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| | 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026 SB2073 Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Chapin Rose SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: | | 525 ILCS 15/5 | from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 9105 |
| Amends the Illinois Forestry Development Act. Provides that the report the Department of Natural Resources files in writing with the General Assembly on or before March 1 of each year must include, among other things, a description of the amount of revenue the Department received from the 4% timber harvest fee under the Timber Buyers Licensing Act from the preceding year. Effective immediately. |
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| | A BILL FOR |
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1 | | AN ACT concerning conservation. |
2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, |
3 | | represented in the General Assembly: |
4 | | Section 5. The Illinois Forestry Development Act is |
5 | | amended by changing Section 5 as follows: |
6 | | (525 ILCS 15/5) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 9105) |
7 | | Sec. 5. A forest development cost share program is created |
8 | | and shall be administered by the Department of Natural |
9 | | Resources. |
10 | | A timber grower who desires to participate in the cost |
11 | | share program shall devise a forest management plan. To be |
12 | | eligible to submit a proposed forest management plan, a timber |
13 | | grower must own or operate at least 10 contiguous acres of land |
14 | | in this State on which timber is produced, except that, no acre |
15 | | on which a permanent building is located shall be included in |
16 | | calculations of acreage for the purpose of determining |
17 | | eligibility. Timber growers with Department approved forest |
18 | | management plans covering less than 10 acres in effect on or |
19 | | before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th |
20 | | General Assembly shall continue to be eligible under the |
21 | | Illinois Forestry Development Act provisions. The proposed |
22 | | forest management plan shall include a description of the land |
23 | | to be managed under the plan, a description of the types of |
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1 | | timber to be grown, a projected harvest schedule, a |
2 | | description of forest management practices to be applied to |
3 | | the land, an estimation of the cost of such practices, plans |
4 | | for afforestation, plans for regenerative harvest and |
5 | | reforestation, and a description of soil and water |
6 | | conservation goals and wildlife habitat enhancement which will |
7 | | be served by implementation of the forest management plan. |
8 | | Upon receipt from a timber grower of a draft forest |
9 | | management plan, the Department shall review the plan and, if |
10 | | necessary, assist the timber grower to revise the plan. The |
11 | | Department shall officially approve acceptable plans. Forest |
12 | | management plans shall be revised as necessary and all |
13 | | revisions must be approved by the Department. A plan shall be |
14 | | evaluated every 2 years for reapproval. |
15 | | The eligible land shall be maintained in a forest |
16 | | condition for a period of 10 years or until commercial |
17 | | harvest, whichever last occurs, as required by the plan. |
18 | | The Department shall enter into agreements with timber |
19 | | growers with approved forest management plans under which the |
20 | | Department shall agree to pay a share of the total cost of |
21 | | acceptable forest management plans and practices implemented |
22 | | under the plan. The cost share amount is up to 80% of the total |
23 | | cost of the forest management practices for such practices |
24 | | approved to be funded from monies appropriated for this |
25 | | purpose for subsequent fiscal years. Cost share funds shall be |
26 | | paid from monies appropriated to the Department by the General |
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1 | | Assembly for that purpose from the Illinois Forestry |
2 | | Development Fund or any other fund in the State Treasury. |
3 | | Starting in 2025, the Department shall file a report in |
4 | | writing to the General Assembly on or before March 1 of each |
5 | | year with the following information from the preceding year: |
6 | | the amount of revenue the Department received from the 4% |
7 | | timber harvest fee under the Timber Buyers Licensing Act; the |
8 | | total number of agreements entered into pursuant to this |
9 | | Section, the total amount of payments made pursuant to this |
10 | | Section from the Illinois Forestry Development Fund, and the |
11 | | total number of acres that were affected by the payments. |
12 | | The Department, upon recommendations made to it by the |
13 | | Council, may provide for the categorization of forest |
14 | | management practices and determine an appropriate cost share |
15 | | percentage for each such category. Forest management practices |
16 | | submitted by timber growers on whose timber sales fees of 4% of |
17 | | the sale amount were paid as provided in Section 9a of the |
18 | | "Timber Buyers Licensing Act", approved September 1, 1969, may |
19 | | be accorded a priority for approval within the assigned |
20 | | category. Such timber growers may receive a cost share amount |
21 | | which is increased above the amount for which they would |
22 | | otherwise qualify by an amount equal to the fees paid by the |
23 | | timber grower on sales occurring in the 2 fiscal years |
24 | | immediately preceding the fiscal year in which the forest |
25 | | management practices are approved and funded; provided, |
26 | | however, that the total cost share amount shall not exceed the |
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1 | | total cost of the approved forest management practices. |
2 | | Upon transfer of his or her right and interest in the land |
3 | | or a change in land use, the timber grower shall forfeit all |
4 | | rights to future payments and other benefits resulting from an |
5 | | approved plan and shall refund to the Department all payments |
6 | | received therefrom during the previous 10 years unless the |
7 | | transferee of any such land agrees with the Department to |
8 | | assume all obligations under the plan. |
9 | | (Source: P.A. 103-795, eff. 8-9-24.) |
10 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
11 | | becoming law. |