Illinois Passes a Comprehensive Climate Solutions Bill | Article

On September 15, 2021, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA, Public Act 102-0662) into law, making the state a leader in the fight against climate change. The bill sets the goal that Illinois will be 100 percent carbon-free by 2050 and includes many small targets to help outline the future of the state’s energy sector along the way. Currently, renewable energy makes up 11 percent of Illinois’s electrical generation. The bill aims to grow this to 40 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040. Other focus areas include investing in workforce development, financing Green Banks, and supporting rural areas.

Supported by State Representative Ann Williams and State Senator Cristina Castro as its chief sponsors, the bill also gained endorsements from the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus and Latino Caucus. The Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition, an advocacy organization, hopes the bill will create thousands of jobs within the wind and solar industries, especially for people of color who could gain traction in these industries as renewable energy jobs become more available. Through its equity and diversity requirements, CEJA will provide opportunities for workers in environmental justice communities, especially Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities. Providing training to BIPOC workers could help launch businesses: contractors can eventually open their own businesses, hiring their own team of contractors.

One workforce development program included in the bill is the Contract Accelerator Program. John Delurey, senior regional director of Vote Solar and advocate of CEJA, said that this program could provide an “ecosystem of support for equitable workforce development and contract development [that] is unique to Illinois.” There are three different courses contractors can take to get the skills and knowledge to participate in the clean energy transition: training, incubator, and accelerator programs. With these programs as well as access to low-interest loans, contractors, especially those in BIPOC communities, have additional support to create their own businesses. These contractors can take on their own projects, hire others through subcontracting opportunities, and continue a positive feedback loop of increasing the number of people of color working in the clean energy sector.

The bill also has many opportunities for low- and moderate-income households to be a part of the clean energy movement. Many of these households do not have the capital to pay the upfront costs of installing clean energy units, such as solar panels, on their homes or businesses. This is where Green Banks come in—these are institutions that work with homeowners to give out low-interest loans for projects such as solar panel installations. These types of projects are generally seen as not sufficiently profitable by most banks, so they are not generally funded, but Green Banks are specifically established to finance as many clean energy projects as possible as quickly as possible, while making them affordable to homes and businesses.

Through CEJA, Illinois has created two Green Banks, each of which has a different focus. One is the Clean Energy Jobs and Justice Fund, which has a goal of providing loans to low-income areas. The other is the Finance Authority Climate Bank, which will use public funds to leverage private capital for clean energy investments. By providing more opportunities for Illinois residents to be a part of the transition to clean energy, Green Banks hope to decrease residents’ reliance on coal and lower their carbon emissions.

With many coal power plants in Illinois slated to phase out by 2045, many communities are concerned about the economic distress that could result from the closures. Coal is the second-largest energy source in the state, which means that many communities rely on coal power plants for energy and substantial job opportunities. These communities, often referred to as environmental justice communities, already tend to feel negative health effects as a result of living near or working in coal power plants. CEJA includes a transition section to help these communities move away from fossil fuels and address their health and environmental challenges.

As coal power plants shut down, there is an opportunity to transform them into solar power and energy storage facilities. To advance that transformation, CEJA will create a Coal to Solar program, which aims to support large-scale solar projects to promote economic development in coal communities. This would create renewable energy jobs in rural communities while reducing transmission costs. Workers from these power plants could take various training courses to prepare them to work at solar facilities. Other programs offered to rural communities include government support through health care programs, scholarship opportunities, and financial planning. These programs should help ensure that rural communities have an opportunity to grow economically through the transition to clean energy.

Author: Roshni Vora