Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of Public Act 098-1160
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Public Act 098-1160


 

Public Act 1160 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  
  
  

 


 
Public Act 098-1160
 
SB1680 EnrolledLRB098 08832 OMW 38959 b

    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Home Equity Assurance Act is amended by
changing Section 11 as follows:
 
    (65 ILCS 95/11)  (from Ch. 24, par. 1611)
    Sec. 11. Guarantee Fund.
    (a) Each governing commission and program created by
referendum under the provisions of this Act shall maintain a
guarantee fund for the purposes of paying the costs of
administering the program and extending protection to members
pursuant to the limitations and procedures set forth in this
Act.
    (b) The guarantee fund shall be raised by means of an
annual tax levied on all residential property within the
territory of the program having at least one, but not more than
6 dwelling units and classified by county ordinance as
residential. The rate of this tax may be changed from year to
year by majority vote of the governing commission but in no
case shall it exceed a rate of .12% of the equalized assessed
valuation of all property in the territory of the program
having at least one, but not more than 6 dwelling units and
classified by county ordinance as residential, or the maximum
tax rate approved by the voters of the territory at the
referendum which created the program or, in the case of a
merged program, the maximum tax rate approved by the voters at
the referendum authorizing the merger, whichever rate is lower.
The commissioners shall cause the amount to be raised by
taxation in each year to be certified to the county clerk in
the manner provided by law, and any tax so levied and certified
shall be collected and enforced in the same manner and by the
same officers as those taxes for the purposes of the county and
city within which the territory of the commission is located.
Any such tax, when collected, shall be paid over to the proper
officer of the commission who is authorized to receive and
receipt for such tax. The governing commission may issue tax
anticipation warrants against the taxes to be assessed for the
calendar year in which the program is created and for the first
full calendar year after the creation of the program.
    (c) The moneys deposited in the guarantee fund shall, as
nearly as practicable, be fully and continuously invested or
reinvested by the governing commission in investment
obligations which shall be in such amounts, and shall mature at
such times, that the maturity or date of redemption at the
option of the holder of such investment obligations shall
coincide, as nearly as practicable, with the times at which
monies will be required for the purposes of the program. For
the purposes of this Section investment obligation shall mean
direct general municipal, state, or federal obligations which
at the time are legal investments under the laws of this State
and the payment of principal of and interest on which are
unconditionally guaranteed by the governing body issuing them.
    (d) Except as permitted by this subsection and subsection
(d-5), the guarantee fund shall be used solely and exclusively
for the purpose of providing guarantees to members of the
particular Guaranteed Home Equity Program and for reasonable
salaries, expenses, bills, and fees incurred in administering
the program, and shall be used for no other purpose.
    A governing commission, with no less than $4,000,000 in its
guarantee fund, may, if authorized by referendum duly adopted
by a majority of the voters, establish a Low Interest Home
Improvement Loan Program in accordance with and subject to
procedures established by a financial institution, as defined
in the Illinois Banking Act. Whenever the question of creating
a Low Interest Home Improvement Loan Program is initiated by
resolution or ordinance of the corporate authorities of the
municipality or by a petition signed by not less than 10% of
the total number of registered voters of each precinct in the
territory, the registered voters of which are eligible to sign
the petition, it shall be the duty of the election authority
having jurisdiction over the municipality to submit the
question of creating the program to the electors of each
precinct within the territory at the regular election specified
in the resolution, ordinance, or petition initiating the
question. A petition initiating a question described in this
subsection shall be filed with the election authority having
jurisdiction over the municipality. The petition shall be filed
and objections to the petition shall be made in the manner
provided in the Election Code. A resolution, ordinance, or
petition initiating a question described in this subsection
shall specify the election at which the question is to be
submitted. The referendum on the question shall be held in
accordance with the Election Code. The question shall be in
substantially the following form:
        "Shall the (name of the home equity program) implement
    a Low Interest Home Improvement Loan Program with money
    from the guarantee fund of the established guaranteed home
    equity program?"
The votes must be recorded as "Yes" or "No".
    Whenever a majority of the voters on the public question
approve the creation of the program as certified by the proper
election authorities, the commission shall establish the
program and administer the program with funds collected under
the Guaranteed Home Equity Program, subject to the following
conditions:
        (1) At any given time, the cumulative total of all
    loans and loan guarantees (if applicable) issued under this
    program may not reduce the balance of the guarantee fund to
    less than $3,000,000.
        (2) Only eligible applicants may apply for a loan.
        (3) The loan must be used for the repair, maintenance,
    remodeling, alteration, or improvement of a guaranteed
    residence. This condition is intended to include the repair
