093_HB1600
LRB093 04498 JAM 04551 b
1 AN ACT concerning tourism.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The Department of Commerce and Community
5 Affairs Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is
6 amended by changing Section 605-705 as follows:
7 (20 ILCS 605/605-705) (was 20 ILCS 605/46.6a)
8 Sec. 605-705. Grants to local tourism and convention
9 bureaus.
10 (a) To establish a grant program of grants for local
11 tourism and convention bureaus. The Department will develop
12 and implement a program for the use of funds, as authorized
13 under this Act, by local tourism and convention bureaus. For
14 the purposes of this Act, bureaus eligible to receive funds
15 are those local tourism and convention bureaus that are (i)
16 either units of local government or incorporated as
17 not-for-profit organizations; (ii) in legal existence for a
18 minimum of 2 years before July 1, 2001; (iii) operating with
19 a paid, full-time staff whose sole purpose is to promote
20 tourism in the designated service area; and (iv) affiliated
21 with one or more municipalities or counties that support the
22 bureau with local hotel-motel taxes. After July 1, 2001,
23 bureaus requesting certification in order to receive funds
24 for the first time must be local tourism and convention
25 bureaus that are (i) either units of local government or
26 incorporated as not-for-profit organizations; (ii) in legal
27 existence for a minimum of 2 years before the request for
28 certification; (iii) operating with a paid, full-time staff
29 whose sole purpose is to promote tourism in the designated
30 service area; and (iv) affiliated with multiple
31 municipalities or counties that support the bureau with local
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1 hotel-motel taxes. Each bureau receiving funds under this Act
2 will be certified by the Department as the designated
3 recipient to serve an area of the State. Notwithstanding the
4 criteria set forth in this subsection (a), or any rule
5 adopted under this subsection (a), the Director of the
6 Department may provide for the award of grant funds to one or
7 more entities if in the Department's judgment that action is
8 necessary in order to prevent a loss of funding critical to
9 promoting tourism in a designated geographic area of the
10 State.
11 (b) To distribute grants to local tourism and convention
12 bureaus from appropriations made from the Local Tourism Fund
13 for that purpose. Of the amounts appropriated annually to
14 the Department for expenditure under this Section, one-third
15 of those monies shall be used for grants to convention and
16 tourism bureaus in cities with a population greater than
17 500,000. The remaining two-thirds of the annual
18 appropriation shall be used for grants to convention and
19 tourism bureaus in the remainder of the State, in accordance
20 with a formula based upon the population served. The
21 Department may reserve up to 10% of the total appropriated to
22 conduct audits of grants, to provide incentive funds to those
23 bureaus that will conduct promotional activities designed to
24 further the Department's statewide advertising campaign, to
25 fund special statewide promotional activities, and to fund
26 promotional activities that support an increased use of the
27 State's parks or historic sites.
28 (Source: P.A. 91-239, eff. 1-1-00; 91-357, eff. 7-29-99;
29 92-16, eff. 6-28-01; 92-38, eff. 6-28-01; 92-524, eff.
30 2-8-02.)