103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB1547
 
Introduced 2/8/2023, by Sen. Jil Tracy
 
SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act
20 ILCS 3855/1-129 new
30 ILCS 105/5.990 new

 Creates the Illinois Regional Generation Reliability Task Force Act. Sets forth findings of the General Assembly. Creates the Illinois Regional Generation Reliability Task Force. Provides that the Task Force shall monitor the reliability of the Illinois power grid. Contains provisions concerning: the membership of the Task Force; duties of the Task Force; administrative support; and an annual report. Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. Provides that the Carbon Capture Infrastructure Fund is created as a special fund in the State treasury and shall be administered by the Illinois Power Agency. Provides that $10,000,000 shall be transferred from the Illinois Power Agency Renewable Energy Resources Fund to the Carbon Capture Infrastructure Fund. Provides that the Agency shall award grants from the fund to carbon producing power plants for the construction of new carbon capture storage systems. Amends the State Finance Act to create the Carbon Capture Infrastructure Fund. Effective immediately.


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A BILL FOR
 


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1 AN ACT concerning State government.


2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 
3represented in the General Assembly: 



4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the 
5Illinois Regional Generation Reliability Task Force Act.

6 Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly hereby finds, 
7determines, and declares the following:
8  (1) The reliability of the electricity grid of the 
9 State is critically important to the consumers, 
10 businesses, and residents of this State and should not be 
11 compromised.
12  (2) The State has taken definitive steps toward 
13 redefining the generation mix in this State.
14  (3) The Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc. 
15 ("MISO") is an independent, not-for-profit, member-based 
16 organization responsible for operating the power grid 
17 across 15 states and the Canadian province of Manitoba, 
18 serving 42 million people.
19  (4) The PJM Interconnection LLC ("PJM"), is an 
20 independent not-for-profit, member-based Regional 
21 Transmission Organization ("RTO") that manages the 
22 operations, supply, and movement of power across 13 states 
23 and the District of Columbia, serving 65 million people.
 
 
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1  (5) The State is served by both PJM and MISO, which 
2 collectively ensure that sufficient electric power 
3 generation supply and transmission are available to meet 
4 electric demand every minute of every day for over 107 
5 million people across 28 states and 2 countries. Wholesale 
6 electric power generation is regulated by the Federal 
7 Energy Regulatory Commission due to the interstate and 
8 international nature of the transmission grid operated by 
9 PJM and MISO. As such, policy changes at the State level 
10 can affect the reliability, availability, and cost of 
11 power for seniors, families, businesses, municipalities, 
12 universities, and hospitals across the region.
13  (6) When natural disasters occur, such as ice storms, 
14 blizzards, tornadoes, and hurricanes, states participating 
15 in PJM and MISO have provided support to each other 
16 through power generation restoration missions. The 
17 inability to deliver power generation in critical times 
18 can have a huge economic impact and can also result in 
19 death across the PJM and MISO regional transmission 
20 organizations.
21  (7) PJM and MISO have multiple markets in which power 
22 suppliers participate. The capacity market, day-ahead 
23 energy market, and frequency market are markets that power 
24 generators participate in to ensure over 107 million 
25 people across 28 states and 2 countries receive the right 
26 amount of electricity every minute of every day.
 
 
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1   (A) Capacity markets are used in wholesale 
2 electricity markets to pay resources for being 
3 available to meet peak electricity demand. Capacity is 
4 not actual electricity but rather the ability to 
5 produce electricity when called upon. Capacity is 
6 procured sometimes multiple years in advance of when 
7 it is needed, based on projections of future energy 
8 needs using historical demand requirements.
9   (B) The day-ahead energy market lets market 
10 participants commit to buy or sell wholesale 
11 electricity one day before the power is needed, to 
12 help avoid price volatility. The real-time energy 
13 market balances the differences between day-ahead 
14 commitments and the actual real-time demand for and 
15 production of electricity.
16   (C) The power grid operates, and shall be 
17 maintained, at a constant frequency of 60 hertz. 
18 Significant deviation from this level can result in 
19 catastrophic damage to the power grid as well as 
20 household appliances. Frequency is maintained when 
21 electric generators automatically add or remove power 
22 from the grid. For example, a large power plant 
23 suddenly tripping offline reduces the total amount of 
24 available kinetic energy, leading the rotating 
25 generators on the system to start rotating less 
26 rapidly and thereby decreasing the alternating current 
 
