§ 8-104

(Text of Section before amendment by P.A. 104-458 ) Sec. 8-104. Natural gas energy efficiency programs. (a) It is the policy of the State that natural gas utilities and the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity are required to use cost-effective energy efficiency to reduce direct and indirect costs to consumers. It serves the public interest to allow natural gas utilities to recover costs for reasonably and prudently incurred expenses for cost-effective energy efficiency measures. (b) For purposes of this Section, "energy efficiency" means measures that reduce the amount of energy required to achieve a given end use. "Energy efficiency" also includes measures that reduce the total Btus of electricity and natural gas needed to meet the end use or uses. "Cost-effective" means that the measures satisfy the total resource cost test which, for purposes of this Section, means a standard that is met if, for an investment in energy efficiency, the benefit-cost ratio is greater than one. The benefit-cost ratio is the ratio of the net present value of the total benefits of the measures to the net present value of the total costs as calculated over the lifetime of the measures. The total resource cost test compares the sum of avoided natural gas utility costs, representing the benefits that accrue to the system and the participant in the delivery of those efficiency measures, as well as other quantifiable societal benefits, including avoided electric utility costs, to the sum of all incremental costs of end use measures (including both utility and participant contributions), plus costs to administer, deliver, and evaluate each demand-side measure, to quantify the net savings obtained by substituting demand-side measures for supply resources. In calculating avoided costs, reasonable estimates shall be included for financial costs likely to be imposed by future regulation of emissions of greenhouse gases. The low-income programs described in item (4) of subsection (f) of this Section shall not be required to meet the total resource cost test. (c) Natural gas utilities shall implement cost-effective energy efficiency measures to meet at least the following natural gas savings requirements, which shall be based upon the total amount of gas delivered to retail customers, other than the customers described in subsection (m) of this Section, during calendar year 2009 multiplied by the applicable percentage. Natural gas utilities may comply with this Section by meeting the annual incremental savings goal in the applicable year or by showing that total cumulative annual savings within a multi-year planning period associated with measures implemented after May 31, 2011 were equal to the sum of each annual incremental savings requirement from the first day of the multi-year planning period through the last day of the multi-year planning period: (1) 0.2% by May 31, 2012; (2) an additional 0.4% by May 31, 2013, increasing total savings to .6%; (3) an additional 0.6% by May 31, 2014, increasing total savings to 1.2%; (4) an additional 0.8% by May 31, 2015, increasing total savings to 2.0%; (5) an additional 1% by May 31, 2016, increasing total savings to 3.0%; (6) an additional 1.2% by May 31, 2017, increasing total savings to 4.2%; (7) an additional 1.4% in the year commencing January 1, 2018; (8) an additional 1.5% in the year commencing January 1, 2019; and (9) an additional 1.5% in each 12-month period thereafter. (d) Notwithstanding the requirements of subsection (c) of this Section, a natural gas utility shall limit the amount of energy efficiency implemented in any multi-year reporting period established by subsection (f) of Section 8-104 of this Act, by an amount necessary to limit the estimated average increase in the amounts paid by retail customers in connection with natural gas service to no more than 2% in the applicable multi-year reporting period. The energy savings requirements in subsection (c) of this Section may be reduced by the Commission for the subject plan, if the utility demonstrates by substantial evidence that it is highly unlikely that the requirements could be achieved without exceeding the applicable spending limits in any multi-year reporting period. No later than September 1, 2013, the Commission shall review the limitation on the amount of energy efficiency measures implemented pursuant to this Section and report to the General Assembly, in the report required by subsection (k) of this Section, its findings as to whether that limitation unduly constrains the procurement of energy efficiency measures. (e) The provisions of this subsection (e) apply to those multi-year plans that commence prior to January 1, 2018. The utility shall utilize 75% of the available funding associated with energy efficiency programs approved by the Commission, and may outsource various aspects of program development and implementation. The remaining 25% of available funding shall be used by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to implement energy efficiency measures that achieve no less than 20% of the requirements of subsection (c) of this Section. Such measures shall be designed in conjunction with the utility and approved by the Commission. The Department may outsource development and implementation of energy efficiency measures. A minimum of 10% of the entire portfolio of cost-effective energy efficiency measures shall be procured from local government, municipal corporations, school districts, public institutions of higher education, and community college districts. Five percent of the entire portfolio of cost-effective energy efficiency measures may be granted to local government and municipal corporations for market transformation initiatives. The Department shall coordinate the implementation of these measures and shall integrate delivery of natural gas efficiency programs with electric efficiency programs delivered pursuant to Section 8-103 of this Act, unless the Department can show that integration is not feasible. The apportionment of the dollars to cover the costs to implement the Department's share of the portfolio of energy efficiency measures shall be made to the Department once the Department has executed rebate agreements, grants, or contracts for energy efficiency measures and provided supporting documentation for those rebate agreements, grants, and contracts to the utility. The Department is authorized to adopt any rules necessary and prescribe procedures in order to ensure compliance by applicants in carrying out the purposes of rebate agreements for energy efficiency measures implemented by the Department made under this Section. The details of the measures implemented by the Department shall be submitted by the Department to the Commission in connection with the utility's filing regarding the energy efficiency measures that the utility implements. The portfolio of measures, administered by both the utilities and the Department, shall, in combination, be designed to achieve the annual energy savings requirements set forth in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section. The utility and the Department shall agree upon a reasonable portfolio of measures and determine the measurable corresponding percentage of the savings goals associated with measures implemented by the Department. No utility shall be assessed a penalty under subsection (f) of this Section for failure to make a timely filing if that failure is the result of a lack of agreement with the Department with respect to the allocation of responsibilities or related costs or target assignments. In that case, the Department and the utility shall file their respective plans with the Commission and the Commission shall determine an appropriate division of measures and programs that meets the requirements of this Section. (e-5) The provisions of this subsection (e-5) shall be applicable to those multi-year plans that commence after December 31, 2017. Natural gas utilities shall be responsible for overseeing the design, development, and filing of their efficiency plans with the Commission and may outsource development and implementation of energy efficiency measures. A minimum of 10% of the entire portfolio of cost-effective energy efficiency measures shall be procured from local government, municipal corporations, school districts, public institutions of higher education, and community college districts. Five percent of the entire portfolio of cost-effective energy efficiency measures may be granted to local government and municipal corporations for market transformation initiatives. The utilities shall also present a portfolio of energy efficiency measures proportionate to the share of total annual utility revenues in Illinois from households at or below 150% of the poverty level. Such programs shall be targeted to households with incomes at or below 80% of area median income. (e-10) A utility providing approved energy efficiency measures in this State shall be permitted to recover costs