Bill Text: IL SB1029 | 2017-2018 | 100th General Assembly | Engrossed
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Amends the Voluntary Payroll Deductions Act of 1983. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the short title.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2017-08-25 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 100-0420 [SB1029 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2017-SB1029-Engrossed.html
Bill Title: Amends the Voluntary Payroll Deductions Act of 1983. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the short title.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2017-08-25 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 100-0420 [SB1029 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2017-SB1029-Engrossed.html
| |||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | AN ACT concerning government.
| ||||||
2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | ||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
| ||||||
4 | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | ||||||
5 | Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Act.
| ||||||
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 | ||||||
17 | the Open Lands Acquisition and Development Act, shall be | ||||||
18 | used by the Department of Natural Resources for the | ||||||
19 | acquisition, preservation, and stewardship of natural | ||||||
20 | areas, including habitats for endangered and threatened | ||||||
21 | species, high quality natural communities, wetlands, and | ||||||
22 | other areas with unique or unusual natural heritage | ||||||
23 | qualities. |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | (3) The condition of dedicated and registered sites | ||||||
2 | tends to degrade over time without stewardship actions. | ||||||
3 | Once degraded, the public's significant investment is | ||||||
4 | devalued and these natural areas provide reduced benefit to | ||||||
5 | the people of present and future generations. | ||||||
6 | (4) Conservation land trusts have experience managing | ||||||
7 | natural areas in order to counter the constant and | ||||||
8 | increasing pressures exerted on conservation lands by | ||||||
9 | ecological succession, habitat fragmentation, hydrological | ||||||
10 | alteration, pollution, encroachment by invasive and exotic | ||||||
11 | species, and criminal trespass. | ||||||
12 | (5) This Act and the powers afforded to the Illinois | ||||||
13 | Nature Preserves Commission are desirable to guide and | ||||||
14 | preserve the highest quality natural areas in perpetuity. | ||||||
15 | (b) It is the purpose of this Act to: | ||||||
16 | (1) increase stewardship by providing stewardship | ||||||
17 | grants to conservation land trusts to help perform | ||||||
18 | stewardship actions on eligible lands; and | ||||||
19 | (2) to enhance stewardship capacity within | ||||||
20 | conservation land trusts in local areas.
| ||||||
21 | Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act: | ||||||
22 | "Administrative decision" has the same meaning ascribed to | ||||||
23 | the term in Section 3-101 of the Administrative Review Law of | ||||||
24 | the Code of Civil Procedure. | ||||||
25 | "Commission" means the Illinois Nature Preserves |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | Commission. | ||||||
2 | "Conservation land trust" means an entity exempt from | ||||||
3 | taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal | ||||||
4 | Revenue Code whose purposes include the restoration, | ||||||
5 | stewardship, or conservation of land, natural areas, open | ||||||
6 | space, or water areas for the preservation of native plants or | ||||||
7 | animals, biotic communities, geologic formations, or | ||||||
8 | archeological sites of significance. | ||||||
9 | "Department" means the Department of Natural Resources. | ||||||
10 | "Eligible land" means a site that has been dedicated by the | ||||||
11 | Commission as an Illinois Nature Preserve or dedicated buffer | ||||||
12 | or registered as a Land and Water Reserve, and has a current, | ||||||
13 | approved management schedule. | ||||||
14 | "Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program" means a | ||||||
15 | program established under Section 20 of this Act. | ||||||
16 | "Land" means real property and ownership rights applying to | ||||||
17 | it and includes the real property, structures, and | ||||||
18 | improvements. | ||||||
19 | "Management schedule" means an approved document | ||||||
20 | consistent with rules for Management of Nature Preserves or | ||||||
21 | rules for Register of Land and Water Reserves under the | ||||||
22 | Illinois Administrative Code developed for the preservation, | ||||||
23 | protection, management, and use of lands. | ||||||
24 | "Stewardship actions" means actions identified in an | ||||||
25 | approved management schedule which are designed to maintain, | ||||||
26 | preserve, or improve the condition of native natural |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | communities, diversity of species, and ecological processes on | ||||||
2 | eligible lands, such as, but not limited to, prescribed burns, | ||||||
3 | control of exotic and invasive species, fencing, and other | ||||||
4 | restorative practices. | ||||||
5 | "Stewardship grant" means a grant from the Department to a | ||||||
6 | conservation land trust for the purpose of providing | ||||||
7 | stewardship actions under Section 20 of this Act.
