ISSUES STILL LINGERING IN OVERTIME SESSION
Aside from the budget, the following are a few legislative measures that have had their deadlines for passage extended. These issues may be acted upon during the overtime session.
Cook County Property Taxes
Cook County Assessor Jim Houlihan’s Office was able to advance his coveted property tax measure, SB 13 (Link, D-Lake Bluff), out of the House late last week after the measure underwent some serious changes. The bill that passed would extend the assessment cap on residential property for three years with the maximum exemption to be $30,000 for the first year (currently at $20,000), $24,000 for the second year, $18,000 for the third year, and then $6,000 for every year after that.
As the business and education community were still very much opposed to even this gradual phase-down, many feel good property tax measures were incorporated into the bill that made it virtually impossible for lawmakers to vote against. The general homestead exemption was increased as was several other property tax exemptions for the elderly, longtime owner/occupants, veterans, firefighters etc.
Like the previous bills that have been introduced, this proposal has effectively shifted the property tax burden onto industrial and commercials properties. As a result, over half of the homes in Chicago and all industrial and commercial property saw tax increases as a result of this 7% cap. The higher property value homes were the ones that received the lion share of the benefit of this assessment cap, paid for by a greater shift to industrial and commercial property owners and lower property value homes.
CICI Position: Oppose
Electricity Rate Relief/Electric Generation Tax
A measure is afoot in the General Assembly during this overtime session to not only re-establish an electricity rate freeze for residential and small business customers, but also enact a tax on electricity generators. The measure, SB 1592 (Forby, D-Benton), can be accessed here through this link: http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=09500SB1592ham003&GA=95&SessionId=51&DocTypeId=SB&LegID=29675&DocNum=1592&GAID=9&Session=
The language of the tax begins on page 52.
This tax would be levied at the rate of $70,000 per megawatt of generating capacity per generating unit. The tax would not apply to the following:
• a generating unit owned by a municipality or an electric cooperative
• a generating unit that generates electricity from a renewable energy resource
• a generating unit designed to produce both heat and electricity from a single heat source
• a generating unit operated fewer than 876 hours during the taxable year (or fewer than 438 hours during taxable year 2007, or
• generating unit that is owned by a vertically integrated utility
The money from this tax would be deposited in a fund used to subsidize residential and some small businesses’ electricity bills since electric deregulation came online January 1, 2007.
It has been CICI’s contention all along that any effort to “freeze” residential rates will likely be done at the expense of industrial users. This tax is no different, as it will eventually be put off onto industrial users.
3% Payroll Tax for Universal Health Insurance
Unless you have 10 or fewer employees, a 3% payroll tax will be levied on every employer in the state if SB 5 (Jones, E., D-Chicago) is enacted into law. The funds from this tax would be used to cover expenses for Governor Blagojevich’s prized Illinois Covered, a program to ensure everyone in the state has health insurance.
Universal state sponsored healthcare will cost approximately $4 billion a year. Most of this money was supposed to come from the Gross Receipts Tax (GRT). Now that that the GRT is dead, the program has no real funding source but that won’t interfere with the Governor’s desire to move this bill out of the Senate. An amendment may be attached to this measure to strip off its immediate effective date so that the bill only needs the bare minimum of 30 votes to pass the Senate.
The business community, regardless of an employer’s commitment to providing quality healthcare benefits to its employees, would be mandated to front the expenses of this program. Over 200,000 Illinois employers will pay approximately $2.2 billion in payroll taxes. However, if you already have a qualifying health insurance plan, and it’s deemed adequate by the state, you supposedly will get a refund of your 3%.
CICI and the entire state’s employer community are aggressively fighting this tax.
Trucking Fee – Biodiesel Use
This proposal, HB 3667 (Moffitt, R-Galesburg), provides that, beginning January 1, 2008 and through December 31, 2013, the owner of a vehicle for which biodiesel has been purchased during the previous registration year is entitled to a reduction of the commercial distribution fee for that vehicle and sets forth the amount of the reduction based upon the amount of biodiesel purchased.
