Equity Accountability System
The Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (Public Act 102-0662 or “CEJA”) amended the Illinois Power Agency Act to expand the “priority access to the clean energy economy for businesses and workers from communities that have been excluded from economic opportunities in the energy sector, have been subject to disproportionate levels of pollution, and have disproportionately experienced negative public health outcomes.”
CEJA directed the Illinois Power Agency (“IPA” or “Agency”) and Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (“DCEO”) to help historically underserved communities participate in and benefit from the growing clean energy economy in Illinois.
To advance that objective, the Act directed the Agency to establish an Equity Accountability System (EAS), which includes the following:
- Minimum Equity Standards ("MES") applicable to all applicants to the Agency’s renewable energy procurements, both through Illinois Shines and the Agency's competitive procurements
- Establishes the Equity Eligible Contractor category with Illinois Shines
The Act further establishes several required monitoring, reporting, and facilitation requirements to support the assessment of the Equity Accountability System, including:
Current number of Equity Eligible Contractors certified by the Agency
A waiver application process for rare cases of inability to meet the MES
A mechanism for measuring and reporting project workforce profiles at the Approved Vendor or Designee level
Training, guidance, and other support for Approved Vendors, Designees, Equity Eligible Contractors, and other stakeholders for meeting the requirements of the Equity Eligible Contractor category within Illinois Shines and the MES
The Agency manages the Energy Workforce Equity Portal at energyequity.illinois.gov, a public-facing tool that helps develop a diverse pipeline of skilled and trained clean energy workforce. The portal may be used:
By employers to connect to job seekers, register as a clean energy company, and post jobs
By employers to identify graduates of qualified job training programs for which they are actively hiring Equity Eligible Persons to meet the MES
By job seekers to connect to employers, explore jobs, and apply to register as Equity Eligible Persons
To help identify if communities and individuals reside in an identified Equity Investment Eligible Community (“EIEC”) using the Equity Investment Eligible Community Map
To become certified as an Equity Eligible Person if you are currently employed at a clean energy company
To learn more about the overall Agency’s DEI efforts visit the IPA’s page on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
In Program Year 2022-2023, the Agency and Program Administrator presented three webinars on the Equity Accountability System and Illinois Shines, held on October 4, 2022, November 15, 2022, and March 13, 2023. Recordings of the webinars, presentation slides, and Q&A from each webinar, can be found on the Program Year Webinars page. All current Approved Vendors and Designees have been and are strongly encouraged to review the materials to ensure comprehension and compliance with Program requirements related to equity.
Minimum Equity Standard Resources
Beginning in Program Year 2023-24, each participating Approved Vendor and Designee must meet a required minimum percentage of their project workforce that includes Equity Eligible Persons (EEPs), with this required percentage increasing to 30% by 2030. Definitions of EEPs, the minimum workforce percentages, and key steps and dates for compliance, are provided at this page and in its linked resources. The MES requirement for the 2023-24 Program Year is 10% EEPs for an entity’s workforce and the MES for the 2024-25 Program Year will remain at 10% EEPs for an entity’s workforce. Future Program Years’ percentages will be determined by the IPA through the update to the Long-Term Plan.
For purposes of the MES requirement, “project workforce” is defined as employees, contractors and their employees, and subcontractors and their employees, whose job duties are directly required by or substantially related to the development, construction, and operation of a project that is participating in or intended to participate in the IPA-administered programs and procurements under Section 1-75(c) of the IPA Act. This shall include both project installation workforce and workforce in administrative, sales, marketing, and technical roles where those workers’ duties are performed in Illinois. For purposes of this definition, ‘directly required by or substantially related to’ shall be construed to be any direct employee of the Approved Vendor, Designee, or any contractor and its employees whose contract exceeds 5% of the REC Contract value. Employees of contractors below that threshold may be counted on a voluntary basis, but if the Approved Vendor or Designee includes at least one such contractor whose contract is less than 5% of the REC Contract value, then all contractors below the threshold must be included.
Existing Approved Vendors and Designees are required to file an annual Minimum Equity Standard Compliance Plan at the commencement of a Program Year, an MES Mid-Year Report, and an MES Year-End Report after a Program Year concludes. Resources in support of MES compliance include:
- Guide to the Equity Accountability System & Illinois Shines
- Minimum Equity Standard FAQs – last updated October 10, 2023
- Equity Eligible Person (EEP) Attestation
- Minimum Equity Standard Waiver Request– published March 10, 2023 (and updated March 22, 2023)
- Minimum Equity Standard Waiver Rationale– published March 17, 2023
Program Year 2023-24 MES Compliance Plan submission form
Program Year 2023-24 MES Compliance Plan questions sample
Program Year 2023-24 Minimum Equity Standard Waiver Request
Program Year 2023-24 MES Mid-Year Report Submission Form (Due December 31, 2023)
Program Year 2023-24 MES Year-End Report Draft Template (April 11, 2024)
Program Year 2023-24 MES Year-End Report form
Approved Vendors who are Equity Eligible Contractors are considered in full compliance with the Equity Accountability System, and therefore do not need to submit a Compliance Plan, Mid-Year Report, or Year-End Report.
