WHAT IS
HB 3758 / SB 2497 ?

Investing in Illinois and Saving You Money

How Would New Clean Energy Legislation
Benefit Illinois?

in Consumer Savings

Cost Savings from Power Blackouts

in Generated Economic Activity

Tons of Emissions Prevented by 2045

Reduces Costs

• Saves Illinois families and businesses $2.4 billion over the next 20 years

• Lowers costs for consumers by eliminating the need to import energy from other states

• Saves the average Ameren customer $4.37 per month, and the average ComEd customer $2.81 per month, on their energy bills over time

• Implements a Virtual Power Plant program to help optimize the power grid and flatten peak demand periods, lowering energy costs for all

Increases Reliability

• Minimizes the economic impact caused by power outages, saving up to $7.3 billion by 2050

• Creates a Virtual Power Plant Program to increase the reliability of the Illinois power grid and reduce the likelihood of power blackouts

• Strengthens the power grid by adding more energy supply to the grid through clean energy storage

• Provides the resilience and reliability for a smooth transition to a renewable energy future

Boosts Economy

• Stimulates up to $16.3 billion in economic activity

• Generates up to 115,000 full-time employment years for Illinois workers

• Creates thousands of union jobs under project labor agreements

• Encourages progress on the nation-leading equity requirements mandated by CEJA

• Prepares Illinois’ grid for economic investments from emerging industries, such as AI, quantum computing, and data centers, which utilize immense amounts of power

Meets Climate Goals

• Reduces energy emissions by 50 million tons by 2045 (equivalent to removing 10.5 million cars off the road for one year)

• Keeps Illinois on track to meet climate goals without sacrificing grid reliability or raising costs to consumers

• Supercharges clean energy development projects and optimizes processes to connect more clean energy to the grid quicker

The datapoints on estimated savings were pulled from the study, “Cost and Benefit Analysis of Energy Storage Resource Deployment in Illinois.”

New Bill Benefits

About New Bill

WHAT IS IT?
WHAT WILL IT DO?

HB 3758 / SB 2497 will proactively address impending energy challenges facing Illinois by creating 15,000 MW of clean energy storage, which would reduce energy costs for Illinois families and businesses, prevent blackouts, create jobs, and help Illinois meet its climate goals.

Illinois is currently on a trajectory for our energy demand to outpace our supply in just a few years. This will cause dramatic increases in energy costs and put the state at greater risk of blackouts. If Illinois’ clean energy and storage development is not strengthened to close this gap, it will lead to increased likelihood of power outages and rising energy bills.

Not only will HB 3758 / SB 2497 create a robust clean energy storage ecosystem in Illinois, but it will also make other improvements to hasten the pace of adding energy supply to the grid to further reduce costs, as well as establishing a Virtual Power Plant (VPP) program, which allows small-scale resources to push combined energy to the grid.

In summary, the goal of HB 3758 / SB 2497 is to improve the reliability of the Illinois energy grid that powers the Illinois economy while delivering net cost savings to Illinois consumers and economic benefits to Illinois between 2030 and 2049, further ushering in a golden age of future energy.

Approximately 75% of voters support incentives to build a more reliable grid through storage.

Almost 60% of voters support creating more clean energy jobs.

Energy cost savings are a priority for nearly 75% of Illinois voters.

Source: Illinois Voters Support for Energy Storage System Incentives, Impact Research, Conducted January 17-21, 2024. 607 likely voters.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is energy storage needed now? YES. Energy developments take considerable time and resources to complete. By 2030, 8.4 GW of coal capacity will be retired. In the next five years, new solar capacity is expected to grow by less than 6.6 GW. Embarking on an energy storage program now is needed to hedge against the elevated reliability risks from power station retirements and delayed deployments of renewable energy resources. This visible gap, along with the ever-growing demand for electricity in the state, must be addressed. Illinois needs to accelerate the creation of clean energy sources and storage to optimize existing generation assets and support new projects coming online in the future.