of those measures through an automatic adjustment clause tariff filed with and approved by the Commission. The tariff shall be established outside the context of a general rate case and shall be applicable to the utility's customers other than the customers described in subsection (m) of this Section. Each year the Commission shall initiate a review to reconcile any amounts collected with the actual costs and to determine the required adjustment to the annual tariff factor to match annual expenditures. (e-15) For those multi-year plans that commence prior to January 1, 2018, each utility shall include, in its recovery of costs, the costs estimated for both the utility's and the Department's implementation of energy efficiency measures. Costs collected by the utility for measures implemented by the Department shall be submitted to the Department pursuant to Section 605-323 of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, shall be deposited into the Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standards Fund, and shall be used by the Department solely for the purpose of implementing these measures. A utility shall not be required to advance any moneys to the Department but only to forward such funds as it has collected. The Department shall report to the Commission on an annual basis regarding the costs actually incurred by the Department in the implementation of the measures. Any changes to the costs of energy efficiency measures as a result of plan modifications shall be appropriately reflected in amounts recovered by the utility and turned over to the Department. (f) No later than October 1, 2010, each gas utility shall file an energy efficiency plan with the Commission to meet the energy efficiency standards through May 31, 2014. No later than October 1, 2013, each gas utility shall file an energy efficiency plan with the Commission to meet the energy efficiency standards through May 31, 2017. Beginning in 2017 and every 4 years thereafter, each utility shall file an energy efficiency plan with the Commission to meet the energy efficiency standards for the next applicable 4-year period beginning January 1 of the year following the filing. For those multi-year plans commencing on January 1, 2018, each utility shall file its proposed energy efficiency plan no later than 30 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly or May 1, 2017, whichever is later. Beginning in 2021 and every 4 years thereafter, each utility shall file its energy efficiency plan no later than March 1. If a utility does not file such a plan on or before the applicable filing deadline for the plan, then it shall face a penalty of $100,000 per day until the plan is filed. Each utility's plan shall set forth the utility's proposals to meet the utility's portion of the energy efficiency standards identified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section, taking into account the unique circumstances of the utility's service territory. For those plans commencing after December 31, 2021, the Commission shall seek public comment on the utility's plan and shall issue an order approving or disapproving each plan within 6 months after its submission. For those plans commencing on January 1, 2018, the Commission shall seek public comment on the utility's plan and shall issue an order approving or disapproving each plan no later than August 31, 2017, or 105 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly, whichever is later. If the Commission disapproves a plan, the Commission shall, within 30 days, describe in detail the reasons for the disapproval and describe a path by which the utility may file a revised draft of the plan to address the Commission's concerns satisfactorily. If the utility does not refile with the Commission within 60 days after the disapproval, the utility shall be subject to penalties at a rate of $100,000 per day until the plan is filed. This process shall continue, and penalties shall accrue, until the utility has successfully filed a portfolio of energy efficiency measures. Penalties shall be deposited into the Energy Efficiency Trust Fund and the cost of any such penalties may not be recovered from ratepayers. In submitting proposed energy efficiency plans and funding levels to meet the savings goals adopted by this Act the utility shall: (1) Demonstrate that its proposed energy efficiency measures will achieve the requirements that are identified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section. (2) Present specific proposals to implement new building and appliance standards that have been placed into effect. (3) Present estimates of the total amount paid for gas service expressed on a per therm basis associated with the proposed portfolio of measures designed to meet the requirements that are identified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section. (4) For those multi-year plans that commence prior to January 1, 2018, coordinate with the Department to present a portfolio of energy efficiency measures proportionate to the share of total annual utility revenues in Illinois from households at or below 150% of the poverty level. Such programs shall be targeted to households with incomes at or below 80% of area median income. (5) Demonstrate that its overall portfolio of energy efficiency measures, not including low-income programs described in item (4) of this subsection (f) and subsection (e-5) of this Section, are cost-effective using the total resource cost test and represent a diverse cross section of opportunities for customers of all rate classes to participate in the programs. (6) Demonstrate that a gas utility affiliated with an electric utility that is required to comply with Section 8-103 or 8-103B of this Act has integrated gas and electric efficiency measures into a single program that reduces program or participant costs and appropriately allocates costs to gas and electric ratepayers. For those multi-year plans that commence prior to January 1, 2018, the Department shall integrate all gas and electric programs it delivers in any such utilities' service territories, unless the Department can show that integration is not feasible or appropriate. (7) Include a proposed cost recovery tariff mechanism to fund the proposed energy efficiency measures and to ensure the recovery of the prudently and reasonably incurred costs of Commission-approved programs. (8) Provide for quarterly status reports tracking implementation of and expenditures for the utility's portfolio of measures and, if applicable, the Department's portfolio of measures, an annual independent review, and a full independent evaluation of the multi-year results of the performance and the cost-effectiveness of the utility's and, if applicable, Department's portfolios of measures and broader net program impacts and, to the extent practical, for adjustment of the measures on a going forward basis as a result of the evaluations. The resources dedicated to evaluation shall not exceed 3% of portfolio resources in any given multi-year period. (g) No more than 3% of expenditures on energy efficiency measures may be allocated for demonstration of breakthrough equipment and devices. (h) Illinois natural gas utilities that are affiliated by virtue of a common parent company may, at the utilities' request, be considered a single natural gas utility for purposes of complying with this Section. (i) If, after 3 years, a gas utility fails to meet the efficiency standard specified in subsection (c) of this Section as modified by subsection (d), then it shall make a contribution to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program. The total liability for failure to meet the goal shall be assessed as follows: (1) a large gas utility shall pay $600,000; (2) a medium gas utility shall pay $400,000; and (3) a small gas utility shall pay $200,000. For purposes of this Section, (i) a "large gas utility" is a gas utility that on December 31, 2008, served more than 1,500,000 gas customers in Illinois; (ii) a "medium gas utility" is a gas utility that on December 31, 2008, served fewer than 1,500,000, but more than 500,000 gas customers in Illinois; and (iii) a "small gas utility" is a gas utility that on December 31, 2008, served fewer than 500,000 and more than 100,000 gas customers in Illinois. The costs of this contribution may not be recovered from ratepayers. If a gas utility fails to meet the efficiency standard specified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section, in any 2 consecutive multi-year planning periods, then the responsibility for implementing the utility's energy efficiency measures shall be transferred to an independent program administrator selected by the Commission. Reasonable and prudent costs incurred by the independent program administrator to meet the efficiency standard specified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section, may be recovered from the customers of the affected gas utilities, other than customers described in subsection (m) of this Section. The utility shall provide the independent program administrator with all information and assistance necessary to perform the program administrator's duties including but not limited to customer, account, and energy usage data, and shall allow the program administrator to include inserts in customer bills. The utility may recover reasonable costs associated with any such assistance. (j) No utility shall be deemed to have failed to meet the energy efficiency standards to the extent any such failure is due to a failure of the Department. (k) Not later than January 1, 2012, the Commission shall develop and solicit public comment on a plan to foster statewide coordination and consistency between statutorily mandated natural gas and electric energy efficiency programs to reduce program or participant costs or to improve program performance. Not later than September 1, 2013, the Commission shall issue a report to the General Assembly containing its findings and recommendations. (l) This Section does not apply to a gas utility that on January 1, 2009, provided gas service to fewer than 100,000 customers in Illinois. (m) Subsections (a) through (k) of this Section do not apply to customers of a natural gas utility that have a North American Industry Classification System code number that is 22111 or any such code number beginning with the digits 31, 32, or 33 and (i) annual usage in the aggregate of 4 million therms or more within the service territory of the affected gas utility or with aggregate usage of 8 million therms or more in this State and complying with the provisions of item (l) of this subsection (m); or (ii) using natural gas as feedstock and meeting the usage requirements described in item (i) of this subsection (m), to the extent such annual feedstock usage is greater than 60% of the customer's total annual usage of natural gas. (1) Customers described in this subsection (m) of this Section shall apply, on a form approved on or before October 1, 2009 by the Department, to the Department to be designated as a self-directing customer ("SDC") or as an exempt customer using natural gas as a feedstock from which other products are made, including, but not limited to, feedstock for a hydrogen plant, on or before the 1st day of February, 2010. Thereafter, application may be made not less than 6 months before the filing date of the gas utility energy efficiency plan described in subsection (f) of this Section; however, a new customer that commences taking service from a natural gas utility after February 1, 2010 may apply to become a SDC or exempt customer up to 30 days after beginning service. Customers described in this subsection (m) that have not already been approved by the Department may apply to be designated a self-directing customer or exempt customer, on a form approved by the Department, between September 1, 2013 and September 30, 2013. Customer applications that are approved by the Department under this amendatory Act of the 98th General Assembly shall be considered to be a self-directing customer or exempt customer, as applicable, for the current 3-year planning period effective December 1, 2013. Such application shall contain the following: (A) the customer's certification that, at the time of its application, it qualifies to be a SDC or exempt customer described in this subsection (m) of this Section; (B) in the case of a SDC, the customer's certification that it has established or will establish by the beginning of the utility's multi-year planning period commencing subsequent to the application, and will maintain for accounting purposes, an energy efficiency reserve account and that the customer will accrue funds in said account to be held for the purpose of funding, in whole or in part, energy efficiency measures of the customer's choosing, which may include, but are not limited to, projects involving combined heat and power systems that use the same energy source both for the generation of electrical or mechanical power and the production of steam or another form of useful thermal energy or the use of combustible gas produced from biomass, or both; (C) in the case of a SDC, the customer's certification that annual funding levels for the energy efficiency reserve account will be equal to 2% of the customer's cost of natural gas, composed of the customer's commodity cost and the delivery service charges paid to the gas utility, or $150,000, whichever is less; (D) in the case of a SDC, the customer's certification that the required reserve account balance will be capped at 3 years' worth of accruals and that the customer may, at its option, make further deposits to the account to the extent such deposit would increase the reserve account balance above the designated cap level; (E) in the case of a SDC, the customer's certification that by October 1 of each year, beginning no sooner than October 1, 2012, the customer will report to the Department information, for the 12-month period ending May 31 of the same year, on all deposits and reductions, if any, to the reserve account during the reporting year, and to the extent deposits to the reserve account in any year are in an amount less than $150,000, the basis for such reduced deposits; reserve account balances by month; a description of energy efficiency measures undertaken by the customer and paid for in whole or in part with funds from the reserve account; an estimate of the energy saved, or to be saved, by the measure; and that the report shall include a verification by an officer or plant manager of the customer or by a registered professional engineer or certified energy efficiency trade professional that the funds withdrawn from the reserve account were used for the energy efficiency measures; (F) in the case of an exempt customer, the customer's certification of the level of gas usage as feedstock in the customer's operation in a typical year and that it will provide information establishing this level, upon request of the Department; (G) in the case of either an exempt customer or a SDC, the customer's certification that it has provided the gas utility or utilities serving the customer with a copy of the application as filed with the Department; (H) in the case of either an exempt customer or a SDC, certification of the natural gas utility or utilities serving the customer in Illinois including the natural gas utility accounts that are the subject of the application; and (I) in the case of either an exempt customer or a SDC, a verification signed by a plant manager or an authorized corporate officer attesting to the truthfulness and accuracy of the information contained in the application. (2) The Department shall review the application to determine that it contains the information described in provisions (A) through (I) of item (1) of this subsection (m), as applicable. The review shall be completed within 30 days after the date the application is filed with the Department. Absent a determination by the Department within the 30-day period, the applicant shall be considered to be a SDC or exempt customer, as applicable, for all subsequent multi-year planning periods, as of the date of filing the application described in this subsection (m). If the Department determines that the application does not contain the applicable information described in provisions (A) through (I) of item (1) of this subsection (m), it shall notify the customer, in writing, of its determination that the application does not contain the required information and identify the information that is missing, and the customer shall provide the missing information within 15 working days after the date of receipt of the Department's notification. (3) The Department shall have the right to audit the information provided in the customer's application and annual reports to ensure continued compliance with the requirements of this subsection. Based on the audit, if the Department determines the customer is no longer in compliance with the requirements of items (A) through (I) of item (1) of this subsection (m), as applicable, the Department shall notify the customer in writing of the noncompliance. The customer shall have 30 days to establish its compliance, and failing to do so, may have its status as a SDC or exempt customer revoked by the Department. The Department shall treat all information provided by any customer seeking SDC status or exemption from the provisions of this Section as strictly confidential. (4) Upon request, or on its own motion, the Commission may open an investigation, no more than once every 3 years and not before October 1, 2014, to evaluate the effectiveness of the self-directing program described in this subsection (m). Customers described in this subsection (m) that applied to the Department on January 3, 2013, were approved by the Department on February 13, 2013 to be a self-directing customer or exempt customer, and receive natural gas from a utility that provides gas service to at least 500,000 retail customers in