SB1699 - PHYSICAL THERAPY COMPACT

0 Co-Sponsors

Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. Provides that the Adjustable Block program shall include at least 15% from distributed renewable generation devices or photovoltaic community renewable generation projects installed on public school land (rather than at public schools). Provides that qualifying projects must be located on property owned, leased, or subleased by the school or school district and the school or school district must benefit from the project. Provides that the Illinois Power Agency shall commission and publish a policy study to evaluate the potential impacts of specified proposals on the environment, grid reliability, carbon and other pollutant emissions, resource adequacy, long-term and short-term electric rates, environmental justice communities, jobs, and the economy. Provides that the Agency shall retain the services of technical and policy experts with energy market and other relevant fields of expertise, solicit technical and policy analysis from the public, and provide for a 20-day open public comment period after publication of a draft study, which shall be published no later than 20 days after the comment period ends. Provides that the final policy study shall be published by March 1, 2024. Provides that the policy study shall include policy recommendations to the General Assembly. Amends the Illinois Procurement Code to exempt the procurement of technical and policy experts for the policy study. Amends the Counties Code. In provisions concerning regulation of commercial wind energy facilities and commercial solar energy facilities, provides that a public hearing shall be held not more than 60 days (rather than 45 days) after the filing of the application for the facility. Provides that the amount of any decommissioning payment shall be in accordance with financial assurance required by the agricultural impact mitigation agreements (rather than limited to the cost identified in the decommissioning or deconstruction plan, as required by the agricultural impact mitigation agreements, minus the salvage value of the project). Provides that a facility shall file a farmland drainage plan with the county and impacted drainage districts and specifies requirements of the plan. Requires vegetation management plans to comply with the agricultural impact mitigation agreement and underlying agreements with landowners where the facility will be constructed. Adds language requiring a facility owner to compensate landowners for crop losses or other agricultural damages resulting from damage to the drainage system caused by the construction of the facility, repair or pay for damage to the subsurface drainage system, and repair or pay for the restoration of surface drainage caused by the construction or deconstruction of the facility. Provides that a facility owner with siting approval from a county to construct a commercial wind energy facility or a commercial solar energy facility is authorized to cross or impact a drainage system, including, but not limited to, drainage tiles, open drainage ditches (rather than open drainage districts), culverts, and water gathering vaults, owned or under the control of a drainage district under the Illinois Drainage Code without obtaining prior agreement or approval from the drainage district in accordance with the farmland drainage plan (removing an exception requiring the facility owner to repair or pay for the repair of all damage to the drainage system caused by the construction of the commercial wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy facility within a reasonable time after construction of the commercial wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy facility is complete). Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that the Illinois Commerce Commission shall convene a workshop process for the purpose of establishing an open, inclusive, and cooperative forum regarding thermal energy networks. Amends the Freedom of Information Act to make conforming changes. Effective immediately.