State of Illinois
91st General Assembly
Legislation

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91_SB0385ccr001

 
 1                        91ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
 2                  FIRST CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REPORT
 3                         ON SENATE BILL 385
 4        To the President of the Senate and  the  Speaker  of  the
 5    House of Representatives:
 6        We,  the  conference  committee appointed to consider the
 7    differences  between  the  houses  in   relation   to   House
 8    Amendments  No. 1 and No. 2 to Senate Bill 385, recommend the
 9    following:
10        (1)  that the Senate concur in House Amendments No. 1 and
11    No. 2; and
12        (2)  that Senate Bill 385, AS AMENDED, be further amended
13    as follows:
14    by replacing the title with the following:
15        "AN ACT concerning the Illinois  Clean  Energy  Community
16    Trust, amending named Acts."; and
17    in  Section 5 of the bill, in subsection (k) of Sec. 2, after
18    "trustees",   by   inserting   ",   or    their    appointing
19    authorities,"; and
20    by  inserting immediately below the last line of Section 5 of
21    the bill the following:

22        "Section 10.  The Public  Utilities  Act  is  amended  by
23    changing Section 16-111.1 as follows:

24        (220 ILCS 5/16-111.1)
25        Sec. 16-111.1.  Illinois Clean Energy Community Trust.
26        (a)  An  electric  utility  which has sold or transferred
27    generating facilities in a transaction  to  which  subsection
28    (k)  of  Section 16-111 applies is authorized to establish an
29    Illinois clean energy community trust or foundation  for  the
30    purposes  of  providing  financial  support and assistance to
31    entities, public or private, within  the  State  of  Illinois
32    including,  but  not  limited  to,  units  of State and local
33    government,  educational  institutions,   corporations,   and
34    charitable,    educational,   environmental   and   community
35    organizations, for programs and  projects  that  benefit  the
36    public  by  improving energy efficiency, developing renewable
37    energy resources, supporting other  energy  related  projects
38    that   improve   the   State's   environmental  quality,  and
39    supporting projects and  programs  intended  to  preserve  or
40    enhance the natural habitats and wildlife areas of the State.
41    Provided,  however,  that the trust or foundation funds shall
42    not be used for the remediation of  environmentally  impaired
43    property.   The  trust  or  foundation  may  also  assist  in
44    identifying    other    energy    and   environmental   grant
45    opportunities.
46        (b)  Such trust or foundation  shall  be  governed  by  a
47    declaration  of trust or articles of incorporation and bylaws
48    which shall, at a minimum, provide that:
49             (1)  There shall be 6 voting trustees of  the  trust
50        or  foundation,  one  of  whom  shall be appointed by the
51        Governor, one of whom shall be appointed by the President
52        of the Illinois Senate, one of whom shall be appointed by
53        the Minority Leader of the Illinois Senate, one  of  whom
54        shall  be  appointed by the Speaker of the Illinois House
55        of Representatives, one of whom shall be appointed by the
56        Minority Leader of the Illinois House of Representatives,
57        and one of  whom  shall  be  appointed  by  the  electric
58        utility  establishing  the  trust or foundation, provided
59        that the voting trustee appointed by the utility shall be
60        a representative of  a  recognized  environmental  action
61        group  selected  by  the  utility.   The  Governor  shall
62        designate  select  one  of the 6 voting trustees to serve
63        as, once appointed, to be the first chairman of the trust
64        or foundation, who shall serve as chairman of  the  trust
65        or foundation at the pleasure of the Governor pending the
66        first election of officers. In addition, there shall be 4
67        non-voting  trustees,  one  of whom shall be appointed by
68        the Director of the Department of Commerce and  Community
69        Affairs,  one  of whom shall be appointed by the Director
70        of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency,  one  of
71        whom shall be appointed by the Director of the Department
 
