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91_SB0958enr
SB958 Enrolled SRS91S0036PMcb
1 AN ACT to amend the Conservation District Act by changing
2 Sections 5, 13, and 15 and by adding Sections 12b, 12c, and
3 12d.
4 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
5 represented in the General Assembly:
6 Section 5. The Conservation District Act is amended by
7 changing Sections 5, 13, and 15 and by adding Sections 12b,
8 12c, and 12d as follows:
9 (70 ILCS 410/5) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 7105)
10 Sec. 5. Board of trustees.
11 (a) The affairs of a conservation district shall be
12 managed by a board which shall consist of 5 trustees, except
13 as otherwise provided in this Section. If the boundaries of
14 the district are coextensive with the boundaries of one
15 county, the trustees shall be residents of that county. If
16 the district embraces 2 counties, 3 trustees shall be
17 residents of the county with the larger population and 2
18 trustees shall be residents of the other county. If the
19 district embraces 3 counties, one trustee shall be a resident
20 of the county with the smallest population and each of the
21 other counties shall have 2 resident trustees. If the
22 district embraces 4 counties, 2 trustees shall be residents
23 of the county with the largest population and each of the
24 other counties shall have one resident trustee. If the
25 district embraces 5 counties, each county shall have one
26 resident trustee.
27 (b) A district that is entirely within a county of under
28 300,000 200,000 inhabitants and contiguous to a county of
29 more than 2,000,000 inhabitants and that is authorized by
30 referendum as provided in subsection (d) of Section 15 to
31 incur indebtedness over 0.575% but not to exceed 1.725% shall
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1 have a board consisting of 7 trustees, all of whom shall be
2 residents of the county. The additional 2 trustees shall be
3 appointed by the chairman of the county board, with the
4 consent of the county board, and shall hold office for terms
5 expiring on June 30 as follows: one trustee after 4 years
6 and one trustee after 5 years from the date of the
7 referendum. Successor trustees shall be appointed in the
8 same manner no later than June 1 before the commencement of
9 the term of the trustee.
10 (c) Trustees shall be qualified voters of such district
11 who do not hold any other public office and are not officers
12 of any political party. Trustees, if nominated by the county
13 board chairman as hereinafter provided, shall be selected on
14 the basis of their demonstrated interest in the purpose of
15 conservation districts.
16 (d) The chairman of the county board for the county of
17 which the trustee is a resident shall, with the consent of
18 the county board of that county, appoint the first trustees
19 who shall hold office for terms expiring on June 30 after
20 one, 2, 3, 4, and 5 year periods respectively as determined
21 and fixed by lot. Thereafter, successor trustees shall be
22 appointed in the same manner no later than June 1 prior to
23 the commencement of term of the trustee.
24 (e) Each successor trustee shall serve for a term of 5
25 years. A vacancy occurring otherwise than by expiration of
26 term shall be filled for the unexpired term by appointment of
27 a trustee by the county board chairman of the county of which
28 the trustee shall be a resident, with the approval of the
29 county board of that county. A trustee who has served a full
30 term of 5 years is ineligible to serve as a trustee for a
31 period of one year following the expiration of his term. When
32 any trustee during his term of office shall cease to be a
33 bona fide resident of the district he is disqualified as a
34 trustee and his office becomes vacant.
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1 (f) Trustees shall serve without compensation, but may
2 be paid their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the
3 performance of their official duties.
4 (g) A trustee may be removed for cause by the county
5 board chairman for the county of which the trustee is a
6 resident, with the approval of the county board of that
7 county, but every such removal shall be by a written order,
8 which shall be filed with the county clerk.
