103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB2892

 

Introduced 1/24/2024, by Sen. Sally J. Turner

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
55 ILCS 5/5-12020

    Amends the Counties Code. In provisions about commercial wind energy facilities and commercial solar energy facilities, removes changes made by Public Act 102-1123. Provides that any provision of a county zoning ordinance pertaining to wind farms, commercial wind energy facilities, or commercial solar energy facilities that was in effect before January 27, 2023 may continue in effect notwithstanding any changes made in Public Act 102-1123 and, if applicable, any provision of a county zoning ordinance pertaining to wind farms that was in effect before August 16, 2007 may continue in effect notwithstanding the changes made in Public Act 95-203.


LRB103 36955 AWJ 67069 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB2892LRB103 36955 AWJ 67069 b

1    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by changing
5Section 5-12020 as follows:
 
6    (55 ILCS 5/5-12020)
7    Sec. 5-12020. Wind farms, electric-generating wind
8devices, and commercial Commercial wind energy facilities and
9commercial solar energy facilities.
10    (a) As used in this Section:
11    "Commercial solar energy facility" means a "commercial
12solar energy system" as defined in Section 10-720 of the
13Property Tax Code. "Commercial solar energy facility" does not
14mean a utility-scale solar energy facility being constructed
15at a site that was eligible to participate in a procurement
16event conducted by the Illinois Power Agency pursuant to
17subsection (c-5) of Section 1-75 of the Illinois Power Agency
18Act.
19    "Commercial wind energy facility" means a wind energy
20conversion facility of equal or greater than 500 kilowatts in
21total nameplate generating capacity. "Commercial wind energy
22facility" includes a wind energy conversion facility seeking
23an extension of a permit to construct granted by a county or

 

 

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1municipality before January 27, 2023 (the effective date of
2Public Act 102-1123).
3    "Facility owner" means (i) a person with a direct
4ownership interest in a commercial wind energy facility or a
5commercial solar energy facility, or both, regardless of
6whether the person is involved in acquiring the necessary
7rights, permits, and approvals or otherwise planning for the
8construction and operation of the facility, and (ii) at the
9time the facility is being developed, a person who is acting as
10a developer of the facility by acquiring the necessary rights,
11permits, and approvals or by planning for the construction and
12operation of the facility, regardless of whether the person
13will own or operate the facility.
14    "Nonparticipating property" means real property that is
15not a participating property.
16    "Nonparticipating residence" means a residence that is
17located on nonparticipating property and that is existing and
18occupied on the date that an application for a permit to
19develop the commercial wind energy facility or the commercial
20solar energy facility is filed with the county.
21    "Occupied community building" means any one or more of the
22following buildings that is existing and occupied on the date
23that the application for a permit to develop the commercial
24wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy facility
25is filed with the county: a school, place of worship, day care
26facility, public library, or community center.

 

 

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1    "Participating property" means real property that is the
2subject of a written agreement between a facility owner and
3the owner of the real property that provides the facility
4owner an easement, option, lease, or license to use the real
5property for the purpose of constructing a commercial wind
6energy facility, a commercial solar energy facility, or
7supporting facilities. "Participating property" also includes
8real property that is owned by a facility owner for the purpose
9of constructing a commercial wind energy facility, a
10commercial solar energy facility, or supporting facilities.
11    "Participating residence" means a residence that is
12located on participating property and that is existing and
13occupied on the date that an application for a permit to
14develop the commercial wind energy facility or the commercial
15solar energy facility is filed with the county.
16    "Protected lands" means real property that is:
17        (1) subject to a permanent conservation right
18    consistent with the Real Property Conservation Rights Act;
19    or
20        (2) registered or designated as a nature preserve,
21    buffer, or land and water reserve under the Illinois
22    Natural Areas Preservation Act.
23    "Supporting facilities" means the transmission lines,
24substations, access roads, meteorological towers, storage
25containers, and equipment associated with the generation and
26storage of electricity by the commercial wind energy facility

 

 

