Illinois is Losing People as They Flee Democrat Over-Regulation — and Now Natural Gas Turbines

In a move that perfectly symbolizes the self-inflicted wounds of blue-state energy policy, Illinois is not only hemorrhaging residents — it’s literally watching critical power infrastructure roll out of the state on flatbed trucks headed for Texas. The owner of two-thirds of the massive Elwood Energy natural-gas-fired peaker plant in Will County has decided it’s not worth waiting around for the state’s forced closure deadlines. Instead, they’re dismantling six of the plant’s nine turbines and shipping them south to a more welcoming market.

This isn’t some abstract policy debate. It’s real-world consequences playing out in real time.

The Elwood Energy facility is a 1,350-megawatt powerhouse — the largest natural-gas peaker plant in Commonwealth Edison’s territory and one of the biggest in the nation. Under Illinois’ landmark Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA), signed by Governor JB Pritzker in 2021, certain gas-fired plants face a hard 2030 closure deadline as part of the state’s aggressive push to phase out fossil fuels by 2045. Facing that regulatory hammer, previous owner J-POWER sold the plant in pieces last year. Hull Street Energy (based in Bethesda, Maryland) acquired six of the nine 150-megawatt turbines (900 MW total) and promptly chose to physically relocate them to Texas rather than retire them or fight the Illinois bureaucracy.

The remaining three turbines were sold to Dairyland Power Cooperative, a Wisconsin-based nonprofit cooperative. Because of their ownership structure, those units get a CEJA loophole and can keep operating until 2045 — but even that comes with complications, as Dairyland may sell the power into different markets, potentially leaving northern Illinois (ComEd territory) short on reliable capacity.

The Chicago Tribune editorial board nailed it: this is the equivalent of shutting down an entire nuclear reactor’s worth of capacity in one swoop, with zero net reduction in emissions because those turbines will simply keep generating power — just in Texas instead of Illinois. The editorial asks the obvious question: “Does any of this make any sense in a rational world? No, it doesn’t.”

Pritzker’s office responded with the usual spin: operators make “business decisions based on a range of factors,” and the administration points to 2025 CEJA tweaks (like battery storage surcharges and temporary ICC waivers). But those fixes come too late — plants have to notify the PJM grid operator by December 2026 for upcoming capacity auctions, locking in the damage.

This isn’t just about one power plant. It’s part of a larger exodus.

For years, Illinois, New York, and California have been bleeding people — and the tax dollars and economic activity that come with them — to lower-tax, lower-regulation states. The numbers are stark and consistent across IRS and U.S. Census Bureau data:Illinois: Between July 2024 and July 2025, the state lost more than 40,000 residents to other states on net, ranking it third-worst in the nation for domestic outmigration (behind only California and New York). In 2023 alone, IRS data showed a net loss of 55,609 people and roughly $6 billion in adjusted gross income. An astonishing 95% of those leaving headed to states with lower tax burdens. High property taxes, regulatory overreach, and a hostile business climate are repeatedly cited as the top reasons.

California and New York: These two states have led the nation in population losses for years. Between 2022 and 2023, California lost over 100,000 income tax filers and nearly $12 billion in AGI; New York lost nearly 72,000 filers and almost $10 billion. Cumulatively since 2020, California has lost well over a million residents net to other states, and New York hundreds of thousands. Domestic migration data shows ongoing outflows of 200,000+ per year in recent periods for these states combined.

The money and talent aren’t just leaving — they’re going somewhere specific. Texas, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, and other red-leaning states have been the big winners. Texas alone added 391,243 residents in 2025 (the most of any state), with strong domestic inflows even as international migration slowed. Since 2020, Texas has gained over 2.6 million people, with the majority from domestic migration. Florida and Texas have absorbed hundreds of thousands from high-tax blue states.

Why are Texas and other red states booming while Illinois, New York, and California shrink?

It’s not complicated. Lower taxes, lighter regulatory burdens, pro-business policies, abundant and affordable energy, and a focus on reliability over ideology create an environment where people and capital want to go. When blue-state politicians impose inflexible mandates like CEJA — with unrealistic timelines that ignore grid realities and market signals — businesses respond rationally. They don’t wait to be regulated out of existence; they move to places that welcome them.

The Elwood turbines rolling to Texas are the perfect metaphor. Illinois is losing not just people, but the very energy infrastructure needed to keep the lights on and bills reasonable. Northern Illinois ratepayers can expect higher electricity prices as reliable peaker capacity disappears. Meanwhile, Texas gets more power generation to meet its booming demand — without the emissions “penalty” being avoided in Illinois.

This is the predictable result of prioritizing environmentalist timelines over practical energy policy. CEJA’s defenders can tout “clean energy” goals all they want, but when the turbines are simply relocated rather than retired, emissions don’t drop — they just shift. And Illinois families and businesses pay the price through higher costs and growing reliability risks.