Rep. David McSweeney

Filed: 2/27/2018

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 4244

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 4244 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 1. Legislative intent. It is the intent of the
5General Assembly that this Act further the intent of Section 5
6of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution, which states, in
7relevant part, that townships "may be consolidated or merged,
8and one or more townships may be dissolved or divided, when
9approved by referendum in each township affected".
10Transferring the powers and duties of one or more dissolved
11McHenry County townships into the county, as the supervising
12unit of local government within which the township or townships
13are situated, will reduce the overall number of local
14governmental units within our State. This reduction is declared
15to be a strong goal of Illinois public policy.
 
16    Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing Section

 

 

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128-7 as follows:
 
2    (10 ILCS 5/28-7)  (from Ch. 46, par. 28-7)
3    Sec. 28-7. Except as provided in Article 24 of the Township
4Code, in In any case in which Article VII or paragraph (a) of
5Section 5 of the Transition Schedule of the Constitution
6authorizes any action to be taken by or with respect to any
7unit of local government, as defined in Section 1 of Article
8VII of the Constitution, by or subject to approval by
9referendum, any such public question shall be initiated in
10accordance with this Section.
11    Any such public question may be initiated by the governing
12body of the unit of local government by resolution or by the
13filing with the clerk or secretary of the governmental unit of
14a petition signed by a number of qualified electors equal to or
15greater than at least 8% of the total votes cast for candidates
16for Governor in the preceding gubernatorial election,
17requesting the submission of the proposal for such action to
18the voters of the governmental unit at a regular election.
19    If the action to be taken requires a referendum involving 2
20or more units of local government, the proposal shall be
21submitted to the voters of such governmental units by the
22election authorities with jurisdiction over the territory of
23the governmental units. Such multi-unit proposals may be
24initiated by appropriate resolutions by the respective
25governing bodies or by petitions of the voters of the several

 

 

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1governmental units filed with the respective clerks or
2secretaries.
3    This Section is intended to provide a method of submission
4to referendum in all cases of proposals for actions which are
5authorized by Article VII of the Constitution by or subject to
6approval by referendum and supersedes any conflicting
7statutory provisions except those contained in Division 2-5 of
8the Counties Code or Article 24 of the Township Code the
9"County Executive Act".
10    Referenda provided for in this Section may not be held more
11than once in any 23-month period on the same proposition,
12provided that in any municipality a referendum to elect not to
13be a home rule unit may be held only once within any 47-month
14period.
15(Source: P.A. 97-81, eff. 7-5-11; revised 9-22-17.)
 
16    Section 10. The Counties Code is amended by adding Section
175-1184 as follows:
 
18    (55 ILCS 5/5-1184 new)
19    Sec. 5-1184. Dissolution of townships in McHenry County. If
20a township in McHenry County dissolves as provided in Article
2124 of the Township Code, McHenry County shall assume the
22powers, duties, and obligations of each dissolved township as
23provided in Article 24 of the Township Code.
 

 

 

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1    Section 15. The Township Code is amended by adding Article
224 as follows:
 
3    (60 ILCS 1/Art. 24 heading new)
4
ARTICLE 24. DISSOLUTION OF
5
TOWNSHIPS IN MCHENRY COUNTY

 
6    (60 ILCS 1/24-5 new)
7    Sec. 24-5. Scope. The method of dissolution of a township
8in McHenry County under this Article shall be in addition to
9any other method of dissolving a township provided by law or
10otherwise.
 
11    (60 ILCS 1/24-10 new)
12    Sec. 24-10. Definition. As used in this Article, "electors"
13means the registered voters of any single township in McHenry
14County.
 
15    (60 ILCS 1/24-15 new)
16    Sec. 24-15. Abolishing a township in McHenry County. By
17resolution, the board of trustees of any township located in
18McHenry County may submit a proposition to abolish the township
19to the electors of that township at the election next following
20in accordance with the general election law. The ballot shall
21be as provided for in Section 24-30.
 

 

 

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1    (60 ILCS 1/24-20 new)
2    Sec. 24-20. Petition requirements; notice.
3    (a) Subject to the petition requirements of Section 28-3 of
4the Election Code, petitions for a referendum to dissolve a
5township located in McHenry County must be filed with the
6governing board of the township, the county board of McHenry
7County, and the McHenry County Clerk not less than 122 days
8prior to any election held throughout the township. Petitions
9must include:
10        (1) the name of the dissolving township;
11        (2) the date of dissolution; and
12        (3) signatures of a number of electors equal to or
13    greater than 5% of the total votes cast in the township in
14    the preceding election that is of an election type
15    comparable to the election for which the petition is being
16    filed; all signatures gathered under this paragraph (3)
17    must be signed within 365 days prior to the filing of a
18    petition.
19    (b) The proposed date of dissolution shall be at least 90
20days after the date of the election at which the referendum is
21to be voted upon.
22    (c) If a valid petition is filed under subsection (a), then
23the McHenry County Clerk shall, by publication in one or more
24newspapers of general circulation within the county, not less
25than 90 days prior to the election at which the referendum is
26to be voted on, give notice in substantially the following

 

 

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1form:
 
2    NOTICE OF PETITION TO DISSOLVE (dissolving township).
3    Residents of (dissolving township) and McHenry County are
4    notified that a petition has been filed with (dissolving
5    township) and McHenry County requesting a referendum to
6    dissolve (dissolving township) on (date of dissolution)
7    with all real and personal property, and any other assets,
8    together with all personnel, contractual obligations, and
9    liabilities being transferred to McHenry County.
 
