Illinois Passes the Clean and Reliable Grid Act

In early November, Illinois legislators passed the Clean and Reliable Grid Act (CRGA), establishing it as law and setting the date of June 1, 2026, for the bill to go into effect.  CRGA builds on CEJA (the Clean and Equitable Jobs Act), a significant piece of earlier legislation that set foundational climate goals for the state of Illinois. These included phasing out fossil fuel plant emissions and expanding renewables.

However, CEJA lacked provisions for energy storage deployment, a shortcoming which CRGA addressed by directing the state of Illinois to pursue 3 gigawatts of 4-hour discharge duration battery storage by 2030. The bill also included “storage for all” language to ensure equitable availability of residential batteries for all households. CRGA also implements Integrated Resource Planning (a method of comprehensive electricity system planning), further strengthens renewables and efficiency, and lays the groundwork for wide-scale adoption of grid-enhancing technologies.

Adherence to CRGA will largely be the concern of developers of large renewable and energy storage projects, electric utilities, large data centers, and energy suppliers. However, if you’re a commercial property owner, it’s never a bad time to upgrade to a more cost-efficient and sustainable facility. If you want to learn more about what upgrades, efficiency measures or incentive programs are right for you, reach out to us at info@360eg.com for efficiency design assistance.