Illinois lawmakers plan to remove the state’s suspension on new nuclear projects in the proposed Senate Bill 1527.
The proposed law, introduced by state Sen. Sue Rezin (R), would amend the state’s Public Utilities Act in removing the ban on constructing new nuclear power reactors with a rated capacity of more than 300 megawatts of electricity in the state.
In 1987, Illinois passed a nuclear moratorium on new nuclear energy, citing the federal government’s lack of a permanent disposal site for spent fuel.
The legislation removes “ provisions prohibiting the construction of new nuclear power reactors with a nameplate capacity of more than 300 megawatts of electricity…until the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security finds that the United States Government has identified and approved a demonstrable technology or means for the disposal of high level nuclear waste.”
That hurdle has now been removed.
The bill made its way to the Senate’s Energy and Public Utilities Committee on March 18. On March 21, the state Senate established a Rule 2-10 Committee deadline for April 4.
Illinois was one of 16 states that originally had a nuclear moratorium. However, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) signed into law another bill, House Bill 2473 of the 103rd General Assembly, that partially removed the state’s nuclear restrictions in 2023.
The bill, sponsored by Rezin, allowed for the construction of small reactors that can generate up to 300 MW of electricity. According to the Department of Energy website, only nine states have a statewide nuclear moratorium intact.
The state of Illinois has the nuclear power reactors in the United States with 11 reactors across six nuclear plants.