    or maintenance of a guaranteed residence's water and sewer
    pipes and repair of a guaranteed residence, including but
    not limited to basement repairs, following flooding damage
    to the property. This condition is not intended to exclude
    the repair, maintenance, remodeling, alteration, or
    improvement of a guaranteed residence's landscape. This
    condition is intended to exclude the demolition of a
    current residence. This condition is also intended to
    exclude the construction of a new residence.
        (4) An eligible applicant may not borrow more than the
    amount of equity value in his or her residence.
        (5) A commission must ensure that loans issued are
    secured with collateral that is at least equal to the
    amount of the loan or loan guarantee.
        (6) A commission shall charge an interest rate which it
    determines to be below the market rate of interest
    generally available to the applicant.
        (7) A commission may, by resolution, establish other
    administrative rules and procedures as are necessary to
    implement this program including, but not limited to, loan
    dollar amounts and terms. A commission may also impose on
    loan applicants a one-time application fee for the purpose
    of defraying the costs of administering the program.
    (d-5) A governing commission, with no less than $4,000,000
in its guarantee fund, may, if authorized by referendum duly
adopted by a majority of the voters, establish a Foreclosure
Prevention Loan Fund to provide low interest emergency loans to
eligible applicants that may be forced into foreclosure
proceedings.
    Whenever the question of creating a Foreclosure Prevention
Loan Fund is initiated by resolution or ordinance of the
corporate authorities of the municipality or by a petition
signed by not less than 10% of the total number of registered
voters of each precinct in the territory, the registered voters
of which are eligible to sign the petition, it shall be the
duty of the election authority having jurisdiction over the
municipality to submit the question of creating the program to
the electors of each precinct within the territory at the
regular election specified in the resolution, ordinance, or
petition initiating the question. A petition initiating a
question described in this subsection shall be filed with the
election authority having jurisdiction over the municipality.
The petition shall be filed and objections to the petition
shall be made in the manner provided in the Election Code. A
resolution, ordinance, or petition initiating a question
described in this subsection shall specify the election at
which the question is to be submitted. The referendum on the
question shall be held in accordance with the Election Code.
The question shall be in substantially the following form:
    "Shall the (name of the home equity program) implement a
Foreclosure Prevention Loan Fund with money from the guarantee
fund of the established guaranteed home equity program?"
    The votes must be recorded as "Yes" or "No".
    Whenever a majority of the voters on the public question
approve the creation of a Foreclosure Prevention Loan Fund as
certified by the proper election authorities, the commission
shall establish the program and administer the program with
funds collected under the Guaranteed Home Equity Program,
subject to the following conditions:
        (1) At any given time, the cumulative total of all
    loans and loan guarantees (if applicable) issued under this
    program may not exceed $3,000,000.
        (2) Only eligible applicants may apply for a loan. The
    Commission may establish, by resolution, additional
    criteria for eligibility.
        (3) The loan must be used to assist with preventing
    foreclosure proceedings.
        (4) An eligible applicant may not borrow more than the
    amount of equity value in his or her residence.
        (5) A commission must ensure that loans issued are
    secured as a second lien on the property.
        (6) A commission shall charge an interest rate which it
    determines to be below the market rate of interest
    generally available to the applicant.
        (7) A commission may, by resolution, establish other
    administrative rules and procedures as are necessary to
    implement this program including, but not limited to,
    eligibility requirements for eligible applicants, loan
    dollar amounts, and loan terms.
        (8) A commission may also impose on loan applicants a
    one-time application fee for the purpose of defraying the
    costs of administering the program.
    (e) The guarantee fund shall be maintained, invested, and
expended exclusively by the governing commission of the program
for whose purposes it was created. Under no circumstance shall
the guarantee fund be used by any person or persons,
governmental body, or public or private agency or concern other
than the governing commission of the program for whose purposes
it was created. Under no circumstances shall the guarantee fund
be commingled with other funds or investments.
    (e-1) No commissioner or family member of a commissioner,
or employee or family member of an employee, may receive any
financial benefit, either directly or indirectly, from the
guarantee fund. Nothing in this subsection (e-1) shall be
construed to prohibit payment of expenses to a commissioner in
accordance with Section 4 or payment of salaries or expenses to
an employee in accordance with this Section.
    As used in this subsection (e-1), "family member" means a
spouse, child, stepchild, parent, brother, or sister of a
commissioner or a child, stepchild, parent, brother, or sister
of a commissioner's spouse.
    (f) An independent audit of the guarantee fund and the
management of the program shall be conducted annually and made
available to the public through any office of the governing
commission or a public facility such as a local public library
located within the territory of the program.
(Source: P.A. 95-691, eff. 6-1-08.)

Effective Date: 6/1/2015