SB3794sam001 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Javier L. Cervantes

Filed: 4/10/2026

10400SB3794sam001 LRB104 19680 TRT 36622 a

AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 3794

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 3794 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 1. Short title. This Act may be referred to as the Residential Storage Act.

Section 2. Legislative intent. The purpose of this Act is to provide reliable energy at low cost to the People of Illinois, strengthen the electric grid, and promote the use of renewable energy resources by facilitating the deployment of residential energy storage systems.

Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by changing Sections 5-46005 and 5-46025 and by adding Section 5-46030 as follows:

(55 ILCS 5/5-46005)

(This Section may contain text from a Public Act with a delayed effective date)

Sec. 5-46005. Definitions. As used in this Division:

"Low-voltage solar-powered device" means a piece of equipment designed for a particular purpose, including, but not limited to, doorbells, security systems, and illumination equipment, powered by a solar collector operating at less than 50 volts, and located:

(1) entirely within the lot or parcel owned by the property owner; or

(2) within a common area without being permanently attached to common property.

"Qualified inspector" means (1) any entity or individual registered by any jurisdiction in this State as an electrical contractor under Section 11-33-1 of the Illinois Municipal Code; (2) any licensed professional engineer or an entity that employs a licensed professional engineer if the installation is inspected under the direction of a licensed professional engineer; (3) an individual employed or previously employed as an electrical inspector for any county, municipality, or the Illinois Commerce Commission; or (4) an individual registered as a supervising electrician in any jurisdiction in this State and the entity employing the supervising electrician if that entity participates in an apprentice program registered with the Office of Apprenticeship of the United States Department of Labor or with the Illinois Department of Labor and the installation is inspected under the direction of the supervising electrician. To qualify as a qualified inspector, any entity or individual must be covered by general liability insurance of at least $100,000 per occurrence and $300,000 in the aggregate unless the inspection being performed is on behalf of a governmental entity. A qualified inspector may not be employed by the entity that performed the work inspected by the qualified inspector.

"Residential energy backup system" means a backup energy system that is installed at a residential property and that is capable of providing no more than 50 kilowatts of electricity to the residence or has a storage capacity of no more than 200 kilowatt hours. "Residential energy backup system" includes all associated infrastructure, equipment, and components of the system, up to and including any hardware that interfaces with the point of interconnection to the broader electric utility system.

"Solar collector" means:

(1) an assembly, structure, or design, including passive elements, used for gathering, concentrating, or absorbing direct and indirect solar energy and specially designed for holding a substantial amount of useful thermal energy and to transfer that energy to a gas, solid, or liquid or to use that energy directly;

(2) a mechanism that absorbs solar energy and converts it into electricity;

(3) a mechanism or process used for gathering solar energy through wind or thermal gradients; or

(4) a component used to transfer thermal energy to a gas, solid, or liquid, or to convert it into electricity.

"Solar energy" means radiant energy received from the sun at wavelengths suitable for heat transfer, photosynthetic use, or photovoltaic use.

"Solar energy system" means:

(1) a complete assembly, structure, or design of a solar collector or a solar storage mechanism that uses solar energy for generating electricity or for heating or cooling gases, solids, liquids, or other materials; and

(2) the design, materials, or elements of a system and its maintenance, operation, and labor components, and the necessary components, if any, of supplemental conventional energy systems designed or constructed to interface with a solar energy system.

"Solar storage mechanism" means equipment or elements, such as piping and transfer mechanisms, containers, heat exchangers, batteries, or controls thereof and gases, solids, liquids, or combinations thereof, that are utilized for storing solar energy, gathered by a solar collector, for subsequent use.

(Source: P.A. 104-458, eff. 6-1-26.)

(55 ILCS 5/5-46025)

(This Section may contain text from a Public Act with a delayed effective date)

Sec. 5-46025. Applicability.

(a) As used in this Section, "shared roof" means any roof that (i) serves more than one unit, including, but not limited to, a contiguous roof serving adjacent units, or (ii) is part of the common elements or common area of a unit.

(b) Except as provided in subsection (d), this This Division shall not apply to any building that:

(1) is greater than 60 feet in height; or

(2) has a shared roof.

(c) Notwithstanding subsection (b) of this Section, this Division shall apply to any building with a shared roof:

(1) where the solar energy system is located entirely within that portion of the shared roof that is owned and maintained by the property owner;

(2) where all property owners sharing the shared roof are in agreement to install a solar energy system; or

(3) to the extent this Division applies to low-voltage solar-powered devices.

