Public Act 103-0134
 
HB1740 EnrolledLRB103 27957 AWJ 54335 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 Rescue Squad Districts Act is amended by
changing Sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6.5, 7, 8, 11, 11.5, 13,
14, and 15 and by adding Sections 2.5, 11.3, and 11.4 as
follows:
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/1)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6851)
    Sec. 1. This Act may be cited as the Emergency Services
Rescue Squad Districts Act.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/2)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6852)
    Sec. 2. Any contiguous territory having a population of
not less than 300 inhabitants and no part of which is already
included in an emergency services a rescue squad district, and
no part of which is located in a fire protection district that
provides rescue services, may be organized as an emergency
services a rescue squad district as provided in this Act.
However, an emergency services district may be organized in
whole or in part within a fire protection district that
provides rescue services if the emergency services district is
formed and operated solely to provide ambulance services.
    Any 5% of the legal voters within the limits of the
proposed emergency services rescue squad district may petition
the circuit court for the county in which the territory lies to
order the question whether the territory shall be organized as
an emergency services a rescue squad district under this Act
to be submitted to the legal voters of the territory, but every
petition shall be signed by at least 25 legal voters residing
within the territory proposed to be organized as an emergency
services a rescue squad district, and in case the territory
includes more than one city, village or incorporated town, or
any portions thereof, or includes one or more cities, villages
or incorporated towns, or any portion thereof, and territory
not a part of any city, village or incorporated town, then the
petition must be signed by at least 5% of the legal voters
residing in each of those cities, villages, or incorporated
towns, or portions thereof, and by at least 5% of the legal
voters residing in the territory not a part of any city,
village or incorporated town. The petition shall contain a
definite description of the boundaries of the territory
proposed to be organized as an emergency services a rescue
squad district, and shall set forth the name of the proposed
district, which name shall be The .... Emergency Services
Rescue Squad District.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/2.5 new)
    Sec. 2.5. Rescue squad district continuance. A rescue
squad district organized under this Act before the effective
date of this amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly may
(i) continue to be named a rescue squad district or be renamed
an emergency services district by ordinance of the board of
trustees of the district, (ii) operate under the provisions of
this Act as if they were organized as an emergency services
district, and (iii) continue exercising taxing authority
granted to it that was approved before the effective date of
this amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly and the
taxes may be used for any purpose allowed under this Act.
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/3)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6853)
    Sec. 3. Upon the filing of a petition in the office of the
circuit clerk, the court to whom the petition is addressed
shall give notice of the time and place of a hearing on the
question of the necessity for the organization of an emergency
services a rescue squad district and of the boundaries of the
proposed district. The notice shall be published at least once
each week for 2 weeks in one or more newspapers of general
circulation in the proposed district, and a copy of the notice
shall be posted in at least 10 of the most public places in the
proposed district at least 10 days before the hearing. The
hearing shall be held within 20 days after the petition is
filed with the circuit clerk.
    The court shall preside at the hearing, and all persons
resident within the territory proposed to be organized as an
emergency services a rescue squad district shall be given an
opportunity to be heard touching the necessity of the
organization of a district and to make suggestions regarding
the boundaries of the district. After hearing the statements,
evidence and suggestions, if the court determines that
considerations of public health and welfare make the
organization of a district necessary, it shall fix the
boundaries of the proposed emergency services rescue squad
district and, for that purpose and to that extent, may alter
and amend the petition. In case the boundaries as fixed by the
court include any territory not included in the boundaries as
described in the original petition, the court shall cause a
notice to be inserted at least twice in some newspaper of
general circulation in the additional territory, which notice
shall state the time and place at which a hearing will be held
to permit the owners of the land in the additional territory to
appear and be heard on the question of including the
additional territory. The notice shall be published at least
10 days before the hearing, and the hearing shall be held
within 3 weeks after the court first fixes the boundaries. At
the hearing the boundaries of the proposed district shall be
finally fixed by the court.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/4)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6854)
    Sec. 4. The determination of the court as to the necessity
for the organization of the proposed emergency services rescue
squad district, together with the description of the
boundaries of the district as fixed by the court, shall be
entered of record in the court. Thereupon the court shall
certify the question of the organization of the territory
included within the boundaries fixed by it as an emergency
services a rescue squad district to the proper election
officials, who shall submit the question to the legal voters
resident within the territory at an election to be held in the
district. Notice of the referendum shall be given and the
referendum conducted in the manner provided by the general
election law. The notice of the election shall state the
purpose of the referendum, describe the territory proposed to
be organized as an emergency services a rescue squad district,
and state the time of the election.
