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| Public Act 101-0143
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| HB2650 Enrolled | LRB101 07219 CPF 52257 b |
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AN ACT concerning safety.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Environmental Protection Act is amended by |
changing Section 19.3 as follows:
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(415 ILCS 5/19.3) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1019.3)
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Sec. 19.3. Water Revolving Fund.
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(a) There is hereby created within the State Treasury a |
Water Revolving
Fund, consisting of 3 interest-bearing special |
programs to be known as the
Water Pollution Control Loan |
Program, the Public Water Supply Loan Program, and
the Loan |
Support Program, which shall be used and administered by the |
Agency.
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(b) The Water Pollution Control Loan Program shall be used |
and administered
by the Agency to provide assistance for the |
following purposes:
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(1) to accept and retain funds from grant awards, |
appropriations,
transfers, and payments of interest and |
principal;
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(2) to make direct loans at or below market interest |
rates and to provide additional subsidization, including, |
but not limited to, forgiveness of principal, negative |
interest rates, and grants, to any
eligible local |
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government unit to finance the construction of
treatments |
works, including storm water treatment systems that are |
treatment works, and projects that fulfill federal State |
Revolving Fund grant requirements for a green project |
reserve;
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(2.5) with respect to funds provided under the American |
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009: |
(A) to make direct loans at or below market |
interest rates to any eligible local government unit |
and to provide additional subsidization to any |
eligible local government unit, including, but not |
limited to, forgiveness of principal, negative |
interest rates, and grants; |
(B) to make direct loans at or below market |
interest rates to any eligible local government unit to |
buy or refinance debt obligations for treatment works |
incurred on or after October 1, 2008; and |
(C) to provide additional subsidization, |
including, but not limited to, forgiveness of |
principal, negative interest rates, and grants for |
treatment works incurred on or after October 1, 2008; |
(3) to make direct loans at or below market interest |
rates and to provide additional subsidization, including, |
but not limited to, forgiveness of principal, negative |
interest rates, and grants, to any
eligible local |
government unit to buy or refinance debt obligations for |
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costs
incurred after March 7, 1985, for the construction of |
treatment works, including storm water treatment systems |
that are treatment works, and projects that fulfill federal |
State Revolving Fund grant requirements for a green project |
reserve;
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(3.5) to make loans, including, but not limited to, |
loans through a linked deposit program, at or below market |
interest rates for the
implementation of a management |
program established under Section 319 of the
Federal Water |
Pollution Control Act, as amended;
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(4) to guarantee or purchase insurance for local |
obligations
where such action would improve credit market |
access or reduce interest rates;
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(5) as a source of revenue or security for the payment |
of principal and
interest on revenue or general obligation |
bonds issued by the State or any
political subdivision or |
instrumentality thereof, if the proceeds of such
bonds will |
be deposited in the Fund;
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(6) to finance the reasonable costs incurred by the |
Agency in the
administration of the Fund;
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(7) to transfer funds to the Public Water Supply Loan |
Program; and
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(8) notwithstanding any other provision of this |
subsection (b), to provide, in accordance with rules |
adopted under this Title, any other financial assistance |
that may be provided under Section 603 of the Federal Water |
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Pollution Control Act for any other projects or activities |
eligible for assistance under that Section or federal rules |
adopted to implement that Section. |
(c) The Loan Support Program shall be used and administered |
by the Agency
for the following purposes:
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(1) to accept and retain funds from grant awards and |
appropriations;
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(2) to finance the reasonable costs incurred by the |
Agency in the
administration of the Fund, including |
activities under Title III of this
Act, including the |
administration of the State
construction grant program;
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(3) to transfer funds to the Water Pollution Control |
Loan
Program and the Public Water Supply Loan Program;
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(4) to accept and retain a portion of the loan |
repayments;
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(5) to finance the development of the low interest loan
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programs for water pollution control and public water |
supply projects;
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(6) to finance the reasonable costs incurred by the |
Agency to provide
technical assistance for public water |
supplies; and
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(7) to finance the reasonable costs incurred by the |
Agency for
public water system supervision programs, to |
administer or provide for
technical assistance through |
source water protection programs, to develop and
implement |
a capacity development strategy, to delineate and assess |
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source water
protection areas, and for an operator |
certification program in accordance with
Section 1452 of |
the federal Safe Drinking Water Act.
