Bill Amendment: IL HB3458 | 2017-2018 | 100th General Assembly
NOTE: For additional amemendments please see the Bill Drafting List
Bill Title: NATURAL AREA STEWARD GRANT
Status: 2019-01-08 - Session Sine Die [HB3458 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2017-HB3458-House_Amendment_001.html
Bill Title: NATURAL AREA STEWARD GRANT
Status: 2019-01-08 - Session Sine Die [HB3458 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2017-HB3458-House_Amendment_001.html
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1 | AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 3458
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2 | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 3458 by replacing | ||||||
3 | everything after the enacting clause with the following:
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4 | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | ||||||
5 | Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Act.
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6 | Section 5. Legislative findings and statement of public | ||||||
7 | policy. | ||||||
8 | (a) The General Assembly finds that: | ||||||
9 | (1) The Illinois Natural Areas Preservation Act | ||||||
10 | defines natural areas and creates the Illinois Nature | ||||||
11 | Preserves Commission to preserve the highest quality | ||||||
12 | natural areas in perpetuity to sustain for the people of | ||||||
13 | present and future generations the benefits of an enduring | ||||||
14 | resource of natural areas, including the elements of | ||||||
15 | natural diversity present. | ||||||
16 | (2) The Natural Areas Acquisition Fund, established in |
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1 | the Open Lands Acquisition and Development Act, shall be | ||||||
2 | used by the Department of Natural Resources for the | ||||||
3 | acquisition, preservation, and stewardship of natural | ||||||
4 | areas, including habitats for endangered and threatened | ||||||
5 | species, high quality natural communities, wetlands, and | ||||||
6 | other areas with unique or unusual natural heritage | ||||||
7 | qualities. | ||||||
8 | (3) The condition of dedicated and registered sites | ||||||
9 | tends to degrade over time without stewardship actions. | ||||||
10 | Once degraded, the public's significant investment is | ||||||
11 | devalued and these natural areas provide reduced benefit to | ||||||
12 | the people of present and future generations. | ||||||
13 | (4) Conservation land trusts have experience managing | ||||||
14 | natural areas in order to counter the constant and | ||||||
15 | increasing pressures exerted on conservation lands by | ||||||
16 | ecological succession, habitat fragmentation, hydrological | ||||||
17 | alteration, pollution, encroachment by invasive and exotic | ||||||
18 | species, and criminal trespass. | ||||||
19 | (5) This Act and the powers afforded to the Illinois | ||||||
20 | Nature Preserves Commission are desirable to guide and | ||||||
21 | preserve the highest quality natural areas in perpetuity. | ||||||
22 | (b) It is the purpose of this Act to: | ||||||
23 | (1) increase stewardship by providing stewardship | ||||||
24 | grants to conservation land trusts to help perform | ||||||
25 | stewardship actions on eligible lands; and | ||||||
26 | (2) to enhance stewardship capacity within |
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1 | conservation land trusts in local areas.
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2 | Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act: | ||||||
3 | "Administrative decision" has the same meaning ascribed to | ||||||
4 | the term in Section 3-101 of the Administrative Review Law of | ||||||
5 | the Code of Civil Procedure. | ||||||
6 | "Commission" means the Illinois Nature Preserves | ||||||
7 | Commission. | ||||||
8 | "Conservation land trust" means an entity exempt from | ||||||
9 | taxation under Section 501 (c)(3) of the federal Internal | ||||||
10 | Revenue Code whose purposes include the restoration, | ||||||
11 | stewardship, or conservation of land, natural areas, open | ||||||
12 | space, or water areas for the preservation of native plants or | ||||||
13 | animals, biotic communities, geologic formations, or | ||||||
14 | archeological sites of significance. | ||||||
15 | "Department" means the Department of Natural Resources. | ||||||
16 | "Eligible land" means a site that has been dedicated by the | ||||||
17 | Commission as an Illinois Nature Preserve or dedicated buffer | ||||||
18 | or registered as a Land and Water Reserve, and has a current, | ||||||
19 | approved management schedule. | ||||||
20 | "Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program" means a | ||||||
21 | program established under Section 20 of this Act. | ||||||
22 | "Land" means real property and ownership rights applying to | ||||||
23 | it and includes the real property, structures, and | ||||||
24 | improvements. | ||||||
25 | "Management schedule" means an approved document |
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1 | consistent with rules for Management of Nature Preserves or | ||||||
2 | rules for Register of Land and Water Reserves under the | ||||||
3 | Illinois Administrative Code developed for the preservation, | ||||||
4 | protection, management, and use of lands. | ||||||
5 | "Stewardship actions" means actions identified in an | ||||||
6 | approved management schedule which are designed to maintain, | ||||||
7 | preserve, or improve the condition of native natural | ||||||
8 | communities, diversity of species, and ecological processes on | ||||||
9 | eligible lands, such as, but not limited to, prescribed burns, | ||||||
10 | control of exotic and invasive species, fencing, and other | ||||||
11 | restorative practices. | ||||||
12 | "Stewardship grant" means a grant from the Department to a | ||||||
13 | conservation land trust for the purpose of providing | ||||||
14 | stewardship actions under Section 20 of this Act.
