Illinois Code § 805-280

§ 805-280.

Leases for the purpose of creating, operating, or maintaining a commercial solar energy system or clean energy project. The Department may lease any land or property over which the Department has jurisdiction for the purpose of creating, operating, or maintaining a commercial solar energy system, as defined in Section 10-720 of the Property Tax Code, or a clean energy project. The lease shall not be for a period longer than 40 years. The Department shall competitively bid any project authorized pursuant to this Section pursuant to the requirements of Section 20-15, and subsections (c) and (f) of Section 20-10 of the Illinois Procurement Code. No person or business shall submit specifications to the Department pursuant to this Section unless requested to do so by an employee of the State. No person or business who contracts with a State agency to write specifications for any project pursuant to this Section shall submit a bid or proposal, review or evaluate any prospective proposals from the competitive bidding process, or receive a contract for any project issued pursuant to this Section. The Department shall require that any lease must provide for a signed project labor agreement for the length of the lease term. A project labor agreement entered into under this Section shall be entered into with the local building and construction trades council having geographic jurisdiction over the project. If practical, the Department shall require that any land or property over which the Department has jurisdiction that is used for the purpose of creating, operating, or maintaining a commercial solar energy system shall have implemented on it and maintained management practices that would qualify the land or property as a beneficial habitat under the Pollinator-Friendly Solar Site Act. The Department shall require that any lease must include a signed project labor agreement for the length of the lease term. The Department shall prioritize commercial solar energy system sites based on their suitability and economic feasibility for solar use. The Department shall then prioritize commercial solar energy system sites with a significant history of disturbance, such as former strip mines or previously developed sites. The Department may consider any land use that is lost from the installation of a commercial solar energy system in making a determination for the suitability of a site. (Source: P.A. 103-865, eff. 1-1-25.)