Illinois Shines Program Guidebook PDF (August 3, 2023)

Program Guidebook Illinois Shines (Adjustable Block Program) Version Released August 3, 2023* *Updated to correct typographical errors related to EEC Advance of Capital V230804 ...

Program Guidebook Illinois Shines (Adjustable Block Program) Version Released August 3, 2023* *Updated to correct typographical errors related to EEC Advance of Capital V230804  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Table of Contents Introduction................................................................................................................................................... 5 Section 1: Program Description and Background......................................................................................... 6 A. Establishment of Program...................................................................................................................... 7 B. Program Administrator and IPA.............................................................................................................. 9 C. Program Requirements and Key Documents........................................................................................ 9 D. Program Categories............................................................................................................................. 10 E. Block Structure.................................................................................................................................... 17 F. Block Closing........................................................................................................................................ 18 G. Waitlist Procedures.............................................................................................................................. 19 H. Uncontracted Capacity........................................................................................................................ 21 I. REC Pricing............................................................................................................................................ 22 Section 2: Approved Vendors...................................................................................................................... 24 A. Approved Vendor Overview and Requirements....................................................................................... 25 B. Equity Eligible Contractor Application.................................................................................................. 26 C. General AV Attestation and EEC Certification...................................................................................... 27 D. Evaluation Criteria for Approved Vendors............................................................................................ 27 E. Approved Vendor Application Review and Appeal Procedure.............................................................. 29 F. Confidentiality...................................................................................................................................... 29 G. Designees and Designee Registration................................................................................................. 30 H. Equity Eligible Contractor Designees................................................................................................... 33 Section 3: Consumer Protection................................................................................................................. 34 A. Customer Service and Consumer Complaints..................................................................................... 35 B. Process for Consumer Protection Violations and Potential Violations................................................. 36 C. Consequences for Violations of Program Requirements..................................................................... 38 Section 4: System Eligibility......................................................................................................................... 40 A. System Location................................................................................................................................... 40 B. Interconnection Date........................................................................................................................... 41 C. New Equipment.................................................................................................................................... 41 D. Installer Requirements........................................................................................................................ 41 E. Expansions........................................................................................................................................... 42 F. Co-location of Distributed Generation Projects.................................................................................... 43 G. Co-location of Community Solar Projects............................................................................................ 44 Table of Contents Page 2 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 H. Site Control.......................................................................................................................................... 45 I. Site Map................................................................................................................................................ 45 J. REC Quantity Calculation...................................................................................................................... 46 K. System Size......................................................................................................................................... 47 L. Systems with Battery Backup............................................................................................................... 47 M. Systems that Directly Serve DC Loads................................................................................................ 48 N. Metering.............................................................................................................................................. 49 O. Partial Systems.................................................................................................................................... 50 P. Rate Recovery...................................................................................................................................... 50 Q. Prevailing Wage Requirements............................................................................................................ 51 Section 5: Project Applications.................................................................................................................... 53 A. Part I Application Process.................................................................................................................... 56 B. Part II Application Process................................................................................................................... 64 C. Inspections........................................................................................................................................... 65 D. Energized Systems.............................................................................................................................. 66 E. Community Solar Specific Requirements............................................................................................ 66 F. Required Information........................................................................................................................... 69 Section 6: Renewable Energy Credit Management and Assignments........................................................ 77 A. REC Delivery......................................................................................................................................... 77 B. Assignment of REC Contracts.............................................................................................................. 80 C. Community Solar Under the REC Contract........................................................................................... 83 Section 7: Annual Reports and Performance Evaluation............................................................................ 85 A. Annual Report Requirements............................................................................................................... 85 B. Minimum Equity Standards Compliance Plan..................................................................................... 87 C. Collateral and Performance Evaluation Mechanics............................................................................. 88 Section 8: Invoicing and Payments............................................................................................................. 92 Section 9: Guidebook Update Process........................................................................................................ 97 Section 10: Glossary................................................................................................................................... 99 Appendix A – Past REC Prices................................................................................................................... 106 Appendix B – EEC Certification.................................................................................................................. 109 Appendix C – Agrivoltaics Requirements................................................................................................... 111 Appendix D – Brownfield Requirements................................................................................................... 113 Appendix E - Scoring Criteria for Traditional Community Solar Projects................................................... 115 Appendix F – Community-Driven Community Solar Scoring Criteria......................................................... 123 Table of Contents Page 3 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Appendix G - List of Information Collected in Approved Vendor Application............................................. 125 Appendix H - Approved Vendor Attestation................................................................................................ 129 Appendix I – Part I Application Requirements........................................................................................... 131 Appendix J – Part II Application Requirements......................................................................................... 140 Appendix K – Minimum Equity Standard Waivers..................................................................................... 149 Appendix L – Extension Request Process................................................................................................. 154 Appendix M – Clarifications for Public Schools Category.......................................................................... 155 Appendix N – Traditional Community Solar Clarifications Published in 2022.......................................... 