9 (h) A conservation district with 5 trustees may
10 determine by majority vote of the board to increase the size
11 of the board to 7 trustees. With respect to a 7-member
12 board, no more than 3 members may be residents of any
13 township in a county under township organization or of any
14 congressional township in a county not under township
15 organization. In the case of a 7-member board representing a
16 district that embraces 2 counties, 4 trustees shall be
17 residents of the county with the larger population and 3
18 trustees shall be residents of the other county. If the
19 district embraces 3 counties, 2 trustees shall be residents
20 of each of the 2 counties with the smallest population and
21 the largest county shall have 3 resident trustees. If the
22 district embraces 4 counties, one trustee shall be a resident
23 of the county with the smallest population and each of the
24 other counties shall have 2 resident trustees. If the
25 district embraces 5 counties, the 2 counties with the largest
26 population shall each have 2 resident trustees and each of
27 the other counties shall have one resident trustee. The
28 pertinent appointing authorities shall appoint the additional
29 2 trustees to initial terms as equally staggered as possible
30 from the terms of the trustees already appointed from that
31 township or county so that 2 trustees representing the same
32 area shall not be succeeded in the same year.
33 (Source: P.A. 90-195, eff. 7-24-97.)
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1 (70 ILCS 410/12b new)
2 Sec. 12b. Eminent domain or condemnation. Property
3 owned by a conservation district may not be subject to
4 eminent domain or condemnation proceedings.
5 (70 ILCS 410/12c new)
6 Sec. 12c. Special assessments. Property owned by a
7 conservation district may not be subject to special
8 assessments by any other unit of local government.
9 (70 ILCS 410/12d new)
10 Sec. 12d. Annexation. Property owned by a conservation
11 district may not be subject to annexation without the express
12 consent of the district.
13 (70 ILCS 410/13) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 7114)
14 Sec. 13. The fiscal year of each district shall commence
15 April 1 and extend through the following March 31.
16 The board shall, within the first quarter of each fiscal
17 year, adopt a combined annual budget and appropriation
18 ordinance as provided in the Illinois Municipal Budget Law.
19 In a district located entirely within a county with a
20 population of less than 300,000 that is contiguous to a
21 county with a population of more than 2,000,000, the
22 district's combined annual budget and appropriation ordinance
23 shall not be considered to be adopted until it is also
24 adopted by resolution of the county board of the county in
25 which the district is located.
26 Except as otherwise provided in this Act, a district may
27 annually levy taxes upon all the taxable property therein at
28 the value thereof, as equalized or assessed by the Department
29 of Revenue, to be extended at not more than the rates and for
30 the purposes specified hereinafter:
31 (1) 0.025% for the general purposes of the
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1 district, including acquisition and development of real
2 property which may be in excess of current requirements
3 and allowed to accumulate from year to year, and for any
4 purposes specified by the district; however, no tax may
5 be extended at a rate that will result in accumulation of
6 any amount representing more than 0.075% of the equalized
7 assessed valuation of the district.
8 (2) 0.075% for acquisition of real property, which
9 may be in excess of current requirements and allowed to
10 accumulate from year to year, and for any purposes
11 specified by the district; however, no tax may be
12 extended at a rate that will result in accumulation of
13 any amount representing more than 0.25% of the equalized
14 assessed valuation of the district.
15 (3) 0.1%, in lieu of the two rates specified in (1)
16 and (2) above, for the general purposes of the district,
17 including the acquisition, development, operation and
18 maintenance of real property which may be in excess of
19 current requirements and allowed to accumulate from year
20 to year, and for any purposes specified by the district;
21 however, no tax may be extended at a rate that will
22 result in accumulation of any amount representing more
23 than 0.325% of the equalized assessed valuation of the
24 district.
25 Except as provided in some other Act, a district may not
26 levy annual taxes, for all its purposes in the aggregate, in
27 excess of 0.1% of the value, as equalized or assessed by the
28 Department of Revenue, of the taxable property therein.
29 After the adoption of the combined budget and
30 appropriation ordinance and within the second quarter of each
31 fiscal year, the board shall ascertain the total amount of
32 the appropriations legally made which are to be provided for
33 from tax levies for the current year. Then, by an ordinance
34 specifying in detail the purposes for which such
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1 appropriations have been made and the amounts appropriated
2 for such purposes, the board shall levy not to exceed the
3 total amount so ascertained upon all the property subject to
4 taxation within the district as the same is assessed and
5 equalized for state and county purposes for the current year.
