Rep. Elaine Nekritz

Filed: 3/27/2014

 

 


 

 


 
09800HB3912ham001LRB098 15469 JLK 57718 a

1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 3912

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 3912 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District
5Act is amended by changing Sections 7h and 9.6c as follows:
 
6    (70 ILCS 2605/7h)
7    Sec. 7h. Stormwater management.
8    (a) Stormwater management in Cook County shall be under the
9general supervision of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation
10District of Greater Chicago. The District has the authority to
11plan, manage, implement, and finance activities relating to
12stormwater management in Cook County. The authority of the
13District with respect to stormwater management extends
14throughout Cook County and is not limited to the area otherwise
15within the territory and jurisdiction of the District under
16this Act.

 

 

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1    For the purposes of this Section, the term "stormwater
2management" includes, without limitation, the management of
3floods and floodwaters.
4    (b) The District may utilize the resources of cooperating
5local watershed councils (including the stormwater management
6planning councils created under Section 5-1062.1 of the
7Counties Code), councils of local governments, the
8Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, and similar
9organizations and agencies. The District may provide those
10organizations and agencies with funding, on a contractual
11basis, for providing information to the District, providing
12information to the public, or performing other activities
13related to stormwater management.
14    The District, in addition to other powers vested in it, may
15negotiate and enter into agreements with any county for the
16management of stormwater runoff in accordance with subsection
17(c) of Section 5-1062 of the Counties Code.
18    The District may enter into intergovernmental agreements
19with Cook County or other units of local government that are
20located in whole or in part outside the District for the
21purpose of implementing the stormwater management plan and
22providing stormwater management services in areas not included
23within the territory of the District.
24    (c) The District shall prepare and adopt by ordinance a
25countywide stormwater management plan for Cook County. The
26countywide plan may incorporate one or more separate watershed

 

 

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1plans.
2    Prior to adopting the countywide stormwater management
3plan, the District shall hold at least one public hearing
4thereon and shall afford interested persons an opportunity to
5be heard.
6    (d) The District may prescribe by ordinance reasonable
7rules and regulations for floodplain and stormwater management
8and for governing the location, width, course, and release rate
9of all stormwater runoff channels, streams, and basins in Cook
10County, in accordance with the adopted stormwater management
11plan. These rules and regulations shall, at a minimum, meet the
12standards for floodplain management established by the Office
13of Water Resources of the Department of Natural Resources and
14the requirements of the Federal Emergency Management Agency for
15participation in the National Flood Insurance Program.
16    (e) The District may impose fees on areas outside the
17District but within Cook County for performance of stormwater
18management services, including but not limited to, maintenance
19of streams and the development, design, planning,
20construction, operation and maintenance of stormwater
21facilities. The total amount of the fees collected from areas
22outside of the District but within Cook County shall not exceed
23the District's annual tax rate for stormwater management within
24the District multiplied by the aggregate equalized assessed
25valuation of areas outside of the District but within Cook
26County. The District may require the unit of local government

 

 

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1in which the stormwater services are performed to collect the
2fee and remit the collected fee to the District. The District
3is authorized to pay a reasonable administrative fee to the
4unit of local government for the collection of these fees. All
5such fees collected by the District shall be held in a separate
6fund and used for implementation of this Section.
7    (f) Amounts realized from the tax levy for stormwater
8management purposes authorized in Section 12 may be used by the
9District for implementing this Section and for the development,
10design, planning, construction, operation, and maintenance of
11regional and local stormwater facilities provided for in the
12stormwater management plan.
13    The proceeds of any tax imposed under Section 12 for
14stormwater management purposes and any revenues generated as a
15result of the ownership or operation of facilities or land
16acquired with the proceeds of taxes imposed under Section 12
17for stormwater management purposes shall be held in a separate
18fund and used either for implementing this Section or to abate
19those taxes.
20    (g) The District may plan, implement, finance, and operate
21regional and local stormwater management projects in
22accordance with the adopted countywide stormwater management
23plan.
24    The District shall provide for public review and comment on
25proposed stormwater management projects. The District shall
26conform to State and federal requirements concerning public

 

 

