Sen. Rachelle Crowe

Declares March 24, 2021 as Equal Pay Day.

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Creates an income tax credit in an amount equal to $500 for individuals who serve as volunteer emergency workers for or on behalf of a volunteer fire protection association. Effective immediately. Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Reinserts the provisions of the introduced bill with changes. Provides that, to qualify for the credit, the volunteer emergency worker may not receive compensation for his or her services of more than $10,000 for the taxable year. Removes provisions concerning volunteer fire protection associations. Makes changes to the definition of "volunteer emergency worker". Effective immediately.

Amends the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963. Provides that if a defendant is found unfit to stand trial, the failure to meet the 20 day timeline for evaluating the defendant to determine to which secure facility the defendant shall be transported and failure within 20 days of the transmittal by the clerk of the circuit court of the placement court order to notify the sheriff of the designated facility shall be considered contempt of court and the Department of Human Services shall pay the sheriff the daily rate and reimbursement for any additional costs, as determined by the sheriff. Provides that the Department of Human Services shall also ensure that a sufficient number of placements exist to meet this requirement.

Amends the Mental Health Early Action on Campus Act. Provides that the General Assembly shall appropriate $19,000,000 in Fiscal Year 2023 for the purposes of this Act. Provides that the funds shall be distributed to the public colleges and universities according to the recommendations of a specified report of the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability. Provides that the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability, in conjunction with the Illinois Community College Board and the Board of Higher Education, must make recommendations to the General Assembly on the amounts necessary to implement this Act for Fiscal Years 2024 through 2027, and may make such recommendations for Fiscal Years thereafter. Deletes provisions making the Act subject to appropriation. Effective July 1, 2022.

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 Illinois Broadband Deployment, Equity, Access, and Affordability Act of 2022. Provides that access to affordable, reliable, high-speed broadband service is essential to full participation in modern life in the State and throughout the United States. Defines terms. Provides that the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall establish and implement a statewide broadband service grant program. Provides that the Department shall use money from the grant program only for the exclusive purpose of awarding grants to applicants for projects that are limited to the construction and deployment of broadband service into unserved areas in the State and for the Department's cost to administer the program. Provides that the Department shall not award grant money to a governmental entity or educational institution. Provides that the Department shall not, as a condition of an award of grant money, impose an open network architecture requirement, rate regulation, or other term or condition of service that differs from the applicant's terms or conditions of service in its other service areas. Includes provisions providing for the criteria for determining the award of funds, the information an applicant must provide for an application for a grant, the priority by which the Department shall follow in granting awards, and when the Department shall not award a grant to an applicant. Provides that when a grant is awarded, the Department shall provide notice on its website of each application receiving a grant. Provides that the Department shall require an applicant awarded a grant to submit a semi-annual report from the time the applicant receives the grant to 3 years after completion of the project. Makes a conforming change in the Freedom of Information Act. Effective immediately.

Amends the State Prompt Payment Act. Provides that by July 1, 2021, and by July 1 of each year thereafter, the State Comptroller shall determine the prompt payment interest rate for the fiscal year beginning on that July 1. Provides that any bill approved for payment on or after July 1, 2021 must be paid or the payment issued to the payee within 90 days of receipt of a proper bill or invoice. Provides that if payment is not issued to the payee within this 90-day period, an interest penalty calculated using the prompt payment interest rate shall be added for each month or fraction thereof after the end of this 90-day period until final payment is made. Provides for the prompt payment interest rate under the applicable provisions. Makes conforming and other changes. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Provides that "approved driver education course" includes online instruction. Provides that the Secretary of State may permit a course provider of a driver training school to offer the course online if the course provider is able to verify: (i) the identity of the person taking the course; (ii) and that the person completes the entire course. Provides that a fee charged by the course provider shall bear a reasonable relationship to the cost of the course. Provides that the Secretary shall post, on the Secretary of State's website, a list of approved course providers, the fees charged by the course providers, and contact information for each provider. Provides that the course provider shall collect an additional $5 to be paid to the Secretary for administering the program and such collected fees shall be deposited into the Driver Services Administration Fund.

Amends the Electricity Excise Tax Law. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the short title.

Amends the Department of Professional Regulation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois to provide that the Division of Professional Regulation of the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation shall process an application for a license within 4 weeks after receiving a complete application that contains no deficiencies.