This fee was established as part of Governor Blagojevich’s first budget in which many new and increased taxes and fees were enacted. This bill is awaiting action on the Senate Floor, the deadline for which has been extended until December 31, 2007.
Auto Emissions Standards
This legislation, HB 3424 (May, D-Highland Park), mandates that the IEPA and IPCB enact a rule for a Clean Car Program under Section 177 of the federal Clean Air Act establishing new motor vehicle emission standards for cars 2011 or newer. This bill is still awaiting action on the House Floor with the passage deadline extended until this Friday, June 8.
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BILLS ADVANCING TO THE GOVERNOR
The following bills have made it through the legislative process and are awaiting gubernatorial action. Once the governor receives the bill, he has 60 days in which to act upon it or it automatically becomes law. CICI will be issuing another Legisletter later in the summer detailing any gubernatorial action on these bills.
Awards for Grief, Sorrow and Mental Suffering (PA 95-3)
This is a measure not quite as controversial as their deep pockets legislation (SB 1296) pushed by the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association but HB 1798 (Fritchey, D-Chicago), which is already been signed into law, nonetheless went after the state’s business community with the aim of increasing award damages for grief, sorrow and mental suffering in wrongful death cases. The legislation also originally added damages in cases where contributory negligence is a factor, redistributing any reduction of a contributory negligent party's damage award to dependents of the decedent. Under the current proposal, reductions based on contributory fault are not paid to anyone. This particular language was removed at the request of the insurance industry, thus removing the insurance industry’s opposition; however, the state’s business community was still very much opposed to this piece of legislation.
CICI Position: Oppose
Electricity Reciprocity Agreements
This CICI-supported measure, HB 894 (Beiser, D-Alton), changes the 1997 electricity deregulation law to remove a provision requiring that, in order to grant a certificate of service authority, the Illinois Commerce Commission must find that an applicant, its corporate affiliates, or its principal source of electricity provides delivery services to the electric utility or utilities in whose service area or areas the transmission or distribution of electricity to end users will be offered that are reasonably comparable to those offered by the electric utility.
This issue has long been debated in the courts since the 1997 deregulation law took effect. It was put into statute at the behest of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), who wanted job protections, and the utility generators, who didn’t want the competition. However, during the 10-year rate freeze period, generation in the state went from 60% to 90% capacity and utility generators no longer worried about other Alternative Retail Electric Suppliers (ARES) coming into the state and IBEW maintained their job protections, although some local union shops are divided on this issue.
If this measure is enacted into law, it would remove a huge barrier to competition for the electricity market in Illinois by encouraging more ARES’s, which, in turn, could mean better prices/rates for electricity.
CICI Position: Support
Biomonitoring Feasibility Study
This measure, HB 680 (Nekritz, D-Northbrook), sets out for the University of Illinois at Chicago, the Great Lakes Center for Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health (Center), to conduct an environmental contaminant biomonitoring feasibility study that proposes the best ways to monitor the presence and concentration of designated chemicals in the bodies of the people of this State. The bill also provides for a Scientific Guidance Panel that will be composed of 11 members appointed by the Directors of Public Health and the IEPA and provides guidance to the Center. After 2 years, the Center would submit a report to the Governor and the General Assembly containing findings of the feasibility study and include recommended activities and estimated costs of establishing an Illinois Environmental Contaminant Biomonitoring Program.
While this bill is significantly different than what was introduced earlier this year, CICI worked with the sponsor in changing some of the language.
CICI Position: Neutral
Mercury Thermostats and Added Products
This proposal, SB 1241 (Hunter, D-Chicago), prohibits the installation of thermostats containing mercury in new construction beginning July 1, 2008, then prohibits the sale of thermostats that contain mercury beginning July 1, 2010, and further provides that, beginning July 1, 2008, thermostats that contain mercury must not be disposed of in a landfill or incinerated. This is a sister bill to HB 943 (May, D-Highland Park), which bans certain mercury added products, mostly in medical equipment.