Illinois and electric service to at least 1,000,000 retail customers in Illinois shall be considered to be a self-directing customer or exempt customer, as applicable, for the current 3-year planning period effective December 1, 2013. (n) The applicability of this Section to customers described in subsection (m) of this Section is conditioned on the existence of the SDC program. In no event will any provision of this Section apply to such customers after January 1, 2020. (o) Utilities' 3-year energy efficiency plans approved by the Commission on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly for the period June 1, 2014 through May 31, 2017 shall continue to be in force and effect through December 31, 2017 so that the energy efficiency programs set forth in those plans continue to be offered during the period June 1, 2017 through December 31, 2017. Each utility is authorized to increase, on a pro rata basis, the energy savings goals and budgets approved in its plan to reflect the additional 7 months of the plan's operation. (Source: P.A. 103-613, eff. 7-1-24.) (Text of Section after amendment by P.A. 104-458 ) Sec. 8-104. Natural gas energy efficiency programs. (a) It is the policy of the State that natural gas utilities and the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity are required to use cost-effective energy efficiency to reduce direct and indirect costs to consumers. It serves the public interest to allow natural gas utilities to recover costs for reasonably and prudently incurred expenses for cost-effective energy efficiency measures. (b) For purposes of this Section, "energy efficiency" means measures that reduce the amount of energy required to achieve a given end use. "Energy efficiency" also includes measures that reduce the total Btus of electricity and natural gas needed to meet the end use or uses. "Cost-effective" means that the measures satisfy the total resource cost test which, for purposes of this Section, means a standard that is met if, for an investment in energy efficiency, the benefit-cost ratio is greater than one. The benefit-cost ratio is the ratio of the net present value of the total benefits of the measures to the net present value of the total costs as calculated over the lifetime of the measures. The total resource cost test compares the sum of avoided natural gas utility costs, representing the benefits that accrue to the system and the participant in the delivery of those efficiency measures, as well as other quantifiable societal benefits, including avoided electric utility costs, to the sum of all incremental costs of end use measures (including both utility and participant contributions), plus costs to administer, deliver, and evaluate each demand-side measure, to quantify the net savings obtained by substituting demand-side measures for supply resources. In calculating avoided costs, reasonable estimates shall be included for financial costs likely to be imposed by future regulation of emissions of greenhouse gases. The low-income programs described in item (4) of subsection (f) of this Section shall not be required to meet the total resource cost test. (c) Natural gas utilities shall implement cost-effective energy efficiency measures to meet at least the following natural gas savings requirements, which shall be based upon the total amount of gas delivered to retail customers, other than the customers described in subsection (m) of this Section, during calendar year 2009 multiplied by the applicable percentage. Natural gas utilities may comply with this Section by meeting the annual incremental savings goal in the applicable year or by showing that total cumulative annual savings within a multi-year planning period associated with measures implemented after May 31, 2011 were equal to the sum of each annual incremental savings requirement from the first day of the multi-year planning period through the last day of the multi-year planning period: (1) 0.2% by May 31, 2012; (2) an additional 0.4% by May 31, 2013, increasing total savings to .6%; (3) an additional 0.6% by May 31, 2014, increasing total savings to 1.2%; (4) an additional 0.8% by May 31, 2015, increasing total savings to 2.0%; (5) an additional 1% by May 31, 2016, increasing total savings to 3.0%; (6) an additional 1.2% by May 31, 2017, increasing total savings to 4.2%; (7) an additional 1.4% in the year commencing January 1, 2018; (8) an additional 1.5% in the year commencing January 1, 2019; and (9) an additional 1.5% in each 12-month period thereafter. (d) Notwithstanding the requirements of subsection (c) of this Section, a natural gas utility shall limit the amount of energy efficiency implemented in any multi-year reporting period established by subsection (f) of Section 8-104 of this Act, by an amount necessary to limit the estimated average increase in the amounts paid by retail customers in connection with natural gas service to no more than 2% in the applicable multi-year reporting period. The energy savings requirements in subsection (c) of this Section may be reduced by the Commission for the subject plan, if the utility demonstrates by substantial evidence that it is highly unlikely that the requirements could be achieved without exceeding the applicable spending limits in any multi-year reporting period. No later than September 1, 2013, the Commission shall review the limitation on the amount of energy efficiency measures implemented pursuant to this Section and report to the General Assembly, in the report required by subsection (k) of this Section, its findings as to whether that limitation unduly constrains the procurement of energy efficiency measures. (e) The provisions of this subsection (e) apply to those multi-year plans that commence prior to January 1, 2018. The utility shall utilize 75% of the available funding associated with energy efficiency programs approved by the Commission, and may outsource various aspects of program development and implementation. The remaining 25% of available funding shall be used by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to implement energy efficiency measures that achieve no less than 20% of the requirements of subsection (c) of this Section. Such measures shall be designed in conjunction with the utility and approved by the Commission. The Department may outsource development and implementation of energy efficiency measures. A minimum of 10% of the entire portfolio of cost-effective energy efficiency measures shall be procured from local government, municipal corporations, school districts, public institutions of higher education, and community college districts. Five percent of the entire portfolio of cost-effective energy efficiency measures may be granted to local government and municipal corporations for market transformation initiatives. The Department shall coordinate the implementation of these measures and shall integrate delivery of natural gas efficiency programs with electric efficiency programs delivered pursuant to Section 8-103 of this Act, unless the Department can show that integration is not feasible. The apportionment of the dollars to cover the costs to implement the Department's share of the portfolio of energy efficiency measures shall be made to the Department once the Department has executed rebate agreements, grants, or contracts for energy efficiency measures and provided supporting documentation for those rebate agreements, grants, and contracts to the utility. The Department is authorized to adopt any rules necessary and prescribe procedures in order to ensure compliance by applicants in carrying out the purposes of rebate agreements for energy efficiency measures implemented by the Department made under this Section. The details of the measures implemented by the Department shall be submitted by the Department to the Commission in connection with the utility's filing regarding the energy efficiency measures that the utility implements. The portfolio of measures, administered by both the utilities and the Department, shall, in combination, be designed to achieve the annual energy savings requirements set forth in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section. The utility and the Department shall agree upon a reasonable portfolio of measures and determine the measurable corresponding percentage of the savings goals associated with measures implemented by the Department. No utility shall be assessed a penalty under subsection (f) of this Section for failure to make a timely filing if that failure is the result of a lack of agreement with the Department with respect to the allocation of responsibilities or related costs or target assignments. In that case, the Department and the utility shall file their respective plans with the Commission and the Commission shall determine an appropriate division of measures and programs that meets the requirements of this Section. (e-5) The provisions of this subsection (e-5) shall be applicable to those multi-year plans that commence after