HB2698
View on ILGACABLE/VIDEO OUTAGE CREDITS
What this bill does
Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that every cable or video provider operating in the State shall issue a prorated bill credit to consumers for any service outage lasting more than one hour. Provides that the credit shall be calculated based on the consumer's monthly service rate, prorated for the duration of the outage, and that the credit shall be automatically applied to the consumer's next billing cycle without requiring any action or request from the consumer. Requires cable or video providers to notify consumers of the outage and the applied credit within 24 hours after the restoration of service. Provides that internet providers and cable or video providers shall maintain records of all outages and corresponding bill credits issued for a minimum period of 3 years. Provides that the records shall be made available to the Illinois Commerce Commission upon request for the purpose of ensuring compliance with the Act. Provides that any cable or video provider that fails to issue the required bill credits in accordance with the outage provisions shall be subject to penalties as determined by the Commission. Provides that, if, due to a contract dispute, a cable or video provider will not be providing a consumer with a channel for which the consumer has been or will be billed, the cable or video provider shall, within 10 days after the cable or video provider knows that the contract dispute will result in the loss of the channel, provide each affected consumer with notice that the channel will not be provided due to a contract dispute. Provides that, if a cable or video provider does not provide a consumer with a channel for which the consumer has been billed, then the cable or video provider shall credit the consumer an amount equal to the percentage of the consumer's bill that the channel represents multiplied by the consumer's monthly service rate, which shall be prorated for each hour that the consumer was not provided with that channel due to a contract dispute. Requires that the credit be applied on the statement issued to the consumer for the next monthly billing cycle.
Calculating prediction drivers...
Pipeline Progress
Current stage: Floor Vote · Last action 547 days ago · STAGNANT
How does a bill become law in Illinois?
-
Introduction of Bill
A member of the Senate or the House introduces a bill, which is assigned a unique identifying number (e.g., "H.B. ___" for House bills and "S.B. ___" for Senate bills). If not enacted, it must be reintroduced in the next General Assembly with a new number.
-
Committee Work — Hearings
The bill goes to the appropriate committee, which holds hearings to gather expert opinions and determine the need for the legislation.
-
Committee Work — Markup, Amendments, Report
The committee may make amendments to the bill. If approved, a committee report endorsing the bill is issued.
-
Floor Debate
The bill is debated and can be further amended. The debate transcripts are accessible online for public viewing.
-
Passage and Consideration in Second Chamber
If the bill passes in the first chamber, it moves to the second chamber for a similar review process. If both chambers approve, it goes to the governor.
-
Gubernatorial Action
The governor can sign the bill into law, veto it, or take no action (resulting in an automatic law after 60 days). The type of veto can be total or amendatory. Once signed, the bill becomes a Public Act and is assigned a Public Act number.
Sponsor Context
Bills sponsored by Tracy Katz Muhl advance 7% more often than the chamber average.
Campaign finance
This is SBE campaign receipts to the people on this bill, not Moneyball and not earmarked to the bill.
Money is campaign receipts to matched candidate committees, not earmarked to this bill. Window 2025-01-01 – 2026-09-13.
Sponsor and voter funding
| Member | Role | Receipts | Total received | Top donors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tracy Katz Muhl | Chief sponsor | 171 | $195,021.68 | Chicago Land Operators Joint Labor-Management PAC ($11,000.00); I.P.A.C.E. ($10,000.00); Michael Sacks ($7,300.00) |
| Camille Y. Lilly | Sponsor | 86 | $95,238.00 | Health Care Council of Illinois Political Action Comm. ($10,000.00); Liuna Chicago Laborers' District Council PAC ($7,500.00); Chicago Land Operators Joint Labor-Management PAC ($6,500.00) |
Overlapping donors
Donors who gave to more than one sponsor or voter on this bill. Still not earmarked to the bill.
