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| [ Engrossed ] | [ Senate Amendment 001 ] |
91_SB1131
LRB9103961MWprA
1 AN ACT to amend the Counties Code by changing Section
2 5-1062.
3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
4 represented in the General Assembly:
5 Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by changing
6 Section 5-1062 as follows:
7 (55 ILCS 5/5-1062) (from Ch. 34, par. 5-1062)
8 Sec. 5-1062. Stormwater management.
9 (a) The purpose of this Section is to allow management
10 and mitigation of the effects of urbanization on stormwater
11 drainage in metropolitan counties located in Illinois the
12 area served by the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission,
13 and references to "county" in this Section shall apply only
14 to all those counties, except as provided in subsections (b),
15 (d), and (h). References in subsections (b), (d), and (h) to
16 "northeastern counties" mean the counties served by the
17 Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission. This Section shall
18 not apply to any county with a population in excess of
19 1,500,000, except as provided in subsection (c). The purpose
20 of this Section shall be achieved by:
21 (1) consolidating the existing stormwater
22 management framework into a united, countywide structure;
23 (2) setting minimum standards for floodplain and
24 stormwater management; and
25 (3) preparing a countywide plan for the management
26 of stormwater runoff, including the management of natural
27 and man-made drainageways. The countywide plan may
28 incorporate watershed plans.
29 (b) If a county board wishes to establish a stormwater
30 management planning committee, it must adopt a resolution, by
31 the favorable vote of two-thirds of all the members of the
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1 board, to establish the committee. A stormwater management
2 planning committee shall be established in northeastern
3 counties by county board resolution adopted by the favorable
4 vote of a majority of the members of the board. The, with
5 its membership of the committee must consist consisting of
6 equal numbers of county board and municipal representatives
7 from each county board district, and such other members as
8 may be determined by the county and municipal members.
9 However, if the county has more than 6 county board
10 districts, the county board may by ordinance divide the
11 county into not less than 6 areas of approximately equal
12 population, to be used instead of county board districts for
13 the purpose of determining representation on the stormwater
14 management planning committee.
15 The county board members shall be appointed by the
16 chairman of the county board. Municipal members from each
17 county board district or other represented area shall be
18 appointed by a majority vote of the mayors of those
19 municipalities which have the greatest percentage of their
20 respective populations residing in such county board district
21 or other represented area. All municipal and county board
22 representatives shall be entitled to a vote; the other
23 members shall be nonvoting members, unless authorized to vote
24 by the unanimous consent of the municipal and county board
25 representatives. A municipality that is located in more than
26 one county may choose, at the time of formation of the
27 stormwater management planning committee and based on
28 watershed boundaries, to participate in the stormwater
29 management planning program of either or both of the
30 counties. Subcommittees of the stormwater management planning
31 committee may be established to serve a portion of the county
32 or a particular drainage basin that has similar stormwater
33 management needs. The stormwater management planning
34 committee shall adopt by-laws, by a majority vote of the
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1 county and municipal members, to govern the functions of the
2 committee and its subcommittees. Officers of the committee
3 shall include a chair and vice chair, one of whom shall be a
4 county representative and one a municipal representative.
5 The principal duties of the committee shall be to develop
6 a stormwater management plan for presentation to and approval
7 by the county board, and to direct the plan's implementation
8 and revision. The committee may retain engineering, legal and
9 financial advisors and inspection personnel. The committee
10 shall meet at least quarterly and shall hold at least one
11 public meeting during the preparation of the plan and prior
12 to its submittal to the county board.
13 (c) In the preparation of a stormwater management plan,
14 a county stormwater management planning committee shall
15 coordinate the planning process with each adjoining county to
16 ensure that recommended stormwater projects will have no
17 significant impact on the levels or flows of stormwaters in
18 inter-county watersheds or on the capacity of existing and
19 planned stormwater retention facilities. An adopted
20 stormwater management plan shall identify steps taken by the
21 county to coordinate the development of plan recommendations
22 with adjoining counties.
23 (d) Before the stormwater management planning committee
24 recommends to the county board a stormwater management plan
25 for the county or a portion thereof, it shall submit the plan
26 to the Office of Water Resources of the Department of Natural
27 Resources and, if the plan is for a northeastern county or a
28 portion thereof, to the Northeastern Illinois Planning
29 Commission for review and recommendations. The Office and
30 the Commission, in reviewing the plan, shall consider such
31 factors as impacts on the levels or flows in rivers and
32 streams and the cumulative effects of stormwater discharges
33 on flood levels. The Office of Water Resources shall
34 determine whether the plan or ordinances enacted to implement
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1 the plan complies with the requirements of subsection (f).