157 Table of Contents Page 4 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Introduction The Illinois Shines Program (“Program”)1 is a state-administered solar incentive program created to facilitate the development of new photovoltaic distributed generation and community solar projects through the issuance of renewable energy credit delivery contracts, as required by Illinois law. The Program Guidebook is a document created by the Illinois Power Agency (“IPA” or “Agency”) and the Program Administrator to provide existing and prospective Program participants with necessary guidance about application requirements, participation requirements, Program processes, and other aspects of the Program. The Program Guidebook and the Consumer Protection Handbook detail Program requirements for Approved Vendors and their subcontractors in accordance with the Illinois Power Agency’s Long-Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan. The Program Guidebook is reviewed and updated on periodic basis by the Program Administrator, Energy Solutions, Inc., in consultation with the Illinois Power Agency. Any omission of content from a prior version of this Guidebook through an update may not necessarily constitute the omission of a requirement, as some edits are made for cosmetic or synthesizing purposes and not to reflect the removal of a requirement. More information on the update process of this document can be found in Section 9: Guidebook Update Process. The Agency and Program Administrator will update the Guidebook periodically as necessary to reflect changes in law and/or orders of the Illinois Commerce Commission (“Commission”) which impact the Illinois Shines Program, or the development of other requirements through separate comment and requirement publishing processes. In the event of a conflict between this Guidebook and subsequent changes in law, new Commission orders, or the subsequent development of other program materials, those statutes and orders shall supersede the relevant portions of this Guidebook until Guidebook revisions may be completed. This edition of the Guidebook incorporates changes for the 2023-24 Program year. Key changes include, but are not limited to: Proposal to prohibit the use of TBD Disclosure Forms for Community-Driven Community Solar projects Proposed updates to information to submit related to projects with batteries New information regarding the publishing of disciplinary decisions made by Program New information on the Public Schools anchor tenant waiver New information on the MES waiver General reordering and clarifying of information Shifting of listed requirements, waivers, attestations, etc. into appendices Updates to the EEC category to conform with the ICC’s Order on Rehearing dated May 4, 2023 1 Referred to in the law as the “Adjustable Block Program,” Illinois Shines was created pursuant to Section 1-75(c)(1) of the Illinois Power Agency Act. Introduction Page 5 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Section 1: Program Description and Background A. Establishment of Program......................................................................................................................... 7 B. Program Administrator and IPA................................................................................................................. 9 C. Program Requirements and Key Documents............................................................................................ 9 D. Program Categories................................................................................................................................ 10 E. Block Structure........................................................................................................................................ 17 F. Block Closing........................................................................................................................................... 18 G. Waitlist Procedures................................................................................................................................. 19 H. Uncontracted Capacity............................................................................................................................ 21 I. REC Pricing............................................................................................................................................... 22 Page 6 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 A complete description of the Program can be found in the Agency’s 2022 Long-Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan (“Plan,” “Long-Term Plan,” or “Revised Plan”).2 This Guidebook also reflects changes to the Program that were proscribed through the enactment of Public Act 102-0662 and adopted in the Long-Term Plan. On July 14, 2022, the Commission approved, with modifications, the Agency’s 2022 Long Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan. The Final 2022 Long-Term Plan was published by the Agency on its website on August 23, 2022. This Section of this Guidebook contains a summary of the Program designed for quick reference; subsequent sections elaborate on various aspects of the Program, including further guidelines not found in the Plan. A glossary in Section 10 of this Guidebook provides a description of key terms used throughout. The Program provides incentives for the development of new photovoltaic distributed generation (“DG”) and community solar (“CS”) projects located in Illinois. These incentives are provided through payments made for the Renewable Energy Credits (“RECs”) generated by participating projects over their first 15 or 20 years of operation, dependent upon the project category as described further herein. These payments are made through contracts between Illinois electric utilities and Approved Vendors (as described below). The Program is administered pursuant to Section 1-75(c) of the IPA Act (20 ILCS 3855). The Illinois Power Agency is the state agency responsible for the Program’s general management and implementation. Day-to- day administration of the Program is the responsibility of the Agency’s third-party Program Administrator, Energy Solutions, Inc. In addition to the approval of the Agency’s Long-Term Plan and the approval of REC Contracts, many other aspects of photovoltaic development and installation in Illinois are under the jurisdiction of the Illinois Commerce Commission. These include the certification of distributed generation installers, interconnection standards, net metering tariffs, and tariffs allowing for a smart inverter rebate for non-residential PV systems. A. Establishment of Program Public Act 99-0906 (Future Energy Jobs Act) In December 2016 the Illinois General Assembly passed Public Act 99-0906, known as the Future Energy Jobs Act, which took effect on June 1, 2017. This statute required the development and ongoing operation of an “Adjustable Block” program. This program, also known as the Illinois Shines program, is intended to facilitate the development of new community solar and distributed photovoltaic generation projects, and must feature a “transparent schedule of prices and quantities” for RECs “to enable the photovoltaic market to scale up and for renewable energy credit prices to adjust at a predictable rate over time.” Public Act 99-0906 provided for three program categories, 1) Small Distributed Generation (behind the meter projects up to 10 kW AC); 2) Large Distributed Generation (behind the meter projects over 10 kW AC up to 2 MW AC); and 3) Community Solar. 2 The most recent version of the Plan can be found here: https://ipa.illinois.gov/energy-procurement/current-approved- plan.html and here: https://illinoisabp.com/long-term-plan/. As of the date of publication of this Draft Guidebook, the Illinois Commerce Commission has re-opened Docket No. 22-0231 for consideration of modifications to the Equity Eligible Contractor Category. Accordingly, the Guidebook may be revised consistent with the Commission’s Order on Reopening. Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 7 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Public Act 102-0662 (Climate and Equitable Jobs Act) Public Act 102-0662 (“P.A. 102-0662”), known as the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, became effective in on September 15, 2021. This sweeping energy legislation amended the IPA Act as well as other Illinois laws that affect the Program and its requirements, thus significantly modifying the Illinois Shines program. First, P.A. 102-0662 expanded the number of project categories in the Program from three to six. The three additional categories are: Community-Driven Community Solar, Public Schools, and the Equity Eligible Contractor category. These are further defined below. Additionally, P.A. 102-0662 provided that most projects that participate in the Program were now subject to requirements under the Illinois Prevailing Wage Act. This means individuals engaged in the construction of applicable projects submitted to the Program must be paid the relevant prevailing wage. Prevailing wage is a minimum compensation level set by the Illinois Department of Labor (“IDOL”) by county for construction activities related to public works. P.A. 102-0662 introduced new equity provisions for the Program. This statute introduced the concept of an Equity Eligible Person, an Equity Eligible Contractor, and the Minimum Equity Standard, all under an umbrella called the Equity Accountability System. The Minimum Equity Standard (“MES”) requires that starting June 1, 2023, 10% of the workforce on projects developed for the Program be made up of equity eligible persons, with an increase of this percentage to 30% by 2030. All participants in the Program must comply with the MES on an annual basis. Additionally, P.A. 102-0662 shifted the Program away from a cascading block program to an annual block program. Annual blocks of capacity are released for the Program each year on the first day of the Program year, which aligns with the Delivery year. As such, Program years span from June 1 st through May 31st of the following calendar year. Once annual blocks of capacity are full, new capacity is not released until the subsequent Program year. P.A. 102-0662 also requires the Agency to “collect data from program applicants in order to track and improve equitable distribution of benefits across Illinois communities for all procurements the Agency conducts.” The IPA specifically requires the Agency to collect certain information, including but not limited to the racial or ethnic identities and geographic residencies of employees and agents of Program applicants and participants. The Agency has determined that a two-part data collection process will be utilized to collect demographic and geographic information required under the Act; that is, information will be collected both through project applications and through the annual report submitted by Approved Vendors. In order to facilitate the ongoing tracking and collection of information from Approved Vendors’ employees and subcontractors, the Part II application will now collect information on the race, gender, and residential ZIP code of all employees or employees of subcontractors involved in the construction/installation of a particular project and the approximate hours worked. Approved Vendors will also be required to indicate whether any of the workers involved in the construction/installation of the project are graduates from the Solar Training Pipeline Program, Craft Apprentice Program, Multi-Cultural Job Training Program, or another job training program. As additional workforce development programs established by Public Act 102-0662 come online, they will be added to the options available for selection. Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 8 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 B. Program Administrator and IPA Program Administrator as Extension of IPA Per Section 1-75(C)(1)(M) of the Illinois Power Agency Act the Agency may retain an expert consultant to support in the administration of the Program. As such, the Agency goes through an RFP process in order to select the Program Administrator. The selection of the current Program Administrator was approved on April 21, 2022. The Program Administrator works at the express direction of the Agency to administer the Program on a day-to-day basis. Appeal of Program Administrator Decisions A Program participant can appeal any and all decisions made by the Program Administrator to the IPA. While the Program Administrator is an extension of the Agency and works in lockstep with the Agency, the Agency offers this route to Program participants as a matter of course. C. Program Requirements and Key Documents Key Program Documents The Program has three guiding documents that contain requirements for all Program participants: the Long- Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan, the Program Guidebook, and the Consumer Protection Handbook. The Long-Term Plan governs the requirements of the Program which cannot be modified without approval of the Illinois Commerce Commission (“ICC” or “Commission”), while the Guidebook and Consumer Protection Handbook further detail requirements that are outlined in the Long-Term Plan. Long-Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan - The Agency’s Long-Term Renewable Resources Plan covers all Agency activities related to the Illinois Renewable Portfolio Standard, which includes the Illinois Shines program. The Agency updates the Long-Term Plan at least every two years. Each updated version of the Long-Term Plan is litigated before the ICC, and then approved by the ICC through a final order. Consumer Protection Handbook – The Consumer Protection Handbook provides details on consumer protection requirements for Approved Vendors and Designees that participate in the Illinois Power Agency’s Illinois Shines program and/or Illinois Solar for All program. All requirements discussed in the Consumer Protection Handbook apply to both Programs, and apply to distributed generation and community solar projects of any size, unless otherwise indicated. The Consumer Protection Handbook focuses specifically on Program requirements related to consumer interactions in order to ensure strong consumer protections. The Consumer Protection Handbook is updated more frequently than the Long-Term Plan and does not require ICC approval prior to publishing. Program Guidebook – This Program Guidebook establishes details on Program requirements that stem from the Agency’s Long-Term Plan. This document, along with the Consumer Protection handbook together provide the detail to Approved Vendors and Designees on Program requirements and compliance with those requirements. The Program Guidebook is updated more frequently than the Long-Term Plan and does not require ICC approval prior to publishing. Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 9 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Drafting and Approval Process for Long-Term Plan The Agency’s Long-Term Plan is updated at least every two years and undergoes a months-long public comment, litigation, and approval process, pursuant to the requirements of Section 16-111.5(b)(5) of the Public Utilities Act. First, the Agency releases a draft Plan for public comment. At the close of the public comment period, the Agency reviews comments and may revise the Plan based upon feedback received. Next, the Agency files the Plan for approval with the ICC. Stakeholders then may participate in the docketed proceeding before the Commission to modify the Plan, in accordance with the provisions of 16-111.5 of the Public Utilities Act and the ICC’s rules of practice. After litigation concludes, the ICC issues a Final Order approving or modifying the Plan, thus giving the Agency final decisions on any contested matters. Following the entry of a Final Order by the Commission, the Agency amends the Plan to conform to the Final Order and releases a final Long-Term Plan, which will be in effect until the next update of the Long-Term Plan is approved by the ICC. Reopening of a Long-Term Plan In very rare circumstances, the Agency may seek to reopen the ICC Docket in which the Long-Term Plan was approved in order to make an amendment to a requirement contained in the Plan. In order to re-open an already approved Plan, the Agency must petition for and get approval to re-open the docket under which the Plan was approved. Once the ICC approves such a re-opening, stakeholders may participate in the docketed proceeding in accordance with the ICC’s rules of practice. Once this proceeding concludes, the ICC issues a Final Order which may modify the Plan requirements through re-opening. D. Program Categories With six separate project categories, the Program broadly supports only two project types: photovoltaic distributed renewable energy generation devices (i.e., solar DG), and photovoltaic community renewable generation projects (i.e., community solar). These two project types are broken down further into six project categories, as outlined below. Each project application must be allocated to one of these six categories. More detail on each of the six categories is outlined below, and can also be found in Section 1-75(c)(1)(K) of the IPA Act: Small Distributed Generation (“SDG”) – Distributed Generation projects up to and including 25 kW in size (prior to the December 14, 2021 Program reopening, Small DG projects had to be less than or equal to 10 kW). Large Distributed Generation (“LDG”) – Distributed Generation projects greater than 25 kW in size up to and including 5 MW (prior to the December 14, 2021 Program reopening, Large DG projects had to be more than 10 kW and less than or equal to 2 MW). Traditional Community Solar (“TCS”) – Community Solar projects up to and including 5 MW in size.3 Public Schools – Small and Large Distributed Generation projects, as well as community solar projects which serve a public school in Illinois.4 3 Previous blocks of capacity for Traditional Community Solar allowed for projects up to 2 MW in size. 4 For the December14, 2021 block of capacity for Public Schools, only DG applications were accepted. Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 10 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Community-Driven Community Solar (“CDCS”) – Community Solar projects up to and including 5MW that meet the criteria to be classified as community-driven per the guidelines specified in Section 1.D. Equity Eligible Contractor (“EEC”) – Distributed generation projects or community solar projects that are submitted to the Program by an Equity Eligible Contractor Approved Vendor per the guidelines specified in Section 2.B.5 If a project is eligible for more than one category, the Approved Vendor may select any one of those eligible categories into which to submit the application during the Part I application as described in Section 5 below. Approved Vendors will be provided with a drop-down list in the Part I application displaying all categories for which the project is eligible in order to make a selection. An application must be submitted into one and only one category. Traditional Community Solar Due to the fact that there is a limited amount of capacity available in the Program for the development of Traditional Community Solar projects, the Agency has developed a scoring mechanism for if/when the annual block of capacity is exceeded on the first day of the Program year. This scoring mechanism is outlined in Appendix E. A 20% developer cap for any affiliated family of project developers for this Traditional Community Solar capacity will apply. Any affiliated6 family of project developers which exceeds 20% of the awarded capacity in a given year’s Traditional Community Solar block (determined separately for Groups A and B) will have any projects that cause them to exceed the 20% capacity cap moved to become the first projects on the waitlist for the applicable group. Between projects with tied scores that belong to a single Approved Vendor, an Approved Vendor will have the option to select which of their projects would be selected and which moved to the waitlist in order to keep that Approved Vendor within the 20% developer cap. If further ordering is required across first-day submitted projects (for instance, ordering of projects featuring the same score where projects receiving that score span across selected and unselected capacity within that block), the Agency proposes only then to utilize a random selection process to create a rank-order within those equivalently-scored projects. Community-Driven Community Solar Community-Driven Community Solar projects are community solar projects up to 5 MW in size featuring attributes allowing the project to be evaluated for participation in the community-driven community solar category, as established through Section 1-75(c)(1)(K)(v) of the IPA Act. A Community-Driven Community Solar (“CDCS”) project is defined as a solar project which (1) is interconnected to an electric utility, a municipal utility, or a rural electric cooperative, (2) allows subscribers 5 For the December 14, 2021 block of capacity for Equity Eligible Contractors, only DG applications were accepted. 6 “Affiliated” means, with respect to any entity, any other entity that, directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with each other or a third entity. “Control” means the possession, directly or indirectly, of the power to direct the management and policies of an entity, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract, or otherwise. Affiliates may not have shared sales or revenue-sharing arrangements, or common debt and equity financing arrangements. Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 11 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 to pay for shares or some other “interest” in the project, receiving bill credits in exchange; and (3) does not exceed 5,000 kW AC in size, and which features attributes allowing the project to be evaluated for participation in the community-driven community solar category, as established through Section 1- 75(c)(1)(K)(v) of the IPA Act. Each program year, there will be a 90-day period for Community-Driven Community Solar projects to be submitted prior to any project selection. Upon closing of the 90-day period, projects will be reviewed and scored based on the scoring criteria as outlined in Appendix F, with projects selected from the application pool in the order of highest to lowest score until the block is fully allocated. A minimum score of 6 points must be achieved to be eligible for a REC contract in the CDCS category. Random selection will be utilized as a tiebreaker only for equally scored projects to fill available capacity, if any. However, should the capacity available be so small as to only accommodate one or more projects below a certain size, then the Agency may only consider those projects small enough to not exceed that remaining capacity. After project selection for any given program year, projects that have a minimum score of 10 points will be placed on a waitlist for the following delivery year. Public Schools7 A public school project is defined as a distributed generation or community solar project that is located at a public school in Illinois. Public Schools projects will be allocated by Group, Tier/location, and project size. From the 100 MW allotted for this category, 30 MW is allocated to Group A and 70 MW to Group B. Within the allocations to Groups A and B, 70% (70 MW in the initial 2022-2023 block) of capacity will be allocated to schools categorized as Tier 1, Tier 2, and schools located within Environmental Justice Communities and 30% (30 MW in the initial 2022- 2023 block) will be allocated to Tier 3 and Tier 4 schools not located within Environmental Justice Communities. Tiers will be determined using the prior year results of the annual Evidence-Based Funding Distribution process conducted by the Illinois State Board of Education. 