Full Text of HB0566 95th General Assembly
HB0566ham001 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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Executive Committee
Filed: 3/1/2007
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| AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 566
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| AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 566 by replacing | 3 |
| everything after the enacting clause with the following:
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| "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 |
| Southwest Suburban
Railroad Redevelopment Authority Act.
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| Section 5. Legislative declaration. The General Assembly | 7 |
| declares that the
welfare, health, prosperity, and moral and | 8 |
| general well-being of the people of
the State are, in large | 9 |
| measure, dependent upon the sound and orderly
development of | 10 |
| municipal areas. The Southwest Suburban area, by reason of the
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| location therein of vital roadways and their use for
vehicular | 12 |
| travel in access to the entire southwest metropolitan Chicago | 13 |
| area,
as well as commercial and industrial
growth patterns and | 14 |
| accessibility to
manufacturing and freight-related facilities, | 15 |
| has become and will
increasingly be the hub of
transportation |
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| from all parts of the region and throughout the southwest
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| metropolitan area. Motor vehicle traffic, pedestrian travel, | 3 |
| and the safety of
both motorists and pedestrians are | 4 |
| substantially aggravated by the location of
railroad
grade | 5 |
| crossings. Additionally, certain development opportunities may
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| exist in the project area that would stabilize and enhance the | 7 |
| tax base of
existing communities, maintain and revitalize | 8 |
| existing commerce and industry,
and
promote comprehensive | 9 |
| planning within and between communities. The presence of
the | 10 |
| railroad grade crossings are
detrimental to the orderly | 11 |
| expansion of industry and commerce and to progress
of the | 12 |
| region. To alleviate this situation it is necessary to relocate | 13 |
| the
railroad tracks, to separate the grades at
crossing, to | 14 |
| acquire property for relocation or submergence of the railroad
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| or highways, to create an agency to facilitate and accomplish | 16 |
| that
relocation, and to direct infrastructure and development | 17 |
| improvements in the
Southwest Suburban area.
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| Section 10. Creation; duration. There is created a body | 19 |
| politic and
corporate, a unit of local government, named the | 20 |
| Southwest Suburban Railroad
Redevelopment Authority, embracing | 21 |
| the townships of Bloom, Thornton, Calumet,
Bremen, Orland, | 22 |
| Worth, and Palos.
The
Authority shall continue in existence | 23 |
| until
the accomplishment of its objective, the relocation of | 24 |
| railroad tracks and
roadways and the grade separation of | 25 |
| railroads from the right-of-way and
at-grade crossing closures |
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| within the Southwest Suburban area,
or until the Authority | 2 |
| officially
resolves that it is impossible or economically | 3 |
| unfeasible to fulfill that
objective.
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| Section 15. Acquisition of property. The Authority has the | 5 |
| power to
acquire by gift, purchase, or legacy the fee simple | 6 |
| title to real property
located within the boundaries of the | 7 |
| Authority, including temporary and
permanent easements, as | 8 |
| well as reversionary interests in the streets, alleys,
and | 9 |
| other public
places and personal property, required for its | 10 |
| purposes, and title thereto
shall be taken in the corporate | 11 |
| name of the Authority. All land
and appurtenances thereto, | 12 |
| acquired or owned by the Authority, are to be
deemed acquired | 13 |
| or owned for a public use or public purpose.
The Authority may | 14 |
| not acquire property by eminent domain.
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| Section 20. Sale or exchange of property. The Authority | 16 |
| has the
power to sell, transfer, exchange, vacate, or assign | 17 |
| property acquired for the
purposes of this Act as it deems | 18 |
| appropriate.
