HJ0073 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HJ0073 LRB102 26542 MST 37161 r

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois is uniquely positioned to be a national hub for the clean technology economy, with a virtuous innovation life cycle that furthers equity, climate justice, and economic development; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois passed the Clean Energy Jobs Act and the Reimagining Electric Vehicles Act, leading the region in decarbonization and clean energy in the manufacturing revolution; and

WHEREAS, The American Rescue Plan included a $1 billion Build Back Better Regional Challenge administered by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) and the U.S. Department of Commerce to boost economic recovery from the pandemic and rebuild American communities, including those grappling with decades of disinvestment; and

WHEREAS, The BBB Regional Challenge will provide transformational investments to develop and strengthen regional industry clusters across the country, all while embracing equitable economic growth, creating good-paying jobs, and enhancing U.S. global competitiveness; and

WHEREAS, The Economic Development Administration received 529 applications from across the United States, including 10 from Illinois; and

WHEREAS, On December 19, 2021, the Economic Development Administration announced their 60 finalists, which includes one remaining application from Illinois; and

WHEREAS, The remaining Illinois application is the Clean Tech Economy Coalition led by mHUB and supported by a 19-member coalition from industry, universities, city and county government, national laboratories, environmental organizations, and community-based organizations and is seeking between $75-$99 million in federal funding; and

WHEREAS, The Clean Tech Economy Coalition is focused on six core principles spread across the entire State, including (1) an Entrepreneurship Clean Tech Innovation Center, (2) driving equitable economic growth through clean energy technology innovations, commercialization, and small business development, (3) decarbonizing manufacturing and expanding the supply chain through retooling, coordination, and market incentives to support the clean tech industry, (4) understanding future workforce trends and coordinating state, county, and city resources toward building capacity for emerging skill requirements, (5) grid modernization and energy storage with focus on downstate coal-impacted communities and urban settings, (6) equitable investment electric charging and infrastructure deployment throughout southern Cook County and Chicago; and

WHEREAS, More than 150 organizations and individuals expressed strong support for the Clean Tech Economy Coalition during the first round, including the University of Illinois, Northwestern University, Southern Illinois University, the Illinois Science & Technology Coalition, the Illinois Manufacturers' Association, the Illinois Manufacturing Excellence Center, World Business Chicago, Fermilab, the Chicago Urban League, West Side Forward, the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity, the City of Chicago, Cook County, Choose DuPage, Lake County Partners, and numerous federal, State, and local officials; Argonne National Laboratory will be supporting these six projects as a technical assistance lead; and

WHEREAS, The Clean Tech Economy Coalition must submit its final application for the BBB Regional Challenge by March 15, 2022, which must demonstrate a financial commitment from Illinois partners for the transformative project; and

WHEREAS, The City of Chicago, Cook County government, and private sector have already provided financial commitments to the Clean Tech Economy Coalition; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois is an important stakeholder and supporter of this Clean Tech Economy Coalition project and is committed to helping secure funding over the next four years; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we express our support for the Clean Tech Economy Coalition's application to the BBB Regional Challenge and our intent to support this important project with funding in the State budget; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to mHUB and the Clean Tech Economy Coalition for inclusion in the BBB Regional Challenge as a show of our commitment to the Economic Development Administration and U.S. Department of Commerce.