56-587 - Licensure of retail electric energy suppliers and persons providing other competitive services.
§ 56-587. Licensure of retail electric energy suppliers and persons providingother competitive services.
A. As a condition of doing business in the Commonwealth, each person except adefault service provider seeking to sell, offering to sell, or sellingelectric energy to any retail customer in the Commonwealth, on and afterJanuary 1, 2002, shall obtain a license from the Commission to do so. Alicense shall not be required solely for the leasing or financing of propertyused in the sale of electricity to any retail customer in the Commonwealth.
The license shall authorize that person to engage in the activitiesauthorized by such license until the license expires or is otherwiseterminated, suspended or revoked.
B. 1. As a condition of obtaining, retaining and renewing any license issuedpursuant to this section, a person shall satisfy such reasonable andnondiscriminatory requirements as may be specified by the Commission, whichmay include requirements that such person (i) demonstrate, in a mannersatisfactory to the Commission, financial responsibility; (ii) post a bond asdeemed adequate by the Commission to ensure that financial responsibility;(iii) pay an annual license fee to be determined by the Commission; and (iv)pay all taxes and fees lawfully imposed by the Commonwealth or by anymunicipality or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth. In addition,as a condition of obtaining, retaining and renewing any license pursuant tothis section, a person shall satisfy such reasonable and nondiscriminatoryrequirements as may be specified by the Commission, including but not limitedto requirements that such person demonstrate (i) technical capabilities asthe Commission may deem appropriate; (ii) in the case of a person seeking tosell, offering to sell, or selling electric energy to any retail customer inthe Commonwealth, access to generation and generation reserves; and (iii)adherence to minimum market conduct standards.
2. Any license issued by the Commission pursuant to this section to a personseeking to sell, offering to sell, or selling electric energy to any retailcustomer in the Commonwealth may be conditioned upon the licensee furnishingto the Commission prior to the provision of electric energy to consumersproof of adequate access to generation and generation reserves.
C. 1. The Commission shall establish a reasonable period within which anyretail customer may cancel, without penalty or cost, any contract enteredinto with any person licensed pursuant to this section.
2. The Commission may adopt other rules and regulations governing therequirements for obtaining, retaining, and renewing a license issued pursuantto this section, and may, as appropriate, refuse to issue a license to, orsuspend, revoke, or refuse to renew the license of, any person that does notmeet those requirements.
D. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 13.1-620, a public service companymay, through an affiliate or subsidiary, conduct one or more of the followingbusinesses, even if such business is not related to or incidental to itsstated business as a public service company: (i) become licensed as a retailelectric energy supplier pursuant to this section, or for purposes ofparticipation in an approved pilot program encompassing retail customerchoice of electric energy suppliers; (ii) become licensed as an aggregatorpursuant to § 56-588, or for purposes of participation in an approved pilotprogram encompassing retail customer choice of electric energy suppliers; or(iii) own, manage or control any plant or equipment or any part of a plant orequipment used for the generation of electric energy.
(1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991; 2007, cc. 888, 933.)