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Illinois General Assembly· SB 1612Governor Approved

PARK DIST - COMPETITIVE BIDS, the official text

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SB1612 Enrolled                     LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1   AN ACT concerning local government.

2   Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,

3 represented in the General Assembly:

4   Section 5. The Conservation District Act is amended by

5 changing Section 6 as follows:

6   (70 ILCS 410/6) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 7106)

7   Sec. 6. Officers and employees. As soon as possible after

8 the initial election or the initial appointments, as the case

9 may be, the trustees shall organize by selecting from their

10 members a president, secretary, treasurer, and other officers

11 as are deemed necessary, who shall hold office for 2 years in

12 the case of an elected board, or the fiscal year in which

13 elected in the case of an appointed board, and until their

14 successors are selected and qualify. Three trustees shall

15 constitute a quorum of the board for the transaction of

16 business if the district has 5 trustees. If the district has 7

17 trustees, 4 trustees shall constitute a quorum of the board

18 for the transaction of business. The board shall hold regular

19 monthly meetings. Special meetings may be called by the

20 president and shall be called on the request of a majority of

21 members, as may be required.

22  The board shall provide for the proper and safe keeping of

23 its permanent records and for the recording of the corporate
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1 action of the district. It shall keep a proper system of

2 accounts showing a true and accurate record of its receipts

3 and disbursements, and it shall cause an annual audit to be

4 made of its books, records, and accounts.

5   The records of the district shall be subject to public

6 inspection at all reasonable hours and under regulations as

7 the board may prescribe.

8   The district shall annually make a full and complete

9 report to the county board of each county within the district

10 and to the Department of Natural Resources of its transactions

11 and operations for the preceding year. The report shall

12 contain a full statement of its receipts, disbursements, and

13 the program of work for the period covered, and may include

14 recommendations as may be deemed advisable.

15  Executive or ministerial duties may be delegated to one or

16 more trustees or to an authorized officer, employee, agent,

17 attorney, or other representative of the district.

18  All officers and employees authorized to receive or retain

19 the custody of money or to sign vouchers, checks, warrants, or

20 evidences of indebtedness binding upon the district shall

21 furnish surety bond for the faithful performance of their

22 duties and the faithful accounting for all moneys that may

23 come into their hands in an amount to be fixed and in a form to

24 be approved by the board.

25  All contracts for supplies, material, or work involving an

26 expenditure in excess of $60,000 for supplies or materials and
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 1 $30,000 for work, or a lower amount for any contract for
 2 supplies, material, or work if required by board policy, shall
 3 be let to the lowest responsible bidder, after due
 4 advertisement, excepting work requiring personal confidence or
 5 necessary supplies under the control of monopolies, where
 6 competitive bidding is impossible, or as otherwise provided in
 7 the Forest Preserve District and Conservation District
 8 Design-Build Authorization Act. All contracts for supplies,
 9 material, or work shall be signed by the president of the board
10 and by any other officer as the board in its discretion may
11 designate.
12 (Source: P.A. 102-460, eff. 6-1-22.)

13  Section 10. The Downstate Forest Preserve District Act is

14 amended by changing Section 8 as follows:

15  (70 ILCS 805/8) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 6315)

16  Sec. 8. Powers and duties of corporate authority and

17 officers; contracts; salaries.

18  (a) The board shall be the corporate authority of such

19 forest preserve district and shall have power to pass and

20 enforce all necessary ordinances, rules and regulations for

21 the management of the property and conduct of the business of

22 such district. The president of such board shall have power to

23 appoint such employees as may be necessary. In counties with

24 population of less than 3,000,000, within 60 days after their
    SB1612 Enrolled  -4-                 LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1 selection the commissioners appointed under the provisions of

2 Section 3a of this Act shall organize by selecting from their

3 members a president, vice president, secretary, treasurer and

4 such other officers as are deemed necessary who shall hold

5 office for the fiscal year in which elected and until their

6 successors are selected and qualify. In the one district in

7 existence on July 1, 1977, that is managed by an appointed

8 board of commissioners, the incumbent president and the other

9 officers appointed in the manner as originally prescribed in

10 this Act shall hold such offices until the completion of their

11 respective terms or in the case of the officers other than

12 president until their successors are appointed by said

13 president, but in all cases not to extend beyond January 1,

14 1980 and until their successors are selected and qualify.

