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ontario regulation 363/16

made under the

ontario rebate for electricity consumers act, 2016

Made: November 16, 2016
Filed: November 18, 2016
Published on e-Laws: November 18, 2016
Printed in The Ontario Gazette: December 3, 2016

GENERAL

CONTENTS

PART I
ELECTRICITY VENDORS

1.

Definitions and interpretation

2.

Base invoice amount

3.

Flow through of financial assistance

4.

Financial assistance re fees and charges imposed by unit sub-meter providers

5.

Explanation of calculation of credit

6.

Payments directly to consumers

7.

Duty to provide information

8.

Records

9.

Requirement to provide information for reimbursement purposes

10.

Reimbursement to electricity vendors

11.

Reimbursement to unit sub-meter providers

12.

Reliance on information

13.

Variance accounts

14.

If retail contract is deemed to be void

15.

Limitation periods

PART II
REMOTE UNLICENSED DISTRIBUTORS

16.

Remote unlicensed distributors

17.

Enrolment of remote unlicensed distributors

18.

Who is eligible to receive financial assistance from a remote unlicensed distributor

19.

Calculating the financial assistance: base invoice amount

20.

How the distributor provides the financial assistance to a consumer

21.

Reimbursement of benefits provided to consumers

22.

Commencement

Schedule

 

 

PART I
electricity vendors

Definitions and interpretation

1. (1) In this Regulation,

“distribution system” has the same meaning as in section 3 of the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998;

“distributor” means a person who owns or operates a distribution system;

“financial assistance” means an amount credited to an eligible account or paid to a person as financial assistance under the Act or this Regulation and includes an amount credited or paid as financial assistance in circumstances in which the person benefiting from the credit or payment is not entitled to all or part of the amount;

“host distributor” means a licensed distributor who is a market participant and who distributes electricity to a wholly-embedded distributor;

“IESO-controlled grid” means the transmission systems with respect to which, pursuant to agreements, the IESO has authority to direct operations;

“market participant” means a person who is authorized by the market rules,

(a) to participate in the markets established by the market rules, or

(b) to cause or permit electricity to be conveyed into, through or out of the IESO-controlled grid;

“Minister” means the Minister of Energy;

“Ministry” means the Ministry of Energy;

“Ontario Electricity Support Program” means the program described in section 79.2 of the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998;

“transmission system” means a system for transmitting electricity and includes any structures, equipment or other things used for that purpose;

“wholly-embedded distributor” means a licensed distributor who is not a market participant and to whom a host distributor distributes electricity.

(2) For the purposes of the Act and this Regulation, the commodity price of electricity includes the “Final RPP Variance Settlement Amount”, if any, required by the Standard Supply Service Code issued by the Board.

(3) For the purposes of this Regulation,

(a) Hydro One Remote Communities Inc. is deemed to be a wholly-embedded distributor and Hydro One Networks Inc. is deemed to be its host distributor; and

(b) Cornwall Street Railway Light and Power Company Limited is deemed to be a wholly-embedded distributor and Canadian Niagara Power Inc. is deemed to be its host distributor.

(4) Payments required under this Regulation are in addition to any payments that may be required by the market rules or by the Retail Settlement Code issued by the Board under the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998.

Base invoice amount

2. (1) Subject to the other provisions of this section, the base invoice amount for a billing period in respect of an eligible account is determined as follows:

1. If the invoice is issued by a licensed distributor, other than Cornwall Street Railway Light and Power Company Limited or Dubreuil Lumber Inc., or is issued by a licensed retailer, the base invoice amount for a billing period includes the amounts for the billing period listed in subsection 2 (1) of the Act, other than anything required by subsection 2 (2) of the Act to be excluded in determining the base invoice amount for the billing period.

2. If the invoice is issued by the IESO to a market participant who is a consumer, the base invoice amount for a billing period,

i. includes,

A. the commodity price of the electricity,

B. all settlement amounts appearing on the invoice in accordance with Chapter 9 of the market rules,

C. amounts payable by the market participant under subsection 79.1 (3) of the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998, and

D. any adjustment on the invoice required pursuant to section 25.33 of the Electricity Act, 1998, and

ii. excludes anything required by subsection 2 (2) of the Act to be excluded.