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(d) The Public Water Supply Loan Program shall be used and |
administered by
the Agency to provide assistance to local |
government units and privately owned
community water supplies |
for public water
supplies for the following public purposes:
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(1) to accept and retain funds from grant awards, |
appropriations,
transfers, and payments of interest and |
principal;
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(2) to make direct loans at or below market interest |
rates and to provide additional subsidization, including, |
but not limited to, forgiveness of principal, negative |
interest rates, and grants, to any eligible
local |
government unit or to any eligible privately owned |
community water supply
to finance the construction of water |
supplies and projects that fulfill federal State Revolving |
Fund grant requirements for a green project reserve;
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(2.5) with respect to funds provided under the American |
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009: |
(A) to make direct loans at or below market |
interest rates to any eligible local government unit or |
to any eligible privately owned community water |
supply, and to provide additional subsidization to any |
eligible local government unit or to any eligible |
privately owned community water supply, including, but |
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not limited to, forgiveness of principal, negative |
interest rates, and grants; |
(B) to buy or refinance the debt obligation of a |
local government unit for costs incurred on or after |
October 1, 2008; and
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(C) to provide additional subsidization, |
including, but not limited to, forgiveness of |
principal, negative interest rates, and grants for a |
local government unit for costs incurred on or after |
October 1, 2008; |
(3) to make direct loans at or below market interest |
rates and to provide additional subsidization, including, |
but not limited to, forgiveness of principal, negative |
interest rates, and grants, to any eligible local |
government unit or to any eligible privately owned |
community water supply to buy or refinance debt obligations |
for
costs incurred on or after July 17, 1997, for the |
construction of water supplies and projects that fulfill |
federal State Revolving Fund requirements for a green |
project reserve;
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(4) to guarantee local obligations where such action |
would improve credit
market access or reduce interest |
rates;
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(5) as a source of revenue or security for the payment |
of principal and
interest on revenue or general obligation |
bonds issued by the State or any
political subdivision or |
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instrumentality thereof, if the proceeds of such
bonds will |
be deposited into the Fund;
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(6) to transfer funds to the Water Pollution Control |
Loan Program; and
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(7) notwithstanding any other provision of this |
subsection (d), to provide to local government units and |
privately owned community water supplies any other |
financial assistance that may be provided under Section |
1452 of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act for any |
expenditures eligible for assistance under that Section or |
federal rules adopted to implement that Section. |
(e) The Agency is designated as the administering agency of |
the Fund.
The Agency shall submit to the Regional Administrator |
of the United States
Environmental Protection Agency an |
intended use plan which outlines the
proposed use of funds |
available to the State. The Agency shall take all
actions |
necessary to secure to the State the benefits of the federal
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Water Pollution Control Act and the federal Safe Drinking Water |
Act, as now
or hereafter amended.
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(f) The Agency shall have the power to enter into |
intergovernmental
agreements with the federal government or |
the State, or any instrumentality
thereof, for purposes of |
capitalizing the Water Revolving Fund.
Moneys on deposit in the |
Water Revolving Fund may be used for the
creation of reserve |
funds or pledged funds that secure the obligations
of repayment |
of loans made pursuant to this Section. For the purpose
of |
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obtaining capital for deposit into the Water Revolving Fund, |
the
Agency may also enter into agreements with financial |
institutions and other
persons for the purpose of selling loans |
and developing a secondary market
for such loans. The Agency |
shall have the power to create and establish such
reserve funds |
and accounts as may be necessary or desirable to accomplish its
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purposes under this subsection and to allocate its available |
moneys into such
funds and accounts. Investment earnings on |
moneys held in the Water Revolving
Fund, including any reserve |
fund or pledged fund, shall be deposited into the
Water |
Revolving Fund.
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(g) Beginning on the effective date of this amendatory Act |
of the 101st General Assembly, and running for a period of 5 |
years after that date, the Agency shall prioritize within its |
annual intended use plan the usage of a portion of the Agency's |
capitalization grant for federally authorized set-aside |
activities. The prioritization is for the purpose of supporting |
disadvantaged communities and utilities throughout Illinois in |
building their capacity for sustainable and equitable water |
management. This may include, but is not limited to, assistance |
for water rate studies, preliminary engineering or other |
facility planning, training activities, asset management |
plans, assistance with identification and replacement of lead |
service lines, and studies of efficiency measures through |
utility regionalization or other collaborative |
intergovernmental approaches. |
