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| 1 |  |  AN ACT concerning local government.
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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 5. The Elmwood Park Grade Separation Authority Act  | 
| 5 |  | is amended by changing Sections 5, 15, 20, 35, 50, and 100 as  | 
| 6 |  | follows:
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| 7 |  |  (70 ILCS 1935/5)
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| 8 |  |  Sec. 5. Definitions. As used in this Act: | 
| 9 |  |  "Authority" means the Elmwood Park Grade Separation  | 
| 10 |  | Authority.
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| 11 |  |  "Person" includes an individual, partnership, firm, public  | 
| 12 |  | or private corporation, and government or unit of government. | 
| 13 |  |  "Railroad" or "Railroads" means the Northeast Illinois  | 
| 14 |  | Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation, created under  | 
| 15 |  | subsection (a) of Section 2.20 of the Regional Transportation  | 
| 16 |  | Authority Act, Canadian Pacific Railway and other railroads  | 
| 17 |  | operating or owning trackage or right-of-way within the area of  | 
| 18 |  | the Authority. | 
| 19 |  |  "Village" means the Village of Elmwood Park.
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| 20 |  | (Source: P.A. 98-564, eff. 8-27-13.)
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| 21 |  |  (70 ILCS 1935/15)
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| 22 |  |  Sec. 15. Creation; duration; termination of the Authority.   | 
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| 1 |  | There is created a body politic and corporate, a unit of local  | 
| 2 |  | government, named the Elmwood Park Grade Separation Authority  | 
| 3 |  | that embraces that portion of Leyden Township within the  | 
| 4 |  | Village of Elmwood Park, Cook County, Illinois. The Authority  | 
| 5 |  | shall continue in existence until the accomplishment of its  | 
| 6 |  | objectives or until the Authority officials resolve that it is  | 
| 7 |  | impossible or economically unfeasible to fulfill its  | 
| 8 |  | objectives. Objectives of the Authority include the grade  | 
| 9 |  | separation of railroad tracks from the right-of-way of Grand  | 
| 10 |  | Avenue in the Village of Elmwood Park, the relocation of  | 
| 11 |  | railroad tracks and roadway to facilitate the grade separation,  | 
| 12 |  | and other necessary, related improvements to the right-of-way  | 
| 13 |  | and at-grade crossing closure within the Village of Elmwood  | 
| 14 |  | Park. The Authority shall be dissolved upon its voluntary  | 
| 15 |  | termination or 6 months after the first use of the railway on  | 
| 16 |  | the grade separation structure by a Railroad. Upon termination  | 
| 17 |  | or dissolution of the Authority after the construction of the  | 
| 18 |  | grade separation project, the Department of Transportation  | 
| 19 |  | shall own and maintain the grade separation structure and the  | 
| 20 |  | Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation  | 
| 21 |  | Canadian Pacific Railway Company shall own and maintain the  | 
| 22 |  | railway along the grade separation structure.
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| 23 |  | (Source: P.A. 98-564, eff. 8-27-13.)
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| 24 |  |  (70 ILCS 1935/20)
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| 25 |  |  Sec. 20. Procedural capacity; seal; office.  The Authority  | 
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| 1 |  | may sue and be sued in its corporate name, but execution shall  | 
| 2 |  | not in any case issue against any property of the Authority.  | 
| 3 |  | The grade separation project Authority shall be subject to the  | 
| 4 |  | jurisdiction of the Illinois Commerce Commission. It may adopt  | 
| 5 |  | a common seal and change the seal at pleasure. The principal  | 
| 6 |  | office of the Authority shall be in the Village of Elmwood  | 
| 7 |  | Park, Illinois. | 
| 8 |  |  The Authority may enter into contracts for the performance  | 
| 9 |  | of its objectives, including agreements with other State  | 
| 10 |  | entities and departments, as well as provide for the letting of  | 
| 11 |  | construction contracts, consultant service agreements,  | 
| 12 |  | professional and trade services, and other agreements  | 
| 13 |  | consistent with the purposes and objectives of the Authority  | 
| 14 |  | established by this Act. The Authority may accept  | 
| 15 |  | jurisdictional transfer of public right-of-way for purposes of  | 
| 16 |  | eliminating at-grade street and railroad crossings.
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| 17 |  | (Source: P.A. 98-564, eff. 8-27-13.)