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1information, environmental assessments, and environmental
2impacts for projects receiving State or federal funds.
3    The District may issue bonds under Section 9.6a of this Act
4for the purpose of funding stormwater management projects.
5    The District shall not use Cook County Forest Preserve
6District land for stormwater or flood control projects without
7the consent of the Forest Preserve District.
8    The District may acquire, by purchase from a willing seller
9in a voluntary transaction, real property in furtherance of its
10regional and local stormwater management activities. Nothing
11in this Section shall affect the District's powers of
12condemnation or eminent domain as otherwise set forth in this
13Act.
14    (h) Upon the creation and implementation of a county
15stormwater management plan, the District may petition the
16circuit court to dissolve any or all drainage districts created
17pursuant to the Illinois Drainage Code or predecessor Acts that
18are located entirely within the District.
19    However, any active drainage district implementing a plan
20that is consistent with and at least as stringent as the county
21stormwater management plan may petition the District for
22exception from dissolution. Upon filing of the petition, the
23District shall set a date for hearing not less than 2 weeks,
24nor more than 4 weeks, from the filing thereof, and the
25District shall give at least one week's notice of the hearing
26in one or more newspapers of general circulation within the

 

 

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1drainage district, and in addition shall cause a copy of the
2notice to be personally served upon each of the trustees of the
3drainage district. At the hearing, the District shall hear the
4drainage district's petition and allow the drainage district
5trustees and any interested parties an opportunity to present
6oral and written evidence. The District shall render its
7decision upon the petition for exception from dissolution based
8upon the best interests of the residents of the drainage
9district. In the event that the exception is not allowed, the
10drainage district may file a petition with the circuit court
11within 30 days of the decision. In that case, the notice and
12hearing requirements for the court shall be the same as
13provided in this subsection for the petition to the District.
14The court shall render its decision of whether to dissolve the
15district based upon the best interests of the residents of the
16drainage district.
17    The dissolution of a drainage district shall not affect the
18obligation of any bonds issued or contracts entered into by the
19drainage district nor invalidate the levy, extension, or
20collection of any taxes or special assessments upon the
21property in the former drainage district. All property and
22obligations of the former drainage district shall be assumed
23and managed by the District, and the debts of the former
24drainage district shall be discharged as soon as practicable.
25    If a drainage district lies only partly within the
26District, the District may petition the circuit court to

 

 

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1disconnect from the drainage district that portion of the
2drainage district that lies within the District. The property
3of the drainage district within the disconnected area shall be
4assumed and managed by the District. The District shall also
5assume a portion of the drainage district's debt at the time of
6disconnection, based on the portion of the value of the taxable
7property of the drainage district which is located within the
8area being disconnected.
9    A drainage district that continues to exist within Cook
10County shall conform its operations to the countywide
11stormwater management plan.
12    (i) The District may assume responsibility for maintaining
13any stream within Cook County.
14    (j) The District may, after 10 days written notice to the
15owner or occupant, enter upon any lands or waters within the
16county for the purpose of inspecting stormwater facilities or
17causing the removal of any obstruction to an affected
18watercourse. The District shall be responsible for any damages
19occasioned thereby.
20    (k) The District shall report to the public annually on its
21activities and expenditures under this Section and the adopted
22countywide stormwater management plan.
23    (l) The powers granted to the District under this Section
24are in addition to the other powers granted under this Act.
25This Section does not limit the powers of the District under
26any other provision of this Act or any other law.

 

 

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1    (m) This Section does not affect the power or duty of any
2unit of local government to take actions relating to flooding
3or stormwater, so long as those actions conform with this
4Section and the plans, rules, and ordinances adopted by the
5District under this Section.
6    A home rule unit located in whole or in part in Cook County
7(other than a municipality with a population over 1,000,000)
8may not regulate stormwater management or planning in Cook
9County in a manner inconsistent with this Section or the plans,
10rules, and ordinances adopted by the District under this
11Section; provided, within a municipality with a population over
121,000,000, the stormwater management planning program of Cook
13County shall be conducted by that municipality or, to the
14extent provided in an intergovernmental agreement between the
15municipality and the District, by the District pursuant to this
16Section; provided further that the power granted to such
17municipality shall not be inconsistent with existing powers of
18the District. Pursuant to paragraph (i) of Section 6 of Article
19VII of the Illinois Constitution, this Section specifically
20denies and limits the exercise of any power that is
21inconsistent with this Section by a home rule unit that is a
22county with a population of 1,500,000 or more or is located, in
23whole or in part, within such a county, other than a
24municipality with a population over 1,000,000.
25(Source: P.A. 95-669, eff. 10-10-07.)
 