It is the IEPA’s desire to negotiate a mercury thermostat recycling program much along the lines of what was agreed to with auto manufacturers concerning mercury switches in salvage yards.
CICI Position: Neutral
Great Lakes Compact
This legislation, HB 375 (Franks, D-Woodstock) creates the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact Act and authorizes the governor to enter into the compact between the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The bill also creates the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Council, which will consist of the governors of the parties to the compact ex officio and provides that all appointments by the governor would be subject to the advice and consent of the Senate.
This bill is just one aspect of a major initiative between the Great Lakes states and Canadian provinces designed to protect the integrity of the world’s largest fresh water supply. The bill further provides for numerous specific requirements that would be contained in the compact and requires the Department of Natural Resources and other state agencies to perform, at the direction of the Governor, the functions and duties required of Illinois under the compact.
Since the flow of the Chicago River was reversed in the early 20th century, water from Lake Michigan that is used in Illinois has been diverted to the Mississippi River watershed. That diversion is governed by a 1967 U.S. Supreme Court decree and a 1980 amendment. The 1967 decree limits the amount diverted to 3,200 cubic feet per second, averaged over 5 years. The 1980 amendment made technical changes to permit Illinois' effective use and management of the permitted diversion, increasing the averaging period to 40 years and adding a goal to reduce withdrawals from the Cambrian-Ordovician (deep bedrock) aquifer. For right now, this Supreme Court decree would govern Illinois’ water usage from Lake Michigan, not this Compact.
CICI Position: Neutral
Phosphorus in Detergents
This measure, HB 819 (Joyce, D-Chicago), was debated two years ago as the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) of Greater Chicago attempted to remove phosphorus in automatic dishwashing detergents. An agreement between the MWRD and the detergent manufacturers produced this proposal which will reduce the amount of phosphorus in automatic dishwashing detergents from 0.8% to 0.5% by July 1, 2010. The bill further prohibits home rule unit of local governments from regulating phosphorus in detergents.
CICI Position: Support
MWRD – Water Quality Projects
This proposal, HB 679 (McCarthy, D-Orland Park), changes the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) Act to establish that the term "construction purposes" includes water quality improvement projects and that they may issue bonds for the purpose of replacing, remodeling, completing, altering, constructing and enlarging water quality improvement projects.
CICI Position: Neutral
Green Cleaning in Schools
This proposal, HB 895 (May, D-Highwood), creates the Green Cleaning Schools Act to require the Illinois Green Government Coordinating Council (IGGCC), in consultation with other agencies and interested stakeholders, including representatives of cleaning products, to establish guidelines and specifications for environmentally-sensitive cleaning and maintenance products for use in school facilities. CICI and the Consumer Specialty Products Association (CSPA), originally opposed to the bill, worked with the sponsor of the measure to include various avenues for which these types of products can become certified with the concern for allowing the use of disinfectants, sanitizers, and anti-microbial agents.
CICI Position: Neutral
NPDES Fee Exceptions
This piece of legislation, SB 1663 (Trotter, D-Chicago), creates a fee exception for construction site storm water discharges for which a new NPDES permit is issued during the months of January through June. The bill states that no annual fee shall be due for the 12 months beginning July 1 that immediately follow the period for which the initial annual fee was due.
CICI Position: Neutral
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LEGISLATION FAILING TO ADVANCE
The following bills failed to advance through the legislative process and are for all intensive purposes dead until the legislature returns for the Fall Veto Session in November. It should be noted, however, that CICI expects many of these issues to resurface in the Fall.
Flame Retardant Ban
This bill, HB 1421 (Nekritz, D-Northbrook), would ban deca brominated diphenyl ethers (decaBDE), the most widely used of the brominated flame retardants, in mattresses, mattress pads, articles of furniture, televisions, computers, or other electronic devices. The bill specifically exempts automobiles, not because decaBDE is any different in automobiles, but to lessen the bill’s opposition.
This product is widely regarded as safe by many health agencies around the globe and is a proven flame retardant that has been a component of diminished fire, injury, and casualty statistics around the country, saving the lives of those most vulnerable – children, the elderly, and, of course, firefighters.
