Public Act 102-0460
 
HB3160 EnrolledLRB102 14747 AWJ 20100 b

    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Forest
Preserve District and Conservation District Design-Build
Authorization Act.
 
    Section 5. Purpose. This purpose of this Act is to
authorize forest preserve districts and conservation districts
to use design-build processes to increase the efficiency and
effectiveness of delivering public projects.
 
    Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
    "Delivery system" means the design and construction
approach used to develop and construct a project.
    "Design-bid-build" means the traditional delivery system
used on public projects that incorporates the Local Government
Professional Services Selection Act, the competitive bidding
process set forth in Section 6 of the Conservation District
Act, the competitive bidding process set forth in subsection
(b) of Section 8 of the Downstate Forest Preserve District
Act, or the competitive bidding process set forth in Section
14 of the Cook County Forest Preserve District Act.
    "Design-build" means a delivery system that provides
responsibility within a single contract for the furnishing of
architecture, engineering, land surveying, and related
services as required and the labor, materials, equipment, and
other construction services for the project.
    "Design-build contract" means a contract for a public
project under this Act between a forest preserve district or
conservation district and a design-build entity to furnish:
architecture, engineering, land surveying, public art or
interpretive exhibits, and related services, as required; and
the labor, materials, equipment, and other construction
services for the project.
    "Design-build entity" means any individual, sole
proprietorship, firm, partnership, joint venture, corporation,
professional corporation, or other entity that proposes to
design and construct any public project under this Act. A
design-build entity and associated design professionals shall
conduct themselves in accordance with the relevant laws of
this State and the related provisions of the Illinois
Administrative Code.
    "Design professional" means any individual, sole
proprietorship, firm, partnership, joint venture, corporation,
professional corporation, or other entity that offers services
under the Illinois Architecture Practice Act of 1989, the
Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989, the Structural
Engineering Practice Act of 1989, or the Illinois Professional
Land Surveyor Act of 1989.
    "Evaluation criteria" means the requirements for the
separate phases of the selection process as defined in this
Act and may include the specialized experience, technical
qualifications and competence, capacity to perform, past
performance, experience with similar projects, assignment of
personnel to the project, and other appropriate factors.
    "Proposal" means the offer to enter into a design-build
contract as submitted by a design-build entity in accordance
with this Act.
    "Public art designer" means any individual, sole
proprietorship, firm, partnership, joint venture, corporation,
professional corporation, or other entity that has
demonstrated experience with the design and fabrication of
public art including any media that has been planned and
executed with the intention of being staged in the physical
public domain outside and accessible to all or any art which is
exhibited in a public space including publicly accessible
buildings, or interpretive exhibits including communication
media that is designed to engage, excite, inform, relate, or
reveal the intrinsic nature or indispensable quality of a
topic or story being presented.
    "Request for proposal" means the document used by the
forest preserve district or conservation district to solicit
proposals for a design-build contract.
    "Scope and performance criteria" means the requirements
for the public project, including, but not limited to, the
intended usage, capacity, size, scope, quality and performance
standards, life-cycle costs, and other programmatic criteria
that are expressed in performance-oriented and quantifiable
specifications and drawings that can be reasonably inferred
and are suited to allow a design-build entity to develop a
proposal.
 
