Bill Text: IL HB1089 | 2011-2012 | 97th General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Creates the Efficient and Green Illinois Tax Credit Act. Authorizes the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to award income tax credits based on 25% of the cost of qualifying expenditures for energy efficient projects, such as solar energy equipment, Energy Star certified heat pumps, lighting retrofit projects, and wind equipment. Authorizes the Department to adopt rules. Provides that the credit may be carried forward for up to 5 taxable years. Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act to make conforming changes. Provides that the credit is exempt from the Act's automatic sunset provisions. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 12-0)

Status: (Failed) 2013-01-08 - Session Sine Die [HB1089 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2011-HB1089-Introduced.html

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97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2011 and 2012 HB1089 Introduced , by Rep. Thomas Holbrook SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
New Act
35 ILCS 5/221 new
Creates the Efficient and Green Illinois Tax Credit Act. Authorizes the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to award income tax credits based on 25% of the cost of qualifying expenditures for energy efficient projects, such as solar energy equipment, Energy Star certified heat pumps, lighting retrofit projects, and wind equipment. Authorizes the Department to adopt rules. Provides that the credit may be carried forward for up to 5 taxable years. Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act to make conforming changes. Provides that the credit is exempt from the Act's automatic sunset provisions. Effective immediately.
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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning revenue.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
Efficient and Green Illinois Tax Credit Act.
Section 5. Purpose. The General Assembly finds that the
Illinois economy and environment are greatly enhanced by the
installation of energy efficiency measures and by the support
of renewable energy resources. The purpose of this Act is to
expand the adoption of energy efficiency measures in the
private sector, as well as to encourage use of renewable energy
resources. It is the policy of this State to promote and
encourage the adoption of energy efficiency measures as well as
the voluntary use of renewable energy resources.
Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
"Energy efficiency project" includes any of the following:
(A) Solar energy equipment that uses solar
radiation as a substitute for traditional energy for
water heating, active space heating and cooling,
passive heating, day-lighting, generating electricity,
distillation, desalinization, or the production of
industrial or commercial process heat, as well as

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related devices necessary for collecting, storing,
exchanging, conditioning, or converting solar energy
to other useful forms of energy.
(B) Energy Star certified geothermal heat pump
systems.
(C) Lighting retrofit projects. "Lighting retrofit
project" means a lighting retrofit system that employs
dual switching (ability to switch roughly half the
lights off and still have fairly uniform light
distribution), de-lamping, day-lighting, re-lamping,
or other controls or processes that reduce annual
energy and power consumption by 30% compared to the
American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air
Conditioning Engineers 2004 standard (ASHRAE
90.1.2004).
(D) Wind equipment required to capture and convert
wind energy into electricity or mechanical power as
well as related devices that may be required for
converting, conditioning, and storing the electricity
produced by wind equipment.
"Cost" means:
(A) In the case of clean energy property owned by
the taxpayer, cost is the aggregate funds actually
invested and expended by a taxpayer in that taxable
year to put into service the clean energy property.
(B) In the case of clean energy property the

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taxpayer leases from another, cost is 8 times the net
annual rental rate, which is the annual rental rate
paid by the taxpayer less any annual rental rate
received by the taxpayer from sub-rentals.
"Credit" means:
(A) For an energy efficiency project approved by
the Department, the amount equal to 25% of the cost of
that project.
(B) For renewable energy resources usage approved
by the Department, an amount equal to 25% of the cost
paid for the environmental attributes of those
renewable energy resources during the tax year.
"Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic
Opportunity.
"Renewable energy resources" means the same as it does in
Section 1-10 of the Illinois Power Agency Act.
Section 15. Powers of the Department. The Department, in
addition to those powers granted under the Civil Administrative
Code of Illinois, is granted and has all the powers necessary
or convenient to carry out and effectuate the purposes and
provisions of this Act, including, but not limited to, power
and authority to:
(1) Adopt rules deemed necessary and appropriate for
the administration of the tax credit program; establish
forms for applications, notifications, contracts, or any

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other agreements; and accept applications at any time
during the year.
(2) Assist applicants pursuant to the provisions of
this Act to promote, foster, and support energy efficiency
measures and renewable energy resources and related job
creation or retention within the State.
(3) Provide for sufficient personnel to permit
administration, staffing, operation, and related support
required to adequately discharge its duties and
responsibilities described in this Act from funds as may be
appropriated to the Department for the administration of
this Act.
(4) Require that an applicant must at all times keep
proper books of record and account in accordance with
generally accepted accounting principles consistently
applied, with the books, records, or papers related to the
accredited production in the custody or control of the
taxpayer open for reasonable Department inspection and
audits.
Section 20. Tax credit awards. Subject to the conditions
set forth in this Act, for taxable years beginning on or after
January 1, 2011, an applicant is entitled to a credit against
the tax imposed under subsections (a) and (b) of Section 201 of
the Illinois Income Tax Act, in an amount approved by the
Department under Section 40 of this Act.

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Section 35. Issuance of tax credit certificate.
(a) In order to qualify for a tax credit under this Act, an
applicant must file an application, on forms prescribed by the
Department, providing information necessary to calculate the
tax credit, and any additional information as required by the
Department.
(b) Upon satisfactory review of the application, the
Department shall issue a tax credit certificate.
Section 40. Amount and duration of the credit. The amount
of the credit awarded under this Act is based on the cost of
the qualifying expenditures under this Act. The credit shall be
awarded for the taxable year in which the expenditure is made.
The tax credit may not reduce the taxpayer's liability to less
than zero. If the amount of the tax credit exceeds the
taxpayer's Illinois income tax liability for the year, the
excess may be carried forward and applied to the tax liability
of the 5 taxable years following the excess credit year. The
credit must be applied to the earliest year for which there is
a tax liability. If there are credits from more than one tax
year that are available to offset a liability, then the earlier
credit must be applied first. This Act is exempt from the
provisions of Section 250 of the Illinois Income Tax Act.
Section 80. The Illinois Income Tax Act is amended by

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adding Section 221 as follows:
(35 ILCS 5/221 new)
Sec. 221. Efficient and Green Illinois Tax Credit Act. For
tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2011, a taxpayer who
has been awarded a credit under the Efficient and Green
Illinois Tax Credit Act is entitled to a credit against the
taxes imposed under subsections (a) and (b) of Section 201 of
this Act in an amount to be determined under that Act. If the
taxpayer is a partnership or Subchapter S corporation, the
credit shall be allowed to the partners or shareholders in
accordance with the determination of income and distributive
share of income under Sections 702 and 704 and subchapter S of
the Internal Revenue Code. This Section is exempt from the
provisions of Section 250 of this Act.
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.