While only a few of our members manufacture the flame retardant decaBDE (decabromino diphenyl ether), its ban would have serious repercussions for the entire chemical industry. This product is widely regarded as safe by health agencies around the globe and is a proven flame retardant that has been a component of diminished fire, injury, and casualty statistics around the country, saving the lives of those most vulnerable – children, the elderly, and, of course, firefighters. No state or any jurisdiction in the country has banned this product and no one can show that anyone has ever been harmed in anyway by this product. If Illinois can ban this safe and widely used flame retardant from existence, it can probably ban any chemical. Your products could be next.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
“Deep Pockets” Legislation
While it may not matter now that session is officially in overtime and this measure, SB 1296 (Cullerton, D-Chicago), would require 71 votes in the House because of its immediate effective date, but it’s passage deadline was extended until June 8. This extension is probably the best news the trial lawyers can expect to receive on this bill as the business community has successfully allied themselves with powerful local governments, including the City of Chicago and Cook County in opposing this onerous measure. Nevertheless, it’s still on the House Floor, even though most don’t expect this bill to be called for a vote
This measure would provide that the apportionment of fault under joint liability only applies to the parties still remaining in the case at the time that a final determination is made. There is only one purpose for this bill: to enable personal injury trial lawyers to collect money from the defendant with the deepest pocket in a personal injury case, without regard to which of multiple defendants might be most at fault. The trial lawyers can settle with those with the least financial resources -- even if they are most at fault – and go after the defendant with the most financial resources, even if that defendant had little fault.
This bill will enable the plaintiff to manipulate the defendant’s liability by preventing the jury from considering the fault of parties with whom the plaintiff chose to settle or dismiss. By manipulating the calculation of fault, the plaintiff’s lawyer will be able to pursue deep pocket defendants and require them to pay more than their fair share of liability.
The goal of the current law is to provide fairness by allowing a jury to determine which people were really at fault for causing an accident and to require minimally responsible parties to pay only their proportionate share of damages. The trial lawyers want this law changed in the name of more substantial jury awards.
Location: House Floor CICI Position: Oppose
Displaced Building Service Workers
This measure, SB 1427 (Sandoval, D-Cicero), is a coveted piece of legislation for the Service Employee International Union (SEIU) that has been around the Capitol for years now. It creates the Displaced Building Service Workers Protection Act to provide protections to building service employees who are regularly assigned to a covered building, (75,000 square feet or more) on a full or part-time basis for at least 25 working days immediately preceding a transition in employment and who perform work in connection with the care or maintenance of an existing building. The successor employer shall retain for a transition employment period of 25 working days at the affected site the building service employees of the terminated building service contractor and its subcontractors, or other covered employer, employed at the site covered by the terminated building service contract or owned or operated by the former covered employer. At the end of the 25 working day transition period, the successor employer shall perform written performance evaluations and offer continued employment to all covered building service employees who receive satisfactory ratings.
Location: Senate Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Energy Efficiency/Renewable Energy Measures
There have been a few bills this year dealing with renewable energy standards for utilities and energy efficiency standards. So far, all of them have stalled in the process. These bills are SB 1184 and SB 877 (Harmon, D-Oak Park), which mandates cost-effective renewable energy resources for electric utilities, HB 1871 (Nekritz, D-Northbrook), which mandates a renewable energy portfolio standard for renewable sources such as wind energy, and HB 1842 (Hamos, D-Evanston), which mandates an energy efficient residential building code for all new home construction.
