For everyone not willing to live the old-fashioned life of candlelight and hand-pumped water, electricity is a necessary evil. You have to have it, but to have it, you have to pay for it.
In the past, short of generating your own power through wind mills or other cumbersome techniques, the only way to receive the electricity necessary to power your home was to attach your house to a utility company’s generator. This made power companies have control similar to a monopoly in their county, governed only by the policies set in place by the state keeping them regulated.
Today, though, home and business owners in Illinois have a choice in how they power their homes. With the innovation of solar technology, clean energy powered by the sun is now affordable and easy to implement regardless of where in the state you live.
In fact, solar energy is not only accessible, it is encouraged by the United States and the government of Illinois. State legislation has solar power on deck for providing hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue each year in the near future. Millions of dollars have been invested to increase the solar industry by job creation and incentives to go solar.
And the Future Energy Jobs Act of 2017 means that solar energy is not going away any time soon. Instead, it has created a positive ripple effect felt all over the state that will also be felt around the world in future generations.
So what exactly is going on in Illinois that makes solar power such a hot topic? Let’s look at a quick rundown of how solar power became so popular in the U.S. first.
The United States is Going Green
Over the last fifty years or so, the U.S. has turned more and more to power generated by renewable resources such as solar energy, wind power, hydroelectricity, and biofuels.
You might find this hard to believe, but even the big city of Las Vegas, Nevada powers all of their municipal buildings and facilities with renewable energy. This includes streetlights, fire stations, service yards, city parks, and anything owned and run by the city. Considering how big Vegas is, this step in getting the city going green saved an exponential amount of money and fossil fuels annually, and the effect will continue for generations to come.
Partnered with energy companies and legislators like these, it’s no wonder that the U.S. is now one of the foremost leaders in renewable energy in the world. The U.S. is determined to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels and thereby diminish the greenhouse gas emissions it produces.
But without affordable options to deliver this technology to its users, solar energy was a bust on its initial rollout decades ago. Because it was so cumbersome to produce the technology required to harness solar power and use it in homes, only the wealthiest in the nation were able to afford solar panels.
However, new technology has made solar power not only affordable, but more efficient, streamlined, and aesthetically pleasing. With those excuses out of the way, the United States began a new, more powerful push for everyone to turn to clean energy to power their homes and businesses, and a new era of solar power began.
You are part of this era, which means there has never been a better time to get on board the solar power train. Solar electricity has generated over 50 billion kilowatt hours of clean energy annually, and it’s set to continue to rise.
What Does Solar Power Look Like in Illinois?
The state of Illinois initiated the Future Jobs Energy Act (FJEA) in 2017, considered to be “one of the most significant pieces of energy legislation ever to pass the Illinois General Assembly.” This act is set to create thousands of jobs in the solar industry, train future generations in the importance of clean energy, increase the growth of solar and wind energy in the state, and give hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue to fund low-income programs to get more homeowners access to solar energy.
If you live in Illinois, you have probably heard of the FJEA, or you will soon. It’s becoming a household term. Part of its intent is to reduce electricity waste, therefore decreasing the overall state’s power bills by billions of dollars by 2030. That’s a big promise they want to make good on, and it’s got people talking.
With the amendments to the current Illinois renewable energy laws, this act opens the door for billions of dollars in new investments and programs to create, develop, and produce wind and solar powered programs. It also has created community solar programs, where entire neighborhoods can reap the benefits of solar energy whether or not they have a solar system in their home.
In addition to this groundbreaking piece of legislation, Illinois also has created other policies and laws determined to accelerate solar powered use throughout the state.
Illinois has incorporated a Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS), which in essence requires all utility companies in the state to be sourcing at least 25% of their energy from renewable resources by 2025. There’s also a little caveat in there – called a solar carve out – that stipulates that at least 6% of the 25% has to come from solar power. If they don’t comply with this figure, they face paying a hefty fee to the government as a penalty.
Rather than pay that fee, utility companies have created programs in which they convert your power to renewable energy used by them. In return, you receive compensation for your excess energy.
Illinois is also one of the states that allows net metering. Through this process, your utility company tracks your renewable energy generation and use every month, then carries over your surplus as a credit that goes towards any future utility bills you may incur if your consumption of energy goes over your solar system’s production.
A little side note, though: Those credits are only good for one annual period. You can choose whether your annual period ends in April or October, but if you don’t use them, you lose them. This works in the utility company’s favor and makes them more amenable to net metering use, but if you get the right sized solar system for your home, it’s pretty much a non-issue.
Not every state makes net metering simple, though. To be part of this process, you have to interconnect your solar panels to the grid. This is not a basic matter of hooking up a few cables. You have to comply with dozens of policies and procedures, and some states make this very complicated.
Illinois, with its focus on increasing solar powered homes throughout the state, has made their process for net metering relatively simple and straightforward. As long as you use certified equipment, which reputable installers like us at Nationwide Solar Pro use, you can quickly and easily get on the grid and start reaping the benefits of net metering.
One more thing that Illinois offers that not all states do is Solar Power Performance Payments. To qualify for this, you simply have to generate solar power to the grid. Then you get reimbursed in credits or cash.
When you are generating this power, you receive Solar Renewable Energy Credits, or SRECs, as your proof of generation. Utility companies can purchase these from you if they fall short of their 25% criterion to avoid paying those large fees to the state.
Finally, since solar panels add a decent amount to your home’s property value, it’s important to know that your taxes are going to go up. It was a double-edged sword until the legislature of Illinois stepped in and created a property tax incentive to eliminate this issue. Any registered solar systems are given a value of a conventional energy system, so your property taxes don’t feel that huge hike, but your property value still rises. This lets you sell your home for up to 17% more than fossil-fueled homes!
You Can Reap the Benefits of the Future Energy Jobs Act
This act is causing huge changes across the state of Florida as enough solar energy to power over 450,000 homes is being added over the upcoming years. The state wants energy growth, and they want it today. Rules and regulations are still being discussed, amended, and adjusted again, but each change simply makes it an easier and cleaner process to get to the ultimate goal of 100% clean energy power across the state.
You can see the changes visibly as you drive across the state and watch solar farms cropping up left and right. Solar gardens are in process, and rooftop solar installations are already increasing. The Illinois Commerce Commission has already approved an update that allows utility companies to buy renewable energy credits, so people all over the state are ready to start making this passive income.
You can be a part of it this new generation of clean, efficient solar energy, too. You don’t have to purchase dozens of acres and create a solar farm, but you can contact your local solar installers like us at Nationwide Solar Pros to turn your home away from fossil fuels and towards complete solar powered energy.
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