HR0560 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0560 LRB099 12657 MST 36348 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Illinois has been a leader in energy production within the United States, in large part due to Illinois' vast coal resources; and

WHEREAS, Illinois has the largest recoverable bituminous coal reserves in the United States, a reserve base larger than all but 6 countries in the world, and the ability to produce all of America's electricity needs for 50 years; and

WHEREAS, Illinois is a net exporter of electricity, the largest electricity exporter in the Midwest, and one of the largest in the United States; nearly 45% of Illinois' energy comes from coal-burning plants within the State; and

WHEREAS, Coal power plants in the United States have met the environmental challenges of the past 4 decades while meeting the low-cost energy needs of the nation; and

WHEREAS, The Illinois coal industry is currently responsible for over $2,500,000,000 in annual economic activity within the State, including employing approximately 5,000 miners with an average salary of $85,000 a year, higher than both the United States and Illinois median household incomes; and

WHEREAS, The Illinois coal industry has faced increased environmental regulations in the last 2 decades that resulted in coal production going from 62 million tons of mined coal in 1990 to a low of 31 million tons in 2003 and a loss of 6,500 direct jobs during this time period; and

WHEREAS, The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 imposed strict sulfur dioxide (S02) emission standards, making coal mined in Illinois unusable without flue gas desulfurization (FGD) equipment, often referred to as "scrubbers"; and

WHEREAS, Technology can be deployed that allows high-sulfur Illinois coal to be burned efficiently while meeting strict State and federal air emission standards; specifically, the State of Illinois should be encouraging the retrofitting and use of advanced clean coal technologies such as flue gas desulfurization, wet electro-static precipitators (wet ESPs), and oxy-combustion; and

WHEREAS, Illinois currently exports coal to 18 states that utilize advanced clean coal technologies; and

WHEREAS, Illinois power plants currently use Wyoming coal despite the fact that advanced clean coal technology would allow the utilization of Illinois coal, saving Illinois consumers hundreds of millions of dollars; and

WHEREAS, It is costing Illinois consumers more than $1,000,000,000 annually to import coal from other states, primarily from Wyoming; and

WHEREAS, Using Illinois coal within Illinois would lead to substantial economic benefits by saving $1,000,000,000 in transportation costs and creating thousands of new jobs in mining and ancillary industries in currently economically depressed counties in central and southern Illinois while creating more State and local tax revenue; and

WHEREAS, Using Illinois coal within Illinois benefits the environment as well as the economy by reducing C02 emissions through the use of higher rank coals; and

WHEREAS, Switching to Illinois coal through the retrofitting and use of advanced clean coal technologies would reduce CO2 emissions by at least 4% annually because Illinois Basin Coal has a lower CO2 content than Wyoming coal, and an additional 20% reduction in CO2 emissions would result from the reduction in transportation related emissions annually; and

WHEREAS, The recent growth in Illinois coal production has been due to approximately $10 billion in new investment in the past 10 years in the Illinois coal fields producing low-cost coal and the retrofitting of pollution control technology in power plants throughout the United States in response to changes in the Clean Air Act mandating reduced air emissions; and

WHEREAS, The switch to Illinois coal will improve the competitiveness of Illinois power generation as Illinois coal has a lower delivered cost, stable pricing, and higher heat content; once retrofitted with advanced technology, Illinois power plants fired with Illinois coal should be more competitive in electricity markets, thereby helping to insure the continued generation of competitive power for both in-state customers and the out-of-state electricity market; and

WHEREAS, Much of the State of Illinois overlays the Mount Simon Sandstone, a saline-filled, porous, deep geological formation of enormous capacity that has been determined to be one of the most significant carbon resources in the United States, and its development could result in expanded use of Illinois coal in a carbon-constrained world; and

WHEREAS, It is vital that Illinois coal be considered part of an "All of the Above" approach to energy production in order to keep Illinois as a leader in energy production, job creation, economic growth, and environmental protection; and

WHEREAS, Illinois coal must be part of the solution to reducing the State's carbon emissions and complying with federal carbon emission requirements; and

WHEREAS, Sufficient studies have taken place, and the data is clear that Illinois power plants should be using Illinois coal; and

WHEREAS, Dynegy should offer to the people of the State of Illinois an explanation of its plans for its 10 coal-fired plants in Illinois; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Illinois Commerce Commission, the Illinois Power Agency, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and the Illinois Department of Revenue to take action to implement the use of Illinois coal; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge all agencies and stakeholders developing strategies to comply with new federal carbon emissions requirements to utilize Illinois coal to reduce carbon emissions; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge Dynegy to provide an explanation of its plans for its 10 coal-fired plants in Illinois to the General Assembly and Governor Rauner prior to June 14, 2015; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to Governor Bruce Rauner, the Illinois Congressional delegation, and all the members of the General Assembly.