| ||||||
8 | Section 15. Powers, duties, and authorizations. The | ||||||
9 | Department may: | ||||||
10 | (1) make stewardship grants under Section 20 of this | ||||||
11 | Act from the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund to conservation | ||||||
12 | land trusts to conduct stewardship actions on eligible | ||||||
13 | lands; | ||||||
14 | (2) establish the total amount of funds available for | ||||||
15 | annual stewardship grants, except the amount of | ||||||
16 | stewardship grants made for any fiscal year may not exceed | ||||||
17 | the amount set by administrative rule and shall not result | ||||||
18 | in adverse impacts on the operations funded by the Natural | ||||||
19 | Areas Acquisition Fund; | ||||||
20 | (3) accept and receive any funds including by | ||||||
21 | agreement, grant, contract, donation, gift, or bequest | ||||||
22 | from any corporation, foundation, non-governmental agency, | ||||||
23 | individual, or instrumentality of any of those for the | ||||||
24 | purposes of executing stewardship grants under this Act and | ||||||
25 | these funds are to be deposited into the Natural Areas |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | Acquisition Fund; | ||||||
2 | (4) develop and administer the Illinois Natural Areas | ||||||
3 | Stewardship Grant Program within the Department; | ||||||
4 | (5) adopt rules to effectuate the purposes of this Act; | ||||||
5 | or | ||||||
6 | (6) use funds received under this Act to pay for the | ||||||
7 | cost of departmental personnel; contractual, professional | ||||||
8 | or technical services; and equipment, materials, and | ||||||
9 | supplies necessary or appropriate to perform the functions | ||||||
10 | under this Act.
| ||||||
11 | Section 20. Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant | ||||||
12 | Program. | ||||||
13 | (a) The Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant Program is | ||||||
14 | established to make grants to conservation land trusts for the | ||||||
15 | purpose of promoting stewardship actions on eligible lands. | ||||||
16 | (b) A conservation land trust in good standing with the | ||||||
17 | federal Internal Revenue Service may apply for a grant. | ||||||
18 | (c) An agency, organization, or entity that has taxing | ||||||
19 | powers, collects taxes, or has eminent domain powers is not | ||||||
20 | eligible to apply for the grant program under this Act. | ||||||
21 | (d) Eligible land held by agencies, organizations, or other | ||||||
22 | entities may be the recipient of stewardship actions conducted | ||||||
23 | under the grant as long as there is a properly executed | ||||||
24 | agreement between the agency, organization, or entity and the | ||||||
25 | conservation land trust that has been awarded the grant. |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | (e) The Department shall adopt administrative rules in | ||||||
2 | consultation with the Commission for grant writing, the | ||||||
3 | selection of grant recipients, amount of grant awards, and | ||||||
4 | eligibility requirements to implement the purposes of this Act. | ||||||
5 | However, the rules shall include the following requirements: | ||||||
6 | (1) amounts for match and caps for any stewardship | ||||||
7 | grant under this Act; and | ||||||
8 | (2) the Commission shall be notified of any agreement | ||||||
9 | between a conservation land trust and an owner of eligible | ||||||
10 | lands for stewardship actions to be conducted under the | ||||||
11 | grant agreement.
| ||||||
12 | Section 25. Priorities. In considering applications for | ||||||
13 | grants under this Act, the Department shall establish | ||||||
14 | priorities that: | ||||||
15 | (1) provide the greatest benefit to implementing the needs | ||||||
16 | and priorities identified in the Illinois Natural Area Plan, | ||||||
17 | the Illinois Sustainable Natural Areas Vision, and the Illinois | ||||||
18 | Wildlife Action Plan; | ||||||
19 | (2) provide the greatest benefit to other stewardship needs | ||||||
20 | identified by the Department, in consultation with the | ||||||
21 | Commission, in administrative rule; and | ||||||
22 | (3) consider, but not be limited to, the rarity and | ||||||
23 | condition of resources, severity of stewardship need, | ||||||
24 | timeliness of actions, proposed stewardship actions, and | ||||||
25 | availability of other resources.
|
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | Section 30. Administrative Review Law. All final | ||||||
2 | administrative decisions under this Act are subject to judicial | ||||||
3 | review under the Administrative Review Law of the Code of Civil | ||||||
4 | Procedure.
| ||||||
5 | Section 35. Fund depository. All funds, assessments, | ||||||
6 | fines, settlements, compensations, transfers, appropriations, | ||||||
7 | penalties, and donations made under this Act shall be deposited | ||||||
8 | into the Natural Areas Acquisition Fund subject to the | ||||||
9 | limitations described in subsection (2) of Section 15 of this | ||||||
10 | Act.
| ||||||
11 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
12 | becoming law.
|