(55 ILCS 90/10) (from Ch. 34, par. 8010)

Sec. 10. Definitions. In this Act, words or terms have the following meanings:

(a) "Economic development plan" means the written plan of a county that sets forth an economic development program for an economic development project area. Each economic development plan shall include but not be limited to (i) estimated economic development project costs, (ii) the sources of funds to pay those costs, (iii) the nature and term of any obligations to be issued by the county to pay those costs, (iv) the most recent equalized assessed valuation of the economic development project area, (v) an estimate of the equalized assessed valuation of the economic development project area after completion of an economic development project, (vi) the estimated date of completion of any economic development project proposed to be undertaken, (vii) a general description of any proposed developer, user, or tenant of any property to be located or improved within the economic development project area, (viii) a description of the type, structure, and general character of the facilities to be developed or improved, (ix) a report, which may be in preliminary form, of an independent engineer, architect, or other professional indicating that any proposed manufacturing, industrial, research, or similar facility included in a proposed economic development project for a proposed economic development project area uses proven technology or uses innovative technology for which there is reasonable evidence of technological feasibility, (x) a description of the general land uses to apply in the economic development project area, (xi) a description of the type, class, and number of employees to be employed in the operation of the facilities to be developed or improved, and (xii) a commitment by the county to fair employment practices and an affirmative action plan with respect to any economic development program to be undertaken by the county.

(b) "Economic development project" means any development project in furtherance of the objectives of this Act.

(c) "Economic development project area" means any improved or vacant area that (i) is located in a county of significant unemployment as defined in subsection (e) of this Section, (ii) is contiguous, (iii) is not less in the aggregate than 5000 acres, (iv) is suitable for siting by a commercial, manufacturing, industrial, research, or transportation enterprise or facilities to include but not be limited to commercial businesses, offices, factories, mills, processing plants, industrial or commercial distribution centers, warehouses, repair overhaul or service facilities, freight terminals, research facilities, test facilities, or transportation facilities, regardless of whether the area has been used at any time for those facilities and regardless of whether the area has been used or is suitable for other uses, including commercial agricultural purposes, and (v) has been approved and certified by the corporate authorities of the county pursuant to this Act.

(d) "Economic development project costs" means and includes the total of all reasonable or necessary costs incurred or to be incurred by a county or by a nongovernmental person pursuant to an economic development project, including, without limitation, the following:

(1) Costs of studies, surveys, development of plans and specifications, and implementation and administration of an economic development plan and personnel and professional service costs for architectural, engineering, legal, marketing, financial, planning, police, fire, public works, or other services. No charges for professional services, however, may be based on a percentage of incremental tax revenues.

(2) Property assembly costs within an economic development project area, including but not limited to acquisition of land and other real or personal property or rights or interests in property.

(3) Site preparation costs, including but not limited to clearance of any area within an economic development project area by demolition or removal of any existing buildings, structures, fixtures, utilities, and improvements and clearing and grading; and including installation, repair, construction, reconstruction, or relocation of public streets, public utilities, and other public site improvements located outside the boundaries of an economic development project area that are essential to the preparation of the economic development project area for use in accordance with an economic development plan.

(4) Costs of renovation, rehabilitation, reconstruction, relocation, repair, or remodeling of any existing buildings, improvements, and fixtures within an economic development project area.

(5) Costs of installation or construction within an economic development project area of any buildings, structures, works, streets, improvements, utilities, or fixtures, whether publicly or privately owned or operated.

(6) Financing costs, including but not limited to all necessary and incidental expenses related to the issuance of obligations, payment of any interest on any obligations issued under this Act that accrues during the estimated period of construction of any economic development project for which the obligations are issued and for not more than 36 months after that period, and any reasonable reserves related to the issuance of the obligations.

(7) All or a portion of a taxing district's capital costs resulting from an economic development project necessarily incurred or estimated to be incurred by a taxing district in the furtherance of the objectives of an economic development project, to the extent that the county by written agreement accepts and approves those costs.