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1or commercial solar energy facility.
2    "Wind tower" includes the wind turbine tower, nacelle, and
3blades.
4    (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law or whether
5the county has formed a zoning commission and adopted formal
6zoning under Section 5-12007, a county may establish standards
7for wind farms and electric-generating wind devices commercial
8wind energy facilities, commercial solar energy facilities, or
9both. The standards may include, without limitation, the
10height of the devices and the number of devices that may be
11located within a geographic area all of the requirements
12specified in this Section but may not include requirements for
13commercial wind energy facilities or commercial solar energy
14facilities that are more restrictive than specified in this
15Section. A county may also regulate the siting of wind farms
16and electric-generating wind devices commercial wind energy
17facilities with standards that are not more restrictive than
18the requirements specified in this Section in unincorporated
19areas of the county that are outside of the zoning
20jurisdiction of a municipality and that are outside the
211.5-mile radius surrounding the zoning jurisdiction of a
22municipality.
23    There shall be (c) If a county has elected to establish
24standards under subsection (b), before the county grants
25siting approval or a special use permit for a commercial wind
26energy facility or a commercial solar energy facility, or

 

 

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1modification of an approved siting or special use permit, the
2county board of the county in which the facility is to be sited
3or the zoning board of appeals for the county shall hold at
4least one public hearing. The public hearing shall be
5conducted in accordance with the Open Meetings Act and shall
6be held not more than 60 days after the filing of the
7application for the facility. The county shall allow
8interested parties to a special use permit an opportunity to
9present evidence and to cross-examine witnesses at the
10hearing, but the county may impose reasonable restrictions on
11the public hearing, including reasonable time limitations on
12the presentation of evidence and the cross-examination of
13witnesses. The county shall also allow public comment at the
14public hearing in accordance with the Open Meetings Act. The
15county shall make its siting and permitting decisions not more
16than 30 days prior to a siting decision by the county board
17after the conclusion of the public hearing. Notice of the
18hearing shall be published in a newspaper of general
19circulation in the county. A commercial wind energy facility
20owner, as defined in the Renewable Energy Facilities
21Agricultural Impact Mitigation Act, must enter into an
22agricultural impact mitigation agreement with the Department
23of Agriculture prior to the date of the required public
24hearing. A commercial wind energy facility owner seeking an
25extension of a permit granted by a county prior to July 24,
262015 (the effective date of Public Act 99-132) must enter into

 

 

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1an agricultural impact mitigation agreement with the
2Department of Agriculture prior to a decision by the county to
3grant the permit extension. Counties may allow test wind
4towers or test solar energy systems to be sited without formal
5approval by the county board. Any provision of a county zoning
6ordinance pertaining to wind farms, commercial wind energy
7facilities, or commercial solar energy facilities that was in
8effect before January 27, 2023 may continue in effect
9notwithstanding any changes made in Public Act 102-1123 and,
10if applicable, any provision of a county zoning ordinance
11pertaining to wind farms that was in effect before August 16,
122007 may continue in effect notwithstanding the changes made
13in Public Act 95-203.
14    (d) A county with an existing zoning ordinance in conflict
15with this Section shall amend that zoning ordinance to be in
16compliance with this Section within 120 days after January 27,
172023 (the effective date of Public Act 102-1123).
18    (e) A county may not require a wind tower or other
19renewable energy system that is used exclusively by an end
20user to be setback more than 1.1 times the height of the
21renewable energy system from the end user's property line. :
22    Only a county may establish standards for wind farms,
23electric-generating wind devices, and commercial wind energy
24facilities, as that term is defined in Section 10 of the
25Renewable Energy Facilities Agricultural Impact Mitigation
26Act, in unincorporated areas of the county outside of the

 

 

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1zoning jurisdiction of a municipality and outside the 1.5-mile
2radius surrounding the zoning jurisdiction of a municipality.
3        (1) a wind tower of a commercial wind energy facility
4    to be sited as follows, with setback distances measured
5    from the center of the base of the wind tower:
 
6Setback Description           Setback Distance
 
7Occupied Community            2.1 times the maximum blade tip
8Buildings                     height of the wind tower to the
9                              nearest point on the outside
10                              wall of the structure
 
11Participating Residences      1.1 times the maximum blade tip
12                              height of the wind tower to the
13                              nearest point on the outside
14                              wall of the structure
 