Location: House/Senate Rules CICI Position: Support/Neutral
IEPA Deputy Director for Climate Change
This measure, SB 9 (Garrett, D-Lake Forest), allows the Governor to appoint a deputy director at the IEPA who is charged with coming up with a plan, by July 1, 2008, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Neutral
Gas Tax Exemption for Manufacturing
This bill, SB 1697 (Jacobs, D-East Moline), amends the Gas Use Tax Law and Gas Revenue Tax Act to provide that the tax is not imposed with respect to any use by most manufacturers including chemical, petroleum, paint, fertilizer, plastic, and photographic manufacturing.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Support
R & D Tax Credit
This measure, SB 1180 (Link, D-Lake Bluff), creates an alternate research and development credit for taxpayers who have conducted business activities in each of the 3 preceding taxable years at 12% of: (1) the amount of qualified research expenditures made in the current taxable year; less (2) 50% of the average of the qualified research expenditures made for the 3 preceding taxable years. The amount of the credit for taxpayers who have not conducted business activities in each of the 3 preceding taxable years is 6.5% of the qualified research expenditures made in the current taxable year. These credits may be carried forward for 5 years.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Support
Repeal of Commercial Distribution Fee
This piece of legislation, HB 1113 (Gordon, D-Coal City), repeals the commercial distribution fee on trucks that the Blagojevich Administration enacted in 2003. The bill doesn’t include reestablishment of the Rolling Stock Sales Tax Exemption which was repealed in 2003.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Support
Real Estate Transfer Taxes
This proposal, SB 445 (Martinez, D-Chicago), would enact the largest real estate transfer tax hikes in the state’s history to abundantly fund state housing projects and open space lands acquisition. This is a $100 million tax hike on anyone in the state that sells real estate and would be disproportionately paid for by the business community. While the deadline for passage has been extended until December 31, 2007, CICI does not expect this legislation to move, at least until the Fall Veto Session, if that.
Location: Senate Floor CICI Position: Oppose
Legal Reforms
Several pieces of legislation have been introduced that aim at reforming the unfortunate nature of Illinois’ system of civil justice. Due to heavy opposition from the state’s trial lawyers, none of these measures were allowed to advance. State Senator Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale), Co-Chair of the Senate Judiciary-Civil Law Committee, is the sponsor of these measures, most of which has a House counterpart that also was not allowed to advance.
• Expert Testimony
This measure, SB 1549, establishes requirements for qualifications of "expert" witnesses and limits the testimony of non-experts. According to civil justice reform advocates, the bill sets the same standards for admissibility of expert testimony as is in practice in federal courts and provides guidelines to assure that expert testimony is reliable and trustworthy before it is presented in court.
• Asbestos Evidence
This legislation, SB 1561, provides that in cases involving asbestos, defense counsel may present evidence of other sources of asbestos to which the plaintiff was exposed. The legislation would allow introducing questions such as: (1) whether the plaintiff had exposure to any asbestos manufactured by, processed by, or otherwise associated with any entity other than the defendant; (2) whether the plaintiff's exposure to asbestos was to asbestos exclusively manufactured by, processed by, or otherwise associated with the defendant; and (3) whether there is a causal relationship between the plaintiff's alleged injuries and the asbestos manufactured by, processed by, or otherwise associated with the defendant.
• Joint and Several Liability
This proposal, SB 1562, establishes proportionate liability so that each defendant is required to pay damages based on its degree of fault, rather than requiring any single defendant to pay all or most of damages.
• Class Action Suits
This piece of legislation, SB 1570, establishes a requirement that a court must determine that a proposed class action is superior to other available methods for the fair and efficient adjudication of the case at hand.
• Venue Reform
For those who have been sued in Madison and St. Clair Counties in Illinois, regardless of having no connection there whatsoever, this bill attempts to correct what is known as “venue shopping”, where trial lawyers seek out the most friendly and sympathetic courts for large verdicts to file their suits. This bill, SB 1571, sets guidelines as where civil actions can be initiated. According to an Illinois Civil Justice League (ICJL) study in 2005, Illinois has numerous counties heavily utilized for litigation that should be filed elsewhere.
• Consumer Fraud
This measure, SB 1572, clarifies that Illinois’ Consumer Fraud Act does not apply to damages for conduct resulting in bodily injury, death, or damage to property other than the property that is the subject of the practice claimed to be unlawful.
• Product Liability Reform
This proposal, SB 1573, includes the identical language found in the Civil Justice Reform Amendments of 1995, the comprehensive tort reform bill passed by the General Assembly but overturned by the Illinois Supreme Court. This portion of the 1995 legislation was not addressed by the Supreme Court, which invited the General Assembly to resubmit those provisions not overturned.
