70 ILCS 3705/ Public Water District Act.
(70 ILCS 3705/0.01) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 187.9) Sec. 0.01. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Public Water District Act. (Source: P.A. 86‑1324.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/1) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 188) Sec. 1. Any contiguous area in this State having a population of not more than 500,000 inhabitants, which is so situated that the construction or acquisition by purchase or otherwise and the maintenance, operation, management and extension of waterworks properties within such area will be conducive to the preservation of public health, comfort and convenience of such area may be created into a public water district under and in the manner provided by this Act. The words "waterworks properties" as used in this Act shall mean and include any or all of the following: Wells, springs, streams or other source of water supply, pumping equipment, treatment or purification plants, distribution mains, cisterns, reservoirs, necessary equipment for fire protection and other equipment, and lands, rights of way and easements necessary for the proper development and distribution of a supply of water for the use of said area and the inhabitants thereof for compensation; provided, however, any public water district created under this Act shall not have authority to construct, acquire, maintain or operate a water distribution system in any city, village or incorporated town located within such district, except as hereinafter provided. The term "sewerage properties" means and includes any or all of the following: A sewerage treatment plant or plants, collecting, intercepting and outlet sewers, lateral sewers, and drains, including combined storm water and sanitary drains, force mains, conduits, pumping stations, ejector stations and all other appurtenances, extensions and improvements necessary, useful, or convenient for the collection, treatment, and disposal in a sanitary manner of sewage and industrial wastes. (Source: Laws 1951, p. 1615.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/2) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 189) Sec. 2. Any 100 legal voters resident within the limits of any proposed public water district may petition the circuit court for the county in which the proposed district, or the major portion thereof is located, to cause the question of the creation of such proposed district under this Act to be submitted to the voters of the proposed district. Such petition shall be addressed to such court and shall contain a definite description of the boundaries of the territory to be embraced in such district, and the name of such proposed district. Upon filing of such petition in the office of the circuit clerk of the county in which such territory, or the major portion thereof is situated, it shall be the duty of the court to set a date for hearing on the petition, and it shall be the duty of such court to give notice of the time and place of the hearing on the petition by a publication inserted in one or more daily or weekly papers published in such proposed district at least 20 days prior to the date set for such hearing, and if no newspaper is published in such proposed district then by posting a notice of the time and place of the hearing on the said petition in not less than 10 of the most public places in the district at least 20 days prior to the date for such hearing. At such hearing all persons desiring to be heard shall have an opportunity to be heard touching upon the location and boundary of such proposed district, and to make suggestions regarding the same, and the court after hearing statements, evidence and suggestions shall fix and determine the limits and boundaries of such proposed district and to that extent may alter and amend such petition. After such determination by such court the same shall be incorporated in an order that shall be filed of record in the court, and forthwith the court shall order the submission to the voters of the proposed public water district the question of organization and establishment thereof at a regular election in accordance with the general election law. The court shall certify the question to the proper election officials, who shall submit the question. The notice of such referendum shall specify briefly the purpose of such election, with a description of the boundaries of such proposed district. The question shall be in substantially the following form: FOR public water district. AGAINST public water district. The court shall canvass the result of the election and cause a written statement of the result of the election to be filed of record in the court. If a majority of the votes cast upon the question of the creation of the proposed public water district shall be in favor thereof such district shall forthwith be deemed an organized public water district, a public corporation, and a political subdivision of the State, with power to own and hold property both real and personal in its corporate name, to sue and be sued and to enter into contracts necessary or incidental to its purposes, including contracts with any city, village or incorporated town within or without its boundaries for furnishing a supply of water for the distribution system of any such city, village or incorporated town. It shall be the duty of the circuit clerk to file a certified copy of the order, entered by the court showing the result of the referendum and the organization of the district, in the office of the county clerk of each county in which any of the area of such proposed district is located. (Source: P.A. 83‑343.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/3) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 190) Sec. 3. All courts in this State shall take judicial notice of the existence of all public water districts organized under this Act. (Source: Laws 1945, p. 1187.) |
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(2) If the district is wholly contained within a | ||
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(3) If the district is wholly contained within a | ||
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(4) If the district is located in more than one | ||
