Andrew Cunningham l Executive Director, Infrastructure Council l 217-520-2345

Session Update

The House and Senate both returned to Springfield on Tuesday following a two week legislative spring break. Throughout the week, there was limited floor action of note in either chamber while committees occurred throughout the days. On Wednesday, Chicago Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson delivered an address at a joint session of the Illinois General Assembly.

The House and Senate will both return on Tuesday, April 25th at 12 pm. Next Friday, April 28th is the deadline for House bills to get out of Senate committees and Senate bills to get out of House committees. View the Senate session calendar for 2023. View the House 2023 calendar.

Chamber Day 2023

For those unable to attend, last Tuesday was Chamber Day with a program held in downtown Springfield at the Abraham Lincoln Hotel. The Illinois Chamber membership received addresses from many great guest speakers, including each of the four legislative leaders.

In our "Critical Issues" segment, I was able to provide a brief update on some of the legislative topics we have been tracking and lobbying on this Spring in the Infrastructure Council. Specifically, I spoke on permitting, autonomous vehicles and the Veteran Owned Business Program. With over 200 relevant bills for this Council, there was no shortage of possible topics.

Thank you once again to all attendees and sponsors!

Spring Meeting: The Future of EVs in Illinois - Thank you!

Thank you to those who were able to attend the Spring meeting of our Infrastructure, Energy and Technology Councils last Tuesday. The afternoon session took place after a tremendous Chamber Day gathering that morning.

State EV Officer, Megha Lakhchaura spoke on the state's EV program and Electric Mobility and Innovation Director, Lisa Clemmons Stott spoke on the State's attraction efforts for this industry.

Becky Knox - Director, Public Policy, North America for EVBox and Kristol Simms, Vice President of Clean Energy Transition at Ameren Illinois spoke on how their companies are working in this space, and more specifically on charging infrastructure.

Bills of Interest Committee Schedule

HB 2531, South Suburban Airport is posted for Senate Executive Committee on Wednesday. This bill amends the Public-Private Agreements for the South Suburban Airport Act. Defines cargo-oriented development as the development of places that are both multimodal nodes of freight transportation and centers of employment in logistics and manufacturing businesses. Provides that the Department of Transportation shall (instead of may) establish a process for prequalification of offerors. Requires the Department to commence the prequalification process within 6 months after the effective date of the amendatory Act.

HB 3017, Permitting Portal is posted for Senate State Government on Wednesday. Provides that the Office shall implement reforms to improve interagency coordination and encourage expeditious permit issuance. Provides that the Office shall use information technology tools to track project schedules and metrics in order to improve transparency and accountability of the permitting process, reduce uncertainty and delays, and reduce costs and risks to taxpayers. This bill is the Chamber/IERG initiative to create an online permitting portal for large industrial projects in Illinois.

HB 3491, Prevailing Wage/Contractors is posted for Senate Labor on Wednesday. This bill provides that any laborer, worker, or mechanic who is employed by the contractor or by any lower tier sub-contractor and is paid for services in a sum less than the prevailing wage rates for work performed on a project shall have a right of action for whatever difference there may be between the amount so paid and the prevailing rates required to be paid for work performed on the project. 

HB 3510, MWRD Watershed Management Conformance is posted for House Energy & Environment on Tuesday. This bill provides that, no later than one year after the effective date of the amendatory Act, landowners owning more than 5% of land in a municipality within the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District shall be in conformance with the requirements of the District's Watershed Management Ordinance. 

HB 3641, Capital Development/Local Gov is posted for Senate State Government on Wednesday. This bill provides that ordinances of units of local government may not be enforced against construction, reconstruction, improvement, or installation of State facilities. Provides that units of local government cannot require payment of permitting fees or require permit inspections for the construction, reconstruction, improvement, or installation of State facilities.

SB 1438, Dig Once Act is posted for House Public Utilities on Tuesday. This bill creates the Illinois Dig Once Act. This bill provides that the Department of Transportation, the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority, the Illinois Commerce Commission, and the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall consult with the State-Wide One-Call Notice System to jointly develop rules for the design and construction of road, highway, tollway, and expressway projects to reduce the need for the relocation of public water and wastewater infrastructure and to promote the deployment (rather than reduce the scale and number of repeated excavations of roads, highways, tollways, and expressways for the installation and maintenance) of broadband infrastructure and underground utility facilities in an efficient and competitively neutral process for all road, highway, tollway, and expressway projects. Provides that the rules adopted under the Act are not intended to delay the design or construction of road, highway, tollway, and expressway construction projects, and shall not be construed to provide authority to approve, deny, or delay broadband infrastructure projects or underground utility facilities projects. Provides that whenever a public utility makes an application for a grant or easement in, over, or upon real property of the State for purposes of locating and maintaining such utility, or such utility's wire, pipe, cable, fiber conduit, or other facility or equipment, the Administrator, with the consent of the agency having jurisdiction over the real property, may grant such an easement.

