Alliance members are working to achieve the Paris Agreement’s goal of keeping temperature increases below 1.5 degrees Celsius by reducing emissions, accelerating action, centering equity, and tracking progress. 

Explore Illinois's policies and actions across the Alliance's 10 key policy areas. Numbers presented below only reflect the number of policies in this database and thus may not reflect all climate policies pursued.

illinois

GHG Targets + Governance

Just Transition + Equity

Industry

Pricing Carbon + Valuing Damages

Electricity

Transportation

Resilience

Natural + Working Lands

Climate Finance

Buildings

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Illinois Department of Agriculture Launches I-COVER Cover Crop Program

The Illinois Department of Agriculture is relaunching the Infield Conservation for Operationalizing Vital Ecosystem Resilience (I-COVER) Program to promote the early establishment of cover crops using new techniques and/or technology. 

IDOA secured a $7 million USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service Regional Conservation Partnership Program grant to launch the program, which offers cost-share/financial incentives to producers and landowners who are new adopters of cover crops or who utilize new techniques for earlier establishment of cover crops. I-COVER is a three-year program for cover crops planted in 2026, 2027, and 2028.

Illinois Power Agency FY2025 Report

The FY2025 Illinois Power Agency Annual Report details the many actions that Illinois took in FY2025 in the power sector, including procurement plans for a zero-emission electricity portfolio; Illinois Solar for All (with a budget of $20 million entirely spent on community and distributed solar projects); clean workforce development programs; and the interconnection of utility-scale wind, solar, and batteries.

Illinois's Comprehensive Climate Action Plan

The Comprehensive Climate Action Plan (CCAP) serves as a roadmap to illustrate potential state actions Illinois can take to achieve its climate commitments, building upon the foundation laid by the Priority Climate Action Plan (PCAP) submitted to the U.S. EPA in early 2024. While the PCAP focused on "shovel-ready" implementation measures, the CCAP expands the scope to a comprehensive, economy-wide analysis. Developed by Energy and Environmental Economics Inc (E3) for the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA), this document incorporates a robust Greenhouse Gas (GHG) inventory covering the years 2005 through 2023, updated projections for near-term (2030) and long-term (2050) emissions, and a suite of quantified reduction measures aimed at closing the gap between current trajectories and state targets.

The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) is implementing its inaugural Infield Conservation for Operationalizing Vital Ecosystem Resilience (I-COVER) Program. IDOA secured a $7 million USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) grant to launch the program, which offers cost-share/financial incentives to producers and landowners who are new adopters of cover crops or who utilize new techniques for earlier establishment of cover crops. I-COVER is a three-year program for cover crops planted in 2026, 2027, and 2028.

Producers applying for assistance are also required to have a soil health field assessment through the Saving Tomorrow's Agricultural Resources (STAR) field form to be eligible to receive a payment. STAR is a FREE nationwide tool, first launched in Illinois, to assist farm operators and landowners in evaluating their nutrient and soil loss management practices on individual fields. STAR encourages farmers and landowners to use management practices and make decisions that will reduce the nutrient and soil losses on their fields, and in return, they are provided a field sign recognizing their level of commitment to conservation.

Infield Conservation for Operationalizing Vital Ecosystem Resilience (I-COVER) Program

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Office of Energy Awards $7 Million to Enhance Wastewater Treatment Plants Resilience

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Energy announced $7 million in funding through the Resilient Energy for Wastewater Infrastructure Grant Program. The program helps communities, including Environmental Justice communities, assess energy vulnerabilities and implement solar energy systems paired with battery storage. Individual awards range from $200,000 to $2 million, with a match requirement of 25 to 50 percent.

Illinois' Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Energy administers the Resilient Energy for Wastewater Infrastructure (REWI) Grant Program, which funds the implementation of solar energy and battery storage at publicly owned wastewater treatment plants. The program leverages funding from the U.S. Department of Energy State Energy Program from supplemental appropriations authorized under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.