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| 18 |  |  (70 ILCS 1935/35)
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| 19 |  |  Sec. 35. Acceptance of grants, loans, and appropriations.   | 
| 20 |  | The Authority has the power to apply for and accept grants,  | 
| 21 |  | loans, advances, and appropriations from the federal  | 
| 22 |  | government and from the State of Illinois, or any agency or  | 
| 23 |  | instrumentality thereof, to be used for the purposes of the  | 
| 24 |  | Authority, and to enter into any agreement in relation to such  | 
| 25 |  | grants, loans, advances, and appropriations. The Authority may  | 
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| 1 |  | also accept from the State, or any State agency, department, or  | 
| 2 |  | commission, any county or other political subdivision, any  | 
| 3 |  | municipal corporation, any Railroads, school authorities, or  | 
| 4 |  | jointly therefrom, grants of funds or services for any of the  | 
| 5 |  | purposes of this Act. The Authority shall be treated as a rail  | 
| 6 |  | carrier, with only the grade separation project being subject  | 
| 7 |  | to the Illinois Commerce Commission's jurisdiction, and  | 
| 8 |  | eligible to receive money from the Grade Crossing Protection  | 
| 9 |  | Fund, any fund of the State, or other source available for  | 
| 10 |  | purposes of promoting safety and separation of at-grade  | 
| 11 |  | railroad crossings or highway improvements. | 
| 12 |  |  The Illinois Commerce Commission Crossing Safety  | 
| 13 |  | Improvement Program FY 2014-2018 Plan shall be revised to  | 
| 14 |  | include this Authority's grade separation project as one of the  | 
| 15 |  | bridge projects contemplated for FY 2015 through FY 2018, and  | 
| 16 |  | funds from the Grade Crossing Protection Fund shall be  | 
| 17 |  | allocated in the FY 2015 through FY 2018 Plan for said grade  | 
| 18 |  | separation project. No Order of the Illinois Commerce  | 
| 19 |  | Commission shall be effective or binding on the Authority to  | 
| 20 |  | construct the grade separation project unless the federal  | 
| 21 |  | government, the State of Illinois, or any agency or  | 
| 22 |  | instrumentality thereof has granted or appropriated sufficient  | 
| 23 |  | funds for the construction of the grade separation project and  | 
| 24 |  | the Authority is in receipt of those funds. Notwithstanding,  | 
| 25 |  | the Illinois Commerce Commission shall not withhold approval of  | 
| 26 |  | the construction of the Authority's grade separation project or  | 
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| 1 |  | the issuance of any Orders that authorize the construction of  | 
| 2 |  | the Authority's grade separation project.
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| 3 |  |  Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the  | 
| 4 |  | Illinois Commerce Commission's jurisdiction under this Act  | 
| 5 |  | includes the authority to use funds from the Grade Crossing  | 
| 6 |  | Protection Fund to reimburse the Elmwood Park Grade Separation  | 
| 7 |  | Authority, in an amount not to exceed $12,000,000, for the  | 
| 8 |  | construction of a grade separation to replace the existing  | 
| 9 |  | Grand Avenue highway-rail grade crossing of tracks owned by the  | 
| 10 |  | Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation,  | 
| 11 |  | without regard to whether all or part of the crossing is within  | 
| 12 |  | the jurisdiction of the Department of Transportation, the  | 
| 13 |  | Regional Transportation Authority or any subdivision or unit  | 
| 14 |  | thereof, or any other State agency or unit of local government. | 
| 15 |  |  The Elmwood Park Grade Separation Authority shall conduct a  | 
| 16 |  | preliminary engineering study for the construction of a grade  | 
| 17 |  | separation to replace the existing Grand Avenue highway-rail  | 
| 18 |  | grade crossing, which shall result in the preparation of  | 
| 19 |  | preliminary engineering plans and an estimate of cost. The  | 
| 20 |  | Elmwood Park Grade Separation Authority shall also prepare a  | 
| 21 |  | funding plan for the grade separation project. The Elmwood Park  | 
| 22 |  | Grade Separation Authority shall submit a copy of the  | 
| 23 |  | preliminary engineering study, estimate of cost, and funding  | 
| 24 |  | plan for the construction of a grade separation to replace the  | 
| 25 |  | existing Grand Avenue highway-rail grade crossing to the  | 
| 26 |  | Illinois Commerce Commission for its review. | 
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| 1 |  |  Following receipt of the preliminary engineering study,  | 
| 2 |  | estimate of cost, and funding plan for the Grand Avenue grade  | 
| 3 |  | separation project, the Illinois Commerce Commission shall  | 
| 4 |  | consider that project as one of the bridge projects included in  | 
| 5 |  | the Illinois Commerce Commission's Crossing Safety Improvement  | 
| 6 |  | Program during the earliest 5-year programming cycle, and funds  | 
| 7 |  | from the Grade Crossing Protection Fund shall be programmed for  | 
| 8 |  | that grade separation project. | 
| 9 |  |  No funds from the Grade Crossing Protection Fund programmed  | 
| 10 |  | for the Grand Avenue grade separation project shall be provided  | 
| 11 |  | unless authorized by the Illinois Commerce Commission. Funds  | 
| 12 |  | from the Grade Crossing Protection Fund programmed for the  | 
| 13 |  | Grand Avenue grade separation project may not exceed  | 
| 14 |  | $12,000,000, and shall only be provided to the Elmwood Park  | 
| 15 |  | Grade Separation Authority as reimbursement for expenses  | 
| 16 |  | already incurred.  | 
| 17 |  | (Source: P.A. 98-564, eff. 8-27-13.)