15Nonparticipating Residences   2.1 times the maximum blade tip
16                              height of the wind tower to the
17                              nearest point on the outside
18                              wall of the structure
 
19Boundary Lines of             None
20Participating Property 
 

 

 

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1Boundary Lines of             1.1 times the maximum blade tip
2Nonparticipating Property     height of the wind tower to the
3                              nearest point on the property
4                              line of the nonparticipating
5                              property
 
6Public Road Rights-of-Way     1.1 times the maximum blade tip
7                              height of the wind tower
8                              to the center point of the
9                              public road right-of-way
 
10Overhead Communication and    1.1 times the maximum blade tip
11Electric Transmission         height of the wind tower to the
12and Distribution Facilities   nearest edge of the property
13(Not Including Overhead       line, easement, or 
14Utility Service Lines to      right-of-way 
15Individual Houses or          containing the overhead line
16Outbuildings)
 
17Overhead Utility Service      None
18Lines to Individual
19Houses or Outbuildings
 
20Fish and Wildlife Areas       2.1 times the maximum blade
21and Illinois Nature           tip height of the wind tower
22Preserve Commission           to the nearest point on the

 

 

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1Protected Lands               property line of the fish and
2                              wildlife area or protected
3                              land
4    This Section does not exempt or excuse compliance with
5    electric facility clearances approved or required by the
6    National Electrical Code, The National Electrical Safety
7    Code, Illinois Commerce Commission, Federal Energy
8    Regulatory Commission, and their designees or successors.
 
9        (2) a wind tower of a commercial wind energy facility
10    to be sited so that industry standard computer modeling
11    indicates that any occupied community building or
12    nonparticipating residence will not experience more than
13    30 hours per year of shadow flicker under planned
14    operating conditions;
15        (3) a commercial solar energy facility to be sited as
16    follows, with setback distances measured from the nearest
17    edge of any component of the facility:
 
18Setback Description           Setback Distance
 
19Occupied Community            150 feet from the nearest
20Buildings and Dwellings on    point on the outside wall 
21Nonparticipating Properties   of the structure
 
22Boundary Lines of             None

 

 

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1Participating Property    
 
2Public Road Rights-of-Way     50 feet from the nearest
3                              edge
 
4Boundary Lines of             50 feet to the nearest
5Nonparticipating Property     point on the property
6                              line of the nonparticipating
7                              property
 
8        (4) a commercial solar energy facility to be sited so
9    that the facility's perimeter is enclosed by fencing
10    having a height of at least 6 feet and no more than 25
11    feet; and
12        (5) a commercial solar energy facility to be sited so
13    that no component of a solar panel has a height of more
14    than 20 feet above ground when the solar energy facility's
15    arrays are at full tilt.
16    The requirements set forth in this subsection (e) may be
17waived subject to the written consent of the owner of each
18affected nonparticipating property.
19    (f) A county may not set a sound limitation for wind towers
20in commercial wind energy facilities or any components in
21commercial solar energy facilities that is more restrictive
22than the sound limitations established by the Illinois
23Pollution Control Board under 35 Ill. Adm. Code Parts 900,

 

 

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1901, and 910.
2    (g) A county may not place any restriction on the
3installation or use of a commercial wind energy facility or a
4commercial solar energy facility unless it adopts an ordinance
5that complies with this Section. A county may not establish
6siting standards for supporting facilities that preclude
7development of commercial wind energy facilities or commercial
8solar energy facilities.
9    A request for siting approval or a special use permit for a
10commercial wind energy facility or a commercial solar energy
11facility, or modification of an approved siting or special use
12permit, shall be approved if the request is in compliance with
13the standards and conditions imposed in this Act, the zoning
14ordinance adopted consistent with this Code, and the
15conditions imposed under State and federal statutes and
16regulations.
17    (h) A county may not adopt zoning regulations that
18disallow, permanently or temporarily, commercial wind energy
19facilities or commercial solar energy facilities from being
20developed or operated in any district zoned to allow
21agricultural or industrial uses.
22    (i) A county may not require permit application fees for a
23commercial wind energy facility or commercial solar energy
24facility that are unreasonable. All application fees imposed
25by the county shall be consistent with fees for projects in the
26county with similar capital value and cost.

