SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) – The Illinois House passed energy legislation Thursday night, sending it to the state Senate.
Illinois House lawmakers spent most of Thursday piecing together an energy bill that could save two Exelon nuclear plants in Northern Illinois.
Senate Bill 2408 passed the House with an 83-33 vote with amendments included.
A change made in the bill from a version the Senate adopted affects two Illinois coal plants, including City Water, Light and Power and the Prairie State Generating Co. in Marissa, which is 41 miles southeast of St. Louis. The latest version of the bill changed a Senate plan to close the plants by 2045 and instead requires a drop a carbon emissions of 45 percent by 2035 following pressure from environmental groups, the AP reports.
It also involves a $700 million subsidy keeping the Illinois fleet of nuclear power plants afloat.
A planned in crease of utility rates in the plan has drawn questions from opponents, who said it could cost ratepayers as much as $15 or more per month. Democratic Rep. Marcus Evans of Chicago, the sponsor of the bill, said the rate increase would not top $4.50 a month.
Click here to read more information about the bill.
Gov. JB Pritzker issued a statement Thursday night saying he will sign the bill if it clears the Illinois Senate. It said the following:
“Today, with the House passage of SB 2408, the State of Illinois is one historic step closer to reaching a 100 percent clean energy future. For many years, comprehensive energy legislation that puts consumers and the climate first has been debated while scientists around the world have sounded the alarm about the growing impacts of climate change. SB 2408 puts the state on a path toward 100% clean energy and invests in training a diverse workforce for the jobs of the future. Illinois will become the best state in the nation to manufacture and drive an electric vehicle, and equity will be prioritized in every new program created. The days of utility companies writing energy legislation to pad their profits has ended because SB2408 puts consumers and climate at the forefront, prioritizes meaningful ethics and transparency reforms, and institutes key ratepayer and residential customer protections."
State Rep. Tim Butler (R-Springfield) slammed the bill, saying it "kills non-profit central Illinois jobs on (the) altar of special interests." His statement said the following:
“Well over a decade ago, my community made a wise investment to move forward with a reliable, competitive source of power to keep our lights on; a source of power which was approved by the State of Illinois during the Obama-Biden administration. Today, the Illinois House turned the lights out on the community in which the Capitol sits.
“The taxpayers of Springfield will almost certainly be on the hook for paying twice for their energy due to this legislation. My neighbors wanted a reliable source of energy for our future, so we supported the construction of the Dallman 4 unit. Now the state has voted to shut down this municipally-owned, non-profit facility and to trample the rights of private property owners. All our property taxes already go to paying old pension debt, now all our utility bills will pay for closed power plants.
“What was done here today completely ignores the serious harm to jobs and the economic health of downstate and central Illinois communities, along with our municipally-owned non-profit utilities. We are being sacrificed on the altar and at the expense of special interests and investor-owned private utility company profits.”
