(70 ILCS 2405/3) (from Ch. 42, par. 301)

Sec. 3. Board of trustees; creation; term. A board of trustees shall be created, consisting of 5 members in any sanitary district which includes one or more municipalities with a population of over 90,000 but less than 500,000 according to the most recent Federal census, and consisting of 3 members in any other district. However, the board of trustees for the Fox River Water Reclamation District, the Sanitary District of Decatur, and the Northern Moraine Wastewater Reclamation District shall each consist of 5 members. Each board of trustees shall be created for the government, control and management of the affairs and business of each sanitary district organized under this Act shall be created in the following manner:

(1) If the district's corporate boundaries are located wholly within a single county, the presiding officer of the county board, with the advice and consent of the county board, shall appoint the trustees for the district;

(2) If the district's corporate boundaries are located in more than one county, the members of the General Assembly whose legislative districts encompass any portion of the district shall appoint the trustees for the district.

In any sanitary district which shall have a 3 member board of trustees, within 60 days after the adoption of such act, the appropriate appointing authority shall appoint three trustees not more than 2 of whom shall be from one incorporated city, town or village in districts in which are included 2 or more incorporated cities, towns or villages, or parts of 2 or more incorporated cities, towns or villages, who shall hold their office respectively for 1, 2 and 3 years, from the first Monday of May next after their appointment and until their successors are appointed and have qualified, and thereafter on or before the second Monday in April of each year the appropriate appointing authority shall appoint one trustee whose term shall be for 3 years commencing the first Monday in May of the year in which he is appointed. The length of the term of the first trustees shall be determined by lot at their first meeting.

In the case of any sanitary district created after January 1, 1978 in which a 5 member board of trustees is required, the appropriate appointing authority shall appoint 5 trustees, one of whom shall hold office for one year, two of whom shall hold office for 2 years, and 2 of whom shall hold office for 3 years from the first Monday of May next after their respective appointments and until their successors are appointed and have qualified. Thereafter, on or before the second Monday in April of each year the appropriate appointing authority shall appoint one trustee or 2 trustees, as shall be necessary to maintain a 5 member board of trustees, whose terms shall be for 3 years commencing the first Monday in May of the year in which they are respectively appointed. The length of the terms of the first trustees shall be determined by lot at their first meeting.

In any sanitary district created prior to January 1, 1978 in which a 5 member board of trustees is required as of January 1, 1978, the two trustees already serving terms which do not expire on May 1, 1978 shall continue to hold office for the remainders of their respective terms, and 3 trustees shall be appointed by the appropriate appointing authority by April 10, 1978 and shall hold office for terms beginning May 1, 1978. Of the three new trustees, one shall hold office for 2 years and 2 shall hold office for 3 years from May 1, 1978 and until their successors are appointed and have qualified. Thereafter, on or before the second Monday in April of each year the appropriate appointing authority shall appoint one trustee or 2 trustees, as shall be necessary to maintain a 5 member board of trustees, whose terms shall be for 3 years commencing the first Monday in May of the year in which they are respectively appointed. The lengths of the terms of the trustees who are to hold office beginning May 1, 1978 shall be determined by lot at their first meeting after May 1, 1978.

No more than 3 members of a 5 member board of trustees may be of the same political party; except that in any sanitary district which otherwise meets the requirements of this Section and which lies within 4 counties of the State of Illinois or, prior to April 30, 2008, in the Fox River Water Reclamation District; the appointments of the 5 members of the board of trustees shall be made without regard to political party. Beginning with the appointments made on April 30, 2008, all appointments to the board of trustees of the Fox River Water Reclamation District shall be made so that no more than 3 of the 5 members are from the same political party.

