Rep. Dave Vella

Creates the Illinois Rust Belt to Green Belt Pilot Program Act. Creates the Illinois Rust Belt to Green Belt Fund as a special fund in the State treasury (and makes a conforming change in the State Finance Act). Provides that the fund shall be used by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to encourage and facilitate work on a new utility-scale offshore wind project or related port. Provides that applicants that are applying for a new utility-scale offshore wind project with the Illinois Power Agency shall file with the Department, as part of their application, an equity and inclusion plan. Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. In provisions concerning the procurement of renewable energy credits, provides that in addition to the amount of renewable energy credits to be procured from wind projects, the Illinois Power Agency shall procure at least 700,000 renewable energy credits, delivered annually for at least 20 years, from one new utility-scale offshore wind project. Provides that the Agency shall conduct at least one new utility-scale offshore wind procurement within 360 days after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Provides that before submitting a proposal to the Agency in response to new utility-scale offshore wind procurement, an applicant must first submit to the Department a separate application for equity and inclusion plan scoring. Provides for a scoring system the Agency shall use in evaluating an applicant's proposal. Defines terms. Makes other changes.

Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Subject to appropriation, requires the Illinois Student Assistance Commission to establish and administer a teacher reimbursement grant program for the purpose of reimbursing public school teachers for up to 8 semesters or 12 quarters of the tuition and mandatory fees paid to a public institution of higher learning in this State to obtain a Professional Educator License and teach in this State. Provides that eligible applicants shall receive a grant in the form of annual reimbursement payments over a period of up to 10 consecutive years. Sets forth provisions concerning eligibility, the grant amount, disbursement and use of a grant, application for a grant, and rulemaking. Repeals the provisions on July 1, 2040. Effective immediately. House Floor Amendment No. 1 Adds provisions allowing persons who are enrolled or are planning to enroll in a State-approved educator preparation program at a public institution of higher learning in this State to be eligible to receive a grant. Provides that employment in a full-time teaching position may be in any grade or subject. Requires a public institution of higher learning to provide billing information to the recipient of a grant, and requires the recipient to give the provided billing information to the Commission. Provides that the Commission shall organize and update a database every year of grant recipients and payments made. Pension Note, House Floor Amendment No. 1 (Government Forecasting & Accountability) HB 4139, as amended by HA 1, will not impact any public pension fund or retirement system in the State of Illinois. State Debt Impact Note, House Floor Amendment No. 1 (Government Forecasting & Accountability) HB 4139, as amended by House Amendment 1, would not change the amount of authorization for any type of State-issued bond, and, therefore, would not affect the level of State indebtedness. Balanced Budget Note, House Floor Amendment No. 1 (Office of Management and Budget) Please be advised that the Balanced Budget Note Act does not apply to House Bill 4139, (H-AM 1) as it is not a supplemental appropriation that increases or decreases appropriations. Under the Act, a balanced budget note must be prepared only for bills that change a general funds appropriation for the fiscal year in which the new bill is enacted. Fiscal Note, House Floor Amendment No. 1 (Illinois Student Assistance Commission) It is estimated that if the program were to serve everyone who is eligible, HB4139 would require about $1.4 billion over 18 years to rebate the tuition and fees paid of an estimated 65,160 Illinois teachers, including an estimated 53,460 current teachers. Potential costs would be an estimated $88.3 million in FY23 and $93.5 million in FY24, growing each year until annual costs peaked in years 9 and 10 at about $140.2 million each year and declining thereafter. State Mandates Fiscal Note, House Floor Amendment No. 1 (Dept. of Commerce & Economic Opportunity) This bill does not create a State mandate.

If and only if House Bill 3653 of the 101st General Assembly becomes law, amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Removes stun guns and tasers from the definition of "firearm". Effective immediately.

Creates the Universal Child Care Demonstration Program Act. Requires the Department of Human Services to establish and administer a 5-year statewide Universal Child Care Demonstration Program to provide grants to eligible entities to develop, expand, and provide high-quality and affordable child care services for children age 0 to 6 years old regardless of family income. Provides that grants awarded under the Demonstration Program may be used to renovate or convert existing child care facilities to meet the goals of the Demonstration Program; to construct and maintain child care facilities in geographical areas with a demonstrated need for safe, affordable, and high-quality child care services; to train and pay child care providers, teachers, and staff; and to provide meal services to children receiving child care services. Provides that the ultimate goal of the Demonstration Program shall be to develop and evaluate the costs, impact, and quality outcomes of child care services and programs in order to establish an effective expansion toward universal child care services for children from birth to 6 years of age. Contains provisions concerning eligible entities, funding, reporting requirements, defined terms, and Department rules.

