§ 20a

(a) Territory not exceeding 100 acres included within the limits of any fire protection district and a home rule municipality that provides fire protection services or within the limits of any fire protection district and wholly surrounded by a home rule municipality having between 50,000 and 55,000 inhabitants that provides fire protection services, in any county having a population of 1,000,000 or more, may be disconnected from the district and receive fire protection services from the municipality, regardless of whether the transfer will cause the territory remaining in the district to be noncontiguous, with the boundaries of the noncontiguous sections not to be separated by a distance of more than 2,000 feet, in the manner set forth in this Section and under the following conditions: (1) if the fire stations of the municipality are manned 24 hours a day; (2) if the territory being disconnected is all of the territory within the fire protection district contained within the limits of the municipality or is all of the unincorporated territory within the fire protection district area wholly surrounded by a municipality having between 50,000 and 55,000 inhabitants; and (3) if the corporate authorities of the municipality to which transfer is sought do not file a written refusal to accept the territory within the time required under this Section. (b) Territory disconnected under this Section shall remain liable for its proportionate share of the bonded indebtedness outstanding as of the date of disconnection, if any, of the district from which it was disconnected. (c) Five per cent or more of the legal voters residing within the limits of the territory proposed to be transferred may file a petition, in the court of the county where the municipality to which it seeks to be transferred is located, setting forth the following: the description of the territory sought to be transferred and the amount of any outstanding bonded indebtedness against the district in which the territory is then situated that has been incurred under this Act; and praying that the question whether the transfer shall be made, and whether the voters of such territory shall remain liable for a proportionate share of the bonded indebtedness outstanding as of the date of disconnection, if any, of the district from which it was disconnected, be submitted to the voters of the territory sought to be transferred. (d) Upon the filing of the petition, the court shall set a day for hearing, not less than 2 weeks nor more than 4 weeks from the filing of the petition, and the court, or the circuit clerk or sheriff upon order of the court, shall give 2 weeks notice of the hearing in one or more daily or weekly newspapers of general circulation in the county or in each county where the district from which the territory sought to be transferred is organized, and by posting at least 10 copies of the notice in conspicuous places in the district from which the territory is sought to be transferred. In addition, the court shall cause a copy of the notice to be personally served upon the corporate authorities of the municipality to which the transfer is sought at least one week before the date set for the hearing, and in the notice, or in any accompanying notice to be served upon the corporate authorities at the same time, a recital shall be made stating that the corporate authorities may at any time before the date of the hearing, or within such additional time as may be granted by the court upon request in writing filed on or before that date, file a written refusal to accept the territory as a part of their municipality. The notification need not be given to the corporate authorities if they file in the proceeding their written appearances or written consent to the transfer. (e) At any time before the date set for the hearing, or within such additional time as may be granted by the court, the corporate authorities of the municipality to which the transfer is sought to be made may file a written refusal to accept the transfer, and in case of their refusal the court shall enter an order dismissing the petition for the transfer. The corporate authorities may withdraw their refusal at any time before the entry of an order dismissing the petition. In case the corporate authorities fail to file a written refusal within the time required under this Section, they shall be deemed to have consented to the transfer, and that consent once given may not be withdrawn without leave of court for good cause shown. In case of such consent, the court shall proceed with the matter as provided in this Section, but if the court finds that any of the conditions required under this Section for the making of a transfer do not exist, it shall enter an order dismissing the petition. In taking any action upon the petition, the findings of the court shall become a part of the court record in the case. (f) All property owners in the district from which the transfer is sought, and all persons interested therein, may file objections, at the hearing they may appear and contest the transfer and the matters averred in the petition, and both objectors and petitioners may offer any competent evidence in regard to those matters. In addition, all persons residing in or interested in any of the property situated in the territory sought to be transferred shall have an opportunity to be heard concerning the location and boundary of the territory to be voted upon for transfer, and they may make suggestions regarding those matters. (g) If the court shall, upon hearing the petition, find that the petition meets the conditions imposed under this Section, it shall certify to the proper election officials the question of whether the territory shall be transferred, and those officials shall submit that question at an election in the territory in accordance with the general election law. The proposition shall be in substantially the following form: -------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - For making the transfer for fire protection purposes from the Fire Protection District to the Village (City) of , remaining liable for a proportionate share of the bonded indebtedness outstanding as of the date of disconnection, if any, of the district from which disconnection is proposed. -------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Against making the transfer for fire protection purposes from the Fire Protection District to the Village (City) of , remaining liable for a proportionate share of the bonded indebtedness outstanding as of the date of disconnection, if any, of the district from which disconnection is proposed. -------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - If a majority of the votes cast upon the question of making the transfer shall be in favor of the transfer, the territory shall then cease to be a part of the fire protection district or districts to which it has been attached and shall receive fire protection services from the municipality of which it is a part. In each case in which a transfer is effected under this Section, the circuit clerk in whose court the transfer proceedings have been conducted shall certify copies of all orders entered in effecting the transfer and file or send them to the proper county clerk or clerks for filing and to the Office of the State Fire Marshal. (h) If no legal voters reside in the territory being disconnected and proposed to be transferred, a majority of all owners, whether corporate or individual, of real property in the territory being disconnected and proposed to be transferred may file a petition in the circuit court of the county in which is located the municipality to which the district is proposed to be transferred. The petition shall set forth the description of the territory sought to be transferred and the amount of any outstanding bonded indebtedness against the district in which the territory is then situated that has been incurred under this Act. The petition shall request that the court order the disconnection and transfer. Upon the filing of the petition the court shall set a date for a hearing not less than 2 weeks nor more than 4 weeks after the date the petition is filed. The court, or the circuit clerk or sheriff upon order of the court, shall give 2 weeks notice of the hearing by publishing the notice in one or more daily or weekly newspapers of general circulation in the county or in each county where the district from which the territory is sought to be transferred is organized and by posting at least 10 copies of the notice in conspicuous places in the district from which the territory is sought to be transferred. In addition, the court shall cause a copy of the notice to be personally served on the corporate authorities of the municipality to which the transfer is sought at least one week before the date set for the hearing. In that notice or in any accompanying notice to be served upon the corporate authorities at the same time, a recital shall be made stating that the corporate authorities, at any time before the date of the hearing or within additional time granted by the court upon written request filed on or before that date, may file a written refusal to accept the territory as a part of the municipality. The notification need not be given to the corporate authorities if they file in the proceeding their written appearances or written consent to the transfer. If the court finds that the petition is filed by a majority of all owners, whether corporate or individual, of real property within the district and that the provisions of subsection (a) have been met, the court shall order the disconnection, and the territory shall cease to be a part of the fire protection district or districts to which it has been attached and shall receive fire protection services from the municipality of which it is a part. In each case in which a transfer is effected under this subsection, the circuit court in which the transfer proceedings have been conducted shall certify copies of all orders entered in effecting the transfer and shall file them with or send them to the proper county clerk or clerks for filing. The court also shall send them to the Office of the State Fire Marshal. This subsection (h) applies only to petitions to disconnect where the territory being disconnected is a portion of a fire protection district and the territory being disconnected is within an unincorporated area wholly surrounded by the municipality having between 50,000 and 55,000 inhabitants.

Legislative History

(Source: P.A. 89-509, eff. 7-5-96 .)