    The proposition shall be in substantially the following
form:
-------------------------------------------------------------
    Shall this territory (describing
it) be organized as The ...........               YES
Emergency Services Rescue Squad
District and shall the
District be authorized to levy and     ----------------------
collect a property tax not to exceed
.20% on the property situated in the              NO
District?
-------------------------------------------------------------
    The court shall cause a statement of the result to be
entered of record in the court.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/5)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6855)
    Sec. 5. If a majority of the votes cast on the question are
in favor of the organization of the territory as an emergency
services a rescue squad district, the territory shall be an
organized emergency services rescue squad district under this
Act. The district shall have the name set forth in the petition
and by such name may transact all corporate business. The name
of a rescue squad district may be modified under Section 2.5.
The district shall constitute a body corporate and politic.
All courts of this State shall take judicial notice of the
organization of the emergency services rescue squad district.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/6)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6856)
    Sec. 6. Within 60 days after the organization of an
emergency services any rescue squad district under the
provisions of this Act, a board of trustees, consisting of 5
members, for the government and control of the affairs and
business of the emergency services rescue squad district shall
be appointed in the following manner:
        (1) If the district lies wholly within a single
    township, the board of trustees of that township shall
    appoint the trustees for the district, but no township
    official is eligible for such appointment.
        (2) If the district is not contained wholly within a
    single township, but is located wholly within a single
    county, the trustees for the district shall be appointed
    by the presiding officer of the county board, with the
    advice and consent of the county board.
        (3) If the district lies wholly within a municipality,
    the governing body of the municipality shall appoint
    trustees for the district.
        (4) If the district does not conform to any of the
    foregoing classifications, the trustees for the district
    shall be from each county in the district in numbers
    proportionate, as nearly as practicable, to the number of
    residents of the district who reside in each county in
    relation to the total population of the district. Trustees
    shall be appointed by the county board of their respective
    counties, or in the case of a home rule county as defined
    by Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution,
    by the chief executive officer of that county, with the
    advice and consent of the county board.
    Upon the expiration of the term of a trustee who is in
office at the time of the publication of each decennial
federal census of population, the successor shall be a
resident of whichever county is entitled to the representation
in order to bring about the proportional representation
required by this Act, and the successor shall be appointed by
the appointing authority of that county. Thereafter, each
trustee shall be succeeded by a resident of the same county,
who shall be appointed by the same appointing authority. Of
the trustees first appointed, 3 shall hold office until the
second Monday in December after the next succeeding general
election for members of the General Assembly and 2 shall hold
office until the second Monday in December 2 years after the
next succeeding general election for members of the General
Assembly, and until their successors are appointed and
qualified. Thereafter, the trustees of the district shall be
appointed in every year in which the term of any of the
trustees expires and shall hold office for 4 years and until
their successors are appointed and qualified. Each trustee
shall be a legal voter in the district. Each trustee shall be
compensated at the same rate, which shall not exceed $750 per
fiscal year, as determined by the board of trustees.