3. If the invoice is issued by Cornwall Street Railway Light and Power Company Limited, the base invoice amount for a billing period,

i. includes,

A. the cost of electricity supplied, including any delivery charges and regulatory charges, and

B. any debt retirement charge payable by the consumer under subsection 85 (4) of the Electricity Act, 1998, and

ii. excludes,

A. any charges for services that are not included in the cost of the electricity supplied, the delivery charges or the regulatory charges referred to in sub-subparagraph i A, and

B. anything required by subsection 2 (2) of the Act to be excluded.

4. If the invoice is issued by Dubreuil Lumber Inc., the base invoice amount for a billing period,

i. includes,

A. the commodity price of the electricity,

B. delivery charges, other than a charge required to be excluded under subparagraph ii,

C. any regulatory charges,

D. any adjustment on the invoice required pursuant to section 25.33 of the Electricity Act, 1998,

E. any debt retirement charge payable by the consumer under subsection 85 (4) of the Electricity Act, 1998, and

ii. excludes,

A. a charge for reconnecting the consumer at a meter or pole, and

B. anything required by subsection 2 (2) of the Act to be excluded.

(2) An electricity vendor shall include in the base invoice amount for a billing period only those amounts or portions of amounts appearing on the invoice for the billing period that relate to electricity consumption in the eligible period.

(3) An electricity vendor may make a reasonable estimate of,

(a) the volume of electricity used by a consumer during a portion of a billing period; and

(b) the portion of an amount that relates to electricity consumption during a portion of a billing period.

(4) The amount of rate assistance provided under the Ontario Electricity Support Program for the billing period shall be included in the base invoice amount for a billing period as a credit.

(5) A base invoice amount for a billing period that would otherwise be less than zero is deemed to be zero.

Flow through of financial assistance

3. (1) This section applies to,

(a) a consumer to whom subsection 3 (7) of the Act applies; and

(b) a person who is entitled to receive a credit under subsection 3 (7) of the Act on an invoice issued by the consumer, an agent of the consumer or a unit sub-meter provider providing unit sub-metering for the consumer.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), the credit that the person is entitled to receive under subsection 3 (7) of the Act and the consumer or unit sub-meter provider is required to provide is equal to the amount of the financial assistance to which the consumer is entitled for a billing period in respect of the eligible account, multiplied by the ratio of the portion of the amount of the invoice for the billing period that is payable by the person to the total amount of the invoice for the billing period payable by the consumer.

(3) The credit described in subsection (2) shall be reduced, in the case of a person who receives assistance under the Ontario Electricity Support Program in the billing period, by 8 per cent of the amount received in assistance under that program in the billing period.

(4) Every unit sub-meter provider shall maintain an account that records the difference between the amount calculated under subsection (2) without reference to subsection (3), and the amount payable after subsection (3) is taken into account.

(5) On or before January 15 in each year, commencing in 2018, the unit sub-meter provider shall pay the amount recorded in the account under subsection (4) in the previous year to the Minister of Finance.

Financial assistance re fees and charges imposed by unit sub-meter providers

4. (1) The section applies to,

(a) every unit sub-meter provider who provides unit sub-metering for a consumer to whom subsection 3 (7) of the Act applies; and

(b) every person to whom the unit sub-meter provider issues an invoice for electricity in respect of which a consumer is entitled to receive financial assistance under section 3 of the Act.

(2) In this section,

“fees and charges” means any fees and charges for unit sub-metering that appear on an invoice issued by a unit sub-meter provider;

“invoice period” means, in respect of an invoice for electricity issued to a person by a unit sub-meter provider, the period of time to which the invoice applies.

(3) A person to whom an invoice is issued for an invoice period by a unit sub-meter provider is entitled to receive financial assistance equal to 8 per cent of the sum of the amount of fees and charges for the invoice period or, if the invoice period is not wholly in the eligible period, for the portion of the invoice period that is in the eligible period.

(4) If an invoice period is not wholly within the eligible period, the amount of fees and charges for the portion of the invoice period that is in the eligible period is determined by multiplying the amount of the fees and charges for the invoice period by the ratio of the number of days in the invoice period that are in the eligible period to the total number of days in the invoice period.

