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1     AN ACT concerning local government.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Wabash
5 and Ohio Rivers Coordinating Council Act.
 
6     Section 5. Legislative Purpose. The restoration and
7 conservation of the Wabash and Ohio Rivers and their
8 tributaries is in the economic and ecological interest of the
9 citizens of this State. It is further in the public interest to
10 establish, implement, and monitor water management projects
11 run by local, State, federal and not for profit entities.
 
12     Section 10. Wabash and Ohio Rivers Coordinating Council.
13     (a) There is established the Wabash and Ohio Rivers
14 Coordinating Council (Council), consisting of 13 voting
15 members. One member shall be the Lieutenant Governor who shall
16 serve as a voting member and as chairperson of the Council. The
17 Directors of the following agencies and departments, or their
18 designees, shall serve as ex-officio voting members: the
19 Department of Agriculture, the Department of Commerce and
20 Economic Opportunity, the Illinois Environmental Protection
21 Agency, the Department of Natural Resources, and the Department
22 of Transportation. In addition, the Council shall include one

 

 

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1 member, appointed by the Governor, representing soil and water
2 conservation districts located in the proximity of the Wabash
3 and Ohio Rivers and its tributaries, and 6 members, appointed
4 by the Governor, representing local communities and
5 not-for-profit organizations working to protect the Wabash and
6 Ohio Rivers and their tributaries, businesses, agriculture,
7 recreation, conservation, and the environment.
8     (b) The Governor may appoint, as non-voting members,
9 individuals representing the interests of the states that
10 border the Wabash and Ohio Rivers and individuals representing
11 federal agencies.
12     (c) The voting members of the Council who are appointed by
13 the Governor shall serve 2-year terms, except that of the
14 initial appointments, 3 members shall be appointed to serve
15 2-year terms and 4 members to serve one-year terms.
16     (d) The Council shall meet at least quarterly.
17     (e) The Office of the Lieutenant Governor shall be
18 responsible for the operations of the Council, including,
19 without limitation, funding and oversight of the Council's
20 activities. Members of the Council shall serve without
21 compensation, but may be reimbursed for necessary travel
22 expenses.
23     (f) This Section is subject to the provisions of Section
24 405-500 of the Department of Central Management Services Law.
 
25     Section 15. Duties of the Council. The Council shall do

 

 

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1 the following:
2     (1) periodically review activities and programs
3 administered by State and federal agencies that directly impact
4 the Wabash and Ohio Rivers and their tributaries;
5     (2) work with local communities and organizations to
6 encourage partnerships that enhance awareness and capabilities
7 to address watershed and water resource concerns and to
8 encourage strategies that protect, restore, and expand
9 critical habitats and soil conservation and water quality
10 practices;
11     (3) work with State and federal agencies to optimize the
12 expenditure of funds affecting the Wabash and Ohio Rivers and
13 their tributaries;
14     (4) advise and make recommendations to the Governor and
15 State agencies on ways to better coordinate the expenditure of
16 appropriated funds affecting the Wabash and Ohio Rivers and
17 their tributaries;
18     (5) encourage local communities to develop water
19 management plans to address stormwater, erosion, flooding,
20 sedimentation, and pollution problems and encourage projects
21 for the natural conveyance and storage of floodwaters, the
22 enhancement of wildlife habitat and outdoor recreation
23 opportunities, the recovery, management, and conservation of
24 the Wabash and Ohio Rivers and their tributaries, the
25 preservation of farmland, prairies, and forests, and the use of
26 measurable economic development efforts that are compatible

 

 

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1 with the ecological health of the State; and
2     (6) help identify possible sources of additional funding
3 for Wabash and Ohio Rivers water management projects.
 
4     Section 20. Agency duties. State agencies represented on
5 the Council shall provide to the Council, on request,
6 information concerning agency programs, data, and activities
7 that impact the restoration and preservation of the Wabash and
8 Ohio Rivers and their tributaries.