Public Act 094-0908
 
HB5305 Enrolled LRB094 18679 HLH 54259 b

    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
Chanute-Rantoul National Aviation Center Redevelopment
Commission Act.
 
    Section 5. Purpose. The purpose of this Act is to
facilitate and promote the economic and environmental
redevelopment of the area formerly known as Chanute Air Force
Base.
 
    Section 10. Definitions. In this Act:
    "Aviation Center" means the Rantoul National Aviation
Center Airport.
    "Board" means the Board of Directors of the Chanute-Rantoul
National Aviation Center Redevelopment Commission.
    "Commercial project" means any project, including, but not
limited to, one or more buildings and other structures,
improvements, machinery, and equipment whether or not on the
same site, suitable for use by any retail or wholesale concern,
distributorship, or agency, any cultural facilities of a
for-profit or not-for-profit type, including, but not limited
to, educational, theatrical, recreational, and entertainment
facilities, sports facilities, racetracks, stadiums,
convention centers, exhibition halls, arenas, opera houses,
theaters, swimming pools, restaurants, velodromes, coliseums,
sports training facilities, parking facilities, terminals,
terminal facilities, hotels and motels, gymnasiums, and
medical facilities.
    "Commission" means the Chanute-Rantoul National Aviation
Center Redevelopment Commission.
    "Comprehensive plan" means a plan (which may include
several redevelopment plans) setting forth a comprehensive
process or scheme for the redevelopment of the area within the
territorial jurisdiction of the Commission.
    "Construct or acquire" means to plan, design, build,
reconstruct, improve, modify, extend, landscape, expand or
obtain possession of property by way of gift or purchase.
    "Industrial project" means (1) a capital project,
including one or more buildings and other structures,
improvements, machinery, and equipment, whether or not on the
same site, suitable for use by any manufacturing, industrial,
research, transportation, or commercial enterprise including
but not limited to use as a factory, mill, processing plant,
assembly plant, packaging plant, fabricating plant, office
building, industrial distribution center, warehouse, repair,
overhaul, or service facility, freight terminal, research
facility, test facility, railroad facility, solid waste and
wastewater treatment and disposal sites and other pollution
control facilities, resource or waste reduction, recovery,
treatment, and disposal facilities, including the sites and
other rights in land therefor, site preparation and landscaping
and all appurtenances and facilities incidental thereto such as
utilities, access roads, railroad sidings, truck docking, and
similar facilities, parking facilities, railroad roadbed,
track, trestle, depot, terminal, switching and signaling
equipment, or related equipment and other improvements
necessary or convenient thereto; or (2) any land, buildings,
machinery, or equipment comprising an addition to or
renovation, rehabilitation, or improvement of any existing
capital project.
    "Member" means a member of the Board.
    "Person" includes, without limitation, an individual,
corporation, partnership, unincorporated association, and any
other legal entity, including a trustee, receiver, assignee, or
personal representative of the entity.
    "Project" means an industrial or commercial project or any
combination thereof, provided that all uses fall within one of
those categories. The term "project" includes removal of
environmental hazards in buildings, demolition of
uninhabitable buildings, building and leasing new industrial
and commercial ventures, and working with the Village to manage
and develop the Aviation Center to support the establishment of
an intermodal transportation center. The term "project" also
includes all site improvements and new construction involving
sidewalks, sewers, solid waste and wastewater treatment and
disposal sites and other pollution control facilities,
resource or waste reduction, recovery, treatment, and disposal
facilities, parks, open spaces, wildlife sanctuaries, streets,
highways, and runways.
    "Redevelopment plan" means any one or more plans approved
or adopted by the Commission setting forth programs or
procedures for one or more projects and the protection of
adjacent areas, and all administrative, funding, and financial
details and proposals necessary to effectuate the plan.
    "Terminal" means a public place, station, or depot for
receiving and delivering passengers, baggage, mail, freight,
or express matter and any combination thereof in connection
with the transportation of persons and property on land, by
air, or both.
    "Terminal facilities" means all land, buildings,
structures, improvements, equipment, and appliances useful in
the operation of public warehouse, storage, and transportation
facilities and industrial, manufacturing, or commercial
activities for the accommodation of or in connection with
commerce by land.
    "Village" means the Village of Rantoul.
 
