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Christine Lynde says her community feels “powerless” despite being home to a nuclear plant that provides electricity to over 2 million Illinois homes.
Lynde is the president of the Byron School Board. She’s spent the last year signing witness slips and writing advocacy letters to lawmakers stressing urgency to save the plant.
“I m still optimistic, but I probably have never been more anxious about the legislature finishing or making good on a promise,” she said.
Exelon announced plans last summer to shutter that power station, and one in Dresden, this September. The billion-dollar energy giant just filed paperwork to deactivate one of the two cooling towers at the Byron facility.
Springfield (WREX) The future of the Byron Nuclear Plant remains unclear after lawmakers fail to reach a decision by the May 31st legislative deadline.
Exelon announced it planned to close the plant last year due to a drop in revenue and energy costs. Since then, lawmakers and Exelon have worked to strike a deal to keep it open.
Lawmakers say there is still hope for the measure to pass but the current holdup is over issues with the proposed closure of the Prairie State Coal Plant by 2035.
The plant is co-owned by a number of municipalities, including Rochelle. Rochelle would be paying off its bonds for Prairie State through 2041, while also paying for a source of energy to make up for the loss of the coal plant.
SPRINGFIELD (WREX) The future Byron s Nuclear Plant is looking good according to local lawmakers, but nothing has gone to the floor in Springfield for a vote.
Exelon says it will close the plant by September if it doesn t receive more funding by the end of this legislative branch.
State Representatives Tom Demmer and Dave Vella say a deal to provide that funding was struck between the governor s office and Exelon this evening.
There are very few details about the funding at the time being between how much the state will loan Exelon, and how long that funding would keep the plant open.
The measure was approved by the Senate, 37-18, on May 20.
Opponents of the bill said they worry inappropriate information would be taught, and children would be taught at too young of an age about gender and sexuality, types of sexual activities and abortion.
Even though the bill would allow parents and guardians to opt their children out of the curriculum, opponents said they believe many school districts would decide to opt out of the curriculum entirely. In that case, the bill would require that nothing about personal health and sexuality is taught in a district.
Advocates for the bill said it is needed because the content of sex education teaching varies throughout the state.