(5) A unit sub-meter provider may make a reasonable estimate of,

(a) the volume of electricity used by a consumer during a portion of a billing period; and

(b) the portion of an amount that relates to electricity consumption during a portion of a billing period.

Explanation of calculation of credit

5. (1) The issuer of an invoice that includes a credit for financial assistance shall, if requested by the person liable to pay the invoice, explain how the amount of the financial assistance on the invoice has been calculated.

(2) If an invoice issued by an electricity vendor or unit sub-meter provider contains a credit for more than one billing period or invoice period, the issuer of the invoice shall provide, if requested by the person liable to pay the invoice, a break-down of the amount of the credit between periods.

Payments directly to consumers

6. (1) In this section,

“issuer” means an electricity vendor, consumer, agent of a consumer or a unit sub-meter provider who issues an invoice to a person who is entitled to,

(a) financial assistance, or

(b) a credit under subsection 3 (7) of the Act.

(2) This section applies to an issuer if,

(a) subsection 4 (3) of the Act applies to,

(i) the issuer,

(ii) an electricity vendor who issues invoices to the issuer or to a consumer for whom the issuer is an agent, or

(iii) an electricity vendor who issues invoices to a consumer for whom the issuer provides unit sub-metering; and

(b) the person entitled to the financial assistance or credit ceases to have an account with the issuer before receiving all or part of the financial assistance or credit to which he or she is entitled.

(3) If the amount the person is entitled to receive from an issuer but has not received is at least $10, the issuer shall, no later than September 30, 2017, mail or deliver by hand the unpaid amount to the person’s most recent address known to the issuer.

(4) If a cheque mailed or delivered by hand in accordance with subsection (3) has not been cashed despite the best efforts of the issuer to deliver it, and the cheque has ceased to be negotiable through the passage of time, the person ceases to be entitled to receive the amount of financial assistance or credit represented by the cheque.

(5) Every electricity vendor and unit sub-meter provider shall pay to the Minister of Finance all amounts of less than $10 that are not paid by the electricity vendor or unit sub-meter provider and all amounts not received by a person and to which the person has ceased under this section to be entitled to receive.

(6) If a consumer referred to in subsection 3 (7) of the Act is unable for reasons beyond his or her control to provide a credit to a person, to have the credit provided to the person by an agent or unit sub-meter provider or to pay the amount of the credit to the person under subsection (3), the consumer shall pay to the Minister of Finance the amount that should have been credited or paid to the person and the person ceases to be entitled to the credit.

Duty to provide information

7. (1) Every electricity vendor, every unit sub-meter provider and every person who provides financial assistance shall, upon receipt of a request from the Minister or the Board, provide the information relating to the Act and this Regulation specified in the request within the time period specified in the request, for the purpose of monitoring compliance with the Act and this Regulation.

(2) Without in any way restricting the generality of subsection (1), examples of information that may be requested under that subsection are,

(a) the amount of financial assistance provided;

(b) the number and location of eligible accounts;

(c) the volume of electricity on which financial assistance was provided;

(d) where applicable, the information mentioned in clauses (a), (b) and (c) categorized according to the classes of consumers receiving financial assistance;

(e) the information mentioned in clauses (a), (b) and (c) in respect of residential complexes;

(f) the information mentioned in clauses (a), (b) and (c) in respect of licensed retailers;

(g) a monthly forecast of the total amount of financial assistance to be provided for the next three consecutive months, including a description of the forecasting approach and assumptions;

(h) in the case of unit sub-meter providers, the weighted average of the fees and charges of the unit sub-meter provider; and

(i) the applicable accounting methodology and sample calculations.

Records

8. Every unit sub-meter provider is prescribed for the purposes of section 8 of the Act as a person required to keep records in accordance with that section.

Requirement to provide information for reimbursement purposes

9. (1) Every electricity vendor listed in Column 2 of the Table to this subsection, other than a remote unlicensed distributor, shall provide to the person listed in Column 3 of the same row of the Table the information set out in Column 4 of the same row, in the format and at the times specified by the person to whom the information is to be provided, in respect of the last month ending before the day the information is to be provided.

Table

Column 1

Item

Column 2

Electricity vendor

Column 3

Person to whom information must be provided

Column 4

Information in respect of the last month ending before the day the information is provided

1.