How would 15,000 MW of energy storage help Illinois meet its capacity needs? Under the nationally celebrated Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) of 2021, 8.4 GW of coal capacity will be retired by 2030. In order to fill this gap while accommodating for the ever-growing demand for electricity, Illinois needs to accelerate the construction of energy storage to optimize existing wind and solar generation assets and support new renewable projects coming online in the future.

What is the general reason for all these storage provisions? CEJA supercharged Illinois’ solar industry. However, energy storage, a necessary tool for both the clean energy transition and for ensuring grid reliability, was not included in CEJA. To capitalize on CEJA’s incredible momentum and ensure Illinois stays on track to meet its urgent climate goals, HB 3758 / SB 2497 will provide bulk storage targets and the ability to pair battery storage with residential and community solar. An energy storage standard, also known as an energy storage target, is critical for ensuring the power grid remains reliable and keeping costs to ratepayers as low as possible while simultaneously growing jobs in Illinois. One way the new bill can to achieve this is through the creation of a Virtual Power Plant (VPP) Program. VPPs are created by aggregating resources, such as home rooftop solar paired with battery storage. Individually, these devices generate and store power, have backup power, and provide savings on energy bills. VPPs bring these devices together to become a network that injects vast amounts of power into the grid to reduce peak energy supply constraints and create a more resilient, reliable power grid, which can result in consumer savings. Data shows that Illinois may need as much as 15,000 MW of energy storage capacity by 2035 as the Renewable Portfolio Standard deploys more renewable energy on the grid, fossil fuel plants come offline, and electrification of data centers create more electricity needs. HB 3758 / SB 2497 will ensure that the state has sufficient energy storage resources connected to the grid under the right timeline to keep the grid reliable during the energy transition. Energy storage technologies provide unique and essential benefits to the power grid and to taxpayers across all settings – at the utility-scale, community-scale, and in commercial and residential settings. HB 3758 / SB 2497 aims to holistically address all of those unique settings and ensure that ratepayers can capture each of those unique benefits.

What is a Virtual Power Plant (VPP) Program? A Virtual Power Plant (VPP) Program is a network of decentralized energy resources that work together to balance energy supply and demand and provide grid services like a traditional power plant. VPPs can consist of hundreds or thousands of home and business solar and storage installations. VPPs can also allow residents and businesses participating in the program to receive compensation for selling excess energy or storage capacity. The goal of a VPP is to leverage a network of distributed energy resources (DERs), which can include residential, commercial, and community solar installations, to monitor, forecast, optimize, and exchange power. A VPP can help stabilize a power grid by providing redundancy, helping a power grid run more efficiently and increasing its resilience – two factors that can help save consumers money.

Do any states currently utilize a VPP? VPPs are the future of energy grids, and few states are positioned to step into the future with their power grid. Thanks to the current generation of Illinois energy leaders and the recent advancements in technology and investments made in the Illinois energy grid, Illinois is positioned to utilize and implement VPPs. Currently, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, and Texas – as well as Puerto Rico – successfully operate VPPs. Illinois energy leaders have discussed and collaborated with leaders in states with VPPs to gather insights and learnings to help inform the creation and implementation of VPPs in Illinois.

Will HB 3758 / SB 2497 replace CEJA? No. This bill seeks to enhance CEJA and build upon its incredible success. CEJA has been incredibly successful and has ushered in a golden age for renewable energy in the state of Illinois, generating significant economic value. Since 2017, residential solar grew 2,252% in Illinois, and commercial solar grew 1,871%.

What kind of impact will HB 3758 / SB 2497 had? Read an independent study.

New Bill FAQ

Sep 5, 2024

Clean Energy Storage Would Save Consumers Money and Improve Illinois’ Electric Grid, Study Finds

Clean energy storage is the key to saving Illinois consumers up to $30 per month.

