Rep. Mike Bost
Filed: 3/23/2004
 
 

 




 

 		












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AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 4959




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    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 4959 on page 1, 
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immediately below line 3, by inserting following:

 
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    "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the 
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Technical Rescue Team Response Reimbursement Act.
 
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    Section 5. Intent. The General Assembly finds that the cost 
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to fire departments and fire protection districts for training, 
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equipping, and using  technical rescue teams is high and beyond 
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a basic level of service. It is the intent of the General 
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Assembly to establish the Technical Rescue Team Reimbursement 
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Fund to alleviate the financial hardships imposed upon any 
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community that uses technical rescue teams to respond to 
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emergency incidents.
 
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    Section 10. Definitions. In this Act:
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    "Emergency action" means any action taken at or near the 
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scene of an emergency incident to prevent or minimize harm to 
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human health, to property, or to the environment.
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    "Emergency response agency" means a fire department or 
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volunteer fire protection organization that provides 
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firefighting services, emergency rescue services, or emergency 
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medical services.
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    "Person" means an individual, a corporation, a 
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partnership, an unincorporated association, or any unit of 
 


 






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federal, State, or local government.
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    "Responsible party" means any person who is responsible for 
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causing the need for technical rescue team services from an 
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emergency response agency.
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    "Technical rescue team" means any State or Mutual Aid Box 
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Alarm System (MABAS) technical rescue team providing 
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specialized rescue services. 
 
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    Section 15. Creation of Fund. The Technical Rescue Team 
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Reimbursement Fund is hereby created as a special fund in the 
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State Treasury.
 
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    Section 20. Reimbursement to agencies. 
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    (a) It shall be the duty of the responsible party to 
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reimburse, in a timely and reasonable manner, the emergency 
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response agencies responding to an emergency incident for the 
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costs incurred in using technical response teams to provide 
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emergency action. All responsible parties shall be jointly and 
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severally liable for the costs incurred in using technical 
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response teams to provide emergency action.
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    (b) If the emergency response agencies are not reimbursed 
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by a responsible party, then moneys in the  Technical Rescue 
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Team Reimbursement Fund shall be used to reimburse emergency 
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response agencies for the cost of using technical rescue teams 
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to provide emergency action.
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    (c) Application for reimbursement from the Fund shall be 
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made to the State Fire Marshal or his or her designee. The 
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State Fire Marshal shall establish a standard form for the 
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application and promulgate rules for the administration of this 
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Act.
 
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    Section 25. Reimbursement to the Fund. 
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    (a) The responsible party shall reimburse the Fund for 
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money provided by the Fund to emergency response agencies as 
 


 






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the result of the failure of the responsible party to reimburse 
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the emergency response agencies, as required under Section 20.
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    (b) A voluntary contribution to the Fund or directly to an 
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emergency response agency does not constitute an admission of 
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responsibility relative to this Act or to any other State or 
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federal laws, rules, or regulations.
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    (c) If no party to the incident provides reimbursement to 
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the emergency response agency or to the Fund, the Attorney 
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General may, at the request of the State Fire Marshal, 
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institute a civil action to recover costs.
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    (d) If the emergency response agency receives payment from 
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any responsible party or the federal government, the emergency 
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response agency shall pay into the Fund an amount equal to any 
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reimbursement received from the Fund for that incident.
 
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    Section 30. Administrative panel. 
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    (a) An administrative panel, consisting of 7 members, shall 
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be formed by the State Fire Marshal for the purposes described 
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in this Section. Members shall serve without compensation but 
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shall be reimbursed from the Fund for their reasonable expenses 
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incurred in the performance of their duties under this Act. The 
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State Fire Marshal or his or her designee shall serve as 
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chairman of the panel for an indeterminate term of years. The 
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chairman shall appoint 6 members to the panel who shall serve 
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for a term of not more than 2 years. The appointed members 
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shall consist of:
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        (1) Three members who are representatives of emergency 
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response agencies;
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        (2) Four  members who are not representatives of 
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emergency response agencies.
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    (b) The panel shall meet at quarterly intervals each year. 
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The chairman, at his discretion, may schedule additional 
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meetings to meet the needs of the panel.
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    (c) The panel shall be responsible for:
 


 






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        (1) Reviewing claims made against the Fund and 
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determining (i) the identity of all responsible parties and 
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(ii) reasonable and necessary expenses to be reimbursed to 
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an emergency response agency; and
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        (2) Affirming that the emergency response agency has 
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made a reasonable effort to recover expended costs from the 
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involved parties.
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    (d) Final decisions of the panel may be reviewed in 
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accordance with the Administrative Review Law."; and

 
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on page 1, line 4, by changing "Section 5" to "Section 90"; and
 
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on page 2, immediately below line 8, by inserting the 
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following:
 
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    "Section 99. The State Finance Act is amended by adding 
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Section
5.625 as follows:


 
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    (30 ILCS 105/5.625 new)


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    Sec. 5.625. The Technical Rescue Team Response Fund.".