Where do you apply for Illinois Shines and the other solar incentives?

Illinois Shines: https://illinoisshines.com/small-distributed-generation/; Property tax claim: Your chief county assessment officer.

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Illinois Shines and the other solar incentives open

Administered by the Illinois Power Agency (Illinois Shines); ComEd and Ameren Illinois (smart inverter rebates); county assessors (property valuation).

Illinois's main solar incentive is not a rebate to you. Illinois Shines buys the renewable energy credits of a home system up to 25 kW, paying the Approved Vendor $60.92 to $80.77 per megawatt-hour of expected output, and the vendor decides how much reaches you. ComEd and Ameren add a smart inverter rebate, and a county assessor values a solar home at no more than it would be worth with ordinary heating, if the owner files for it.

source · verified 27 September 2026 · amounts in US dollars

What it pays

Illinois Shines prices per renewable energy credit (one megawatt-hour), 2026-27 program year
System size	Group A: Ameren, MidAmerican, co-ops and city utilities in MISO	Group B: ComEd, co-ops and city utilities in PJM
Up to 10 kW AC	$70.37	$80.77
Over 10 kW to 25 kW AC	$60.92	$79.21

Paid for 15 or 20 years of expected output. A customer-owned system, not leased, that takes no federal tax credit gets $20 more per credit. Projects approved from 1 June 2026 are paid half at energization and the rest over six years.

Other solar money
Incentive	What it pays
ComEd distributed generation rebate	$300 per kW of solar and $300 per kWh of battery storage, with smart inverter settings (terms dated 2024)
Ameren Illinois distributed generation rebate	A separate application with smart inverter settings; amounts set by tariff
Property tax: alternate valuation	Filed with the county assessor: the home is valued as if it had a conventional heating or cooling system, if that is lower

Who is eligible

size: Small distributed generation: systems up to 25 kW, through an Approved Vendor.
disclosure: The vendor must give you a standard disclosure form saying how the incentive is shared with you.
property tax: The alternate valuation is a claim the owner must file with the chief county assessment officer; it is not automatic. Tell the assessor within 30 days if the system stops being used.

Where the application goes

Through the Approved Vendor, and the county for the property tax claim.

Where the application goes
If this is you	Apply here
Illinois Shines	illinoisshines.com
Property tax claim	Your chief county assessment officer

The thing most pages get wrong

Installers often present the Illinois Shines incentive as money the homeowner receives. It is paid to the Approved Vendor per credit, and reaches you only as far as the vendor's contract passes it on. The $20 adder is only for systems you own and that took no federal tax credit.

Half up front, from June 2026

Under the 2026 grid law, small projects approved for a credit contract from 1 June 2026 are paid half at energization and the rest over the next six years, instead of all at once.