CEJA Workforce and Equity Provisions

In September 2021, Governor Pritzker signed CEJA. This nation-leading legislation positioned Illinois as a clean energy leader with provisions to create an equitable clean energy workforce.

The job creation programs created by CEJA were intentionally designed to benefit people who have historically faced barriers to enter the clean energy economy, whether that be financial status, time investment, education history, historic marginalization, or other factors. Collectively, the job training programs are designed to recruit from communities where jobs are needed most and equip trainees with the skills and resources needed to succeed and find a career. HB 5856 / SB 3959 will further stimulate the clean energy economy, leading to more job creation and growth for Illinoisans and further leverage the workforce programs established and bolstered by CEJA.

CEJA Workforce Programs:

Clean Jobs Workforce Network Program Delivers a curriculum that prepares trainees for jobs in energy efficiency, solar and wind energy, energy storage, and electric vehicle industries. It also includes job readiness skills, certification test preparedness, the development of soft skills, and relevant technical skills.

Clean Energy Contractor Incubator Program Provides eligible contractors with access to low-cost capital, support for obtaining insurance, assistance registering to become vendors for state incentive programs, connections with firms hiring contractors and subcontractors, and other vital services. Participating contractors will receive training, mentoring and support to build their businesses, connect to projects, compete for capital, and execute clean energy-related project installations and subcontracts. The 13 incubators will be geographically distributed across Illinois. $21 million is allocated to this program each year, subject to appropriation.

Climate Works Pre-Apprenticeship Program Provides training to prepare people to succeed in apprenticeship programs in construction and building trades that are expected to see clean energy job growth. It will create a qualified, and diverse pipeline of clean energy workers, offering training, credentials, support with enrollment in apprenticeship programs after completion, barrier reduction services, and more. Subject to appropriation, $10 million per year will be allocated for the program, with an additional $6 million per year for distribution of Energy Transition Barrier Reduction Program services and funds.

Clean Energy Primes Contractor Accelerator Program Provides multi-year, one-on-one coaching to assist contractor participants in developing five-year business plans and growing their businesses. This includes review of monthly metrics and advice on achieving participant’s goals. Participating contractors will also be eligible for operational support grants and will have access to capital for upfront costs and pre-development funding. Participants will also receive mentorship, assistance for preparing for bids and Request for Proposal applications, assistance connection to state and federal programs, and more. $9 million is allocated to this program each year, subject to appropriation.

Energy Transition Navigator Program Provides outreach, education, and recruitment to eligible individuals to participate in CEJA workforce programs and collaborates with local job markets and workforce organizations to help place trainees in careers. $6 million is allocated to this program each year, subject to appropriation.

Solar Training Pipeline Program Establishes a pipeline, or pool of trained installers, for projects authorized under the Illinois Solar For All Program and the revised Renewable Portfolio Standards. This program includes funding for programs that provide training to individuals who are or were foster care alumni or returning citizens transitioning into the workforce. $3 million in funding is allocated to this program, subject to appropriation.

Returning Resident Clean Jobs Program Provides training within Illinois Department of Corrections (DOC) correctional facilities to prepare people for entry-level clean energy jobs. Participants will receive essential employability skills training as part of vocational or occupational training, and the training will lead to certifications or credentials that prepare candidates for employment. $6 million is allocated to this program each year, subject to appropriation.

Multi-Cultural Jobs Program Provides $4 million to fund multicultural jobs programs which are related to solar installation or similar sectors. The programming is run by diversity-focused community organizations that have a record of successfully delivering job training.

Craft Apprenticeship Program Provides $3 million in funding for accredited or recognized apprenticeship programs. Apprenticeship programs are offered for particular crafts, trades, or skills in the electric industry.

Workforce Programs NEW

Newsletter NEW

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475,500

Did you know more than 475,500 Illinois homes are powered by solar energy?

Clean energy industries are united in support for clean energy.

WHAT IS HB 3758 / SB 2497 ?