of a consumer or a unit sub-meter provider who issues an invoice to a person who is entitled to, (a)  financial assistance, or (b)  a credit under subsection 3 (7) of the Act. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 6 (1). (2) This section applies to an issuer if, (a)  subsection 4 (3) of the Act, as it read on October 31, 2019, applies to, (i)  the issuer, (ii)  an electricity vendor who issues invoices to the issuer or to a consumer for whom the issuer is an agent, or (iii)  an electricity vendor who issues invoices to a consumer for whom the issuer provides unit sub-metering; and (b)  the person entitled to the financial assistance or credit ceases to have an account with the issuer before receiving all or part of the financial assistance or credit to which he or she is entitled. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 6 (2); O. Reg. 16/20, s. 5. (3) If the amount the person is entitled to receive from an issuer but has not received is at least $10, the issuer shall, no later than September 30, 2017, mail or deliver by hand the unpaid amount to the person’s most recent address known to the issuer. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 6 (3). (4) If a cheque mailed or delivered by hand in accordance with subsection (3) has not been cashed despite the best efforts of the issuer to deliver it, and the cheque has ceased to be negotiable through the passage of time, the person ceases to be entitled to receive the amount of financial assistance or credit represented by the cheque. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 6 (4). (5) Every electricity vendor and unit sub-meter provider shall pay to the Minister of Finance all amounts of less than $10 that are not paid by the electricity vendor or unit sub-meter provider and all amounts not received by a person and to which the person has ceased under this section to be entitled to receive. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 6 (5). (6) If a consumer referred to in subsection 3 (7) of the Act is unable for reasons beyond his or her control to provide a credit to a person, to have the credit provided to the person by an agent or unit sub-meter provider or to pay the amount of the credit to the person under subsection (3), the consumer shall pay to the Minister of Finance the amount that should have been credited or paid to the person and the person ceases to be entitled to the credit. O. Reg. 16/20, s. 6 (6).
Duty to provide information
 7. (1) Every electricity vendor, every unit sub-meter provider and every person who provides financial assistance shall, upon receipt of a request from the Minister or the Board, provide the information relating to the Act and this Regulation specified in the request within the time period specified in the request, for the purpose of monitoring compliance with the Act and this Regulation. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 7 (1). (2) Without in any way restricting the generality of subsection (1), examples of information that may be requested under that subsection are, (a)  the amount of financial assistance provided; (b)  the number and location of eligible accounts; (c)  the volume of electricity on which financial assistance was provided; (d)  where applicable, the information mentioned in clauses (a), (b) and (c) categorized according to the classes of consumers receiving financial assistance; (e)  the information mentioned in clauses (a), (b) and (c) in respect of multi-unit complexes in relation to which financial assistance is provided under this Part or residential complexes in relation to which financial assistance is provided under Part II; (f)  the information mentioned in clauses (a), (b) and (c) in respect of licensed retailers; (g)  a monthly forecast of the total amount of financial assistance to be provided for the next three consecutive months, including a description of the forecasting approach and assumptions; (h)  the weighted average of the fees and charges of a unit sub-meter provider; and (i)  the applicable accounting methodology and sample calculations. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 7 (2); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 6 (1); O. Reg. 16/20, s. 6. (3) Every electricity vendor shall, on receipt of a request from the Minister, provide the information referred to in paragraph 4 of subsection 1.3 (2) that is specified in the request within the time period specified in the request. O. Reg. 342/19, s. 6 (2).
Records
 8. Every unit sub-meter provider is prescribed for the purposes of section 8 of the Act as a person required to keep records in accordance with that section.
Reliance on information
 12. (1) The Minister and electricity vendors shall rely on the information provided to them as required under this Regulation and any additional information requested under section 7. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 12 (1); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 8. (2) A licensed retailer and licensed distributor may rely on information provided to each other in determining if a person is entitled to financial assistance under the Act and the amount of the financial assistance.
Variance accounts
 13. With the approval of and subject to any direction from the Board, licensed distributors, other than Cornwall Street Railway Light and Power Company Limited, shall establish and maintain such variance accounts as may be necessary or desirable for the purposes of the Act and this Regulation. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 13; O. Reg. 342/19, s. 9.
If retail contract is deemed to be void
 14. (1) This section applies if, (a)  a consumer has received financial assistance under the Act in respect of the cost of electricity retailed to the consumer by a licensed retailer pursuant to a contract with the consumer; (b)  the financial assistance was provided to the consumer by means of a credit deducted from the amount otherwise payable by the consumer to a licensed distributor or the licensed retailer in respect of the electricity; and (c)  the contract is deemed to be void under section 16 of the Energy Consumer Protection Act, 2010 and, pursuant to subsection 16 (3) of that Act, the licensed retailer is required to refund to the consumer the money paid by the consumer under the contract. (2) The retailer shall, (a)  if the licensed retailer uses retailer-consolidated billing, pay to the Minister of Finance the amount of all reimbursements the licensed retailer received under clause 10 (3) (d) in respect of the eligible account to which the contract related; or (b)  if the licensed retailer uses distributor-consolidated billing, pay to the Minister of Finance an amount equal to the total amount of all financial assistance the consumer received in respect of the commodity price of the electricity under the contract.
