Public Act 0004 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB2988 Enrolled LRB101 10750 AWJ 55868 b

Public Act 101-0004

AN ACT concerning local government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by changing Section 5-12020 as follows:

(55 ILCS 5/5-12020)

Sec. 5-12020. Wind farms, electric-generating wind devices, and commercial wind energy facilities. Notwithstanding any other provision of law or whether the county has formed a zoning commission and adopted formal zoning under Section 5-12007, a county may establish standards for wind farms and electric-generating wind devices. The standards may include, without limitation, the height of the devices and the number of devices that may be located within a geographic area. A county may also regulate the siting of wind farms and electric-generating wind devices in unincorporated areas of the county outside of the zoning jurisdiction of a municipality and the 1.5 mile radius surrounding the zoning jurisdiction of a municipality. There shall be at least one public hearing not more than 30 days prior to a siting decision by the county board. Notice of the hearing shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. A commercial wind energy facility owner, as defined in the Renewable Energy Facilities Agricultural Impact Mitigation Act, must enter into an agricultural impact mitigation agreement with the Department of Agriculture prior to the date of the required public hearing. A commercial wind energy facility owner seeking an extension of a permit granted by a county prior to July 24, 2015 (the effective date of Public Act 99-132) must enter into an agricultural impact mitigation agreement with the Department of Agriculture prior to a decision by the county to grant the permit extension. Counties may allow test wind towers to be sited without formal approval by the county board. Any provision of a county zoning ordinance pertaining to wind farms that is in effect before August 16, 2007 (the effective date of Public Act 95-203) may continue in effect notwithstanding any requirements of this Section.

A county may not require a wind tower or other renewable energy system that is used exclusively by an end user to be setback more than 1.1 times the height of the renewable energy system from the end user's property line.

Only a county may establish standards for wind farms, electric-generating wind devices, and commercial wind energy facilities, as that term is defined in Section 10 of the Renewable Energy Facilities Agricultural Impact Mitigation Act, in unincorporated areas of the county outside of the zoning jurisdiction of a municipality and outside the 1.5 mile radius surrounding the zoning jurisdiction of a municipality.

(Source: P.A. 99-123, eff. 1-1-16; 99-132, eff. 7-24-15; 99-642, eff. 7-28-16; 100-598, eff. 6-29-18.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.

Effective Date: 04/19/2019