103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB4037

 

Introduced 4/19/2023, by Rep. Chris Miller

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
55 ILCS 5/5-12020

    Amends the Counties Code. Provides that a commercial wind energy facility owner or solar energy facility owner must file a land reclamation plan and a recycling plan with the Department of Agriculture prior to the required public hearing on the siting of a facility. Provides that the land reclamation plan must outline how the property on which a facility has been constructed will be returned to the state the property existed prior to the construction of the facility upon removal of the facility. Provides that the recycling plan must outline how the material used to construct the facility will be recycled. Provides that a commercial solar energy facility may not be sited on property where the property's soil's crop productivity index is greater than 110. Effective immediately.


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A BILL FOR

 

HB4037LRB103 31868 AWJ 60516 b

1    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by changing
5Section 5-12020 as follows:
 
6    (55 ILCS 5/5-12020)
7    Sec. 5-12020. Commercial wind energy facilities and
8commercial solar energy facilities.
9    (a) As used in this Section:
10    "Commercial solar energy facility" means a "commercial
11solar energy system" as defined in Section 10-720 of the
12Property Tax Code. "Commercial solar energy facility" does not
13mean a utility-scale solar energy facility being constructed
14at a site that was eligible to participate in a procurement
15event conducted by the Illinois Power Agency pursuant to
16subsection (c-5) of Section 1-75 of the Illinois Power Agency
17Act.
18    "Commercial wind energy facility" means a wind energy
19conversion facility of equal or greater than 500 kilowatts in
20total nameplate generating capacity. "Commercial wind energy
21facility" includes a wind energy conversion facility seeking
22an extension of a permit to construct granted by a county or
23municipality before January 27, 2023 (the effective date of

 

 

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1Public Act 102-1123) this amendatory Act of the 102nd General
2Assembly.
3    "Facility owner" means (i) a person with a direct
4ownership interest in a commercial wind energy facility or a
5commercial solar energy facility, or both, regardless of
6whether the person is involved in acquiring the necessary
7rights, permits, and approvals or otherwise planning for the
8construction and operation of the facility, and (ii) at the
9time the facility is being developed, a person who is acting as
10a developer of the facility by acquiring the necessary rights,
11permits, and approvals or by planning for the construction and
12operation of the facility, regardless of whether the person
13will own or operate the facility.
14    "Nonparticipating property" means real property that is
15not a participating property.
16    "Nonparticipating residence" means a residence that is
17located on nonparticipating property and that is existing and
18occupied on the date that an application for a permit to
19develop the commercial wind energy facility or the commercial
20solar energy facility is filed with the county.
21    "Occupied community building" means any one or more of the
22following buildings that is existing and occupied on the date
23that the application for a permit to develop the commercial
24wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy facility
25is filed with the county: a school, place of worship, day care
26facility, public library, or community center.

 

 

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1    "Participating property" means real property that is the
2subject of a written agreement between a facility owner and
3the owner of the real property that provides the facility
4owner an easement, option, lease, or license to use the real
5property for the purpose of constructing a commercial wind
6energy facility, a commercial solar energy facility, or
7supporting facilities. "Participating property" also includes
8real property that is owned by a facility owner for the purpose
9of constructing a commercial wind energy facility, a
10commercial solar energy facility, or supporting facilities.
11    "Participating residence" means a residence that is
12located on participating property and that is existing and
13occupied on the date that an application for a permit to
14develop the commercial wind energy facility or the commercial
15solar energy facility is filed with the county.
16    "Protected lands" means real property that is:
17        (1) subject to a permanent conservation right
18    consistent with the Real Property Conservation Rights Act;
19    or
20        (2) registered or designated as a nature preserve,
21    buffer, or land and water reserve under the Illinois
22    Natural Areas Preservation Act.
23    "Supporting facilities" means the transmission lines,
24substations, access roads, meteorological towers, storage
25containers, and equipment associated with the generation and
26storage of electricity by the commercial wind energy facility

 

 

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1or commercial solar energy facility.
2    "Wind tower" includes the wind turbine tower, nacelle, and
3blades.
4    (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law or whether
5the county has formed a zoning commission and adopted formal
6zoning under Section 5-12007, a county may establish standards
7for commercial wind energy facilities, commercial solar energy
8facilities, or both. The standards may include all of the
9requirements specified in this Section but may not include
10requirements for commercial wind energy facilities or
11commercial solar energy facilities that are more restrictive
12than specified in this Section. A county may also regulate the
13siting of commercial wind energy facilities with standards
14that are not more restrictive than the requirements specified
15in this Section in unincorporated areas of the county that are
16outside the zoning jurisdiction of a municipality and that are
17outside the 1.5-mile radius surrounding the zoning
18jurisdiction of a municipality.
19    (c) If a county has elected to establish standards under
20subsection (b), before the county grants siting approval or a
21special use permit for a commercial wind energy facility or a
22commercial solar energy facility, or modification of an
23approved siting or special use permit, the county board of the
24county in which the facility is to be sited or the zoning board
25of appeals for the county shall hold at least one public
26hearing. The public hearing shall be conducted in accordance