 

 

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1    (j) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, a county
2shall not require standards for construction, decommissioning,
3or deconstruction of a commercial wind energy facility or
4commercial solar energy facility or related financial
5assurances that are more restrictive than those included in
6the Department of Agriculture's standard wind farm
7agricultural impact mitigation agreement, template 81818, or
8standard solar agricultural impact mitigation agreement,
9version 8.19.19, as applicable and in effect on December 31,
102022. The amount of any decommissioning payment shall be in
11accordance with the financial assurance required by those
12agricultural impact mitigation agreements.
13    (j-5) A commercial wind energy facility or a commercial
14solar energy facility shall file a farmland drainage plan with
15the county and impacted drainage districts outlining how
16surface and subsurface drainage of farmland will be restored
17during and following construction or deconstruction of the
18facility. The plan is to be created independently by the
19facility developer and shall include the location of any
20potentially impacted drainage district facilities to the
21extent this information is publicly available from the county
22or the drainage district, plans to repair any subsurface
23drainage affected during construction or deconstruction using
24procedures outlined in the agricultural impact mitigation
25agreement entered into by the commercial wind energy facility
26owner or commercial solar energy facility owner, and

 

 

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1procedures for the repair and restoration of surface drainage
2affected during construction or deconstruction. All surface
3and subsurface damage shall be repaired as soon as reasonably
4practicable.
5    (k) A county may not condition approval of a commercial
6wind energy facility or commercial solar energy facility on a
7property value guarantee and may not require a facility owner
8to pay into a neighboring property devaluation escrow account.
9    (l) A county may require certain vegetative screening
10surrounding a commercial wind energy facility or commercial
11solar energy facility but may not require earthen berms or
12similar structures.
13    (m) A county may set blade tip height limitations for wind
14towers in commercial wind energy facilities but may not set a
15blade tip height limitation that is more restrictive than the
16height allowed under a Determination of No Hazard to Air
17Navigation by the Federal Aviation Administration under 14 CFR
18Part 77.
19    (n) A county may require that a commercial wind energy
20facility owner or commercial solar energy facility owner
21provide:
22        (1) the results and recommendations from consultation
23    with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources that are
24    obtained through the Ecological Compliance Assessment Tool
25    (EcoCAT) or a comparable successor tool; and
26        (2) the results of the United States Fish and Wildlife

 

 

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1    Service's Information for Planning and Consulting
2    environmental review or a comparable successor tool that
3    is consistent with (i) the "U.S. Fish and Wildlife
4    Service's Land-Based Wind Energy Guidelines" and (ii) any
5    applicable United States Fish and Wildlife Service solar
6    wildlife guidelines that have been subject to public
7    review.
8    (o) A county may require a commercial wind energy facility
9or commercial solar energy facility to adhere to the
10recommendations provided by the Illinois Department of Natural
11Resources in an EcoCAT natural resource review report under 17
12Ill. Adm. Code Part 1075.
13    (p) A county may require a facility owner to:
14        (1) demonstrate avoidance of protected lands as
15    identified by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources
16    and the Illinois Nature Preserve Commission; or
17        (2) consider the recommendations of the Illinois
18    Department of Natural Resources for setbacks from
19    protected lands, including areas identified by the
20    Illinois Nature Preserve Commission.
21    (q) A county may require that a facility owner provide
22evidence of consultation with the Illinois State Historic
23Preservation Office to assess potential impacts on
24State-registered historic sites under the Illinois State
25Agency Historic Resources Preservation Act.
26    (r) To maximize community benefits, including, but not

 

 

