Public Act 094-0259
 
HB0909 Enrolled LRB094 06759 AJO 36861 b

    AN ACT concerning counties.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The County Economic Development Project Area
Property Tax Allocation Act is amended by changing Section 4 as
follows:
 
    (55 ILCS 85/4)  (from Ch. 34, par. 7004)
    Sec. 4. Establishment of economic development project
area; ordinance; joint review board; notice; hearing; changes
in economic development plan; annual reporting requirements.
Economic development project areas shall be established as
follows:
    (a) The corporate authorities of Whiteside County may by
ordinance propose the establishment of an economic development
project area and fix a time and place for a public hearing, and
shall submit a certified copy of the ordinance as adopted to
the Department.
    (a-5) After the effective date of this amendatory Act of
the 93rd General Assembly, the corporate authorities of
Stephenson County may by ordinance propose the establishment of
an economic development project area and fix a time and place
for a public hearing, and shall submit a certified copy of the
ordinance as adopted to the Department.
    (a-10) The corporate authorities of Grundy County may, by
ordinance, propose the establishment of an economic
development project and fix a time and place for a public
hearing. Upon passage of the ordinance, the corporate
authorities of Grundy County shall submit a certified copy of
the ordinance, as adopted, to the Department.
    (b) Any county which adopts an ordinance which fixes a
date, time and place for a public hearing shall convene a joint
review board as hereinafter provided. Not less than 45 days
prior to the date fixed for the public hearing, the county
shall give notice by mailing to the chief executive officer of
each affected taxing district having taxable property included
in the proposed economic development project area and, if the
ordinance is adopted by Stephenson County, the chief executive
officer of any municipality within Stephenson County having a
population of more than 20,000 that such chief executive
officer or his designee is invited to participate in a joint
review board. The designee shall serve at the discretion of the
chief executive officer of the taxing district for a term not
to exceed 2 years. Such notice shall advise each chief
executive officer of the date, time and place of the first
meeting of such joint review board, which shall occur not less
than 30 days prior to the date of the public hearing. Such
notice by mail shall be given by depositing such notice in the
United States Postal Service by certified mail.
    At or prior to the first meeting of such joint review board
the county shall furnish to any member of such joint review
board copies of the proposed economic development plan and any
related documents which such member shall reasonably request. A
majority of the members of such joint review board present at
any meeting shall constitute a quorum. Additional meetings may
be called by any member of a joint review board upon the giving
of notice not less than 72 hours prior to the date of any
additional meeting to all members of the joint review board.
The joint review board shall review such information and
material as its members reasonably deem relevant to the
county's proposals to approve economic development plans and
economic development projects and to designate economic
development project areas. The county shall provide such
information and material promptly upon the request of the joint
review board and may also provide administrative support and
facilities as the joint review board may reasonably require.
    Within 30 days of its first meeting, a joint review board
shall provide the county with a written report of its review of
any proposal to approve an economic development plan and
economic development project and to designate an economic
development project area. Such written report shall include
such information and advisory, nonbinding recommendations as a
majority of the members of the joint review board shall deem
relevant. Written reports of joint review boards may include
information and advisory, nonbinding recommendations provided
by a minority of the members thereof. Any joint review board
which does not provide such written report within such 30-day
period shall be deemed to have recommended that the county
proceed with a proposal to approve an economic development plan
and economic development project and to designate an economic
development project area.
    (c) Notice of the public hearing shall be given by
publication and mailing.
        (1) Notice by publication shall be given by publication
    at least twice, the first publication to be not more than
    30 nor less than 10 days prior to the hearing in a
    newspaper of general circulation within the taxing
    districts having property in the proposed economic
    development project area. Notice by mailing shall be given
    by depositing such notice together with a copy of the
    proposed economic development plan in the United States
    Postal Service by certified mail addressed to the person or
    persons in whose name the general taxes for the last
    preceding year were paid on each lot, block, tract, or
    parcel of land lying within the proposed economic
    development project area. The notice shall be mailed not
    less than 10 days prior to the dates set for the public
    hearing. In the event taxes for the last preceding year
    were not paid, the notice shall also be sent to the persons
    last listed on the tax rolls within the preceding 3 years
    as the owners of the property.
        (2) The notices issued pursuant to this Section shall
    include the following:
            (A) The time and place of public hearing;
            (B) The boundaries of the proposed economic
        development project area by legal description and by
        street location where possible;
            (C) A notification that all interested persons
        will be given an opportunity to be heard at the public
        hearing;
            (D) An invitation for any person to submit
        alternative proposals or bids for any proposed
        conveyance, lease, mortgage or other disposition of
        land within the proposed economic development project
        area;
            (E) A description of the economic development plan
        or economic development project if a plan or project is
        a subject matter of the hearing; and
            (F) Such other matters as the county may deem
        appropriate.