15 Thereafter, the officers shall be selected in the manner as

16 prescribed in this Section except that their first term of

17 office shall not expire until June 30, 1981 and until their

18 successors are selected and qualify.

19  (a-5) An officer selected pursuant to subsection (a) may

20 be removed, with or without cause, upon a motion adopted by an

21 affirmative vote of four-fifths of the board of the forest

22 preserve district. Upon adoption of a motion to remove an

23 officer: (i) the office becomes vacant and the former

24 officer's compensation shall be prorated to the date the

25 motion was approved; (ii) if the officer removed is the

26 president then the vice president immediately assumes the
    SB1612 Enrolled  -5-               LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1 duties of the president without president compensation and, if

2 the officer removed is the vice president, treasurer, or

3 secretary, then the president shall select an interim

4 appointee who shall serve until the next regularly scheduled

5 forest preserve district board meeting; and (iii) a new

6 officer shall be selected at the next regularly scheduled

7 forest preserve district board meeting. An officer removed

8 under this Section maintains his or her status as a member of

9 the forest preserve district board.

10  (b) In any county, city, village, incorporated town or

11 sanitary district where the corporate authorities act as the

12 governing body of a forest preserve district, the person

13 exercising the powers of the president of the board shall have

14 power to appoint a secretary and an assistant secretary and

15 treasurer and an assistant treasurer and such other officers

16 and such employees as may be necessary. The assistant

17 secretary and assistant treasurer shall perform the duties of

18 the secretary and treasurer, respectively in case of death of

19 such officers or when such officers are unable to perform the

20 duties of their respective offices. All contracts for

21 supplies, material, or work involving an expenditure in excess

22 of $60,000 for supplies or materials and $30,000 for work, or a

23 lower amount for any contract for supplies, material, or work

24 if required by board policy, shall be let to the lowest

25 responsible bidder, after advertising at least once in one or

26 more newspapers of general circulation within the district,
    SB1612 Enrolled  -6-                   LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1 excepting work requiring personal confidence or necessary

2 supplies under the control of monopolies, where competitive

3 bidding is impossible, or as otherwise provided in the Forest

4 Preserve District and Conservation District Design-Build

5 Authorization Act. Contracts for supplies, material, or work

6 involving an expenditure of $60,000 for supplies or materials

7 and $30,000 for work, or a lower amount for any contract for

8 supplies, material, or work if required by board policy, or

9 less may be let without advertising for bids, but whenever

10 practicable, at least 3 competitive bids shall be obtained

11 before letting such contract. All contracts for supplies,

12 material or work shall be signed by the president of the board

13 of commissioners or by any such other officer as the board in

14 its discretion may designate.

15  (c) The president of any board of commissioners appointed

16 under the provisions of Section 3a of this Act shall receive a

17 salary not to exceed the sum of $2500 per annum and the salary

18 of other members of the board so appointed shall not exceed

19 $1500 per annum. Salaries of the commissioners, officers and

20 employees shall be fixed by ordinance.

21  (d) Whenever a forest preserve district owns any personal

22 property that, in the opinion of three-fifths of the members

23 of the board of commissioners, is no longer necessary, useful

24 to, or for the best interests of the forest preserve district,

25 then three-fifths of the members of the board, at any regular

26 meeting or any special meeting called for that purpose by an
    SB1612 Enrolled        -7-  LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1 ordinance or resolution that includes a general description of
2 the personal property, may authorize the conveyance or sale of
3 that personal property in any manner that they may designate,
4 with or without advertising the sale.
5 (Source: P.A. 101-544, eff. 8-23-19; 102-460, eff. 6-1-22.)