(d) The provisions of Section 5-46030 apply to any building with a dedicated electrical connection to a utility or a dedicated electrical meter, including a building with a shared roof.

(Source: P.A. 104-458, eff. 6-1-26.)

(55 ILCS 5/5-46030 new)

Sec. 5-46030. Residential energy backup systems.

(a) All residential energy backup systems installed in the county shall be:

(1) installed by licensed electrical contractors, if the corporate authorities of the municipality require the registration of electrical contractors under Section 11-33-1 of the Illinois Municipal Code;

(2) installed in compliance with the 2026 version of the National Electrical Code (NFPA 70) or a successor version of that Code if the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation adopts such a successor version; and

(3) inspected in accordance with subsection (b).

(b) Within 10 business days after a completed installation of a residential energy backup system, a qualified inspector shall certify that the residential energy backup system is installed in compliance with subsection (a). The installer of a system shall maintain a record of certification of compliance. A certification of compliance by a qualified inspector satisfies all required inspections or certifications of residential energy backup systems.

(1) If a residential energy backup system is not certified as compliant within 10 business days after completed installation, the installer of the system shall disconnect the system from any energized electrical lines until the system is certified as compliant.

(2) If a judgment is made by a court that a residential energy backup system was installed in violation of any requirement of subsection (a) not remedied prior to certification by a qualified inspector, the installer of the system may be fined up to $1,000 for each installation adjudicated to have violated subsection (a). The administrative fine described in this paragraph is the exclusive penalty for a violation of the requirements described in this Section and may be enforced only by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

(c) A qualified inspector not acting on behalf of a governmental entity shall be jointly and severally liable along with the installer of a residential energy backup system for any damage resulting from a system certified as compliant in accordance with subsection (a) that is later adjudicated to have been noncompliant at the time of certification, to the extent such damage results directly from the system's noncompliance with subsection (a).

(d) The regulation of the installation or inspection of residential energy backup systems is an exclusive power and function of the State. A home rule unit may not regulate the installation and inspection of residential energy backup systems. This Section is a denial and limitation of home rule powers and functions under subsection (h) of Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution.

Section 10. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by changing Sections 11-15.5-5 and 11-15.5-25 and by adding Section 11-15.5-30 as follows:

(65 ILCS 5/11-15.5-5)

(This Section may contain text from a Public Act with a delayed effective date)

Sec. 11-15.5-5. Definitions. As used in this Division:

"Low-voltage solar-powered device" means a piece of equipment designed for a particular purpose, including, but not limited to, doorbells, security systems, and illumination equipment, powered by a solar collector operating at less than 50 volts, and located:

(1) entirely within the lot or parcel owned by the property owner; or

(2) within a common area without being permanently attached to common property.

"Qualified inspector" means (1) any entity or individual registered by any jurisdiction in this State as an electrical contractor under Section 11-33-1 of the Illinois Municipal Code; (2) any licensed professional engineer or entity that employs a licensed professional engineer if the installation is inspected under the direction of licensed professional engineer; (3) an individual employed or previously employed as an electrical inspector for any county, municipality, or the Illinois Commerce Commission; or (4) an individual registered as a supervising electrician in any jurisdiction in this State and the entity employing the supervising electrician if that entity participates in an apprentice program registered with the Office of Apprenticeship of the United States Department of Labor or with the Illinois Department of Labor and the installation is inspected under the direction of the supervising electrician. To qualify as a qualified inspector, any entity or individual must be covered by general liability insurance of at least $100,000 per occurrence and $300,000 in the aggregate unless the inspection being performed is on behalf of a governmental entity. A qualified inspector may not be employed by the entity that performed the work inspected by the qualified inspector.

"Residential energy backup system" means a backup energy system that is installed at a residential property and that is capable of providing no more than 50 kilowatts of electricity to the residence or has a storage capacity of no more than 200 kilowatt hours. "Residential energy backup system" includes all associated infrastructure, equipment, and components of the system, up to and including any hardware that interfaces with the point of interconnection to the broader electric utility system.

"Solar collector" means:

(1) an assembly, structure, or design, including passive elements, used for gathering, concentrating, or absorbing direct and indirect solar energy and specially designed for holding a substantial amount of useful thermal energy and to transfer that energy to a gas, solid, or liquid or to use that energy directly;

(2) a mechanism that absorbs solar energy and converts it into electricity;

(3) a mechanism or process used for gathering solar energy through wind or thermal gradients; or

(4) a component used to transfer thermal energy to a gas, solid, or liquid, or to convert it into electricity.

