Bill Text: IL HB1636 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act. Provides that businesses that intend to establish a new qualified hydroponics facility or expand production at an existing qualified hydroponics facility to engage in the practice of hydroponics are considered high impact businesses. Define terms. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-03-29 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB1636 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-HB1636-Introduced.html

---

101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2019 and 2020 HB1636 Introduced , by Rep. Stephanie A. Kifowit SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
20 ILCS 655/5.5 from Ch. 67 1/2, par. 609.1
Amends the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act. Provides that businesses that intend to establish a new qualified hydroponics facility or expand production at an existing qualified hydroponics facility to engage in the practice of hydroponics are considered high impact businesses. Define terms. Effective immediately.
LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
A BILL FOR
HB1636 LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
AN ACT concerning State government.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Enterprise Zone Act is amended by
changing Section 5.5 as follows:
(20 ILCS 655/5.5) (from Ch. 67 1/2, par. 609.1)
Sec. 5.5. High Impact Business.
(a) In order to respond to unique opportunities to assist
in the encouragement, development, growth and expansion of the
private sector through large scale investment and development
projects, the Department is authorized to receive and approve
applications for the designation of "High Impact Businesses" in
Illinois subject to the following conditions:
(1) such applications may be submitted at any time
during the year;
(2) such business is not located, at the time of
designation, in an enterprise zone designated pursuant to
this Act;
(3) the business intends to do one or more of the
following:
(A) the business intends to make a minimum
investment of $12,000,000 which will be placed in
service in qualified property and intends to create 500

HB1636 - 2 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
full-time equivalent jobs at a designated location in
Illinois or intends to make a minimum investment of
$30,000,000 which will be placed in service in
qualified property and intends to retain 1,500
full-time retained jobs at a designated location in
Illinois. The business must certify in writing that the
investments would not be placed in service in qualified
property and the job creation or job retention would
not occur without the tax credits and exemptions set
forth in subsection (b) of this Section. The terms
"placed in service" and "qualified property" have the
same meanings as described in subsection (h) of Section
201 of the Illinois Income Tax Act; or
(B) the business intends to establish a new
electric generating facility at a designated location
in Illinois. "New electric generating facility", for
purposes of this Section, means a newly-constructed
electric generation plant or a newly-constructed
generation capacity expansion at an existing electric
generation plant, including the transmission lines and
associated equipment that transfers electricity from
points of supply to points of delivery, and for which
such new foundation construction commenced not sooner
than July 1, 2001. Such facility shall be designed to
provide baseload electric generation and shall operate
on a continuous basis throughout the year; and (i)

HB1636 - 3 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
shall have an aggregate rated generating capacity of at
least 1,000 megawatts for all new units at one site if
it uses natural gas as its primary fuel and foundation
construction of the facility is commenced on or before
December 31, 2004, or shall have an aggregate rated
generating capacity of at least 400 megawatts for all
new units at one site if it uses coal or gases derived
from coal as its primary fuel and shall support the
creation of at least 150 new Illinois coal mining jobs,
or (ii) shall be funded through a federal Department of
Energy grant before December 31, 2010 and shall support
the creation of Illinois coal-mining jobs, or (iii)
shall use coal gasification or integrated
gasification-combined cycle units that generate
electricity or chemicals, or both, and shall support
the creation of Illinois coal-mining jobs. The
business must certify in writing that the investments
necessary to establish a new electric generating
facility would not be placed in service and the job
creation in the case of a coal-fueled plant would not
occur without the tax credits and exemptions set forth
in subsection (b-5) of this Section. The term "placed
in service" has the same meaning as described in
subsection (h) of Section 201 of the Illinois Income
Tax Act; or
(B-5) the business intends to establish a new

HB1636 - 4 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
gasification facility at a designated location in
Illinois. As used in this Section, "new gasification
facility" means a newly constructed coal gasification
facility that generates chemical feedstocks or
transportation fuels derived from coal (which may
include, but are not limited to, methane, methanol, and
nitrogen fertilizer), that supports the creation or
retention of Illinois coal-mining jobs, and that
qualifies for financial assistance from the Department
before December 31, 2010. A new gasification facility
does not include a pilot project located within
Jefferson County or within a county adjacent to
Jefferson County for synthetic natural gas from coal;
or
(C) the business intends to establish production
operations at a new coal mine, re-establish production
operations at a closed coal mine, or expand production
at an existing coal mine at a designated location in
Illinois not sooner than July 1, 2001; provided that
the production operations result in the creation of 150
new Illinois coal mining jobs as described in
subdivision (a)(3)(B) of this Section, and further
provided that the coal extracted from such mine is
utilized as the predominant source for a new electric
generating facility. The business must certify in
writing that the investments necessary to establish a

