Any person communicating orally, in writing, electronically, or otherwise with the Director or any person employed by, or associated with, the Illinois Power Agency to impart, solicit, or transfer any information related to the content of any power procurement plan, the manner of conducting any power procurement process, the procurement of any power supply, or the method or structure of contracting with power suppliers must disclose to the Procurement Policy Board the full nature, content, and extent of any such communication in writing by submitting a report with the following information:
These communications do not include the following: (i) statements by a person publicly made in a public forum; (ii) statements regarding matters of procedure and practice, such as format, the number of copies required, the manner of filing, and the status of a matter; (iii) statements made by a State employee of the agency to the agency head or other employees of that agency, to the employees of the Executive Ethics Commission, or to an employee of another State agency who, through the communication, is either (a) exercising his or her experience or expertise in the subject matter of the particular procurement in the normal course of business, for official purposes, and at the initiation of the purchasing agency or the appropriate State purchasing officer, or (b) exercising oversight, supervisory, or management authority over the procurement in the normal course of business and as part of official responsibilities; (iv) communications providing general information about a firm's products or services or industry best practices provided those products or services are not directly related to an open procurement matter ; (v) communications received in response to procurement solicitations, including, but not limited to, vendor responses to a request for information, request for proposal, request for qualifications, invitation for bid, or a small purchase, sole source, or emergency solicitation, or questions and answers posted to the Illinois Procurement Bulletin to supplement the procurement action, provided that the communications are made in accordance with the instructions contained in the procurement solicitation, procedures, or guidelines; (vi) communications that are privileged, protected, or confidential under law; (vii) communications that are part of a formal procurement process as set out by statute, rule, or the solicitation, guidelines, or procedures, including, but not limited to, the posting of procurement opportunities, the process for approving a procurement business case or its equivalent, fiscal approval, submission of bids, the finalizing of contract terms and conditions with an awardee or apparent awardee, and similar formal procurement processes; and (viii) communications about proposal deficiencies as provided under Section 35 of the Architectural, Engineering, and Land Surveying Qualifications Based Selection Act. The provisions of this Section shall not apply to communications regarding the administration and implementation of an existing contract, except communications regarding change orders or the renewal or extension of a contract.
The reporting requirement does not apply to any communication asking for clarification regarding a contract solicitation so long as there is no competitive advantage to the person or business and the question and answer, if material, are posted to the Illinois Procurement Bulletin as an addendum to the contract solicitation.
"Active procurement matter" means a procurement process beginning with requisition or determination of need by an agency and continuing through the publication of an award notice or other completion of a final procurement action, the resolution of any protests, and the expiration of any protest or Procurement Policy Board review period, if applicable. "Active procurement matter" also includes communications relating to change orders, renewals, or extensions.
"Material information" means information that a reasonable person would deem important in determining his or her course of action and pertains to significant issues, including, but not limited to, price, quantity, and terms of payment or performance.
"Material argument" means a communication that a reasonable person would believe was made for the purpose of influencing a decision relating to a procurement matter. "Material argument" does not include general information about products, services, or industry best practices or a response to a communication initiated by an employee of the State for the purposes of providing information to evaluate new products, trends, services, or technologies.
30 ILCS 500/50-39