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91_HB4721
LRB9113955WHpcA
1 AN ACT concerning cemetery preservation.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The State Comptroller Act is amended by
5 adding Sections 22.3 and 22.4 as follows:
6 (15 ILCS 405/22.3 new)
7 Sec. 22.3. Cemetery Preservation Advisory Board. The
8 Comptroller shall appoint a 5-member Cemetery Preservation
9 Advisory Board. The Board shall serve in an advisory
10 capacity to the Comptroller for the purpose of recommending
11 the distribution of funds from the Cemetery Preservation
12 Fund. Members of the Board shall serve a term as determined
13 by the Comptroller. Members shall serve without compensation
14 but may be reimbursed for their reasonable expenses incurred
15 in the performance of their duties.
16 (15 ILCS 405/22.4 new)
17 Sec. 22.4. Cemetery Preservation Fund.
18 (a) The Cemetery Preservation Fund is created as a
19 special fund in the State treasury. Moneys in the Fund shall
20 consist of moneys appropriated by the General Assembly.
21 (b) The State Comptroller shall determine payments from
22 the Cemetery Preservation Fund. All payments from the
23 Cemetery Preservation Fund shall be used by the Comptroller
24 to clean up or restore abandoned and neglected cemeteries in
25 Illinois including grants to units of local governments,
26 school districts, and not-for-profit associations.
27 (c) Grant payments provided for the cleanup of
28 cemeteries owned by units of municipal, county, or township
29 government shall not exceed 75% of the projected cost to
30 clean up the cemetery. The Comptroller may adopt rules and
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1 regulations in administering this subsection.
2 Section 10. The State Finance Act is amended by adding
3 Section 5.541 as follows:
4 (30 ILCS 105/5.541 new)
5 Sec. 5.541. The Cemetery Preservation Fund.
6 Section 15. The Grave and Cemetery Restoration Act is
7 amended by changing Section 1 as follows:
8 (55 ILCS 70/1) (from Ch. 21, par. 61)
9 Sec. 1. Care by county.
10 (a) The county board of any county may appropriate funds
11 from the county treasury to be used for the purpose of
12 putting any old, neglected graves and cemeteries in the
13 county in a cleaner and more respectable condition.
14 (b) A county that has within its territory an abandoned
15 cemetery may enter the cemetery grounds and cause the grounds
16 to be cleared and made orderly. Provided, in no event shall a
17 county enter a cemetery under this subsection if the owner of
18 the property or the legally responsible cemetery authority
19 provides written notification to the county, prior to the
20 county's entry (1) demonstrating the ownership or authority
21 to control or manage the cemetery and (2) declining the
22 county authorization to enter the property. In making a
23 cemetery orderly under this Section, the county may take
24 necessary measures to correct dangerous conditions that exist
25 in regard to markers, memorials, or other cemetery artifacts
26 but may not permanently remove those items from their
27 location on the cemetery grounds.
28 (c) In this Section:
29 "Abandoned cemetery" means an area of land containing
30 more than 6 places of interment for which, after diligent
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1 search, no owner of the land or currently functioning
2 cemetery authority can be found and (1) at which no
3 interments have taken place in at least 3 years; or (2) for
4 which there has been inadequate maintenance for at least 6
5 months.
6 "Diligent search" includes, but is not limited to,
7 publication of a notice in a newspaper of local circulation
8 not more than 45 but at least 30 days prior to a county's
9 entry and cleanup of cemetery grounds. The notice shall
10 provide (1) notice of the county's intended entry and cleanup
11 of the cemetery; (2) the name, if known, and geographic
12 location of the cemetery; (3) the right of the cemetery
13 authority or owner of the property to deny entry to the
14 county upon written notice to the county; and (4) the date or
15 dates of the intended cleanup.
