93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2003 and 2004
HB4640


 
Introduced 02/04/04, by Wyvetter H. Younge
 
SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 		













New Act









    Creates the Community Self-Revitalization Act. Provides that a municipality,
county, or any combination of municipalities and counties that are certified as
an economically distressed community by the Department of Commerce and
Economic Opportunity, in order to
receive
the assistance as provided under the Act,
may appoint a Board of Economic Advisors. Provides that the Board shall consist
of
12
members of the community, appointed by the corporate authorities of the
community,
representing the perspective of 12 sectors vital to
community
redevelopment, including families, businesses, and government. Provides that
the Board
shall create a 3-year to 5-year revitalization plan for the community
containing
distinct,
measurable objectives for revitalization. Provides that the Department of
Commerce and
Economic Opportunity shall, subject to appropriation, make grants to communities
that
create a Board of Economic Advisors under the Act for the operational expenses
of the
Board. Provides that Boards shall seek funding sources to enhance economic
development.  Further provides that the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall
advise
Boards of available funding and assist Boards in securing this funding.
Effective
immediately.



















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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
















 


 


A BILL FOR









 














HB4640

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    AN ACT concerning community revitalization. 

 
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    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 
3
represented in the General Assembly: 


 
4
    Section 1. Short title. 
This Act may be cited as the 
5
Community
Self-Revitalization Act.


 
6
    Section 5. Findings and purpose.


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    (a) The General Assembly finds that:


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        (1) There is a great need for economic revitalization 
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    in many communities
throughout this State.


10
        (2) Each community has valuable resources at its 
11
    fingertips that can be
tapped in the revitalization 
12
    process.


13
        (3) With adequate support and assistance from the State 
14
    and other
resources, each community can participate in and 
15
    shepherd its
own economic renewal.


16
        (4) Successful redevelopment plans are based on policy 
17
    that is responsive
to the existing composition and 
18
    character of the economically distressed
community and 
19
    that allows and compels the community to participate in the

20
    redevelopment planning process.


21
        (5) A successful redevelopment initiative creates and 
22
    maintains a capable
and adaptable workforce, has access to 
23
    capital, has a sound fiscal base, has
adequate 
24
    infrastructure, has well-managed natural resources, and 
25
    has an
attractive
quality of life.


26
    (b) It is the purpose of this legislation to provide a 
27
mechanism for an
economically distressed community to use in 
28
its efforts to revitalize the
community.



 
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    Section 10. Definitions.  As used in this Section:


30
    "Community" means a municipality, a county with
respect to 
31
the unincorporated areas of a county,
and any
combination of 
 


 









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municipalities and counties acting jointly.


2
    "Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic 
3
Opportunity.


4
    "Economically distressed community" means any community 
5
that is certified by
the Department as being in the highest 10% 
6
of all communities in the State in
its rate of
unemployment, 
7
its poverty rate, and the rate of bankruptcy petitions filed.



 
8
    Section 15. Certification; Board of Economic Advisors.


9
    (a) In order to receive the assistance as provided in this 
10
Act, a community
shall
first, by
ordinance passed by its 
11
corporate authorities, request that the Department
certify 
12
that it is
an economically distressed community. The community 
13
must submit a certified
copy of
the ordinance to the 
14
Department. After review of the ordinance, if the
Department

15
determines that the community meets the requirements for 
16
certification, the
Department
shall certify the community as an 
17
economically distressed community.


18
    (b) A community that is certified by the Department as
an

19
economically
distressed community may appoint a Board of 
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Economic Advisors
to create and implement a revitalization plan 
21
for the community. The Board
shall
consist of 12 members of the 
22
community, appointed by the
mayor or the presiding officer of 
23
the county or jointly by the presiding
officers of each

24
municipality and county that have joined to form a community 
25
for the purposes
of
this Act.
The Board members shall be 
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appointed from
the 12 sectors
vital to
community redevelopment 
27
as follows:


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        (1) A member representing households and families.


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        (2) A member representing religious organizations.


30
        (3) A member representing educational institutions.


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        (4) A member representing daycare centers, care 
32
    centers for the
handicapped, and care centers for the 
33
    disadvantaged.


34
        (5) A member representing community based 
35
    organizations such as
neighborhood improvement 
 


 









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    associations.


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        (6) A member representing federal and State employment 
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    service
systems, skill training centers, and placement 
4
    referrals.


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        (7) A member representing Masonic organizations, 
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    fraternities, sororities,
and social clubs.


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        (8) A member representing hospitals, nursing homes, 
8
    senior citizens,
public health agencies, and funeral 
9
    homes.


10
        (9) A member representing organized sports, parks, 
11
    parties, and games of
chance.


