South Carolina Code of Regulations › Chapter 28 - DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS › Section 28-78 - Sale or Lease of Renewable Energy Facilities

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 6, June 28, 2024
A. Definitions: Definitions shall be those
		  contained in Title 37 and the following:
(1)
		  "Advertisement" means an oral, written, graphic, or pictorial statement made in
		  the course of soliciting for the sale or lease of a renewable energy facility,
		  including in a newspaper, magazine, on radio, television, or the Internet, or
		  in the form of a mailer or other direct solicitation.
(2) "Consumer" means a purchaser or lessee or
		  prospective purchaser or lessee of a renewable energy facility for a personal,
		  family, or household purpose.
(3)
		  "Lead" means any information identifying a consumer.
(4) "Lead generation" means to:
(a) Initiate consumer interest or inquiry in
		  a renewable energy facility through advertisements;
(b) Engage in the business of selling leads
		  for renewable energy facilities; or
(c) Generate or augment leads for, or refer
		  South Carolina residents to, a third party for renewable energy facilities for
		  a fee, compensation, or gain or expectation thereof.
(5) "Lead generator" means a person engaging
		  in the business of lead generation for the purpose of sale to or benefit of a
		  third party. For purposes of this regulation, the lead generator is an agent of
		  the renewable energy facility retailer purchasing or otherwise benefitting from
		  the lead.
(6) "Lease agreement"
		  means a contract, commitment or document between a consumer and lessor for the
		  exclusive rights to use a renewable energy facility for a period of time in
		  exchange for a payment.
(7)
		  "Purchase agreement" means a contract, commitment or document under which a
		  consumer purchases a residential renewable energy facility from a renewable
		  energy facility retailer.
(8)
		  "Renewable energy facility" means any facility for the production of electrical
		  energy that utilizes a renewable generation resource such as solar photovoltaic
		  and solar thermal resources, wind resources, low impact hydroelectric
		  resources, geothermal resources, tidal and wave energy resources, recycling
		  resources, hydrogen fuel derived from renewable resources, combined heat and
		  power derived from renewable resources, and biomass resources.
(9) "Renewable energy facility agreement" or
		  "agreement" means a purchase agreement or a lease agreement.
(10) "Renewable energy facility retailer" or
		  "retailer" means a person who:
(a) Sells or
		  proposes to sell a renewable energy facility to a consumer under a purchase
		  agreement; or
(b) Owns the
		  renewable energy facility that is the subject of a lease agreement.
(11) "Renewable energy facility
		  solicitation" means, for compensation or gain or with the expectation of
		  compensation or gain, to:
(a) Offer, solicit,
		  broker, directly or indirectly arrange, place, or find a renewable energy
		  facility for a consumer in this State;
(b) Engage in any activity intended to assist
		  a consumer in this State in obtaining a renewable energy facility, including
		  lead generation;
(c) Arrange, in
		  whole or in part, the sale or lease of a renewable energy facility through a
		  third party, regardless of whether approval, acceptance, or ratification by the
		  third party is necessary to create a legal obligation for the third party,
		  through any method, including mail, telephone, Internet, or any electronic
		  means; or
(d) Represent to
		  consumers through advertising or other means of communicating or providing
		  information, including the use of business cards, stationery, brochures, signs,
		  rate lists, or other promotional items, that a person can or will provide a
		  renewable energy facility or any of the services described in subdivisions
		  (a)-(c) of this definition.
(12) "Retail electric provider" includes an
		  electrical utility as defined in Section
		  58-27-10
		  and all other entities providing retail electric service in South Carolina
		  regardless of where organized or domiciled.
(13) "Third-party servicer" means a person
		  that enters into a contract with a renewable energy facility retailer to
		  perform the installation, maintenance, or servicing of a facility for a
		  consumer in this State.