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1 | AN ACT concerning the environment.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | ||||||
5 | Illinois Prescribed Burning Act. | ||||||
6 | Section 5. Legislative findings; purpose. | ||||||
7 | (a) Prescribed burning is a land management tool that | ||||||
8 | benefits the safety of the public, the environment, and the | ||||||
9 | economy of the State. Therefore, the General Assembly finds | ||||||
10 | that:
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11 | (1) Most of the State's natural communities require | ||||||
12 | periodic fire for maintenance of their ecological health. | ||||||
13 | Prescribed burning is essential to the perpetuation, | ||||||
14 | restoration, and management of many plant and animal | ||||||
15 | communities. Significant loss of the State's biological | ||||||
16 | diversity will occur if fire is excluded from these | ||||||
17 | fire-dependent communities.
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18 | (2) Public agencies and non-governmental organizations | ||||||
19 | in the State have spent millions of dollars to purchase | ||||||
20 | hundreds of thousands of acres of land for parks, wildlife | ||||||
21 | areas, State forests, nature preserves and other outdoor | ||||||
22 | recreational purposes. The use of prescribed burning for | ||||||
23 | management of these public and private lands is essential |
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1 | to maintain the specific resource values for which these | ||||||
2 | areas were acquired.
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3 | (3) Forests, grasslands, and wetlands in the State | ||||||
4 | constitute significant economic, biological, and aesthetic | ||||||
5 | resources of statewide importance. Prescribed burning | ||||||
6 | prepares sites for planting, removes undesirable competing | ||||||
7 | vegetation, accelerates nutrient cycling, controls certain | ||||||
8 | pathogens and noxious weeds, and promotes oak | ||||||
9 | regeneration. In these communities, prescribed burning | ||||||
10 | improves and maintains the quality and quantity of wildlife | ||||||
11 | habitats.
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12 | (4) Prescribed burning reduces naturally occurring | ||||||
13 | vegetative fuels. Reducing the fuel load reduces the risk | ||||||
14 | and severity of wildfires, thereby reducing the threat of | ||||||
15 | loss of life and property.
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16 | (5) Federal and State agencies promote and subsidize | ||||||
17 | fire dependent vegetative communities and recommend | ||||||
18 | prescribed burning as an essential management practice for | ||||||
19 | many funded programs.
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20 | (6) Proper training in the purposes, use, and | ||||||
21 | application of prescribed burning is necessary to ensure | ||||||
22 | maximum benefits and protection for the public.
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23 | (7) Prescribed burning in the hands of trained, | ||||||
24 | skilled, and experienced people is safe and often the most | ||||||
25 | cost effective management technique to accomplish many | ||||||
26 | ecosystem restoration objectives and ecological goals.
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1 | (8) A public education program is necessary to make | ||||||
2 | citizens and visitors aware of the public safety, natural | ||||||
3 | resource, and economic benefits of prescribed burning and | ||||||
4 | its use as a land management tool.
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5 | (9) As development and urbanization increase in the | ||||||
6 | State, pressures from liability issues, and nuisance | ||||||
7 | complaints will inhibit the use of prescribed burning.
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8 | (b) It is the purpose of this Act to authorize and to | ||||||
9 | promote the continued use of prescribed burning for ecological, | ||||||
10 | forest, wetland, wildlife management, and grassland management | ||||||
11 | purposes.
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12 | Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
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13 | (a) "Prescribed burning" means the planned application of | ||||||
14 | fire to naturally occurring vegetative fuels under specified | ||||||
15 | environmental conditions and following appropriate | ||||||
16 | precautionary measures, which causes the fire to be confined to | ||||||
17 | a predetermined area and accomplish the planned land management | ||||||
18 | objectives.
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19 | (b) "Certified prescribed burn manager" means an | ||||||
20 | individual who successfully completes an approved training | ||||||
21 | program and receives proper certification.
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22 | (c) "Prescription" means a written plan for conducting a | ||||||
23 | prescribed burn.
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24 | (d) "Department" means the Illinois Department of Natural | ||||||
25 | Resources.
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1 | Section 15. Requirements; liability. | ||||||
2 | (a) Before conducting a prescribed burn under this Act, a | ||||||
3 | person shall:
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4 | (1) obtain the written consent of the landowner;
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5 | (2) have a written prescription approved by a certified | ||||||
6 | prescribed burn manager; | ||||||
7 | (3) have at least one certified prescribed burn manager | ||||||
8 | present on site with a copy of the prescription while the | ||||||
9 | burn is being conducted; | ||||||
10 | (4) notify the local fire department, county | ||||||
11 | dispatcher, 911 dispatcher, or other designated emergency | ||||||
12 | dispatcher on the day of the prescribed burn; and | ||||||
13 | (5) make a reasonable attempt to notify all adjoining | ||||||
14 | property owners and occupants of the date and time of the | ||||||
15 | prescribed burn. | ||||||
16 | (b) The property owner and any person conducting a | ||||||
17 | prescribed burn under this Act shall be liable for any actual | ||||||
18 | damage or injury caused by the fire or resulting smoke upon | ||||||
19 | proof of negligence. | ||||||
20 | (c) Any prescribed burning conducted under this Act: | ||||||
21 | (1) is declared to be in the public interest; | ||||||
22 | (2) does not constitute a public or private nuisance | ||||||
23 | when conducted in compliance with Section 9 of the | ||||||
24 | Environmental Protection Act and all other State statutes | ||||||
25 | and rules applicable to prescribed burning; and |
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1 | (3) is a property right of the property owner if | ||||||
2 | naturally occurring vegetative fuels are used.
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3 | Section 20. Rules. The Department, in consultation with the | ||||||
4 | Office of the State Fire Marshall, shall promulgate rules to | ||||||
5 | implement this Act, including but not limited to, rules | ||||||
6 | governing prescribed burn manager certification and revocation | ||||||
7 | and rules governing prescribed burn prescriptions. | ||||||
8 | Section 25. Exemption. Nothing in this Act shall be | ||||||
9 | construed as: | ||||||
10 | (1) requiring certification as a prescribed burn manager to | ||||||
11 | conduct prescribed burning on one's own property or on the | ||||||
12 | lands of another with the landowner's permission; Section 15(b) | ||||||
13 | shall not apply to prescribed burns conducted under the | ||||||
14 | exemption in this item (1); | ||||||
15 | (2) affecting any obligations or liability under the | ||||||
16 | Environmental Protection Act or any rules adopted thereunder, | ||||||
17 | or under any federal laws or rules that apply to prescribed | ||||||
18 | burning; or | ||||||
19 | (3) superseding any local burning law. | ||||||
20 | Section 30. Fees. The Department may charge and collect | ||||||
21 | fees from persons applying for safety training and | ||||||
22 | certification as a certified prescribed burn manager. |
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1 | Section 35. Severability. The provisions of this Act are | ||||||
2 | severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.
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3 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
4 | becoming law.
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