SB 1526, IDOT Mobile Application is posted for House Transportation: Regulations, Roads & Bridges on Tuesday. This bill requires the Department to develop a mobile application that provides motorists with updated traffic conditions.

SB 1653, Early Warning Pilot Program is posted for House Transportation: Regulations, Roads & Bridges on Tuesday. This bill provides that the Department of Transportation shall establish a low-clearance early warning device pilot program. Provides that an early warning device may include, but is not limited to, LiDAR, radar, visual signal, or additional signage. Allows the Department of Transportation to work with the University of Illinois on the pilot program. Provides that the fine shall not exceed $1,000.

SB 2192, Procurement Bid Notice is posted for House State Government on Wednesday. This bill provides that if a bidder has failed to be awarded a contract after 4 consecutive bids to provide the same services to a single agency, the applicable chief procurement officer for that agency shall in writing detail why all 4 bids were rejected. Provides that the chief procurement officer shall submit by certified copy to the bidder the reasoning for the rejection of the bid within the same quarter in which the 4th bid was rejected and prior to 15 days before the next Illinois Procurement Bulletin for that type of bid. Provides that the provisions of the introduced bill only apply to the Department of Transportation, the Capital Development Board, and the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority.

SB 2278, Truck Length is posted for House Transportation: Regulations, Roads & Bridges. This bill, as amended, provides that the State or any unit of local government shall not be required to design or construct a new non-designated highway to accommodate truck tractor-semitrailer combinations. Provides that each unit of local government shall (rather than may) report to the Department of Transportation, and the Department shall post on its official website, any limitations prohibiting the operation of vehicles imposed by ordinance or resolution in the unit of local government's non-designated highway system and any non-designated highway that is not designed and constructed after January 1, 2023 to the overall length dimension of vehicles permitted under the Code. Negotiations by the trucking industry brought the Illinois Chamber and the rest of the Business community to neutral on this bill. 

SB 2368, Building Codes is posted for House Executive on Wednesday. This bill amends the Capital Development Board Act. In provisions about occupying a newly constructed commercial building in a non-building code jurisdiction, modifies the standards by which a qualified inspector must file a certification of inspection with a municipality. Provides that, once a building permit is issued or construction begins when no building permit is needed, the code in effect on January 1 of that calendar year applies for the duration of the permit or construction. Modifies provisions limiting applicability, modifies definitions, and makes other changes. Modifies how municipalities with a population of less than 1,000,000 and all counties must identify local building codes. Provides that provisions concerning certification for inspection shall apply to a substantially improved commercial building. Provides that specified amendatory changes to the Capital Development Board Act shall apply beginning January 1, 2025.

Bill Action of Note:

HB 1105, ICC Approval of Eminent Domain-Support passed out of Senate Energy and Public Utilities 16-0-0. This bill provides that property belonging to a public utility that provides water or sewer service and that is subject to the jurisdiction of the Illinois Commerce Commission may not be taken or damaged by eminent domain without prior approval of the Illinois Commerce Commission. Provides that the requirement does not apply to property to be acquired by a municipality with 140,000 or more inhabitants or a regional water commission formed under specified provisions of the Illinois Municipal Code or a municipality that is a member of such a regional water commission, only in furtherance of purposes authorized under the specified provisions of the Illinois Municipal Code, and limited solely to interests in real property and not improvements to or assets on the real property belonging to a public utility that provides water or sewer service and that is subject to the jurisdiction of the Illinois Commerce Commission.

HB 2278, Environmental Response Project passed out of Senate Judiciary 9-0-0 . This bill amends the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act. Removes language providing that "environmental response project" includes a plan or work that is performed for environmental remediation of any site or facility in response to contamination at specified sites or facilities. Provides instead that "environmental response project" includes a plan or work that is performed or conducted to clean up, remediate, eliminate, investigate, minimize, mitigate, or prevent the release or threatened release of contaminants affecting real property in order to protect public health or welfare or the environment. Removes the definition of "State".