    Whenever a vacancy occurs in the board of trustees the
appropriate appointing authority shall appoint some person to
fill the remainder of the unexpired term.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/6.5)
    Sec. 6.5. Change to elected board of trustees; petition;
election; ballot; nomination and election of trustees. An
emergency services Any rescue squad district organized under
this Act may have an elected, rather than an appointed, board
of trustees if approved by referendum. Upon presentation to
the board of trustees of a petition, signed by not less than
10% of the electors of the district, requesting that a
proposition for the election of trustees be submitted to the
electors of the district, the secretary of the board of
trustees shall certify the proposition to the appropriate
election authorities who shall submit the proposition at a
regular election in accordance with the general election law.
The general election law shall apply to and govern such
election. The proposition shall be in substantially the
following form:
----------------------------------------------
    Shall the trustees of ......                YES
Emergency Services Rescue Squad
District be elected, rather              --------------------
than appointed?                                  NO
-------------------------------------------------------------
        If a majority of the votes cast on such proposition
    are in the affirmative, the trustees of the district shall
    thereafter be elected as provided by this Section.
    At the next regular election for trustees as provided by
the general election law, a district that has approved by
referendum to have its trustees elected rather than appointed
shall elect 5 initial trustees. The initial elected trustees
shall be elected as follows: 2 shall be elected for terms of 2
years, 2 for terms of 4 years, and one for a term of 6 years.
Except as otherwise provided in Section 2A-54 of the Election
Code, the term of each elected trustee shall commence on the
third Monday of the month following the month of his or her
election and until his or her successor is elected and
qualified. The length of the terms of the trustees first
elected shall be determined by lot at their first meeting.
Thereafter, except as otherwise provided in Section 2A-54 of
the Election Code, each trustee shall be elected to serve for a
term of 4 years commencing on the third Monday of the month
following the month of his or her election and until his or her
successor is elected and qualified.
    No party designation shall appear on the ballot for
election of trustees. The provisions of the general election
law shall apply to and govern the nomination and election of
trustees.
    Nominations for members of the board of trustees shall be
made by a petition signed by at least 25 voters or 5% of the
voters, whichever is less, residing within the district and
shall be filed with the secretary of the board. In addition to
the requirements of general election law, the form of the
petition shall be as follows:
NOMINATING PETITIONS
    To the Secretary of the Board of Trustees of (name of
emergency services rescue squad district):
    We, the undersigned, being (number of signatories or 5% or
more) of the voters residing within the district, hereby
petition that (name of candidate) who resides at (address of
candidate) in this district shall be a candidate for the
office of (office) of the Board of Trustees (full-term or
vacancy) to be voted for at the election to be held (date of
election).
    The secretary of the board shall notify each candidate for
whom a petition for nomination has been filed of their
obligations under the Campaign Financing Act, as required by
the general election law. The notice shall be given on a form
prescribed by the State Board of Elections and in accordance
with the requirements of the general election law.
    The secretary shall, within 7 days of filing or on the last
day for filing, whichever is earlier, acknowledge to the
petitioner in writing his acceptance of the petition.
    The provisions of Section 6 relating to eligibility and
compensation of trustees shall apply equally to elected
trustees.
    Whenever an emergency services a rescue squad district
determines to elect trustees as provided in this Section, the
trustees appointed pursuant to Section 6 shall continue to
constitute the board of trustees until the third Monday of the
month following the month of the first election of trustees.
If the term of office of any appointed trustees expires before
the first election of trustees, the authority which appointed
that trustee under Section 6 of this Act shall appoint a
successor to serve until a successor is elected and has
qualified. The terms of all appointed trustees in such
district shall expire on the third Monday of the month
following the month of the first election of trustees under
this Section or when successors have been elected and have
qualified, whichever occurs later.
(Source: P.A. 99-295, eff. 8-6-15.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/7)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6857)
    Sec. 7. The trustees appointed in accordance with this Act
shall constitute a board of trustees for the emergency
services rescue squad district for which they are appointed,
and that board of trustees is declared to be the corporate
authority of the district and shall exercise all of the powers
and control all of the affairs and property of the district.
