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| Public Act 100-0420
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| SB1029 Enrolled | LRB100 07618 RJF 17684 b |
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AN ACT concerning government.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, |
represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the |
Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Act.
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Section 5. Legislative findings and statement of public |
policy. |
(a) The General Assembly finds that: |
(1) The Illinois Natural Areas Preservation Act |
defines natural areas and creates the Illinois Nature |
Preserves Commission to preserve the highest quality |
natural areas in perpetuity to sustain for the people of |
present and future generations the benefits of an enduring |
resource of natural areas, including the elements of |
natural diversity present. |
(2) The Natural Areas Acquisition Fund, established in |
the Open Lands Acquisition and Development Act, shall be |
used by the Department of Natural Resources for the |
acquisition, preservation, and stewardship of natural |
areas, including habitats for endangered and threatened |
species, high quality natural communities, wetlands, and |
other areas with unique or unusual natural heritage |
qualities. |
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(3) The condition of dedicated and registered sites |
tends to degrade over time without stewardship actions. |
Once degraded, the public's significant investment is |
devalued and these natural areas provide reduced benefit to |
the people of present and future generations. |
(4) Conservation land trusts have experience managing |
natural areas in order to counter the constant and |
increasing pressures exerted on conservation lands by |
ecological succession, habitat fragmentation, hydrological |
alteration, pollution, encroachment by invasive and exotic |
species, and criminal trespass. |
(5) This Act and the powers afforded to the Illinois |
Nature Preserves Commission are desirable to guide and |
preserve the highest quality natural areas in perpetuity. |
(b) It is the purpose of this Act to: |
(1) increase stewardship by providing stewardship |
grants to conservation land trusts to help perform |
stewardship actions on eligible lands; and |
(2) to enhance stewardship capacity within |
conservation land trusts in local areas.
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Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act: |
"Administrative decision" has the same meaning ascribed to |
the term in Section 3-101 of the Administrative Review Law of |
the Code of Civil Procedure. |
"Commission" means the Illinois Nature Preserves |
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Commission. |
"Conservation land trust" means an entity exempt from |
taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal |
Revenue Code whose purposes include the restoration, |
stewardship, or conservation of land, natural areas, open |
space, or water areas for the preservation of native plants or |
animals, biotic communities, geologic formations, or |
archeological sites of significance. |
"Department" means the Department of Natural Resources. |
"Eligible land" means a site that has been dedicated by the |
Commission as an Illinois Nature Preserve or dedicated buffer |
or registered as a Land and Water Reserve, and has a current, |
approved management schedule. |
"Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program" means a |
program established under Section 20 of this Act. |
"Land" means real property and ownership rights applying to |
it and includes the real property, structures, and |
improvements. |
"Management schedule" means an approved document |
consistent with rules for Management of Nature Preserves or |
rules for Register of Land and Water Reserves under the |
Illinois Administrative Code developed for the preservation, |
protection, management, and use of lands. |
"Stewardship actions" means actions identified in an |
approved management schedule which are designed to maintain, |
preserve, or improve the condition of native natural |
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communities, diversity of species, and ecological processes on |
eligible lands, such as, but not limited to, prescribed burns, |
control of exotic and invasive species, fencing, and other |
restorative practices. |
"Stewardship grant" means a grant from the Department to a |
conservation land trust for the purpose of providing |
stewardship actions under Section 20 of this Act.
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Section 15. Powers, duties, and authorizations. The |
Department may: |
(1) make stewardship grants under Section 20 of this |
Act under an appropriation made from the Natural Areas |
Acquisition Fund to conservation land trusts to conduct |
stewardship actions on eligible lands; |
(2) establish the total amount of funds available for |
annual stewardship grants, except the amount of |
stewardship grants made for any fiscal year may not exceed |
the amount set by administrative rule and shall not result |
in adverse impacts on the operations funded by the Natural |
Areas Acquisition Fund; |
(3) accept and receive any funds including by |
agreement, grant, contract, donation, gift, or bequest |
from any corporation, foundation, non-governmental agency, |
individual, or instrumentality of any of those for the |
purposes of executing stewardship grants under this Act and |
these funds are to be deposited into the Natural Areas |
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Acquisition Fund; |
(4) develop and administer the Illinois Natural Areas |
Stewardship Grant Program within the Department; |
(5) adopt rules to effectuate the purposes of this Act; |
or |
(6) from an appropriation made to the Department for |
this purpose, use funds received under this Act to pay for |
the cost of departmental personnel; contractual, |
professional or technical services; and equipment, |
materials, and supplies necessary or appropriate to |
perform the functions under this Act.
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Section 20. Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant |
Program. |
(a) The Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program is |
established to make grants to conservation land trusts for the |
purpose of promoting stewardship actions on eligible lands. |
(b) A conservation land trust in good standing with the |
federal Internal Revenue Service may apply for a grant. |
(c) An agency, organization, or entity that has taxing |
powers, collects taxes, or has eminent domain powers is not |
eligible to apply for the grant program under this Act. |
(d) Eligible land held by agencies, organizations, or other |
entities may be the recipient of stewardship actions conducted |
under the grant as long as there is a properly executed |
agreement between the agency, organization, or entity and the |
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conservation land trust that has been awarded the grant. |
(e) The Department shall adopt administrative rules in |
consultation with the Commission for grant writing, the |
selection of grant recipients, amount of grant awards, and |
eligibility requirements to implement the purposes of this Act. |
However, the rules shall include the following requirements: |
(1) amounts for match and caps for any stewardship |
grant under this Act; and |
(2) the Commission shall be notified of any agreement |
between a conservation land trust and an owner of eligible |
lands for stewardship actions to be conducted under the |
grant agreement.
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Section 25. Priorities. In considering applications for |
grants under this Act, the Department shall establish |
priorities that: |
(1) provide the greatest benefit to implementing the needs |
and priorities identified in the Illinois Natural Area Plan, |
the Illinois Sustainable Natural Areas Vision, and the Illinois |
Wildlife Action Plan; |
(2) provide the greatest benefit to other stewardship needs |
identified by the Department, in consultation with the |
Commission, in administrative rule; and |
(3) consider, but not be limited to, the rarity and |
condition of resources, severity of stewardship need, |
timeliness of actions, proposed stewardship actions, and |
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availability of other resources.
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Section 30. Administrative Review Law. All final |
administrative decisions under this Act are subject to judicial |
review under the Administrative Review Law of the Code of Civil |
Procedure.
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Section 35. Fund depository. All funds, assessments, |
fines, settlements, compensations, transfers, appropriations, |
penalties, and donations made under this Act shall be deposited |
into the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund subject to the |
limitations described in subsection (2) of Section 15 of this |
Act.
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Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
becoming law.
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