HB1636 - 5 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
new, expanded, or reopened coal mine would not be
placed in service and the job creation would not occur
without the tax credits and exemptions set forth in
subsection (b-5) of this Section. The term "placed in
service" has the same meaning as described in
subsection (h) of Section 201 of the Illinois Income
Tax Act; or
(D) the business intends to construct new
transmission facilities or upgrade existing
transmission facilities at designated locations in
Illinois, for which construction commenced not sooner
than July 1, 2001. For the purposes of this Section,
"transmission facilities" means transmission lines
with a voltage rating of 115 kilovolts or above,
including associated equipment, that transfer
electricity from points of supply to points of delivery
and that transmit a majority of the electricity
generated by a new electric generating facility
designated as a High Impact Business in accordance with
this Section. The business must certify in writing that
the investments necessary to construct new
transmission facilities or upgrade existing
transmission facilities would not be placed in service
without the tax credits and exemptions set forth in
subsection (b-5) of this Section. The term "placed in
service" has the same meaning as described in

HB1636 - 6 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
subsection (h) of Section 201 of the Illinois Income
Tax Act; or
(E) the business intends to establish a new wind
power facility at a designated location in Illinois.
For purposes of this Section, "new wind power facility"
means a newly constructed electric generation
facility, or a newly constructed expansion of an
existing electric generation facility, placed in
service on or after July 1, 2009, that generates
electricity using wind energy devices, and such
facility shall be deemed to include all associated
transmission lines, substations, and other equipment
related to the generation of electricity from wind
energy devices. For purposes of this Section, "wind
energy device" means any device, with a nameplate
capacity of at least 0.5 megawatts, that is used in the
process of converting kinetic energy from the wind to
generate electricity; or
(F) the business commits to (i) make a minimum
investment of $500,000,000, which will be placed in
service in a qualified property, (ii) create 125
full-time equivalent jobs at a designated location in
Illinois, (iii) establish a fertilizer plant at a
designated location in Illinois that complies with the
set-back standards as described in Table 1: Initial
Isolation and Protective Action Distances in the 2012

HB1636 - 7 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
Emergency Response Guidebook published by the United
States Department of Transportation, (iv) pay a
prevailing wage for employees at that location who are
engaged in construction activities, and (v) secure an
appropriate level of general liability insurance to
protect against catastrophic failure of the fertilizer
plant or any of its constituent systems; in addition,
the business must agree to enter into a construction
project labor agreement including provisions
establishing wages, benefits, and other compensation
for employees performing work under the project labor
agreement at that location; for the purposes of this
Section, "fertilizer plant" means a newly constructed
or upgraded plant utilizing gas used in the production
of anhydrous ammonia and downstream nitrogen
fertilizer products for resale; for the purposes of
this Section, "prevailing wage" means the hourly cash
wages plus fringe benefits for training and
apprenticeship programs approved by the U.S.
Department of Labor, Bureau of Apprenticeship and
Training, health and welfare, insurance, vacations and
pensions paid generally, in the locality in which the
work is being performed, to employees engaged in work
of a similar character on public works; this paragraph
(F) applies only to businesses that submit an
application to the Department within 60 days after the

HB1636 - 8 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 98th
General Assembly; or and
(G) the business intends to establish a new
qualified hydroponics facility or expand production at
an existing qualified hydroponics facility to engage
in the practice of hydroponics, provided that the
production operations result in the creation of at
least 25 full-time-equivalent Illinois jobs; for the
purposes of this paragraph:
"hydroponics" means a system in which
water-soluble nutrients are placed in intimate
contact with a plant's root system, being grown in
an inert supportive medium, which inert supportive
medium itself supplies physical support for the
roots and does not add or subtract plant nutrients;
"hydroponics production" means the production
of normally terrestrial, vascular plants in
nutrient rich solutions or in an inert, porous,
solid matrix bathed in nutrient rich solutions;
and
"qualified hydroponics facility" means real
property used for an indoor agriculture production
operation using hydroponics techniques or
practices for growing plants produced by
agriculture that are useful for human beings,
including, but not limited to, forages, field

