Illinois Administrative Code › Title 83 - PUBLIC UTILITIES › Part 460 - CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS AND STANDARDS OF SERVICE FOR METER SERVICE PROVIDERS › Subpart A - GENERAL PROVISIONS › Section 460.10 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 28, July 12, 2024
"Acceptance testing" means the approval of a group of meters based
				  on statistical testing procedures.
"Act" means the Public Utilities Act [220 ILCS 5 ].
"Advanced metering system" means any metering system that does not
				  require on-site meter reading.
"Alternative retail electric supplier" or "ARES" means the same as
				  that term is defined in Section 16-102 of the Act [220 ILCS
				  5/16-102 ].
"Answer time" means a measurement from the point the last digit of
				  the meter service provider's telephone number is dialed or, if a menu-driven system
				  is used, from the point the last menu digit is dialed by the subscriber and the call
				  is answered by the meter service provider.
"Applicant" means a person that files an application with the
				  Illinois Commerce Commission to provide metering service as a meter service provider
				  pursuant to Section 16-108(a) of the Act [220
				  ILCS 5/16-108(a) ].
"Average error" means the difference between 100% and the average
				  percent registration as defined in Section
				  460.370(d).
"Best's Key Rating Insurance Guide" refers to a report published
				  by A. M. Best or its successor that assigns ratings to insurance companies to
				  provide an overall opinion of an insurance company's ability to meet its obligations
				  to policyholders.
"Billing multiplier" means the number by which a meter register
				  reading is multiplied to obtain actual usage data. The billing multiplier shall
				  include the transformer multiplier and meter multiplier, if applicable.
"Bodily injury" means bodily impairment, sickness, or disease
				  sustained by a person, including death resulting from the bodily impairment,
				  sickness, or disease.
"Business enterprise" means a commercial enterprise or
				  establishment.
"Certificate of insurance" means a document evidencing the fact
				  that an insurance policy has been written and includes a statement of the coverage
				  of the policy in general terms.
"Commission" means the Illinois Commerce Commission.
"Commission referee test" means the accuracy test of any
				  customer's electric meter made in the presence of one or more members of Commission
				  Staff.
"Complaint" means an objection made to a meter service provider,
				  by a customer or other entity, as to its charges, facilities or service, the
				  disposal of which complaint requires investigation or analysis.
"Commercial general liability insurance" means insurance that
				  covers suits against the insured for such damages as injury or death and property
				  damage.
"Creep" means a continuous apparent accumulation of energy in a
				  meter with voltage applied and the load terminals open circuited.
"Customer" has the same meaning as "retail customer".
"Delivery services" means the same as that term is defined in
				  Section 16-102 of the Act [220 ILCS
				  5/16-102 ].
"Delivery services provider" or "DSP" means the electric utility
				  providing delivery services.
"Demand" means the electric consumption at the point of delivery
				  measured over a specified interval of time in order to estimate the instantaneous
				  electric load.
"Dun & Bradstreet Business Information Report" means a credit
				  report on businesses published by Dun & Bradstreet or its successor.
"Dun & Bradstreet Composite Credit Appraisal" means a number,
				  one through four (one being the highest), that reflects Dun & Bradstreet's or
				  its successor's overall assessment of a firm's creditworthiness.
"Electric cooperative" means the same as that term is defined in
				  Section 3.4 of the Electric Supplier Act [220 ILCS 30/3.4
				  ].
"Electric utility" means the same as that term is defined in
				  Section 16-102 of the Act [220 ILCS 5/16-102].
"Entity" means each electric utility while providing services
				  within its service area, each electric utility while providing electric power and
				  energy outside its service area, any ARES, and any electric cooperative or municipal
				  system but only when it provides services as an ARES outside its service
				  territory.
"Escrow account" means a bank account held in the name of the
				  depositor (the applicant or meter service provider) and an escrow agent that is
				  returnable to the depositor or paid to a third person on fulfillment of the escrow
				  condition (i.e., liability obligations of the meter service provider).
"Escrow agent" means the State or national bank or trust company
				  having trust authority in the State of Illinois with which the applicant established
				  an escrow account.
"Experian Small Business Intelliscore report" means a credit
				  report on individuals or businesses published by Experian or its successor.
"Instrument transformer" means a transformer used for metering
				  that reproduces in its secondary circuit, in a definite and known proportion, the
				  voltage or current of its primary circuit, with the phase relation substantially
				  preserved.
"Intelliscore" means a score range from 0 to 100 that reflects
				  Experian's assessment of the likelihood of an individual or business becoming
				  seriously delinquent on its outstanding obligations, as reported in the Experian
				  Small Business Intelliscore report.
"License bond" means an obligation of a surety to pay the monies
				  that the meter service provider owes the State of Illinois for violations of the
				  duties and obligations imposed on it as a meter service provider.
"Management position" means an employed position whereby an
				  individual is responsible for directing, supervising, or administering the
				  activities of a group of two or more people with fiscal responsibility and authority
				  over that group.
"Meter multiplier" means the number (other than one) by which the
				  meter register reading is multiplied to obtain meter data not adjusted for the
				  effect of instrument transformation on the calculated amount of actual usage.