(8) Relocation costs to the extent that a county determines that relocation costs shall be paid or is required to pay relocation costs by federal or State law.

(9) The estimated tax revenues from real property in an economic development project area acquired by a county that, according to the economic development plan, is to be used for a private use (i) that any taxing district would have received had the county not adopted tax increment allocation financing for an economic development project area and (ii) that would result from the taxing district's levies made after the time of the adoption by the county of tax increment allocation financing to the time the current equalized assessed value of real property in the economic development project area exceeds the total initial equalized value of real property.

(10) Costs of rebating ad valorem taxes paid by any developer or other nongovernmental person in whose name the general taxes were paid for the last preceding year on any lot, block, tract, or parcel of land in the economic development project area, provided that:

(A) the economic development project area is located in an enterprise zone created under the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act;

(B) the ad valorem taxes shall be rebated only in amounts and for a tax year or years as the county and any one or more affected taxing districts have agreed by prior written agreement;

(C) any amount of rebate of taxes shall not exceed the portion, if any, of taxes levied by the county or taxing district or districts that is attributable to the increase in the current equalized assessed valuation of each taxable lot, block, tract, or parcel of real property in the economic development project area over and above the initial equalized assessed value of each property existing at the time property tax allocation financing was adopted for the economic development project area; and

(D) costs of rebating ad valorem taxes shall be paid by a county solely from the special tax allocation fund established under this Act and shall not be paid from the proceeds of any obligations issued by a county.

(11) Costs of job training or advanced vocational or career education, including but not limited to courses in occupational, semi-technical, or technical fields leading directly to employment, incurred by one or more taxing districts, but only if the costs are related to the establishment and maintenance of additional job training, advanced vocational education, or career education programs for persons employed or to be employed by employers located in the economic development project area and only if, when the costs are incurred by a taxing district or taxing districts other than the county, they shall be set forth in a written agreement by or among the county and the taxing district or taxing districts that describes the program to be undertaken, including without limitation the number of employees to be trained, a description of the training and services to be provided, the number and type of positions available or to be available, itemized costs of the program and sources of funds to pay the costs, and the term of the agreement. These costs include, specifically, the payment by community college districts of costs pursuant to Sections 3-37, 3-38, 3-40 and 3-40.1 of the Public Community College Act and by school districts of costs pursuant to Sections 10-22.20 and 10-23.3a of the School Code.

(12) Private financing costs incurred by a developer or other nongovernmental person in connection with an economic development project, provided that:

(A) private financing costs shall be paid or reimbursed by a county only pursuant to the prior official action of the county evidencing an intent to pay or reimburse such private financing costs;

(B) except as provided in subparagraph (D), the aggregate amount of the costs paid or reimbursed by a county in any one year shall not exceed 30% of the costs paid or incurred by the developer or other nongovernmental person in that year;

(C) private financing costs shall be paid or reimbursed by a county solely from the special tax allocation fund established under this Act and shall not be paid from the proceeds of any obligations issued by a county; and

(D) if there are not sufficient funds available in the special tax allocation fund in any year to make the payment or reimbursement in full, any amount of the interest costs remaining to be paid or reimbursed by a county shall accrue and be payable when funds are available in the special tax allocation fund to make the payment.

(e) "A county with significant unemployment" means a county in which the average annual unemployment rate for the previous calendar year equaled or exceeded 12%. For purposes of this subsection, the unemployment rate of a county shall be the rate as certified by the Illinois Department of Employment Security.

(f) "Obligations" means any instrument evidencing the obligation of a county to pay money, including without limitation bonds, notes, installment or financing contracts, certificates, tax anticipation warrants or notes, vouchers, and any other evidence of indebtedness.

(g) "Taxing districts" means counties, townships, and school, road, park, sanitary, mosquito abatement, forest preserve, public health, fire protection, river conservancy, tuberculosis sanitarium, and any other districts or other municipal corporations with the power to levy taxes.

(Source: P.A. 87-1.)