Equity Eligible Persons and Equity Eligible Contractors
The IPA Act defines “Equity Eligible Person” (EEP) as a person who would most benefit from equitable investments by the State designed to combat discrimination, specifically:
1. Graduates or current or former participants in the Clean Jobs Workforce Network Program, Clean Energy Contractor Incubator Program, Illinois Climate Works Preapprentice Program, Returning Residents Clean Jobs Training Program, or the Clean Energy Primes Contractor Accelerator Program, and the solar training pipeline and multicultural jobs program;
2. Persons who are graduates of or currently enrolled in foster care system;
3. Persons who were formerly incarcerated;
4. Persons whose primary residence is in an Equity Investment Eligible Community.
The IPA has further defined “persons who were formerly incarcerated” as any individual who (i) was sentenced to a term of imprisonment, not including juvenile detention, after the disposition of one or more misdemeanor or felony charges; and (ii) has completed their sentence. There is no time limit or expiration regarding when the incarceration occurred. The IPA defines “persons who are graduates of or currently enrolled in the foster care system” as any individual who is currently or was formerly a youth in care of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, or the equivalent agency in another state.
The IPA Act defines “Equity Eligible Contractor” (EEC) as a business that is majority-owned by eligible persons, or a nonprofit or cooperative that is majority-governed by eligible persons, or is a natural person that is an eligible person offering personal services as an independent contractor. Under Illinois Shines, participating Approved Vendors and Designees, and Subcontractors can register as EECs. For more information about EEC registration and benefits of becoming an EEC, visit the Become an Equity Eligible Contractor (EEC) or Designee page.
An EEC category within Illinois Shines was developed as part of the Equity Accountability System to have at least 10% from distributed renewable energy devices or community solar projects submitted by Approved Vendors that are EECs. The IPA Act requires the Agency, over time, to propose to increase the percentage in the EEC category to 40% based on factors including the number of EECs and capacity used in the EEC category in previous delivery years. Additional information on the EEC category can be found on the Equity Eligible Contractors (“EEC”) page.
Equity Eligible Contractors Utilizing Advance of Capital
A feature of the Equity Accountability System is the ability of Equity Eligible Contractors (EECs) to request an advance of a portion of REC Contract value prior to the associated project’s Energization. This capital advancement pre-energization is intended to serve EEC-certified businesses exhibiting true need and to support a more diverse Approved Vendor pool. Advance of capital requests must be submitted with the Part I application and are limited to projects participating in the EEC category of Illinois Shines.
In December 2023, following a stakeholder feedback request process it initiated on October 31, 2023, the Agency published a final criteria for Advance of Capital Evaluation, and a rationale document, after which it resumed accepting new advance of capital requests through Part I applications, and resubmitted advance of capital requests from EECs that included a request with a previous Part I application that were submitted before the temporary pause, adjusted to address the new evaluation criteria. For more information, please see this announcement.
Final Advance of Capital Rationale
published December 12, 2023
Final Advance of Capital Evaluation Criteria
published December 12, 2023
Equity Investment Eligible Communities
Equity Investment Eligible Communities (EIECs) are geographic areas throughout Illinois which would most benefit from equitable investments by the State designed to combat discrimination. The eligible communities are: (1) R3 Areas as established pursuant to Section 10-40 of the Cannabis Regulation Tax Act, where residents have historically been excluded from economic opportunities, including opportunities in the energy sector; and (2) Environmental justice communities, as defined by the Illinois Power Agency pursuant to the Illinois Power Agency Act, where residents have historically been subject to disproportionate burdens of pollution, including pollution from the energy sector.
As noted above, residing in an EIEC is one of the four qualifiers for certification as an EEP (thus is also a qualifier for certification as an EEC as well). The map of EIEC communities can be found on the IPA’s website:
EAS Stakeholder Feedback
The Agency has conducted multiple stakeholder feedback requests for topics related to the Equity Accountability System, including:
In February 2023 the Illinois Power Agency sought public comment on the waiver for Minimum Equity Standard requirements for entities that have received a REC contract award under the Adjustable Block/Illinois Shines Program or through the IPA’s utility-scale REC procurements for a given Program/delivery year. Following the review and consideration of public comments on the waiver, the Agency finalized the waiver and process for the 2023-2024 Program year/Delivery year beginning June 1, 2023. The proposal, public responses, final waiver, and waiver rationale document are included in the following table. More information on the waiver for Minimum Equity Standard requirements can be found in Section 10.1.3.1 of the Agency’s Long-Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan.
