West Central Reporter

In a recent Facebook post, state Sen. Jil Tracy (R-Quincy) confirmed a trio of energy bills that could give Illinois residents a break on their energy costs.

“As Illinois is a top energy producer AND a top energy consuming state, we need protections in place for our energy production, grid capacity, and consumption systems," Tracy said in the post. "We are proposing proactive measures that focus on preventing future utility price spikes and/or rolling blackouts throughout our state by securing Illinois’ energy-producing capabilities.”

Senate Bill 4215 would stop the mandated 2045 closure date for coal and natural gas power plants put into force under Gov. JB Pritzker’s Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) of 2021, a recent release from Tracy’s office said. The new legislation would also allow firms to construct new gas “peaker” plants—which usually only run when there is a high demand for electricity—without the fear of a forced closure.

Senate Bill 4216 would repurpose $10 million collected from fees assessed to fund clean technology, channeling the money to retrofit coal and natural gas plants with carbon capturing technology. It would also start a new Power Grid Task Force to study the impact of state laws, including CEJA, on grid reliability and energy prices. The Task Force would also look for ways to improve the power supply mix within the state and the deployment of new technologies.

Senate Bill 4217 would remove regulations at the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that have been stopping new power plants from coming online in a timely manner by expediting the state permitting process. For example, the Lincoln Land Energy Center in Pawnee started its permitting process with the Illinois EPA in 2017 with a goal of finishing construction by 2022. The power plant is still pending approval of its final construction permit, which it filed with the state EPA over seven months ago.

Tracy expressed her hopes for future policy. 

“There needs to be a middle-ground when it comes to our transition to cleaner energy,” she said in the release. “Instead of shutting down power plants, how about we work to retrofit them in a way to eliminate carbon emissions. We must also do more to make sure Illinois’ permitting process does not bog new projects down, to the detriment of our energy systems and their customers.”

In a separate release, Tracy shared answers to frequently asked questions about the recent energy price increases for Ameren customers.