2 Within a period not to exceed 60 days, the review comments
3 and recommendations shall be submitted to the stormwater
4 management planning committee for consideration. Any
5 amendments to the plan shall be submitted to the Office and,
6 if the plan is for a northeastern county, the Commission for
7 review.
8 (e) Prior to recommending the plan to the county board,
9 the stormwater management planning committee shall hold at
10 least one public hearing thereon and shall afford interested
11 persons an opportunity to be heard. The hearing shall be
12 held in the county seat. Notice of the hearing shall be
13 published at least once no less than 15 days in advance
14 thereof in a newspaper of general circulation published in
15 the county. The notice shall state the time and place of the
16 hearing and the place where copies of the proposed plan will
17 be accessible for examination by interested parties. If an
18 affected municipality having a stormwater management plan
19 adopted by ordinance wishes to protest the proposed county
20 plan provisions, it shall appear at the hearing and submit in
21 writing specific proposals to the stormwater management
22 planning committee. After consideration of the matters
23 raised at the hearing, the committee may amend or approve the
24 plan and recommend it to the county board for adoption.
25 The county board may enact the proposed plan by
26 ordinance. If the proposals for modification of the plan
27 made by an affected municipality having a stormwater
28 management plan are not included in the proposed county plan,
29 and the municipality affected by the plan opposes adoption of
30 the county plan by resolution of its corporate authorities,
31 approval of the county plan shall require an affirmative vote
32 of at least two-thirds of the county board members present
33 and voting. If the county board wishes to amend the county
34 plan, it shall submit in writing specific proposals to the
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1 stormwater management planning committee. If the proposals
2 are not approved by the committee, or are opposed by
3 resolution of the corporate authorities of an affected
4 municipality having a municipal stormwater management plan,
5 amendment of the plan shall require an affirmative vote of at
6 least two-thirds of the county board members present and
7 voting.
8 (f) The county board may prescribe by ordinance
9 reasonable rules and regulations for floodplain management
10 and for governing the location, width, course and release
11 rate of all stormwater runoff channels, streams, lakes, and
12 basins in the county, in accordance with the adopted
13 stormwater management plan. These rules and regulations
14 shall, at a minimum, meet the standards for floodplain
15 management established by the Office of Water Resources and
16 the requirements of the Federal Emergency Management Agency
17 for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program.
18 (g) In accordance with, and if recommended in, the
19 adopted stormwater management plan, the county board may
20 adopt a schedule of fees as may be necessary to mitigate the
21 effects of increased stormwater runoff resulting from new
22 development. The fees shall not exceed the cost of
23 satisfying the onsite stormwater retention or detention
24 requirements of the adopted stormwater management plan. The
25 fees shall be used to finance activities undertaken by the
26 county or its included municipalities to mitigate the effects
27 of urban stormwater runoff by providing regional stormwater
28 retention or detention facilities, as identified in the
29 county plan. All such fees collected by the county shall be
30 held in a separate fund, and shall be expended only in the
31 watershed within which they were collected.
32 (h) For the purpose of implementing this Section and for
33 the development, design, planning, construction, operation
34 and maintenance of stormwater facilities provided for in the
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1 stormwater management plan, a county board that has
2 established a stormwater management planning committee
3 pursuant to this Section may cause an annual tax of not to
4 exceed 0.20% of the value, as equalized or assessed by the
5 Department of Revenue, of all taxable property in the county
6 to be levied upon all the taxable property in the county.
7 The tax shall be in addition to all other taxes authorized by
8 law to be levied and collected in the county and shall be in
9 addition to the maximum tax rate authorized by law for
10 general county purposes. The 0.20% limitation provided in
11 this Section may be increased or decreased by referendum in
12 accordance with the provisions of Sections 18-120, 18-125,
13 and 18-130 of the Property Tax Code.
14 Any revenues generated as a result of ownership or
15 operation of facilities or land acquired with the tax funds
16 collected pursuant to this subsection (h) shall be held in a
17 separate fund and be used either to abate such property tax
18 or for implementing this Section.