8 Capacity will be further allocated by size within these two groups of school types. One-quarter of each allocation will go to projects less than or equal to 250 kW AC, half to projects greater than 250 kW AC and less than or equal to 1 MW AC, and one quarter to projects greater than 1 MW AC and less than or equal to 5 MW AC in size. The initial block sizes for the 2023-2024 program year are listed below. 7 The Agency released Clarifications for Public Schools Category for 2022-23 Program Year on October 7, 2022 8Details can be found at Evidence-Based Funding Distribution Calculation (isbe.net) and Environmental Justice Community Search Map (arcgis.com) Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 12 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Group School Type ≤250 kW >250 - 1,000 kW >1,000 - 5,000 kW Tier 1, Tier 2, or schools located within Environmental Justice 5.25 MW 10.5 MW 5.25 MW Communities Group A 30 MW Tier 3 and Tier 4 schools that are not located within Environmental 2.25 MW 4.5 MW 2.25 MW Justice Communities Tier 1, Tier 2, or schools located within Environmental Justice 12.25 MW 24.5 MW 12.25 MW Group B Communities 70 MW Tier 3 and Tier 4 schools that are not located within Environmental 5.25 MW 10.5 MW 5.25 MW Justice Communities Total 100 MW 25 MW 50 MW 25 MW For each program year, if any of the above allocations are not filled within 180 days, projects located at a public school will be accepted on a first come, first serve basis regardless of Tier, Environmental Justice Community location, or project size. In order to ensure a smooth transition to new requirements, there will be a one-year grace period wherein public school projects will be permitted to participate in the Illinois Solar for All’s Non-Profit and Public Facility sub-program. Beginning with the 2023-24 program year, public school projects must be submitted to the Adjustable Block Program and may no longer apply for incentives through the Illinois Solar for All program. Project Location for Public Schools Distributed generation projects submitted to the Public Schools category must be located at the public school (or school district facility) the project is serving. Community solar projects submitted to the Public Schools category must be sited on district- or school-owned land, in accordance with the Commission’s Final Order on the 2022 Long-Term Plan. For community solar projects only, the school or district-owned land that the project is sited on may be adjacent to the parcel where the anchor tenant school (or district building, or district facility) is located, but adjacency is not required. A school/district must own the land on which a project submitted to the Public Schools category is sited. Projects developed on land leased by a school/district are not permitted for submission to this category, unless a public school is sited on the same parcel of leased land. A school district must own the land on which the prospective project is sited at the time of application to the Program. Schools/districts are not permitted to enter into agreements to purchase land that would be contingent on receiving a REC Contract from the Program in order to qualify for this Program category. A school district must continue to own the land the project is sited on for the entire lifetime of the REC Contract (20 years). Any change in land ownership that occurs during the lifetime of the REC contract that causes the school or district to sell the land on which a project in the Public Schools category is sited, should be brought Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 13 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 to the Program's attention and will be assessed for continuation in the Program on a case-by-case basis. The Program Administrator along with the Agency will make a determination on whether the project no longer being sited on land owned by a school/district constitutes material non-conformance with the REC contract. Subscriber and Anchor Tenant Requirements for Community Solar Projects in the Public Schools Category For projects participating in the Public Schools category, the public school or school district at which the project is sited must be an anchor subscriber to the community solar project, commonly referred to as “anchor tenant”. As such, the public school or school district must subscribe to a minimum of 10% of the project’s capacity, without exceeding 40% of the project’s capacity. As the REC Contract for Public Schools projects is 20 years in length, the school must commit to being an anchor tenant for the Community Solar project for the life of the REC Contract. In order to comply with anchor tenant requirements, the Approved Vendor will need to submit a letter of intent in the Part I application from the school/school district serving as the anchor tenant. When subscription levels for the project are reviewed by the Program Administrator during the Part II application review, the school/school district must be subscribed to between 10-40% of the project’s capacity. Per requirements for community solar projects under the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, community solar projects submitted to the Public Schools category will be required to retain a subscription mix of at least 50% small subscribers. The school or school district hosting the project must act as the anchor tenant and the 50% small subscriber commitment must be met; remaining capacity of the project after fulfillment of these two requirements can be filled with any type of subscriber. Anchor Tenant Waiver for Public Schools The Agency will allow flexibility around the ability of an anchor tenant of a Public School category community solar project to transfer the subscription to another public school or school district and adjust the subscription size (within the 10-40% range) as needed. The anchor tenant may request a waiver from the subscription requirements as necessary at any point during the 20-year subscription term. As the waiver process is intended to be used in limited instances when a school can no longer serve as an anchor tenant due to unforeseen circumstances that may arise over a 20-year period, a school and/or district may not request a waiver in advance of a demonstrated need or in advance of a project application. The Agency will accept waiver requests from Approved Vendors for changes in circumstances that prohibit the public school or district from acting as an anchor tenant at the original subscription size including, but not limited to: decreased electric load (possibly due to lower than average attendance levels), closure of a school, consolidation of schools, etc. The public school or district must retain a subscription of at least 10% of the community solar project. Additional reasons not contemplated here will be considered by the Agency and all waivers will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Sufficient documentation of such circumstances will be required in order for a waiver request to be considered. The Agency may disfavor waiver requests that are made within the first four years following a project’s Energization/Part II verification. An Approved Vendor seeking a waiver from this requirement should reach out to the Program Administrator. Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 14 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Equity Eligible Contractors An Equity Eligible Contractor (“EEC”) is a business that is majority-owned by equity eligible persons, or a nonprofit or cooperative that is majority-governed by eligible persons, or is a natural person that is an eligible person offering personal services as an independent contractor. The definition of an equity eligible person can be found in the Glossary of this Guidebook. Utilization of the capacity in the Equity Eligible Contractor category is limited to Approved Vendors who qualify as an EEC. Equity Eligible Contractor Approved Vendors may choose to work with Designees or on their own, and those Designees may or may not be also EEC certified. However, Approved Vendors that do not qualify as an EEC but partner with a Designee that does qualify as an Equity Eligible Contractor are ineligible to participate in this category. For projects submitted and verified during Part I from an EEC-certified Approved Vendor and thus placed in the EEC category, the Approved Vendor must maintain that EEC certification through Part II verification. An exception will be made if the EEC certification included a determination based on persons whose primary residence is in an equity investment eligible community at the time of certification and have subsequently moved out of an eligible community. If an EEC project is assigned under the 2021 or 2022 REC Delivery Contracts to a non-EEC Approved Vendor before Part II verification, it will have failed to meet EEC requirements, will not be Part II verified, and will be removed from REC contract with forfeiture of collateral. The project may be reapplied to another category for which it is eligible. If there is a waitlist for the new category to which it is applied, the project will be added to the waitlist as of the date of this reapplication to the new category. Projects that are developed by Approved Vendors certified as EEC and receive a REC contract through the EEC block of capacity may not assign those projects to an Approved Vendor that is not also a certified Equity Eligible Contractor for six years after the Part II verification date of the project. After six years from the Part II verification date has passed, this moratorium on assigning EEC projects to Approved Vendors that are not certified as an EEC is lifted. Up to 50% of contract value may be advanced to an EEC-certified Approved Vendor. To be eligible for an advance of capital, an EEC will need to include the request for the advance of capital in Part I application, along with a short narrative description of the need being addressed, and what key project development milestones will trigger the disbursement. The narrative description should include a breakdown of costs that the advance will cover and may be submitted on a confidential basis. Once a project has been Part I verified and the contract or product order approved by the Commission, the EEC AV will then submit