A licensed retailer who uses retailer-consolidated billing

The licensed distributor in whose service area the licensed retailer has contracts with consumers

The amount of financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with the licensed retailer are entitled for the month and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

2.

A wholly-embedded distributor

The host distributor of the wholly-embedded distributor

The amount of,

(a) financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with the wholly-embedded distributor are entitled for the month and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months; and

(b) financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with licensed retailers are entitled for the month, if the licensed retailers use retailer-consolidated billing and the consumers are in the wholly-embedded distributor’s service area, and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

3.

A licensed distributor who is a market participant

The IESO

The amount of,

(a) financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with the licensed distributor are entitled for the month and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months;

(b) financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with licensed retailers are entitled for the month, if the licensed retailers use retailer-consolidated billing and the consumers are in the licensed distributor’s service area, and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months;

(c) financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with wholly-embedded distributors are entitled for the month, if the licensed distributor is the host distributor of the embedded distributors, and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months; and

(d) financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with licensed retailers are entitled for the month, if the licensed retailers use retailer-consolidated billing and the consumers are in service areas of wholly-embedded distributors of which the licensed distributor is the host distributor, and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

 

(2) The IESO shall provide to the Minister the information specified by the Minister relating to the following matters, in the format and at the times specified by the Minister:

1. The amount of financial assistance the IESO is required by the Act to provide for a month to consumers who are market participants and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

2. The amount of financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with licensed distributors who are market participants are entitled for the month and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

3. The amount of financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with wholly-embedded distributors are entitled for the month and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

4. The amount of financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with licensed retailers who use retailer-consolidated billing are entitled for the month and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

(3) For the purposes of this section, a licensed distributor or licensed retailer may estimate the amount of financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts are entitled for a month.

(4) If a licensed distributor or licensed retailer estimates the amount of financial assistance under subsection (3), it must include an adjustment for the difference between the estimate and the actual amount that consumers were entitled to with the information required under subsection (1) as soon as possible after the actual amount becomes known.

Reimbursement to electricity vendors

10. (1) In this section,

“specified electricity vendor” means an electricity vendor other than a remote unlicensed distributor.

(2) The Minister shall reimburse specified electricity vendors for financial assistance provided by them to consumers entitled under the Act to receive the financial assistance.

(3) Based on the information provided by specified electricity vendors under section 9,

(a) the Minister shall pay to the IESO, at such times as the Minister considers appropriate, sufficient amounts to reimburse specified electricity vendors for financial assistance to which consumers are entitled for a month, subject to any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months;

(b) the IESO shall, after receiving the information required for a month from a licensed distributor who is a market participant, pay to the licensed distributor a sufficient amount to reimburse,

(i) the licensed distributor for the financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with the licensed distributor are entitled for the month, subject to any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months,

(ii) wholly-embedded distributors of which the licensed distributor is the host distributor for financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with the wholly-embedded distributors are entitled for the month, subject to any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months, and

(iii) licensed retailers who use retailer-consolidated billing for financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with the licensed retailers, and are in the service area of the licensed distributor or of a wholly-embedded distributor of which the licensed distributor is the host distributor, are entitled for the month, subject to any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months;

(c) a host distributor shall, before the day specified by the Board, pay to every wholly-embedded distributor of which it is a host distributor a sufficient amount to reimburse,

(i) the wholly-embedded distributor for financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with the wholly-embedded distributor are entitled for a month, subject to any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months, and

(ii) licensed retailers who use retailer-consolidated billing for financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with the licensed retailers, and are in the service area of the wholly-embedded distributor, are entitled for a month, subject to any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months; and

(d) a licensed distributor shall, before the day specified by the Board, pay a sufficient amount to each licensed retailer who uses retailer-consolidated billing to reimburse the licensed retailer for financial assistance to which consumers who have eligible accounts with the licensed retailer, and who are in the licensed distributor’s service area, are entitled for a month, subject to any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

(4) Despite subsection (3), the amount of reimbursement to which an electricity vendor is entitled is subject to such subsequent adjustments as may be required by reason of,

(a) the provision to the Minister or an electricity vendor of additional information;

(b) a determination made by an inspector who conducts an inspection or inquiry under section 9 of the Act that relates to the electricity vendor or to another electricity vendor;

(c) a requirement under subsection 6 (5) of this Regulation to pay an amount to the Minister of Finance; or

(d) a requirement to pay an amount referred to in clause 14 (2) (a) of this Regulation to the Minister of Finance.