16 "Inadequate maintenance" includes, but is not limited to,
17 the failure to cut the lawn throughout a cemetery to prevent
18 an overgrowth of grass and weeds; the failure to trim shrubs
19 to prevent excessive overgrowth; the failure to trim trees so
20 as to remove dead limbs; the failure to keep in repair the
21 drains, water lines, roads, buildings, fences, and other
22 structures of the cemetery premises; or the failure to keep
23 the cemetery premises free of trash and debris.
24 (Source: P.A. 86-696.)
25 Section 20. The Township Code is amended by changing
26 Section 130-5 as follows:
27 (60 ILCS 1/130-5)
28 Sec. 130-5. Cemeteries; permitted activities.
29 (a) A township may establish and maintain cemeteries
30 within and without its territory, may acquire lands for
31 cemeteries by condemnation or otherwise, may lay out lots of
32 convenient size for families, and may sell lots for a family
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1 burying ground or to individuals for burial purposes.
2 Associations duly incorporated under the laws of this State
3 for cemetery purposes shall have the same power and authority
4 to purchase lands and sell lots for burial purposes as are
5 conferred upon townships under this Article.
6 (b) A township that has within its territory an
7 abandoned cemetery may enter the cemetery grounds and cause
8 the grounds to be cleared and made orderly. Provided, in no
9 event shall a township enter a cemetery under this subsection
10 if the owner of the property or the legally responsible
11 cemetery authority provides written notification to the
12 township, prior to the township's entry (1) demonstrating the
13 ownership or authority to control or manage the cemetery and
14 (2) declining the township authorization to enter the
15 property. In making a cemetery orderly under this Section,
16 the township may take necessary measures to correct dangerous
17 conditions that exist in regard to markers, memorials, or
18 other cemetery artifacts but may not permanently remove those
19 items from their location on the cemetery grounds.
20 (c) In this Section:
21 "Abandoned cemetery" means an area of land containing
22 more than 6 places of interment for which, after diligent
23 search, no owner of the land or currently functioning
24 cemetery authority can be found and (1) at which no
25 interments have taken place in at least 3 years; or (2) for
26 which there has been inadequate maintenance for at least 6
27 months.
28 "Diligent search" includes, but is not limited to,
29 publication of a notice in a newspaper of local circulation
30 not more than 45 but at least 30 days prior to a township's
31 entry and cleanup of cemetery grounds. The notice shall
32 provide (1) notice of the township's intended entry and
33 cleanup of the cemetery; (2) the name, if known, and
34 geographic location of the cemetery; (3) the right of the
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1 cemetery authority or owner of the property to deny entry to
2 the township upon written notice to the township; and (4) the
3 date or dates of the intended cleanup.
4 "Inadequate maintenance" includes, but is not limited to,
5 the failure to cut the lawn throughout a cemetery to prevent
6 an overgrowth of grass and weeds; the failure to trim shrubs
7 to prevent excessive overgrowth; the failure to trim trees so
8 as to remove dead limbs; the failure to keep in repair the
9 drains, water lines, roads, buildings, fences, and other
10 structures of the cemetery premises; or the failure to keep
11 the cemetery premises free of trash and debris.
12 (Source: Laws 1963, p. 824; P.A. 88-62.)
13 Section 25. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by
14 changing Section 11-49-1 as follows:
15 (65 ILCS 5/11-49-1) (from Ch. 24, par. 11-49-1)
16 Sec. 11-49-1. Cemeteries; permitted activities.
17 (a) The corporate authorities of each municipality may
18 establish and regulate cemeteries within or without the
19 municipal limits; may acquire lands therefor, by purchase or
20 otherwise; may cause cemeteries to be removed; and may
21 prohibit their establishment within one mile of the municipal
22 limits.
23 (b) The corporate authorities also may enter into
24 contracts to purchase existing cemeteries, or lands for
25 cemetery purposes, on deferred installments to be paid solely
26 from the proceeds of sale of cemetery lots. Every such
27 contract shall empower the purchasing municipality, in its
28 own name, to execute and deliver deeds to purchasers of
29 cemetery lots for burial purposes.