verification of achievement of the specified milestones to the Agency for review and approval. The EEC will then invoice the utility for the advancement following the invoicing process outlined in the 2022 REC Contract and the utilities will process this invoice following the same, with payments made by the contracting utility on the regular monthly invoicing cycle. EEC Subcategories - Beginning in the 2023-24 Program year, the EEC category will feature subcategories for Community Solar and Distributed Generation projects in order to ensure a diverse set of projects are developed within this category. Each Group in the EEC category will feature subcategories for Community Solar and Distributed Generation projects for the initial nine months the block of capacity is open. The 2023-2024 capacity of each Group will be split 75% for community solar and 25% for distributed generation. This split will ensure that some capacity remains available for EECs seeking to develop distributed generation projects, especially as new EECs enter the market. After the category has been open for nine months, the reserve of capacity for the subcategories will Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 15 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 end, and all remaining capacity in the block will be available to both CS and DG projects within the respective Group. EEC Subcategory Capacity for Initial Nine Months of Category Opening9 Group A Total – 20 MW Group B Total – 46 MW Community Solar – 15 MW Community Solar – 34.5 MW Distributed Generation – 5 MW Distributed Generation – 11.5 MW EEC Developer Cap – Beginning in the 2023-2024 delivery year, a 20% developer cap may be applied to the EEC category. This 20% developer cap will be applied across the entire category (i.e., across both Groups A and B) if capacity for an EEC sub-category in either Group A or B is oversubscribed on Day One of the program year. If none of the EEC sub-categories are oversubscribed on Day One, the developer cap will not be applied. If triggered on Day One, the 20% developer cap will be applied across the total capacity for the annual block, inclusive of capacity for all sub-categories, such that an EEC-certified Approved Vendor (and its affiliated EEC-AVs) may not be awarded REC contracts within the category in excess of 20% of the capacity for the EEC Category for the 2023-2024 Program year. Subscriptions Across Traditional Community Solar and Community-Driven Community Solar Projects Subscriptions to community solar projects occur at the utility account level. A single utility account may have multiple subscriptions to different community solar projects. Additional requirements applicable to community solar subscriptions may be outlined in applicable utility tariffs. Subscriptions to community solar projects are monitored by the Program Administrator per the process outlined in the relevant REC contract for each project type. Confidential Treatment of Subscriber Information In the course of marketing, soliciting, and subscribing customers, Approved Vendors and/or their Designees, subcontractors, or agents, may obtain confidential, proprietary, or otherwise generally non-public information from subscribers or potential subscribers. This information may include the subscriber or potential subscriber’s utility account number, utility account name, meter number, or other confidential information. Approved Vendors, Designees, subcontractors, and agents shall maintain the confidentiality and security of all such information received from subscribers and potential subscribers. Furthermore, Approved Vendors, Designees, subcontractors, and agents shall not release such information to any other person or entity without the written consent of the subscriber or potential subscriber. This restriction shall not apply to the necessary sharing of such information between an Approved Vendor and its Designees, subcontractors, or agents in order to enroll a community solar subscriber, nor shall it apply to requests from the Program Administrator and/or the Agency as needed for program administration. Approved Vendors and Designees who violate this 9These capacity allocations do not include any additional capacity that may be added to the EEC block from the reallocation process as outlined in Section 1.H. Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 16 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 program requirement, either directly or through the conduct of a subcontractor or agent, may be subject to disciplinary action, including possible suspension from the Program. E. Block Structure At the core of the Program is the concept of a “block.” A block constitutes a pre-established amount of program capacity available for a certain project type at a transparent, administratively set REC price or prices, with prices differing slightly depending on project attributes. The enactment of Public Act 102-0662 changed the cascading block approach of the Program to an annual block approach. A single annual block will open at the start of each delivery year, on June 1, establishing program years that align with delivery years. This schedule of annual blocks opening on June 1 will commence with the 2023- 2024 delivery/program year and apply for all subsequent delivery/program years. If a block’s capacity is filled at any point during the program year, then applications to that block will be placed on a waitlist until the subsequent program year. Blocks for all Program categories are allocated into two groups by service territory/geographic category: Group A: for projects located in the service territories of Ameren Illinois Company ("Ameren Illinois"), MidAmerican Energy Company (“MidAmerican”), Mt. Carmel Public Utility, and rural electric cooperatives and municipal utilities located in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (“MISO”) service area. Group B: for projects located in the service territories of Commonwealth Edison Company (“ComEd”), and rural electric cooperatives and municipal utilities located in the PJM Interconnection (“PJM”) service area. Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 17 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 The initial capacity allocation (by MW) for each category for the 2023-2024 Delivery year Block is as follows: Community- Equity Traditional Driven Eligible Public Small DG Large DG Community Community Contractor Schools10 Solar Solar Projects Group A (Ameren Illinois, MidAmerican, Mt. 40 MW 40 MW 60 MW 10 MW 20 MW 30 MW Carmel, Rural Electric Cooperatives and Municipal Utilities located in MISO) Group B (ComEd and Rural 94 MW 94 MW 140 MW 23 MW 46 MW 70 MW Electric Cooperatives and Municipal Utilities located in PJM) Total 134 MW 134 MW 200 MW 33 MW 66 MW 100 MW Due to requirements for reallocation of uncontracted capacity from previous program years outlined in the Agency’s 2022 Long-Term Plan, the block sizes above will be amended slightly with reallocated capacity from the 2022-23 program year. The reallocation process is outlined further in Section 1.H. Final block sizes for the 2023-24 Delivery/Program year, inclusive of reallocated capacity, will be announced once the 2022-23 Program year concludes. The Public School category has an allocation of 30% of capacity to Group A and 70% to Group B. After allocation by Group, capacity for this category is allocated based on project size. The Equity Eligible Contractor block allocation is at issue at the time of the publication of this Program Guidebook release for stakeholder feedback in March 2023. The Agency will update this section as required by the Commission’s Order on Reopening in Docket No. 22-0231, which is expected in April 2023. F. Block Closing When a block’s capacity is fully allocated, a “soft close” process is initiated for the relevant block. A soft close of a block is when the Program Administrator will announce that the block will close in seven calendar days or when the next project application submitted to the block would exceed the block’s capacity by 10 MW from the original published block size, whichever comes first. During this soft close period, no more than 10 MW of additional capacity will be accepted into a given category. That capacity cap is managed at the batch level— 10 The Public Schools category allocates 30 MW to Group A and 70 MW to Group B. Within Group A and Group B, capacity is split between Tier 1 schools, Tier 2 schools, and schools located in Environmental Justice Communities (70%) and Tier 3 schools, Tier 4 schools, and schools not located within Environmental Justice Communities (30%). Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 18 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 meaning if a batch causes a block to exceed the 10 MW additional capacity limit, the Program Administrator may remove individual projects from that batch in consultation with the batch’s Approved Vendor to ensure the block remains under allowed capacity cap. Subject to the conditions outlined above as well as conditions outlined in Section 1.E, a project will receive the price of the block that is open at the time the Part I project application is submitted. If a block is closed at the time an application is submitted and that project is waitlisted, it will receive the REC pricing associated with the block of capacity for the Group/category combination it will utilize as outlined in the subsequent section below. G. Waitlist Procedures General Waitlist Procedures Across All Program Categories 1. The Program will continue accepting project applications and place those projects on the waitlist for each Group/category on a first come, first served basis (unless otherwise noted in this Section G), with newly opened space created by earlier projects that are not approved or are withdrawn, filled from the top of the waitlist at the last open block pricing. A project will be considered submitted when the batch to which that application belongs is submitted and payment for that batch is initiated. Waitlists of projects will carry over to the following Program/Delivery year. 2. For the categories that have a waitlist, projects will be selected from the waitlist in the established waitlist order. Those selections will occur if/when project(s) in that Group/category that previously received the Program Administrator’s recommendation for a REC Contract withdraw or are otherwise removed from the Program, thus opening up capacity. This may not be a one-to-one relationship by number of projects; in general, sufficient capacity must be vacated by withdrawn projects to accommodate a project coming off the waitlist. Example: A 2 MW project that previously was selected for a REC Contract withdraws from the ABP. The sizes of the next projects on the waitlist are, in queue order, 600 kW, 800 kW, and 700 kW. The 600 kW project and the 800 kW project would be selected off the waitlist, taking up 1.4 MW of the newly vacated capacity. The 700 kW project would remain on the waitlist because its selection would cause the remaining 600 kW of available capacity to be exceeded. The 700 kW project would not be skipped over in favor of selecting a waitlist project 10 - 25 kW $64.71 $76.27 >25 - 100 kW $76.16 $93.61 >25 - 100 kW $59.28 $69.47 >100 - 200 kW $78.33 $95.12 >100 - 200 kW $60.44 $65.96 >200 - 500 kW $73.02 $84.10 >200 - 500 kW $53.39 $58.36 >500 - 2,000 kW $63.72 $71.80 >500 – 2,000 kW $50.01 $52.06 >2,000 - 5,000 kW $49.33 $53.31 >2,000 - 5,000 kW $40.16 $39.56 Traditional Community Solar Public Schools Group A Group B Group A Group B 0 - 25 kW $55.08 $63.48 0 - 25 kW $74.95 $81.16 >25 - 100 kW $58.94 $71.92 >25 - 100 kW $65.57 $70.42 >100 - 200 kW $60.79 $73.22 >100 - 200 kW $66.40 $66.59 >200 - 500 kW $56.96 $65.20 >200 - 500 kW $58.94 $59.81 >500 - 2,000 kW $49.94 $56.08 >500 - 2,000 kW $56.73 $53.59 >2,000 - 5,000 kW $39.27 $42.39 >2,000 - 5,000 kW $45.72 $37.23 Changes in REC Prices In response to the Program's shift from a declining block price structure to an annual block structure, and in an effort to eliminate gaming opportunities, projects submitted to the Program will not be permitted to receive a REC price higher than the price available at the time of its initial submission to the Program (i.e., an application cannot be withdrawn and resubmitted in order to receive a higher REC price). In the case where a project has been continuously waitlisted, it will receive the REC price associated with the block of capacity to which the project is assigned. Section 1: Program Description and Background Page 23 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Section 2: Approved Vendors A. Approved Vendor Overview and Requirements....................................................................................... 