 

 

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1with the Open Meetings Act and shall be held not more than 45
2days after the filing of the application for the facility. The
3county shall allow interested parties to a special use permit
4an opportunity to present evidence and to cross-examine
5witnesses at the hearing, but the county may impose reasonable
6restrictions on the public hearing, including reasonable time
7limitations on the presentation of evidence and the
8cross-examination of witnesses. The county shall also allow
9public comment at the public hearing in accordance with the
10Open Meetings Act. The county shall make its siting and
11permitting decisions not more than 30 days after the
12conclusion of the public hearing. Notice of the hearing shall
13be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the
14county. A facility owner must enter into an agricultural
15impact mitigation agreement and file a land reclamation plan
16and a recycling plan with the Department of Agriculture prior
17to the date of the required public hearing. The land
18reclamation plan must outline how the property on which a
19facility has been constructed will be returned to the state
20the property existed prior to the construction of the facility
21upon removal of the facility. The recycling plan must outline
22how the material used to construct the facility will be
23recycled. A commercial wind energy facility owner seeking an
24extension of a permit granted by a county prior to July 24,
252015 (the effective date of Public Act 99-132) must enter into
26an agricultural impact mitigation agreement with the

 

 

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1Department of Agriculture prior to a decision by the county to
2grant the permit extension. Counties may allow test wind
3towers or test solar energy systems to be sited without formal
4approval by the county board.
5    (d) A county with an existing zoning ordinance in conflict
6with this Section shall amend that zoning ordinance to be in
7compliance with this Section within 120 days after January 27,
82023 (the effective date of Public Act 102-1123) this
9amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly.
10    (e) A county may require:
11        (1) a wind tower of a commercial wind energy facility
12    to be sited as follows, with setback distances measured
13    from the center of the base of the wind tower:
 
14Setback Description           Setback Distance
 
15Occupied Community            2.1 times the maximum blade tip
16Buildings                     height of the wind tower to the
17                              nearest point on the outside
18                              wall of the structure
 
19Participating Residences      1.1 times the maximum blade tip
20                              height of the wind tower to the
21                              nearest point on the outside
22                              wall of the structure
 

 

 

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1Nonparticipating Residences   2.1 times the maximum blade tip
2                              height of the wind tower to the
3                              nearest point on the outside
4                              wall of the structure
 
5Boundary Lines of             None
6Participating Property 
 
7Boundary Lines of             1.1 times the maximum blade tip
8Nonparticipating Property     height of the wind tower to the
9                              nearest point on the property
10                              line of the nonparticipating
11                              property
 
12Public Road Rights-of-Way     1.1 times the maximum blade tip
13                              height of the wind tower
14                              to the center point of the
15                              public road right-of-way
 
16Overhead Communication and    1.1 times the maximum blade tip
17Electric Transmission         height of the wind tower to the
18and Distribution Facilities   nearest edge of the property
19(Not Including Overhead       line, easement, or
20Utility Service Lines to      right-of-way right of way
21Individual Houses or          containing the overhead line
22Outbuildings)
 

 

 

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1Overhead Utility Service      None
2Lines to Individual
3Houses or Outbuildings
 
4Fish and Wildlife Areas       2.1 times the maximum blade
5and Illinois Nature           tip height of the wind tower
6Preserve Commission           to the nearest point on the
7Protected Lands               property line of the fish and
8                              wildlife area or protected
9                              land
10    This Section does not exempt or excuse compliance with
11    electric facility clearances approved or required by the
12    National Electrical Code, The National Electrical Safety
13    Code, Illinois Commerce Commission, Federal Energy
14    Regulatory Commission, and their designees or successors.
 
