625 ILCS 5/18c-4502
2021 Illinois Compiled Statutes|Chapter 625 - VEHICLES|625 ILCS 5/ - Illinois Vehicle Code.|Chapter 18c - Illinois Commercial Transportation Law

 (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 18c-4502)Sec. 18c-4502. Collective ratemaking.(1) Application for approval.  Any carrier party to an agreement between or among 2 or more  carriers relating to rates, fares, classifications,  divisions, allowances, or charges (including charges between  carriers and compensation paid or received for the use of  facilities and equipment), or rules and regulations  pertaining thereto, or procedures for the joint consideration,  initiation, or establishment thereof, whether such conference,  bureau, committee, or other organization be a "for-profit" or  "not-for-profit" corporate entity or whether or not such  conference, bureau, committee or other organization is or  will be controlled by other businesses may, under such rules  and regulations as the Commission may prescribe, apply to the  Commission for approval of the agreement, and the Commission  shall by order approve any such agreement, if approval  thereof is not prohibited by subsection (3), (4), or (5) of  this Section, if it finds that, by reason of furtherance of  the State transportation policy declared in Section 18c-1103  of this Chapter, the relief provided in subsection (8) should  apply with respect to the making and carrying out of such  agreement; otherwise the application shall be denied.  The  approval of the Commission shall be granted only upon such  terms and conditions as the Commission may prescribe as  necessary to enable it to grant its approval in accordance  with the standard above set forth in this paragraph.(2) Accounts, reporting, and internal procedures.  Each conference, bureau, committee, or other organization  established or continued pursuant to any agreement approved  by the Commission under the provisions of this Section shall  maintain such accounts, records, files and memoranda and  shall submit to the Commission such reports, as may be  prescribed by the Commission, and all such accounts, records,  files, and memoranda shall be subject to inspection by the  Commission or its duly authorized representatives.  Any  conference, bureau committee, or other organization described  in subsection (1) of this Section shall cause to be published  notice of the final disposition of any action taken by such  entity together with a concise statement of the reasons  therefor.  The Commission shall withhold approval of any  agreement under this Section unless the agreement specifies a  reasonable period of time within which proposals by parties  to the agreement will be finally acted upon by the  conference, bureau, committee, or other organization.(3) Matters which may be the subject of agreements approved by  the Commission.  The Commission shall not approve under this Section any  agreement between or among carriers of different classes  unless it finds that such agreement is of the character  described in subsection (1) of this Section and is limited to  matters relating to transportation under joint rates or over  through routes.  For purposes of this paragraph carriers by  railroad and express companies are carriers of one class;  carriers by motor vehicle are carriers of one class and  carriers by water are carriers of one class.(4) Non-applicability of Section to transfers.  The Commission shall not approve under this Section any  agreement which it finds is an agreement with respect to a  pooling, division, or other matter or transaction, to which  Section 18c-4302 of this Chapter is applicable.(5) Independent action.  The Commission shall not approve under this Section any  agreement which establishes a procedure for the determination  of any matter through joint consideration unless it finds  that under the agreement there is accorded to each party the  free and unrestrained right to take independent action either  before or after any determination arrived at through such  procedures.  The Commission shall not find that each party  has a free and unrestrained right to take independent action  if the conference, bureau, committee, or other organization  is granted by the agreement any right to engage in  proceedings before the Commission or before any court regarding  any action taken by a party to an agreement authorized by  this Section, or by any other party providing or seeking  authority to provide transportation services.(6) Investigation of activities.  The Commission is authorized, upon complaint or upon its own  initiative without complaint, to investigate and determine  whether any agreement previously approved by it under this  Section or terms and conditions upon which such approval was  granted, is not or are not in conformity with the standard,  set forth in subsection (1), or whether any such terms and  conditions are not necessary for purposes of conformity with  such standard, and, after such investigation, the Commission  shall by order terminate or modify its approval of such  agreement if it finds such action necessary to insure  conformity with such standard, and shall modify the terms and  conditions upon which such approval was granted to the extent  it finds necessary to insure conformity with such standard or to the  extent to which it finds such terms and conditions not necessary  to insure such conformity.  The effective  date of any order terminating or modifying approval, or  modifying terms and conditions, shall be postponed for such  period as the Commission determines to be reasonably  necessary to avoid undue hardship.(7) Hearings and orders.  No order shall be entered under this Section except after  interested parties have been afforded reasonable opportunity  for hearing.(8) Exemption from State antitrust laws.  Parties to any agreement approved by the Commission under  this Section and other persons are, if the approval of such  agreement is not prohibited by subsection (3), (4), or (5),  hereby relieved from the operation of the antitrust laws with  respect to the making of such agreement, and with respect to  the carrying out of such agreement in conformity with its  provisions and in conformity with the terms and conditions  prescribed by the Commission.(9) Other laws not affected.  Any action of the Commission under this Section in approving  an agreement, or in denying an application for such approval,  or in terminating or modifying its approval of an agreement,  or in prescribing the terms and conditions upon which its  approval is to be granted, or in modifying such terms and  conditions, shall be construed as having effect solely with  reference to the applicability of the relief provisions of  paragraph subsection (8) of this Section.  (Source: P.A. 101-81, eff. 7-12-19.)