    Section 15. Solicitation of proposals.
    (a) A forest preserve district or conservation district
may enter into design-build contracts. In addition to the
requirements set forth in its local ordinances, when the
forest preserve district or conservation district elects to
use the design-build delivery method, it must issue a notice
of intent to receive proposals for the project at least 14 days
before issuing the request for the proposal. The forest
preserve district or conservation district must publish the
advance notice in the manner prescribed by ordinance, which
shall include posting the advance notice online on its
website. The forest preserve district or conservation district
may publish the notice in construction industry publications
or post the notice on construction industry websites. A brief
description of the proposed procurement must be included in
the notice. The forest preserve district or conservation
district must provide a copy of the request for proposal to any
party requesting a copy.
    (b) The request for proposal shall be prepared for each
project and must contain, without limitation, the following
information:
        (1) The name of the forest preserve district or
    conservation district.
        (2) A preliminary schedule for the completion of the
    contract.
        (3) The proposed budget for the project, the source of
    funds, and the currently available funds at the time the
    request for proposal is submitted.
        (4) Prequalification criteria for design-build
    entities wishing to submit proposals. The forest preserve
    district or conservation district shall include, at a
    minimum, its normal prequalification, licensing,
    registration, and other requirements; however, nothing
    precludes the use of additional prequalification criteria
    by the forest preserve district or conservation district.
        (5) Material requirements of the contract, including,
    but not limited to, the proposed terms and conditions,
    required performance and payment bonds, insurance, and the
    entity's plan to comply with the utilization goals for
    business enterprises established in the Business
    Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with
    Disabilities Act and with Section 2-105 of the Illinois
    Human Rights Act.
        (6) The performance criteria.
        (7) The evaluation criteria for each phase of the
    solicitation. Price may not be used as a factor in the
    evaluation of Phase I proposals.
        (8) The number of entities that will be considered for
    the technical and cost evaluation phase.
    (c) The forest preserve district or conservation district
may include any other relevant information that it chooses to
supply. The design-build entity shall be entitled to rely upon
the accuracy of this documentation in the development of its
proposal.
    (d) The date that proposals are due must be at least 21
calendar days after the date of the issuance of the request for
proposal. In the event the cost of the project is estimated to
exceed $12,000,000, then the proposal due date must be at
least 28 calendar days after the date of the issuance of the
request for proposal. The forest preserve district or
conservation district shall include in the request for
proposal a minimum of 30 days to develop the Phase II
submissions after the selection of entities from the Phase I
evaluation is completed.
 
    Section 20. Development of scope and performance criteria.
    (a) The forest preserve district or conservation district
shall develop, with the assistance of a licensed design
professional or public art designer, a request for proposal,
which shall include scope and performance criteria. The scope
and performance criteria must be in sufficient detail and
contain adequate information to reasonably apprise the
qualified design-build entities of the forest preserve
district's or conservation district's overall programmatic
needs and goals, including criteria and preliminary design
plans, general budget parameters, schedule, and delivery
requirements.
    (b) Each request for proposal shall also include a
description of the level of design to be provided in the
proposals. This description must include the scope and type of
renderings, drawings, and specifications that, at a minimum,
will be required by the forest preserve district or
conservation district to be produced by the design-build
entities.
    (c) The scope and performance criteria shall be prepared
by a design professional or public art designer who is an
employee of the forest preserve district or conservation
district, or the forest preserve district or conservation
district may contract with an independent design professional
or public art designer selected under the Local Government
Professional Services Selection Act to provide these services.
    (d) The design professional or public art designer that
prepares the scope and performance criteria is prohibited from
participating in any design-build entity proposal for the
project.
    (e) The design-build contract may be conditioned upon
subsequent refinements in scope and price and may allow the
forest preserve district or conservation district to make
modifications in the project scope without invalidating the
design-build contract.
 
