Climate Change

How does ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ impact energy sector?

The recently passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act includes significant changes to the way we create and pay for energy. The legislation rolls back investment in clean energy, aiming to return the focus to oil and natural gas. How might these moves impact the wallet of the average Illinoisan?  The non-partisan think tank Energy Innovation found that in […]

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Illinois bet on solar to meet its climate goals. Trump has the industry in his crosshairs.

Illinois Environmental Council senior policy manager Cate Caldwell said the state has “long led” on environmental issues and that lawmakers should act in their shortened October legislative session. “While this federal budget threatens to reverse that progress, Illinois can instead double down on its climate commitments and invest in real, bold climate solutions that modernize

Illinois bet on solar to meet its climate goals. Trump has the industry in his crosshairs. Read More »

Illinois clean energy hit hard by Trump’s ‘big, beautiful’ tax bill: ‘An incredibly damaging blow’

Among those who want to respond to the Trump bill with strong state action is Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, which advocates for more than 100 organizations. Illinois environmentalists have been pushing for the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act, which would expand energy efficiency in Illinois and encourage renewable energy

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How Trump’s megabill affects Illinois’ environment

What they’re saying: “Lowering families’ energy costs and making our air cleaner should be something we all agree on, and yet Trump and his cronies would rather gut clean energy and pollution reduction programs to fund tax breaks for billionaires,” Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, said in a statement. Read the full

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Energy policy changes in “big, beautiful bill” will affect consumers, climate, experts say

“Really, really dramatic impacts with these cuts,” said Chelsea Biggs of the Illinois Environmental Council. In Illinois, the League of Conservation Voters is estimating that homeowners will pay $168 more in energy bills a year — with a 21% increase in commercial and industrial energy bills. But Biggs said this won’t just cost consumers. “These

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Illinois environmental advocates aim to strengthen ties with lawmakers, increase outreach amid federal policy changes

CHAMPAIGN — Illinois environmental advocates are working to strengthen their connections with lawmakers and communities across the state while the legislature is in recess. On Saturday, June 28, progressive organizations gathered in Champaign for a convention hosted by Indivisible Illinois. The event allowed the groups to share their priorities for the rest of the year.  Among the

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Big Ugly Bill Passes U.S. Congress, Reversing Critical Climate and Environment Protections

State-level action needed to safeguard consumers and Illinois’ climate goals ILLINOIS — Today, U.S. Congressional Republicans passed H.R.1, informally known as the “Big Beautiful Bill,” a sweeping reconciliation package that dismantles the landmark provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act while expanding fossil fuel development, rolling back environmental protections, restricting safety net programs, and extending high-income

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Clean energy job training offers hope to hundreds: ‘It’s changed my life’

“This is one of the difficulties with having such nation-leading legislation,” said Francisco Lopez Zavala, an Illinois Environmental Council climate policy program associate. “There was no other state in the U.S. to really model off in the efforts Illinois is leading in, with providing these trainings focused on the clean energy trade at such a

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An Illinois bill seeking to supercharge battery storage failed. Now what?

Supporters hoped the legislation would accelerate the state’s clean energy transition, but it stalled amid opposition from unions, farmers, and fossil-fuel groups. “There were some pretty significant wrenches” thrown in the works in the final days of negotiations, said Hannah Flath, spokesperson for the Illinois Environmental Council, an advocacy group. ​“Some things we just couldn’t untangle.”

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Shine On: Illinois Hopes to Continue Solar Boom Despite Federal Headwinds

Renewable energy advocates point to a 2021 law and state dollars as reasons for optimism in a challenging time. Illinois Shines, the state’s incentive program for on-site and community solar, is funded through a dedicated line item on ratepayer electric bills, noted Samira Hanessian, director of energy policy for the Illinois Environmental Council, an umbrella

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Illinois legislators skip on several environmental bills

Some big environmental bills — dealing with transit, clean energy, plastics and more — fizzled last week in Springfield. Advocates say they’re ready to pick up the pieces. Why it matters: State environmental protections have grown in importance for climate advocates as the Trump administration rolls back regulations at the federal level. Biggest losses Public transit: The General Assembly’s failure

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Illinois’ Climate Goals and Consumers At Risk Amidst Legislature’s Inaction

Illinois General Assembly misses opportunity to deliver cleaner, lower-cost, more reliable energy amidst rising costs, increasingly extreme weather, and federal mismanagement. ILLINOIS — Today, just one day before energy bills are expected to spike across Illinois, the General Assembly failed to pass the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability (CRGA) Act, which would have taken critical

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Smoke from Canadian wildfires moving into Chicago area, raising concerns about air quality

Smoke from out-of-control wildfires in Canada is drifting into the Chicago area on Friday, and while conditions won’t be as severe as when smoke from Canadian wildfires repeatedly blanketed Chicago two years ago, the haze is nonetheless raising public health concerns. Environmental experts said Chicagoans should pay attention to any alerts and be conscious of air quality. Canadian officials

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Illinois’ Environmental Organizations Admonish U.S. House Republican Budget as Extreme, Expensive, and Anti-Environment

Rep. LaHood receives backlash for voting to strip constituents of major local investments ILLINOIS — Today, U.S. House Republicans passed the most anti-environment budget reconciliation bill in history, gutting federal environmental protections and consumer cost-saving measures that protect working families, create good-paying clean energy jobs, and safeguard our climate. The bill now heads to the

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‘Bring Your Own New Clean Energy’: a proposed fix for Illinois’ power grid shortcomings draws criticism from manufacturers

Illinois has a growing energy problem. There are a few reasons for why that is — coal and natural gas plants are closing, and regional grid operators are acting too slowly in connecting new wind and solar projects to the larger grid, but above all else, the state is using more energy than it ever

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Activists rally for climate legislation in Springfield during annual Climate Action Lobby Day

Hannah Flath, the senior climate communications manager for the Illinois Environmental Council, said the day gave advocates a unique opportunity to speak directly to elected representatives.  “Our lawmakers work for us,” Flath said. “And so lobby day gives constituents across the state the opportunity to voice their opinions with their lawmakers and urge them to

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Summer electric price spike fuels policy tensions in Springfield

Price hike due to lack of energy supply comes alongside rocky transition to renewable power. Customers around Illinois will see significantly higher prices on their electric bills next month. “We’re trying to keep prices low while combating climate change,” Jen Walling, head of the Illinois Environmental Council, told Capitol News Illinois. The IEC has been

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As U.S. House Republicans Pass the Most Expensive Anti-Environment Bill in History, Illinoisans Call for State Action on Climate and Consumer Protections

ILLINOIS – Early Thursday morning, House Republicans passed a reconciliation bill that wipes out good-paying clean energy jobs and raises energy costs for families by gutting the historic progress made in the bipartisan Inflation Reduction Act. Hours earlier at the Illinois State Capitol on Wednesday, hundreds of community leaders, environmental advocates, faith leaders, business representatives, consumer

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Opinion: An urgent, united call to save — and strengthen — public transit

Public transit is the backbone of our economy, connecting millions of commuters, tourists and visitors to work, our world-class museums and arts institutions, school, health care and more every single day. Yet, across the country, cities are facing multimillion-dollar transit budget shortfalls — or a “transit fiscal cliff.” Chicago is no different. We’re at a

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