 
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1 frequency across the grid system. Since a generator 
2 turbine's rotational velocity is directly coupled to 
3 the grid frequency, the generator's control systems 
4 can sense this frequency decline as an indicator of 
5 insufficient energy provision. The control system 
6 within each power plant, which usually has been in the 
7 form of a governor, can then automatically increase 
8 the plant's power output. This process is autonomous 
9 because the governor does not have to wait for a 
10 central dispatcher to send a signal, thus bypassing 
11 communications system delays.
12  (8) The shifting generation mix in PJM and MISO will 
13 require optimum performance and an increased focus on the 
14 need to retain reliability as certain existing generators 
15 shut down operations and new, intermittent generators are 
16 added. Additionally, increased power generation 
17 consumption due to increased electric vehicles and 
18 charging stations, along with increased electrification of 
19 building heating needs, will undoubtedly place greater 
20 demand on the power system.
21  (9) The State has a responsibility to ensure that the 
22 performance of State and regional power grids are safe, 
23 reliable, and maintain the necessary capacity to meet the 
24 power demands of residents of this State. Additionally, 
25 the State has an obligation to do its part to ensure the 
26 regional power grid is safe and reliable for its 
 
 
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1 partnering states. As part of the regional power grid, 
2 this State should be concerned that shuttered facilities 
3 in this State will be replaced by higher cost, higher 
4 emissions resources from other states.

5 Section 10. Illinois Regional Generation Reliability Task 
6Force.
7 (a) The Illinois Regional Generation Reliability Task 
8Force is created. The
Task Force shall monitor the reliability 
9of the power grid of this State. The Task Force should consider 
10the present and future needs of consumers of this State while 
11simultaneously addressing any issues related to the 
12performance and reliability of power generation and 
13transmission and being mindful of the ultimate cost to 
14consumers.
15 (b) The duties and responsibilities of the Task Force

16include the following:
17  (1) identifying and assessing policies, rules, and 
18 laws that have the potential to significantly affect the 
19 reliability of the State and regional power grids;
20  (2) developing a set of standards and conditions that 
21 will ensure optimal performance of the State and regional 
22 power grids based on new and emerging technologies;
23  (3) identifying opportunities to improve the power 
24 supply mix in this State through existing and new laws to 
25 ensure continued power reliability at affordable rates for 
 
 
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1 consumers of this State;
2  (4) compiling research and best practices from other 
3 states and countries on how to deploy technology to 
4 benefit the performance and reliability of the power grid;
5  (5) developing tools to assess the impact of proposed 
6 policies and evaluate their costs and benefits on 
7 families, employers, the public, this State, and other 
8 states as part of the State and regional power grids;
9  (6) identifying data, reports, and relevant 
10 information on the performance of the power grid to ensure 
11 reliability and that pricing of power generation is in the 
12 best interest of families, businesses, and communities in 
13 this State;
14  (7) providing its findings and recommendations for 
15 policy changes and any revisions to policies, rules, and 
16 laws that will facilitate the stability and reliability of 
17 the State and regional power grids on an annual basis to 
18 the General Assembly; and
19  (8) developing and proposing legislative concepts to 
20 ensure the future stability and reliability of the power 
21 grid.

22 Section 15. Membership; meetings. 
23 (a) The members of the Illinois Regional Generation 
24Reliability Task Force shall be composed of the following:
25  (1) three Senators appointed by the President of the 
 
 
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1 Senate, one of whom shall be designated by the President 
2 as the co-chair of the Task Force;

3  (2) three Representatives appointed by the Speaker of 
4 the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be 
5 designated by the Speaker as the co-chair of the Task 
6 Force;

7  (3) three Senators appointed by the Minority Leader of 
8 the Senate;

9  (4) three Representatives appointed by the Minority 
10 Leader of the House of Representatives;

11  (5) one member appointed by the Governor whose sole 
12 role is dedicated to energy policy for the State;

13  (6) one member of a State or local labor organization 
14 appointed by the President of the Senate;

