HB1629 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB097 08897 ASK 49029 b

97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB1629

Introduced , by Rep. John E. Bradley

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

20 ILCS 3855/1-80

Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. Provides that any clean coal facility developed, financed, constructed, or operated by the Illinois Power Agency may be constructed within 10 miles of the Rend Lake Conservancy District in a county with unemployment above the State average as of the effective date of the amendatory Act. Further provides that the first facility that the Agency develops, finances, or constructs shall be a facility that uses coal that has high volatile bituminous rank and greater than 1.7 pounds of sulfur per million btu content (was, coal produced in Illinois). Makes other changes. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning State government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Power Agency Act is amended by changing Section 1-80 as follows:

(20 ILCS 3855/1-80)

Sec. 1-80. Resource Development Bureau. The Resource Development Bureau has the following duties and responsibilities:

(a) At the Agency's discretion, conduct feasibility studies on the construction of any facility. Funding for a study shall come from either:

(i) fees assessed by the Agency on municipal electric systems, governmental aggregators, unit or units of local government, or rural electric cooperatives requesting the feasibility study; or

(ii) an appropriation from the General Assembly.

(b) If the Agency undertakes the construction of a facility, moneys generated from the sale of revenue bonds by the Authority for the facility shall be used to reimburse the source of the money used for the facility's feasibility study.

(c) The Agency may develop, finance, construct, or operate electric generation and co-generation facilities that use indigenous coal or renewable resources, or both, financed with bonds issued by the Authority on behalf of the Agency. Any such facility that uses coal must be a clean coal facility and, except as otherwise provided, must be constructed in a location where the geology is suitable for carbon sequestration. Any clean coal facility that is developed, financed, constructed, or operated by the Agency may be constructed within 10 miles of the Rend Lake Conservancy District in a county with unemployment above the State average as of the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly. The Agency may also develop, finance, construct, or operate a carbon sequestration facility.

(1) The Agency may enter into contractual arrangements with private and public entities, including but not limited to municipal electric systems, governmental aggregators, and rural electric cooperatives, to plan, site, construct, improve, rehabilitate, and operate those electric generation and co-generation facilities. No contract shall be entered into by the Agency that would jeopardize the tax-exempt status of any bond issued in connection with a project for which the Agency entered into the contract.

(2) The Agency shall hold at least one public hearing before entering into any such contractual arrangements. At least 30-days' notice of the hearing shall be given by publication once in each week during that period in 6 newspapers within the State, at least one of which has a circulation area that includes the location of the proposed facility.

(3) The first facility that the Agency develops, finances, or constructs shall be a facility that uses coal that has high volatile bituminous rank and greater than 1.7 pounds of sulfur per million btu content produced in Illinois. The Agency may, however, also develop, finance, or construct renewable energy facilities after work on the first facility has commenced.

(4) The Agency may not develop, finance, or construct a nuclear power plant.

(5) The Agency shall assess fees to applicants seeking to partner with the Agency on projects.

(d) Use of electricity generated by the Agency's facilities. The Agency may supply electricity produced by the Agency's facilities to municipal electric systems, governmental aggregators, or rural electric cooperatives in Illinois. The electricity shall be supplied at cost.

(1) Contracts to supply power and energy from the Agency's facilities shall provide for the effectuation of the policies set forth in this Act.

(2) The contracts shall also provide that, notwithstanding any provision in the Public Utilities Act, entities supplied with power and energy from an Agency facility shall supply the power and energy to retail customers at the same price paid to purchase power and energy from the Agency.

(e) Electric utilities shall not be required to purchase electricity directly or indirectly from facilities developed or sponsored by the Agency.

(f) The Agency may sell excess capacity and excess energy into the wholesale electric market at prevailing market rates; provided, however, the Agency may not sell excess capacity or excess energy through the procurement process described in Section 16-111.5 of the Public Utilities Act.

(g) The Agency shall not directly sell electric power and energy to retail customers. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to prohibit sales to municipal electric systems, governmental aggregators, or rural electric cooperatives.

(Source: P.A. 95-481, eff. 8-28-07; 95-1027, eff. 6-1-09.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.