The board of trustees may provide and adopt a corporate seal.
Immediately after their appointment and at their first meeting
in December of each year thereafter, the board of trustees
shall elect one of their number as president, one as
secretary, and one as treasurer, and shall elect such other
officers as may be necessary. The board of trustees shall
provide for the time and place of holding regular meetings and
may establish rules for board proceedings. Special meetings
may be called by the president of the board or by any 3
trustees, but each member of the board shall be given notice of
a special meeting at least 24 hours before the meeting. All of
the meetings of the board, whether regular or special, shall
be open to the public. A majority of the board of trustees
shall constitute a quorum, but a smaller number may adjourn
from day to day. The board shall keep a regular book of records
of all of the proceedings of the board, which book shall be
open to the inspection of any person residing in the district
at all reasonable and proper times.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/8)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6858)
    Sec. 8. The board of trustees of the district shall have
power to take all necessary or proper steps to provide rescue
services within the district; to purchase equipment, supplies,
and materials; to recruit, employ, or contract with ambulance,
rescue squad, or both ambulance and rescue squad personnel,
who shall be compensated at a rate determined by the board of
trustees; and generally to do any and all things necessary or
incident to the powers granted by this Act and to carry out the
objects of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/11)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6861)
    Sec. 11. An emergency services A rescue squad district
organized under this Act may levy and collect a general tax on
the property situated in the district, but the aggregate
amount of taxes levied for any one year shall not exceed the
rate of .20% of value, as equalized or assessed by the
Department of Revenue. The board of trustees shall determine
and certify the amount to be levied and shall return the same
to the county clerk. The limitation upon the tax rate may be
increased or decreased under the referendum provisions of the
General Revenue Law of Illinois.
    In case the district is located in more than one county,
the board of trustees shall determine and certify the amount
to be levied upon the taxable property lying in each county and
return the same to the respective county clerks of the
counties in which the amount is to be levied. In order to
determine the amount to be levied upon the taxable property of
that part of the district lying in each county, the board shall
ascertain from the county clerk of the respective counties in
which the district lies the last ascertained equalized value
of the taxable property of the district lying in their
respective counties, then shall ascertain the rate per cent
required and shall, accordingly, apportion the whole amount to
be raised between the several parts of the district so lying in
the different counties. The tax provided for in this Section
shall be levied at the same time and in the same manner as
nearly as practicable as taxes are now levied for municipal
purposes under the laws of this State.
    All general taxes under this Act, when collected, shall be
paid over to the treasurer of the board of trustees, who is
authorized to receive and receipt for the same.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/11.3 new)
    Sec. 11.3. Ambulance service.
    (a) The board of trustees may provide ambulance service to
or from points within or without the district, contract with
providers of ambulance service, combine with other units of
local government for the purpose of providing ambulance
service, and adopt rules and regulations relating to ambulance
service within the board's jurisdiction.
    (b) The board of trustees may:
        (1) contract with a private person, hospital,
    corporation, or another governmental unit for the
    provision and operation of ambulance service or subsidize
    the ambulance service;
        (2) limit the number of ambulance services by
    referendum;
        (3) within its jurisdiction, fix, charge, and collect
    fees for ambulance service within or outside of the fire
    protection district not exceeding the reasonable cost of
    the service; and
        (4) establish necessary regulations not inconsistent
    with the statutes or regulations of the Department of
    Public Health relating to ambulance service.
    The board of trustees may limit the number of ambulances
under paragraph (2) or establish regulations under paragraph
(4) if a referendum under Section 11.5 has been approved.
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/11.4 new)
    Sec. 11.4. Charge for ambulance service.
    (a) The board of trustees of a district may fix, charge,
and collect fees not exceeding the reasonable cost of the
service for ambulance services rendered by the district
against persons who are not residents of the district and
against businesses and other entities that are not located
within the district.