    Section 15. Chanute-Rantoul National Aviation Center
Redevelopment Commission; creation.
    (a) The Chanute-Rantoul National Aviation Center
Redevelopment Commission is created as a political
subdivision, body politic, and municipal corporation of the
State. The territorial jurisdiction of the Commission shall
extend over all of the 1,400 acres, more or less, under public
control, within the area commonly known and described as
Chanute Air Force Base, and the entire 2,125 acres of the area
commonly known and described as Chanute Air Force Base that is
under public control for the purposes of underground
infrastructure issues.
    (b) The governing body of the Commission shall be a Board
of Directors consisting of 7 public members appointed by the
Village President, with the advice and consent of the Village
Board, and the following ex-officio, non-voting members:
        (1) The Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity,
    or his or her designee;
        (2) The Director of the Illinois Environmental
    Protection Agency, or his or her designee;
        (3) The President of the Village of Rantoul, or his or
    her designee; and
        (4) The Chair of the Rantoul Plan Commission or another
    Rantoul Plan Commission member designated to represent the
    Plan Commission.
    All public members must reside within East Central
Illinois. Five members shall constitute a quorum.
    All persons appointed as public members must have
recognized ability and experience in one or more of the
following areas: economic development, finance, banking,
industrial development, real estate development,
transportation, logistics, community development, or venture
capital finance.
    The members shall elect the following officers from among
the public members of the Commission: Chair, Vice-Chair,
Treasurer, and Secretary. The officers shall serve for a term
prescribed by the Commission.
    All members of the Commission shall serve without
compensation for their services as members but may be
reimbursed for all necessary expenses incurred in connection
with the performance of their duties as members.
    (c) The terms of all members shall begin 30 days after the
effective date of this Act. Of the initial appointees, one
member shall serve for a term of 2 years, 2 members shall serve
for a term of 3 years, 2 members shall serve for a term of 4
years, and 2 members shall serve for a term of 5 years. All
successors shall serve 5-year terms, except in case of an
appointment to fill a vacancy. Vacancies occurring among the
public members shall be filled for the remainder of the term.
    (d) The Board shall determine the general policy of the
Commission, approve its annual budget, make all
appropriations, adopt all resolutions and ordinances providing
for the issuance of bonds or notes by the Commission, adopt its
bylaws, rules, and regulations, and have such other powers and
duties as may be prescribed in this Act.
 
    Section 20. Official acts; duty to promote development.
    (a) All official acts of the Commission shall require the
affirmative vote of at least 5 public members.
    (b) It shall be the duty of the Commission to promote
development within the territorial jurisdiction of the
Commission. The Commission shall use the powers conferred upon
it in this Act to assist in the development, construction, and
acquisition of industrial and commercial projects within the
territorial jurisdiction of the Commission and shall have the
authority to (i) act as public developer in carrying out
development programs for the publicly-held properties within
the territorial jurisdiction of the Commission; (ii) make
available adequate management, administrative, technical,
financial, and other assistance necessary for encouraging a
defined, organized, planned, scheduled, diversified, and
economically, technologically, and environmentally sound
community environment within the territorial jurisdiction of
the Commission and to do so through the use of management
procedures and programs that rely, to the maximum extent
possible, on private enterprise; (iii) provide a conduit for
the State and federal governments to make their resources
available to the Commission; (iv) encourage the fullest use of
the economic potential of commercial and industrial building
sites at reasonable costs to support the Rantoul National
Aviation Center Airport and the goals of any redevelopment area
within the territorial jurisdiction of the Commission that was
established under Division 74.4 of the Illinois Municipal Code;
(v) plan, assist, develop, build and construct, or finance any
facility or project that is within the mission of the
Commission to enhance the community environment and provide
technological management, when requested to do so by the
Village.
 