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Upon the expiration of the term of a trustee who is in office on the effective date of this Amendatory Act of 1975, the successor shall be a resident of whichever county is entitled to such representation in order to bring about the proportional representation required herein, and he shall be appointed by the appointing authority of that county. Thereafter, each trustee shall be succeeded by a resident of the same county who shall be appointed by the same appointing authority; however, the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall apply to the appointment of the successor to each trustee who is in office at the time of the publication of each decennial Federal census of population. Within 60 days after the adoption of this Act as provided in Section 2 hereof, the appropriate appointing authority shall appoint 7 trustees who shall hold that office respectively one for one, one for 2, one for 3, 2 for 4 and 2 for 5 years from the first Monday of May next after their appointment as designated by the appointing authority at the time of appointment and until their successors are appointed and have qualified. Thereafter on or after the first Monday in May of each year the appointing authority shall appoint successors whose term shall be for 5 years commencing the first Monday in May of the year they are respectively appointed. If the circuit court finds that the size, number of members, and scale of operations of the water district justifies a Board of Trustees of less than 7 members he shall rule that such board shall have 3 or 5 members. Initial appointments to a 3 member board shall be as follows: one for one, one for 2, and one for 3 years. Initial appointments to a 5 member board shall be as follows: one for one, one for 2, one for 3, one for 4 and one for 5 years. In each such case the term of office and method of appointing successors shall be as provided in this Section for 7 member boards. The appointing authority shall require each of such trustees to enter a bond with security to be approved by the appointing authority in such sum as such appointing authority may determine. A majority of the Board of Trustees shall constitute a quorum, but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day. No trustee or employee of such district shall be directly or indirectly interested in any contract, work or business of the district or the sale of any article, the expense, price or consideration of which is paid by such district, nor in the purchase of any real estate or property for or belonging to the district. Whenever a vacancy in such board of trustees shall occur either from death, resignation, refusal to qualify or for any other reason the appointing authority shall have power to fill such vacancy by appointment. Such persons so appointed or qualified for office in the manner hereinbefore stated shall thereupon assume the duties of the office for the unexpired term for which such person was appointed. For terms commencing before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly, the trustees appointed under this Act shall be paid a sum of not to exceed $600 per annum for their respective duties as trustees, except that trustees of a district with an annual operating budget of $1,000,000 or more may be paid a sum not to exceed $1,000 per annum. For terms commencing on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly, the trustees shall be paid a sum of not to exceed $1,200 per annum. However, trustees appointed under this Act for any public water district which acquires by purchase or condemnation, or constructs, and maintains and operates sewerage properties in combination with its waterworks properties, under the provisions of Section 23a of this Act, shall be paid a sum of not to exceed $2,000 per annum for their respective duties as trustees. Compensation in either case shall be determined by resolution of the respective boards of trustees, to be adopted annually at their first meeting in May. Any public water district organized under this Act with a board of trustees consisting of 7 members may have the size of its board reduced as provided in Section 4.1. (Source: P.A. 96‑614, eff. 1‑1‑10.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/4.1) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 191a) Sec. 4.1. A public water district organized under this Act with a board of trustees consisting of 7 members may have the size of its board reduced to 5 or 3 members in accordance with this Section. The board of trustees of any such district may adopt a resolution stating that the size and scope of operations of the district justifies a board of fewer than 7 members and that, in the judgment of the board, the size of the board should be reduced to 5 or 3 members, as the case may be. Upon the adoption of such a resolution, the board shall petition the circuit court for the county in which the district, or the major portion thereof, is located for a reduction in the number of members of the board of trustees of the district to 5 or 3, as the case may be. In conjunction with the petition, the board may submit to the court a suggested transitional schedule designed to effectuate the transition from a 7 member to a 5 member or 3 member board, as the case may be, with a minimum disruption of existing terms of office. Upon the filing of such petition in the office of the clerk of the circuit court, the court shall set a date for hearing on the petition and shall give notice of the time and place of the hearing in the same manner as is provided in Section 2 for notice of a hearing on a petition relating to the creation of a district. If upon the hearing, the court finds that the size, number of members, and scale of operations of the water district justifies a board of trustees of less than 7 members, it shall enter an order reducing the size of the board to 5 or 3 members, as the case may be. The order shall include a transitional schedule governing the transition to a smaller board, which shall be so arranged that at the conclusion of the transition the term of office of no more than one trustee shall expire in any one calendar year. (Source: P.A. 79‑528.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/4.2) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 191.2) Sec. 4.2. Referendum to elect trustees; vacancies. (a) A public water district organized under this Act may determine, as provided in this Section, to have an elected rather than appointed board of trustees. (b) Upon presentation to the board of trustees of a petition signed by not fewer than 100 of the electors of the district requesting that a proposition for the election of trustees be submitted to the electors of the district, the secretary of the board of trustees shall certify the proposition to the appropriate election authorities, who shall submit the proposition at a regular election in accordance with the general election law. The proposition shall be in substantially the following form: Shall the trustees of (name of public water | ||
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If a majority of the votes cast on the proposition are in the affirmative, the trustees of the district shall thereafter be elected as provided by this Section. (c) There shall be 7 elected trustees, except that if the size of the board has been reduced under Section 4.1, there shall be that reduced number of elected trustees. Each trustee must be a resident of the district. No party designation shall appear on the ballot for election of trustees. The first election of trustees shall be at the next nonpartisan election held after approval of the proposition as provided in subsection (b), and trustees shall be elected at each nonpartisan election thereafter as provided in this Section. (d)(1) In the case of a 7 member board, the length of | ||
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(2) In the case of a 5 member board, the length of | ||
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(3) In the case of a 3 member board, the length of | ||
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(4) The term of each elected trustee shall commence | ||