(5) Despite subsections (2) and (3), no amount is payable as a reimbursement to a specified electricity vendor who fails without reasonable cause to provide any information required to be provided under this Regulation within the time it is required to be provided.

(6) Payments required under this section by the IESO to a licensed distributor who is a market participant and any subsequent adjustments may be made at the option of the IESO by way of set-off in the accounts maintained by the IESO.

(7) Payments required under this section by a host distributor to a wholly-embedded distributor and any subsequent adjustments may be made at the option of the host distributor by way of set-off in the accounts maintained by the host distributor.

(8) Payments required under this section by a licensed distributor to a licensed retailer who uses retailer-consolidated billing and any subsequent adjustments may be made at the option of the licensed distributor by way of set-off in the accounts maintained by the licensed distributor.

Reimbursement to unit sub-meter providers

11. (1) A unit sub-meter provider shall provide to the IESO, in the format and at the time specified by the IESO, information about the amount of financial assistance provided by the unit sub-meter provider in accordance with section 4 in respect of the last month ending before the day the information is required to be provided and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

(2) The IESO shall provide to the Minister, in the format and at the times specified by the Minister, the information specified by the Minister relating to the amount of financial assistance provided in accordance with section 4 by unit sub-meter providers for a month and any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

(3) Based on the information provided by unit sub-meter providers to the IESO,

(a) the Minister shall pay to the IESO, at such time as the Minister considers appropriate, sufficient amounts to reimburse unit sub-meter providers for financial assistance provided in accordance with section 4 for a month, subject to any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months; and

(b) the IESO shall, after receiving the information required for a month from a unit sub-meter provider, pay to the unit sub-meter provider a sufficient amount to reimburse the unit sub-meter provider for the financial assistance provided in accordance with section 4 for a month, subject to any adjustments to be made in respect of earlier months.

(4) Despite subsection (3), the amount of reimbursement to which a unit sub-meter provider is entitled is subject to such subsequent adjustments as may be required by reason of,

(a) the provision to the Minister or the IESO of additional information;

(b) a determination made by an inspector who conducts an inspection or inquiry under section 9 of the Act; or

(c) a requirement under subsection 6 (5) of this Regulations to pay an amount to the Minister of Finance.

(5) Despite subsection (3), no amount is payable as a reimbursement to a unit sub-meter provider who fails without reasonable cause,

(a) to provide any information required to be provided under this Regulation within the time it is required to be provided; or

(b) to comply with any requirement specified by the IESO.

(6) Payments required under this section by the IESO to a unit sub-meter provider and any subsequent adjustments may be made at the option of the IESO by way of set-off in the accounts maintained by the IESO.

Reliance on information

12. (1) For the purposes of the reimbursements and any repayments required under this Regulation, the Minister and electricity vendors shall rely on the information provided to them as required under this Regulation and any additional information requested under section 7.

(2) A licensed retailer and licensed distributor may rely on information provided to each other in determining if a person is entitled to financial assistance under the Act and the amount of the financial assistance.

Variance accounts

13. With the approval of and subject to any direction from the Board, licensed distributors, other than Cornwall Street Railway Light and Power Company Limited and Dubreuil Lumber Inc., shall establish and maintain such variance accounts as may be necessary or desirable for the purposes of the Act and this Regulation.

If retail contract is deemed to be void

14. (1) This section applies if,

(a) a consumer has received financial assistance under the Act in respect of the cost of electricity retailed to the consumer by a licensed retailer pursuant to a contract with the consumer;

(b) the financial assistance was provided to the consumer by means of a credit deducted from the amount otherwise payable by the consumer to a licensed distributor or the licensed retailer in respect of the electricity; and

(c) the contract is deemed to be void under section 16 of the Energy Consumer Protection Act, 2010 and, pursuant to subsection 16 (3) of that Act, the licensed retailer is required to refund to the consumer the money paid by the consumer under the contract.

