McLean County Times

Republican state Sen. Sue Rezin (R-Morris) recently took part in an expert panel discussion on the challenges faced by the nuclear industry amid a global push for green energy.

“Prep call for the American Nuclear Webinar tomorrow,” Rezin recent posted on Twitter on the day before the Dec. 14 event.

“I’ll be discussing the energy bill passed in IL that preserved our nuclear power plants,” Rezin posted.

According to the American Nuclear Society (ANS), over the last decade nearly a dozen U.S. nuclear power plants have prematurely retired.

“As clean energy commitments expand globally and nationally, the value of existing nuclear power plants and the numerous closures seem diametrically opposed,” ANS posted on its website. “An expert panel will offer diverse perspectives on recent successes and what challenges the nuclear industry faces next in the ongoing fight to preserve the existing fleet of plants in the U.S.”

Gov. J.B. Pritzker recently signed the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (S.B. 2408) into law. The bill will overhaul the state’s energy policies, including phasing out fossil-fuel power generation and placing Illinois on a path to become a 100 percent carbon-free energy producer over the next three decades.

The bill that passed the Democratic-controlled state legislature by a 37-17 vote in the Senate after the House advanced it by a better than 2-1 margin, includes $694 million in assistance to three of Exelon’s struggling nuclear plants—Braidwood, Byron, and Dresden.

The McLean County Times reports Rezin was one of three Republican lawmakers to cross the aisle in support of SB 2408.

“For nearly two years, thousands of Illinois workers employed by our state’s nuclear power plants dreaded the possibility of losing their jobs and being forced to leave the communities that they love and the lives that they have built,” said Rezin, whose district includes three of the state’s six nuclear plants.

“Communities like the ones in my district feared what would happen once their plants went off line and they lost the vital tax revenues that [the plants] provide for their schools and their critical services,” she added. “During the last two years, stakeholders and legislators on both sides of the aisle spent countless hours fighting to prevent those fears from becoming a reality. With the governor’s signature on Senate Bill 2408, we ensure that our state’s nuclear fleet will stay on line and thousands of jobs and the tax revenues that they provide won’t be lost.”

In a prior post to Facebook, Rezin argued that SB 2408 ensures that the state’s nuclear fleet stays online and preserves thousands of jobs.

In making the move official, Pritzker said it now makes Illinois the only Midwestern state in the country requiring 100% carbon-free energy by the year 2045.

"We can't outrun or hide from climate change," Pritzker told WQAD. "There is no time to lose. But what we can and must do, is fight to stop and even reverse the damage that's been done to our climate. As of today Illinois is a force for good, for an environmental future we can be proud of."

With the bill including language that paves the way for a $700 million investment in Exelon and its plan to keep nuclear plants in Byron and Morris in business, the governor is also touting the measure as legislation that “doubles” the state's investments in renewable energy and "makes it clear to the world that Illinois is open for business with long-term stable financing to boot."

SB 2408 also establishes a $4,000 electric vehicle credit for all Illinoisans and up to an 80% rebate for building a charging station.

"In short, with economic growth and jobs woven into its fabric, this new law is the most significant step Illinois has taken toward a reliable, renewable, affordable, and clean energy future in a generation," Pritzker said.