There was a lot of environmental legislative activity this past session, much of which was discussed at our March event with Illinois House majority leader Robyn Gabel.
Here is a summary of some notable legislation that was passed by the end of the Spring session:
SB2960: Small Plastic Bottle Act. This bill disallows hotels from providing new, mini toiletry bottles in guest spaces.
SB2876: Large Event Facility Recycling. Facilities with a capacity of 3,500 or more must participate in recycling and composting.
SB1289: Carbon Capture and Sequestration Regulations. The bill includes regulatory requirements related to carbon capture, pipeline transportation and sequestration of carbon dioxide, and prohibits the Illinois Commerce Commission from issuing a certificate of authority for a CO2 transport pipeline until the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration has adopted final revisions to its pipeline safety rules.
HB2363: Clean Lighting. The bill speeds up the phase-out of fluorescent bulbs and their replacement by energy-efficient LED bulbs.
The legislature also stopped several bills that would have been detrimental to the environment, including the following:
HB4135: Solar Facility Setbacks. This bill would have allowed a county to require a commercial solar energy facility to be sited 500 feet (rather than 50 feet) from the nearest point on the property line of a nonparticipating property and 500 feet (rather than 150 feet) from the nearest point on the outside wall of an occupied community building or dwelling on nonparticipating properties. This bill would have stopped development of many commercial solar projects.
HB5244: Energy Efficient Buildings. This bill would have amended the Energy Efficient Building Act to require all buildings to be designed and constructed to provide both natural gas service and electric power, and prohibit a local government from taking action that restricts or prohibits the source of energy production by a natural gas utility.
The following bills are among those still in progress for future consideration:
SB2211/HB4448: Plastic bag ban. This bill would disallow grocery stores from providing plastic bags.
HB5315: Solar Bill of Rights. This bill, held in the House, prohibits burdensome policies for electric utility customers who want to generate their own energy.
HB4197/SB1823: Environmental Justice Air Permitting. This bill would require review of the cumulative impact of air pollution sources and the denial of air emission permits in impacted communities. The bill has stalled in the House.
A full summary of environmental bill status can be found in the Illinois Environmental Council Legislative Report.