December 31, 2017. Natural gas utilities shall be responsible for overseeing the design, development, and filing of their efficiency plans with the Commission and may outsource development and implementation of energy efficiency measures. A minimum of 10% of the entire portfolio of cost-effective energy efficiency measures shall be procured from local government, municipal corporations, school districts, public institutions of higher education, and community college districts; unless a utility files a plan or amended plan under the provisions of subsection (e-20), in which case the minimum spend for measures from such public customers shall be equal to at least 30% of non-residential spending. Five percent of the entire portfolio of cost-effective energy efficiency measures may be granted to local government and municipal corporations for market transformation initiatives. Through calendar year 2026, the utilities shall also present a portfolio of energy efficiency measures proportionate to the share of total annual utility revenues in Illinois from households at or below 150% of the poverty level. Such programs shall be targeted to households with incomes at or below 80% of area median income. (e-7) Beginning January 1, 2027, the following requirements shall be in effect for efficiency programs targeted to low-income households. For the purposes of this Section, "low-income households" means households with incomes at or below 80% of the area median income. Utilities shall leverage existing State and federal low-income weatherization programs and delivery capacity to the extent practicable. Utilities shall also prioritize contracting with organizations, government agencies, and businesses with a track record of delivering weatherization services in low-income communities in this State to deliver any low-income programs that are not integrated with State and federal low-income weatherization programs. (e-8) Beginning January 1, 2027, the following requirements shall be in effect for efficiency programs targeted to low-income households, except for single-fuel gas utilities with less than 1,000,000 customers: (1) The portion of the entire budget for efficiency programs that is spent on efficiency programs for low-income households shall be no less than the greater of: (A) 25% or (B) five percentage points more than the proportion of total annual gas sales to non-opt-out retail customers that are consumed by low-income households. (2) The portion of spending on efficiency measures that are targeted to low-income households that is delivered through whole building weatherization programs that comprehensively address building envelope efficiency upgrade opportunities as well as other efficiency measures shall be at least 80%. (3) Utilities shall invest in health and safety measures that are appropriate and necessary for comprehensively weatherizing the single-family and multi-family buildings of low-income households, with up to 15% of income-qualified program spending made available for such purposes. (e-10) A utility providing approved energy efficiency measures in this State shall be permitted to recover costs of those measures through an automatic adjustment clause tariff filed with and approved by the Commission. The tariff shall be established outside the context of a general rate case and shall be applicable to the utility's customers other than the customers described in subsection (m) of this Section. Each year the Commission shall initiate a review to reconcile any amounts collected with the actual costs and to determine the required adjustment to the annual tariff factor to match annual expenditures. (e-15) For those multi-year plans that commence prior to January 1, 2018, each utility shall include, in its recovery of costs, the costs estimated for both the utility's and the Department's implementation of energy efficiency measures. Costs collected by the utility for measures implemented by the Department shall be submitted to the Department pursuant to Section 605-323 of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, shall be deposited into the Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standards Fund, and shall be used by the Department solely for the purpose of implementing these measures. A utility shall not be required to advance any moneys to the Department but only to forward such funds as it has collected. The Department shall report to the Commission on an annual basis regarding the costs actually incurred by the Department in the implementation of the measures. Any changes to the costs of energy efficiency measures as a result of plan modifications shall be appropriately reflected in amounts recovered by the utility and turned over to the Department. (e-20) The provisions of this Section shall be applicable to multi-year plans that commence after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly and are submitted by single fuel service utilities on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly. A natural gas utility may propose, as part of its submission of a multi-year plan, to increase the amount of energy efficiency implemented in any multi-year planning period above the level that can be achieved under the spending cap set forth in subsection (d) of this Section. The first plan to increase energy efficiency may be submitted as an amendment to the utility's plan for calendar years 2027 through 2029, but any amended plans must be filed with the Commission by March 1, 2026 or the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly, whichever is later. In addition to the policy goals established in subsection (f), the Commission shall consider, in determining the appropriateness of a proposal, whether the multi-year plan at a minimum: (1) identifies a cost-effective portfolio of measures and specifies the natural gas savings that are reasonably likely to be achieved by the utility; (2) demonstrates that the plan or modified plan, at a minimum, will result in a portfolio of energy efficiency measures that will provide more natural gas savings than would have been achieved in a plan subject to subsection (c); (3) demonstrates that the plan reflects efforts to coordinate delivery of electric utility efficiency programs where such coordination can reduce costs, increase effectiveness of outreach to customers, and increase savings. A gas utility may count electricity savings toward its gas efficiency savings goals subject to the following limitations: (A) only electricity savings produced as a result of the installation of a gas efficiency measure, such as reductions in electricity consumption by gas furnace fans and electric air conditioners that results from the installation of insulation measures that reduce gas used for space heating, may be counted; (B) such electricity savings may only be counted when they are generated in service territories not served by electric utilities subject to Section 8-103B; (C) no more than 5% of the total savings claimed toward a gas utility's savings goal may be from such electricity savings. For the purposes of this Section, a kilowatt-hour of savings is equal to 0.03412 gas therms; (4) demonstrates whether an increase in funding is necessary to meet the proposed increase in the amount of energy efficiency; (5) prioritizes income-qualified measures and weatherization measures; and (6) demonstrates that the multi-year plan strikes a reasonable balance between the goals of the following: (A) increasing cost-effective efficiency savings and related greenhouse gas emission reductions; (B) reducing overall gas system costs, recognizing that efficiency investments reduce usage and, in turn, the potential need for system investments over the long-term; (C) increasing energy affordability, especially for low-income customers; (D) within the residential sector, prioritizing investment in weatherization and other measures that reduce heating loads over gas equipment measures; and (E) providing a diverse cross-section of opportunities for customers of all rate classes to participate in efficiency programs. For single-fuel gas utilities with less than 1,000,000 customers, the following requirements shall be in effect for efficiency programs targeted to low-income households: (1) For gas utilities with greater than 300,000 customers, the portion of the entire budget for efficiency programs that is spent on efficiency programs for low-income households shall be no less than the greater of (A) 25% or (B) five percentage points more than the proportion of total annual gas sales to non-opt-out retail customers that are consumed by low-income households. For gas utilities with 300,000 or fewer customers, the portion of the entire budget for efficiency programs that is spent on efficiency programs for low-income households shall be no less than the greater of (A) 15% or (B) five percentage points more than the proportion of total annual gas sales to non-opt-out retail customers that are consumed by low-income households. (2) The portion of