19 However, unless at least part of the county has been
20 declared after July 1, 1986 by presidential proclamation to
21 be a disaster area as a result of flooding and is in a
22 northeastern county, the tax authorized by this subsection
23 (h) shall not be levied until the question of its adoption,
24 either for a specified period or indefinitely, has been
25 submitted to the electors thereof and approved by a majority
26 of those voting on the question. This question may be
27 submitted at any election held in the county after the
28 adoption of a resolution by the county board providing for
29 the submission of the question to the electors of the county.
30 The county board shall certify the resolution and proposition
31 to the proper election officials, who shall submit the
32 proposition at an election in accordance with the general
33 election law. If a majority of the votes cast on the
34 question is in favor of the levy of the tax, it may
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1 thereafter be levied in the county for the specified period
2 or indefinitely, as provided in the proposition. The question
3 shall be put in substantially the following form:
4 -------------------------------------------------------------
5 Shall an annual tax be levied
6 for stormwater management purposes YES
7 (for a period of not more than
8 ...... years) at a rate not exceeding ------------------
9 .....% of the equalized assessed
10 value of the taxable property of NO
11 ........ County?
12 -------------------------------------------------------------
13 (h-5) In accordance with, and if recommended in, the
14 adopted stormwater management plan, the county board, by
15 ordinance, may establish service rates and charges to be
16 assessed upon the persons served by the drainage system. No
17 stormwater management plan service rates or charges may be
18 imposed on public roads or highways. The service charges
19 shall be used to implement the stormwater management plan
20 throughout the county. The service charges may not be
21 assessed, however, until the stormwater management planning
22 committee develops and approves a stormwater management
23 financial plan. The financial plan must include the
24 following:
25 (1) A description of the 5-year cost of
26 implementing the stormwater management plan. The land
27 acquisition, capital facility, and maintenance components
28 must be categorized by watershed.
29 (2) A description of the direct relationship
30 between the service charge rates and the contribution of
31 stormwater runoff to the drainage system.
32 (3) A description of how the service charges will
33 be calculated, assessed, and collected and of how the
34 revenue will be spent.
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1 (4) A description of the cost of assessing,
2 collecting, and distributing the service charges.
3 The financial plan must, at a minimum, be updated every 5
4 years. Before the financial plan is adopted, there must be
5 a 60-day public review period and the committee must hold a
6 public hearing. Public notice of the review period and
7 hearing must be given.
8 (h-10) Proceeds from the service charges may be used in
9 combination with property taxes to fund stormwater management
10 plan implementation. If the service charges are used in
11 combination with property taxes, the service charge proceeds
12 must be used for the watershed-specific portions of
13 stormwater management planning and plan implementation. When
14 property taxes are not used in combination with the service
15 charges, a service charge base fee for all properties must be
16 used for countywide program development and the
17 implementation of the countywide portions of the stormwater
18 management plan. Service rates and charges collected in
19 addition to the base fees must be used solely within the
20 watershed in which they were collected for the
21 watershed-specific portions of the stormwater management
22 plan. The aggregate amount of these charges and taxes
23 collected for stormwater management may not exceed 0.20% of
24 the value of all taxable property in the county as equalized
25 or assessed by the Department of Revenue. The aggregate
26 amount of service charges and property taxes imposed on an
27 individual parcel of private property may not exceed 0.20% of
28 the property's equalized or assessed value.
29 (h-15) The service rates and charges shall be
30 established and revised, shall be due and payable, and shall
31 be in force as the county board, upon a recommendation of the
32 committee, determines by ordinance. Stormwater service rates
33 and charges established by the county board are not subject
34 to any regulations covering rates and charges for similar
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1 services provided by privately owned entities.
2 In fixing the service rates and charges, the county board
3 may, upon recommendation from the committee, consider the
4 services furnished or to be furnished by the user of the
5 stormwater management system, the nature and extent of the
6 use of the land, the land's stormwater runoff
7 characteristics, and any other matters that present a
8 reasonable ground for distinction between different parcels
9 of property.
10 (h-20) A county shall have a lien for delinquent
11 stormwater service rates and charges, including interest on
12 the delinquent amount, against any property against which the
13 service charges were imposed. The lien shall be superior to
14 all other liens and encumbrances except general taxes and
15 local and special assessments.