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| Section 25. Acceptance of grants, loans, and | 20 |
| appropriations. The Authority
has the power to apply for and | 21 |
| accept grants, loans, advances, and
appropriations from the | 22 |
| federal government and from the State of Illinois or
any agency | 23 |
| or instrumentality thereof to be used for the purposes of the
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| Authority, and to enter into any agreement in relation to the | 2 |
| grants, loans,
advances, and appropriations. The Authority may | 3 |
| also accept from the State,
any
State agency, department, or | 4 |
| commission, any county or other political
subdivision, any | 5 |
| municipal corporation, any railroad, any school authority, or
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| jointly therefrom, grants of funds or services for any of the | 7 |
| purposes of this
Act. The Authority shall be treated as a rail | 8 |
| carrier subject to the Illinois
Commerce Commission's | 9 |
| jurisdiction and eligible to receive money from the Grade
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| Crossing Protection Fund or any fund of the State or other | 11 |
| source available for
purposes of promoting safety and | 12 |
| separation of at-grade railroad crossings or
highway | 13 |
| improvements.
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| Section 30. Taxing powers. The Authority may not levy
real | 15 |
| property taxes for any purpose whatsoever.
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| Section 35. Board; compensation and expenses.
The | 17 |
| Authority shall be governed by a 5-member board consisting of
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| members appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent | 19 |
| of the Senate.
Two members of the Board must reside within the | 20 |
| territory of the Authority. Two members must be former public | 21 |
| officials who served within the townships of Bloom, Thornton, | 22 |
| Calumet, Bremen, Orland, Worth, or Palos. One member must have | 23 |
| previous employment and management experience with a major | 24 |
| railroad company that has significant ties to the Authority. |
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| Each member
shall take and subscribe the constitutional oath of
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| office and file it with the Secretary of State.
The
members of | 3 |
| the board shall serve without compensation, but may be
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| reimbursed for actual expenses incurred by them in the | 5 |
| performance of duties
prescribed by the Authority. However, any | 6 |
| member of the board who serves
as secretary or treasurer may | 7 |
| receive compensation for services as that
officer.
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| Section 40. Organization; chair and temporary secretary. | 9 |
| As soon as
possible after the effective date of this Act, the | 10 |
| board shall
organize for the transaction of business, select a | 11 |
| Chair and a temporary
Secretary from its own number, and adopt | 12 |
| bylaws to govern its proceedings.
The
initial Chair and | 13 |
| successors shall be elected by the board from time to
time from | 14 |
| among members. The board may act through its members by | 15 |
| entering
into an agreement that a member act on the board's | 16 |
| behalf, in which
instance the act or performance directed shall | 17 |
| be deemed to be exclusively of,
for, and by the board and not | 18 |
| the individual act of the member or its
represented person.
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| Section 45. Meetings; quorum and resolutions. Regular | 20 |
| meetings of the
board shall be held at least quarterly, the | 21 |
| time and place of those
meetings
to be fixed by the board. | 22 |
| Special meetings may be called by the Chair or
by a majority of | 23 |
| the members of the board by giving notice thereof in writing,
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| stating the time, place, and purpose of the meeting. The notice |
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| shall be
served by special delivery letter deposited in the | 2 |
| mails at least 48 hours
before the meeting. A majority of the | 3 |
| members of the board shall
constitute a quorum for the | 4 |
| transaction of business. All action of the
board shall be by | 5 |
| resolution and, except as otherwise provided in this Act,
the | 6 |
| affirmative vote of at least a majority shall be necessary for | 7 |
| the adoption
of any resolution. The Chair shall be entitled to | 8 |
| vote on any and all matters
coming before the board.
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| Section 50. Secretary and Treasurer; oaths; bond of | 10 |
| Treasurer. The
board may appoint a Secretary and a Treasurer, | 11 |
| who need not be members of
the
board, to hold office at the | 12 |
| pleasure of the board, and fix their
duties and compensation. | 13 |
| Before entering upon the duties of their respective
offices, | 14 |
| they shall take and subscribe to the constitutional oath of | 15 |
| office,
and the Treasurer shall execute a bond with corporate | 16 |
| sureties to be approved
by the board. The bond shall be payable | 17 |
| to the Authority in whatever penal
sum may be directed by the | 18 |
| board conditioned upon the faithful performance
of the duties | 19 |
| of the office and the payment of all money received by the
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| Treasurer according to law and the orders of the board. The | 21 |
| board may,
at any time, require a new bond for the Treasurer in | 22 |
| any penal sum that may
then
be determined by the board.
