70 ILCS 835/ Forest Preserve Zoological Parks Act.

(70 ILCS 835/0.01) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 6800)

Sec. 0.01. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Forest Preserve Zoological Parks Act.

(Source: P.A. 86-1324.)

(70 ILCS 835/1) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 6801)

Sec. 1. The corporate authorities of forest preserve districts, containing a population of 140,000 or more located in counties of less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, having the control or supervision of any forest preserves, may erect and maintain within such forest preserves, under the control or supervision of such corporate authorities, edifices to be used for the collection and display of animals as customary in zoological parks, and may collect and display such animals, or permit the directors or trustees of any zoological society devoted to the purposes aforesaid to erect and maintain a zoological park and to collect and display zoological collections within any forest preserve now or hereafter under the control or supervision of such forest preserve district, out of funds belonging to such zoological society, or to contract with the directors or trustees of any zoological society on such terms and conditions as may to such corporate authorities seem best, relative to the erection, operation and maintenance of a zoological park and the collection and display of such animals within such forest preserve, out of the tax hereinafter in this Act provided.

This Act applies to any forest preserve district that maintains a zoological park that was established under this Act prior to 1964, regardless of whether the population requirements continue to be met.

A forest preserve district, containing a population of 140,000 or more, or the directors or trustees of such zoological society when so authorized by the forest preserve district, may (a) police the property of the zoological park, (b) employ, establish, maintain and equip a security force for fire and police protection of the zoological park and (c) provide that the personnel of the security force shall perform other tasks relating to the maintenance and operation of the zoological park. Members of the security force shall be conservators of the peace with all the powers of policemen in cities and of sheriffs, other than to serve or execute civil processes, but such powers may be exercised only within the area comprising the zoological park when required to protect the zoological park's property and interests, its personnel and persons using the facilities or at the specific request of appropriate federal, State or local law enforcement officials. All otherwise lawful actions taken on or after August 13, 1978 (the effective date of Public Act 80-1364) and before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 98th General Assembly by a forest preserve district or a zoological society located in a county of 3,000,000 or more in exercising the powers provided in this paragraph are hereby validated, notwithstanding Public Act 80-1364, which was a non-substantive combining revisory Act.

A forest preserve district, containing a population of 140,000 or more located in counties of less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, may charge, or permit such zoological society to charge, an admission fee. The proceeds of such admission fee shall be devoted exclusively to the operation and maintenance of such zoological park and the collections therein. Except as otherwise provided in this Section, all such zoological parks shall be open to the public without charge (i) a total number of days, to be scheduled at any time during the calendar year, equivalent to at least one day for each 7 days the zoological park is open during the calendar year and (ii) to the children in actual attendance upon any of the schools in the State at all times. Beginning on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly through June 30, 2022, any such zoological park must be open to the public without charge: (i) a total number of days, to be scheduled at any time during the calendar year, equivalent to at least one day for each 14 days the zoological park is open during the calendar year; and (ii) to the children in actual attendance upon any of the schools in the State at all times. The managing authority of the zoological park may limit the number of school groups that may attend the zoo on any given day and may establish other rules and regulations that reasonably ensure public safety, accessibility, and convenience, including without limitation standards of conduct and supervision. Charges may be made at any time for special services and for admission to special facilities within any zoological park for the education, entertainment or convenience of visitors.

(Source: P.A. 101-640, eff. 6-12-20.)

(70 ILCS 835/1.1) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 6801.1)

Sec. 1.1. Purchases made pursuant to this Act shall be made in compliance with the "Local Government Prompt Payment Act", approved by the Eighty-fourth General Assembly.

(Source: P.A. 84-731.)

(70 ILCS 835/2) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 6802)

Sec. 2. Zoological park; tax.

(a) For the purpose of constructing and maintaining and caring for any such zoological park and the buildings and grounds thereof and of securing and displaying zoological collections thereon the corporate authorities of any forest preserve district containing a population of 150,000 or more but less than 3,000,000 are authorized to levy annually a tax of not to exceed .0058% of value as equalized or assessed by the Department of Revenue, upon all the taxable property in the district.

(b) In a forest preserve district located in a county with a population in excess of 140,000 but less than 200,000 and contiguous to the Mississippi River, however, the annual tax may be at a rate not to exceed 0.06%.

(c) This tax shall be levied and collected in the same manner as the general taxes of the forest preserve district and shall be in addition to the maximum of all other taxes and tax rates which the district is now or may hereafter be authorized to levy upon the aggregate valuation of all taxable property within the district and shall be exclusive of and in addition to the maximum amount and rate of taxes the district is now or may hereafter be authorized to levy for general purposes under Section 13 of the Downstate Forest Preserve District Act or under any other law which may limit the amount of tax which the district may levy for general purposes. The proceeds of the tax herein authorized shall be kept as a separate fund.

(d) A tax in excess of 0.01% may not be levied under subsection (b) until the question of levying the tax has been submitted to the electors of the forest preserve district at a regular election and approved by a majority of the electors voting on the question. The District must certify the question to the proper election authority, which must submit the question at an election in accordance with the Election Code.

The election authority must submit the question in substantially the following form:

Shall the corporate authority of the forest preserve district be authorized to levy a tax at the rate of 0.06% for the purpose of constructing and maintaining and caring for any such zoological park and the buildings and grounds thereof and of securing and displaying zoological collections thereon?

The election authority must record the votes as "Yes" or "No".

If a majority of the electors voting on the question vote in the affirmative, the county may thereafter levy the tax.

(Source: P.A. 95-643, eff. 6-1-08.)

(70 ILCS 835/4) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 6804)

Sec. 4. For the purpose of making capital improvements in connection with a zoological park established under this Act, the corporate authorities of the forest preserve district in which such park is maintained may incur an indebtedness and issue bonds therefor in amounts not exceeding in the aggregate $15,640,000. Such bonds shall bear interest at a rate of not more than the maximum rate authorized by the Bond Authorization Act, as amended at the time of the making of the contract, if issued prior to January 1, 1972, and at the rate of not more than the maximum rate authorized by the Bond Authorization Act, as amended at the time of the making of the contract, if issued after January 1, 1972, per annum and shall mature within 20 years from the date thereof. The resolution authorizing this issuance of bonds may be made effective without the submission thereof to the voters of the district for approval.

All moneys received from the issuance of bonds as provided in this Section shall be set apart in a separate fund by the district treasurer and shall be used only for the purposes set forth in this Section.

The corporate authorities of such district shall provide for the levy of a direct annual tax upon all the taxable property in such district, sufficient to pay and discharge the principal of such bonds at maturity and to pay the interest thereon as it falls due. This tax shall be levied and collected in like manner with the general taxes of the forest preserve district and shall be in addition to the maximum of all other taxes and tax rates which the district is or may be authorized to levy.

With respect to instruments for the payment of money issued under this Section either before, on, or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1989, it is and always has been the intention of the General Assembly (i) that the Omnibus Bond Acts are and always have been supplementary grants of power to issue instruments in accordance with the Omnibus Bond Acts, regardless of any provision of this Act that may appear to be or to have been more restrictive than those Acts, (ii) that the provisions of this Section are not a limitation on the supplementary authority granted by the Omnibus Bond Acts, and (iii) that instruments issued under this Section within the supplementary authority granted by the Omnibus Bond Acts are not invalid because of any provision of this Act that may appear to be or to have been more restrictive than those Acts.

(Source: P.A. 86-4.)