Beginning with the 2021 municipal election, the board of trustees of the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District shall be elected as provided in this paragraph. The election of trustees shall be in accordance with Section 2A-1.1 of the Election Code. Any board member serving on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly whose term does not expire in 2021 shall serve until his or her successor is elected and qualified. The board of trustees of the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District shall: on or before January 1, 2020, divide the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District into 5 trustee districts and assign the trustee districts to reflect the results of the most recent federal decennial census; and thereafter, in the year following each decennial census, redistrict the trustee districts to reflect the results of the most recent census. The board of trustees shall consist of 1 elected trustee in each trustee district. A petition for nomination for election of a trustee of the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District shall contain at least 100 signatures of registered voters residing within the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District. The trustees shall be elected for staggered terms at the election as provided by the Election Code. Two trustees shall be elected at the 2021 election, and 3 trustees shall be elected at the following consolidated election. Elected trustees shall take office on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in the month following the month of their election and shall hold their offices for 4 years and until their successors are elected and qualified. If a vacancy occurs before the 2021 election on the board of trustees of the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District: (i) the District Manager shall, no later than 7 days from the date of the vacancy, notify the State legislators representing any portion of the District, publish notification of the vacancy on the District's website, and send notification of the vacancy to local newspapers, radio stations, and television stations; (ii) each notification published or sent shall contain instructions on how to apply to the District Manager for the vacant trustee position; (iii) applications for the vacancy shall be accepted for at least 30 days after the date the notification of the vacancy was published and sent; (iv) applications for the vacancy shall include a letter of interest and resume; (v) once the application period has closed, the District Manager shall forward all applications received to the State legislators notified of the vacancy in item (i); (vi) the President of the board of trustees and the District Manager shall hold a public meeting with the State legislators notified of the vacancy to review all applications and, by unanimous vote of all State legislators representing any portion of the District, select a candidate to fill the trustee vacancy; and (vii) the board of trustees shall appoint the selected candidate at the next board of trustees meeting. If a vacancy exists after the 2021 election on the board of trustees of the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District, the vacancy shall be filled by appointment by the president of the board of trustees, with the advice and consent of the members of the board of trustees, until the next regular election at which trustees of the district are elected, and shall be made a matter of record in the office of the county clerk in the county where the district is located; for a vacancy filled by appointment, the portion of the unexpired term remaining after the next regular election at which trustees of the district are elected shall be filled by election, as provided for in this paragraph.

Within 60 days after the release of Federal census statistics showing that a sanitary district having a 3 member board of trustees contains one or more municipalities with a population over 90,000 but less than 500,000, or, for the Northern Moraine Wastewater Reclamation District, within 60 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly, the appropriate appointing authority shall appoint 2 additional trustees to the board of trustees, one to hold office for 2 years and one to hold office for 3 years from the first Monday of May next after their appointment and until their successors are appointed and have qualified. The lengths of the terms of these two additional members shall be determined by lot at the first meeting of the board of trustees held after the additional members take office. The three trustees already holding office in the sanitary district shall continue to hold office for the remainders of their respective terms. Thereafter, on or before the second Monday in April of each year the appropriate appointing authority shall appoint one trustee or 2 trustees, as shall be necessary to maintain a 5 member board of trustees, whose terms shall be for 3 years commencing the first Monday in May of the year in which they are respectively appointed.

If any sanitary district having a 5 member board of trustees shall cease to contain one or more municipalities with a population over 90,000 but less than 500,000 according to the most recent Federal census, then, for so long as that sanitary district does not contain one or more such municipalities, on or before the second Monday in April of each year the appropriate appointing authority shall appoint one trustee whose term shall be for 3 years commencing the first Monday in May of the year in which he is appointed. In districts which include 2 or more incorporated cities, towns, or villages, or parts of 2 or more incorporated cities, towns, or villages, all of the trustees shall not be from one incorporated city, town or village.

If a vacancy occurs on any board of trustees, the appropriate appointing authority shall within 60 days appoint a trustee who shall hold office for the remainder of the vacated term.

The appointing authority shall require each of the trustees to enter into bond, with security to be approved by the appointing authority, in such sum as the 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 belonging to the district, or which shall be sold for taxes or assessments, or by virtue of legal process at the suit of the district. Provided, that nothing herein shall be construed as prohibiting the appointment or selection of any person as trustee or employee whose only interest in the district is as owner of real estate in the district or of contributing to the payment of taxes levied by the district. The trustees shall have the power to provide and adopt a corporate seal for the district.

Notwithstanding any other provision in this Section, in any sanitary district created prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1985, in which a five member board of trustees has been appointed and which currently includes one or more municipalities with a population of over 90,000 but less than 500,000, the board of trustees shall consist of five members.

Except as otherwise provided for vacancies, in the event that the appropriate appointing authority fails to appoint a trustee under this Section, the appropriate appointing authority shall reconvene and appoint a successor on or before July 1 of that year.

(Source: P.A. 101-523, eff. 8-23-19.)