Illinois plans to spend $1.5 billion through 2027 in significant grid investments to help meet the state's ambitious clean-energy goals, with nearly half of funds going toward addressing environmental disparities.

The Climate and Equity Jobs Act requires at least 40% of state grid investments to benefit underserved and low-income communities.

Brad Klein, managing attorney with the Environmental Law and Policy Center, said fulfilling it means first learning more about existing issues.

"That requires new tools to sort of analyze disparities in service. So, do some neighborhoods enjoy better reliability than others? There's new modeling in the plans to try to discover that," he said.

As well as plans to upgrade substations, which include poles and wires, to close any existing gaps - and what Klein calls "full and fair access" for people in all communities to invest in things like rooftop solar, electrification and heat pumps.

The Illinois Commerce Commission rejected initial plans by Ameren and ComEd because they didn't demonstrate how the utility companies would benefit disadvantaged communities or keep monthly costs down for customers. Both companies revised their proposals which now outline both and describe plans for increased reliability, including key upgrades to increase the grid's power demand and make it more resilient to outages. Klein said overall, it means easier access to local clean energy.

"We'll have better options for connecting rooftop solar and community solar to the grid, and if done well, over time that also can help lead to opportunities for energy cost savings for customers and certainly address climate change," Klein continued.

Although officials say increases in monthly bills to customers will vary based on service class and energy usage, the ComEd plan shows an average increase of about $22 per year until 2027, while Ameren estimates an increase of less than $1 per month.


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Michigan environmental groups are pushing back as Enbridge's Line 5 tunnel faces "emergency" review, potentially bypassing full scrutiny and public input.

The move comes after President Donald Trump's executive order declared a national energy emergency to fast-track infrastructure projects. Environmental groups warn a Line 5 tunnel leak threatens the Great Lakes.

Sean McBrearty, campaign coordinator for the advocacy group Oil and Water Don't Mix, believes public outcry over the past week, led the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to remove 600 emergency-designated projects, including Line 5, from its website.

"Now we don't know whether they've changed the status of those projects or the proposed status of those projects," McBrearty pointed out. "Or whether they're still doing the same thing and just attempting to hide it from the public."

The tunnel would replace lake bed pipelines beneath the Straits of Mackinac with a concrete-lined enclosure for Line 5. In a recent statement Enbridge said, in part, Michigan approved environmental permits and tunnel placement for Line 5, but after nearly five years, the project still awaits a U.S. Army Corps decision on its environmental impact.

Meanwhile, the Michigan Court of Appeals recently upheld state permits for the tunnel, allowing Enbridge to move forward. McBrearty argued Enbridge lacks tunnel-building experience, calling them "ditch diggers" and labeling Line 5 a high-risk, low-reward venture.

"This tunnel would be actually the highest pressurized tunnel in the world, if it's built," McBrearty noted. "Pressure down there is measured at seventeen atmospheres - five atmospheres is enough to kill somebody. That shouldn't be rushed through as an emergency under any circumstances."

Enbridge maintains the Line 5 tunnel enhances pipeline safety, ensures energy reliability, supports jobs, and has 70% of Michiganders' support.

The Trump administration has started dismantling the Environmental Protection Agency's office dealing with reducing environmental harms to minority and low-income communities who have faced the brunt of climate change and pollution.

More than 160 staffers in the EPA's Office of Environmental Justice and Civil Rights were put on paid administrative leave last week. More than 200 staffers work for the office, which was combined with two others in 2022.

Adrienne Hollis, vice president of environmental justice, health and community resilience and revitalization for the National Wildlife Federation, said the EPA department is just like any other office dealing with environmental protection. A specific environmental effort, she said, needs a specific office to coordinate efforts.

"Some communities may file a complaint about the fact that, given the contamination they're exposed to, there may be issues that violate the civil rights act," Hollis pointed out. "Just as the air group, you need a focal point: a place to go, a place to get information and share information."

The office was first created by former President George H.W. Bush in 1992. Since 2014, the Environmental Protection Agency has conducted more than 300 reviews of civil rights compliance, including 11 in Maryland.

On his first day in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order working to disband environmental justice offices across the federal government. The administration has also taken down a decades-old tool to track environmental burdens across the country.

Hollis noted some of the state's most vulnerable communities will be the most negatively affected by the major rollbacks and potential shutterings.

"It's going to affect the ability of communities and advocates and activists to really focus on these specific environmental outcomes that are related to systemic racism," Hollis emphasized. "They're place-based, they're based on race, and they're exacerbated by climate change."

The administration has also paused all environmental litigation in the Justice Department. The administration has said it is following through on promises Trump made during the presidential campaign to whittle down the size of the federal government.

The Trump administration has begun to dismantle the Environmental Protection Agency's office dealing with reducing environmental harms to minority and low-income communities who have faced the brunt of climate change and pollution.

More than 160 staffers in the EPA's Office of Environmental Justice and Civil Rights were put on paid administrative leave last week. Combined with two other offices in 2022, more than 200 staffers work for the office.

Adrienne Hollis, vice president of environmental justice, health and community resilience and revitalization for the National Wildlife Federation, said the office has an important role in making sure environmental health efforts are distributed equitably.

"The Office of Environmental Justice and Civil Rights focuses on issues that affect communities and groups of people that are disproportionately impacted by environmental issues, or disproportionately impacted when rules and regulations are not followed," Hollis explained. "Or even when there are issues around site cleanup."

The office was first created by former President George H.W. Bush in 1992. Since 2014, the Environmental Protection Agency has conducted more than 300 reviews of civil rights compliance, including eight in the Commonwealth.

On his first day in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order working to disband environmental justice offices across the federal government. The administration has taken down a decades-old tool to track environmental burdens across the country.

Hollis noted some of the Commonwealth's most vulnerable communities will be the most negatively affected by these major rollbacks - and potential shutterings.

"It's going to affect the ability of communities and advocates and activists to really focus on these specific environmental outcomes that are related to systemic racism," Hollis emphasized. "They're place-based, they're based on race, and they're exacerbated by climate change."

The administration has begun to break up the Department of Justice's Environment and Natural Resources Division. The cuts are part of the government cuts Trump promised during his campaign.