The Illinois Power Agency seeks stakeholder feedback on potential strategies to strengthen the criteria for qualifying as an Equity Eligible Contractor and for receiving incentives under the Equity Eligible Contractor block of capacity within the Illinois Shines Program. This feedback will inform new requirements as part of the IPA’s upcoming Long-Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan. More information on the Equity Eligible Contactor category can be found in section 7.4.6 of the Agency’s Final 2022 Long-Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan.
Please provide comments via email attachment to [email protected] with the subject “[Responder’s Name] – Stakeholder Feedback on EEC Criteria” by May 5, 2023.
Stakeholders may comment on as many or as few of the items outlined within the request for feedback as they would like. Stakeholders should not feel limited by the questions offered in the request for feedback and may provide comments on these proposals beyond the scope of these specific questions as it relates to the criteria for certifying Equity Eligible Contractors. Responses will be published on both the IPA and Illinois Shines websites. Should a commenter seek to designate any portion of its response as confidential and proprietary, that commenter should provide both public and redacted versions of its comments. Independent of that designation, if the Agency or the Program Administrator determines that a response contains confidential information that should not be disclosed, the IPA reserves the right to provide its own redactions.
The Agency is greatly interested in hearing directly from Equity Eligible Persons, Equity Eligible Contractors, or those looking to qualify as such, but generally seeks input from a wide array of stakeholders.
| Equity Eligible Contractors Utilizing Advance of Capital | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 15-Year REC Delivery Contract | 15 years | Small DG | Up to 50% upfront payment (pending approval) at pre- Energization and the remainder one month after Energization |
| Large DG | Up to 50% upfront payment (pending approval) pre- Energization, 15% payment at Energization, and the remainder ratably over 6 years |
||
| 2022 20-Year REC Delivery Contract | 20 years | Traditional Community Solar | Up to 50% upfront payment pre-Energization (pending approval) and pay-as-delivered resumes once Seller delivers at least 50% of Maximum REC Quantity |
| DG or CS | |||
A feature of the Equity Accountability System, as established by the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act, is the ability of Equity Eligible Contractors (EECs) to request an advance of a portion of REC Contract value prior to the associated project’s energization. This capital advancement pre-energization is intended to serve EEC-certified businesses exhibiting true need and to support a more diverse Approved Vendor pool.
The IPA has developed the rubric linked below as criteria for evaluating requests for an advance of capital for projects receiving a REC contract in the EEC Category for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 Program Years. Please provide comments via email attachment to [email protected] with the subject “[Responder’s Name] – Stakeholder Feedback on Advance of Capital Authorization Rubric” by November 14, 2023.
Note: The Agency has filed the 2024 Long-Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan with the Illinois Commerce Commission and thus is not seeking any input on the advance of capital process contemplated within that Plan. Stakeholders seeking to provide input on Plan content may do so through the intervening in the open docket (Docket 23-0714). Please limit all comments in response to this request for feedback to the criteria listed below as applied to the 2022-23 and 2023-24 Program Years.
The Illinois Power Agency (“IPA” or “Agency”) invites public comment on their proposed plan to assess the Equity Accountability System (“EAS”) and its impact on promoting equity and increasing participation of historically marginalized communities in Illinois’ clean energy economy. As part of this endeavor, the Agency is seeking stakeholder feedback to gather insights and recommendations.
Stakeholders are encouraged to provide feedback on the assessment questions, scope of data collection, proposed methodologies, and additional considerations outlined here. Stakeholders may comment on as many or as few of the items outlined within the document as they would like. Stakeholders should not feel limited by the questions offered within the feedback request and may provide comments on these proposals beyond the scope of these specific questions as it relates to the EAS Assessment.
Please provide comments via email attachment to [email protected] with the subject “[Responder’s Name] – Stakeholder Feedback on EAS Assessment” by April 10, 2024.
In general, responses will be made public and published on the IPA’s website. Should a commenter seek to designate any portion of its response as confidential and proprietary, that commenter should provide both public and redacted versions of its comments. Independent of that designation, if the Agency determines that a response contains confidential information that should not be disclosed, the IPA reserves the right to provide its own redactions.
Details of these and other Illinois Shines stakeholder feedback requests, including request details, proposals, public response, can be found on the Stakeholder Feedback page.
