Sangamon Sun

Veteran lawmaker Rep. Tim Butler (R-Springfield) is intent on making sure his downstate community doesn’t get shut out of ongoing energy policy negotiations that include talk of a multimillion-dollar bailout for nuclear power plants.

"I'm a member of the House Energy & Environment Committee and Public Utilities Committee and the reason I've asked to be on those committees is for two reasons: 1) to advocate for the interests of my municipally-owned utility, CWLP, and 2) look out for the interests of the electric co-ops that we have in this state,” Butler said. “These are the little guys that are fighting to make sure that we have power and that we can turn on the lights every day and we have a wonderful facility here in Springfield and we made big investments in.”

Even as the legislature approved Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s $42 billion state budget, lawmakers recently left Springfield without an agreement on an energy policy that would include a multimillion-dollar bailout for nuclear power plants in the state.

Reaching a deal to keep the plants afloat along with the livelihoods of thousands of union employees was thought to be among the most pressing issues for lawmakers. The task was made trickier by lawmakers' determination not to give the impression they were conceding anything to a utility given the ongoing corruption scandal involving Commonwealth Edison.

“It is vital that we protect these assets that we have in the state of Illinois to provide power, especially in downstate,” Butler said. “Our citizens have made the investment, a smart investment, in these facilities and we need to make sure that we see them through to their logical lifespan and make sure that our citizens, our constituents are not paying twice for the power.”

Butler said he's concerned that the interests of his community are not being listened to or considered in ongoing negotiations.

“My district, the 87th district, is probably the most diverse energy district in the state. I get a little frustrated with my friends up north who don’t understand my district contains CWLP. The coal mine for the coal for CWLP is in the district I represent. I have 300 megawatts of wind in the district I represent. I have a brand new solaray going in and I'm 10 miles away from the Clinton Nuclear Power Plant. That is the energy mix that we need in the state of Illinois, and it includes coal.”

Butler argues considering the interests of downstate communities add up to a win for everyone.

“We want to make sure these guys still have a job,” he said. “I want to make sure the 200-plus people in the coal mines still have a job when we get out on the other side of this and that's what we're up here fighting for — the little guy. That’s what this is all about and this is why I urged those people negotiating the bill and the governor to listen to the interest of downstate.”