30 (c) The corporate authorities of each municipality that
31 has within its territory an abandoned cemetery may enter the
32 cemetery grounds and cause the grounds to be cleared and made
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1 orderly. Provided, in no event shall the corporate
2 authorities of a municipality enter a cemetery under this
3 subsection if the owner of the property or the legally
4 responsible cemetery authority provides written notification
5 to the corporate authorities, prior to the the corporate
6 authorities' entry (1) demonstrating the ownership or
7 authority to control or manage the cemetery and (2) declining
8 the corporate authority authorization to enter the property.
9 In making a cemetery orderly under this Section, the
10 corporate authorities of a municipality may take necessary
11 measures to correct dangerous conditions that exist in regard
12 to markers, memorials, or other cemetery artifacts but may
13 not permanently remove those items from their location on the
14 cemetery grounds.
15 (d) In this Section:
16 "Abandoned cemetery" means an area of land containing
17 more than 6 places of interment for which, after diligent
18 search, no owner of the land or currently functioning
19 cemetery authority can be found and (1) at which no
20 interments have taken place in at least 3 years; or (2) for
21 which there has been inadequate maintenance for at least 6
22 months.
23 "Diligent search" includes, but is not limited to,
24 publication of a notice in a newspaper of local circulation
25 not more than 45 but at least 30 days prior to entry and
26 cleanup of cemetery grounds by the corporate authorities of a
27 municipality. The notice shall provide (1) notice of the
28 corporate authorities' intended entry and cleanup of the
29 cemetery; (2) the name, if known, and geographic location of
30 the cemetery; (3) the right of the cemetery authority or
31 owner of the property to deny entry to the corporate
32 authorities upon written notice to the those authorities; and
33 (4) the date or dates of the intended cleanup.
34 "Inadequate maintenance" includes, but is not limited to,
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1 the failure to cut the lawn throughout a cemetery to prevent
2 an overgrowth of grass and weeds; the failure to trim shrubs
3 to prevent excessive overgrowth; the failure to trim trees so
4 as to remove dead limbs; the failure to keep in repair the
5 drains, water lines, roads, buildings, fences, and other
6 structures of the cemetery premises; or the failure to keep
7 the cemetery premises free of trash and debris.
8 (Source: Laws 1961, p. 576.)
9 Section 30. The Cemetery Care Act is amended by changing
10 Section 2a as follows:
11 (760 ILCS 100/2a) (from Ch. 21, par. 64.2a)
12 Sec. 2a. Powers and duties of cemetery authorities;
13 cemetery property maintained by cemetery care funds. With
14 respect to cemetery property maintained by cemetery care
15 funds, a cemetery authority shall be responsible for the
16 performance of:
17 (a) the care and maintenance of the cemetery property it
18 owns; and
19 (b) the opening and closing of all graves, crypts, or
20 niches for human remains in any cemetery property it owns.
21 A cemetery authority is authorized to access a cemetery
22 it owns to carry out its powers and duties under this Act,
23 including access through private property if no other access
24 is available.
25 (Source: P.A. 87-747.)
26 Section 35. The Cemetery Protection Act is amended by
27 changing Section 1 as follows:
28 (765 ILCS 835/1) (from Ch. 21, par. 15)
29 Sec. 1. (a) Any person who acts without proper legal
30 authority and who willfully and knowingly destroys or damages
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1 the remains of a deceased human being or who desecrates human
2 remains is guilty of a Class 3 felony.
3 (a-5) Any person who acts without proper legal authority
4 and who willfully and knowingly removes any portion of the
5 remains of a deceased human being from a burial ground where
6 skeletal remains are buried or from a grave, crypt, vault,
7 mausoleum, or other repository of human remains is guilty of
8 a Class 4 felony.