16 (i) Upon the creation and implementation of a county
17 stormwater management plan, the county may petition the
18 circuit court to dissolve any or all drainage districts
19 created pursuant to the Illinois Drainage Code or predecessor
20 Acts which are located entirely within the area of the county
21 covered by the plan.
22 However, any active drainage district implementing a plan
23 that is consistent with and at least as stringent as the
24 county stormwater management plan may petition the stormwater
25 management planning committee for exception from dissolution.
26 Upon filing of the petition, the committee shall set a date
27 for hearing not less than 2 weeks, nor more than 4 weeks,
28 from the filing thereof, and the committee shall give at
29 least one week's notice of the hearing in one or more
30 newspapers of general circulation within the district, and in
31 addition shall cause a copy of the notice to be personally
32 served upon each of the trustees of the district. At the
33 hearing, the committee shall hear the district's petition and
34 allow the district trustees and any interested parties an
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1 opportunity to present oral and written evidence. The
2 committee shall render its decision upon the petition for
3 exception from dissolution based upon the best interests of
4 the residents of the district. In the event that the
5 exception is not allowed, the district may file a petition
6 within 30 days of the decision with the circuit court. In
7 that case, the notice and hearing requirements for the court
8 shall be the same as herein provided for the committee. The
9 court shall likewise render its decision of whether to
10 dissolve the district based upon the best interests of
11 residents of the district.
12 The dissolution of any drainage district shall not affect
13 the obligation of any bonds issued or contracts entered into
14 by the district nor invalidate the levy, extension or
15 collection of any taxes or special assessments upon the
16 property in the former drainage district. All property and
17 obligations of the former drainage district shall be assumed
18 and managed by the county, and the debts of the former
19 drainage district shall be discharged as soon as practicable.
20 If a drainage district lies only partly within a county
21 that adopts a county stormwater management plan, the county
22 may petition the circuit court to disconnect from the
23 drainage district that portion of the district that lies
24 within that county. The property of the drainage district
25 within the disconnected area shall be assumed and managed by
26 the county. The county shall also assume a portion of the
27 drainage district's debt at the time of disconnection, based
28 on the portion of the value of the taxable property of the
29 drainage district which is located within the area being
30 disconnected.
31 The operations of any drainage district that continues to
32 exist in a county that has adopted a stormwater management
33 plan in accordance with this Section shall be in accordance
34 with the adopted plan.
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1 (j) Any county that has adopted a county stormwater
2 management plan under this Section may, after 10 days written
3 notice to the owner or occupant, enter upon any lands or
4 waters within the county for the purpose of inspecting
5 stormwater facilities or causing the removal of any
6 obstruction to an affected watercourse. The county shall be
7 responsible for any damages occasioned thereby.
8 (k) Upon petition of the municipality, and based on a
9 finding of the stormwater management planning committee, the
10 county shall not enforce rules and regulations adopted by the
11 county in any municipality located wholly or partly within
12 the county that has a municipal stormwater management
13 ordinance that is consistent with and at least as stringent
14 as the county plan and ordinance, and is being enforced by
15 the municipal authorities.
16 (l) A county may issue general obligation bonds or
17 revenue bonds for implementing any stormwater plan adopted
18 under this Section in the manner prescribed in Section
19 5-1012; except that the referendum requirement of Section
20 5-1012 shall not apply to bonds issued pursuant to this
21 Section on which the principal and interest are to be paid
22 entirely out of funds generated by the taxes and fees
23 authorized by this Section.
24 (m) The powers authorized by this Section may be
25 implemented by the county board for a portion of the county
26 subject to similar stormwater management needs.
27 (n) The powers and taxes authorized by this Section are
28 in addition to the powers and taxes authorized by Division
29 5-15; in exercising its powers under this Section, a county
30 shall not be subject to the restrictions and requirements of
31 that Division.
32 (o) Pursuant to paragraphs (g) and (i) of Section 6 of
33 Article VII of the Illinois Constitution, this Section
34 specifically denies and limits the exercise of any power
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1 which is inconsistent herewith by home rule units in any
2 county with a population of less than 1,500,000 in the area
3 served by the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission.
4 This Section does not prohibit the concurrent exercise of
5 powers consistent herewith.
6 (Source: P.A. 88-670, eff. 12-2-94; 89-445, eff. 2-7-96.)