15  (7) one member of a State or local labor organization 
16 appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;

17  (8) one representative from PJM RTO, designated by 
18 PJM;

19  (9) one representative from the PJM Independent Market 
20 Monitor organization, designated by the PJM Independent 
21 Market Monitor organization;

22  (10) one representative from MISO RTO, designated by 
23 MISO;

24  (11) one representative from the MISO Independent 
25 Market Monitor organization, designated by the MISO 
26 Independent Market Monitor organization;

 
 
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1  (12) six representatives from 6 different power 
2 generation companies that operate in the PJM or MISO 
3 regional transmission organization, 2 appointed by the 
4 President of the Senate, 2 appointed by the Speaker of the 
5 House of Representatives, one appointed by the Minority 
6 Leader in the Senate, and one appointed by the Minority 
7 Leader in the House of Representatives;

8  (13) one representative from a statewide organization 
9 representing retail merchants, appointed by the President 
10 of the Senate;

11  (14) one representative from a statewide organization 
12 representing manufacturers, appointed by the Speaker of 
13 the House of Representatives;

14  (15) one representative from a statewide organization 
15 representing retired people, appointed by the Speaker of 
16 the House of Representatives;

17  (16) one representative from a minority-owned 
18 geothermal group, appointed by the President of the 
19 Senate;

20  (17) one representative from a statewide organization 
21 representing business, appointed by the Speaker of the 
22 House of Representatives;

23  (18) two representatives from environmental law 
24 groups, one appointed by the President of the Senate and 
25 one appointed by the Speaker of the House of 
26 Representatives;

 
 
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1  (19) the Director of the Illinois Power Agency, or the 
2 Director's designee;

3  (20) the Director of the Environmental Protection 
4 Agency, or the Director's designee; and

5  (21) the Chair of the Illinois Commerce Commission, or 
6 the Chair's designee.

7 (b) Appointments for the Task Force shall be made by May 1, 
82023. The Task Force shall hold 7 meetings annually, either 
9remotely or in person, and the first meeting shall be held 
10within 30 days after appointments are made.
11 (c) Members of the Task Force shall serve without 
12compensation.
13 (d) The Illinois Commerce Commission shall provide 
14administrative support to the Task Force in conjunction with 
15the independent market monitors for the MISO and PJM regional 
16transmission organizations.

17 Section 20. Annual report.
18 (a) The Illinois Regional Generation Reliability Task 
19Force shall issue an annual report based upon its findings in 
20the course of performing its duties and responsibilities. The 
21report shall be written by the administrative staff of the 
22Task Force and with staff assistance from the independent 
23market monitors from the MISO and PJM regional transmission 
24organizations.
25 (b) The Illinois Regional Generation Reliability Task 
 
 
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1Force shall submit its first report on October 1, 2023, and 
2each October 1 thereafter to the General Assembly upon the 
3completion of its meeting schedule and shall continue to issue 
4reports each year.

5 Section 25. The Illinois Power Agency Act is amended by 
6adding Section 1-129 as follows:

7 (20 ILCS 3855/1-129 new)
8 Sec. 1-129. Carbon Capture Infrastructure Fund.
9 (a) The Carbon Capture Infrastructure Fund is created as a 
10special fund in the State treasury.
11 (b) The Carbon Capture Infrastructure Fund shall be 
12administered by the Agency to award grants for the 
13construction of new carbon capture storage systems.
14 (c) As soon as practicable after the effective date of 
15this amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly, $10,000,000 
16shall be transferred from the Illinois Power Agency Renewable 
17Energy Resources Fund to the Carbon Capture Infrastructure 
18Fund.
19 (d) The Agency shall award grants from the Carbon Capture 
20Infrastructure Fund to carbon producing power plants in this 
21State for the construction of new carbon capture storage 
22systems.
23 (e) The Agency shall adopt rules to implement this 
24Section. 

 
 
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1 Section 30. The State Finance Act is amended by adding 
2Section 5.990 as follows:

3 (30 ILCS 105/5.990 new)
4 Sec. 5.990. The Carbon Capture Infrastructure 
Fund.


5 Section 999. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
6becoming law.