• Full and Fair Non-economic Damages
This legislation, SB 1574, is similar to legislation passed into law concerning medical malpractice suits. The bill would apply limits, or caps, on non-economic damage awards in all types of civil litigation, not just medical malpractice suits.
Interest Free NPDES Quarterly Payments
This bill, SB 1422 (Sullivan, D-Rushville), provides that the IEPA shall at a minimum include provisions in its NPDES program rules pertaining to an annual payment schedule and an interest-free quarterly payment schedule.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Support
Public Health Advocates
This bill, HB 1957 (Hernandez, D-Cicero), creates the Public Health Advocates Act to establish Public Health Advocates as a nonprofit membership corporation to effectively represent the interests of Illinois health care consumers. What brought this bill to the attention of CICI was a requirement of this nonprofit corporation to educate the public on environmental concerns and pharmaceutical dangers. CICI’s main concern is that these educational materials and information be based upon sound, peer-reviewed science and not junk science and fear mongering.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Bittering Agents in Antifreeze
This proposal, HB 186 (Winters, R-Rockford), provides that any engine coolant or antifreeze that is manufactured or sold in this state, after July 1, 2008, and that contains more than 10% ethylene glycol, shall include denatonium benzoate at a minimum of 30 parts per million and a maximum of 50 parts per million as a bittering agent within the product so as to render it unpalatable.
CICI was able to craft a compromise to this bill whereas the sponsor of the measure adopted a resolution, HJR 25, urging Congress to enact a bittering agent mandate nationwide to avoid state specific requirements.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Plastic Bag Recycling
This measure, HB 259 (Cole, R-Grayslake), requires retailers to implement a plastic bag collection and recycling program and provides for certain recycling program requirements. The bill also sets out that any retailer who violates these provisions is guilty of a business offense punishable by a fine of not more than $5,000.
A compromised version of this bill, SB 303 (Link, D-Lake Bluff), one that enacts a voluntary pilot recycling program for Lake County, has passed to the governor. CICI is neutral on that piece of legislation.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Electronic Scrap Recycling/Backdoor Chemical Bans
This proposal, SB 1583 (Garrett, D-Highwood), mandates fees and responsibilities on manufacturers and retailers for recycling covered electronic devices. The bill also prohibits certain substances like lead, mercury, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers unless already covered by exemption in the EU ROHS directive.
The sponsor stripped the language off of this bill and now exists as an empty shell on the Senate Floor. CICI is carefully monitoring any amendments to this bill.
Location: Senate Floor CICI Position: Oppose
Anhydrous Ammonia
This proposal, HB 363 (Winters, R-Rockford), states that beginning January 1, 2008, all anhydrous ammonia being stored in the state for agricultural use must contain calcium nitrate in an amount sufficient to inhibit the ability of the anhydrous ammonia to be used in the production of methamphetamine.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Safe Cosmetics/More Chemical Bans?
This measure, HB 476 (Flowers, D-Chicago), creates the Safe Cosmetics Act to mandate that beginning January 1, 2008, the manufacturer of any cosmetic product subject to regulation by the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that is sold in the state shall provide the Department of Public Health (IDPH) with a complete and accurate list of its cosmetic products that, as of the date of submission, are sold in the state and that contain any ingredient that is a chemical identified as causing cancer or reproductive toxicity. The IDPH may then conduct investigations of cosmetic products that contain chemicals identified as causing cancer or reproductive toxicity or other ingredients of concern in order to determine potential health effects of exposure to such ingredients.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Genetically Engineered Food/Right-To-Know
This measure, SB 419 (Burzynski, R-Sycamore), creates the Genetically Engineered Food Right-To-Know Act to provide that all foods containing genetically engineered material or produced with genetically engineered material must be clearly labeled as such.