    (b) A fee charged under subsection (a) shall be computed
at a rate not to exceed $250 per hour and not to exceed $70 per
hour per ambulance worker responding to a call for assistance.
An additional fee may be charged to reimburse the district for
extraordinary expenses of materials used in rendering
ambulance services. No charge shall be made for services for
which the total charge would be less than $50.
    (c) All revenue from the fees charged under this Section
shall be deposited to the district's general fund.
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/11.5)
    Sec. 11.5. Ambulance service tax. Whenever the board of
trustees of an emergency services a rescue squad district
desires to levy a special tax to provide an ambulance service
or support an existing ambulance service, it shall certify the
question to the proper election officials, who shall submit
that question at an election to the voters of the district. The
result of the referendum shall be entered upon the records of
the district. If a majority of the votes on the question are in
favor of the question, the board of trustees may then levy a
special tax at a rate not to exceed 0.40% of the value of all
taxable property within the district as equalized or assessed
by the Department of Revenue. The question shall be in
substantially the following form:
----------------------------
    Shall the ....
Emergency Services Rescue Squad
District levy a special tax at a rate             YES
not to exceed 0.40% of the value of all
taxable property within the district        -----------------
as equalized or assessed by the
Department of Revenue for the purpose             NO
of providing or supporting an ambulance
service?
-------------------------------------------------------------
    A tax levied under Section 11 may be used for ambulance
services as well as a tax levied under this Section.
(Source: P.A. 100-1120, eff. 1-1-19.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/13)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6863)
    Sec. 13. Any territory lying adjacent and contiguous to an
emergency services a rescue squad district, and not part of
another emergency services rescue squad district and not part
of a fire protection district that provides rescue services,
may be annexed to the district as provided in this Section.
    Upon petition in writing, describing the territory
proposed to be annexed and signed by a majority of the legal
voters in that territory and by the owners of more than half of
the taxable property in that territory as shown by the last
ascertained equalized value of the taxable property in that
territory being filed with the trustees of the district, the
trustees may annex the territory by a resolution which shall
be published at least once in a newspaper having a general
circulation in the territory and shall include a notice of (1)
the specific number of voters required to sign a petition
requesting that the question of the adoption of the resolution
be submitted to the electors of the territory, (2) the time in
which the petition must be filed, and (3) the date of the
prospective referendum. The county clerk of the county in
which the territory is situated shall provide a petition form
to any individual requesting one. The resolution shall be
effective 45 days from the date of publication and is subject
to a referendum, if a referendum is requested, before the
effective date of the resolution, by the lesser of 1,000
voters or 5% of the voters in the district. The trustees may
also order the question of the annexation of the territory to
be submitted to the legal voters of the district at a regular
election by certifying the question to the proper election
officials. Notice of the election shall be given and the
election conducted in the manner provided by the general
election law. The proposition shall be stated as follows:
"Shall the territory (describing it) be annexed to The ....
Emergency Services Rescue Squad District?" If the majority of
all the votes cast on the question is in favor of annexation,
the board of trustees shall so certify to the county clerk, and
within 10 days of the election the trustees by an order duly
entered upon their records shall annex the territory to the
district and shall file a map of the annexed territory in the
office of the county clerk of the county where the annexed
territory is situated. Thereupon the territory shall be deemed
annexed to and shall be a part of the emergency services rescue
squad district.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/14)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6864)
    Sec. 14. A district organized under this Act may be
dissolved and discontinued upon like petition, hearing and
election as is provided in this Act for the organization of a
district. If a majority of the votes cast on the question at
the election are in favor of dissolution, the court shall
enter an order of record in the court dissolving the district.
