Sen. Sue Rezin

Creates the Illinois Energy Transition Zone Act. Provides for the certification by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity of municipal ordinances designating an area as an Energy Transition Zone. Provides that green energy enterprises located in Energy Transition Zones shall be eligible to apply for certain tax incentives. Provides that a green energy enterprise is a company that is engaged in the production of solar energy, wind energy, water energy, geothermal energy, bioenergy, or hydrogen fuel and cells. Contains provisions concerning qualifications and applications. Creates the Energy Transition Tax Credit Act. Provides that the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall make income tax credit awards under the Act to foster job creation and the development of green energy in Energy Transition Zones. Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act, the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act, and the Public Utilities Act to make conforming changes concerning tax incentives. Effective immediately. Senate Floor Amendment No. 1 In provisions creating the Energy Transition Tax Credit Act, removes language concerning the use of the credit as a tax payment by a pass through entity. Provides that the credit is exempt from the automatic sunset provision of the Illinois Income Tax Act. Provides that the credit may be applied in more than 10 taxable years but not more than 15 taxable years for an eligible green energy enterprise that qualifies under the Energy Transition Tax Credit Act and the Corporate Headquarters Relocation Act and undertakes a qualifying project within the timeframe specified by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Provides that the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall extend the tax credit agreement to not more than 15 years and reduce the annual allocation to 60% of the maximum credit that would otherwise be available. Adds provisions allowing the credit to be carried forward. Makes changes concerning pass through entities. Provides that the investment credit for Energy Transition Zones applies for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2020. Senate Floor Amendment No. 2 Makes changes to provisions of the introduced bill creating the Illinois Energy Transition Zone Act. Provides that a person employed in a full-time equivalent job must earn a wage that meets or exceeds the prevailing wage for the locality in which the work is performed. Senate Floor Amendment No. 3 Removes a reference to local rent control ordinances.

Amends the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act. Provides that after an initial proclamation declaring that a disaster exists, the Governor may only extend that declaration or make further proclamations regarding the same disaster if the General Assembly passes a resolution within 5 calendar days that approves the extension or further proclamation. Provides that if, due to health or safety concerns, the General Assembly is unable to convene in either regular or special session to approve the extension or further proclamation, the extension or further proclamation may continue in effect until the General Assembly is able to convene in regular or special session if the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Minority Leader of the Senate, and the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives submit written certification to the Governor that the General Assembly is unable to convene to provide the necessary approval of the extension or further proclamation. Effective immediately.

Amends the Department of Public Health Powers and Duties Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Requires the Department of Public Health to establish safe place of business protocols on or before May 30, 2020 to regulate businesses that reopen following the expiration of the specified executive orders or disaster proclamations. Sets forth requirements for the protocols. Provides that businesses that comply with the protocols may reopen and rehire staff at their discretion as soon as is practical. Provides that the provisions are repealed on January 1, 2021. Contains other provisions. Amends the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act. Provides that after an initial proclamation declaring that a disaster exists, the Governor may only extend that declaration or make further proclamations regarding the same disaster if the General Assembly passes a resolution within 5 calendar days that approves the extension or further proclamation. Provides that if, due to health or safety concerns, the General Assembly is unable to convene in either regular or special session to approve the extension or further proclamation, the extension or further proclamation may continue in effect until the General Assembly is able to convene in regular or special session if specified members of the General Assembly submit written certification to the Governor that the General Assembly is unable to convene to provide the necessary approval of the extension or further proclamation. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Provides that an out-of-network provider of emergency air transportation may not charge an insured a rate that is 125% more than the rate allowed by Medicare for similar services. Effective July 1, 2020.

Amends the Tax Increment Allocation Redevelopment Act of the Illinois Municipal Code. Revises the definition of "redevelopment project costs" by providing that redevelopment project costs for a redevelopment project area includes all or a portion of a taxing district's capital or operating costs reasonably incurred or to be incurred within a redevelopment project area as a result of fire protection services. Provides that the provisions do not apply to municipalities with a population of 1,000,000 or more or to a redevelopment project area located within a transit facility improvement area. Effective immediately.

Amends the Hospital Licensing Act. Requires a hospital to provide a plan of correction to the Department of Public Health within 60 days if the hospital demonstrates a pattern or practice of failing to substantially comply with specified requirements or with the hospital's written staffing plan. Allows the Department to impose specified fines on a hospital for failing to comply with written staffing plans for nursing services or plans of correction. Requires money from fines to be deposited into the Hospital Licensure Fund (instead of the Long Term Care Provider Fund). Contains provisions concerning staffing plans. Amends the Nursing Education Scholarship Law. Provides that the Department of Public Health may award a total of $500,000 annually in nursing education scholarships. Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Creates an income tax credit for taxpayers who are employed during the taxable year as nurse educators. Provides that the credit shall be equal to 2.5% of the taxpayer's federal adjusted gross income for the taxable year. Effective immediately, except that provisions amending the Hospital Licensing Act take effect on the first day of the first full calendar month that begins 6 months after the Act becomes law.

Amends the Courses of Study Article of the School Code. Adds forensic speech (speech and debate) to the music, art, foreign language, or vocational education elective that a pupil may choose to satisfy the one year prerequisite that each pupil entering the 9th grade is required to successfully complete to receive a high school diploma. Provides that the course in forensic speech may not be used to satisfy the language arts course requirement.

Amends the State Finance Act. Provides that, as soon as possible after the effective date of the amendatory Act, the State Comptroller shall order transferred and the State Treasurer shall transfer the sum of $5,000,000 from the General Revenue Fund to the Traffic and Criminal Conviction Surcharge Fund. Effective immediately.

Amends the Public Utilities Act. In provisions concerning procedures for a large public utility to acquire a water or sewer utility, provides that if the water or sewer utility being acquired is owned by the State or a political subdivision of the State, a referendum will be required to approve the acquisition of the water or sewer utility by the large public utility (rather than only requiring a public meeting and publication of the terms of acquisition in a newspaper of general circulation in the area that the water or sewer utility operates). Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. For electric utilities that serve less than 3,000,000 retail customers but more than 500,000 retail customers in this State: defines "energy efficiency"; 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. Defines "electric vehicle", "electric vehicle charging station", and "energy storage" for the purposes of the Electric Service Customer Choice and Rate Relief Law of 1997. Provides that, beginning in 2022, without obtaining any approvals from the Illinois Commerce 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, including, but not limited to, electric vehicle charging stations within their service territories. Effective immediately.