A total of 298 bills passed both houses of the Illinois General Assembly so far in 2008. Here is a summary of the major state and local government issues that may be of interest to ILARC members.

STATE GOVERNMENT

Appropriations and State Budget
The state budget for fiscal year 2009 is $62.3 billion – 1.8% over last year’s budget. General Revenue Fund (GRF) appropriations rose 3.2% while appropriations from other state funds and federal funds rose 0.7%.

The main budget was contained in four bills:
Public Act 95-0734 (HB 5701)
Public Act 95-0731 (SB 1102)
Public Act 95-0732 (SB 1115)
Public Act 95-0733 (SB 1129)
These four bills passed the General Assembly in May and reached the Governor in June. The Governor returned the bills with several item or reductions vetoes totaling nearly $1.5 billion. The House voted to restore some of the reductions, but the Senate took no action, so the bills became law at the reduced levels.

Public Act 95-0744 (SB 773) - Budget Implementation
Creates the FY 2009 Budget Implementation Act, which makes various changes necessary for the State to implement its Fiscal Year 2009 budget. One way that this new law will affect municipalities is that it increases the percentage of income taxes that are deposited into the Income Tax Refund Fund, which is used to pay income tax refunds. That equates to 2.2% less individual income tax and 2.4% less corporate income tax to the Local Government Distributive Fund for the 2009 State Fiscal Year.

Public Act 95-0906 (SB 1920) - Free Transit Rides for Seniors
Requires public transportation systems to provide free rides on fixed-route transit for disabled individuals who meet circuit breaker income eligibility limitations. The new law also limits the requirement to provide free rides to senior citizens to those seniors who meet circuit breaker income eligibility limitations. Requires the collar counties to submit an annual report on their use of the quarter-cent sales tax imposed by the RTA.

Public Act 95-0845 (SB 2110) – Environmental Covenants
Authorizes a new kind of agreement called an "environmental covenant" for remediation of contaminated land (brownfields). In order to get an environmental response project approved, an owner of such land may be required to enter into such a covenant. Any such covenant will be an interest in real property, will be recorded, and will apply to all signers and their successors unless it is extinguished with the environmental agency's consent. It can be condemned unless the planned use would harm the environment or human health. It can be enforced by any party to it, the environmental agency,or the municipality containing the land.

Public Act 95-0963 (SB 2190) – Political Committees
This bill changes the three-thousand-dollar threshold of contributions and expenditures to make sure a person who is an entity on a part of a local or state political committee meets the requirements of filing. On Aug. 29th, the Governor issued an amendatory veto for the bill. The Governor’s changes would have prohibited any political committee established to promote the individual candidacy of a candidate for state office or the General Assembly from accepting any contribution made by an employee of a state agency or local government. If a political committee received a contribution in violation of this Section, then the State Board could have assessed a civil penalty up to $10,000 for each violation. The amendatory veto was overridden by both Houses and the bill becomes effective Jan. 1, 2009.

Public Act 95-0957 (SB 2191) – Campaign Reports
As a companion to SB 2190, this bill changes it to make sure that with financial reporting expenditures that exceed an aggregate amount of five hundred dollars you are required to file a report on a campaign contribution.

Public Act 95-0757 (SB 2391) – Accident Reports
Authorizes the Illinois Department of Transportation to furnish copies of its written accident reports, currently given to federal and state agencies, to local agencies that are engaged in highway safety research and studies.

Public Act 95-0708 (HB 656) – Transit Funding
With agreement by Chicago to collect and pay the Chicago Transit Authority net proceeds of a real estate transfer tax of up to $1.50 per $500 transferred, the CTA may issue $1.349 billion in bonds and notes to fund employee retirement costs, and $639.7 million for retiree health benefit costs. The bonds may be general boligations of the CTA, or revenue bonds. The CTA must separate its funding of retiree health care benefits from retirement funding by July 1, 2009. Boards of trustees for a CTA retirement system and a CTA health care benefits trust are established. The retirement system is to have a funded ratio of at least 60% from now to 2040, and 90% starting in 2059. All new CTA hires will come under the new retirement system. The health care benefits trust will assume responsibility for providing health care benefits to CTA retirees and their dependents and survivors by July 1, 2009.