 

 

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1    (70 ILCS 2605/9.6c)
2    Sec. 9.6c. Local Government Assistance Program; bonds.
3    (a) The General Assembly finds that governmental units
4located within the boundaries of the district require
5assistance in financing the cost of repair, replacement,
6reconstruction, and rehabilitation of local sewer collection
7systems to reduce certain excessive sanitary sewer groundwater
8inflows; that such inflows ultimately result in increased need
9for treatment and storage facilities of the district; and that
10the district, in the discretion of its commissioners,
11advantageously may provide loan funds for such purposes.
12    (b) For purposes of this Section, the following terms shall
13have the meanings set forth, as follows:
14        The following terms shall have the meanings given to
15    them in the Local Government Debt Reform Act: (A)
16    "alternate bonds"; (B) "applicable law"; (C) "bonds"; (D)
17    "general obligation bonds"; (E) "governmental unit"; (F)
18    "ordinance"; and (G) "revenue source".
19        "Assistance bonds" means the bonds to be issued by the
20    district to provide funds for the program as authorized in
21    subsection (f) of this Section.
22        "Assistance program" means the program authorized in
23    this Section by which the district may make loans to local
24    governmental units for any one or more of the following
25    undertaken with respect to the repair, replacement,
26    reconstruction, and rehabilitation of local sewer

 

 

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1    collection systems: preliminary planning, engineering,
2    architectural, legal, fiscal or economic investigations or
3    studies, surveys, designs, plans, working drawings,
4    specifications, procedures or other necessary actions,
5    erection, building acquisition, alteration, remodeling, or
6    improvement of such collection systems, or the inspection
7    or supervision of any of the foregoing.
8        "Loan" means a loan made by the district to a local
9    governmental unit under the assistance program.
10        "Local governmental unit" means a governmental unit
11    within the boundaries of the district.
12        "Reconstruction" shall include the construction of
13    totally new lines or systems if reasonably designed to
14    replace obsolete lines or systems.
15    (c) The commissioners may establish an assistance program.
16    (d) The commissioners are authorized to do any one or more
17of the following with respect to the assistance program:
18        (1) Establish the assistance program as a use or
19    appropriation within the corporate fund of the district.
20        (2) Accept grants, borrow funds, and appropriate
21    lawfully available funds for the purpose of funding the
22    assistance program.
23        (3) Make the loans as provided in subsection (e).
24        (4) Enforce loans with all available remedies as any
25    governmental unit or private person might have with respect
26    to such loans.

 

 

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1    (e) The district shall have the power to make loans and
2local governmental units shall have the power to obtain loans
3from the district, but only if authorized to borrow under such
4powers as may be granted to such local governmental units under
5other applicable law. This Section does not grant local
6governmental units separate borrowing power. If authorized to
7issue bonds under such applicable law, however, the form of the
8borrowing may be such as the district and the local
9governmental unit may agree, including, without limitation, a
10loan agreement made between the district and local governmental
11unit to evidence the bond. Any such loan agreement shall state
12the statutory authority under applicable law for the bond it
13represents but otherwise need not be in any specific form. The
14district shall have all rights and remedies available to the
15holder of a bond otherwise issued in the form provided for same
16under applicable law and also such rights and remedies as may
17be additionally available under subsection (d)(4) of this
18Section. The loans may be made upon such terms and at such
19rates, including expressly below market rates, representing a
20subsidy of funds from the district to the local governmental
21units, as the district may specify in the loan agreements.
22    (f) The district may borrow money and issue its assistance
23bonds under this Section 9.6c for the purpose of funding the
24assistance program, which bonds shall be alternate revenue
25bonds payable from any lawfully available revenue source,
26including without limitation receipts from the loans.

 

 

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1Assistance bonds shall not be subject to any referendum
2requirement and shall not be treated as indebtedness under any
3applicable provision of law setting forth a limitation upon or
4requirement with respect to the legal indebtedness of the
5district.
6(Source: P.A. 90-690, eff. 7-31-98.)
 
7    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
8becoming law.".