10    (60 ILCS 1/24-25 new)
11    Sec. 24-25. Ballot placement. A petition that meets the
12requirements of Section 24-20 shall be placed on the ballot in
13the form provided for in Section 24-30 at the election next
14following.
 
15    (60 ILCS 1/24-30 new)
16    Sec. 24-30. Referendum; voting.
17    (a) Subject to the requirements of Section 16-7 of the
18Election Code, the referendum described in Section 24-25 shall
19be in substantially the following form on the ballot:
20-
21    Shall the (dissolving                     YES
22township) be dissolved on (date
23of dissolution) with all of              --------------

 

 

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1its property, assets, personnel,
2obligations, and liabilities being            NO
3transferred to McHenry County?
4-------------------------------------------------------------
5    (b) The referendum is approved when a majority of those
6voting in the election from the dissolving township approve the
7referendum.
 
8    (60 ILCS 1/24-35 new)
9    Sec. 24-35. Dissolution; transfer of rights and duties.
10When the dissolution of a township has been approved under
11Section 24-30:
12        (1) On or before the date of dissolution, all real and
13    personal property, and any other assets, together with all
14    personnel, contractual obligations, and liabilities of the
15    dissolving township shall be transferred to McHenry
16    County. All township funds of the dissolved township shall
17    be used solely on behalf of the residents of the geographic
18    area within the boundaries of the dissolved township.
19        (2) On the date of dissolution, the dissolving township
20    is dissolved.
21        (3) On and after the date of dissolution, all rights
22    and duties of the dissolved township may be exercised by
23    the governing board of the receiving unit of local
24    government solely on behalf of the residents of the
25    geographic area within the boundaries of the dissolved

 

 

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1    township.
2        (4) The governing board of the receiving unit of local
3    government shall not extend a property tax levy that is
4    greater than 90% of the property tax levy extended by the
5    dissolved township for the duties taken on by the receiving
6    unit of local government. This property tax levy may not be
7    extended outside the boundaries of the dissolved township.
8    In all subsequent years, this levy shall be bound by the
9    provisions of the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law.
10        (5) All road districts wholly within the boundaries of
11    the dissolving township are dissolved on the date of
12    dissolution of the dissolving township, and all powers and
13    responsibilities of each road district are transferred to
14    McHenry County except as provided in paragraph (6).
15        (6) The county board of McHenry County shall give
16    written notice to each municipality whose governing board
17    meets within the boundaries of a dissolving township that
18    the municipality may make an offer, on or before 60 days
19    after the date of dissolution of the dissolving township,
20    that the municipality will assume all of the powers and
21    responsibilities of a road district or road districts
22    wholly inside the dissolving township. The notice shall be
23    sent to each municipality on or before 30 days after the
24    date of dissolution of the township. Any eligible
25    municipality may, with consent of its governing board, make
26    an offer to assume all of the powers and responsibilities

 

 

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1    of the dissolving township's road district or road
2    districts. A municipality may offer to assume the powers
3    and responsibilities only for a limited period of time. If
4    one or more offers are received by McHenry County on or
5    before 60 days after the date of dissolution of the
6    dissolving township, the county board of McHenry County
7    shall select the best offer or offers that the board
8    determines would be in the best interest and welfare of the
9    affected resident population. If no municipality makes an
10    offer, the powers and duties of the dissolving township's
11    road district or road districts are retained by McHenry
12    County. The receiving unit of local government that assumes
13    the powers and duties of the dissolving township's road
14    district or road districts shall not extend a road district
15    property tax levy under Division 5 of Article 6 of the
16    Illinois Highway Code that is greater than 90% of the road
17    district property tax levy that was extended by the county
18    on behalf of the dissolving township's road district or
19    road districts for the duties taken on by the receiving
20    unit of local government.
 
21    Section 20. The Illinois Highway Code is amended by adding
22Section 6-140 as follows:
 
23    (605 ILCS 5/6-140 new)
24    Sec. 6-140. Abolishing a road district within Lake County

 

 

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1or McHenry County with less than 15 miles of roads. Any
2township in Lake County or McHenry County shall abolish a road
3district of that township if the roads of the road district are
4less than 15 centerline miles in length, as determined by the
5county engineer or county superintendent of highways. A road
6district is abolished on the expiration of the term of office
7of the highway commissioner of the road district facing
8abolition following the determination by the county engineer or
9county superintendent of highways of the length, in centerline
10mileage, of the roads within the road district to be abolished.
11    On the date of abolishment: all the rights, powers, duties,
12assets, property, liabilities, obligations, and
13responsibilities of the road district shall by operation of law
14vest in and be assumed by the township; the township board of
15trustees shall assume all taxing authority of a road district
16abolished under this Section; the township shall exercise all
17duties and responsibilities of the highway commissioner as
18provided in this Code; and for purposes of distribution of
19revenue, the township shall assume the powers, duties, and
20obligations of the road district. The township board of
21trustees may enter into a contract with the county, a
22municipality, or a private contractor to administer the roads
23added to its jurisdiction under this Section.
 
24    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
25becoming law.".