HB3458 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB100 09562 SLF 19729 b

100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
HB3458

Introduced , by Rep. Charles Meier

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Act. Creates the Illinois Land Conservation and Stewardship Grant Program to make grants to conservation land trusts to steward lands identified in the Illinois Natural Area Inventory, lands designated as a buffer area, lands designated as a nature preserve, or lands registered as an Illinois Land and Water Reserve. Establishes the duties of the Department of Natural Resources in carrying out the provisions of the Act. Creates provisions concerning violations of the Act and administrative review. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning conservation.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Act.

Section 5. Legislative findings and statement of public policy.

(a) The General Assembly finds that:

(1) Lands and waters held by non-governmental conservation land trusts contribute to the general public good, health, prosperity, and welfare of the State and its citizenry. It is therefore appropriate for State government to promote and assist conservation land trusts to steward conservation lands so that the people of the present and future generations continue to receive the benefits of land conservation, including flood protection, improved water and air quality, erosion control, wildlife habitat, carbon sequestration, wildlife migration corridors, and outdoor recreation.

(2) Public and private lands acquired for these purposes incur perpetual stewardship costs to fully protect them. Public-private partnerships are warranted to continue protecting conservation lands while also providing the proper level of stewardship in order to meet the ever increasing pressures exerted on conservation lands by climate change, pollution, encroachment by invasive and exotic species, and criminal trespass.

(3) The State's natural resource agencies and conservation land trusts have a long history in cooperation and partnership in implementing the Illinois Natural Area Plan, Illinois Sustainable Natural Areas Vision, and the Illinois State Wildlife Action Plan through the acquisition, management, and defense of lands with conservation value such as those identified on the Illinois Natural Areas Inventory. This Act is intended to foster local support for the execution of statewide conservation goals and priorities by providing funding for conservation land trusts to steward conservation lands identified on the Illinois Natural Areas Inventory, land designated as a buffer area, land dedicated as a nature preserve, or land registered as an Illinois Land and Water Reserve.

(b) It is the purpose of this Act to provide cost share grants to conservation land trusts to help implement the Illinois Natural Area Plan, the Illinois Sustainable Natural Areas Vision, and the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan by conducting actions that are identified on the Illinois Natural Areas Inventory, lands dedicated as a buffer area, lands registered as a nature preserve, or lands registered as a Illinois Land and Water Reserve.

Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:

"Administrative decision" has the same meaning ascribed to it in Section 3-101 of the Code of Civil Procedure

"Applicant" means a conservation land trust that files an application for a grant under this Act.

"Buffer area" has the same meaning ascribed to it in Section 3.02 of the Illinois Natural Areas Preservation Act.

"Commission" means the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission as defined under Section 3.05 of the Illinois Natural Areas Preservation Act.

"Conservation dedication" means dedication as a nature preserve, dedication as a buffer area, or registered as an Illinois Land and Water Reserve under the Illinois Natural Areas Preservation Act.

"Conservation land trust" means an entity exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code whose purposes include the conservation of land, natural areas, open space, or water areas, for the preservation of native plants or animals, biotic communities, geologic formations, or archeological sites of statewide significance.

"Department" means the Department of Natural Resources.

"Director" means the Director of Natural Resources.

"Fines and settlements" means natural resource fines, either State or federal, and out of court settlements for environmental damages.

"Grant application" means a requests for funds to steward lands under this Act by conservation land trusts.

"Illinois Land Conservation and Stewardship Grant Program" means a program established under Section 20 of this Act.

"Illinois Land and Water Reserve" means land registered as a Land and Water Reserve with the Department of Natural Resources under the Department's authority under the Illinois Natural Areas Preservation Act.

"Land" has the same meaning ascribed to it in 3.09 in the Illinois Natural Areas Preservation Act.

"Management plan" means a written management schedule developed for the preservation, protection, management, and use of lands reviewed by the Commission and approved by the landowner and the Department.

"Nature preserve" has the meaning as it is defined in Section 3.11 of the Illinois Natural Areas Preservation Act.

"Steward" means to improve or prevent degradation of land by applying stewardship and restoration practices including, but not limited to, prescribed burns, control of exotic and invasive species, fencing, and other practices identified in the management plan.

