What the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act Means for Green Buildings

Brian Imus • September 21, 2021

On September 15, the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act was signed into law by Governor Pritzker. This nation-leading law delivers on the goal of a carbon-free power sector by 2045, increases the Illinois Solar for All program 5-fold, and extends electric efficiency programs beyond 2030. 


This victory is the result of three years of critical advocacy and grassroots engagement by the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition, a network made up of more than 200 consumer, business, environmental, environmental justice, health care, and faith-based organizations, including Illinois Green Alliance. 


The law establishes Illinois as a leader and addresses keystone equity and jobs provisions that ensure a just transition to a clean energy future. The green building aspects will propel forward a healthy & resilient built environment across the state.



I am ecstatic about the months to come, during which we will continue to share cutting-edge building education and leadership on translating the policies contained in the law into action—action that will advance net zero buildings for all in Illinois. There is exciting work ahead to ensure effective implementation. 


Some highlights of the bill:

  • Puts Illinois on a path to 100% clean energy, and delivers carbon-free power by 2045
  • Creates thousands of good-paying jobs, especially in communities most impacted by climate change
  • Establishes nation-leading equity programs, 
  • Reduces pollution at the scale science demands, and holds utility companies accountable for corruption.


We join in this celebration with all members of the coalition, and you, our supporters, who inspire us daily to build a better future for everyone.

Scaling High Performance: Our 2026-2030 Strategic Plan is Here

By Matt Watson • February 12, 2026
Strategies for Leveraging Net Zero Practices of Statewide Impact

Illinois Green's Impact Over the Last 5 Years

By Ryan Wilmington • January 23, 2026
Five years ago, Illinois Green Alliance launched a new strategic plan with a bold north star to guide our work: to make net zero buildings feasible, affordable, and so commonplace that every building in Illinois was net zero by 2050. Mainstreaming the technology and building methods, whether new or existing, is no easy feat. But we realized no one was better positioned to make it happen than green building professionals.Our focus over the last five years have been about laying the foundation necessary to meet our long-term vision and I’m excited to share the progress we’ve made. These past five years have been guided by three pillars: ● Educating industry professionals to ensure they have the expertise to use net zero building methods in their work and can help us raise awareness about their value with building owners and policy makers. ● Removing barriers by providing information about the technical, financial, social and policy roadblocks to net zero adoption and passing new laws that help to overcome these barriers. ● Demonstrating it can work everywhere by collaborating with building types in historically underinvested communities that are considered difficult to implement net zero methods. That focus has paid off, allowing us to meet many of the goals we set for our work across all of our strategies. For example:

The New Momentum for Green Building Policy

By Ryan Wilmington • January 16, 2026
At the start of 2025, I told our members that we can build a movement of green building advocates that can continue the progress made in Illinois for high-performance building, regardless of what happens in Washington D.C. Over the last year, you’ve proven me right. While elsewhere green building and clean energy goals have been put on pause, Illinois has continued the fight and won three huge victories that usher in historic investment in clean energy and green buildings and raise the bar for building performance, completely changing the landscape for what is possible in this industry. 
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