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90_SB0908enr 1 5Y DESCRIPTION 30 CHARACTERS ONLY (New Act) Creates the Illinois Farm Economic Development and Renewable Fuel Act. SRS90S0039PDbm SB908 Enrolled SRS90S0039PDbm 1 AN ACT to create the Illinois Farm Economic Development 2 and Renewable Fuel Act. 3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 4 represented in the General Assembly: 5 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the 6 Illinois Farm Economic Development and Renewable Fuel Act. 7 Section 5. Findings. The legislature finds and declares 8 that it is in the interest of the people of this State that 9 the establishment of local grain processing centers be 10 encouraged in order to augment local agricultural markets, 11 promote agricultural diversification, expand rural employment 12 opportunities, promote economic activity, enhance the 13 environment, and protect and better use the land and 14 agricultural resources of the State. 15 The legislature finds that grain processing shall be 16 considered an agricultural pursuit for the purposes of any 17 laws that apply to or provide for the advancement, benefit, 18 or protection of the agriculture industry of the State. 19 Section 10. Purpose. The purpose of the Act is to 20 improve the environment, create jobs and rural economic 21 growth, and encourage energy self-reliance through the 22 establishment of community-sized grain processing centers 23 which produce ethyl alcohol and other grain products, 24 encourage the establishment of associated industries, and 25 assist Illinois farmers in expanding local markets for their 26 grain production. 27 Section 15. Definitions. For the purpose of this Act: 28 (a) "Associated industry" means an industry using the 29 by-products of a processing center, including, but not SB908 Enrolled -2- SRS90S0039PDbm 1 limited to, ethyl alcohol, fermented grains, liquid feeds, 2 carbon dioxide, heat, or any other product resulting from the 3 processing of agricultural products and located in proximity 4 to the processing center. 5 (b) "Corn means Illinois produced corn used in a 6 processing center to make ethyl alcohol, fermented grains, 7 solubles, and carbon dioxide. 8 (c) "Department" means the Department of Agriculture. 9 (d) "Director" means the Director of Agriculture. 10 (e) "Ethyl alcohol" means fermentation ethyl alcohol 11 having a purity of at least 95% (190 proof) and derived from 12 agricultural products, including potatoes, cereal grains, 13 cheese, whey, and sugar beets; forest products; or other 14 renewable resources, including residue and waste generated 15 from the production, processing, and marketing of 16 agricultural products, forest products, and other renewable 17 resources. 18 (f) "Processing center" means a grain processing center 19 at which ethyl alcohol is produced by fermenting corn or 20 other organic materials and which is owned by a governmental 21 unit or a private entity that provides Illinois farmers the 22 opportunity to invest. 23 Section 20. Grain processing payments. 24 (a) Subject to appropriation, the Director shall make 25 cash payments to processors in this State that use corn to 26 make ethyl alcohol and other products. These payments shall 27 apply only to corn used to make ethyl alcohol and other 28 products in this State at a processing center that begins 29 production after January 1, 1998. For the purpose of this 30 Section, an entity that holds a controlling interest in more 31 than one processing center shall be considered a single 32 processor. The amount of the payment for each processor's 33 annual consumption shall be 30 cents per bushel of corn for SB908 Enrolled -3- SRS90S0039PDbm 1 each bushel of corn used to produce ethyl alcohol and other 2 products in a grain processing center that began production 3 after January 1, 1998. Payment shall be made only during 4 the 5-year period beginning at the same time as the start of 5 production. Payment shall be made only on the first 6 5,000,000 bushels of corn consumed annually at each 7 processing center. 8 (b) Subject to appropriation, the Director shall make 9 payments to processors of corn in the amount of 1.5 cents for 10 each kilowatt hour of electricity generated using closed-loop 11 biomass, coal mine methane gas from abandoned mines, or 12 methane from waste disposal, including but not limited to, 13 sanitary landfills, animal manures, or food processing, in a 14 cogeneration facility serving a processing center or 15 associated industry located in this State. Payments under 16 this subsection (b) shall be made only for electricity 17 generated at cogeneration facilities serving processing 18 centers that begin operation after January 1, 1998. The 19 payments shall apply to electricity generated on or before 20 the date 5 years after the processor first qualifies for 21 payment under this Act. Total payments to processors under 22 this Section in any fiscal year may not exceed $750,000. For 23 the purposes of this Section: 24 (i) "closed-loop biomass" means any organic 25 material from a plant that is planted for the purpose of 26 being used to generate electricity or for multiple 27 purposes that include being used to generate electricity; 28 and 29 (ii) "cogeneration" means the combined generation 30 of: 31 (1) electrical or mechanical power; and 32 (2) steam or forms of useful energy, 33 including, but not limited to heat, that are used 34 for industrial, commercial, heating, or cooling SB908 Enrolled -4- SRS90S0039PDbm 1 purposes. 2 (c) The total payments under subsections (a) and (b) to 3 all processors may not exceed $4,500,000 in a fiscal year. 4 Total payments under subsections (a) and (b) to a processor 5 in a fiscal year may not exceed $2,250,000. 6 (d) By the last day of September, December, March, and 7 June of each year, each processor shall file a claim for 8 payment for the bushels of corn used in a grain processing 9 center during the preceding 3 calendar months. A processor 10 with more than one processing center shall file a separate 11 claim for each such processing center. A processor who files 12 a claim under this Section shall include a statement of the 13 processor's total corn consumption and total ethyl alcohol 14 production during the quarter covered by the claim. A 15 processor shall file a separate claim for any amount claimed 16 under subsection (b). For each claim and statement of 17 production filed under this Act, the volumes and amounts 18 claimed must be examined by an independent certified public 19 accountant in accordance with standards established by the 20 American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. 21 (e) Subject to appropriation, payments under this 22 Section shall be made October 15, January 15, April 15, and 23 July 15 of each year. Subject to appropriation, a separate 24 payment shall be made for each claim filed. The total 25 quarterly payment to a processor under this Act may not 26 exceed $562,500. If the total amount for which all 27 processors are eligible in a quarter under subsections (a) 28 and (b) exceeds $1,125,000, the Director shall make payments, 29 subject to appropriation, in the order in which the portion 30 of production capacity covered by each claim went into 31 production. Only those processors who receive payments for 32 the quarter or received payments under subsections (a) or (b) 33 in an earlier quarter will be eligible for corn payments 34 under this Act. SB908 Enrolled -5- SRS90S0039PDbm 1 (f) If the total amount for which all processors are 2 eligible in a quarter under Section 20(b) exceeds the amount 3 available for payments, subject to appropriation, the 4 Director shall make payments in the order in which the 5 processing centers covered by the claims began generating 6 electricity using closed-loop biomass, coal mine methane gas 7 from abandoned mines, or methane from waste disposal, 8 including, but not limited to, sanitary landfills, animal 9 manures, or food processing. 10 Section 25. Rule making. The Director shall adopt 11 emergency and permanent rules to implement this Act. 12 Section 30. Partial invalidity. If any provision of 13 this Act or the application thereof to any person or 14 circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of this Act and 15 the application of that provision to other persons or 16 circumstances shall not be affected thereby. 17 Section 35. Expiration. This Act expires December 31, 18 2005, and the unobligated balance of each appropriation under 19 this Act on that date shall revert to the General Revenue 20 Fund. 21 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 22 becoming law.