HB 365 — CONSERVATN DIST-ELECT/APPNT BD

HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b AN ACT concerning conservation districts.

(b) A district that is entirely within a county of under HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 2 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b 750,000 inhabitants and contiguous to a county of more than 2,000,000 inhabitants and that is authorized by referendum as provided in subsection (d) of Section 15 to incur indebtedness over 0.575% but not to exceed 1.725% shall have a board consisting of 7 trustees, all of whom shall be residents of the county.

Thereafter, successor appointed trustees shall be appointed for a term of 5 years in the same manner no later than June 1 prior to the HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 3 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b commencement of term of the trustee.

If, however, more than 28 months remain in the term of the elected trustee and the vacancy occurs at least 182 days before the next HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 4 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b general election, the appointment shall be until the next general election, at which time the vacated office of the elected trustee shall be filled by election for the remainder of the term.

(g) An appointed A trustee may be removed for cause by the county board chairman for the county of which the trustee is a resident, with the approval of the county board of that county, but every such removal shall be by a written order and, which HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 5 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b shall be filed with the county clerk.

(i) Except as provided in subsection (b), a conservation district in a county adjacent to a county with more than HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 6 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b 3,000,000 inhabitants may determine by referendum (i) to have an elected or appointed board of trustees, (ii) to have a board of trustees with 5 or 7 members, and (iii) to have trustees chosen at large or from single member subdistricts.

If a majority of the votes cast on the proposition are in the affirmative, the trustees of the district shall thereafter HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 7 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b be chosen as provided in this paragraph.

If the district HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 8 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b embraces 5 counties, the 2 counties with the largest populations shall each have 2 resident trustees and each of the other counties shall have one resident trustee.

The HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 9 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b initial subdistricts shall be apportioned within 90 days after the referendum is approved, and the subdistricts shall be reapportioned after each decennial census.

In the year following the first decennial census occurring after the initial apportionment and in the year following each subsequent HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 10 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b decennial census, the 5 or 7 subdistricts shall be reapportioned to reflect the results of the census.

If the district has 7 trustees, 4 trustees shall constitute a quorum of the board for the transaction of HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 11 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b business.

All officers and employees authorized to receive or retain the custody of money or to sign vouchers, checks, warrants, or evidences of indebtedness binding upon the district shall HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 12 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b furnish surety bond for the faithful performance of their duties and the faithful accounting for all moneys that may come into their hands in an amount to be fixed and in a form to be approved by the board.

(2) The filing of a petition with the board of trustees signed by the electors of the district equal in number to HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 13 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b 8% or more of the total number of votes cast for Governor district-wide in the most recent gubernatorial election asking that the question of whether the district shall be dissolved and organized as a forest preserve district.

HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 14 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b Section 10.

Such circuit court HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 15 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b shall cause a notice of the time and place of such public consideration to be published 3 successive days in some newspaper having a general circulation in the territory proposed to be placed in such district.

Should 2 or more petitions be filed under this act and come on for hearing at the same time and it shall be found by the HB0365 EngrossedEnrolled - 16 - LRB095 05246 HLH 25323 b circuit court that any of the territory embraced in any one of the petitions is included in or contiguous with the territory embraced in any other petition or petitions, the circuit court may include all of the territory described in such petitions in one district and shall fix the name proposed in the petition first filed as the name for the district.