20 ILCS 605/605-60

(20 ILCS 605/605-60)

(Text of Section before amendment by P.A. 104-27)

Sec. 605-60. DCEO Projects Fund. The DCEO Projects Fund is created as a trust fund in the State treasury. The Department is authorized to accept and deposit into the Fund moneys received from any gifts, grants, transfers, or other sources, public or private, unless deposit into a different fund is otherwise mandated. Subject to appropriation, the Department shall use moneys in the Fund to make grants or loans to and enter into contracts with units of local government, local and regional economic development corporations, and not-for-profit organizations for municipal development projects, for the specific purposes established by the terms and conditions of the gift, grant, or award, and for related administrative expenses. As used in this Section, the term "municipal development projects" includes, but is not limited to, grants for reducing food insecurity in urban and rural areas.

(Source: P.A. 103-588, eff. 6-5-24.)

(Text of Section after amendment by P.A. 104-27)

Sec. 605-60. DCEO Projects Fund.

(a) The DCEO Projects Fund is created as a trust fund in the State treasury. The Department is authorized to accept and deposit into the Fund moneys received from any gifts, grants, transfers, or other sources, public or private, unless deposit into a different fund is otherwise mandated.

(b) Subject to appropriation, the Department shall use moneys in the Fund to make grants or loans to and enter into contracts with units of local government, local and regional economic development corporations, retail associations, and not-for-profit organizations for municipal development projects, for the specific purposes established by the terms and conditions of the gift, grant, or award, and for related administrative expenses. As used in this Section, the term "municipal development projects" includes, but is not limited to, grants for reducing food insecurity in urban and rural areas.

(c) In this subsection, "rural tract" and "urban tract" have the meanings given to those terms in Section 5 of the Grocery Initiative Act.

Subject to appropriation, the Department shall use moneys deposited into the Fund pursuant to Section 513b2 of the Illinois Insurance Code to make a grant to a statewide retail association representing pharmacies to promote access to pharmacies and pharmacist services. Grant funds under this subsection shall be made available to the following beneficiaries:

(1) critical access care pharmacies as defined in Section 5-5.12b of the Illinois Public Aid Code;

(2) retail pharmacies with a physical location in Illinois owned by a person or entity with an ownership or control interest in fewer than 10 pharmacies;

(3) retail pharmacies with a physical location in a county in Illinois with fewer than 50,000 residents;

(4) retail pharmacies with a physical location in a county in Illinois with 50,000 or more residents and in an area within Illinois that is designated by the United States Department of Health and Human Services as either: (A) a Medically Underserved Area, including Governor's Exceptions; or (B) a Medically Underserved Population, including Governor's Exceptions;

(5) pharmacies whose claims constitute 65% or greater for Medicaid services and at least 80% of their total claims are for pharmacy services administered in Illinois;

(6) a pharmacy located in an Illinois census tract that meets both of the following poverty and population density and pharmacy accessibility standards:

(A) the census tract has either: (i) 20% or more of its population living below the poverty guidelines updated periodically in the Federal Register by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under the authority of 42 U.S.C. 9902(2); or (ii) a median household income of less than 80% of the median income of the nearest metropolitan area; and

(B) the census tract has at least 33% of its population living one mile or more from the pharmacy for urban tracts or more than 10 miles from the pharmacy for rural tracts.

At least annually, the Department shall file with the Governor and the General Assembly a report that includes:

(1) the number of beneficiaries who applied for funding;

(2) the number of beneficiaries who received funding; and

(3) the pharmacies that were awarded funding, including the location, the amount of funding, and the subsection category or categories under which the pharmacy qualified.

(Source: P.A. 103-588, eff. 6-5-24; 104-27, eff. 1-1-26.)