The RTA must adopt the following by vote of at least three-fourths of its directors: a strategic plan; a 5-year capital program; and an annual budget and 2-year financial plan. It must promote coordination of an passenger transfers among the public transportation services under it, and can resolve disputes among them. It must also audit the performance of each service board under it at least every 5 years. The RTA's sales tax rates go up in Cook County from 0.75% to 1% (from 1% to 1.25% on food and medicines), and in the collar counties from 0.25% to 0.75%. Of the 0.75% rate in the collar countis, 0.25% will go to their county boards for transportation and public safety costs. A specific percentage allocation among public transportation services of the proceeds of the rate increases is prescribed. The state match for taxes collected by the RTA is increased by 5% of the proceeds of the rates previously collected; starting in 2009 the state will also match 25% of the proceeds of the increases in rates (except that the state will match only half the increase in rates in the collar counties). The RTA can issue up to $300 million in working cash notes, maturing by mid-2011.

This bill also creates a Downstate Transit Improvement Fund. The Madison County Transit District will get financial aid through it rather than from the Metro east Transportation Fund. Other changes are made int he distribution of downstate transit aid. (source LRU).

Public Act 95-0971 (HB 824) – Ethics
After several years of trying, Illinois finally has a bill to combat pay-to-play politics. HB 824 strengthens the state’s ethics laws by prohibiting businesses with contracts totaling more than $50,000 from making political donations to constitutional officers who award the contracts and declared candidates for those offices. The ban also applies to a company’s owners, top officials and close family members.

The legislature rejected changes to the measure made by the Governor which were intended to kill the proposal. State senators overrode the Governor's amendatory veto. In addition, this bill boosts transparency as it requires big contractors to register with the Board of Elections so that the public can track political donations. If businesses violate the ban, they could see their state contracts voided. The new law takes effect January 1, 2009.

Public Act 95-0833 (HB 4369) – Poverty Reduction
Establishes a commission of up to 26 members to write a plan to reduce "extreme poverty" at least 50% by 2015.

Public Act 95-0947 (HB 4726) – Employee Ethics
This bill states that if any State or local government officer or government employee is place on administrative leave, either voluntarily or involuntary, pending the outcome of a criminal investigation or prosecution and that officer or employee is removed from office or employment for reasons directly related to the criminal matter, then the individual must pay the State or government entity for all compensation and the value of benefits received during the administrative law.

House Joint Resolution 111
Under HJR 111 legislators established a Joint Committee for the Constitutional Convention Proposal. This committee was charged with preparing materials related to the question of calling a constitutional convention.

House Joint Resolution 137
HJR 137 set forth the required explanation of the proposed call for a Con Con. It also outlines arguments both for and against a new convention and the format of the ballot question.


MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT

Public Act 95-0931 (SB 2677) - Involuntary Annexation
In addition to other changes, this new law requires that, when a municipality initiates action for involuntary annexation, it must notify the residents 15 days in advance, either through certified mail or in person, of taking action. Once the notice is given, no other municipality may annex that area for 60 days.

Public Act 95-0934 (SB 2733) - TIF Proceeds Historic Structures
Defines redvelopment cost to specifically exclude costs associated with the demolition, removal, or substantial modification of historical places, structures or contributing structures on the National Register of Historic Places. Those costs, however, may be included if no prudent or feasible alternative exists. This provision does not apply to places and structures that are subject to review by the preservation agency of a Certified Local Government designated by the National Park Service.

Public Act 95-0852 (HB 3441) - Restrict Land Use Jurisdiction
Municipalities have jurisdiction over all waters within or bordering upon the municipality, to the extent of 3 miles beyond the corporate limits. This new law restricts a municipality from exercising zoning power or restricting the use of private property in cases where a private lake located in unincorporated territory borders a municipality. This legislation stems from a dispute over the authority of a private lake located in unincorporated Lake County.