6   Section 15. The Park District Code is amended by changing

7 Section 8-1 as follows:

8   (70 ILCS 1205/8-1) (from Ch. 105, par. 8-1)

9   Sec. 8-1. General corporate powers. Every park district

10 shall, from the time of its organization, be a body corporate

11 and politic by the name set forth in the petition for its

12 organization, the specific name set forth in this Code, or the

13 name it may adopt under Section 8-9 and shall have and exercise

14 the following powers:

15  (a) To adopt a corporate seal and alter the same at

16  pleasure; to sue and be sued; and to contract in

17  furtherance of any of its corporate purposes.

18  (b)(1) To acquire by gift, legacy, grant or purchase,

19  or by condemnation in the manner provided for the exercise

20  of the power of eminent domain under the Eminent Domain

21  Act, any and all real estate, or rights therein necessary

22  for building, laying out, extending, adorning and

23  maintaining any such parks, boulevards and driveways, or

24  for effecting any of the powers or purposes granted under
    SB1612 Enrolled  -8-  LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1   this Code as its board may deem proper, whether such lands

2   be located within or without such district; but no park

3   district, except as provided in paragraph (2) of this

4   subsection, shall have any power of condemnation in the

5   manner provided for the exercise of the power of eminent

6   domain under the Eminent Domain Act or otherwise as to any

7   real estate, lands, riparian rights or estate, or other

8   property situated outside of such district, but shall only

9   have power to acquire the same by gift, legacy, grant or

10  purchase, and such district shall have the same control of

11  and power over lands so acquired without the district as

12  over parks, boulevards and driveways within such district.

13  (2) In addition to the powers granted in paragraph (1)

14  of subsection (b), a park district located in more than

15  one county, the majority of its territory located in a

16  county over 450,000 in population and none of its

17  territory located in a county over 1,000,000 in

18  population, shall have condemnation power in the manner

19  provided for the exercise of the power of eminent domain

20  under the Eminent Domain Act or as otherwise granted by

21  law as to any and all real estate situated up to one mile

22  outside of such district which is not within the

23  boundaries of another park district.

24  (c) To acquire by gift, legacy or purchase any

25  personal property necessary for its corporate purposes

26  provided that all contracts for supplies, materials, or
    SB1612 Enrolled  -9-  LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1   work involving an expenditure in excess of $60,000 for

2   supplies or materials and $30,000 for work, or a lower

3   amount for any contract for supplies, material, or work if

4   required by board policy, shall be let to the lowest

5   responsible bidder after due advertisement. No district

6   shall be required to accept a bid that does not meet the

7   district's established specifications, terms of delivery,

8   quality, and serviceability requirements. Contracts which,

9   by their nature, are not adapted to award by competitive

10  bidding, such as contracts for the services of individuals

11  possessing a high degree of professional skill where the

12  ability or fitness of the individual plays an important

13  part, contracts for the printing of finance committee

14  reports and departmental reports, contracts for the

15  printing or engraving of bonds, tax warrants and other

16  evidences of indebtedness, contracts for utility services

17  such as water, light, heat, telephone or telegraph,

18  contracts for fuel (such as diesel, gasoline, oil,

19  aviation, or propane), lubricants, or other petroleum

20  products, contracts for the use, purchase, delivery,

21  movement, or installation of data processing equipment,

22  software, or services and telecommunications and

23  interconnect equipment, software, or services, contracts

24  for duplicating machines and supplies, contracts for goods

25  or services procured from another governmental agency,

26  purchases of equipment previously owned by some entity
    SB1612 Enrolled  - 10 - LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1   other than the district itself, and contracts for the

2   purchase of magazines, books, periodicals, pamphlets and

3   reports are not subject to competitive bidding. Contracts

4   for emergency expenditures are also exempt from

5   competitive bidding when the emergency expenditure is

6   approved by 3/4 of the members of the board.

7   All competitive bids for contracts involving an

8   expenditure in excess of $60,000 for supplies or materials

9   and $30,000 for work, or a lower amount for any contract

10  for supplies, material, or work if required by board

11  policy, must be sealed by the bidder and must be opened by

12  a member or employee of the park board at a public bid

13  opening at which the contents of the bids must be

14  announced. Each bidder must receive at least 3 days notice

15  of the time and place of the bid opening.