    Section 25. Powers.
    (a) The Commission possesses all the powers of a body
corporate necessary and convenient to accomplish the purposes
of this Act, including, but not limited to, the following
powers:
        (1) to sue and be sued in its corporate name;
        (2) to apply for and accept gifts, grants, or loans of
    funds or property, financial, or other aid from any public
    agency or private entity;
        (3) to acquire, hold, sell, lease as lessor or lessee,
    deal in, lend, transfer, convey, donate or otherwise
    dispose of real or personal property, or interests in the
    property, under procedures set by the Commission and for
    consideration in the best interests of the Rantoul National
    Aviation Center Airport and the community;
        (4) to enter into loans, contracts, agreements, and
    mortgages in any matter connected with any of its corporate
    purposes and to invest its funds;
        (5) to implement the comprehensive plan for the
    redevelopment of the area within the territorial
    jurisdiction of the Commission that is adopted by the
    Village and to assist the Village in updating the
    comprehensive plan;
        (6) to create, develop, and implement redevelopment
    plans for the territorial jurisdiction of the Commission,
    which may include commercial and industrial uses;
        (7) to prepare, submit, and administer plans, and to
    participate in projects or intergovernmental agreements,
    or both, and to create reserves for planning, constructing,
    reconstructing, acquiring, owning, managing, insuring,
    leasing, equipping, extending, improving, operating,
    maintaining, and repairing land and projects that the
    Commission owns or leases;
        (8) to provide for the insurance, including
    self-insurance, of any property or operations of the
    Commission or its members, directors, and employees,
    against any risk or hazard, and to indemnify its members,
    agents, independent contractors, directors, and employees
    against any risk or hazard;
        (9) to appoint, retain, employ, and set compensation
    rates for its agents, independent contractors, and
    employees to carry out its powers and functions;
    specifically the administrative officer of the Village
    shall serve as Executive Director of the Commission, and
    the Comptroller of the Village shall serve as the Financial
    Officer of the Commission;
        (10) to acquire and accept by purchase, lease, gift, or
    otherwise any property or rights from any persons, any
    municipal corporation, body politic, or agency of the State
    or of the federal government or directly from the State or
    the federal government, useful for the purposes of the
    Commission, and apply for and accept grants, matching
    grants, loans, or appropriations from the State or the
    federal government, or any agency or instrumentality of the
    State or the federal government to be used for any of the
    purposes of the Commission, and to enter into any agreement
    with the State or federal government in relation to those
    grants, matching grants, loans, or appropriations;
        (11) to exercise the right of eminent domain by
    condemnation proceedings, in the manner provided by
    Article VII of the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure, to
    acquire private property for the lawful purposes of the
    Commission or to carry out a comprehensive plan or
    redevelopment plan;
        (12) to fix and collect just, reasonable, and
    nondiscriminatory charges and rents for the use of
    Commission property and services. The charges collected
    may be used to defray the reasonable expenses of the
    Commission and to pay the principal of and the interest on
    any bonds issued by the Commission;
        (13) to install, repair, construct, reconstruct, or
    relocate streets, roads, alleys, sidewalks, utilities, and
    site improvements essential to the preparation of the area
    within the territorial jurisdiction of the Commission for
    use in accordance with the redevelopment plan;
        (14) to enter into redevelopment agreements with other
    units of local government relating to sharing taxes and
    other revenues and sharing, limiting, and transferring
    land use planning, subdivision, and zoning powers; and
        (15) to borrow money for the corporate purposes of the
    Commission and, in evidence of its obligations to repay the
    borrowing, issue its negotiable revenue bonds or notes for
    any of its corporate purposes, including, but not limited
    to, the following: paying for costs of planning,
    constructing, reconstructing, acquiring, owning, leasing,
    equipping, or improving any publicly-owned land within the
    territorial jurisdiction of the Commission, paying
    interest and principal on bonds, paying for legal,
    financial, and administrative consulting costs related to
    any debt financing, and creating reserves.
    (b) Any financial arrangements made by the Commission must
expressly benefit the operations in order to keep the Aviation
Center a viable and financially stable entity of the Village of
Rantoul.
 
