Non-Discrimination

Section 450 Section 450.20  Non-Discrimination a)         Electric utilities shall not provide affiliated interests or customers of affiliated interests preferential treatment or advantages relative to unaffiliated entities or their customers in connection with services provided under tariffs on file with the Illinois Commerce Commission (Commission). This provision applies broadly to all aspects of service, including, but not limited to, responsiveness to requests for service, the availability of firm versus interruptible services, the imposition of special metering requirements, and all terms and conditions and charges specified in the tariff. b)         Except for corporate support transactions and services that have been declared competitive pursuant to Section 16-113 of the Act, transactions between an electric utility and one or more of its affiliated interests in competition with alternative retail electric suppliers that are not governed by tariff sheets on file with the Commission shall not discriminate in relation to unaffiliated alternative retail electric suppliers. c)         Electric utilities and affiliated interests shall not notify potential or actual customers, either directly or indirectly, advertise to the public, or otherwise communicate that the electric utility provides any advantages relating to the scheduling, transmission or distribution of electricity to affiliated interests or their customers relative to unaffiliated entities and their customers. d)         A utility shall process requests for similar services provided by the utility in the same manner and within the same time period for its affiliated interests in competition with alternative retail electric suppliers and for all similarly situated unaffiliated alternative retail electric suppliers and their respective customers. e)         If discretion is permitted in application of a tariff provision, electric utilities shall maintain a log detailing each instance in which it exercised discretion, as required in Section 450.140(d). f)         If an electric utility offers affiliated interests or customers of affiliated interests a discount, rebate, fee waiver or waivers of its ordinary terms and conditions for services provided under tariffs on file with the Commission, it shall contemporaneously offer the same discount, rebate, fee waiver or waivers of its ordinary terms and conditions to all unaffiliated entities and customers of unaffiliated entities, to the extent consistent with the tariffs, provided, however, that this subsection shall not apply to billing experiments under Section 16-106 of the Act or competitive services under Sections 16-102 and 16-116(b) of the Act.  Electric utilities shall maintain a log of such instances, as required in Section 450.140(d). g)         A customer's eligibility for participation in any billing experiments under Section 16-106 of the Act or contracts for competitive service under Sections 16-102 and 16-116(b) of the Act, except for those competitive services that have been declared competitive pursuant to Section 16-113 of the Act, shall not be conditioned on, nor tied to, the taking of any goods and services from the utility's affiliated interests.  Electric utilities shall inform customers of this prohibition in writing before customers begin taking such service. h)         When providing delivery services as a component of any bundled service, an electric utility shall not offer affiliated interests or the customers of affiliated interests a discount, rebate, fee waiver or waivers of its ordinary terms and conditions for delivery services on file with the Commission unless delivery services have been declared competitive service pursuant to Section 16-113 of the Act or the electric utility contemporaneously offers the same discount, rebate, fee waiver or waivers of its ordinary terms and conditions to all unaffiliated entities and customers of unaffiliated entities.