UTILITY-IPA PROCUREMENT

Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act and the Broadband Infrastructure Advancement Act. Provides that the Illinois Power Agency and the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, respectively, shall create a specific Database and may contract with a third-party database program administrator to do so. Provides that, if the Agency or Department decides to contract with a third-party database program administrator, the third-party database program administrator shall be exempt from certain requirements in the Illinois Procurement Code. Provides that the specific Database shall be a searchable database of awardees, contractors, developers, suppliers, vendors, and subcontractors for certain projects or providers that is: (i) publicly accessible; (ii) easy for people to find and use; (iii) organized by company specialty or field; (iv) region-specific; and (v) populated with information that includes, but is not limited to, project names, project size, contact information, including the addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of suppliers, vendors, or subcontractors who participate or have participated in any of the programs described in the respective Act, and the current status of such projects. Provides that a posting on the specific Database shall be made by the applicable developer prior to the start of work on a project. Requires developers to provide regular updates on the status of such projects until a project's completion. Amends the Illinois Procurement Code. In provisions concerning competitive sealed bidding, provides that public notice of an invitation for bids shall be published in the Illinois Procurement Bulletin and in the BidBuy eProcurement System at least 14 calendar days before the date set in the invitation for the opening of bids. Provides that the Director of the Illinois Power Agency may create alternative bidding procedures to procure renewable energy resources smaller than 1,000 kilowatts (rather than to procure renewable energy resources) under certain provisions of the Illinois Power Agency Act. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.