Location: Senate Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Carbon Monoxide Food Label
This measure, HB 702 (Franks, D-Woodstock), creates the Carbon Monoxide Food Label Act provide that any food treated with carbon monoxide must be clearly marked with a label placed in a conspicuous location that indicates that the food has been treated with carbon monoxide.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Neutral
IEPA Permit – Pay Prevailing Wage
This bill, HB 1298 (Verschoore, D-Rock Island) provides that any construction, demolition, remediation, or renovation work that requires any permit issued by the IEPA with an aggregate amount of work in excess of $250,000 will pay workers a prevailing wage according to the Prevailing Wage Act.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Renewable Fuels Manufacturing Capacity
This measure, HB 1551 (Franks, D-Woodstock) amends the Illinois Renewable Fuels Development Program to provide that a grant recipient must be constructing, modifying, altering, or retrofitting a plant that has annual production capacity of no less than 5,000,000 gallons whereas it’s currently 30,000,000 gallons of renewable fuel per year.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Support
Renewable Fuels Grants
This bill, HB 3666 (Reis, R-Olney), amends the Renewable Fuels Development Program to increase the authorized annual aggregate grant amount from $20,000,000 to $25,000,000 a year beginning July 1, 2007.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Support
NOX Emissions
This measure, HB 3661 (Nekritz, D-Northbrook) provides that specified heavy-duty, diesel powered vehicles must be equipped with federally mandated computer hardware, software, or both, to control nitrogen oxide emissions.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Global Warming
This measure, HB 1874 (Nekritz, D-Northbrook) sets out that the IEPA and the IPCB will determine what the statewide greenhouse gas emissions level was in 1990 and propose statewide emission limits equal to that level to be achieved by 2020.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Neutral
More Global Warming
This proposal, SB 1187 (Harmon, D-Oak Park), creates the Global Warming Response Act and requires that on or before January 1, 2009, the IEPA and the IPCB adopt rules to require the reporting and verification of statewide greenhouse gas emissions and to monitor and enforce compliance with the program. The bill also requires that by July 1, 2008, the IEPA, after one or more public workshops, determine what the statewide greenhouse gas emissions level was in 1990 and propose to the IPCB a statewide greenhouse gas emission limit that is equivalent to that level, to be achieved by 2020.
Location: Senate Rules Committee CICI Position: Neutral
Carbon Tax
This bill, HB 1873 (Nekritz, D-Northbrook), is a carbon tax shell bill, meaning that there is no language in the bill yet, only a title. This type of tax, however, would hit manufacturers like ours particularly hard. Presumably this tax would levy either a specific dollar amount or a percentage on every ton of carbon, or other material, emitted into the atmosphere. It’s unclear at this time if the new revenues would go to the general fund or be used for environmental programs or the governor’s new energy proposals for increased renewable fuels, renewable energy sources and the like.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Oppose
Expedited Permits for Oil Refineries
This measure, HB 3671 (Meyer, R-Bolingbrook) requires a rulemaking processes for various state agencies to include a process for expediting the issuance of permits and licenses for oil refineries. Applicants must request the use of the expedited process and pay for any additional costs.
Location: Senate Rules Committee CICI Position: Neutral
Coal Gasification
This measure, HB 1431 (Hannig, D-Gillespie), extends to July 1, 2015, rather than July 1, 2008, the date by which a gas utility other than a gas utility located in Jefferson County must have received all necessary permits for the construction and operation, currently must have commenced construction, of a coal gasification facility in order for provisions authorizing the utility to enter into a 20-year supply contract with a company for synthetic natural gas produced from coal through the gasification process. The bill also changes the language of the current law to provide that price restrictions in a supply contract must be at a specified amount at the time the contract is signed, instead of at the time the contract term commences. The bill also makes changes to the method by which it is determined that the cost for synthetic natural gas under such a contract is reasonable and prudent and recoverable through the purchased gas adjustment clause except for a gas utility located in Jefferson County and further provides that a utility located in Jefferson County shall be limited to selling 50% of its output of natural gas.
Location: House Rules Committee CICI Position: Support
Please note that the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois Legislator is not intended to convey legal advice or set forth all legal requirements applicable to particular circumstances.
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