Rep. Steven A. Andersson

Filed: 3/24/2016

 

 


 

 


 
09900HB4371ham001LRB099 13772 AWJ 46059 a

1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 4371

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 4371 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Water Authorities Act is amended by
5changing Section 28 as follows:
 
6    (70 ILCS 3715/28)
7    Sec. 28. Cessation or dissolution of authority
8organization.
9    (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if a
10majority vote of the board of trustees is in favor of the
11proposition to annex the authority to another authority whose
12boundaries are contiguous, or consolidate the authority into a
13municipality with which the authority is coterminous or
14substantially coterminous, or consolidate the authority into
15the county in which the authority sits if the authority
16contains territory within only one county, and if the governing

 

 

09900HB4371ham001- 2 -LRB099 13772 AWJ 46059 a

1authorities of the governmental unit assuming the functions of
2the former authority agree by resolution to accept the
3functions (and jurisdiction over the territory, if applicable)
4of the consolidated or annexed authority, then the authority
5shall cease. On the effective date of the annexation or
6consolidation, all the rights, powers, duties, assets,
7property, liabilities, indebtedness, obligations, bonding
8authority, taxing authority, and responsibilities of the
9authority shall vest in and be assumed by the governmental unit
10assuming the functions of the former authority.
11    The employees of the former authority shall be transferred
12to the governmental unit assuming the functions of the former
13authority. The governmental unit assuming the functions of the
14former authority shall exercise the rights and
15responsibilities of the former authority with respect to those
16employees. The status and rights of the employees of the former
17authority under any applicable contracts or collective
18bargaining agreements, historical representation rights under
19the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act, or under any pension,
20retirement, or annuity plan shall not be affected by this
21amendatory Act.
22    (b) Any authority created under this Act, other than an
23authority servicing any part of the City of Chicago, which does
24not have outstanding and unpaid any revenue bonds issued under
25this Act may be dissolved any time after a date which is 4
26years after the date of its creation as follows:

 

 

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1    Any 500 electors residing within the area of the authority
2may petition the circuit court to order submitted to referendum
3the question whether the authority should be dissolved. Upon
4the filing of the petition, and the determination that it is in
5accordance with the general election law, the circuit court
6shall: designate the election at which this question is to be
7submitted; order notice of the referendum in the manner
8provided by the general election law; and certify the
9proposition to the proper election officials for submission in
10accordance with the general election law.
11    The proposition shall be in substantially the following
12form:
 
13------------------------------------------------------------- 
14    "Shall the (name of                         YES 
15    water authority)                       -------------- 
16    be dissolved?"                               NO 
17------------------------------------------------------------- 
 
18    If a majority of the votes cast on this question are in
19favor of dissolution of the authority under this subsection,
20then such organization shall cease, the authority is dissolved,
21and the circuit court shall direct the discharge of all
22outstanding obligations.
23    If the vote is in favor of dissolution of the authority
24under this subsection, there shall be no further appointments

 

 

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1or elections for trustees. Except as otherwise provided for in
2this subsection, the trustees acting at the time of this vote
3shall close up the business affairs of the district and make
4the necessary conveyances of the title to the district
5property. The terms of the trustees acting at the time of a
6vote in favor of dissolution are extended until the business
7affairs are closed up and conveyances of title are completed.
8    To the extent that the authority has entered into a
9multiyear lease on a real property asset (including, but not
10limited to, surface water property) that it possesses, the
11court, upon application of the trustees, may order the trustees
12to arrange the transfer of such real property asset, instead of
13liquidating the real property asset, to a unit of local
14government with legal authority to operate the real property
15asset. Such transfer may be made with or without compensation
16in the discretion of the court in accordance with this
17paragraph. In determining whether compensation shall be paid,
18the court shall determine if the same or substantially similar
19groups of citizens will benefit from the real property asset
20after transfer. To the extent that the same or substantially
21similar groups of citizens will continue to benefit from the
22real property asset, the court is not required to order
23compensation paid by the receiving unit of local government to
24the authority. To the extent that a substantial change occurs
25to the groups of citizens that will benefit from the real
26property asset after the transfer, the court shall determine,

 

 

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1after receiving input from the trustees and the unit of local
2government, an equitable method of compensation, after
3receiving input from the trustees and the unit of local
4government, to be received from the unit of local government to
5whom the real property asset is being transferred. The court
6shall liberally construe this provision to provide for an
7equitable determination of relative benefit.
8    If the vote is against dissolution of the authority, no
9petition for a referendum under this subsection may be filed
10within 4 years of the previous referendum.
11    The dissolution of any authority under this subsection does
12not affect the obligation of any bonds issued or contracts
13entered into by such authority, nor invalidate the levy,
14extension or collection of any taxes upon the property in the
15debtor authority, but all such bonds and contracts shall be
16fulfilled or repaid as required under the terms of the bonds or
17contracts.
18    All money remaining after the business affairs of the
19authority have been closed up and all the debts and obligations
20of the authority have been paid under this subsection, shall be
21paid to the county or counties in which such authority is
22situated in the proportion that the taxable value the real
23property in the authority situated in each county bears to the
24taxable value of all the real property in the authority.
25    All courts shall take judicial notice of the dissolution of
26such authority.

 

 

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1(Source: P.A. 98-1002, eff. 8-18-14.)
 
2    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
3becoming law.".