| Donor | Members | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Land Operators Joint Labor-Management PAC | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $17,500.00 |
| Liuna Chicago Laborers' District Council PAC | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $10,500.00 |
| Illinois Laborers' Legislative Committee | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $10,000.00 |
| Illinois State Medical Society PAC | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $5,500.00 |
| Realtor Political Action Committee | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $5,000.00 |
| Illinois Federation of Teachers COPE | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $4,000.00 |
| Associated Beer Distributors of Illinois PAC | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $3,500.00 |
| Accel Entertainment Gaming, LLC | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $2,500.00 |
| Cozen O'Connor | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $2,000.00 |
| Health Care Council of Illinois PAC | Camille Y. Lilly, Tracy Katz Muhl | $1,250.00 |
Top donors across these members
| Donor | Occupation | Employer | Receipts | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Land Operators Joint Labor-Management PAC | — | — | 5 | $17,500.00 |
| Liuna Chicago Laborers' District Council PAC | — | — | 3 | $10,500.00 |
| Illinois Laborers' Legislative Committee | — | — | 2 | $10,000.00 |
| I.P.A.C.E. | — | — | 2 | $10,000.00 |
| Health Care Council of Illinois Political Action Comm. | — | — | 1 | $10,000.00 |
| David Katz | Manager | A & R Katz Management, Inc | 1 | $7,300.00 |
| Michael Sacks | CEO | Grosvenor Capital Management | 1 | $7,300.00 |
| Ralph Katz | Real Estate broker | Katz & Katz Real Estate, Inc | 1 | $6,900.00 |
| Susan Katz | Retired | None | 1 | $6,900.00 |
| Illinois State Medical Society PAC | — | — | 4 | $5,500.00 |
| Michelle Valiukenas | Attorney | The Colette Louise Tisdahl Foundation | 2 | $5,250.00 |
| Illinois Venture Capital Association IVCA PAC | — | — | 2 | $5,000.00 |
| Realtor Political Action Committee | — | — | 2 | $5,000.00 |
| Illinois Trial Lawyers Association PAC | — | — | 2 | $5,000.00 |
| Stephen Kant | Robin Realty & Management | Realtor | 1 | $5,000.00 |
| ILL House Legislative Black Caucus PAC | — | — | 1 | $4,513.00 |
| Illinois Federation of Teachers COPE | — | — | 3 | $4,000.00 |
| AFSCME IL Cncl 31 | — | — | 2 | $4,000.00 |
| Michael Gold | Real Estate | Pine Tree Commercial Realty | 2 | $3,500.00 |
| Associated Beer Distributors of Illinois PAC | — | — | 3 | $3,500.00 |
| Ironworkers Local 1 Pol. Organizing Fund | — | — | 3 | $3,500.00 |
| IHA Political Action Committee | — | — | 2 | $3,500.00 |
| Citibank, N.A. | — | — | 4 | $3,322.95 |
| Ironworkers Dist Cncl of Chicago PAC | — | — | 2 | $3,000.00 |
| Andrew Feldman | — | — | 2 | $3,000.00 |
Public Engagement
Witness slips
12 slips filed. Proponent / opponent / no position as filed with the committee.
| Name | Organization | Representing | Position | Hearing committee | Hearing date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Julia Warheit | Citizen Action Illinois | Citizen Action Illinois | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-19 |
| Matthew Slade | Myself | Myself | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-19 |
| Abraham Scarr | Illinois PIRG | Illinois PIRG | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-18 |
| Griffin Murray | NEIU | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-18 | |
| John Colby Lewis V | Private Citizen | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-18 | |
| Julia Warheit | Citizen Action Illinois | Citizen Action Illinois | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-18 |
| Matthew Slade | Myself | Myself | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-18 |
| Raymond Sorensen | BurkesOptimizations | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-18 | |
| Thomas Davies | Self employed | Self | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-18 |
| Julia Warheit | Citizen Action Illinois | Citizen Action Illinois | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-11 |
| Matthew Slade | Myself | Myself | Proponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-11 |
| Joe Handley | Illinois Broadband & Cable Association | Illinois Broadband & Cable Association | Opponent | Public Utilities | 2025-03-18 |
Roll-call votes
Total votes and outcome per event. Deciding vote = margin of 1; those voters on the winning side could have changed the outcome by flipping.
| Date | Chamber | Type | Description | Yea | Nay | Present | NV | Outcome | Margin | Deciding voters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H | Committee | Public Utilities | 14 | 7 | 0 | 0 | Passed | 7 | — |
Action History
10 actions recorded. Last action: 2025-04-11 — Rule 19(a) / Re-referred toRules Committee. Each action's meaning and outcome signal are classified automatically.
All actions (table)
| Date | Chamber | Action | Category | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-02-04 | House | Filed with the Clerk byRep. Tracy Katz Muhl House Rule 6(b) | Introduction & Filing | — |
| 2025-02-06 | House | First Reading Senate Rule 5-1(d)/5-2; House Rule 37(d)/38 | Introduction & Filing | — |
| 2025-02-06 | House | Referred toRules Committee Senate Rule 3-8(a); House Rule 18(a) | Committee Assignment | — |
| 2025-03-04 | House | Assigned toPublic Utilities Committee Senate Rule 3-8(a); House Rule 18(b) | Committee Assignment | — |
| 2025-03-19 | House | Do Pass / Short DebatePublic Utilities Committee; 014-007-000 Senate Rule 3-11(a)(1); House Rule 22(a)(1), 52(b) | Committee Action | Positive |
| 2025-03-19 | House | Placed on Calendar 2nd Reading - Short Debate Senate Rule 4-4(7-8)/5-2; House Rule 31(8-9)/38/52 | Floor Process | Positive |
| 2025-03-26 | House | Second Reading - Short Debate Senate Rule 3-12(a)/5-4(a); House Rule 24(a)/40(b)/52(a)(1) | Floor Process | Positive |
| 2025-03-26 | House | Held on Calendar Order of Second Reading - Short Debate Senate Rule 4-4(7-8)/5-2; House Rule 31(8-9)/38/52 | Floor Process | — |
| 2025-04-08 | House | Added Co-SponsorRep. Camille Y. Lilly Senate Rule 5-1(a); House Rule 37(a) | Co-Sponsorship | Mild + |
| 2025-04-11 | House | Rule 19(a) / Re-referred toRules Committee House Rule 19(a); Senate analog: Rule 3-9(a) | Deadlines & Re-referrals | Mild − |