HB2174 EnrolledLRB103 26885 LNS 53249 b

1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Homeowners' Energy Policy Statement Act is
5amended by changing Sections 20, 25, 30, and 40 as follows:
 
6    (765 ILCS 165/20)
7    Sec. 20. Deed restrictions; covenants.
8    (a) No deed restrictions, covenants, or similar binding
9agreements running with the land shall prohibit or have the
10effect of prohibiting a solar energy system from being
11installed on a building erected on a lot or parcel covered by
12the deed restrictions, covenants, or binding agreements, if
13the building is subject to a homeowners' association, common
14interest community association, or condominium unit owners'
15association. A property owner may not be denied permission to
16install a solar energy system, or be required to utilize
17specific technology, including, but not limited to, solar
18shingles rather than traditional solar panels, by any entity
19granted the power or right in any deed restriction, covenant,
20or similar binding agreement to approve, forbid, control, or
21direct alteration of property. However, for purposes of this
22Act, the entity may determine the specific configuration of
23the elements of a solar energy system on a given roof face,

 

 

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1provided that it may not prohibit elements of the system from
2being installed on any roof face and that any such
3determination may not reduce the production of the solar
4energy system by more than 10%. For the purposes of this
5Section, "production" means the estimated annual electrical
6production of the solar energy system.
7    (b) Within 90 days after a homeowners' association, common
8interest community association, or condominium unit owners'
9association receives a request for a policy statement or an
10application from an association member, the association shall
11adopt a written an energy policy statement. Any energy policy
12statement, regardless of when adopted, shall explicitly
13include as the minimum standards the terms of this Section but
14may also include standards regarding: (i) the location,
15design, and architectural requirements of solar energy
16systems; and (ii) whether a wind energy collection, rain water
17collection, or composting system is allowed, and, if so, the
18location, design, and architectural requirements of those
19systems. A written energy policy statement may not condition
20approval of an application on approval by adjacent property
21owners. An association may not inquire into a property owner's
22energy usage, impose conditions impairing the operation of a
23solar energy system, impose conditions negatively impacting
24any component industry standard warranty, or require
25post-installation reporting. Nor may a property owner be
26denied permission to install a solar energy system based on

 

 

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1system ownership or financing method chosen by the property
2owner. Notwithstanding the foregoing, an association's written
3energy policy statement may impose reasonable conditions
4concerning the maintenance, repair, replacement, and ultimate
5removal of damaged or inoperable systems so long as such
6conditions are not more onerous than the association's
7analogous conditions for nonsolar projects. An association
8shall disclose, upon request, its written energy policy
9statement and shall include the statement in its homeowners'
10common interest community, or condominium unit owners'
11association declaration.
12    (c) Any provision of a homeowners' common interest
13community or condominium unit owners' declaration or energy
14policy statement that conflicts with this Act shall be void
15and unenforceable as contrary to public policy.
16(Source: P.A. 102-161, eff. 7-26-21.)
 
17    (765 ILCS 165/25)
18    Sec. 25. Standards and requirements. A solar energy system
19shall meet applicable standards and requirements imposed by
20State and local permitting authorities other than a
21homeowners' association, common interest community
22association, or condominium unit owners' association.
23(Source: P.A. 96-1436, eff. 1-1-11.)
 
24    (765 ILCS 165/30)

 

 

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1    Sec. 30. Application for approval.
2    (a) Whenever approval is required for the installation or
3use of a solar energy system, the application for approval
4shall be made available in hard copy form at a property owner's
5request or, if the association maintains a website, through
6the website. An association need not utilize an application
7form specific to solar installations. An association may not
8impose any fee for submitting an application pertaining to a
9solar energy system above that which it assesses for any other
10application related to changes to property. The application
11shall be processed by the appropriate approving entity of the
12association within 30 75 days of the submission of the
13application. At the request of the property owner, an
14association may communicate with the property owner's solar
15energy system contractor.
16    (b) If However, if an application is submitted before a
17written an energy policy statement is adopted by an
18association, the application shall be processed within 120
19days from the date the property owner submitted the
20application 75-day period shall not begin to run until the
21date that the policy is adopted.
22    (c) If an association fails to adopt a written solar
23energy policy statement consistent with this Act or process an
24application for approval within the specified time, the
25property owner may proceed with the installation or use of the
26proposed solar energy system notwithstanding any other policy

 

 

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1or provision in the homeowners' common interest community or
2condominium unit owners' association declaration. Before a
3property owner may proceed with such installation or use, the
4property owner must first give the association written notice
5of the alleged failure and 10 business days to cure that
6alleged failure. During those 10 business days, the
7association may only adopt the policy statement or process the
8application; the association may not take other action,
9including, but not limited to, seeking injunctive relief,
10during those 10 business days. In such situations, an
11association may not impose fines or otherwise penalize a
12property owner for exercising the property owner's rights
13under this Act.
14    (d) A property owner may resubmit an application for
15approval previously denied by an association; any such
16resubmitted application shall be evaluated under the changes
17made by this amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly.
18(Source: P.A. 102-161, eff. 7-26-21.)
 
19    (765 ILCS 165/40)
20    Sec. 40. Costs; attorney's fees. In any litigation arising
21under this Act or involving the application of this Act, the
22prevailing party shall be entitled to costs and reasonable
23attorney's fees.
24(Source: P.A. 96-1436, eff. 1-1-11.)
 
25    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon

 

 

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1becoming law.