 1        of  Natural Resources, and one of whom shall be appointed
 2        by  the  electric  utility  establishing  the  trust   or
 3        foundation,   provided   that   the   non-voting  trustee
 4        appointed by the utility shall bring financial  expertise
 5        to  the  trust  or  foundation and shall have appropriate
 6        credentials therefor.
 7             (2)  All voting trustees and the non-voting  trustee
 8        with   financial   expertise   shall   be   entitled   to
 9        compensation  for  their  services as trustees, provided,
10        however, that no member of the General  Assembly  and  no
11        employee  of  the electric utility establishing the trust
12        or foundation serving as a voting trustee  shall  receive
13        any  compensation  for  his or her services as a trustee,
14        and  provided  further  that  the  compensation  to   the
15        chairman  of  the trust shall not exceed $25,000 annually
16        and the compensation  to  any  other  trustee  shall  not
17        exceed  $20,000 annually.  All trustees shall be entitled
18        to reimbursement  for  reasonable  expenses  incurred  on
19        behalf of the trust in the performance of their duties as
20        trustees.  All such compensation and reimbursements shall
21        be paid out of the trust.
22             (3)  Trustees  shall  be  appointed  within  30 days
23        after the creation of the trust or foundation  and  shall
24        serve  for  a term of 5 years commencing upon the date of
25        their respective  appointments,  until  their  respective
26        successors are appointed and qualified.
27             (4)  A  vacancy  in  the  office of trustee shall be
28        filled by the person holding the office  responsible  for
29        appointing the trustee whose death or resignation creates
30        the  vacancy,  and  a trustee appointed to fill a vacancy
31        shall serve the remainder of  the  term  of  the  trustee
32        whose resignation or death created the vacancy.
33             (5)  The   trust   or   foundation   shall  have  an
34        indefinite term, and shall terminate at such time  as  no
35        trust assets remain.
36             (6)  The  trust or foundation shall be funded in the
37        minimum amount of $250,000,000, with the  allocation  and
38        disbursement  of funds for the various purposes for which
39        the trust or foundation is established to  be  determined
40        by  the  trustees  in  accordance with the declaration of
41        trust  or  the  articles  of  incorporation  and  bylaws;
42        provided, however, that this amount may be reduced by  up
43        to $25,000,000 if, at the time the trust or foundation is
44        funded,  a  corresponding  amount  is  contributed by the
45        electric utility establishing the trust or foundation  to
46        the Board of Trustees of Southern Illinois University for
47        the  purpose  of  funding programs or projects related to
48        clean coal and provided further that $25,000,000  of  the
49        amount  contributed  to  the trust or foundation shall be
50        available to fund programs or projects related  to  clean
51        coal.
52             (7)  The  trust or foundation shall be authorized to
53        employ an executive  director  and  other  employees,  to
54        enter  into  leases,  contracts  and other obligations on
55        behalf of the trust or foundation, and to incur  expenses
56        that  the  trustees deem necessary or appropriate for the
57        fulfillment of  the  purposes  for  which  the  trust  or
58        foundation   is   established,  provided,  however,  that
59        salaries and administrative expenses incurred  on  behalf
60        of  the  trust or foundation shall not exceed $500,000 in
61        the first fiscal year after the trust  or  foundation  is
62        established  and  shall  not  exceed  $1,000,000  in each
63        subsequent fiscal year.
64             (8)  The trustees may create  and  appoint  advisory
65        boards   or   committees   to   assist   them   with  the
66        administration of the trust or foundation, and to  advise
67        and   make   recommendations   to   them   regarding  the
68        contribution and disbursement of the trust or  foundation
69        funds.
70        (c)(1)  In addition to the allocation and disbursement of
71        funds  for  the  purposes  set forth in subsection (a) of
72        this Section, the trustees of  the  trust  or  foundation
73        shall  annually  contribute funds in amounts set forth in
74        subparagraph (2)  of  this  subsection  to  the  Citizens
75        Utility  Board created by the Citizens Utility Board Act;
76        provided, however, that any  such  funds  shall  be  used
77        solely for the representation of the interests of utility
78        consumers  before  the  Illinois Commerce Commission, the
 
 1        Federal Energy Regulatory  Commission,  and  the  Federal
 2        Communications   Commission  and  for  the  provision  of
 3        consumer education on utility service and prices  and  on
 4        benefits  and  methods  of energy conservation. Provided,
 5        however, that no part of such  funds  shall  be  used  to
 6        support   (i)  any  lobbying  activity,  (ii)  activities
 7        related  to  fundraising,  (iii)  advertising  or   other
 8        marketing efforts regarding a particular utility, or (iv)
 9        solicitation of support for, or advocacy of, a particular
10        position  regarding  any  specific utility or a utility's
11        docketed proceeding.
12             (2)  In the calendar year  in  which  the  trust  or
13        foundation is first funded, the trustees shall contribute
14        $1,000,000  to  the Citizens Utility Board within 60 days
15        after such trust or foundation is established;  provided,
16        however,  that  such  contribution  shall  be  made after
17        December 31, 1999.  In  each  of  the  6  calendar  years
18        subsequent  to  the  first  contribution, if the trust or
19        foundation is in existence, the trustees shall contribute
20        to the Citizens Utility Board  an  amount  equal  to  the
21        total  expenditures  by  such  organization  in the prior
22        calendar year, as set forth in the report  filed  by  the
23        Citizens Utility Board with the chairman of such trust or
24        foundation  as  required  by  subparagraph  (3)  of  this
25        subsection.   Such subsequent contributions shall be made
26        within 30 days of  submission  by  the  Citizens  Utility
27        Board  of  such  report  to  the Chairman of the trust or
28        foundation, but in no event shall any annual contribution
29        by the trustees to  the  Citizens  Utility  Board  exceed
30        $1,000,000.   Following  such  7-year period, an Illinois
31        statutory consumer protection  agency  may  petition  the
32        trust   or   foundation   for   contributions   to   fund
33        expenditures of the type identified in paragraph (1), but
34        in  no  event  shall annual contributions by the trust or
35        foundation for such expenditures exceed $1,000,000.
36             (3)  The Citizens Utility Board shall file a  report
37        with  the  chairman  of such trust or foundation for each
38        year in which it expends  any  funds  received  from  the
39        trust  or  foundation  setting  forth  the  amount of any
40        expenditures (regardless of the source of funds for  such
41        expenditures)   for:   (i)   the  representation  of  the
42        interests  of  utility  consumers  before  the   Illinois
43        Commerce   Commission,   the  Federal  Energy  Regulatory
44        Commission, and the  Federal  Communications  Commission,
45        and  (ii)  the provision of consumer education on utility
46        service and prices and on benefits and methods of  energy
47        conservation.    Such  report  shall separately state the
48        total  amount  of  expenditures  for  the   purposes   or
49        activities  identified  by  items  (i)  and  (ii) of this
50        paragraph, the name and address of the external recipient
51        of any such expenditure, if applicable, and the  specific
52        purposes  or  activities  (including internal purposes or
53        activities) for which each  expenditure  was  made.   Any
54        report  required  by  this subsection shall be filed with
55        the chairman of such trust or foundation  no  later  than
56        March  31  of the year immediately following the year for
57        which the report is required.
58    (Source: P.A. 91-50, eff. 6-30-99.)".
59        Submitted on April 15, 2000.
60      Sen. Steven Rauschenberger             s/Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie   
61    s/Sen. John Philip                         Rep. Gary Hannig            
62    s/Sen. Stanley B. Weaver                 s/Rep. Monique Davis          
63      Sen. Robert Molaro                     s/Rep. Art Tenhouse           
64      Sen. Emil Jones                        s/Rep. Raymond Poe            
65      Committee for the Senate               Committee for the House

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