The trustees of the district shall immediately proceed to wind
up the affairs of the district and shall have the same powers
as before dissolution to levy taxes for the purpose of paying
the debts, obligations and liabilities of the district
outstanding on the date of dissolution and the necessary
expenses of closing up the affairs of the district. All
property of the district shall be sold and, in case any excess
remains after all liabilities of the district are paid, the
excess shall be paid to the various common school districts
located in the district ratably in the proportion that the
taxable value of all the property in each of the school
districts bears to the taxable value of all the property in the
emergency services rescue squad district.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    (70 ILCS 2005/15)  (from Ch. 85, par. 6865)
    Sec. 15. The owner or owners of record of any area of land
consisting of one or more tracts lying within the corporate
limits of an emergency services a rescue squad district may
have the area disconnected from the district as provided in
this Section.
    The owner or owners of record of the tract or tracts of
land shall file a petition in the circuit court of the county
in which the district was organized alleging facts in support
of disconnection, including the following:
        (1) That the tract or tracts involved are located upon
    the border of the district.
        (2) That disconnection will not result in the
    isolation of any part of the district from the remainder
    of the district.
        (3) That disconnection will not destroy or impair the
    effectiveness of the district in the performance of its
    lawful functions.
        (4) That disconnection will not jeopardize the
    financial position of the district.
        (5) That disconnection will not adversely affect the
    public health and welfare.
        (6) That rescue services are provided by a fire
    protection district or other unit of local government.
    The district from which disconnection is sought shall be
made a defendant, and it or any taxpayer residing in the
district may appear and defend against the petition. The court
shall set the petition for hearing on a date not less than 30
days after the filing of the petition. If the court finds that
the allegations of the petition are true and that the area of
land is entitled to disconnection, it shall order the
specified land disconnected from the district and thereupon
that land shall cease to be a part of the district. The land
shall not, however, be relieved from any bonded indebtedness
of the district previously created as to that land's
proportionate share. The decision of the court is appealable
as in other civil cases.
(Source: P.A. 86-916.)
 
    Section 10. The Collective Bargaining Freedom Act is
amended by changing Section 10 as follows:
 
    (820 ILCS 12/10)
    Sec. 10. Definitions. In this Act:
    "Employer" includes any person acting as an agent of an
employer, directly or indirectly, but does not include the
United States or any wholly owned government corporation, or
any Federal Reserve Bank, or any State or political
subdivision thereof, or any person subject to the Railway
Labor Act, 45 U.S.C. 151 et seq., as amended from time to time,
or any labor organization (other than when acting as an
employer), or anyone acting in the capacity of officer or
agent of such labor organization.
    "Interested party" means a person with an interest in
compliance with this Act.
    "Labor organization" means any organization of any kind,
or any agency or employee representation committee or plan, in
which employees participate and that exists for the purpose,
in whole or in part, of dealing with employers concerning
grievances, labor disputes, wages, rates of pay, hours of
employment, or conditions of work.
    "Local government" and "political subdivision" include,
but are not limited to, any county, city, town, township,
village, municipality or subdivision thereof, airport
authority, cemetery district, State college or university,
community college, conservation district, drainage district,
electric agency, exposition and auditorium authority, fire
protection district, flood prevention district, forest
preserve district, home equity program, hospital district,
housing authority, joint action water agency, mass transit
district, mosquito abatement district, multi-township
assessment district, museum district, natural gas agency, park
district, planning agency, port district, public building
commission, public health district, public library district,
public water district, emergency services rescue squad
district, river conservancy district, road and bridge
district, road district, sanitary district, school district,
soil and water conservation district, solid waste agency,
special recreation association, street lighting district,
surface water district, transportation authority, water
authority, water commission, water reclamation district, water
service district, municipal corporation, and any other
district, agency, or political subdivision authorized to
legislate or enact laws affecting its respective jurisdiction,
notwithstanding such local government or political
subdivision's authority to exercise any power and perform any
function pertaining to its government and affairs granted to
it by the Illinois Constitution, a law, or otherwise.
(Source: P.A. 101-3, eff. 4-12-19.)

Effective Date: 1/1/2024