    Section 25. Procedures for Selection.
    (a) The forest preserve district or conservation district
must use a two-phase procedure for the selection of the
successful design-build entity. Phase I of the procedure will
evaluate and shortlist the design-build entities based on
qualifications, and Phase II will evaluate the technical and
cost proposals.
    (b) The forest preserve district or conservation district
shall include in the request for proposal the evaluating
factors to be used in Phase I. These factors are in addition to
any prequalification requirements of design-build entities
that the forest preserve district or conservation district has
set forth. Each request for proposal shall establish the
relative importance assigned to each evaluation factor and
subfactor, including any weighting of criteria to be employed
by the forest preserve district or conservation district. The
forest preserve district or conservation district must
maintain a record of the evaluation scoring to be disclosed in
event of a protest regarding the solicitation.
    The forest preserve district or conservation district
shall include the following criteria in every Phase I
evaluation of design-build entities: (i) experience of
personnel; (ii) successful experience with similar project
types; (iii) financial capability; (iv) timeliness of past
performance; (v) experience with similarly sized projects;
(vi) successful reference checks of the firm; (vii) commitment
to assign personnel for the duration of the project and
qualifications of the entity's consultants; and (viii) ability
or past performance in meeting or exhausting good faith
efforts to meet the utilization goals for business enterprises
established in the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women,
and Persons with Disabilities Act and with Section 2-105 of
the Illinois Human Rights Act. The forest preserve district or
conservation district may include any additional relevant
criteria in Phase I that it deems necessary for a proper
qualification review.
    The forest preserve district or conservation district may
not consider any design-build entity for evaluation or award
if the entity has any pecuniary interest in the project or has
other relationships or circumstances, including, but not
limited to, long-term leasehold, mutual performance, or
development contracts with the forest preserve district or
conservation district, that may give the design-build entity a
financial or tangible advantage over other design-build
entities in the preparation, evaluation, or performance of the
design-build contract or that create the appearance of
impropriety. No proposal shall be considered that does not
include an entity's plan to comply with the requirements
established in the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women,
and Persons with Disabilities Act, for both the design and
construction areas of performance, and with Section 2-105 of
the Illinois Human Rights Act.
    Upon completion of the qualifications evaluation, the
forest preserve district or conservation district shall create
a shortlist of the most highly qualified design-build
entities. The forest preserve district or conservation
district, in its discretion, is not required to shortlist the
maximum number of entities as identified for Phase II
evaluation, provided that no less than 2 design-build entities
nor more than 6 are selected to submit Phase II proposals.
    The forest preserve district or conservation district
shall notify the entities selected for the shortlist in
writing. This notification shall commence the period for the
preparation of the Phase II technical and cost evaluations.
The forest preserve district or conservation district must
allow sufficient time for the shortlist entities to prepare
their Phase II submittals considering the scope and detail
requested by the forest preserve district or conservation
district.
    (c) The forest preserve district or conservation district
shall include in the request for proposal the evaluating
factors to be used in the technical and cost submission
components of Phase II. Each request for proposal shall
establish, for both the technical and cost submission
components of Phase II, the relative importance assigned to
each evaluation factor and subfactor, including any weighting
of criteria to be employed by the forest preserve district or
conservation district. The forest preserve district or
conservation district must maintain a record of the evaluation
scoring to be disclosed in event of a protest regarding the
solicitation.
    The forest preserve district or conservation district
shall include the following criteria in every Phase II
technical evaluation of design-build entities: (i) compliance
with objectives of the project; (ii) compliance of proposed
services to the request for proposal requirements; (iii)
quality of products or materials proposed; (iv) quality of
design parameters; (v) design concepts; (vi) innovation in
meeting the scope and performance criteria; and (vii)
constructability of the proposed project. The forest preserve
district or conservation district may include any additional
relevant technical evaluation factors it deems necessary for
proper selection.
    The forest preserve district or conservation district
shall include the following criteria in every Phase II cost
evaluation: the total project cost, the construction costs,
and the time of completion. The forest preserve or
conservation district may include any additional relevant
technical evaluation factors it deems necessary for proper
selection. The total project cost criteria weighing factor
shall not exceed 30%.
    The forest preserve or conservation district shall
directly employ or retain a licensed design professional or a
public art designer to evaluate the technical and cost
submissions to determine if the technical submissions are in
accordance with generally accepted industry standards.
    Upon completion of the technical submissions and cost
submissions evaluation, the forest preserve or conservation
district may award the design-build contract to the highest
overall ranked entity.
 
    Section 30. Small projects. In any case where the total
overall cost of the project is estimated to be less than
$12,000,000, the forest preserve or conservation district may
combine the two-phase procedure for selection described in
Section 25 into one combined step, provided that all the
requirements of evaluation are performed in accordance with
Section 25.
 
    Section 35. Submission of proposals. Proposals must be
properly identified and sealed. Proposals may not be reviewed
until after the deadline for submission has passed as set
forth in the request for proposals. All design-build entities
submitting proposals shall be disclosed after the deadline for
submission, and all design-build entities who are selected for
Phase II evaluation shall also be disclosed at the time of that
determination.
    Proposals shall include a bid bond in the form and
security as designated in the request for proposals. Proposals
shall also contain a separate sealed envelope with the cost
information within the overall proposal submission. Proposals
shall include a list of all design professionals, public art
designers, and other entities to which any work may be
subcontracted during the performance of the contract.
    Proposals must meet all material requirements of the
request for proposal or they may be rejected as
non-responsive. The forest preserve or conservation district
shall have the right to reject any and all proposals.
    The drawings and specifications of the proposal may remain
the property of the design-build entity.
    The forest preserve or conservation district shall review
the proposals for compliance with the performance criteria and
evaluation factors.
    Proposals may be withdrawn prior to evaluation for any
cause. After evaluation begins by the forest preserve or
conservation district, clear and convincing evidence of error
is required for withdrawal.
 
    Section 40. Award. The forest preserve or conservation
district may award the contract to the highest overall ranked
entity. Notice of award shall be made in writing. Unsuccessful
entities shall also be notified in writing. The forest
preserve or conservation district may not request a best and
final offer after the receipt of proposals. The forest
preserve or conservation district may negotiate with the
selected design-build entity after award but prior to contract
execution for the purpose of securing better terms than
originally proposed, provided that the salient features of the
request for proposal are not diminished.
 