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(e) Whenever a district determines to elect trustees as provided in this Section the trustees appointed under Section 4 shall continue to constitute the board of trustees until the first Monday of the month following the month of the initial election of trustees or until successors have been elected and have qualified, whichever occurs later. If the term of office of any appointed trustee expires before the initial election of trustees, the authority that appointed that trustee under Section 4 shall appoint a trustee to serve until a successor is elected and has qualified. (f) Whenever a vacancy in an elected board of trustees occurs, whether by death, resignation, refusal to qualify, or for any other reason, the remaining trustees shall fill the vacancy by appointment, and the person so appointed shall assume the duties of the office for the unexpired term of the office to which he or she was appointed. (Source: P.A. 87‑407.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/5) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 192) Sec. 5. The trustees appointed in pursuance of the foregoing provisions of this Act shall constitute a board of trustees for the district for which they are appointed. Such board of trustees is hereby declared to be the corporate authority of such district and shall exercise all the powers, manage and control all the affairs and properties of such district, and shall have power to adopt a corporate seal for such district. Such board of trustees shall within twenty days after their appointment and at the first meeting in May of each year thereafter elect one of their number as Chairman, one of their number as Vice Chairman, and shall elect a Secretary and a Treasurer, neither of which shall be members of the board of trustees. They shall each perform such duties and shall receive such salaries as shall be prescribed by the board, and shall be required to furnish bonds in such sum as may be fixed by the board of trustees for the use and benefit of the district. (Source: Laws 1945, p. 1187.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/5a) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 192a) Sec. 5a. The board of trustees of any public water district organized under this Act may, not less than 60 days preceding any regular election, request the proper election official of the county wherein the major portion of the district is located, to cause to be submitted to the voters of such district at such election the proposition to authorize such board of trustees to levy annually, for a period of not more than 10 years, a tax of not to exceed .02% of the value, as equalized or assessed by the Department of Revenue, of the taxable property in the district, to be used for the corporate purposes of the district. The board shall certify the proposition to the election official who shall immediately notify the election official of any other county whose territory is part of such public water district and each such official shall cause such proposition to be submitted at such election in accordance with the general election law. If a majority of the votes cast on such proposition is in favor thereof, the board of trustees may thereafter levy such tax as authorized. (Source: P.A. 81‑1489; 81‑1509.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/6) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 193) Sec. 6. The board of trustees may in its discretion from time to time by resolution passed by a majority vote provide for the appointment of an attorney, one or more engineers, and such other officers as said Board may determine necessary and expedient. The board shall in and by such resolution fix the term of office, compensation and prescribe the duties to be performed by such officers. (Source: Laws 1945, p. 1187.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/7) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 194) Sec. 7. The board of trustees may appoint a general manager to serve a term of five years and until his successor is appointed, and his compensation shall be fixed by resolution of the board. Such general manager shall devote his time exclusively to the affairs of the district, and shall have power to employ, discharge and fix the compensation of all employees of the district, except as in this Act otherwise provided, and he shall perform and exercise such other powers and duties as may be conferred upon him by the Board of Trustees. Such general manager shall be chosen without regard to his political affiliation and upon the sole basis of his administrative and technical qualifications to manage the waterworks properties and affairs of the district, and he may be discharged only upon unanimous vote of the board of trustees. Such general manager need not be a resident of the district at the time he is chosen. (Source: Laws 1945, p. 1187.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/7.1) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 194.1) Sec. 7.1. The board of trustees of any public water district created under this Act may provide for the participation of that district in the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund as a participating instrumentality subject to the approval of the Board of Trustees of the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund as provided in Section 7‑132 of the Illinois Pension Code. Any such district which does participate in the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund may use moneys of the district to pay municipality contributions required of it in relation to such participation and the cost of such contributions shall be included in the cost of maintenance and operation of the properties of the district for the purpose of setting rates and charges for the use and service of such properties. (Source: P.A. 81‑631.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/7.2) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 194.2) Sec. 7.2. Purchases made pursuant to this Act shall be made in compliance with the "Local Government Prompt Payment Act", approved by the Eighty‑fourth General Assembly. (Source: P.A. 84‑731.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/7.3) Sec. 7.3. Boil order; notification of certified local public health department required. If a public water district issues a boil order, then the district must notify any certified local public health department that serves an area subject to the boil order as soon as is practical, but no later than 2 hours after issuing the order. In addition to the initial notice, the district must provide, to any affected certified local public health department, a written notification within 24 hours after issuing the boil order. The written notification must include the estimated duration of the order or warning and the geographic area covered by the order or warning. (Source: P.A. 93‑1020, eff. 8‑24‑04.) |
(70 ILCS 3705/10) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 197) Sec. 10. Any public water district formed hereunder shall have the right to supply water to any municipality, political subdivision, private person or corporation located outside the limits of said district upon such payment, terms and conditions as may be mutually agreed upon, provided the water is delivered by such district to such party or parties at the corporate limits of such district or from such waterworks properties of such district located outside the district that have been constructed or acquired as necessary and incidental to the furnishing of water to the inhabitants of said district. (Source: Laws 1945, p. 1187.) |