16  For purposes of this subsection, "due advertisement"

17  includes, but is not limited to, at least one public

18  notice at least 10 days before the bid date in a newspaper

19  published in the district or, if no newspaper is published

20  in the district, in a newspaper of general circulation in

21  the area of the district.

22  (d) To pass all necessary ordinances, rules and

23  regulations for the proper management and conduct of the

24  business of the board and district and to establish by

25  ordinance all needful rules and regulations for the

26  government and protection of parks, boulevards and
    SB1612 Enrolled  - 11 - LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1   driveways and other property under its jurisdiction, and

2   to effect the objects for which such districts are formed.

3   (e) To prescribe such fines and penalties for the

4   violation of ordinances as it shall deem proper not

5   exceeding $1,000 for any one offense, which fines and

6   penalties may be recovered by an action in the name of such

7   district in the circuit court for the county in which such

8   violation occurred. The park district may also seek in the

9   action, in addition to or instead of fines and penalties,

10  an order that the offender be required to make restitution

11  for damage resulting from violations, and the court shall

12  grant such relief where appropriate. The procedure in such

13  actions shall be the same as that provided by law for like

14  actions for the violation of ordinances in cities

15  organized under the general laws of this State, and

16  offenders may be imprisoned for non-payment of fines and

17  costs in the same manner as in such cities. All fines when

18  collected shall be paid into the treasury of such

19  district.

20  (f) To manage and control all officers and property of

21  such districts and to provide for joint ownership with one

22  or more cities, villages or incorporated towns of real and

23  personal property used for park purposes by one or more

24  park districts. In case of joint ownership, the terms of

25  the agreement shall be fair, just and equitable to all

26  parties and shall be set forth in a written agreement
    SB1612 Enrolled  - 12 - LRB104 06124 RTM 16157 b

1   entered into by the corporate authorities of each

2   participating district, city, village or incorporated

3   town.

4   (g) To secure grants and loans, or either, from the

5   United States Government, or any agency or agencies

6   thereof, for financing the acquisition or purchase of any

7   and all real estate, or rights therein, or for effecting

8   any of the powers or purposes granted under this Code as

9   its Board may deem proper.

10  (h) To establish fees for the use of facilities and

11  recreational programs of the districts and to derive

12  revenue from non-resident fees from their operations. Fees

13  charged non-residents of such district need not be the

14  same as fees charged to residents of the district.

15  Charging fees or deriving revenue from the facilities and

16  recreational programs shall not affect the right to assert

17  or utilize any defense or immunity, common law or

18  statutory, available to the districts or their employees.

19  (i) To make contracts for a term exceeding one year,

20  but not to exceed 3 years, notwithstanding any provision

21  of this Code to the contrary, relating to: (1) the

22  employment of a park director, superintendent,

23  administrator, engineer, health officer, land planner,

24  finance director, attorney, police chief, or other officer

25  who requires technical training or knowledge; (2) the

26  employment of outside professional consultants such as
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1   engineers, doctors, land planners, auditors, attorneys, or

2   other professional consultants who require technical

3   training or knowledge; (3) the provision of data

4   processing equipment and services; and (4) the purchase of

5   energy from a utility or an alternative retail electric

6   supplier. With respect to any contract made under this

7   subsection (i), the corporate authorities shall include in

8   the annual appropriation ordinance for each fiscal year an

9   appropriation of a sum of money sufficient to pay the

10  amount which, by the terms of the contract, is to become

11  due and payable during that fiscal year.

12  (j) To enter into licensing or management agreements

13  with not-for-profit corporations organized under the laws

14  of this State to operate park district facilities if the

15  corporation covenants to use the facilities to provide

16  public park or recreational programs for youth.

17 (Source: P.A. 101-304, eff. 8-9-19; 102-999, eff. 5-27-22.)

18  Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon

19 becoming law.
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