Limitation periods
 15. (1) The following limitation periods are prescribed for the purposes of subsection 6 (1) of the Act: 1.  In the case of financial assistance to which there was an entitlement before November 1, 2019, 24 months from the date of issuance of the invoice in which the financial assistance was not provided. 2.  In the case of financial assistance to which there is an entitlement on or after November 1, 2019 but before July 1, 2023, i.  12 months from the date of issuance of the invoice in which the financial assistance was not provided, in the case of financial assistance under this Part, and ii.  24 months from the date of issuance of the invoice in which the financial assistance was not provided, in the case of financial assistance under Part II. 3.  In the case of financial assistance to which there is an entitlement on or after July 1, 2023, 24 months from the date of issuance of the invoice in which the financial assistance was not provided. O. Reg. 342/19, s. 10; O. Reg. 16/20, s. 8; O. Reg. 160/23, s. 1 (1, 2). (2) The limitation period for the purposes of subsection 6 (2) of the Act is six months from the earliest date when the electricity vendor or other person referred to in that subsection could have submitted a claim for reimbursement of a rebate amount that they provided. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 15 (2). (3) In the event of a conflict between a limitation period referred to in subsection (2) and a limitation period provided for in section 36.1.1 of the Electricity Act, 1998, the limitation period that provides the longest time period for a claim to be made prevails. O. Reg. 160/23, s. 1 (3). PART II   REMOTE UNLICENSED DISTRIBUTORS
PART II REMOTE UNLICENSED DISTRIBUTORS
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Remote unlicensed distributors
 16. (1) A remote unlicensed distributor is a person, corporation or organization that, (a)  distributes electricity in a remote community listed in the Schedule; (b)  issues invoices for electricity distributed to electricity customers who are eligible to receive financial assistance under the Act; and (c)  is willing to provide financial assistance to those customers as an agent of the Minister. (2) Every remote unlicensed distributor meeting the requirements set out in section 17 is prescribed as an electricity vendor for the purposes of the Act. (3) Section 6 does not apply to remote unlicensed distributors or to consumers who have eligible accounts with them. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 16 (3); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 11. (4) Despite section 21, no amount is payable as a reimbursement to a remote unlicensed distributor who fails without reasonable cause to provide any information required by the Minister within the time it is required to be provided.
Enrolment of remote unlicensed distributors
 17. (1) Subject to subsection (4), in order to be prescribed under section 16, a remote unlicensed distributor must first, (a)  submit a completed form entitled “Enrolment Application”, available from the Ministry, to the contact person at the Ministry listed on the form; and (b)  enter into an agreement in the form required by the Ministry. (2) The distributor must submit with the Enrolment Application, (a)  information on the distributor’s electricity pricing structure; (b)  information on the distributor’s consumer rate classes, if any, including the number of customers within each consumer rate class; and (c)  a sample of an invoice it intends to issue to its electricity customers that shows the amount of financial assistance the customer is entitled to with respect to the time period specified on the application. (3) The Ministry may request, at any time and from time to time, and the distributor shall provide any additional information or documents the Ministry requires in order to confirm that the distributor is a remote unlicensed distributor during the eligible period and to determine if there are consumers who have eligible accounts with the distributor during the eligible period. (4) The requirements of clause (1) (a) do not apply to a remote unlicensed distributor distributing electricity to any of the following remote communities: 1.  North Spirit Lake. 2.  Winisk Indian Settlement. 3.  Summer Beaver Settlement. 4.  Muskrat Dam Lake.
Eligible account
 18. (1) For the purposes of the definition of “eligible account” in subsection 1 (1) of the Act, an eligible account in this Part means an account of a consumer in a remote community listed in the Schedule with the applicable remote unlicensed distributor for the provision of electricity, if any of the following conditions is met: 1.  The consumer has a demand for electricity of 50 kilowatts or less. 2.  The consumer annually uses not more than 250,000 kilowatt hours of electricity. 3.  The consumer, i.  carries on a business that is a farming business for the purposes of the Farm Registration and Farm Organizations Funding Act, 1993, and ii.  holds a valid registration number assigned under that Act or the consumer’s obligation to file a farming business registration form was waived pursuant to an order made under subsection 22 (6) of that Act. Note: On the day section 5 of Schedule 1 to the Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, 2019 comes into force, subparagraph 3 ii of subsection 18 (1) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted: (See: O. Reg. 342/19, s. 12 (2)) ii.  holds a valid farm business registration number assigned under that Act or the consumer’s obligation to file an application for a farming business registration number was waived pursuant to an order made under subsection 22 (6) of that Act. 4.  The account relates to, i.  a dwelling, ii.  a property, within the meaning of the Condominium Act, 1998, iii.  a residential complex, within the meaning of subsection 2 (1) of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, without regard to section 5 of that Act, iv.  a property that includes one or more housing units and that is owned or leased by a co-operative within the meaning of the Co-operative Corporations Act. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 18 (1); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 12 (1). (2) A person who is eligible to receive financial assistance under this Part is entitled to receive it in respect of electricity consumed in the period before the first invoice in which financial assistance is shown, as long as the electricity was consumed no more than 24 months before the issuance of the invoice. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 18 (2); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 12 (3).