spending on efficiency measures targeted to low-income households that shall be delivered through whole building weatherization programs that comprehensively address building envelope efficiency upgrade opportunities as well as other efficiency measures shall be at least 80%. (3) Utilities shall invest in health and safety measures appropriate and necessary for comprehensively weatherizing the single-family and multi-family buildings of low-income households, with up to 15% of income-qualified program spending made available for such purposes. As part of its order approving the plan or modified plan, the Commission is authorized to: (1) adjust the limitation on the amount of energy efficiency measures implemented pursuant to subsection (d) to the extent necessary to meet the increase in the amount of energy efficiency approved by the Commission pursuant to this subsection (e-20); (2) adjust the public sector spending requirements pursuant to subsection (e-5); (3) adopt an incentive mechanism for the utility to meet or exceed the goals associated with its proposed multi-year plan if the utility meets or exceeds the following minimum requirements: (A) the utility proposes a plan budget over the applicable multi-year period that is equal to or greater than 5% of the amounts paid by non-opt-out retail customers in connection with natural gas service in the applicable multi-year period; (B) for efficiency program years 2027 through 2029, the utility achieves average incremental annual savings of at least 0.7% of total average annual gas sales to non-opt-out retail customers over the years 2023 through 2025. For multi-year efficiency program plans beginning after 2029, achieving average incremental annual savings of at least 0.8% of total average annual gas sales to non-opt-out retail customers during the 3-year period ending 2 years prior to the first year of the plan. In all multi-year periods, the minimum incremental annual savings requirement shall be reduced by 0.01 percentage points for every 1 percentage point increase in low-income or moderate-income spending above the minimum levels required by subsection (e-5). In no event shall the minimum incremental annual savings requirement be reduced by more than 0.10 percentage points even if low-income or moderate-income spending is increased by more than 10 percentage points above the minimum levels required by subsection (e-5). The Commission may reduce the magnitude of the minimum savings requirements under this subparagraph (B) if the utility can demonstrate that it is not possible to achieve them with a budget equal to 5% of revenues from eligible customers while meeting other minimum requirements. If a utility attempts to demonstrate that it cannot meet the minimum savings requirements in this paragraph with a budget equal to 5% of revenues from eligible customers, and the Commission finds that the utility has not made a sufficiently compelling demonstration, the utility may withdraw its plan and file a revised plan; (C) the utility achieves an average savings life of at least 12 years. Average savings lives may be shorter than the average operational lives of measures if the measures do not produce savings in every year in which they operate or if the savings that measures produce decline during their operational lives; and (D) the utility spends at least 67% of all financial incentive dollars on efficiency measures that (1) reduce the space heating loads of buildings through improvements such as to building envelopes, ventilation systems, space heating distribution systems, and space heating system controls; (2) reduce the water heating loads of buildings such as through insulation of hot water pipes, recovery and reuse of heat from waste water and reductions in the amount of hot water required to meet customer needs; or (3) reduce the process heat loads of industrial facilities. Any spending on health and safety measures shall count toward this requirement. No financial incentive spending on furnaces, boilers, water heaters, and other gas-consuming equipment may be counted toward this requirement; and (4) for modified plans, require a compliance filing from the utility to adjust budgets and natural gas savings targets, if necessary, to reflect the final level of customers opting out under subsection (m-1). For the purposes of this subsection (e-20): "Average savings life" means (i) the savings that will be realized as a result of a utility's efficiency programs over the lives of all efficiency measures divided by (ii) the savings that will be produced in the first year after such measures are installed. "Moderate-income" means income between 80% of area median income and 300% of the federal poverty limit. (f) No later than October 1, 2010, each gas utility shall file an energy efficiency plan with the Commission to meet the energy efficiency standards through May 31, 2014. No later than October 1, 2013, each gas utility shall file an energy efficiency plan with the Commission to meet the energy efficiency standards through May 31, 2017. Beginning in 2017 and every 4 years thereafter, each utility shall file an energy efficiency plan with the Commission to meet the energy efficiency standards for the next applicable 4-year period beginning January 1 of the year following the filing. For those multi-year plans commencing on January 1, 2018, each utility shall file its proposed energy efficiency plan no later than 30 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly or May 1, 2017, whichever is later. Beginning in 2021 and every 4 years thereafter, each utility shall file its energy efficiency plan no later than March 1. If a utility does not file such a plan on or before the applicable filing deadline for the plan, then it shall face a penalty of $100,000 per day until the plan is filed. Each utility's plan shall set forth the utility's proposals to meet the utility's portion of the energy efficiency standards identified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section, taking into account the unique circumstances of the utility's service territory. For those plans commencing after December 31, 2021, the Commission shall seek public comment on the utility's plan and shall issue an order approving or disapproving each plan within 6 months after its submission. For those plans commencing on January 1, 2018, the Commission shall seek public comment on the utility's plan and shall issue an order approving or disapproving each plan no later than August 31, 2017, or 105 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly, whichever is later. If the Commission disapproves a plan, the Commission shall, within 30 days, describe in detail the reasons for the disapproval and describe a path by which the utility may file a revised draft of the plan to address the Commission's concerns satisfactorily. If the utility does not refile with the Commission within 60 days after the disapproval, the utility shall be subject to penalties at a rate of $100,000 per day until the plan is filed. This process shall continue, and penalties shall accrue, until the utility has successfully filed a portfolio of energy efficiency measures. Penalties shall be deposited into the Energy Efficiency Trust Fund and the cost of any such penalties may not be recovered from ratepayers. In submitting proposed energy efficiency plans and funding levels to meet the savings goals adopted by this Act the utility shall: (1) Demonstrate that its proposed energy efficiency measures will achieve the requirements that are identified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section. (2) Present specific proposals to implement new building and appliance standards that have been placed into effect. (3) Present estimates of the total amount paid for gas service expressed on a per therm basis associated with the proposed portfolio of measures designed to meet the requirements that are identified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section. (4) For those multi-year plans that commence prior to January 1, 2018, coordinate with the Department to present a portfolio of energy efficiency measures proportionate to the share of total annual utility revenues in Illinois from households at or below 150% of the poverty level. Such programs shall be targeted to households with incomes at or below 80% of area median income. (5) Demonstrate that its overall portfolio of energy efficiency measures, not including low-income programs described in item (4) of this subsection (f) and subsection (e-5) of this Section, are cost-effective using the total resource cost test and represent a diverse cross section of opportunities for customers of all rate classes to participate in the programs. (6) Demonstrate that a gas utility affiliated with an electric utility that is required to comply with Section 8-103 or 8-103B of this Act has integrated gas and electric efficiency measures into a single program that reduces program or participant costs and appropriately allocates costs to