Public Act 95-0976 (HB 4527) - Library Per Capita Grants
Amends the Illinois Library System Act to increase the amount of per capita grants from the State to public libraries from $4.25 per capita to $7.50 per capita. The bill also provides that, if moneys appropriated fro the grants are not sufficient, then the grants must be reduced, but they may not be reduced below $4.25 per capita. The Governor's amendatory veto would have required that libraries must be members of a library system and remain open until 9 p.m. at least four days a week as a condition for grant eligibility. The amendatory veto was overidden.


COUNTY GOVERNMENT

Public Act 95-0843 (SB 2014) – Special Use
This bill simply clarifies Illinois law. It requires that any county, municipality or township that makes a decision regarding zoning, ordinances regarding variances or special use must be subject to de novo judicial review (a.k.a. a hearing process). It passed unanimously out of the Local Government Committee.

Public Act 95-0919 (SB 2034) – Sewage Disposal Systems
SB 2034 is designed to help protect the groundwater supply from contamination due to improperly maintained septic systems. It says that local governments may require homeowners who maintain a private septic system to verify with that unit of local government once every three years that they have a valid contract with a licensed private sewage disposal system contractor. The legislation also states that no additional fee can be charged to the homeowner for proof of a contract. This bill was a compromise from a proposed yearly inspection.

The legislation is a companion bill to last year’s SB 1174 which allowed local governments to regulate and inspect private sewage disposal contractors and maintain a minimum code of standards for construction, operation and maintenance of private sewage disposal systems.

Public Act 95-0719 (SB 2052) – Flood Prevention District
This bill creates the Flood Prevention District Act for the counties of Madison, Monroe and St. Clair. These counties are now authorized to establish a flood prevention district for the purpose of performing emergency levee repair and flood prevention. The affected counties are authorized to join together by intergovernmental agreement. The county board is also authorized to impose a quarter percent sales tax upon determination that an emergency situation exists regarding levee repair or flood prevention.

Public Act 95-723 (SB 836) - Flood Prevention District
A trailer bill to Senate Bill 2052. It amends the Flood Prevention District Act to make changes concerning the purposes of the Act, terms of commissioners, powers outside the district's boundaries, indebtedness, taxes, use of tax receipts, tax funds, federal funds, audits, budgets, procurement, contracts, and other matters. The new law exempts the district's bond issuance from existing debt limitations, and it authorizes a tort-immunity tax to be levied to pay the costs authorized by the district.

Public Act 95-0925 (SB 2353) – Property Tax Surveys
This bill repeals a section in the Property Tax Code authorizing county clerks to make a survey of subdivided property. The section was rarely used and had the potential for abuse significant enough to warrant its deletion.

Public Act 95-0805 (HB 4646) – Wind Farms
This bill provides that a county, municipality, school district or a community college district may own and operate a wind generation turbine farm either individually or jointly with other such units of government. Received no opposition in committee.

Public Act 95-0813 (HB 4766) – Lease Telecommunications
This bill provides counties with the authority to lease space on one of their telecommunication towers to a public or private entity. The law previously allowed counties to lease county-owned property to private entities – but did not specifically mention telecommunication towers.

Public Act 95-0815 (HB 4936) – Cellular Towers
This Act requires that residents living next to the possible location of a telecommunications or AM radio tower be notified by certified mail. This will make sure that such residents will be notified of a public hearing in addition to the “Notice of Public Hearing” published in the paper.


TOWNSHIP GOVERNMENT

Public Act 95-0759 (HB 4283) - Bond Proceeds
Provides that certain bond proceeds shall be expended under the direction of the board of trustees of the township (instead of the highway commissioners of the township). Provides that the board of trustees of the township (instead of the highway commissioners of the township) may designate certain parcels of land to be used for the purchase of parks. Provides that a majority of the members of the board of trustees of the township may designate that certain bond proceeds be expended under the direction and upon the warrant of the highway commissioner if the highway commissioner provides written consent to that action.

Public Act 95-0909 (HB 4378) - Cellular Towers
Allows township and road districts to enter into 25-year lease agreements with wireless telecommunication companies for cellular towers.