12
        (10) A member representing political parties, clubs, 
13
    and affiliations, and
election related matters concerning 
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    voter education and participation.


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        (11) A member representing the cultural aspects of the 
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    community,
including cultural events, lifestyles, 
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    languages, music, visual and performing
arts,
and 
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    literature.


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        (12) A member representing police and fire protection 
20
    agencies, prisons,
weapons systems, and the military 
21
    industrial complex.


22
    The Board shall meet initially
within 30 days of its 
23
appointment, shall select one member as chairperson at
its 
24
initial meeting, and
shall
thereafter meet at the call of the 
25
chairperson. Members of the Board shall
serve without

26
compensation but shall be reimbursed for their reasonable and 
27
necessary
expenses from
funds available for that purpose.


28
    (b) The Board shall create a 3-year to 5-year 
29
revitalization plan for the
community.
The plan shall contain 
30
distinct, measurable objectives for revitalization. The

31
objectives
shall be used to guide ongoing implementation of the 
32
plan and to measure
progress
during the 3-year to 5-year 
33
period. The Board shall work in a dynamic manner
defining goals

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for the community based on the strengths and weaknesses of the 
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individual
sectors of the
community as presented by each member 
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of the Board. The Board shall meet
periodically and revise the 
 


 









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plan in light of the input from each member of
the
Board

2
concerning his or her respective sector of expertise. The 
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process shall be a
community
driven revitalization process, 
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with community-specific data determining the
direction and

5
scope of the revitalization.



 
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    Section 20. Action by the Board.


7
    (a) Organize. The Board shall first assess the needs and 
8
the resources of
the
community operating from the basic premise 
9
that the family unit is the primary
unit of
community and that 
10
the demand for goods and services from this residential
sector 
11
is the
main source of recovery and growth for the redevelopment 
12
of a community. The
Board
shall inventory community assets, 
13
including the condition of the family with
respect to
the role 
14
of the family as workers, consumers, and investors. The Board 
15
shall
inventory
the type and viability of businesses and 
16
industries currently in the community.
In
compiling the 
17
inventory, the Board shall rely on the input of each Board 
18
member
with
respect to his or her expertise in a given sector 
19
of the revitalization plan.


20
    (b) Revitalize. In implementing the revitalization plan, 
21
the Board shall
focus on
and build from existing resources in 
22
the community, growing existing businesses
rather
than luring 
23
business into the community from the outside. The Board shall 
24
also
focus on
the residents themselves rather than jobs. The 
25
Board shall promote investment
in training
residents in areas 
26
that will lead to employment and in turn will bring revenue

27
into the
community.


28
    (c) Mobilize. The Board shall engage in the dynamic process 
29
of community
self-revitalization through a continuous 
30
reassessment of the needs of the
community
in the

31
revitalization process. As each goal of the 3-year to 5-year 
32
plan is achieved,
the
Board shall
draw from the resources of 
33
its members to establish new goals and implement new
strategies 
34
employing the lessons learned in the earlier stages of

35
revitalization.


 


 









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    (d) Advise. The Board shall Act as the liaison between the 
2
community and the
local, county, and State Government. The 
3
Board shall make use of the resources
of these
governmental 
4
entities and shall provide counsel to each of these bodies with

5
respect to
economic development.


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    The Board shall also act as a liaison between private 
7
business entities
located in
the community and the community 
8
itself. The Board shall offer advice and
assistance to
these 
9
entities when requested and provide incentives and support, 
10
both economic
and
otherwise, to facilitate expansion and 
11
further investment in the community by
the
businesses.


12
    The Board shall annually submit a report to the General

13
Assembly and the Governor summarizing the accomplishments of 
14
the community
concerning revitalization and the goals of the 
15
community for future
revitalization.



 
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    Section 25. Funding sources.


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    (a) Subject to appropriation, the Department shall make 
18
grants to
communities
that are certified as economically 
19
distressed communities under this Act and
that create a Board 
20
of Economic
Advisors
under this Act for the operational 
21
expenses of the Board. The procedures for
grant
application 
22
shall be established by the Department
by rule.


23
    (b) The Board, as a vital part of its function, shall seek 
24
funding sources
to enhance
economic development. The Board 
25
shall seek funding from the local, State, and
federal

26
government as well as from private funding sources, whether in 
27
the form of
grants, loans,
or otherwise. The Department shall 
28
advise the
Boards of Economic Advisors created under this Act 
29
of all available sources of
funding
for economic development 
30
that it is aware of and shall assist the Boards in
securing 
31
this
funding.


32
    (c) To the extent that there is a gap in funding for 
33
economic development,
the
Board shall recommend possible 
34
solutions to be undertaken by the State in
addressing
this 
35
issue to fill the funding gap.



 
 


 









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    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
2
becoming law.