HB 2527, Water and Wastewater Funding Study passed out of Senate Local Government 9-0-0. This bill extends the date that the Municipal Water and Wastewater Funding Study Committee is required to report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly to September 30, 2023 (from January 31, 2023). 

HB 2907, Dispute Damages passed out of Senate Judiciary 7-2-0. This bill provides that no award of monetary damages, except for damage done to an employer's property as a result of conduct prohibited by law, shall be granted by any court of this State in any case involving a labor dispute.

HB 3340, Municipal Borrowing/IFA passed out of Senate Executive Committee 13-0-0. This bill amends the Illinois Municipal Code. In provisions relating to a municipality borrowing money from a bank or other financial institution, modifies the definition of "financial institution" to include the Illinois Finance Authority.

SB 46, Waterway Ports Commission passed out of House Executive 10-0-0. This bill creates the Illinois Waterway Ports Commission Act. Provides that the Illinois Waterway Ports Commission is created and shall exercise jurisdiction with respect to the duties and powers delegated to it under the Act within the following port districts and counties: the Seneca Regional Port District, the Ottawa Port District, the Illinois Valley Regional Port District, the Heart of Illinois Regional Port District, and the Havana Port District and Fulton, Mason, Tazewell, Peoria, Woodford, Marshall, Putnam, Bureau, LaSalle, and Grundy counties. Provides that the Commission shall (1) coordinate and synchronize common efforts and initiatives in the Commission area to enhance the reporting and benefits of statistical data; (2) make recommendations to the Governor, the General Assembly, Congress, and federal agencies on regional issues that impact multimodal transportation, economic development, environmental sustainability, and climate resiliency of the Commission area; (3) coordinate and synchronize common efforts and initiatives on the larger Illinois Waterway with the Mid-America Port Commission and the Joliet Regional Port District; (4) coordinate and synchronize federal activities associated with the nonfederal sponsorship of the M-55 Illinois-Gulf Marine Highway; and (5) request and assist in requesting funding for the Commission area and the surrounding areas, as the Commission deems necessary. 

SB 76, Nuclear Power passed out of House Public Utilities 20-1-0. This bill deletes language that provides that no construction shall commence on any new nuclear power plant to be located within the State, and no certificate of public convenience and necessity or other authorization shall be issued therefor by the Illinois Commerce Commission, until the Director of the Environmental Protection Agency finds that the United States Government, through its authorized agency, has identified and approved a demonstrable technology or means for the disposal of high level nuclear waste, or until such construction has been specifically approved by a statute enacted by the General Assembly.

SB 1570, Municipal Design Build passed out of House Cities & Villages on 15-0-0. This bill creates the Municipal Design-build Contracts Division in the Illinois Municipal Code, which may be cited as the Municipal Design-build Authorization Act. Provides that a municipality may enter into design-build contracts. Includes scope and performance criteria for design-build contracts, a two-phase procedure for selection of contracts, requirements for submission of proposals, procedures for awarding contracts, and requirements of reports and evaluation of contracts. Provides that, if the total overall cost of a project is estimated to be less than $12,000,000, the municipality may combine the two-phase procedure for selection into one phase. In provisions about submission of proposals, provides that, after a response to a request for qualifications or a request for proposal has been submitted, a design-build entity may not replace, remove, or otherwise modify any firm identified as a member of the proposer's team unless authorized to do so by the municipality.

SB 1897, Rock Island Port District passed out of House Executive Committee 10-0-0. This bill creates the Rock Island Regional Port District Act. Establishes the Rock Island Regional Port District within the corporate limits of the City of Rock Island. Provides that territory of adjacent municipalities may be annexed into the Port District. Contains provisions related to the operation of the Port District, rights and powers of the Port District and participating municipalities, lease of property, easements and permits, bonds and tax levies, eminent domain powers, and other provisions. Limits the concurrent exercise of home rule powers.

SB 2424, Land Acquisition passed out of House State Government 9-0-0. This bill provides that the definition of "project" includes any land acquisition that is conducted by either the Department of Transportation or Illinois Toll Highway Authority and that requires architectural, engineering, or land surveying services.

Rulemaking

There was no rulemaking of note for this Council in the April 21st edition of the Illinois Register.

Articles of Interest  

State lawmakers push to prioritize Illinois businesses

Illinois Senate GOP unveils its pro-biz wish list

U.S. Begins Planning for 6G Wireless Communications

West Coast Dockworkers Reach Tentative Deal on Port Automation

Chatbots Are Stepping Toward Supply Chains