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| 18 |  |  (70 ILCS 1935/50)
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| 19 |  |  Sec. 50. Board; composition; qualification; compensation  | 
| 20 |  | and expenses.  The Authority shall be governed by a 7 member  | 
| 21 |  | 9-member board consisting of members appointed by the Governor  | 
| 22 |  | with the advice and consent of the Senate. Five members shall  | 
| 23 |  | be voting members and 2 4 members shall be non-voting members.  | 
| 24 |  | The voting members shall consist of the following: | 
| 25 |  |   (1) two former public officials who served within the  | 
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| 1 |  |  Township of Leyden or the Village of Elmwood Park and are  | 
| 2 |  |  recommended to the Governor by the Village President of the  | 
| 3 |  |  Village of Elmwood Park; | 
| 4 |  |   (2) one current employee two prior employees of the  | 
| 5 |  |  Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation  | 
| 6 |  |  Canadian Pacific Railway with management experience; and  | 
| 7 |  |   (3) one current employee of Canadian Pacific Railway;  | 
| 8 |  |  and  | 
| 9 |  |   (4) (3) one resident of the Township of Leyden or the  | 
| 10 |  |  Village of Elmwood Park.  | 
| 11 |  |  The non-voting members shall consist of the following:  | 
| 12 |  |   (1) the Village President of the Village of Elmwood  | 
| 13 |  |  Park; and  | 
| 14 |  |   (2) one current employee of Canadian Pacific Railway  | 
| 15 |  |  with management experience;  | 
| 16 |  |   (3) one current employee of Northeast Illinois  | 
| 17 |  |  Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation with management  | 
| 18 |  |  experience; and  | 
| 19 |  |   (2) (4) one current employee of the Department of  | 
| 20 |  |  Transportation with management experience.  | 
| 21 |  |  The members of the board shall serve without compensation,  | 
| 22 |  | but may be reimbursed for actual expenses incurred by them in  | 
| 23 |  | the performance of their duties prescribed by the Authority.  | 
| 24 |  | However, any member of the board who serves as secretary or  | 
| 25 |  | treasurer may receive compensation for services as that  | 
| 26 |  | officer.
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| 1 |  | (Source: P.A. 98-564, eff. 8-27-13; 98-756, eff. 7-16-14.)
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| 2 |  |  (70 ILCS 1935/100)
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| 3 |  |  Sec. 100. Construction. Nothing in this Act shall be  | 
| 4 |  | construed to confer upon the Authority the right, power, or  | 
| 5 |  | duty to order or enforce the abandonment of any present  | 
| 6 |  | property of the railroads or the use in substitution therefor  | 
| 7 |  | of any property acquired for the railroads in the absence of a  | 
| 8 |  | contract duly executed by the railroads and the Authority  | 
| 9 |  | setting forth the terms and conditions upon which relocation of  | 
| 10 |  | the right-of-way and physical facilities of the railroads is to  | 
| 11 |  | be accomplished. No such contract shall be or become  | 
| 12 |  | enforceable until the provisions of the contract have been  | 
| 13 |  | approved or authorized by the Illinois Commerce Commission. | 
| 14 |  |  Any construction improvements to signaling or any other  | 
| 15 |  | aspect of the grade separation project dictated by the Railroad  | 
| 16 |  | or the Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad  | 
| 17 |  | Corporation shall be paid for respectively by the Railroad or  | 
| 18 |  | the Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation. | 
| 19 |  |   The Railroad or the Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter  | 
| 20 |  | Railroad Corporation, or both, shall specifically pay any and  | 
| 21 |  | all costs associated with any upgrades to the railway. 
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| 22 |  | (Source: P.A. 98-564, eff. 8-27-13.)
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| 23 |  |  Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon  | 
| 24 |  | becoming law.
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