As Illinois lawmakers finished their work for 2025, they began backing away from their four-year-old pledge that the state would produce electricity only from carbon-free sources by 2045.

They did so by conferring new powers on state regulators who had already signaled that closing coal- and gas-fired electricity plants as scheduled, starting in 2030, is likely impossible in the face of looming shortages and soaring monthly bills.

In a complex mosaic, they also empowered these same regulators to inject significant new horsepower into renewable and battery storage power.

Under the state’s new energy legislation, the Illinois Commerce Commission can not only delay the planned closures of fossil fuel sources, but also raise electricity rates to build both renewable and fossil fuel sources

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