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15 | Section 15. Powers, duties, and authorizations. The | ||||||
16 | Department may: | ||||||
17 | (1) make stewardship grants under Section 20 of this | ||||||
18 | Act from the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund to conservation | ||||||
19 | land trusts to conduct stewardship actions on eligible | ||||||
20 | lands; | ||||||
21 | (2) establish the total amount of funds available for | ||||||
22 | annual stewardship grants, except the amount of | ||||||
23 | stewardship grants made for any fiscal year may not exceed | ||||||
24 | the amount set by administrative rule and shall not result | ||||||
25 | in adverse impacts on the operations funded by the Natural |
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1 | Areas Acquisition Fund; | ||||||
2 | (3) accept and receive any funds including by | ||||||
3 | agreement, grant, contract, donation, gift, or bequest | ||||||
4 | from any corporation, foundation, non-governmental agency, | ||||||
5 | individual, or instrumentality of any of those for the | ||||||
6 | purposes of executing this Act and these funds are to be | ||||||
7 | deposited into the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund; | ||||||
8 | (4) develop and administer the Illinois Natural Areas | ||||||
9 | Stewardship Grant Program within the Department; | ||||||
10 | (5) adopt rules to effectuate the purposes of this Act; | ||||||
11 | or | ||||||
12 | (6) use funds received under this Act to pay for the | ||||||
13 | cost of departmental personnel; contractual, professional | ||||||
14 | or technical services; and equipment, materials, and | ||||||
15 | supplies necessary or appropriate to perform the functions | ||||||
16 | under this Act.
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17 | Section 20. Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant | ||||||
18 | Program. | ||||||
19 | (a) The Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program is | ||||||
20 | established to make grants to conservation land trusts for the | ||||||
21 | purpose of promoting stewardship actions on eligible lands. | ||||||
22 | (b) A conservation land trust in good standing with the | ||||||
23 | federal Internal Revenue Service may apply for a grant. | ||||||
24 | (c) An agency, organization, or entity that has taxing | ||||||
25 | powers, collects taxes, or has eminent domain powers is not |
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1 | eligible to apply for the grant program under this Act. | ||||||
2 | (d) Eligible land held by agencies, organizations, or other | ||||||
3 | entities may be the recipient of stewardship actions conducted | ||||||
4 | under the grant as long as there is a properly executed | ||||||
5 | agreement between the agency, organization, or entity and the | ||||||
6 | conservation land trust that has been awarded the grant. | ||||||
7 | (e) The Department shall adopt administrative rules in | ||||||
8 | consultation with the Commission for grant writing, the | ||||||
9 | selection of grant recipients, amount of grant awards, and | ||||||
10 | eligibility requirements to implement the purposes of this Act. | ||||||
11 | However, the rules shall include the following requirements: | ||||||
12 | (1) amounts for match and caps for any stewardship | ||||||
13 | grant under this Act; and | ||||||
14 | (2) the Commission shall be notified of any agreement | ||||||
15 | between a conservation land trust and an owner of eligible | ||||||
16 | lands for stewardship actions to be conducted under the | ||||||
17 | grant agreement.
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18 | Section 25. Priorities. In considering applications for | ||||||
19 | grants under this Act, the Department shall establish | ||||||
20 | priorities that: | ||||||
21 | (1) provide the greatest benefit to implementing the needs | ||||||
22 | and priorities identified in the Illinois Natural Area Plan, | ||||||
23 | the Illinois Sustainable Natural Areas Vision, and the Illinois | ||||||
24 | Wildlife Action Plan; | ||||||
25 | (2) provide the greatest benefit to other stewardship needs |
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1 | identified by the Department, in consultation with the | ||||||
2 | Commission, in administrative rule; and | ||||||
3 | (3) consider, but not be limited to, the rarity and | ||||||
4 | condition of resources, severity of stewardship need, | ||||||
5 | timeliness of actions, proposed stewardship actions, and | ||||||
6 | availability of other resources.
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7 | Section 30. Administrative Review Law. All final | ||||||
8 | administrative decisions under this Act are subject to judicial | ||||||
9 | review under the Administrative Review Law of the Code of Civil | ||||||
10 | Procedure.
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11 | Section 35. Fund depository. All funds, assessments, | ||||||
12 | fines, settlements, compensations, transfers, appropriations, | ||||||
13 | penalties, and donations made under this Act shall be deposited | ||||||
14 | into the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund subject to the | ||||||
15 | limitations described in subsection (2) of Section 15 of this | ||||||
16 | Act.
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17 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
18 | becoming law.".
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