(55 ILCS 5/5-1062.1) (from Ch. 34, par. 5-1062.1)
Sec. 5-1062.1. Stormwater management planning councils in Cook County.
(a) Stormwater management in Cook County shall be conducted as provided in Section 7h of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Act. As used in this Section, "District" means the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.
The purpose of this Section is to create planning councils, organized by watershed, to contribute to the stormwater management process by advising the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago and representing the needs and interests of the members of the public and the local governments included within their respective watersheds.
(b) Stormwater management planning councils shall be formed for each of the following
established watersheds of the Chicago Metropolitan Area: North Branch
Chicago River, Lower Des Plaines Tributaries, Cal-Sag Channel, Little Calumet
River, Poplar Creek, and Upper Salt Creek. In addition a stormwater management
planning council shall be established for the combined sewer areas of Cook
County. Additional stormwater management planning councils may be formed by
the District for other watersheds within Cook
County. Membership on the watershed councils shall consist of the chief
elected official, or his or her designee, from each
municipality and township within the watershed and the Cook County Board
President, or his or her designee, if unincorporated area is included in the
watershed. A municipality or township shall be a member of more than one
watershed council if the corporate boundaries of that municipality or township
extend into more than one watershed, or if the municipality or township is
served in part by separate sewers and combined sewers. Subcommittees of the
stormwater management planning councils may be established to assist the
stormwater management planning councils in performing their duties. The councils may adopt bylaws to govern the
functioning of the stormwater management councils and subcommittees.
(c) The principal duties of the watershed planning councils shall be to
advise the District on the development and implementation of the countywide stormwater management plan with respect to matters relating to their respective watersheds and to advise and represent the concerns of the units of local government in the
watershed area. The councils shall meet at least quarterly and shall hold
at least one public hearing during the preparation of the plan.
(d) The District shall give careful consideration to the recommendations and concerns of the watershed planning councils throughout the planning process and shall coordinate the 6 watershed plans as developed and to
coordinate the planning process with the adjoining counties to ensure that
recommended stormwater projects will have no significant adverse impact on the
levels or flows of stormwater in the inter-county watershed or on the
capacity of existing and planned stormwater retention facilities. The District shall include cost benefit analysis in its deliberations and in evaluating priorities for projects from watershed to watershed. The
District shall identify in an annual published report steps taken by the
District to accommodate the concerns and recommendations of the watershed planning councils.
(e) The stormwater management planning councils may recommend rules and
regulations to the District governing the location, width,
course, and release rates of all stormwater runoff channels, streams, and
basins in their respective watersheds.
(f) The Northwest Municipal Conference, the South Suburban Mayors and
Managers Association, the Southwest Conference of Mayors, and the West Central Municipal Conference shall be
responsible for the coordination of the planning councils created under this Section.
(Source: P.A. 93-1049, eff. 11-17-04; 94-867, eff. 6-16-06.)
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