Bill
HB 3975
HB 3975 amends loan reviews: prioritize Illinois coal use, longer coal commitments, funding leverage, and technical merit; share evaluations with the Illinois Coal Development Board.
HB 3975 (State Government-TECH) – Summary
Overview
- Bill: HB 3975
- Title: STATE GOVERNMENT-TECH
- Purpose: Amends the Energy Conservation and Coal Development Act to make a technical change in how loan applications are evaluated, with added emphasis on Illinois coal usage, loan commitments, financing mix, and project technical merit.
- Introduced: February 25, 2025 (Rep. Marcus C. Evans, Jr.)
- Status: Referred to Rules Committee; later actions show readings and committee referrals (Read first time March 27, 2025; referred to Public Education on that date in the same period)
- Companion: SB 1842
What the bill would do
- Change the evaluation framework for Department loan applications under the Energy Conservation and Coal Development Act.
- Require the Department to evaluate loan applications and share those evaluations with the Illinois Coal Development Board.
Key evaluation criteria (non-exhaustive)
- (a) Illinois coal commitment
- Applicants must specify the length of time they will use Illinois coal in the facility that is modified, acquired, or constructed due to the project.
- A condition of the loan is agreement to use Illinois coal for the life of the loan, with greater weight given to longer commitments.
- (b) Illinois coal usage
- Consider the total amount of Illinois coal used over the life of the loan; higher usage over the loan’s life yields greater weight.
- (c) Public funding share
- Consider the percentage of total project costs financed by the State.
- Weight given to projects that maximize private funds or other public funds, thereby leveraging non-State financing.
- (d) Technical merits
- Evaluate technical aspects of the project, including the effectiveness of the coal-use system, particularly in pollutant control (e.g., emissions of sulfur dioxide and related pollutants).
Who is affected
- Applicants seeking energy/conservation and coal-development loans under the Act.
- The Department administering the loan program.
- The Illinois Coal Development Board, which receives the evaluations.
- Related energy and coal projects in Illinois, particularly those emphasizing Illinois coal use and emissions-control technology.
Procedural and timeline notes
- Statutory citation: 20 ILCS 1105/10 (as amended by this bill).
- Current procedural path: Introduced 2/25/2025; referred to Rules Committee; subsequent actions show standard committee referrals and readings (e.g., Read first time and referral to Public Education on 3/27/2025).
- No fiscal or effective date details are provided in the text presented.
Impact snapshot
- The bill aims to strengthen Illinois coal use, expand state financing leverage, and emphasize technical merits and emissions-control capabilities in loan decisions. It formalizes the weighting of Illinois coal commitment and private financing in loan evaluations.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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