Even though Illinois is a major coal producer itself, much of the coal burned in the state comes from elsewhere. A new state task force aims to tip the balance in favor of Illinois mines.

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner signed the Flue Gas Desulfurization, or FGD, Task Force Act on Sept. 8 to "increase the amount of Illinois Basin coal use." Producers in the region, which stretches across parts of of Illinois, Kentucky and Indiana, sell relatively little of its coal in Illinois, though it boasts lower costs than many of its Appalachian competitors.

Coal from the Illinois Basin is higher in sulfur and generally has higher production costs than Powder River Basin coal, though some of the costs are offset because Powder River Basin coal must be transported from much farther away. A bigger hurdle is that many of today's coal plants were built for the lower-sulfur Powder River Basin coal.

"The FGD Task Force is responsible for identifying and evaluating the costs, benefits, and barriers of new and modified FGD, or other post-combustion sulfur dioxide emission control technologies, and other capital improvements, that would be necessary for generation units to comply with specified federal standards while improving the ability of those generation units to meet specified guidelines for wastewater discharges and enhancing the marketability of the generation units' FGD byproducts," Rauner spokesman Jason Schaumburg said in an email describing the bill.

An S&P Global Market Intelligence analysis showed that of about 33.4 million tons of coal purchases reported by Illinois coal plants in 2016, only about 9.0 million sourced mines in Illinois. The plants were largely fueled by coal from Wyoming's low-cost surface mines, including some from the largest coal operations in the country owned by companies such as Arch Coal Inc., Peabody Energy Corp., Contura Energy Inc. and Cloud Peak Energy Inc.

Meanwhile, the state hosts some of the most productive underground longwall mines in the country, including Foresight Energy LP, Murray Energy Corp. and Alliance Resource Partners LP mines.

Foresight President and CEO Robert Moore said on a summer 2015 earnings call that Foresight was working with generators to capture some of that Powder River Basin market share, particularly from plants originally designed to burn Illinois Basin coal that might need retofitted pollution controls to do so.

"We will deliver on a cents-per-MMBtu basis cheaper than [Powder River Basin] any day of the week out of our low-cost operations," Moore told analysts.

Phil Gonet, president of the Illinois Coal Association, said in a state with deregulated electricity markets, the move may "bring [generators] to the table" for a discussion about investing in pollution controls.

"We have over 60 million tons of coal that comes into the state each year to be used in our power plants and it'd be nice if it could be Illinois coal," Gonet said.

Illinois State Rep. Avery Bourne, R-Raymond, is the chief sponsor of the bill. Her office did not respond to a request for comment, but in a Sept. 9 website post, Bourne called the task force an effort "that promotes clean coal and good-paying jobs."

"We should be able to utilize that resource here," Bourne said. "Because of Obama-era regulations, Illinois' coal industry has been attacked and our area has lost many jobs as a result."

Legislative efforts to boost Illinois coal have been complicated in the past. State Rep. John Bradley, D-Marion, introduced a bill in 2016 that would have put requirements on utilities designed to incentivize the burning of Illinois coal as well as authorize the Illinois Commerce Commission to find a way to help pay for the sort of pollution controls that would favor burning Illinois coal.

Early on, the effort prompted concern the state could run afoul of the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Gonet said the new bill allows state lawmakers to show support for coal without the risk of backing a bill that might not withstand a legal challenge.

A previous effort, the Illinois Coal Act of 1991, would have essentially required utilities in the state to develop pollution control plans that consider the use of in-state coal. In a 1993 opinion and order from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the move was found to have "clearly" burdened interstate commerce.

"Even though the coal act does not expressly require the use of Illinois coal, the purpose and effect of the coal act is apparent: the coal act clearly protects the interests of the Illinois coal industry," the order found. "The requirement that utilities and the commission base Clean Air Act compliance decisions even in part on the interests of the Illinois coal industry is pure protectionism."

Other states, including West Virginia, have seen legislators aim to promote in-state use of coal as well. One of the most recent attempts to boost local production legislatively include West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice proposing a homeland security incentive for utilities that burn Appalachia coal.

Gonet noted that while the Illinois legislation called for a Dec. 31 report, the bill's recent signing means there will likely be an extension. Schaumburg said it was "premature to speculate" on task force appointees in an email on Sept. 11.

The task force is to include a mix of Illinois state lawmakers from the majority and minority parties, members with mining and power generation expertise appointed by the governor, and members from state regulatory offices.