SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - Gov. JB Pritzker says he will sign energy legislation after it passed the state Senate Monday.
Senate Bill 2408, also known as the Clean Energy Jobs Act, contains measures to drop carbon emissions by 45 percent with a deadline of 2035 at City Water, Light and Power in Springfield and the Prairie State Generating Co. in Marissa, which are both coal plants. The plants, which produce greenhouse gases, must close for good by 2045.
The bill also features a $700 million subsidy to keep nuclear power plants in Illinois afloat, with funds going to Exelon to keep a plant in Byron and the Dresden generating site in Morris open. The hope is to save jobs and the high amount of carbon-free energy already produced by the plants.
The bill passed the House with an 83-33 count on Thursday night and moved through the Senate at a 37-17 tally - just one vote over the minimum needed. The governor said he looks forward to signing it "as soon as possible."
“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," Pritzker said in a statement. "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. SB2408 puts consumers and climate at the forefront, prioritizing meaningful ethics and transparency reforms, and institutes key ratepayer and residential customer protections."
State Sen. Sally Turner (R-Beason) voiced her disapproval with the bill in a statement, saying the following:
“While I believe it is important for us as a state and nation to address the serious issues related to our planet’s climate, I believe we must do so in a realistic and reasonable way, which Senate Bill 2408 simply doesn’t do as it will create the highest rate increase in Illinois history.
“This legislation also allows a private company to invoke eminent domain to take personal property from Illinois residents who live in seven counties, just so that company can increase their own profits. This bill sets a dangerous precedent. It changes the fundamental use of eminent domain as we know it under the guise of job creation.
“While I support the additional ethics included in for public utilities in the wake of the ComEd controversy, I am shocked that the bill does not include those same ethical rules for renewable companies that are receiving even more ratepayer subsidies.
“I don’t doubt the good intentions of this bill. However, I could not support SB 2408 considering all of problems that are contained in it.”
