Amends the Public Utilities Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning fire protection charges imposed by water utilities.
Amends the Beer Industry Fair Dealing Act. Defines "brand extension" as a brand that incorporates all or a substantial part of the features of a pre-existing brand of the same brewer and that relies to a significant extent on the good will associated with the pre-existing brand. Provides that a brewer may not fail to assign brand extensions to a wholesaler who has been granted the territory to the brand from which the brand extension resulted and who agrees to accept the brand extension, but this requirement does not apply if the wholesaler is not in compliance with the agreement at the time the brewer offers the brand extension to the wholesaler. Provides that a brewer who, under an agreement with a wholesaler that does not violate antitrust laws, has designated a sales territory for which the wholesaler is exclusively (rather than primarily) responsible or in which the wholesaler is required to concentrate its efforts, may not enter into an agreement with any other wholesaler to establish an additional wholesaler for the brewer's brand or brand extension in the territory. Provides that a wholesaler who, under an agreement is granted a sales territory for which it is exclusively (rather than primarily) responsible or in which it is required to concentrate its efforts may not sell or deliver beer to any retail licensee whose place of business is not within the territory granted to the wholesaler. Effective immediately.
Amends the Riverboat Gambling Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the short title.
Amends the Metro-East Park and Recreation District Act. Makes a technical change in a Section containing the short title.
Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the short title.
Amends the Public Utilities Act. Makes a technical change in a section concerning the Illinois Commerce Commission.
Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that an electric utility shall file with the Illinois Commerce Commission, subject to approval by the Commission, plans to develop short-term and long-term fixed price purchases, spot acquisitions, and the use of financial hedges, and to provide power justly and prudently priced, as determined by the Commission's rate setting process, from an affiliate of the electric utility that owns electric generating units or stations. Provides that an electric utility shall use the plans to develop and submit to the Commission a diversified power procurement pricing strategy that considers the level of competitive options for each customer class. Effective immediately.
Amends the Cable and Video Competition Law of 2007 in the Public Utilities Act. Provides that a vertically integrated cable operator that carries, on its extended basic service a programming channel that it owns has a duty to treat, in a fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory manner, a cable programming channel that competes in the same programming category with the programming channel that the vertically integrated cable operator owns. Provides that, if an independent programmer has reason to believe that it has not been treated in a fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory manner concerning carriage of a competing programming channel, then it may submit a request for commercial arbitration with the vertically integrated cable operator over the terms and conditions of carriage within 90 days after a first-time request for carriage or renewal of a carriage agreement. Provides that if the dispute remains unresolved 10 days after submission of the request for arbitration, then either party may file with the American Arbitration Association a formal demand for arbitration and shall include a final offer with the filing. Provides that the AAA shall notify the other party of the demand for arbitration and submit to the other party the final offer submitted by the initiating party, and that within 5 days after receipt of that notice from the AAA, the other party shall submit its responses on price, but not terms and conditions, to the AAA. Contains provisions concerning the manner in which arbitration proceedings shall be conducted. Effective immediately.
Mourns the passing of longtime Illinois State Representative Wyvetter Younge of East St. Louis.
Amends the Public Utilities Act. Requires each electric utility to submit to the Illinois Commerce Commission a non-emergency vegetation management schedule for the utility's service areas that is no more than 4 years in duration and that ensures that trees in all parts of the utility's service areas are trimmed at least once every 4 years. Provides that the Commission shall promulgate rules that develop service quality measures that require the quality and reliability to be the same as or better than levels that existed on July 1, 1996. Requires compensation for affected customers if more than 0.8% of the electric utility's total customers (now, more than 30,000 of the electric utility's customers) are subject to (i) a continuous interruption of power lasting 4 hours or more that results in the transmission of power at less than 50% of the standard voltage or that results in the total loss of power transmission or (ii) a power surge or other fluctuation that causes damage. Provides that the Illinois Commerce Commission shall require certain electric utilities or alternative retail electric suppliers to submit certain data concerning non-supervisory employees. Requires Commission rules to set forth (i) standards for inspecting, maintaining, and repairing certain electric generation facilities and electric transmission or distribution facilities and (ii) safety and reliability standards for certain electric generation facilities and electric transmission and distribution facilities. Provides that the Commission shall be authorized to levy financial penalties upon any entity that fails to meet the service quality and reliability standards of certain provisions. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.