        (3) Not less than 45 days prior to the date set for
    hearing, the county shall give notice by mail as provided
    in this subsection (c) to all taxing districts of which
    taxable property is included in the economic development
    project area, and to the Department. In addition to the
    other requirements under this subsection (c), the notice
    shall include an invitation to the Department and each
    taxing district to submit comments to the county concerning
    the subject matter of the hearing prior to the date of the
    hearing.
    (d) At the public hearing any interested person, the
Department or any affected taxing district may file written
objections with the county clerk and may be heard orally with
respect to any issues embodied in the notice. The county shall
hear and determine all alternate proposals or bids for any
proposed conveyance, lease, mortgage or other disposition of
land and all protests and objections at the hearing, and the
hearing may be adjourned to another date without further notice
other than a motion to be entered upon the minutes fixing the
time and place of the adjourned hearing. Public hearings with
regard to an economic development plan, economic development
project area, or economic development project may be held
simultaneously.
    (e) At the public hearing, or at any time prior to the
adoption by the county of an ordinance approving an economic
development plan, the county may make changes in the economic
development plan. Changes which (1) alter the exterior
boundaries of the proposed economic development project area,
(2) substantially affect the general land uses established in
the proposed economic development plan, (3) substantially
change the nature of the proposed economic development plan,
(4) change the general description of any proposed developer,
user or tenant of any property to be located or improved within
the economic development project area, or (5) change the
description of the type, class and number of employees to be
employed in the operation of the facilities to be developed or
improved within the economic development project area shall be
made only after review by joint review board, notice and
hearing pursuant to the procedures set forth in this Section.
Changes which do not (1) alter the exterior boundaries of a
proposed economic development project area, (2) substantially
affect the general land uses established in the proposed plan,
(3) substantially change the nature of the proposed economic
development plan, (4) change the general description of any
proposed developer, user or tenant of any property to be
located or improved within the economic development project
area, or (5) change the description of the type, class and
number of employees to be employed in the operation of the
facilities to be developed or improved within the economic
development project area may be made without further notice or
hearing, provided that the county shall give notice of its
changes by mail to the Department and to each affected taxing
district and by publication in a newspaper or newspapers of
general circulation with the affected taxing districts. Such
notice by mail and by publication shall each occur not later
than 10 days following the adoption by ordinance of such
changes.
    (f) At any time within 90 days of the final adjournment of
the public hearing, a county may, by ordinance, approve the
economic development plan, establish the economic development
project area, and authorize property tax allocation financing
for such economic development project area.
    Any ordinance adopted by Whiteside County which approves
the economic development plan shall contain findings that the
economic development project is reasonably expected to create
or retain not less than 500 full-time equivalent jobs, that
private investment in an amount not less than $25,000,000 is
reasonably expected to occur in the economic development
project area, that the economic development project will
encourage the increase of commerce and industry within the
State, thereby reducing the evils attendant upon unemployment
and increasing opportunities for personal income, and that the
economic development project will increase or maintain the
property, sales and income tax bases of the county and of the
State.
    Any ordinance adopted by Grundy County that approves the
economic development plan shall contain findings that the
economic development project is reasonably expected to create
or retain not less than 250 full-time equivalent jobs, that
private investment in an amount not less than $50,000,000 is
reasonably expected to occur in the economic development
project area, that the economic development project will
encourage the increase of commerce and industry within the
State, thereby reducing the evils attendant upon unemployment
and increasing opportunities for personal income, and that the
economic development project will increase or maintain the
property, sales, and income tax bases of the county and of the
State.
    Any ordinance adopted by Stephenson County that approves an
economic development plan shall contain findings that (i) the
economic development project is reasonably expected to create
or retain not less than 500 full-time equivalent jobs; (ii)
private investment in an amount not less than $10,000,000 is
reasonably expected to occur in the economic development area;
(iii) the economic development project will encourage the
increase of commerce and industry within the State, thereby
reducing the evils attendant upon unemployment and increasing
opportunities for personal income; and (iv) the economic
development project will increase or maintain the property,
sales, and income tax bases of the county and of the State.