gas and electric ratepayers. For those multi-year plans that commence prior to January 1, 2018, the Department shall integrate all gas and electric programs it delivers in any such utilities' service territories, unless the Department can show that integration is not feasible or appropriate. (7) Include a proposed cost recovery tariff mechanism to fund the proposed energy efficiency measures and to ensure the recovery of the prudently and reasonably incurred costs of Commission-approved programs. (8) Provide for quarterly status reports tracking implementation of and expenditures for the utility's portfolio of measures and, if applicable, the Department's portfolio of measures, an annual independent review, and a full independent evaluation of the multi-year results of the performance and the cost-effectiveness of the utility's and, if applicable, Department's portfolios of measures and broader net program impacts and, to the extent practical, for adjustment of the measures on a going forward basis as a result of the evaluations. The resources dedicated to evaluation shall not exceed 3% of portfolio resources in any given multi-year period. (g) No more than 3% of expenditures on energy efficiency measures may be allocated for demonstration of breakthrough equipment and devices. (h) Illinois natural gas utilities that are affiliated by virtue of a common parent company may, at the utilities' request, be considered a single natural gas utility for purposes of complying with this Section. (i) If, after 3 years, a gas utility fails to meet the efficiency standard specified in subsection (c) of this Section as modified by subsection (d), then it shall make a contribution to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program. The total liability for failure to meet the goal shall be assessed as follows: (1) a large gas utility shall pay $600,000; (2) a medium gas utility shall pay $400,000; and (3) a small gas utility shall pay $200,000. For purposes of this Section, (i) a "large gas utility" is a gas utility that on December 31, 2008, served more than 1,500,000 gas customers in Illinois; (ii) a "medium gas utility" is a gas utility that on December 31, 2008, served fewer than 1,500,000, but more than 500,000 gas customers in Illinois; and (iii) a "small gas utility" is a gas utility that on December 31, 2008, served fewer than 500,000 and more than 100,000 gas customers in Illinois. The costs of this contribution may not be recovered from ratepayers. If a gas utility fails to meet the efficiency standard specified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section, in any 2 consecutive multi-year planning periods, then the responsibility for implementing the utility's energy efficiency measures shall be transferred to an independent program administrator selected by the Commission. Reasonable and prudent costs incurred by the independent program administrator to meet the efficiency standard specified in subsection (c) of this Section, as modified by subsection (d) of this Section, may be recovered from the customers of the affected gas utilities, other than customers described in subsection (m) of this Section. The utility shall provide the independent program administrator with all information and assistance necessary to perform the program administrator's duties including but not limited to customer, account, and energy usage data, and shall allow the program administrator to include inserts in customer bills. The utility may recover reasonable costs associated with any such assistance. (j) No utility shall be deemed to have failed to meet the energy efficiency standards to the extent any such failure is due to a failure of the Department. (k) Not later than January 1, 2012, the Commission shall develop and solicit public comment on a plan to foster statewide coordination and consistency between statutorily mandated natural gas and electric energy efficiency programs to reduce program or participant costs or to improve program performance. Not later than September 1, 2013, the Commission shall issue a report to the General Assembly containing its findings and recommendations. (l) This Section does not apply to a gas utility that on January 1, 2009, provided gas service to fewer than 100,000 customers in Illinois. (m) Subsections (a) through (k) of this Section do not apply to customers of a natural gas utility that have a North American Industry Classification System code number that is 22111 or any such code number beginning with the digits 31, 32, or 33 and (i) annual usage in the aggregate of 4 million therms or more within the service territory of the affected gas utility or with aggregate usage of 8 million therms or more in this State and complying with the provisions of item (l) of this subsection (m); or (ii) using natural gas as feedstock and meeting the usage requirements described in item (i) of this subsection (m), to the extent such annual feedstock usage is greater than 60% of the customer's total annual usage of natural gas. (1) Customers described in this subsection (m) of this Section shall apply, on a form approved on or before October 1, 2009 by the Department, to the Department to be designated as a self-directing customer ("SDC") or as an exempt customer using natural gas as a feedstock from which other products are made, including, but not limited to, feedstock for a hydrogen plant, on or before the 1st day of February, 2010. Thereafter, application may be made not less than 6 months before the filing date of the gas utility energy efficiency plan described in subsection (f) of this Section; however, a new customer that commences taking service from a natural gas utility after February 1, 2010 may apply to become a SDC or exempt customer up to 30 days after beginning service. Customers described in this subsection (m) that have not already been approved by the Department may apply to be designated a self-directing customer or exempt customer, on a form approved by the Department, between September 1, 2013 and September 30, 2013. Customer applications that are approved by the Department under this amendatory Act of the 98th General Assembly shall be considered to be a self-directing customer or exempt customer, as applicable, for the current 3-year planning period effective December 1, 2013. Such application shall contain the following: (A) the customer's certification that, at the time of its application, it qualifies to be a SDC or exempt customer described in this subsection (m) of this Section; (B) in the case of a SDC, the customer's certification that it has established or will establish by the beginning of the utility's multi-year planning period commencing subsequent to the application, and will maintain for accounting purposes, an energy efficiency reserve account and that the customer will accrue funds in said account to be held for the purpose of funding, in whole or in part, energy efficiency measures of the customer's choosing, which may include, but are not limited to, projects involving combined heat and power systems that use the same energy source both for the generation of electrical or mechanical power and the production of steam or another form of useful thermal energy or the use of combustible gas produced from biomass, or both; (C) in the case of a SDC, the customer's certification that annual funding levels for the energy efficiency reserve account will be equal to 2% of the customer's cost of natural gas, composed of the customer's commodity cost and the delivery service charges paid to the gas utility, or $150,000, whichever is less; (D) in the case of a SDC, the customer's certification that the required reserve account balance will be capped at 3 years' worth of accruals and that the customer may, at its option, make further deposits to the account to the extent such deposit would increase the reserve account balance above the designated cap level; (E) in the case of a SDC, the customer's certification that by October 1 of each year, beginning no sooner than October 1, 2012, the customer will report to the Department information, for the 12-month period ending May 31 of the same year, on all deposits and reductions, if any, to the reserve account during the reporting year, and to the extent deposits to the reserve account in any year are in an amount less than $150,000, the basis for such reduced deposits; reserve account balances by month; a description of energy efficiency measures undertaken by the customer and paid for in whole or in part with funds from the reserve account; an estimate of the energy saved, or to be saved, by the measure; and that the report shall include a verification by an officer or plant manager of the customer or by a registered professional engineer or certified energy efficiency trade professional that the funds withdrawn from the reserve account were used for the energy efficiency measures; (F) in the case of an exempt customer, the customer's certification of the level of gas usage as feedstock in the customer's