    Section 45. Reports and evaluation. At the end of every 6
month period following the contract award, and again prior to
final contract payout and closure, a selected design-build
entity shall detail, in a written report submitted to the
forest preserve or conservation district, its efforts and
success in implementing the entity's plan to comply with the
utilization goals for business enterprises established in the
Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with
Disabilities Act and the provisions of Section 2-105 of the
Illinois Human Rights Act.
 
    Section 905. The Conservation District Act is amended by
changing Section 6 as follows:
 
    (70 ILCS 410/6)  (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 7106)
    Sec. 6. Officers and employees. As soon as possible after
the initial election or the initial appointments, as the case
may be, the trustees shall organize by selecting from their
members a president, secretary, treasurer, and other officers
as are deemed necessary, who shall hold office for 2 years in
the case of an elected board, or the fiscal year in which
elected in the case of an appointed board, and until their
successors are selected and qualify. Three trustees shall
constitute a quorum of the board for the transaction of
business if the district has 5 trustees. If the district has 7
trustees, 4 trustees shall constitute a quorum of the board
for the transaction of business. The board shall hold regular
monthly meetings. Special meetings may be called by the
president and shall be called on the request of a majority of
members, as may be required.
    The board shall provide for the proper and safe keeping of
its permanent records and for the recording of the corporate
action of the district. It shall keep a proper system of
accounts showing a true and accurate record of its receipts
and disbursements, and it shall cause an annual audit to be
made of its books, records, and accounts.
    The records of the district shall be subject to public
inspection at all reasonable hours and under regulations as
the board may prescribe.
    The district shall annually make a full and complete
report to the county board of each county within the district
and to the Department of Natural Resources of its transactions
and operations for the preceding year. The report shall
contain a full statement of its receipts, disbursements, and
the program of work for the period covered, and may include
recommendations as may be deemed advisable.
    Executive or ministerial duties may be delegated to one or
more trustees or to an authorized officer, employee, agent,
attorney, or other representative of the district.
    All officers and employees authorized to receive or retain
the custody of money or to sign vouchers, checks, warrants, or
evidences of indebtedness binding upon the district shall
furnish surety bond for the faithful performance of their
duties and the faithful accounting for all moneys that may
come into their hands in an amount to be fixed and in a form to
be approved by the board.
    All contracts for supplies, material, or work involving an
expenditure in excess of $30,000 $25,000, or a lower amount if
required by board policy, shall be let to the lowest
responsible bidder, after due advertisement, excepting work
requiring personal confidence or necessary supplies under the
control of monopolies, where competitive bidding is
impossible, or as otherwise provided in the Forest Preserve
District and Conservation District Design-Build Authorization
Act. All contracts for supplies, material, or work shall be
signed by the president of the board and by any other officer
as the board in its discretion may designate.
(Source: P.A. 99-771, eff. 8-12-16.)
 
    Section 910. The Downstate Forest Preserve District Act is
amended by changing Section 8 as follows:
 