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1limited to, reduced stormwater runoff, flooding, and erosion
2at the ground mounted solar energy system, improved soil
3health, and increased foraging habitat for game birds,
4songbirds, and pollinators, a county may (1) require a
5commercial solar energy facility owner to plant, establish,
6and maintain for the life of the facility vegetative ground
7cover, consistent with the goals of the Pollinator-Friendly
8Solar Site Act and (2) require the submittal of a vegetation
9management plan that is in compliance with the agricultural
10impact mitigation agreement in the application to construct
11and operate a commercial solar energy facility in the county
12if the vegetative ground cover and vegetation management plan
13comply with the requirements of the underlying agreement with
14the landowner or landowners where the facility will be
15constructed.
16    No later than 90 days after January 27, 2023 (the
17effective date of Public Act 102-1123), the Illinois
18Department of Natural Resources shall develop guidelines for
19vegetation management plans that may be required under this
20subsection for commercial solar energy facilities. The
21guidelines must include guidance for short-term and long-term
22property management practices that provide and maintain native
23and non-invasive naturalized perennial vegetation to protect
24the health and well-being of pollinators.
25    (s) If a facility owner enters into a road use agreement
26with the Illinois Department of Transportation, a road

 

 

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1district, or other unit of local government relating to a
2commercial wind energy facility or a commercial solar energy
3facility, the road use agreement shall require the facility
4owner to be responsible for (i) the reasonable cost of
5improving roads used by the facility owner to construct the
6commercial wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy
7facility and (ii) the reasonable cost of repairing roads used
8by the facility owner during construction of the commercial
9wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy facility
10so that those roads are in a condition that is safe for the
11driving public after the completion of the facility's
12construction. Roadways improved in preparation for and during
13the construction of the commercial wind energy facility or
14commercial solar energy facility shall be repaired and
15restored to the improved condition at the reasonable cost of
16the developer if the roadways have degraded or were damaged as
17a result of construction-related activities.
18    The road use agreement shall not require the facility
19owner to pay costs, fees, or charges for road work that is not
20specifically and uniquely attributable to the construction of
21the commercial wind energy facility or the commercial solar
22energy facility. Road-related fees, permit fees, or other
23charges imposed by the Illinois Department of Transportation,
24a road district, or other unit of local government under a road
25use agreement with the facility owner shall be reasonably
26related to the cost of administration of the road use

 

 

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1agreement.
2    (s-5) The facility owner shall also compensate landowners
3for crop losses or other agricultural damages resulting from
4damage to the drainage system caused by the construction of
5the commercial wind energy facility or the commercial solar
6energy facility. The commercial wind energy facility owner or
7commercial solar energy facility owner shall repair or pay for
8the repair of all damage to the subsurface drainage system
9caused by the construction of the commercial wind energy
10facility or the commercial solar energy facility in accordance
11with the agriculture impact mitigation agreement requirements
12for repair of drainage. The commercial wind energy facility
13owner or commercial solar energy facility owner shall repair
14or pay for the repair and restoration of surface drainage
15caused by the construction or deconstruction of the commercial
16wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy facility
17as soon as reasonably practicable.
18    (t) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a facility
19owner with siting approval from a county to construct a
20commercial wind energy facility or a commercial solar energy
21facility is authorized to cross or impact a drainage system,
22including, but not limited to, drainage tiles, open drainage
23ditches, culverts, and water gathering vaults, owned or under
24the control of a drainage district under the Illinois Drainage
25Code without obtaining prior agreement or approval from the
26drainage district in accordance with the farmland drainage

 

 

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1plan required by subsection (j-5).
2    (u) The amendments to this Section adopted in Public Act
3102-1123 do not apply to: (1) an application for siting
4approval or for a special use permit for a commercial wind
5energy facility or commercial solar energy facility if the
6application was submitted to a unit of local government before
7January 27, 2023 (the effective date of Public Act 102-1123);
8(2) a commercial wind energy facility or a commercial solar
9energy facility if the facility owner has submitted an
10agricultural impact mitigation agreement to the Department of
11Agriculture before January 27, 2023 (the effective date of
12Public Act 102-1123); or (3) a commercial wind energy or
13commercial solar energy development on property that is
14located within an enterprise zone certified under the Illinois
15Enterprise Zone Act, that was classified as industrial by the
16appropriate zoning authority on or before January 27, 2023,
17and that is located within 4 miles of the intersection of
18Interstate 88 and Interstate 39.
19(Source: P.A. 102-1123, eff. 1-27-23; 103-81, eff. 6-9-23;
20103-580, eff. 12-8-23.)