HB1636 - 9 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
crops, sod, berries, herbs, fruits, vegetables,
flowers, seeds, and nursery stock; "qualified
hydroponics facility" does not include an indoor
agriculture production operation for growing
plants that are illegal under federal law; and
(4) no later than 90 days after an application is
submitted, the Department shall notify the applicant of the
Department's determination of the qualification of the
proposed High Impact Business under this Section.
(b) Businesses designated as High Impact Businesses
pursuant to subdivision (a)(3)(A) of this Section shall qualify
for the credits and exemptions described in the following Acts:
Section 9-222 and Section 9-222.1A of the Public Utilities Act,
subsection (h) of Section 201 of the Illinois Income Tax Act,
and Section 1d of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act; provided
that these credits and exemptions described in these Acts shall
not be authorized until the minimum investments set forth in
subdivision (a)(3)(A) of this Section have been placed in
service in qualified properties and, in the case of the
exemptions described in the Public Utilities Act and Section 1d
of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act, the minimum full-time
equivalent jobs or full-time retained jobs set forth in
subdivision (a)(3)(A) of this Section have been created or
retained. Businesses designated as High Impact Businesses
under this Section shall also qualify for the exemption
described in Section 5l of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act.

HB1636 - 10 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
The credit provided in subsection (h) of Section 201 of the
Illinois Income Tax Act shall be applicable to investments in
qualified property as set forth in subdivision (a)(3)(A) of
this Section.
(b-5) Businesses designated as High Impact Businesses
pursuant to subdivisions (a)(3)(B), (a)(3)(B-5), (a)(3)(C),
and (a)(3)(D) of this Section shall qualify for the credits and
exemptions described in the following Acts: Section 51 of the
Retailers' Occupation Tax Act, Section 9-222 and Section
9-222.1A of the Public Utilities Act, and subsection (h) of
Section 201 of the Illinois Income Tax Act; however, the
credits and exemptions authorized under Section 9-222 and
Section 9-222.1A of the Public Utilities Act, and subsection
(h) of Section 201 of the Illinois Income Tax Act shall not be
authorized until the new electric generating facility, the new
gasification facility, the new transmission facility, or the
new, expanded, or reopened coal mine is operational, except
that a new electric generating facility whose primary fuel
source is natural gas is eligible only for the exemption under
Section 5l of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act.
(b-6) Businesses designated as High Impact Businesses
pursuant to subdivision (a)(3)(E) of this Section shall qualify
for the exemptions described in Section 5l of the Retailers'
Occupation Tax Act; any business so designated as a High Impact
Business being, for purposes of this Section, a "Wind Energy
Business".

HB1636 - 11 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
(c) High Impact Businesses located in federally designated
foreign trade zones or sub-zones are also eligible for
additional credits, exemptions and deductions as described in
the following Acts: Section 9-221 and Section 9-222.1 of the
Public Utilities Act; and subsection (g) of Section 201, and
Section 203 of the Illinois Income Tax Act.
(d) Except for businesses contemplated under subdivision
(a)(3)(E) of this Section, existing Illinois businesses which
apply for designation as a High Impact Business must provide
the Department with the prospective plan for which 1,500
full-time retained jobs would be eliminated in the event that
the business is not designated.
(e) Except for new wind power facilities contemplated under
subdivision (a)(3)(E) of this Section, new proposed facilities
which apply for designation as High Impact Business must
provide the Department with proof of alternative non-Illinois
sites which would receive the proposed investment and job
creation in the event that the business is not designated as a
High Impact Business.
(f) Except for businesses contemplated under subdivision
(a)(3)(E) of this Section, in the event that a business is
designated a High Impact Business and it is later determined
after reasonable notice and an opportunity for a hearing as
provided under the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act, that
the business would have placed in service in qualified property
the investments and created or retained the requisite number of

HB1636 - 12 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
jobs without the benefits of the High Impact Business
designation, the Department shall be required to immediately
revoke the designation and notify the Director of the
Department of Revenue who shall begin proceedings to recover
all wrongfully exempted State taxes with interest. The business
shall also be ineligible for all State funded Department
programs for a period of 10 years.
(g) The Department shall revoke a High Impact Business
designation if the participating business fails to comply with
the terms and conditions of the designation. However, the
penalties for new wind power facilities or Wind Energy
Businesses for failure to comply with any of the terms or
conditions of the Illinois Prevailing Wage Act shall be only
those penalties identified in the Illinois Prevailing Wage Act,
and the Department shall not revoke a High Impact Business
designation as a result of the failure to comply with any of
the terms or conditions of the Illinois Prevailing Wage Act in
relation to a new wind power facility or a Wind Energy
Business.
(h) Prior to designating a business, the Department shall
provide the members of the General Assembly and Commission on
Government Forecasting and Accountability with a report
setting forth the terms and conditions of the designation and
guarantees that have been received by the Department in
relation to the proposed business being designated.
(Source: P.A. 97-905, eff. 8-7-12; 98-109, eff. 7-25-13.)

HB1636 - 13 - LRB101 07313 JWD 52353 b
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.