HB0033 Engrossed

LRB095 03557 DRH 23561 b






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    AN ACT concerning transportation.

 
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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 Rivers, Lakes, and Streams Act is amended  by 
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adding Section 23b as follows:
 
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    (615 ILCS 5/23b  new)
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    Sec. 23b. Dams; signs and buoys.
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    (a) The Department of Natural Resources shall establish 
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specifications for signs and devices that provide warnings of 
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the presence of dams for persons using the public waters of the 
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State.  The Department shall establish such specifications 
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pursuant to administrative rule.
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    (b)  For dams located in public waters and that are not 
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subject to federal regulation regarding safety standards, the 
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Department of Natural Resources shall examine each dam to 
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determine hazards that may exist at each dam.
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    (c) The Department of Natural Resources shall, after 
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conducting the examination required under subsection (b) of 
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this Section, submit administrative rules setting forth 
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appropriate safety devices to be required at each dam.
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    (d)  The Department of Natural Resources shall be authorized 
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to designate enforceable exclusion zones around dams pursuant 
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to administrative rule.  Violation of such exclusion zones shall 
 


 






HB0033 Engrossed
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LRB095 03557 DRH 23561 b




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constitute a Class A misdemeanor.
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    (e) Except for willful and wanton misconduct, neither the 
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Department of Natural Resources nor employees or agents of the 
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Department shall be liable for damages, injuries, or deaths 
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occurring at dams located in public waters by reason of the 
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Department's regulation thereof pursuant to this Section.  
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Nothing in this Act shall relieve an owner or operator of a dam 
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from the legal duties, obligations, and liabilities arising 
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from ownership or operation.

 

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    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
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becoming law.