operation in a typical year and that it will provide information establishing this level, upon request of the Department; (G) in the case of either an exempt customer or a SDC, the customer's certification that it has provided the gas utility or utilities serving the customer with a copy of the application as filed with the Department; (H) in the case of either an exempt customer or a SDC, certification of the natural gas utility or utilities serving the customer in Illinois including the natural gas utility accounts that are the subject of the application; and (I) in the case of either an exempt customer or a SDC, a verification signed by a plant manager or an authorized corporate officer attesting to the truthfulness and accuracy of the information contained in the application. (2) The Department shall review the application to determine that it contains the information described in provisions (A) through (I) of item (1) of this subsection (m), as applicable. The review shall be completed within 30 days after the date the application is filed with the Department. Absent a determination by the Department within the 30-day period, the applicant shall be considered to be a SDC or exempt customer, as applicable, for all subsequent multi-year planning periods, as of the date of filing the application described in this subsection (m). If the Department determines that the application does not contain the applicable information described in provisions (A) through (I) of item (1) of this subsection (m), it shall notify the customer, in writing, of its determination that the application does not contain the required information and identify the information that is missing, and the customer shall provide the missing information within 15 working days after the date of receipt of the Department's notification. (3) The Department shall have the right to audit the information provided in the customer's application and annual reports to ensure continued compliance with the requirements of this subsection. Based on the audit, if the Department determines the customer is no longer in compliance with the requirements of items (A) through (I) of item (1) of this subsection (m), as applicable, the Department shall notify the customer in writing of the noncompliance. The customer shall have 30 days to establish its compliance, and failing to do so, may have its status as a SDC or exempt customer revoked by the Department. The Department shall treat all information provided by any customer seeking SDC status or exemption from the provisions of this Section as strictly confidential. (4) Upon request, or on its own motion, the Commission may open an investigation, no more than once every 3 years and not before October 1, 2014, to evaluate the effectiveness of the self-directing program described in this subsection (m). Customers described in this subsection (m) that applied to the Department on January 3, 2013, were approved by the Department on February 13, 2013 to be a self-directing customer or exempt customer, and receive natural gas from a utility that provides gas service to at least 500,000 retail customers in Illinois and electric service to at least 1,000,000 retail customers in Illinois shall be considered to be a self-directing customer or exempt customer, as applicable, for the current 3-year planning period effective December 1, 2013. (m-1) For utilities that file an amended plan for the period covering calendar years 2027 through 2029, and for all utilities for all calendar years covered by a multi-year plan commencing on or after January 1, 2030, subsections (a) through (k) of this Section do not apply to eligible customers of a natural gas utility that have chosen to opt out of multi-year plans. (1) For purposes of this subsection (m-1), "eligible customer" means any retail customer of a natural gas utility, except for federal, State, municipal and other public customers, with a North American Industry Classification System code number that is 22111 or any such code number beginning with the digits 31, 32, or 33 and (i) annual usage in the aggregate of 4,000,000 therms or more within the service territory of the affected gas utility or with aggregate usage of 8,000,000 therms or more in this State; or (ii) using natural gas as feedstock and meeting the usage requirements described in item (i) of this paragraph (1), to the extent such annual feedstock usage is greater than 60% of the customer's total annual usage of natural gas. A determination of whether this subsection is applicable to a customer shall be made for each multi-year plan beginning after January 1, 2026. The criteria for determining whether this subsection is applicable shall be the 12 consecutive billing periods prior to the start of the first year of each such multi-year plan. (2) Within 45 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly, the Commission shall prescribe the form for notice required for opting out of energy efficiency programs. Within 120 days after the Commission's initial issuance of the form for notice, customers described in paragraph (1) of this subsection (m-1) may submit completed forms to the natural gas utility. Thereafter, forms must be submitted to the natural gas utility not less than 6 months before the filing date of the gas utility energy efficiency plan described in subsection (f) of this Section; however, a new customer that commences taking service from a natural gas utility after January 1, 2026 may submit a form up to 30 days after beginning service. The form for notice for opting out of natural gas energy efficiency programs shall contain the following: (A) a statement indicating that the customer has elected to opt-out; (B) the account numbers for the customer accounts to which the opt out shall apply; (C) the mailing address associated with each customer account identified under subparagraph (B); (D) the customer's certification that, at the time its form was submitted, it qualifies as an eligible customer, as described in paragraph (1) of this subsection (m-1); (E) an American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) level 2 or higher audit report conducted by an independent third-party expert identifying cost-effective energy efficiency project opportunities that could be invested in over the next 10 years. A customer with a specialized process may use a self-audit process in lieu of an ASHRAE audit; (F) a description of the customer's plans to reallocate funds toward internal energy efficiency efforts identified in the subparagraph (E) report, including, but not limited to: (i) strategic energy management or other programs, including descriptions of targeted buildings, equipment and operations; (ii) eligible energy efficiency measures; and (iii) expected energy savings, itemized by technology. If the subparagraph (E) audit report identifies that the customer currently utilizes the best available energy efficient technology, equipment, programs, and operations, the customer may provide a statement that more efficient technology, equipment, programs, and operations are not reasonably available as a means of satisfying this subparagraph (F); and (G) a verification signed by a plant manager or an authorized corporate officer attesting to the truthfulness and accuracy of the information contained in the application. (3) Upon receipt of a properly and timely noticed request for opt out submitted by an eligible large private energy customer, the natural gas utility shall grant the request and file the request with the Commission, and, beginning January 1 of the first year of the next multi-year energy efficiency plan cycle, the opted out customer shall no longer be assessed the costs of the plan and shall be prohibited from participating in that multi-year plan cycle to give the natural gas utility the certainty to design program plan proposals. (4) The request to opt out is only valid for the requested plan cycle. An eligible large private energy customer must also request to opt out for future energy efficiency plan cycles, otherwise the customer will be included in the future energy efficiency plan cycle. (n) The applicability of this Section to customers described in subsection (m) of this Section is conditioned on the existence of the SDC program. In no event will any provision of this Section apply to such customers after January 1, 2020. (o) Utilities' 3-year energy efficiency plans approved by the Commission on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly for the period June 1, 2014 through May 31, 2017 shall continue to be in force and effect through December 31, 2017 so that the energy efficiency programs set forth in those plans continue to be offered during the period June 1, 2017 through December 31, 2017. Each utility is authorized to increase, on a pro rata basis, the energy savings goals and budgets approved in its plan to reflect the additional 7 months of the plan's operation.

Legislative History

(Source: P.A. 103-613, eff. 7-1-24; 104-458, eff. 6-1-26.)