6 A certified copy of such ordinance shall be filed on or
7 before the first Tuesday in October with the clerk of each
8 county wherein the district or any part thereof is located.
9 (Source: P.A. 85-715; 86-1297.)
10 (70 ILCS 410/15) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 7116)
11 Sec. 15. (a) Whenever a district does not have
12 sufficient money in its treasury to meet all necessary
13 expenses and liabilities thereof, it may issue tax
14 anticipation warrants. Such issue of tax anticipation
15 warrants shall be subject to the provisions of Section 2 of
16 "An Act to provide for the manner of issuing warrants upon
17 the treasurer of the State or of any county, township, or
18 other municipal corporation or quasi municipal corporation,
19 or of any farm drainage district, river district, drainage
20 and levee district, fire protection district and jurors'
21 certificates", approved June 27, 1913, as now and hereafter
22 amended.
23 (b) For the purpose of acquisition of real property, or
24 rights thereto, a district may incur indebtedness and, as
25 evidence of the indebtedness thus created, may issue and sell
26 bonds without first obtaining the consent of the legal voters
27 of the district.
28 (c) For the purpose of development of real property, a
29 district may incur indebtedness and, as evidence of the
30 indebtedness thus created, may issue and sell bonds only
31 after the proposition to issue bonds has been submitted to
32 the legal voters of the district at an election and has been
33 approved by a majority of those voting on the proposition.
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1 Such election is subject to Section 15.1 of this Act.
2 (d) No district shall become indebted in any manner or
3 for any purpose, to any amount including existing
4 indebtedness in the aggregate exceeding 0.575% of the value,
5 as equalized or assessed by the Department of Revenue, of the
6 taxable property therein; except that a district entirely
7 within a county of under 300,000 200,000 inhabitants and
8 contiguous to a county of more than 2,000,000 inhabitants may
9 incur indebtedness, including existing indebtedness, in the
10 aggregate not exceeding 1.725% of that value if the aggregate
11 indebtedness over 0.575% is submitted to the legal voters of
12 the district at an election and is approved by a majority of
13 those voting on the proposition as provided in Section 15.1.
14 (e) Before or at the time of issuing bonds for
15 acquisition or development of real property, the district
16 shall provide by ordinance for the collection of an annual
17 tax, in addition to all other taxes authorized by this act,
18 sufficient to pay such bonds and the interest thereon as the
19 same respectively become due. Such bonds shall be divided
20 into series, the first of which shall mature not later than 5
21 years after the date of issue and the last of which shall
22 mature not later than 20 years after the date of issue; shall
23 bear interest at a rate or rates not exceeding the maximum
24 rate permitted in "An Act to authorize public corporations to
25 issue bonds, other evidences of indebtedness and tax
26 anticipation warrants subject to interest rate limitations
27 set forth therein", approved May 26, 1970, as now or
28 hereafter amended; shall be in such form as the district
29 shall by resolution provide and shall be payable as to both
30 principal and interest from the proceeds of the annual levy
31 of taxes authorized to be levied by this Section, or so much
32 thereof as will be sufficient to pay the principal thereof
33 and the interest thereon. Prior to the authorization and
34 issuance of such bonds the district may, with or without
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1 notice, negotiate and enter into an agreement or agreements
2 with any bank, investment banker, trust company or insurance
3 company or group thereof whereunder the marketing of such
4 bonds may be assured and consummated. The proceeds of such
5 bonds shall be deposited in a special fund, to be kept
6 separate and apart from all other funds of the conservation
7 district.
8 (Source: P.A. 86-785.)
9 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
10 becoming law.
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