(225 ILCS 720/6.08) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 7906.08)

Sec. 6.08. Release of bonds.

(a) A permittee may file a request with the Department for the release of all or part of a performance bond or deposit. Within 30 days after an application for such release has been filed with the Department, the operator shall submit a copy of a public notice placed at least once a week for 4 successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the mining operation. Such public notice shall be considered part of the bond release application and shall contain a notification of the precise location of the land affected, the number of acres, the permit and the date it was approved, the amount of the bond filed and the portion sought to be released, the type and approximate dates of reclamation work performed, and a description of the results achieved as they relate to the operator's approved reclamation. In addition, as part of any bond release application, the applicant shall submit copies of letters which he has sent to adjoining property owners, local governmental bodies, county boards, planning agencies, and sewage and water treatment authorities, or water companies in the locality in which the mining and reclamation operations took place, notifying them of his intention to seek release from the bond.

(b) Within 30 days after receipt of the notification and request, the Department shall conduct an inspection and evaluation of the reclamation work involved. Such evaluation shall consider, among other things, the degree of difficulty to complete any remaining reclamation, whether pollution of surface and subsurface water is occurring, the probability of continuance or future occurrence of such pollution, and the estimated cost of abating such pollution.

(c) Any person with a valid legal interest which might be adversely affected by release of the bond or deposit, or the responsible officer or head of any Federal, State, or local governmental agency which has jurisdiction by law or special expertise with respect to any environmental, social, or economic impact involved in the operation, or is authorized to develop and enforce environmental standards with respect to such operations, may file written objections to the proposed release with the Department within 30 days after the last publication of the notice provided in subsection (a) of this Section. If written objections are filed, and a hearing is requested, the Department shall inform all interested parties of the time and place of the hearing, and shall hold a public hearing in the locality of the mining operation proposed for bond or deposit release within 30 days after the request for such hearing. At the option of an objector, hearings shall be held at the State capital. The Department shall advertise the date, time and location of such public hearings in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality for 2 consecutive weeks.

(d) The Department may release in whole or in part said bond or deposit if the Department is satisfied the reclamation covered by the bond or deposit or portion thereof has been accomplished as required by this Act according to the following schedule:

(1) When the operator completes the backfilling, regrading, and drainage control of a bonded area in accordance with an approved reclamation plan, a maximum of 60 per cent of the bond or collateral for the applicable permit area may be released.

(2) After revegetation has been established on the regraded mined lands in accordance with the approved reclamation plan, an additional amount of the bond or deposit may be released. When determining the amount of bond or deposit to be released after successful revegetation has been established, the Department shall retain that amount of bond or deposit for the revegetated area which would be sufficient for a third party to pay the cost of reestablishing revegetation and for the period specified for operator responsibility. No part of the bond or deposit shall be released under this paragraph so long as the lands to which the release would be applicable are contributing suspended solids to streamflow or runoff outside the permit area in excess of the requirements set by this Act or until soil productivity for prime farmlands has returned to equivalent levels of yield as nonmined land of the same soil type in the surrounding area under equivalent management practices.

(3) When the operator has successfully completed all mining and reclamation activities, the remaining portion of the bond may be released, but not before the expiration of the period specified for operator responsibility.

(4) No bond shall be fully released until all reclamation requirements of the permit and this Act are fully met.

(e) The Department shall notify the permittee in writing of its decision to release or not to release all or part of the performance bond or deposit (1) within 60 days after the filing of the request, if no public hearing is held under subsection (c) of this Section, or (2) if a public hearing has been held under subsection (c) of this Section, within 30 days thereafter.

(f) If the Department disapproves the application for release of the bond or deposit or portion thereof, the Department shall state in writing the reasons for disapproval and shall recommend corrective actions necessary to secure said release. An opportunity for a public hearing shall be provided.

(g) If the Department approves the application, it shall notify the municipality and county in which the mining operation is located by certified mail at least 30 days prior to the release of all or a portion of the bond or deposit.

(h) The Department may by rule provide procedures for the administration of this Section, including procedures for hearings and informal conferences.

(i) Surface coal mining operations on lands eligible for remining shall not affect the eligibility of those lands for reclamation and restoration under the Abandoned Mined Lands and Water Reclamation Act after the release of the bond or deposit for any such operation under this Section.

(Source: P.A. 90-490, eff. 8-17-97.)