As outlined in Section 5 of the Program Guidebook, the Community-Driven Community Solar (CDCS) application window closes 90 days after the start of the Program Year. With the Program Year commencing on June 1, 2026, the application submission deadline for Program Year 2026-27 CDCS projects is Monday, August 31, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. CPT.
Applications are not accepted after the close of the application window. Upon closing of the 90-day application window, projects will be reviewed and scored based on the scoring criteria as outlined in Appendix F of the Program Guidebook, with projects selected from the application pool in the order of highest to lowest score until the block capacity is fully allocated. A minimum score of 6 points must be achieved to be eligible for a REC contract in the CDCS category. Random selection will be utilized as a tiebreaker only for equally scored projects to fill available capacity, if any.
For any questions or support in the CDCS category, please contact [email protected].
Thank you!
Illinois Shines Program
[email protected]