15        (2) a wind tower of a commercial wind energy facility
16    to be sited so that industry standard computer modeling
17    indicates that any occupied community building or
18    nonparticipating residence will not experience more than
19    30 hours per year of shadow flicker under planned
20    operating conditions;
21        (3) a commercial solar energy facility to be sited as
22    follows, with setback distances measured from the nearest
23    edge of any component of the facility:
 

 

 

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1Setback Description           Setback Distance
 
2Occupied Community            150 feet from the nearest
3Buildings and Dwellings on    point on the outside wall 
4Nonparticipating Properties   of the structure
 
5Boundary Lines of             None
6Participating Property    
 
7Public Road Rights-of-Way     50 feet from the nearest
8                              edge
 
9Boundary Lines of             50 feet to the nearest
10Nonparticipating Property     point on the property
11                              line of the nonparticipating
12                              property
 
13        (4) a commercial solar energy facility to be sited so
14    that the facility's perimeter is enclosed by fencing
15    having a height of at least 6 feet and no more than 25
16    feet; and
17        (5) a commercial solar energy facility to be sited so
18    that no component of a solar panel has a height of more
19    than 20 feet above ground when the solar energy facility's
20    arrays are at full tilt.

 

 

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1    The requirements set forth in this subsection (e) may be
2waived subject to the written consent of the owner of each
3affected nonparticipating property.
4    (e-5) A commercial solar energy facility may not be sited
5on property where the property's soil's crop productivity
6index is greater than 110, as "crop productivity index" is
7used in the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's
8Optimum Crop Productivity Ratings for Illinois Soil or
9subsequent publication.
10    (f) A county may not set a sound limitation for wind towers
11in commercial wind energy facilities or any components in
12commercial solar energy facilities facility that is more
13restrictive than the sound limitations established by the
14Illinois Pollution Control Board under 35 Ill. Adm. Code Parts
15900, 901, and 910.
16    (g) A county may not place any restriction on the
17installation or use of a commercial wind energy facility or a
18commercial solar energy facility unless it adopts an ordinance
19that complies with this Section. A county may not establish
20siting standards for supporting facilities that preclude
21development of commercial wind energy facilities or commercial
22solar energy facilities.
23    A request for siting approval or a special use permit for a
24commercial wind energy facility or a commercial solar energy
25facility, or modification of an approved siting or special use
26permit, shall be approved if the request is in compliance with

 

 

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1the standards and conditions imposed in this Act, the zoning
2ordinance adopted consistent with this Code, and the
3conditions imposed under State and federal statutes and
4regulations.
5    (h) A county may not adopt zoning regulations that
6disallow, permanently or temporarily, commercial wind energy
7facilities or commercial solar energy facilities from being
8developed or operated in any district zoned to allow
9agricultural or industrial uses.
10    (i) A county may not require permit application fees for a
11commercial wind energy facility or commercial solar energy
12facility that are unreasonable. All application fees imposed
13by the county shall be consistent with fees for projects in the
14county with similar capital value and cost.
15    (j) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, a county
16shall not require standards for construction, decommissioning,
17or deconstruction of a commercial wind energy facility or
18commercial solar energy facility or related financial
19assurances that are more restrictive than those included in
20the Department of Agriculture's standard wind farm
21agricultural impact mitigation agreement, template 81818, or
22standard solar agricultural impact mitigation agreement,
23version 8.19.19, as applicable and in effect on December 31,
242022. The amount of any decommissioning payment shall be
25limited to the cost identified in the decommissioning or
26deconstruction plan, as required by those agricultural impact

 

 

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1mitigation agreements, minus the salvage value of the project.
2    (k) A county may not condition approval of a commercial
3wind energy facility or commercial solar energy facility on a
4property value guarantee and may not require a facility owner
5to pay into a neighboring property devaluation escrow account.
6    (l) A county may require certain vegetative screening
7surrounding a commercial wind energy facility or commercial
8solar energy facility but may not require earthen berms or
9similar structures.
10    (m) A county may set blade tip height limitations for wind
11towers in commercial wind energy facilities but may not set a
12blade tip height limitation that is more restrictive than the
13height allowed under a Determination of No Hazard to Air
14Navigation by the Federal Aviation Administration under 14 CFR
15Part 77.
16    (n) A county may require that a commercial wind energy
17facility owner or commercial solar energy facility owner
18provide:
19        (1) the results and recommendations from consultation
20    with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources that are
21    obtained through the Ecological Compliance Assessment Tool
22    (EcoCAT) or a comparable successor tool; and
23        (2) the results of the United States Fish and Wildlife
24    Service's Information for Planning and Consulting
25    environmental review or a comparable successor tool that
26    is consistent with (i) the "U.S. Fish and Wildlife

 

 

