HJ0048 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HJ0048 LRB097 14128 CEL 58818 r

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Energy affects all aspects of American life and is indispensable for the quality of life, economic growth, and the sustainability of modern society; and

WHEREAS, Access to energy and the supply of energy shall become more important in the future as energy demand continues to increase; and

WHEREAS, The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects that overall energy consumption in the United States will grow by 14% between 2008 and 2035, electricity demand will increase by 30%, and demand for liquid transportation fuels such as gasoline and diesel will increase by nearly 14%; and

WHEREAS, According to the U.S. EPA, since 1980 domestic GDP has increased 124%, vehicle miles traveled have increased 103%, population has increased 36%, and energy consumption has increased 30%; and

WHEREAS, U.S. EPA reports that since 1980 aggregate emissions of air toxins have decreased 52%, ambient levels of carbon monoxide are down 77%, ozone is down 21%, lead is down 94%, and sulfur dioxide is down 68%; and

WHEREAS, EPA's recently issued the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule and other recent U.S. EPA proposals, including the Coal Combustion Residuals Rule and the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards Rule, could threaten the reliability and security of the nation's electric energy supply; and

WHEREAS, More than 28 Gigawatts of coal-fired electricity generating capacity had been publicly announced to be retired beginning in 2010, before the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule was finalized on July 6, 2011; and

WHEREAS, Additional retirements of electric generating capacity are being announced due to the emission reduction requirements of current and proposed U.S. EPA regulations, and, according to estimates by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission staff, could be as much as 81 Gigawatts, or one-fourth of the nation's fleet of coal-based generation capacity; and

WHEREAS, In 2009, 46% of electricity generated in Illinois was produced from coal-based units, including many units that may be retired in response to current and proposed U.S. EPA regulations; and

WHEREAS, The PJM Regional Transmission Organization has commented that U.S. EPA's regulatory analyses have not adequately taken into account local reliability impacts and have understated the level of expected generation retirements under the EPA's proposed Mercury and Air Toxics Standards Rule, while the Midwest ISO has expressed similar reliability risk concerns; and

WHEREAS, The Chair and members of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission have expressed concerns about the inadequacy of analyses of potential reliability impacts, with Commissioner Philip Moeller noting that "the timing of the EPA regulations does not conform to the relevant planning horizons in the electric sector of our economy, one of the most capital-intensive sectors of industry...the federal government needs to convene an open and transparent process to assess the reliability implications of the EPA rules individually and in the aggregate"; and

WHEREAS, The premature closure of dozens of power plants in Illinois and surrounding Midwest states could imperil critical electrical transmission services, including voltage support, black start recovery, and reactive power, thereby further jeopardizing the dependability of the nation's energy supply; and

WHEREAS, Maintaining electrical grid reliability is particularly critical to the Chicago metropolitan area, due to its population density and vulnerability to extreme weather events; and

WHEREAS, Estimates by the United Mine Workers of America indicate that the retirement of existing generating capacity in the short 2-4 year timeframes called for by current and proposed U.S. EPA regulations for reducing SO2, NOx, and air toxics emissions may put at risk more than 250,000 jobs directly and indirectly related to coal mining, rail transportation, and power generation, including an estimated 28,000 jobs in Illinois, imposing economic hardship on workers and communities at a time of unacceptably high unemployment; and

WHEREAS, Energy efficiency is an important component of state and federal energy policies, but cannot be counted on to replace the output of the unprecedented numbers of power plant retirements anticipated under current and proposed U.S. EPA regulations; and

WHEREAS, The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners has adopted resolutions calling on U.S. EPA to seek ways to minimize cost impacts to consumers and increases in residential, commercial, and industrial energy tariffs that will affect the competitiveness of businesses and the ability of customers in lower economic circumstances to be able to afford energy; and

WHEREAS, The National Conference of State Legislatures has strongly urged the Administration and Congress to take steps to protect the environment without the serious anticipated consequences to grid reliability, electricity price spikes, and job losses; and

WHEREAS, Alternatives that would achieve the same level of emissions reduction as those targeted in the various EPA proposals can be achieved at much less cost, disruption to local economies, and with less impact to utility customers; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that the General Assembly of the State of Illinois urges Congress and the Administration to act without delay to establish a sound foundation for national energy policy given the important and integral role of energy in all facets of modern life; by providing the necessary and fundamental support for programs key to a secure and sustainable energy future, the nation will at the same time be ensuring the resilience of our domestic economy and the competitiveness of the United States in the global economy; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the reliability of the U.S. energy grid should never be put at risk from policies that could cause energy shortages or delivery failures; and be it further

RESOLVED, It is the policy of the State of Illinois, and should be the policy of the United States, to allow utilities to coordinate the closure and retrofitting of existing power generation stations in an orderly manner that will ensure the continued supply of electricity and that will allow power generators to upgrade their facilities in a manner that provides the least cost while attaining environmental compliance; and be it further

RESOLVED, The United States Congress, which represents the interests of the states individually and collectively, is the appropriate public body to determine national energy policy as it relates to reliability of supply, residential affordability, competitive impacts on American industry and workers, and the overall economic prosperity of the nation; and be it further

RESOLVED, The time available to deploy existing emissions control technology to comply with U.S. EPA regulations must reflect normal construction industry experience and practices that maximize order and efficiency to avoid wasteful financial expenditures and any risks to energy reliability; and be it further

RESOLVED, The General Assembly encourages and supports efforts to promote State and federal environmental and energy policies that will enhance the reliability of our State and nation's energy supply and minimize cost impacts by:

(1) allowing electric generators to coordinate the closure or retrofitting of existing electric generating units in an orderly manner that will ensure the continued supply of electricity and that will allow power generators to upgrade their facilities in the most cost-effective manner;

(2) allowing regulatory options for units that are necessary for grid reliability that commit to retire or repower and allowing phasing in of regulatory requirements; and

(3) establishing interim progress standards that ensure generation units meet U.S. EPA regulations in an orderly, cost-effective manner; and be it further

RESOLVED, The General Assembly therefore urgently requests that the Congress, the President, and the Administration take such actions as necessary and appropriate to ensure the continued supply of affordable and reliable electric energy, consistent with the maintenance of fuel diversity and grid reliability, while also ensuring continuing emission reduction progress for the protection of public health and welfare; and be it further

RESOLVED, This Joint Resolution is approved and copies of it are to be transmitted to the President of the United States, the Governor of Illinois, all Members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy, the Administrator of U.S. EPA, the Chair and Members of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and all Members of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners.