Illinois Senate Passes Clean Energy Package

The Illinois Senate this week approved a clean energy package that would transition the state to 100% clean energy by 2050, WCIA-TV reports.

The plan would shutter private, for-profit coal powered plants by 2030, and close municipally owned coal-fired power plants and natural gas power plants by 2045.

The package includes US$280.5 million in grants for the Coal to Solar Energy Storage Initiative Fund; $203 million in annual grants for various wind, solar, and clean jobs initiatives; $140 million for the Energy Transition Assistance Fund; and $14 million in new annual spending for regulatory agencies. It allows the state to spend $10 million per year on purchasing electric vehicles to upgrade the government fleet.

Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) said the bill would make Illinois the “epicenter of the green economy.”

“We’re in the midst of a transformation to a new green economy,” Harmon said. “I think the coal plants are headed out regardless of the legislative action. We may accelerate that, but we need to transform our economy to affordable, reliable, renewable energy.”

Senator Mike Hastings (D-Frankfort) said although the proposal would raise the average commercial monthly electric rates by 3% and industry rates by 7%, it would also amount to “one of the most sweeping investments that our country has ever seen in renewable energy resources.”

The clean energy bill will go before the Illinois House of Representatives for a vote.