Kane County
Kane County, Illinois: solar permitting grade C (score 50/100, Elevated Risk). Score has been stable over the last 12 months. Primary-source ordinance and board-vote data on SitePath.
Public summary
| Grade | C · Elevated Risk · Score 50/100 |
| Population | 516,522 |
| Solar ordinance | Active, restrictive solar ordinance |
| Active moratorium | None on record |
| Regulatory trajectory | Stable (no material ordinance movement) |
| 12-month score movement | Stable |
| Last verified | 2026-05-02 |
Developer outlook
Kane County carries elevated permitting risk. Developers should budget additional time for ordinance review, public hearing preparation, and community engagement. Illinois's state RPS policy provides a supportive macro backdrop for renewables, even where individual county ordinances are restrictive. Market saturation is elevated in this area — expect competition for prime land parcels and interconnection capacity.
Local intel
On file: named opposition groups
Cities, towns & townships
Local governments in Kane County. An incorporated city, town or village can adopt its own zoning, separate from the county’s.
- Aurora citypartly in this county
- Batavia citypartly in this county
- Elgin citypartly in this county
- Geneva city
- St. Charles citypartly in this county
- Algonquin village
- Barrington Hills villagepartly in this county
- Bartlett villagepartly in this county
- Big Rock village
- Burlington village
- Campton Hills village
- Carpentersville village
- East Dundee villagepartly in this county
- Elburn village
- Gilberts village
- Hampshire village
- Hoffman Estates villagepartly in this county
- Huntley village
- Kaneville village
- Lily Lake village
- Maple Park villagepartly in this county
- Montgomery village
- North Aurora village
- Pingree Grove village
Show all
- Sleepy Hollow village
- South Elgin village
- Sugar Grove village
- Virgil village
- Wayne villagepartly in this county
- West Dundee village
- Aurora township
- Batavia township
- Big Rock township
- Blackberry township
- Burlington township
- Campton township
- Dundee township
- Elgin township
- Geneva township
- Hampshire township
- Kaneville township
- Plato township
- Rutland township
- St. Charles township
- Sugar Grove township
- Virgil township
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, incorporated places and county subdivisions with an active government.
Nearby counties
- DeKalb County · ≈18 miD58—
- DuPage County · ≈19 miB40—
- Kendall County · ≈24 miD63—
- McHenry County · ≈27 miD65—
- Boone County · ≈33 miC43—
- Cook County · ≈40 miD52—
Compare these counties side-by-side →
Kane County ranks #73 of 102 ranked Illinois counties (1 = lowest permitting risk). Lowest-risk in Illinois: DeWitt County (A · 26), Bureau County (A · 26), Edgar County (A · 28). See all Illinois county grades →
Want the full record?
Setback distances, board vote histories, source documents, and ordinance amendments are available in the full county profile. The map is free; a walkthrough shows you the underlying record.
About this score
Every U.S. county is scored 0–100 on solar permitting risk (lower is friendlier to development). The grade is a weighted composite of compliance stringency, market saturation, regulatory trajectory, and data uncertainty. Every figure traces back to a primary government document. Read the full methodology →
Related reading
SitePath Intelligence is a research platform. Data verified as of 2026-05-02. Scores update on a quarterly review cycle.