"Meter service provider" or "MSP" means every provider of metering
				  service certified by the Commission under the provisions of this Part.
"Meter shop" means a facility containing equipment used by a meter
				  service provider for determining the accuracy of meters.
"Metering service" means the performance of functions related to
				  the provision, installation, testing, maintenance, repair and reading of electric
				  meters used for billing of retail customers and maintaining meter usage data as well
				  as the maintenance and management of meter information and meter data with respect
				  to those meters. (See Section
				  460.15.)
"Municipal system" means any public utility owned and operated by
				  any political subdivision or municipal corporation of the State of Illinois, or
				  owned by such and operated by its lessees or agents.
"On-site" means at the premises of the customer.
"PAYDEX Score" is a number from 1 to 100 that represents Dun &
				  Bradstreet's assessment of a company's payment performance, as reported in the Dun
				  & Bradstreet Business Information Report.
"Permit bond" has the same meaning as "license bond".
"Person" means the same as that term is defined in Section 3-114
				  of the Act [220
				  ILCS 5/3-114 ].
"Point of delivery" means the point at which the entity providing
				  distribution facilities connects its lines or equipment to the lines or facilities
				  owned or rented by the customer, without regard to the location or ownership of
				  transformers, substations or meters, unless otherwise provided for by written
				  contract or tariffs.
"Portable standards" means instruments (e.g., watt-hour meters,
				  volt-meters, and ammeters) that are used outside the meter shop to test customer
				  meters.
"Property damage" means physical injury to or destruction of
				  property, including all resulting loss of use of that property, or loss of use of
				  property that is not physically destroyed, provided such loss of use is caused by
				  the physical injury to or destruction of other property.
"Qualifying surety" means a surety or insurer that is authorized
				  by the U.S. Department of Treasury pursuant to
				  31 USC
				  9305. A qualifying surety or insurer may not
				  underwrite more than the amount specified by the U.S. Department of Treasury on a
				  single bond.
"Ratings agency" means Standard & Poor's or its successor,
				  Moody's Investors Service or its successor, Duff & Phelps or its successor, or
				  Fitch IBCA or its successor.
"Reference standards" means instruments (e.g., watt-hour meters,
				  volt-meters, and ammeters) that are used only for verifying the accuracy of working
				  or portable standards, and whose accuracy is traceable back to the national standard
				  maintained by the National Institute of Standards and Technology or its
				  successor.
"Retail customer" means the same as that term is defined in
				  Section 16-102 of the Act [220 ILCS 5/16-102].
"Self-insurance" means providing self-coverage for damages and
				  liabilities instead of through an insurance company.
"Service watt-hour meter" means an electricity meter used for
				  billing retail customers and maintaining meter usage data that measures and
				  registers the integral, with respect to time, of the real power that flows in the
				  circuit to which the meter is connected. This also includes meters that measure
				  demand in watts or volt-amperes.
"Small commercial retail customer" means the same as that term is
				  defined in Section 16-102 of the Act [220 ILCS 5/16-102].
"Standby letter of credit" means an instrument or document issued
				  by a financial institution guaranteeing the payment of the MSP's liability
				  obligations. The standby letter of credit is used to satisfy claims against the MSP
				  only after the MSP fails to fulfill its obligations.
"Surety bond" means an obligation of a surety to pay the monies
				  that the principal (the applicant or MSP) owes another party in the event the
				  principal fails for whatever reason to fulfill its obligations.
"Technical staff" means a staff of trained technical experts in
				  electric metering and related support functions.
"Test amps" means the electrical current used during meter
				  accuracy testing as designated by the manufacturer and displayed on the
				  meter.
"Transformer multiplier" means the product of the current
				  transformer ratio multiplied by the potential transformer ratio when instrument
				  transformers are part of a metering installation.
"Unconditional guarantee" means an undertaking by a guarantor to
				  pay or fulfill the obligation on failure of the principal obligor to fulfill its
				  contractual obligations. An unconditional guarantee shall contain the following
				  provisions:
The guarantee is one of payment and not collection;
The guarantor's obligations under the guarantee are weighed
				  equally with other guarantees;
The obligations from transactions entered into under the original
				  guarantee are the subject of an ongoing guarantee;
The guarantee reinstates if any guaranteed payment made by the
				  primary obligor is recaptured as a result of bankruptcy or insolvency;
The guarantee is binding on successors of the guarantor;
The guarantor has subjected itself to jurisdiction and service of
				  process with the laws of the State of Illinois, and has agreed that the guarantee
				  will be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Illinois without
				  reference to conflict of laws principles; and
The guaranteed obligations are unconditional, irrespective of
				  value, genuineness, validity, waiver, release, alteration, amendment, and
				  enforceability of the guaranteed obligations.
"Var-hour meter" means an electricity meter that measures and
				  registers the integral, with respect to time, of the reactive power of the circuit
				  in which it is connected. This includes meters that measure demand in vars.
"Working standards" means instruments (e.g., test benches and
				  demand boards) that are used in meter shops to test the accuracy of customer
				  meters.