"Stewardship grant" means a grant from the Department to a conservation land trust to implement the purposes of this Act.

Section 15. Powers, duties, and authorizations. The Department shall:

(1) Make grants in accordance with Section 20 of this Act.

(2) Establish the total amount of funds available for annual grants with review and formal approval by the Commission at one of their regularly established meetings. The total amount available for annual grants shall not exceed $2,000,000 and shall not result in adverse impacts on the operations of Department or the Commission.

(3) Accept fines and settlements or donations from any corporation, foundation, non-governmental agency, individual, or instrumentality thereof, for the purposes of executing this Act and these funds may deposited into the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund.

(4) Develop and administer the Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant program.

(5) Adopt rules to effectuate the purposes of this Act.

(6) Execute contracts, grant agreements, memoranda of understanding, cooperation agreements, and any other agreements with conservation land trusts and other State and local agencies that are necessary to implement this Act.

(7) Monitor compliance with all agreements, grants, contracts, and other instruments developed under this Act and to assure coordination with the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan and the Illinois Natural Areas Inventory.

(8) Develop progress reports on the implementation and development of this Act which shall be filed biannually with the Governor and the General Assembly.

(9) In any year in which grants are made under this Act, the Department may use funds from the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund to pay for the cost of Department personnel, contractual, professional, or technical services, equipment, materials, and supplies necessary or appropriate to perform the functions under this Act, provided that those costs shall not exceed 5% of the funds appropriated to implement this Act in any fiscal year.

Section 20. Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program.

(a) The Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program is established to make grants to conservation land trusts to steward lands identified in the Illinois Natural Areas Inventory, lands dedicated as a buffer area, lands designated as an nature preserve, or lands registered as an Illinois Land and Water Reserve.

(b) Lands included in a stewardship grant shall be placed under a permanent conservation dedication.

(c) Any conservation land trust in good standing with the federal Internal Revenue Service may apply for a grant.

(d) Any agency, organization, or entity that has taxing powers, collects taxes, or has eminent domain powers is not eligible for a grant under this Act.

(e) The Department shall adopt rules in consultation with the Commission for the selection of grant recipients, amount of grant awards, and eligibility requirements to implement the purposes of this Act. However, the rules shall include the following requirements:

(1) Any stewardship grant under this Act shall require a 10% match but cannot exceed $50,000 to any applicant in any fiscal year.

(2) Lands included in a stewardship grant that are not already encumbered by a permanent conservation dedication shall be so encumbered by a permanent conservation dedication as a condition of the grant and shall be memorialized in writing and approved in writing by the Director.

Section 25. Priorities. In considering applications for grants under this Act, the Department shall give priority to projects which will provide the greatest benefit to implementing the needs and priorities identified in the Illinois Natural Areas Plan, the Illinois Sustainable Natural Area Vision and the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan. The total amount of grants made for any fiscal year may not exceed the amount of the appropriation for that fiscal year.

Section 30. Injunctions. The Attorney General or the State's Attorney of the county where a project is located, may, upon his or her own motion or upon request of the Department, Commission, or the public, institute a civil action for an injunction or other appropriate legal action to restrain violations of this Act or its rules. In this proceeding, the court shall determine whether a violation has been committed and shall enter orders as it considers necessary to remove the effects of any violation and to prevent the violation from continuing or from being renewed in the future.

Section 35. Violations. Any person, conservation land trust, governmental agency, non-governmental agency, or organization that willfully violates this Act or its rules, or causes a violation by their employee or agent, shall be liable for a civil penalty and the penalty shall be recovered in an action brought by the Attorney General or the State's Attorney in the circuit court. All penalties shall be deposited in the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund. Penalties collected under this Section shall not supersede criminal, civil, or other penalties enforced as a result of violations of this Section.

Section 40. Administrative Review Law. All final administrative decisions under this Act are subject to judicial review under the Administrative Review Law and its rules. "Administrative decision" means the term as defined in Section 3-101 of the Administrative Review Law.

Section 45. Fund depository. All funds, assessments, fines, and settlements, compensations, transfers, appropriations, penalties, and donations made under this Act shall be deposited into the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.