220 ILCS 5/16-101A
2021 Illinois Compiled Statutes|Chapter 220 - UTILITIES|220 ILCS 5/ - Public Utilities Act.|Article XVI - Electric Service Customer Choice And Rate Relief Law Of 1997

Sec. 16-101A. Legislative findings.(a) The citizens and businesses of the State of Illinois  have been well-served by a comprehensive electrical utility  system which has provided safe, reliable, and affordable  service.  The electrical utility system in the State of  Illinois has historically been subject to State and federal  regulation, aimed at assuring the citizens and businesses of  the State of safe, reliable, and affordable service, while at  the same time assuring the utility system of a return on its  investment.(b) Competitive forces are affecting the market for  electricity as a result of recent federal regulatory and  statutory changes and the activities of other states.  Competition in the electric services market may create  opportunities for new products and services for customers and  lower costs for users of electricity. Long-standing regulatory  relationships need to be altered to accommodate the  competition that could fundamentally alter the structure of  the electric services market.(c) With the advent of increasing competition in this  industry, the State has a continued interest in assuring that  the safety, reliability, and affordability of electrical power  is not sacrificed to competitive pressures, and to that end,  intends to implement safeguards to assure that the industry  continues to operate the electrical system in a manner that  will serve the public's interest. Under the existing  regulatory framework, the industry has been encouraged to  undertake certain investments in its physical plant and  personnel to enhance its efficient operation, the cost of  which it has been permitted to pass on to consumers. The  State has an interest in providing the existing utilities a  reasonable opportunity to obtain a return on certain  investments on which they depended in undertaking those  commitments in the first instance while, at the same time, not  permitting new entrants into the industry to take unreasonable  advantage of the investments made by the formerly regulated  industry.(d) A competitive wholesale and retail market must  benefit all Illinois citizens. The Illinois Commerce  Commission should act to promote the development of an  effectively competitive electricity market that operates  efficiently and is equitable to all consumers. Consumer  protections must be in place to ensure that all customers  continue to receive safe, reliable, affordable, and  environmentally safe electric service.(e) All consumers must benefit in an equitable and timely  fashion from the lower costs for electricity that result from  retail and wholesale competition and receive sufficient  information to make informed choices among suppliers and  services. The use of renewable resources and energy efficiency  resources should be encouraged in competitive markets.(f) The efficiency of electric markets depends both upon the competitiveness of supply and upon the price-responsiveness of the demand for service.  Therefore, to ensure the lowest total cost of service and to enhance the reliability of service, all classes of the electricity customers of electric utilities should have access to and be able to voluntarily use real-time pricing and other price-response and demand-response mechanisms.(g) Including cost-effective renewable resources and demand-response resources in a diverse electricity supply portfolio will reduce long-term direct and indirect costs to consumers by decreasing environmental impacts and by avoiding or delaying the need for new generation, transmission, and distribution infrastructure.  It serves the public interest to allow electric utilities to recover costs for reasonably and prudently incurred expenses for electricity generated by renewable resources and demand-response resources.(h) Including electricity generated by clean coal facilities, as defined under Section 1-10 of the Illinois Power Agency Act, in a diverse electricity procurement portfolio will reduce the need to purchase, directly or indirectly, carbon dioxide emission credits and will decrease environmental impacts. It serves the public interest to allow electric utilities to recover costs for reasonably and prudently incurred expenses for sourcing electricity generated by clean coal facilities. (Source: P.A. 94-977, eff. 6-30-06; 95-481, eff. 8-28-07; 95-1027, eff. 6-1-09.)