Calculating the financial assistance
 19. (1) A consumer who has an eligible account under this Part during a billing period is entitled to receive financial assistance in respect of the consumer’s costs of electricity during the billing period in an amount equal to 8 per cent of the base invoice amount determined in accordance with this section for the billing period in respect of the eligible account. O. Reg. 342/19, s. 13 (1). (2) The base invoice amount for a billing period includes the cost of the electricity billed to the consumer for the billing period, including the variable and fixed charges relating to the production and delivery of the electricity. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 19 (1); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 13 (2). (3) The base invoice amount for a billing period for a consumer must exclude, (a)  any unpaid amounts that have already been billed for a previous billing period; (b)  all penalties, interest and any other charges not relating to the production and delivery of electricity to the consumer during the billing period; and (c)  Revoked: O. Reg. 342/19, s. 13 (3). (d)  the amount of any harmonized sales tax (HST) payable under Part IX of the Excise Tax Act
(Canada). O. Reg. 363/16, s. 19 (2); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 13 (3). (4) Revoked: O. Reg. 342/19, s. 13 (4).
How the distributor provides the financial assistance to a consumer
 20. If a consumer’s eligible account for electricity with a remote unlicensed distributor is closed before the consumer receives all or part of his or her financial assistance from the distributor, the following rules apply: 1.  The distributor may apply the amount of the financial assistance the consumer is entitled to receive but has not yet received to any outstanding balance owing by the consumer to the distributor. 2.  If the amount then remaining that the consumer is entitled to receive but has not yet received is at least $10, the distributor must mail or deliver by hand that unpaid amount to the consumer’s most recent address known to the distributor. 3.  If a cheque mailed or delivered by hand in accordance with paragraph 2 has not been cashed despite the best efforts of the distributor to deliver it, and the cheque has ceased to be negotiable through the passage of time, the distributor is no longer liable to pay the benefits to the consumer and must ensure that the amount is repaid or credited to the Minister of Finance. 4.  The distributor shall pay or credit to the Minister of Finance all amounts of less than $10 that are not paid by the distributor and all amounts referred to in paragraph 3, i.  by reporting the total amount in the next Energy Report form, required under section 21, as a deduction from the amount of any reimbursement payable to the distributor, or ii.  by remitting the total amount to the Ministry of Energy, Northern Development and Mines (but payable to the Minister of Finance). O. Reg. 363/16, s. 20; O. Reg. 342/19, s. 14.
Reimbursement of benefits provided to consumers
 21. (1) To receive a reimbursement for financial assistance provided to its consumers, a remote unlicensed distributor must complete a form entitled “Energy Report”, available from the Ministry, for each billing period for which the distributor provided financial assistance to a consumer, and must submit it to the Ministry in accordance with the directions on the form. (2) The Ministry may at any time request, and the distributor shall provide, within the time specified in the request, any additional information or documents the Ministry considers necessary to determine the amount of the reimbursement to be made to the distributor.  No reimbursement for a billing period may be made until the Ministry has received the Energy Report for the billing period and any additional information or documents it has requested to verify the amount to be reimbursed. (3) Based on the information provided in an Energy Report and any additional information and documents provided by the distributor, the Minister shall reimburse the distributor for the amount of financial assistance provided to consumers.  The reimbursement shall be made in the manner set out in the Enrolment Application submitted by the distributor or in another manner established by the Ministry. (4) The amount of a reimbursement may be subsequently adjusted by way of a reduction or increase in the amount of a subsequent reimbursement if it is subsequently determined by an inspector under section 9 of the Act or by the Ministry that the amount of the reimbursement was inaccurate. (5) Despite subsection 15 (2), the limitation period for a claim for reimbursement described in this section is 12 months from the earliest date when the remote unlicensed distributor could have submitted a claim for reimbursement of a rebate amount that they provided. O. Reg. 363/16, s. 21 (5); O. Reg. 342/19, s. 15. 22. Omitted (provides for coming into force of provisions of this Regulation). Schedule 1.  Fort Hope No. 64. 2.  Keewaywin. 3.  North Spirit Lake. 4.  Winisk Indian Settlement. 5.  Pikangikum No. 14. 6.  Poplar Hill. 7.  Summer Beaver Settlement. 8.  Wunnumin No.1. 9.  Muskrat Dam Lake. 10.  Wawakapewin.  Français