SB 1876

Abstract

Amends the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Provides that it is the policy of the State to promote and encourage the installation of distributed energy resources, such as distributed generation technology and advanced energy storage, and to limit obstacles to their use. Establishes that within 180 days of the effective date of the amendatory Act, the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall create and administer a grant program facilitating the implementation of an online permitting process for residential photovoltaic solar energy systems for the purpose of modernizing and reducing the cost and time to obtain building permits for distributed generation. Provides that jurisdictions requiring permits for such systems may apply for a grant of up to $20,000 from the Department. Requires the Department to allocate a minimum of $1,000,000 in eligible funds to provide grants under the program. Requires the Department to disclose in a report on its website each jurisdiction which received a grant, the amount of each grant, the anticipated implementation date of the recipient jurisdiction's automated permitting platform, and other relevant information.