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| Section 55. Deposit and withdrawal of funds; signatures. | 24 |
| All funds
deposited by the Treasurer in any bank or savings and |
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| loan association shall be
placed in the name of the Authority | 2 |
| and shall be withdrawn or paid out only by
check or draft upon | 3 |
| the bank or savings and loan association, signed by the
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| Treasurer and countersigned by the Chair of the board. Subject | 5 |
| to prior
approval of the designations by a majority of the | 6 |
| board, the Chair may
designate any other member or any officer | 7 |
| of the Authority to affix the
signature of the Treasurer to any | 8 |
| Authority check or draft for payment of
salaries or wages and | 9 |
| for payment of any other obligation of not more than
$2,500.
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| No bank or savings and loan association shall receive | 11 |
| public funds as
permitted by this Section unless it has | 12 |
| complied with the requirements
established under Section 6 of | 13 |
| the Public Funds Investment Act.
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| Section 60. Delivery of check after executing officer | 15 |
| ceases to hold office.
If any officer whose signature appears | 16 |
| upon any check or draft issued
pursuant to this Act ceases to | 17 |
| hold office before the delivery of the check or
draft to the | 18 |
| payee, the officer's signature nevertheless shall be valid and
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| sufficient for all purposes with the same effect as if the | 20 |
| officer had remained
in office until delivery of the check or | 21 |
| draft.
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| Section 65. Rules. The board may adopt all rules proper or | 23 |
| necessary and to carry into effect the powers granted to
it. | 24 |
| The rules shall be consistent with the guidelines,
objectives, |
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| and project scope as set out by the Illinois Commerce | 2 |
| Commission.
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| Section 70. Fiscal year. The Authority shall designate its | 4 |
| fiscal year.
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| Section 75. Reports and financial statements. Within 60 | 6 |
| days after the end
of its fiscal year, the board shall cause to | 7 |
| be prepared by a certified
public accountant a complete and | 8 |
| detailed report and financial statement of the
operations and | 9 |
| assets and liabilities as they relate to the
projects | 10 |
| undertaken by the Authority. A reasonably sufficient number of | 11 |
| copies
of the
report shall be prepared for distribution to | 12 |
| persons interested, upon request,
and a copy of the report | 13 |
| shall be filed with the Illinois Commerce Commission
and with | 14 |
| the county clerk of Cook County.
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| Section 80. Construction. Nothing in this Act shall be | 16 |
| construed to confer
upon the Authority the right, power, or | 17 |
| duty to order or enforce the
abandonment of any present | 18 |
| property of the railroads or the use in substitution
therefor | 19 |
| of any property acquired for the railroads in the absence of a
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| contract duly executed by the railroads and the Authority | 21 |
| setting forth the
terms and conditions upon which relocation of | 22 |
| the right-of-way and physical
facilities of the railroads is to | 23 |
| be accomplished. No such contract shall be
or become |
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| enforceable until the provisions of the contract have been | 2 |
| approved
or authorized by the Illinois Commerce Commission.
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| Section 85. Existing contracts, obligations, and | 4 |
| liabilities. No contract,
obligation, or liability whatever of | 5 |
| the railroads to pay any money into the
State treasury, nor any | 6 |
| lien of the State upon or right to tax property of
the | 7 |
| railroads, shall be released, suspended, modified, altered, | 8 |
| remitted, or
in
any manner diminished or impaired by the | 9 |
| contract with the Authority, and any
such charter provisions | 10 |
| applicable to the property on which the railroads are
now | 11 |
| located shall be deemed in full force and effect with respect | 12 |
| to any
property on which the railroads are relocated in | 13 |
| substitution therefor pursuant
to the provisions of this Act or | 14 |
| any such contract with the Authority pursuant
thereto. | 15 |
| Notwithstanding, upon order of the Illinois Commerce | 16 |
| Commission, the
Authority shall succeed to and assume the | 17 |
| performance and actions of the
represented persons under the | 18 |
| terms of the order and amending orders previously
entered | 19 |
| relative to projects undertaken by the Authority and
consistent | 20 |
| with the objectives of the Authority.
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| Section 90. Severability. The provisions of this Act are | 22 |
| severable under
Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.
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| Section 999. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
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| becoming law.".
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