    Section 30. Bonds or notes.
    (a) The Commission shall have the power to issue bonds or
notes for the purpose of developing, constructing, acquiring,
or improving projects, including, without limitation, those
established by business entities locating or expanding
property within the territorial jurisdiction of the
Commission.
    (b) Any bonds or notes issued under this Section by the
Commission shall be authorized by resolution or ordinance of
the Board adopted by the affirmative vote of 5 of the
Directors. The action of the Commission authorizing the
issuance of the bonds may be effective immediately upon its
adoption and shall describe in a general way any project
contemplated to be financed by the bonds or notes, set forth
the estimated cost of the project, and determine the project's
period of usefulness. The authorizing resolution or ordinance
shall determine the maturity or maturities of the bonds or
notes, the denominations, the rate or rates at which the bonds
or notes are to bear interest, and all the other terms and
details of the bonds or notes. The bonds or notes may be issued
as serial bonds payable in installments or as term bonds with
or without sinking fund installments or a combination of the
serial bonds and term bonds. All bonds or notes shall mature
within the period of estimated usefulness of the project for
which the bonds or notes are issued, as determined by the
Board, but in any event not more than 50 years from their date
of issue. The bonds and notes may bear interest at the rates
the resolution or ordinance provides, notwithstanding any
other provision of law, and shall be payable at the times
determined in the resolution or ordinance. Bonds or notes of
the Commission shall be sold in the manner that the Board
determines, either at par or at a premium, or at discount.
    (c) In connection with the issuance of its bonds or notes,
the Commission may enter into arrangements to provide
additional security and liquidity for its obligations,
including but not limited to, municipal bond insurance, letters
of credit, lines of credit by which the Commission may borrow
funds to pay or redeem its obligations, and purchase or
remarketing arrangements for assuring the ability of owners of
the obligations to sell or to have redeemed the obligations.
The Commission may enter into contracts and may agree to pay
fees to persons providing those arrangements, including from
bond or note proceeds.
    (d) The Commission's action authorizing the issuance of
bonds or notes may provide that interest rates may vary
depending on criteria set forth in the resolution or ordinance,
including, but not limited to, variation of interest rates as
may be necessary to cause bonds or notes to be remarketable at
a price equal to their principal amount, and may provide for
appointment of a national banking association, bank trust
company, investment banker, or other financial institution to
serve as a remarketing agent in that connection.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the resolution or
ordinance of the Commission authorizing the issuance of its
bonds or notes may provide that alternative interest rates or
provisions will apply when the bonds or notes are held by a
person providing a letter of credit or other credit enhancement
arrangement for those bonds or notes.
    (e) The authorization of the issuance of any bonds or notes
under this subsection shall constitute a contract with the
holders of the bonds and notes. The resolution or ordinance may
contain such covenants and restrictions regarding the project
and the contracts, the issuance of additional bonds or notes by
the Commission, the security for the bonds and notes, and any
other matters deemed necessary or advisable by the Board to
assure the payment of the bonds or notes of the Commission.
    (f) The resolution or ordinance authorizing the issuance of
bonds or notes by the Commission shall provide for the
application of revenues derived from the operation of the
Commission's projects, revenues received from its members
including revenue from contracts for the use of the
Commission's projects, and revenues from its investment
earnings to the payment of the operating expenses of the
projects; the provision of adequate depreciation, reserve, or
replacement funds for the project, planned projects, and bonds
or notes; and the payment of principal, premium, and interest
on the bonds or notes of the Commission, including amounts for
the purchase of the bonds or notes. The resolution or ordinance
may provide that revenues of the Commission so derived and
other receipts of the Commission which may be applied to those
purposes shall be placed in separate funds and used for those
purposes and also may provide that revenues not required for
those purposes may be used for any proper purpose of the
Commission or may be returned to members. Any notes of the
Commission may, in addition, be secured by a pledge of proceeds
of bonds to be issued by the Commission, as specified in the
resolution or ordinance authorizing the issuance of the notes.
    (g) All bonds and notes of the Commission issued under this
subsection shall be revenue bonds or notes. The bonds or notes
shall have no claim for payment other than from revenues of the
Commission derived from the operation of its projects, revenues
received from its members, including from contracts for the use