25 B. Equity Eligible Contractor Application..................................................................................................... 26 C. General AV Attestation and EEC Certification......................................................................................... 27 D. Evaluation Criteria for Approved Vendors............................................................................................... 27 E. Approved Vendor Application Review and Appeal Procedure................................................................. 29 F. Confidentiality.......................................................................................................................................... 29 G. Designees and Designee Registration.................................................................................................... 30 H. Equity Eligible Contractor Designees...................................................................................................... 33 Page 24 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 A. Approved Vendor Overview and Requirements Participation in the Program takes place through Approved Vendors. By having only Approved Vendors eligible to receive direct payments through the Program—i.e., ensuring that any entity receiving a REC Contract is registered with and vetted by the Agency, and has met conditions predicate—it is possible to monitor compliance with Program requirements, ensure the accuracy and quality of information submitted, and reduce the administrative burden on the contractual counterparties. This model benefits consumers because they will be able to verify that an entity that proposes to develop a photovoltaic system for them or sell them a subscription to a community solar project is a legitimate entity participating in the Program. An Approved Vendor that fails to live up to the requirements of the Program and is a “bad actor” could have a significant negative impact on the entire renewable energy market in Illinois that would extend beyond just its own actions. It is important for the Agency to have the ability to monitor the Program and ensure high quality performance by the Approved Vendors. An Approved Vendor serves as the contractual counterparty with the utility, and thus the entity that receives payments from the utility for REC deliveries as contract obligations are met. Approved Vendors are therefore the entities responsible for submitting paperwork to the Program Administrator (as the responsible party for the information contained in that paperwork), maintaining collateral requirements, and providing ongoing information and reporting. As such, Approved Vendors will have to coordinate the downstream information from installers/developers as well as individual system owners (who may provide required information through the installer/developer). As a result, Approved Vendors may not opt out of Program-related communications, including emails from the IPA or the Program Administrator. It is incumbent on the Approved Vendor to ensure that Program contact information for the AV is up-to-date and reliable. The Program does not require a specific delegation of duties between the Approved Vendor, installer/developer, system owner, or other parties. The key consideration is that the Approved Vendor is ultimately responsible for the fulfillment of contractual obligations, including any obligations delegated to subcontractors, in a manner consistent with the requirements of the Long-Term Plan, this Program Guidebook, the Consumer Protections Handbook, and of the Approved Vendor’s contract with the counterparty utility. Approved Vendors must renew their approval once a year. Failure by an Approved Vendor to follow the requirements of the Program could result in the entity having its status as an Approved Vendor suspended or revoked, thus losing the ability to bring new projects into the Program. Losing that status would not relieve an Approved Vendor of its obligations to ensure that RECs from its projects that have been energized continue to be delivered to the applicable utility; failure to do so could result in having the vendor’s credit collateral drawn upon. Registration as an Approved Vendor is a prerequisite to becoming an Illinois Solar for All Approved Vendor. Approved Vendors barred, suspended, revoked or otherwise limited in their participation with the Adjustable Block Program will immediately be barred, suspended, revoked or otherwise limited in their participation in the Illinois Solar for All Program, and vice versa. The contact information provided to the Program Administrator through the Approved Vendor application is the primary contact used for all Program updates. In the initial Approved Vendor application, an applicant will have the opportunity to provide additional points of contact for contracting, extensions, REC delivery notifications, Annual Reports, and customer support. If the contact information provided in the Approved Vendor application or renewal has changed, it is incumbent on the Approved Vendor to notify the Program Section 2: Approved Vendors Page 25 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Administrator of this and update any and all contact information so that communications from the Program Administrator are not missed. The Program Administrator maintains a public list of Approved Vendors that appears on the Program website. This list is designed to show prospective customers the Approved Vendors that are active in the Program. If an Approved Vendor confirms with the Program Administrator that it is no longer submitting applications to the Program, the Program Administrator reserves the right to remove the Approved Vendor’s name from the public list of Approved Vendors. Changes in business status, such as bankruptcy or suspension, will be noted on the Approved Vendors list. This will ensure that prospective customers are able to reference an up-to-date and transparent list of Program participants. Approved Vendors cannot opt out of being included on the public list of Approved Vendors. The information noted in Appendix G will be collected from prospective Approved Vendors and evaluated by the Program Administrator. B. Equity Eligible Contractor Application Approved Vendors that would like to submit projects into the Equity Eligible Contractor (“EEC”) category must first apply to be approved as an EEC. They may do so in conjunction with their Approved Vendor application or at any time after submitting their initial Approved Vendor registration. The following information is required for EEC registration: 1. If the Approved Vendor is organized as a corporation, general partnership, limited liability partnership, limited liability company, or limited partnership, the applicant will be asked to designate which owners, partners, or proprietors meet the EEC eligibility criteria. 2. If the Approved Vendor is organized as a non-profit, the applicant will be asked to provide the board membership of the non-profit and designate which board members meet the EEC eligibility criteria. 3. If the Approved Vendor is a sole proprietor, no additional designations are required. The applicant will be prompted to select the category(ies) under which the entity qualifies for EEC certification: a) persons who graduated from or are current or former participants in the Clean Jobs Workforce Network Program, the Clean Energy Contractor Incubator Program, the Illinois Climate Works Preapprenticeship Program, Returning Residents Clean Jobs Training Program, or the Clean Energy Primes Contractor Accelerator Program, and the solar training pipeline and multi-cultural jobs program created in paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(3) of Section 16-108.21 of the Public Utilities Act; b) persons who are graduates of or currently enrolled in the foster care system; c) persons who were formerly incarcerated; d) persons whose primary residence is in an equity investment eligible community.12 12 Equity investment eligible communities include R3 Areas as established pursuant to the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act, and Environmental Justice Communities as established through Illinois Solar for All Program. For maps and address lookup tools for these two types of areas see: https://r3.illinois.gov/eligibility and https://www.illinoissfa.com/environmental-justice- communities/ respectively. Section 2: Approved Vendors Page 26 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Persons selecting option ‘a’ or ‘d’ above will be required to upload documentation demonstrating qualifying status. The Program Administrator may request documentation for any/all claimed qualifying statuses listed above. All applicants will be required to attest to their answer. If more than one person was selected in the ownership section, the steps will be repeated for each person. Note that qualification as an EEC based on residence in an equity investment eligible community requires residency at the time of Part I application submittal and is not required to be maintained through the Part II verification. The applicant will be asked if it would like to be identified as an Equity Eligible Contractor on the public list of Approved Vendors on the illinoisabp.com and illinoisshines.com web sites; willingness to be publicly identified as an Equity Eligible Contractor on those sites is not required for maintaining EEC status. The Approved Vendor will be asked if it considers any of the information provided to certify as EEC as confidential. A checkbox will be provided for the applicant to acknowledge that it will be listed as an EEC on public project application reports and potential other public reports.13 The Program Administrator may follow up with the applicant with additional questions to clarify EEC eligibility and reserves the right to seek additional information or other documents to confirm EEC eligibility. EEC certified Approved Vendors may also submit projects into other program categories that are not limited to the EEC category. C. General AV Attestation and EEC Certification All Approved Vendors must attest to the attestation in Appendix H of this Guidebook. Approved Vendors that act out of compliance with this attestation could face disciplinary action from the Program Administrator, including possible suspension from the Program. Equity Eligible Contractor Certification Equity Eligible Contractor applicants will be required to complete the certification in Appendix B of this Guidebook in addition to the Approved Vendor attestation in Appendix H. This document must be completed by each owner or board member in the organization used to establish EEC status. Each certification must be signed by both the certifying owner or board member, and an authorized representative of the Approved Vendor. D. Evaluation Criteria for Approved Vendors Below is a list of evaluation criteria for Approved Vendor applications submitted to the Program. 