Creates the Manufacturing Illinois Chips for Real Opportunity (MICRO) Act. Creates the Manufacturing Illinois Chips for Real Opportunity (MICRO) Program to be administered by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Creates various tax incentives for manufacturers of semiconductors, microchips, or semiconductor or microchip component parts, subject to an agreement with the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act, the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act, the Property Tax Code, the Telecommunications Excise Tax Act, the Electricity Excise Tax Law, and the Public Utilities Act. Effective immediately. Senate Floor Amendment No. 1 Adds reference to: 35 ILCS 105/12 from Ch. 120, par. 439.12 35 ILCS 110/12 from Ch. 120, par. 439.42 35 ILCS 115/12 from Ch. 120, par. 439.112 Makes changes to the introduced bill as follows: (1) provides that credits awarded under the Manufacturing Illinois Chips for Real Opportunity (MICRO) Act apply for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2025 (in the introduced bill, January 1, 2026 in certain places); (2) in the Illinois Income Tax Act, makes changes concerning applicability of the Manufacturing Illinois Chips for Real Opportunity (MICRO) Act to pass-through entities; and (3) makes conforming changes in the Use Tax Act, the Service Use Tax Act, and the Service Occupation Tax Act concerning the building materials exemption for microchip and semiconductor manufacturing created in the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act.

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Creates an income tax credit for hospitality employers, for taxable years that begin on or after January 1, 2022 and begin prior to January 1, 2023, in an amount equal to 100% of the amount paid by the taxpayer to provide vision and dental benefits, life insurance, and short term disability coverage for its employees during the taxable year. Effective immediately.

Amends the Unemployment Insurance Act. Provides that with respect to a week of unemployment beginning on or after March 15, 2020 (rather than beginning on or after March 15, 2020, and before September 4, 2021 (including any week of unemployment beginning on or after January 1, 2021 and on or before June 25, 2021)) benefits shall be payable to an individual on the basis of wages for employment in other than an instructional, research, or principal administrative capacity performed for an educational institution or an educational service agency under specified circumstances, as long as the individual is otherwise eligible for benefits.

Amends the Illinois Insurance Code to provide that an insurance policy amended, delivered, issued, or renewed in the State after the effective date of the amendatory Act that offers business interruption insurance shall be construed to include, among the covered perils of that policy, coverage for loss of use and occupancy of a business and business interruption, including lost income, resulting from a forced closure of businesses during a period of a declared emergency by law or order of a federal or State government or governmental officer or agency. Defines "business interruption insurance". Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. In provisions concerning the renewable portfolio standards, specifies the goals for procurement of renewable energy credits and cost-effective renewable energy resources that shall be included in the long-term renewable resources procurement plan and makes other changes concerning these procurements and provides for the calculation of the cost of equity for the purposes of recovering all reasonable and prudently incurred costs of energy efficiency measures from retail customers. Provides that savings of fuels other than electricity achieved by measures that educate about, incentivize, encourage, or otherwise support the use of electricity to power vehicles shall count towards the applicable annual incremental goal and shall not be included in determining certain limits. Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that an electric utility that serves less than 3,000,000 retail customers but more than 500,000 customers in this State may plan for, construct, install, control, own, manage, or operate photovoltaic electricity production facilities and any energy storage facilities that are planned for, constructed, installed, controlled, owned, managed, or operated in connection with photovoltaic electricity production facilities without obtaining a certificate of public convenience and necessity subject to specified terms and conditions. Provides that a public utility that provided electric service to at least 1,000,000 retail customers in Illinois and gas service to at least 500,000 retail customers in Illinois may elect to recover its natural gas delivery services costs through a performance-based rate. Provides that, beginning in 2022, without obtaining any approvals from the Commission or any other agency, regardless of whether any such approval would otherwise be required, a participating utility that is a combination utility shall pay $1,000,000 per year for 10 years to the energy low-income and support program. Adds provisions authorizing certain utilities to plan for, construct, install, control, own, manage, or operate electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Amends the Prevailing Wage Act to include specified facilities financed in whole or in part with renewable energy resources in the definition of "public works". Makes other changes. Effective immediately.

Creates the Rebuild Illinois Mental Health Workforce Act. Provides that the purpose of the Act is to preserve and expand access to Medicaid community mental health care in Illinois to prevent unnecessary hospitalizations and avoid the criminalization of mental health conditions. Establishes add-on payments for the following community mental health services to be paid beginning with State Fiscal Year 2023 and continuing for each State fiscal year thereafter: individual therapy services; community support-individual services; case management services; and assertive community treatment services. Requires monthly directed payments to community mental health providers of community support team services or assertive community treatment services. Provides that such directed payments shall be based on the number of Medicaid users, as defined, who receive services from the provider in the base year. Provides that the add-on payments established under the Act shall apply to Medicaid services provided by a contracted managed care organization or entity and services paid for directly by the Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Provides that no base Medicaid rate or Medicaid rate add-on payment or any other payment for the provision of Medicaid community mental health services in place on July 1, 2021 shall be diminished or changed to make the reimbursement changes required under the Act. Requires the Department to apply for federal approval to implement the Act. Provides that implementation of the add-on payments is conditioned on the receipt of federal financial participation for such payments. Effective immediately.