    (70 ILCS 805/8)  (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 6315)
    Sec. 8. Powers and duties of corporate authority and
officers; contracts; salaries.
    (a) The board shall be the corporate authority of such
forest preserve district and shall have power to pass and
enforce all necessary ordinances, rules and regulations for
the management of the property and conduct of the business of
such district. The president of such board shall have power to
appoint such employees as may be necessary. In counties with
population of less than 3,000,000, within 60 days after their
selection the commissioners appointed under the provisions of
Section 3a of this Act shall organize by selecting from their
members a president, vice president, secretary, treasurer and
such other officers as are deemed necessary who shall hold
office for the fiscal year in which elected and until their
successors are selected and qualify. In the one district in
existence on July 1, 1977, that is managed by an appointed
board of commissioners, the incumbent president and the other
officers appointed in the manner as originally prescribed in
this Act shall hold such offices until the completion of their
respective terms or in the case of the officers other than
president until their successors are appointed by said
president, but in all cases not to extend beyond January 1,
1980 and until their successors are selected and qualify.
Thereafter, the officers shall be selected in the manner as
prescribed in this Section except that their first term of
office shall not expire until June 30, 1981 and until their
successors are selected and qualify.
    (a-5) An officer selected pursuant to subsection (a) may
be removed, with or without cause, upon a motion adopted by an
affirmative vote of four-fifths of the board of the forest
preserve district. Upon adoption of a motion to remove an
officer: (i) the office becomes vacant and the former
officer's compensation shall be prorated to the date the
motion was approved; (ii) if the officer removed is the
president then the vice president immediately assumes the
duties of the president without president compensation and, if
the officer removed is the vice president, treasurer, or
secretary, then the president shall select an interim
appointee who shall serve until the next regularly scheduled
forest preserve district board meeting; and (iii) a new
officer shall be selected at the next regularly scheduled
forest preserve district board meeting. An officer removed
under this Section maintains his or her status as a member of
the forest preserve district board.
    (b) In any county, city, village, incorporated town or
sanitary district where the corporate authorities act as the
governing body of a forest preserve district, the person
exercising the powers of the president of the board shall have
power to appoint a secretary and an assistant secretary and
treasurer and an assistant treasurer and such other officers
and such employees as may be necessary. The assistant
secretary and assistant treasurer shall perform the duties of
the secretary and treasurer, respectively in case of death of
such officers or when such officers are unable to perform the
duties of their respective offices. All contracts for
supplies, material or work involving an expenditure in excess
of $30,000 $25,000, or a lower amount if required by board
policy, shall be let to the lowest responsible bidder, after
advertising at least once in one or more newspapers of general
circulation within the district, excepting work requiring
personal confidence or necessary supplies under the control of
monopolies, where competitive bidding is impossible, or as
otherwise provided in the Forest Preserve District and
Conservation District Design-Build Authorization Act.
Contracts for supplies, material or work involving an
expenditure of $30,000 $25,000, or a lower amount if required
by board policy, or less may be let without advertising for
bids, but whenever practicable, at least 3 competitive bids
shall be obtained before letting such contract. All contracts
for supplies, material or work shall be signed by the
president of the board of commissioners or by any such other
officer as the board in its discretion may designate.
    (c) The president of any board of commissioners appointed
under the provisions of Section 3a of this Act shall receive a
salary not to exceed the sum of $2500 per annum and the salary
of other members of the board so appointed shall not exceed
$1500 per annum. Salaries of the commissioners, officers and
employees shall be fixed by ordinance.
    (d) Whenever a forest preserve district owns any personal
property that, in the opinion of three-fifths of the members
of the board of commissioners, is no longer necessary, useful
to, or for the best interests of the forest preserve district,
then three-fifths of the members of the board, at any regular
meeting or any special meeting called for that purpose by an
ordinance or resolution that includes a general description of
the personal property, may authorize the conveyance or sale of
that personal property in any manner that they may designate,
with or without advertising the sale.
(Source: P.A. 101-544, eff. 8-23-19.)
 
    Section 915. The Cook County Forest Preserve District Act
is amended by changing Section 14 as follows:
 
    (70 ILCS 810/14)  (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 6417)
    Sec. 14. The board, as corporate authority of a forest
preserve district, shall have power to pass and enforce all
necessary ordinances, rules and regulations for the management
of the property and conduct of the business of such district.
The president of such board shall have power to appoint a
secretary and an assistant secretary, and treasurer and an
assistant treasurer and such other officers and such employees
as may be necessary, all of whom, excepting the treasurer and
attorneys, shall be under civil service rules and regulations,
as provided in Section 17 of this Act. The assistant secretary
and assistant treasurer shall perform the duties of the
secretary and treasurer, respectively, in case of death of
said officers or when said officers are unable to perform the
duties of their respective offices because of absence or
inability to act. All contracts for supplies, material or work
involving an expenditure by forest preserve districts in
excess of $30,000 $25,000 shall be let to the lowest
responsible bidder, after due advertisement, excepting work
requiring personal confidence or necessary supplies under the
control of monopolies, where competitive bidding is
impossible, or as otherwise provided in the Forest Preserve
District and Conservation District Design-Build Authorization
Act. Contracts for supplies, material or work involving an
expenditure of $30,000 $25,000 or less may be let without
advertising for bids, but whenever practicable, at least 3
competitive bids shall be obtained before letting such
contract. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section, a
forest preserve district may establish procedures to comply
with State and federal regulations concerning affirmative
action and the use of small businesses or businesses owned by
minorities or women in construction and procurement contracts.
All contracts for supplies, material or work shall be signed
by the president of the board or by any such other officer as
the board in its discretion may designate.
    Salaries of employees shall be fixed by ordinance.
(Source: P.A. 99-264, eff. 1-1-16.)
 
    Section 997. Severability. The provisions of this Act are
severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.
 
    Section 999. Effective date. This Act takes effect June 1,
2022.