1. Must demonstrate existence as a legal entity and authorization to do business in Illinois. 2. Neither the business or its affiliates that are or were engaged in operations in the U.S. related to energy, the business’s principals or owners (except public shareholders), nor any business in which the current business’s owners or principals were or are associated with may have been: 13 The Agency will endeavor to protect confidentiality of information as outlined in Section 2.F of this Guidebook. Section 2: Approved Vendors Page 27 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 a. Sanctioned or proposed for sanction relative to any business or professional permit or license; b. Under suspension, debarment, voluntary exclusion or determined ineligible under any federal or state statutes; c. Proposed for suspension or debarment; d. The subject of an investigation, whether open or closed, by any government entity for a civil or criminal violation for any business-related conduct; e. Charged with a misdemeanor or felony, indicted, granted immunity, convicted of a crime, or subject to a judgment or a plea bargain for: i. Any business-related activity; or ii. Any crime the underlying conduct of which was related to truthfulness; or f. Suspended, cancelled, terminated or found non-responsible on any contract, or had a surety called upon to complete an awarded contract unless an explanation acceptable to the Administrator and IPA is provided. 3. Must not have had any judgments filed against it in the past 5 years which remain undischarged, unless an explanation acceptable to the Administrator and IPA is provided. 4. If the company or any of its affiliates or any principal or owner with greater than 15% ownership has initiated or been the subject of any bankruptcy proceedings (including for a different company where the same individual person had at least 15% ownership), whether or not closed, or has any bankruptcy proceeding pending, the Administrator and IPA will determine if the potential Approved Vendor is a risk for default on future Approved Vendor contracts. This decision will be based on the totality of the information provided including current financial statements, the circumstances of past bankruptcies, the time since the last bankruptcy, the role of the individual involved in the past bankruptcy, recent tax payment history, and any recent or pending judgements or investigations that might impact the company’s financial standing. 5. The company must be current on all required taxes, based on local, state, and federal law. Past non- payment of taxes over $10,000 will be considered in conjunction with other factors in determining an Approved Vendor’s eligibility. 6. Any issues found during any governmental audits during the past 5 years will be considered in conjunction with other factors in determining an Approved Vendor’s eligibility. The mere fact that an audit was conducted with no negative results will not reflect negatively on the Approved Vendor’s application. 7. Any regulatory or consumer complaints and their remedial actions will be screened by the Program Administrator and IPA to determine if there is a pattern of violations or unresolved consumer protection issues with the company. The frequency and severity of the past issues, as well as the Approved Vendor’s explanations of resolution and any processes put in place to prevent reoccurrence, will be taken into account. 8. The company must demonstrate either GATS aggregator account or M-RETS account ownership. 9. Additional information collected such as number of employees, type of company, management structure, etc. will be used by the Administrator to more thoroughly evaluate the applicant if there are any questions that arise from other parts of the Approved Vendor application. 10. The company must provide an initial representative sample of marketing materials for each channel of marketing the company is engaged in, as part of the initial Approved Vendor application (for example, but not meant to be an exhaustive list: print, website, direct mail, direct email, web ads, social media, radio, telemarketing, billboards). Random audits of marketing material will be Section 2: Approved Vendors Page 28 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 conducted regularly, and the IPA and Program Administrator also reserve the right to require a copy of all marketing materials should they have concerns about an Approved Vendor’s marketing practices.14 E. Approved Vendor Application Review and Appeal Procedure Application Review The Program Administrator will review and make approval decisions for all Approved Vendor applications. It is the responsibility of the prospective Approved Vendor to respond to any questions or requests for additional information from the Administrator within 2 weeks of receiving such a request. Failure to respond to requests from the Administrator will constitute grounds for rejection as an Approved Vendor. Similarly, if a prospective Approved Vendor is dishonest within their Approved Vendor application, the Program Administrator reserves the right to grant a conditional approval of an application or outright reject an Approved Vendor application, as detailed below. If an Approved Vendor’s dishonesty in its application is not discovered until after the Approved Vendor application is approved, this may be grounds for revocation of the Approved Vendor status. Application Rejection and Appeal Any Approved Vendor applications that are rejected will be provided a written explanation with the reasons for the rejection. The Program Administrator’s rejection of an Approved Vendor application may be appealed to the IPA within 2 weeks of receiving a determination, and the opportunity to appeal will be communicated by the Program Administrator as part of its notice of rejection. To appeal to the IPA, the Approved Vendor applicant should provide to the Program Administrator an appeal in writing on company letterhead, addressed to the IPA, explaining its rationale for why it believes the Program Administrator’s determination is in error, as well as detailing any supporting information, documents, or communications. The IPA may request additional information and materials from the Approved Vendor applicant, and/or schedule a call or informal discussion with the Approved Vendor applicant to learn more about the basis for its position. The IPA will endeavor to issue final determinations on eligibility, including a supporting rationale for its decision, as soon as practicable after the receipt of an appeal and review of relevant information. Conditional Application Approval The IPA and the Program Administrator reserve the right to conditionally approve applications from prospective Approved Vendors that have areas of concern. A conditional approval will require six-month updates rather than the normal 1-year updates of the Approved Vendor application. F. Confidentiality Except where otherwise provided (such as with certain project-specific information being made publicly available, including the identification of projects in the EEC category and the associated Approved Vendor in 14 This evaluation criteria is not required for Single Project Approved Vendors. Section 2: Approved Vendors Page 29 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 public project application reports15), actual Approved Vendor submittals including quarterly reports, annual reports, Approved Vendor applications, and project applications will not be publicly posted or made publicly available as a matter of course - provided that nothing included herein shall a) prohibit the IPA from reporting information taken from Approved Vendor submittals to appropriate authorities should the IPA have reasonable suspicion of any fraudulent or otherwise illegal behavior, b) prevent the IPA from making aggregated information taken from across Approved Vendor submittals publicly available, or c) prevent the IPA from sharing information received with the Illinois Commerce Commission or public utilities to support the Program’s operation. Additionally, the IPA and the Program Administrator will provide confidential treatment to any commercially sensitive information submitted by Approved Vendors in connection with participation in the Program. Under Section 1-120 of the IPA Act (20 ILCS 3855), the Illinois Power Agency has a statutory obligation to “provide adequate protection for confidential and proprietary information furnished, delivered, or filed” by any third party. As Section 7(1)(g) of the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) (5 ILCS 140/7) exempts from disclosure “[t]rade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person or business where the trade secrets or commercial or financial information are furnished under a claim that they are proprietary, privileged or confidential, and that disclosure of the trade secrets or commercial or financial information would cause competitive harm to the person or business,” the IPA believes that its responsibility under Section 1- 120 necessitates the assertion of this FOIA exemption when applicable in response to a FOIA request, and to otherwise protect the confidentiality of commercially sensitive information in response to any discovery request or other request made in connection with formal investigation or litigation. 16 While the IPA will presume that seemingly commercially sensitive or confidential content contained in submittals including quarterly reports, annual reports, Approved Vendor applications, and project applications is indeed commercially sensitive or confidential and thus should be actively protected from disclosure, Approved Vendors will have the opportunity within the application portal to designate project information as “proprietary, privileged, or confidential, the disclosure of which would cause competitive harm” and should otherwise similarly designate any other particularly sensitive information to maximize the likelihood that protection of such information from disclosure would be supported by a reviewing body. G. Designees and Designee Registration As used for purposes for Designee registration, the term “Designee” refers to third-party (i.e., non-Approved Vendor) entities that have direct interaction with end-use customers on behalf of the Approved Vendor or another Designee. This includes installers, marketing firms, community solar subscriber agents, lead generators, and sales organizations. The Agency reserves the right to add additional categories as needed. Designees must also register with the Program. Designees must renew their registration once a year. As part of this process, Designees will submit their training materials and certifications showing that their agents have been trained in accordance with Program requirements. Approved Vendors that operate as a Designee of 15 Results of the April 10, 2019 project selection lotteries were made publicly available at http://illinoisabp.com/april-10-2019- lottery-results. Additionally, on June 19, 2019, the IPA published its Project Information Release Protocols, describing the data that it intends to regularly publish about project applications and selections. That document and the project data disclosure itself may be found at http://illinoisabp.com/project-information-disclosure-process. 