"Solar energy" means radiant energy received from the sun at wavelengths suitable for heat transfer, photosynthetic use, or photovoltaic use.

"Solar energy system" means:

(1) a complete assembly, structure, or design of a solar collector or a solar storage mechanism that uses solar energy for generating electricity or for heating or cooling gases, solids, liquids, or other materials; and

(2) the design, materials, or elements of a system and its maintenance, operation, and labor components, and the necessary components, if any, of supplemental conventional energy systems designed or constructed to interface with a solar energy system.

"Solar storage mechanism" means equipment or elements, such as piping and transfer mechanisms, containers, heat exchangers, batteries, or controls thereof and gases, solids, liquids, or combinations thereof, that are utilized for storing solar energy, gathered by a solar collector, for subsequent use.

(Source: P.A. 104-458, eff. 6-1-26.)

(65 ILCS 5/11-15.5-25)

(This Section may contain text from a Public Act with a delayed effective date)

Sec. 11-15.5-25. Applicability.

(a) As used in this Section, "shared roof" means any roof that (i) serves more than one unit, including, but not limited to, a contiguous roof serving adjacent units, or (ii) is part of the common elements or common area of a unit.

(b) Except as provided in subsection (d), this This Division shall not apply to any building that:

(1) is greater than 60 feet in height; or

(2) has a shared roof.

(c) Notwithstanding subsection (b) of this Section, this Division shall apply to any building with a shared roof:

(1) where the solar energy system is located entirely within that portion of the shared roof owned and maintained by the property owner;

(2) where all property owners sharing the shared roof are in agreement to install a solar energy system; or

(3) to the extent this Division applies to low-voltage solar-powered devices.

(d) The provisions of Section 11-15.5-30 apply to any building with a dedicated electrical connection to a utility or a dedicated electrical meter, including a building with a shared roof.

(Source: P.A. 104-458, eff. 6-1-26.)

(65 ILCS 5/11-15.5-30 new)

Sec. 11-15.5-30. Residential energy backup systems.

(a) All residential energy backup systems installed in the municipality shall be:

(1) installed by licensed electrical contractors, if the corporate authorities of the municipality require the registration of electrical contractors under Section 11-33-1 of the Code;

(2) installed in compliance with the 2026 version of the National Electrical Code (NFPA 70) or a successor version of that Code if the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation adopts such a successor version; and

(3) inspected in accordance with subsection (b).

(b) Within 10 business days after a completed installation of a residential energy backup system, a qualified inspector shall certify that the residential energy backup system is installed in compliance with subsection (a). The installer of a system shall maintain a record of certification of compliance. A certification of compliance by a qualified inspector satisfies all required inspections or certifications of residential energy backup systems.

(1) If a residential energy backup system is not certified as compliant within 10 business days after completed installation, the installer of the system shall disconnect the system from any energized electrical lines until the system is certified as compliant.

(2) If a judgment is made by a court that a residential energy backup system was installed in violation of any requirement of subsection (a) and not remedied prior to certification by a qualified inspector, the installer of the system may be fined up to $1,000 for each installation adjudicated to have violated subsection (a). The administrative fine described in this paragraph is the exclusive penalty for a violation of the requirements described in this Section and may be enforced only by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

(c) A qualified inspector not acting on behalf of a governmental entity shall be jointly and severally liable along with the installer of a residential energy backup system for any damage resulting from a system certified as compliant in accordance with subsection (a) that is later adjudicated to have been noncompliant at the time of certification, to the extent such damage results directly from the system's noncompliance with subsection (a).

(d) The regulation of the installation and inspection of residential energy backup systems is an exclusive power and function of the State. A home rule unit may not regulate the installation and inspection of residential energy backup systems. This Section is a denial and limitation of home rule powers and functions under subsection (h) of Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution.

(e) Municipalities that own local electric distribution systems may adopt and implement reasonable policies consistent with Section 17-900 of the Public Utilities Act, regarding the interconnection and use of residential energy backup systems.

Section 95. No acceleration or delay. Where this Act makes changes in a statute that is represented in this Act by text that is not yet or no longer in effect (for example, a Section represented by multiple versions), the use of that text does not accelerate or delay the taking effect of (i) the changes made by this Act or (ii) provisions derived from any other Public Act.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect on June 1, 2026.".