(2) The retailer shall,

(a) if the licensed retailer uses retailer-consolidated billing, pay to the Minister of Finance the amount of all reimbursements the licensed retailer received under clause 10 (3) (d) in respect of the eligible account to which the contract related; or

(b) if the licensed retailer uses distributor-consolidated billing, pay to the Minister of Finance an amount equal to the total amount of all financial assistance the consumer received in respect of the commodity price of the electricity under the contract.

Limitation periods

15. (1) The limitation period for the purposes of subsection 6 (1) of the Act is 24 months from the date of issuance of the invoice in which the financial assistance was not provided.

(2) The limitation period for the purposes of subsection 6 (2) of the Act is six months from the earliest date when the electricity vendor or other person referred to in that subsection could have submitted a claim for reimbursement of a rebate amount that they provided.

PART II
REMOTE UNLICENSED DISTRIBUTORS

Remote unlicensed distributors

16. (1) A remote unlicensed distributor is a person, corporation or organization that,

(a) distributes electricity in a remote community listed in the Schedule;

(b) issues invoices for electricity distributed to electricity customers who are eligible to receive financial assistance under the Act; and

(c) is willing to provide financial assistance to those customers as an agent of the Minister.

(2) Every remote unlicensed distributor meeting the requirements set out in section 17 is prescribed as an electricity vendor for the purposes of the Act.

(3) Sections 2 and 6 do not apply to remote unlicensed distributors or to consumers who have eligible accounts with them.

(4) Despite section 21, no amount is payable as a reimbursement to a remote unlicensed distributor who fails without reasonable cause to provide any information required by the Minister within the time it is required to be provided.

Enrolment of remote unlicensed distributors

17. (1) Subject to subsection (4), in order to be prescribed under section 16, a remote unlicensed distributor must first,

(a) submit a completed form entitled “Enrolment Application”, available from the Ministry, to the contact person at the Ministry listed on the form; and

(b) enter into an agreement in the form required by the Ministry.

(2) The distributor must submit with the Enrolment Application,

(a) information on the distributor’s electricity pricing structure;

(b) information on the distributor’s consumer rate classes, if any, including the number of customers within each consumer rate class; and

(c) a sample of an invoice it intends to issue to its electricity customers that shows the amount of financial assistance the customer is entitled to with respect to the time period specified on the application.

(3) The Ministry may request, at any time and from time to time, and the distributor shall provide any additional information or documents the Ministry requires in order to confirm that the distributor is a remote unlicensed distributor during the eligible period and to determine if there are consumers who have eligible accounts with the distributor during the eligible period.

(4) The requirements of clause (1) (a) do not apply to a remote unlicensed distributor distributing electricity to any of the following remote communities:

1. North Spirit Lake.

2. Winisk Indian Settlement.

3. Summer Beaver Settlement.

4. Muskrat Dam Lake.

Who is eligible to receive financial assistance from a remote unlicensed distributor

18. (1) A person is eligible to receive financial assistance from a remote unlicensed distributor who meets the requirements set out in section 16 if the person is a consumer in a remote community listed in the Schedule who has an eligible account with the remote unlicensed distributor based on at least one of the following conditions set out in the definition of “eligible account” in subsection 1 (1) of the Act:

1. The consumer has a demand for electricity of 50 kilowatts or less.

2. The consumer annually uses not more than 250,000 kilowatt hours of electricity.

3. The consumer,

i. carries on a business that is a farming business for the purposes of the Farm Registration and Farm Organizations Funding Act, 1993, and

ii. holds a valid registration number assigned under that Act or the consumer’s obligation to file a farming business registration form was waived pursuant to an order made under subsection 22 (6) of that Act.

4. The account relates to,

i. a dwelling,

ii. a property, within the meaning of the Condominium Act, 1998,

iii. a residential complex, within the meaning of subsection 2 (1) of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, without regard to section 5 of that Act,

iv. a property that includes one or more housing units and that is owned or leased by a co-operative within the meaning of the Co-operative Corporations Act.

(2) A person who is eligible to receive financial assistance under this Part is entitled to receive it in respect of electricity consumed in the period before the first invoice in which financial assistance is shown, as long as the electricity was consumed no more than 24 months before the issuance of the invoice and no earlier than January 1, 2017.