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1    Service's Land-Based Wind Energy Guidelines" and (ii) any
2    applicable United States Fish and Wildlife Service solar
3    wildlife guidelines that have been subject to public
4    review.
5    (o) A county may require a commercial wind energy facility
6or commercial solar energy facility to adhere to the
7recommendations provided by the Illinois Department of Natural
8Resources in an EcoCAT natural resource review report under 17
9Ill. Adm. Admin. Code Part 1075.
10    (p) A county may require a facility owner to:
11        (1) demonstrate avoidance of protected lands as
12    identified by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources
13    and the Illinois Nature Preserve Commission; or
14        (2) consider the recommendations of the Illinois
15    Department of Natural Resources for setbacks from
16    protected lands, including areas identified by the
17    Illinois Nature Preserve Commission.
18    (q) A county may require that a facility owner provide
19evidence of consultation with the Illinois State Historic
20Preservation Office to assess potential impacts on
21State-registered historic sites under the Illinois State
22Agency Historic Resources Preservation Act.
23    (r) To maximize community benefits, including, but not
24limited to, reduced stormwater runoff, flooding, and erosion
25at the ground mounted solar energy system, improved soil
26health, and increased foraging habitat for game birds,

 

 

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1songbirds, and pollinators, a county may (1) require a
2commercial solar energy facility owner to plant, establish,
3and maintain for the life of the facility vegetative ground
4cover, consistent with the goals of the Pollinator-Friendly
5Solar Site Act and (2) require the submittal of a vegetation
6management plan in the application to construct and operate a
7commercial solar energy facility in the county.
8    No later than 90 days after January 27, 2023 (the
9effective date of Public Act 102-1123) this amendatory Act of
10the 102nd General Assembly, the Illinois Department of Natural
11Resources shall develop guidelines for vegetation management
12plans that may be required under this subsection for
13commercial solar energy facilities. The guidelines must
14include guidance for short-term and long-term property
15management practices that provide and maintain native and
16non-invasive naturalized perennial vegetation to protect the
17health and well-being of pollinators.
18    (s) If a facility owner enters into a road use agreement
19with the Illinois Department of Transportation, a road
20district, or other unit of local government relating to a
21commercial wind energy facility or a commercial solar energy
22facility, the road use agreement shall require the facility
23owner to be responsible for (i) the reasonable cost of
24improving roads used by the facility owner to construct the
25commercial wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy
26facility and (ii) the reasonable cost of repairing roads used

 

 

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1by the facility owner during construction of the commercial
2wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy facility
3so that those roads are in a condition that is safe for the
4driving public after the completion of the facility's
5construction. Roadways improved in preparation for and during
6the construction of the commercial wind energy facility or
7commercial solar energy facility shall be repaired and
8restored to the improved condition at the reasonable cost of
9the developer if the roadways have degraded or were damaged as
10a result of construction-related activities.
11    The road use agreement shall not require the facility
12owner to pay costs, fees, or charges for road work that is not
13specifically and uniquely attributable to the construction of
14the commercial wind energy facility or the commercial solar
15energy facility. Road-related fees, permit fees, or other
16charges imposed by the Illinois Department of Transportation,
17a road district, or other unit of local government under a road
18use agreement with the facility owner shall be reasonably
19related to the cost of administration of the road use
20agreement.
21    (t) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a facility
22owner with siting approval from a county to construct a
23commercial wind energy facility or a commercial solar energy
24facility is authorized to cross or impact a drainage system,
25including, but not limited to, drainage tiles, open drainage
26districts, culverts, and water gathering vaults, owned or

 

 

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1under the control of a drainage district under the Illinois
2Drainage Code without obtaining prior agreement or approval
3from the drainage district, except that the facility owner
4shall repair or pay for the repair of all damage to the
5drainage system caused by the construction of the commercial
6wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy facility
7within a reasonable time after construction of the commercial
8wind energy facility or the commercial solar energy facility
9is complete.
10    (u) The amendments to this Section adopted in Public Act
11102-1123 this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly do
12not apply to (1) an application for siting approval or for a
13special use permit for a commercial wind energy facility or
14commercial solar energy facility if the application was
15submitted to a unit of local government before January 27,
162023 (the effective date of Public Act 102-1123) this
17amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly or (2) a
18commercial wind energy facility or a commercial solar energy
19facility if the facility owner has submitted an agricultural
20impact mitigation agreement to the Department of Agriculture
21before January 27, 2023 (the effective date of Public Act
22102-1123) this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly.
23(Source: P.A. 101-4, eff. 4-19-19; 102-1123, eff. 1-27-23;
24revised 4-5-23.)
 
25    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
26becoming law.