SB3527sam001 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Toi W. Hutchinson

Filed: 2/24/2012

09700SB3527sam001 LRB097 20152 JDS 66430 a

AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 3527

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 3527 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the "Independence from Oil Act".

Section 5. Legislative findings. The General Assembly finds that:

(1) Oil consumption contributes to global warming and harms the environment. Oil use is the number one source of carbon dioxide pollution from the U.S. economy. American emissions of global warming pollution from burning oil alone exceed the total emissions from every nation in the world other than China. Oil spills impose massive damage on the environment.

(2) Oil also threatens public health, particularly affecting children and minority communities. Oil-powered vehicles produce soot and smog pollution, which causes asthma attacks and premature deaths. Between 2000 and 2006, over 200 Illinoisans died each year from asthma on average. Minorities were disproportionately impacted, with African Americans having an average asthma mortality rate four times higher than that of the white population.

(3) Oil and gasoline prices place an unnecessary and mounting economic burden on Illinois residents. Illinois regularly has among the highest gas prices in the nation, and in 2011, Illinoisans spent more than 7% of their income on gasoline alone.

(4) Reliance on oil undermines national security, sending over 1 billion dollars overseas per day, often to nations opposed to American interests.

(5) Recent analysis has found that state and federal policies, including those to promote public transit, walking and biking, high-speed rail, energy efficiency, and electric vehicles could reduce Illinois' oil consumption by almost 40% by 2030.

(6) Illinois should help protect the environment, safeguard public health, strengthen its economy, and support national security by reducing aggregate oil consumption in the State.

Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act, unless the context clearly requires otherwise:

"Office" means the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity's Office of Energy and Recycling.

"Plan" means the Illinois Independence from Oil Plan, created pursuant to Section 15 of this Act.

Section 15. Illinois Independence from Oil Plan. The Office shall develop a plan to reduce the consumption of oil in the State. The plan must be designed to meet the targets of reducing consumption of oil in the State by at least 30% from 2007 levels by 2030 and at least 50% from 2007 levels by 2050. In establishing these targets, the Office shall consider the potential of oil savings from the following strategies to improve energy efficiency and move to clean, renewable energy:

(1) expanding and investing in public transportation, including bus transit and high speed rail, and offering incentives for commuters to use public transportation where available;

(2) the rapid deployment of electric vehicles, through a combination of policies that may include, but are not limited to, comprehensive planning with utilities, investments in electric vehicle infrastructure, and consumer tax incentives;

(3) achieving home and commercial weatherization and efficiency improvements;

(4) establishing rebates or other consumer incentives for retiring older, inefficient vehicles;

(5) coordinating land use and transportation planning to encourage growth in areas accessible by walking, biking, and public transportation;

(6) transitioning to renewable energy for heating, including energy from wind, solar, geothermal, and sustainable biomass;

(7) establishing additional policies and incentives for industrial efficiency improvements, including replacements of industrial boilers and other steps to reduce petroleum consumption; and

(8) adopting other strategies that can help enable Illinois to achieve the oil-reduction targets.

The Office shall report to the General Assembly by February 1, 2013 with recommendations for short-term and mid-term policies needed to achieve the overall reductions in oil use, including recommendations for specific legislative actions.

It is the policy of the State to reduce aggregate oil consumption in the State by working to implement the recommendations and meet the targets set forth in the plan.

By February 1, 2015 and by February 1 every 5 years thereafter, the Governor shall evaluate the State's progress toward meeting the plan's goals and make additional recommendations to the legislative committees having jurisdiction over energy, transportation, technology, public health, and environmental matters as necessary to ensure that the State can meet the reduction goals.".

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.".