Springfield, IL... State Representative David Leitch (R-Peoria) passed a bill unanimously through the Illinois House to reduce county and municipal setbacks for renewable energy systems used by an end-user. House Bill 3746 would provide that a county or municipality may not require a wind tower that is used exclusively by the end-user to be setback more than 1.1 times the height of the device from the property line.
Under current law, counties and municipalities have the authority to regulate the siting of wind farms or wind devices. However, if passed by the Senate and signed into law, this bill will ensure that a property owner can install a wind tower for personal purposes without having to adhere to county and municipal setbacks that are often developed for larger wind farms.
"This bill will allow for more users to control their own energy production," said Leitch. "I hope that my colleagues in the State Senate will see that this bill will make renewable energy production by individuals and businesses less onerous. Measures will still be in place to regulate large-scale commercial wind farms, but individual users who choose to install a renewable energy device will now have one less hurdle to overcome."
Leitch stated that he sponsored HB 3746 in direct response to constituents who contacted his office after having problems installing these devices for personal use.