Before the economic development project area is established by
Stephenson County, the following additional conditions must be
included in an intergovernmental agreement approved by both the
Stephenson County Board and the corporate authorities of the
City of Freeport: (i) the corporate authorities of the City of
Freeport must concur by resolution with the findings of
Stephenson County; (ii) both the corporate authorities of the
City of Freeport and the Stephenson County Board shall approve
any and all economic or redevelopment agreements and incentives
for any economic development project within the economic
development area; (iii) any economic development project that
receives funds under this Act, except for any economic
development project specifically excluded from annexation in
the provisions of the intergovernmental agreement, shall agree
to and must enter into an annexation agreement with the City of
Freeport to annex property included in the economic development
project area to the City of Freeport at the first point in time
that the property becomes contiguous to the City of Freeport;
(iv) the local share of all State occupation and use taxes
allocable to the City of Freeport and Stephenson County and
derived from commercial projects within the economic
development project area shall be equally shared by and between
the City of Freeport and Stephenson County for the duration of
the economic development project; and (v) any development in
the economic development project area shall be built in
accordance with the building and related codes of both the City
of Freeport and Stephenson County and the City of Freeport
shall approve all provisions for water and sewer service.
    The ordinance shall also state that the economic
development project area shall not include parcels to be used
for purposes of residential development. Any ordinance adopted
which establishes an economic development project area shall
contain the boundaries of such area by legal description and,
where possible, by street location. Any ordinance adopted which
authorizes property tax allocation financing shall provide
that the ad valorem taxes, if any, arising from the levies upon
taxable real property in such economic development project area
by taxing districts and tax rates determined in the manner
provided in subsection (b) of Section 6 of this Act each year
after the effective date of the ordinance until economic
development project costs and all county obligations financing
economic development project costs incurred under this Act have
been paid shall be divided as follows:
        (1) That portion of taxes levied upon each taxable lot,
    block, tract or parcel of real property which is
    attributable to the lower of the current equalized assessed
    value or the initial equalized assessed value of each such
    taxable lot, block, tract or parcel of real property in the
    economic development project area shall be allocated to,
    and when collected, shall be paid by the county collector
    to the respective affected taxing districts in the manner
    required by law in the absence of the adoption of property
    tax allocation financing.
        (2) That portion, if any, of such taxes which is
    attributable to the increase in the current equalized
    assessed valuation of each taxable lot, block, tract or
    parcel of real property in the economic development project
    area over and above the initial equalized assessed value of
    each property in the economic development project area
    shall be allocated to and when collected shall be paid to
    the county treasurer who shall deposit those taxes into a
    special fund called the special tax allocation fund of the
    county for the purpose of paying economic development
    project costs and obligations incurred in the payment
    thereof.
    (g) After a county has by ordinance approved an economic
development plan and established an economic development
project area, the plan may be amended and the boundaries of the
area may be altered only as herein provided. Amendments which
(1) alter the exterior boundaries of an economic development
project area, (2) substantially affect the general land uses
established pursuant to the economic development plan, (3)
substantially change the nature of the economic development
plan, (4) change the general description of any proposed
developer, user, or tenant of any property to be located or
improved within the economic development project area, or (5)
change the description of the type, class and number of
employees to be employed in the operation of the facilities to
be developed or improved shall be made only after review by a
joint review board, notice and hearing pursuant to the
procedures set forth in this Section. Amendments which do not
(1) alter the exterior boundaries of an economic development
project area, (2) substantially affect the general land uses
established in the economic development plan, (3)
substantially change the nature of the economic development
plan, (4) change the description of any proposed developer,
user, or tenant of any property to be located or improved
within the economic development project area, or (5) change the
description of the type, class and number of employees to be
employed in the operation of the facilities to be developed or
improved within the economic development project area may be
made without further hearing or notice, provided that the
county shall give notice of any amendment by mail to the
Department and to each taxing district and by publication in a
newspaper or newspapers of general circulation within the
affected taxing districts. Such notices by mail and by
publication shall each occur not later than 10 days following
the adoption by ordinance of such amendments.
    (h) After the adoption of an ordinance adopting property
tax allocation financing for an economic development project
area, the county shall annually report to each taxing district
having taxable property within such economic development
project area (i) any increase or decrease in the equalized
assessed value of the real property located within such
economic development project area above or below the initial
equalized assessed value of such real property, (ii) that
portion, if any, of the ad valorem taxes arising from the
levies upon taxable real property in such economic development
project area by the taxing districts which is attributable to
the increase in the current equalized assessed valuation of
each lot, block, tract or parcel of real property in the
economic development project area over and above the initial
equalized value of each property and which has been allocated
to the county in the current year, and (iii) such other
information as the county may deem relevant.
    (i) The county shall give notice by mail as provided in
this Section and shall reconvene the joint review board not
less than annually for each of the 2 years following its
adoption of an ordinance adopting property tax allocation
financing for an economic development project area and not less
than once in each 3-year period thereafter. The county shall
provide such information, and may provide administrative
support and facilities as the joint review board may reasonably
require for each of such meetings.
(Source: P.A. 92-791, eff. 8-6-02; 93-959, eff. 8-20-04.)