Illinois General Assembly - Illinois Compiled Statutes

Updating the database of the Illinois Compiled Statutes (ILCS) is an ongoing process. Recent laws may not yet be included in the ILCS database, but they are found on this site as Public Acts soon after they become law. For information concerning the relationship between statutes and Public Acts, refer to the Guide.

Because the statute database is maintained primarily for legislative drafting purposes, statutory changes are sometimes included in the statute database before they take effect. If the source note at the end of a Section of the statutes includes a Public Act that has not yet taken effect, the version of the law that is currently in effect may have already been removed from the database and you should refer to that Public Act to see the changes made to the current law.

415 ILCS 5/21.3

(415 ILCS 5/21.3) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1021.3)

Sec. 21.3.

Environmental reclamation lien.

(a) All costs and damages for which a person is liable to
the State of Illinois under Section 22.2, 22.15a, 55.3, or 57.12 shall constitute
an environmental reclamation lien in favor of the State of Illinois upon
all real property and rights to such property which:

(1) belong to such person; and

(2) are subject to or affected by a removal or

remedial action under Section 22.2 or investigation, preventive action, corrective action, or enforcement action under Section 22.15a, 55.3, or 57.12.

(b) An environmental reclamation lien shall continue until the liability
for the costs and damages, or a judgment against the person arising out
of such liability, is satisfied.

(c) An environmental reclamation lien shall be effective upon the filing
by the Agency of a Notice of Environmental Reclamation Lien with the
recorder or the registrar of titles of the county in which the real
property lies.  The Agency shall not file an environmental reclamation
lien, and no such lien shall be valid, unless the Agency has sent notice
pursuant to subsection (q) of Section 4, subsection (c) of Section 22.15a,
subsection (d) of Section 55.3, or subsection (c) of Section 57.12 of this
Act
to owners of the real property.  Nothing in this Section shall be construed to
give the Agency's lien a preference over the rights of any bona fide purchaser
or mortgagee or other lienholder (not
including the United States when holding an unfiled lien) arising prior to
the filing of a notice of environmental reclamation lien in the office of
the recorder or registrar of titles of the county in which the
property subject to the lien is located.  For purposes of this Section, the
term "bona fide" shall not include any mortgage of real or personal property
or any other credit transaction that results in the mortgagee or the holder
of the security acting as trustee for unsecured creditors of the liable
person mentioned in the notice of lien who executed such chattel or real
property mortgage or the document evidencing such credit transaction.  Such
lien shall be inferior to the lien of general taxes, special assessments
and special taxes heretofore or hereafter levied by any political
subdivision of this State.

(d) The environmental reclamation lien shall not exceed the amount of
expenditures as itemized on the Affidavit of Expenditures attached to and
filed with the Notice of Environmental Reclamation Lien.  The Affidavit of
Expenditures may be amended if additional costs or damages are incurred.

(e) Upon filing of the Notice of Environmental Reclamation Lien a copy
with attachments shall be served upon the owners of the real property.  Notice
of such service shall be served on all lienholders of record as of the date of
filing.

(f) (Blank).

(g) In addition to any other remedy provided by the laws of this State,
the Agency may foreclose in the circuit court an environmental reclamation
lien on real property for any costs or damages imposed under Section 22.2,
22.15a, 55.3, or 57.12 to the same extent and in the same manner as in the
enforcement of other liens.  The process, practice and procedure for such
foreclosure shall be the same as provided in Article XV of the Code of
Civil Procedure.  Nothing in this Section shall affect the right of the State
of Illinois to bring an action against any person to recover all costs and
damages for which such person is liable under Section 22.2, 22.15a, 55.3, or
57.12.

(h) Any liability to the State under Section 22.2, 22.15a, 55.3, or
57.12 shall
constitute a debt to the State.  Interest on such debt shall begin to accrue
at a rate of 12% per annum from the date of the filing of the Notice of
Environmental Reclamation Lien under paragraph (c).  Accrued interest shall
be included as a cost incurred by the State of Illinois under Section 22.2,
22.15a, 55.3, or 57.12.

(i) "Environmental reclamation lien" means a lien established under this
Section.

(Source: P.A. 94-272, eff. 7-19-05.)