Calculating the financial assistance: base invoice amount

19. (1) The purpose of this section is to determine the amount of a consumer’s base invoice amount for a billing period for which an invoice for electricity is issued.  A consumer’s financial assistance for a billing period is 8 per cent of the base invoice amount for the billing period or, if the billing period is partly outside the eligible period, for that portion of the billing period that is within the eligible period.

(2) The base invoice amount for a billing period includes the cost of the electricity billed to the consumer for the billing period, including the variable and fixed charges relating to the production and delivery of the electricity, but only for electricity consumed in the eligible period.

(3) The base invoice amount for a billing period for a consumer must exclude,

(a) any unpaid amounts that have already been billed for a previous billing period;

(b) all penalties, interest and any other charges not relating to the production and delivery of electricity to the consumer during the billing period;

(c) any charges relating to electricity supplied to the consumer before the eligible period; and

(d) the amount of any harmonized sales tax (HST) payable under Part IX of the Excise Tax Act (Canada).

(4) If an invoice issued to a consumer for a billing period includes any charges for electricity consumed before the eligible period, the remote unlicensed distributor may make a reasonable estimate of the portion of the electricity consumed during the eligible period and the electricity charges relating to that electricity in order to determine the base invoice amount for that billing period.

How the distributor provides the financial assistance to a consumer

20. If a consumer’s eligible account for electricity with a remote unlicensed distributor is closed before the consumer receives all or part of his or her financial assistance from the distributor, the following rules apply:

1. The distributor may apply the amount of the financial assistance the consumer is entitled to receive but has not yet received to any outstanding balance owing by the consumer to the distributor.

2. If the amount then remaining that the consumer is entitled to receive but has not yet received is at least $10, the distributor must mail or deliver by hand that unpaid amount to the consumer’s most recent address known to the distributor.

3. If a cheque mailed or delivered by hand in accordance with paragraph 2 has not been cashed despite the best efforts of the distributor to deliver it, and the cheque has ceased to be negotiable through the passage of time, the distributor is no longer liable to pay the benefits to the consumer and must ensure that the amount is repaid or credited to the Minister of Finance.

4. The distributor shall pay or credit to the Minister of Finance all amounts of less than $10 that are not paid by the distributor and all amounts referred to in paragraph 3,

i. by reporting the total amount in the next Energy Report form, required under section 21, as a deduction from the amount of any reimbursement payable to the distributor, or

ii. by remitting the total amount to the Ministry of Energy (but payable to the Minister of Finance).

Reimbursement of benefits provided to consumers

21. (1) To receive a reimbursement for financial assistance provided to its consumers, a remote unlicensed distributor must complete a form entitled “Energy Report”, available from the Ministry, for each billing period for which the distributor provided financial assistance to a consumer, and must submit it to the Ministry in accordance with the directions on the form.

(2) The Ministry may at any time request, and the distributor shall provide, within the time specified in the request, any additional information or documents the Ministry considers necessary to determine the amount of the reimbursement to be made to the distributor.  No reimbursement for a billing period may be made until the Ministry has received the Energy Report for the billing period and any additional information or documents it has requested to verify the amount to be reimbursed.

(3) Based on the information provided in an Energy Report and any additional information and documents provided by the distributor, the Minister shall reimburse the distributor for the amount of financial assistance provided to consumers.  The reimbursement shall be made in the manner set out in the Enrolment Application submitted by the distributor or in another manner established by the Ministry.

(4) The amount of a reimbursement may be subsequently adjusted by way of a reduction or increase in the amount of a subsequent reimbursement if it is subsequently determined by an inspector under section 9 of the Act or by the Ministry that the amount of the reimbursement was inaccurate.

(5) The limitation period for a claim for reimbursement described in this section is 12 months from the earliest date when the remote unlicensed distributor could have submitted a claim for reimbursement of a rebate amount that they provided.

Commencement

22. This Regulation comes into force on January 1, 2017.

Schedule

1. Fort Hope No. 64.

2. Keewaywin.

3. North Spirit Lake.

4. Winisk Indian Settlement.

5. Pikangikum No. 14.

6. Poplar Hill.

7. Summer Beaver Settlement.

8. Wunnumin No.1.

9. Muskrat Dam Lake.

10. Wawakapewin.