9 (b) Any person who acts without proper legal authority
10 and who willfully and knowingly:
11 (1) obliterates, vandalizes, or desecrates a burial
12 ground where skeletal remains are buried or a grave,
13 crypt, vault, mausoleum, or other repository of human
14 remains;
15 (2) obliterates, vandalizes, or desecrates a park
16 or other area clearly designated to preserve and
17 perpetuate the memory of a deceased person or group of
18 persons;
19 (3) obliterates, vandalizes, or desecrates plants,
20 trees, shrubs, or flowers located upon or around a
21 repository for human remains or within a human graveyard
22 or cemetery; or
23 (4) obliterates, vandalizes, or desecrates a fence,
24 rail, curb, or other structure of a similar nature
25 intended for the protection or for the ornamentation of
26 any tomb, monument, gravestone, or other structure of
27 like character;
28 is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor if the amount of the
29 damage is less than $500, a Class 4 felony if the amount of
30 the damage is at least $500 and less than $10,000, a Class 3
31 felony if the amount of the damage is at least $10,000 and
32 less than $100,000, or a Class 2 felony if the damage is
33 $100,000 or more and shall provide restitution to the
34 cemetery authority or property owner for the amount of any
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1 damage caused.
2 (b-5) Any person who acts without proper legal authority
3 and who willfully and knowingly defaces, vandalizes, injures,
4 or removes a gravestone or other memorial, monument, or
5 marker commemorating a deceased person or group of persons,
6 whether located within or outside of a recognized cemetery,
7 memorial park, or battlefield is guilty of a Class 4 felony
8 for damaging at least one but no more than 4 gravestones, a
9 Class 3 felony for damaging at least 5 but no more than 10
10 gravestones, or a Class 2 felony for damaging more than 10
11 gravestones and shall provide restitution to the cemetery
12 authority or property owner for the amount of any damage
13 caused.
14 (b-7) Any person who acts without proper legal authority
15 and who willfully and knowingly removes with the intent to
16 resell a gravestone or other memorial, monument, or marker
17 commemorating a deceased person or group of persons, whether
18 located within or outside a recognized cemetery, memorial
19 park, or battlefield, is guilty of a Class 2 felony.
20 (c) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to
21 the removal or unavoidable breakage or injury by a cemetery
22 authority of anything placed in or upon any portion of its
23 cemetery in violation of any of the rules and regulations of
24 the cemetery authority, nor to the removal of anything placed
25 in the cemetery by or with the consent of the cemetery
26 authority that in the judgment of the cemetery authority has
27 become wrecked, unsightly, or dilapidated.
28 (d) If an unemancipated minor is found guilty of
29 violating any of the provisions of subsection (b) of this
30 Section and is unable to provide restitution to the cemetery
31 authority or property owner, the parents or legal guardians
32 of that minor shall provide restitution to the cemetery
33 authority or property owner for the amount of any damage
34 caused, up to the total amount allowed under the Parental
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1 Responsibility Law.
2 (e) Any person who shall hunt, shoot or discharge any
3 gun, pistol or other missile, within the limits of any
4 cemetery, or shall cause any shot or missile to be discharged
5 into or over any portion thereof, or shall violate any of the
6 rules made and established by the board of directors of such
7 cemetery, for the protection or government thereof, is guilty
8 of a Class C misdemeanor.
9 (f) Any person who knowingly enters or knowingly remains
10 upon the premises of a public or private cemetery without
11 authorization during hours that the cemetery is posted as
12 closed to the public is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
13 (g) All fines when recovered, shall be paid over by the
14 court or officer receiving the same to the cemetery
15 association and be applied, as far as possible in repairing
16 the injury, if any, caused by such offense. Provided,
17 nothing contained in this Act shall deprive such cemetery
18 association, or the owner of any lot or monument from
19 maintaining an action for the recovery of damages caused by
20 any injury caused by a violation of the provisions of this
21 Act, or of the rules established by the board of directors of
22 such cemetery association. Nothing in this Section shall be
23 construed to prohibit the discharge of firearms loaded with
24 blank ammunition as part of any funeral, any memorial
25 observance or any other patriotic or military ceremony.
26 (Source: P.A. 89-36, eff. 1-1-96.)