of the Commission's projects, bond or note proceeds, other
receipts of the Commission, and investment earnings on the
foregoing, all as and to the extent as provided in the
resolution or ordinance of the Board authorizing the issuance
of the bonds or notes. Bonds or notes issued by the Commission
under this Section shall not constitute an indebtedness of the
Commission or of any member within the meaning of any
constitutional or statutory limitation. It shall be plainly
stated on each bond and note that it does not constitute an
indebtedness of the Commission or of any member within the
meaning of any constitutional or statutory limitation.
    (h) As long as any bonds or notes of the Commission created
under this subsection are outstanding and unpaid, the
Commission shall not terminate or dissolve. The Commission
shall establish fees and charges for its operations sufficient
to provide adequate revenues to meet all of the requirements
under its various resolutions authorizing bonds or notes.
    (i) A holder of any bond or note issued under this
subsection may, in any civil action, mandamus, or other
proceeding, enforce and compel performance of all duties
required to be performed by the Commission as set forth in the
authorizing resolution or ordinance, or any members of the
Commission or other persons contracting with the Commission in
connection with any of the Commission's projects, including the
imposition of fees and charges, the collection of sufficient
revenues, and the proper application of revenues as provided in
this subsection.
    (j) In addition, the resolution or ordinance authorizing
any bonds or notes issued under this subsection may provide for
a pledge, assignment, lien, or security interest, for the
benefit of the holders of any or all bonds or notes of the
Commission, (i) on any and all revenues derived from any
contracts for the use of the Commission's projects and
investment earnings of the projects, (ii) on any and all
revenues received from its members, or (iii) on funds or
accounts securing the payment of the bonds or notes as provided
in the authorizing resolution. Any such pledge, assignment,
lien, or security interest for the benefit of holders of bonds
or notes shall be valid and binding from the time the bonds or
notes are issued, without any physical delivery or further act,
and shall be valid and binding against or before any claims of
any other party having any claims of any kind against the
Commission irrespective of whether the other parties have
notice of the pledge, assignment, lien, or security interest.
    (k) A resolution or ordinance of the Board authorizing the
issuance of bonds or notes under this subsection may provide
for the appointment of a corporate trustee for any or all of
the bonds or notes, and, in that event, shall prescribe the
rights, duties, and powers of the trustee to be exercised for
the benefit of the Commission and the protection of the holders
of the bonds or notes. The trustee may be any trust company or
state or national bank having the power of a trust company
within Illinois. The resolution or ordinance may provide for
the trustee to hold in trust, invest, and use amounts in funds
and accounts created by the resolution or ordinance. The
resolution or ordinance may also provide for the assignment and
direct payment to the trustee of amounts owed by members and
other persons to the Commission under contracts for the use of
or access to the Commission's projects, for application by the
trustee to the purposes for which the revenues are to be used
as provided in this subsection and as provided in the
authorizing resolution. Upon receipt of the assignment, the
member or other person shall make the assigned payments
directly to the trustee.
 
    Section 35. Annual report. The Authority shall annually
submit a report of its finances to the Auditor General. The
Authority shall annually submit a report of its activities to
the Governor and to the General Assembly.
 
    Section 40. Anti-trust laws; State action exemption; tort
immunity; tax exemption.
    (a) The Commission is hereby expressly made the beneficiary
of the provisions of Section 1 of the Local Government
Antitrust Exemption Act, and the General Assembly intends that
the State action exemption to the application of the federal
anti-trust laws be fully available to the Commission to the
extent its activities are either (i) expressly or by necessary
implication authorized by this Act or other Illinois law; or
(ii) within traditional areas of local governmental activity.
    (b) Members of the Commission, and their present and former
officers, employees, agents, and independent contractors shall
have the same immunities as established by the Local
Governmental and Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act.
    (c) Property, income, and receipts of or transactions by
the Commission shall be exempt from all taxation, the same as
if it were the property, income, or transaction of a city or
county.
 
    Section 45. Commission not to have taxing power. The
Commission shall not have power to levy taxes for any purpose
whatsoever except as provided with respect to Special Service
Districts and Tax Increment Financing Districts.
 
    Section 50. Termination of the Commission. If the
Commission terminates or dissolves, all assets of the
Commission shall revert to the Village.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.