16It may, however, publish non-confidential information deemed subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act to ensure that all parties – and not merely requesting parties under FOIA – have access to any such disclosures. Section 2: Approved Vendors Page 30 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 another Approved Vendor must also register as a Designee. Third-party entities that do not have interaction with end-use customers of the ABP are not required to register as a Designee. The purpose of Designee registration requirement is to increase Program transparency by creating a searchable database of participating organizations on both the ABP and Illinois Shines websites. Potential customers will be able to verify that an entity representing the Program is indeed a registered participant (and likewise be able to review if the entity is listed on the complaint or disciplinary databases). The registration of Designees does not change the responsibilities of the Approved Vendor, or the potential for an Approved Vendor to be held accountable for the conduct of its Designees. Approved Vendors will be responsible for ensuring that their Designee(s) register with the program, and Approved Vendors who fail to do so may be subject to disciplinary actions. This includes Designees of Designees. For example, if an Approved Vendor works with an installer, and that installer in turn hires a lead generation firm to assist in marketing, the Approved Vendor will be responsible for ensuring that both the installer and the lead generation firm register as Designees with the Program. Approved Vendors remain responsible for ensuring that all Designees – including Designees of Designees – are informed of changes in Program requirements issued by the Program Administrator. Approved Vendors must maintain records demonstrating that they have communicated Program requirements to its Designee(s). If a Designee cannot or does not comply with Program requirements, an Approved Vendor should rescind its approval for the Designee. The Agency believes that this step will provide additional information and transparency to consumers and to the marketplace generally. Designees barred, suspended, revoked or otherwise limited in their participation with the Adjustable Block Program will immediately be barred, suspended, revoked or otherwise limited in their participation in the Illinois Solar for All Program, and vice versa. Registration shall include the Designee’s provision of contact information, acknowledgment of the business relationship with the Approved Vendor, and identification of the categories of the consumer-facing services provided. Designees must also indicate if they are minority-owned, woman-owned, veteran-owned, disability- owned or considered a small business and provide an estimate of the percentage of staff at time of registration who are women, minorities, veterans, or disabled. Additionally, a Designee is responsible for acknowledging that it will comply with all applicable Program requirements through an attestation. Failure by a Designee to comply with applicable requirements may subject the Designee to suspension or termination from future participation in the Program. If the Designee ignores a suspension decision made by the Program Administrator and continues its Program-related activity, any Approved Vendor that works with the Designee during that period may be subject to discipline. Likewise, Approved Vendors found to be working with entities engaged in customer-facing activities that fail to register with the Program could be subject to discipline. Because Designees interact with end-use customers, it is important that Designees remain informed about Program developments and changes. As a result, Designees may not opt out of Program-related communications, including emails from the IPA or the Program Administrator. All third-party entities that have direct interaction with end-use customers of the ABP and that operate within the Illinois Shines program must register as a Designee. Once registered, these entities can indicate one or more of the following roles: Section 2: Approved Vendors Page 31 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Disclosure Form Designee – An entity that the Approved Vendor has designated that is permitted to generate Disclosure Forms on behalf of the Approved Vendor. A Disclosure Form Designee may create disclosure forms only after it has established an affiliation in the portal in that role with at least one Approved Vendor. Community Solar Subscriber Agent Designee – An entity that the Approved Vendor has designated that is permitted to manage the community solar subscription information for an Approved Vendor’s community solar projects. Marketing or Sales Designee – An entity that the Approved Vendor or Designee has designated to act as a marketing agent and/or customer acquisition agent on behalf of the Approved Vendor or Designee. This includes, among others, entities that engage in solicitations through any channel (in- person, telephone, etc.), as well as entities that perform online lead generation services. Installer Designee – An entity that the Approved Vendor or Designee has designated to install systems on the Approved Vendor’s or Designee’s behalf. As referenced above, any entity that has Program-related direct interaction with end-use customers of the ABP must register as a Designee as well, regardless of whether that entity works directly for an Approved Vendor or a Designee. Designees of Designees are referred to as Nested Designees and can be registered within the portal, nested underneath the Designee(s) with which they work. A Nested Designee may hold only Marketing or Sales Designee or Installer Designee roles. Nested Designees may not hold Disclosure Form Designee or Community Solar Subscriber Agent Designee roles. This requirement exists to prevent a Designee from giving another Designee the ability to generate Disclosure Forms or manage community solar subscribers on behalf of the parent Designee’s Approved Vendor. Only Approved Vendors can add Disclosure Form Designees and Community Solar Subscriber Agent Designees directly beneath their Approved Vendor account. If a Designee does business under multiple names, the Designee must register separate Designee accounts for each name under which it conducts business. This is required so that if an issue ever arises with a company while they are doing business under an alternate name or d/b/a, the Program Administrator will be able to identify that entity’s role within the Program. The Program Administrator maintains a public list of Designees that appears on both the Illinois ABP site and the Illinois Shines site. If a Designee confirms with the Program Administrator that it is no longer operating within the Program, the Program Administrator reserves the right to remove the Designee’s name from the public list of Designees. Changes in business status, such as bankruptcy or suspension, will be noted on the Designees list. This will help ensure that prospective customers are able to reference an up-to-date and transparent list of Program participants. Designees cannot opt out of being included on the public list of Designees. Designees will be required to attest to the following statements during the registration process in the portal: We have reviewed and commit to comply with all Illinois Shines program requirements applicable to our work as a Designee. We have read, understand, and will abide by the Consumer Protection Handbook, Program Guidebook, and associated materials, and commit to ensuring that our employees and any agents operating on our behalf are trained to understand and abide by these requirements. Section 2: Approved Vendors Page 32 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 We acknowledge that, subject to our approval as a Designee by one or more Approved Vendors, we will be listed in a public database of Designees on both the ABP website (illinoisabp.com) and the Illinois Shines website (illinoisshines.com). We will maintain accurate, current, and comprehensive registration information related to our business relationships with Approved Vendors and acknowledge this information is subject to review, verification, and acceptance by the Approved Vendor. We acknowledge and accept that Designees that act in violation of Illinois Shines program requirements are subject to disciplinary action from the IPA which could result in suspension from the Illinois Shines program of both the Designee and/or any Approved Vendors on whose behalf the Designee ultimately acts. The Program Administrator reserves the right to request additional information from Designees to confirm the accuracy of their attestation and ongoing compliance with Program requirements. Failure to provide requested information, or to be able to confirm the attestation or demonstrate ongoing compliance, may result in a Designee’s suspension from the Program. H. Equity Eligible Contractor Designees Designees may also register as an Equity Eligible Contractor. This registration does not qualify projects from those Designees to be eligible for the Equity Eligible Contractor (“EEC”) category. Such Designees need to work with an Approved Vendor that is EEC certified in order for their project to be eligible for the EEC category. EEC certified Designees may also work with an Approved Vendor that is not EEC certified, but this would make projects submitted by that non-EEC certified Approved Vendor ineligible for EEC Category. The application process for Designees will use the same criteria as described in Section 2.B. Section 2: Approved Vendors Page 33 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 Section 3: Consumer Protection A. Customer Service and Consumer Complaints......................................................................................... 35 B. Process for Consumer Protection Violations and Potential Violations.................................................... 36 C. Consequences for Violations of Program Requirements........................................................................ 38 Page 34 of 171  Last Edited May 31, 2023 On July 14, 2022, in the 2022 Long-Term Plan proceeding, the Illinois Commerce Commission Order approved, with minor modifications, various consumer protection documents. The Agency updated these documents to be consistent with the Commission’s Order and has published: Cons