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Public Act 91-0570
HB2605 Enrolled LRB9103930DHmgA
AN ACT to create the Illinois Rivers-Friendly Farmer
Program Act.
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
Illinois Rivers-Friendly Farmer Program Act.
Section 5. Program established. The Department of
Agriculture shall establish the Illinois Rivers-Friendly
Farmer Program to recognize farmers helping to protect and
enhance the State's rivers.
Section 10. Purposes. The program is intended to promote
farming practices that benefit rivers while maintaining farm
profitability and to inform the public about farmers'
contributions to cleaning up of the rivers of Illinois.
Section 15. A farmer seeking the "Rivers-Friendly Farmer"
designation may submit a written application to the
Department of Agriculture or an agency designated by the
Department by rule.
Section 20. Program criteria. Farmers who satisfy all
of the following criteria applicable to their operations may
be designated Rivers-Friendly farmers:
(1) Soil loss on cropland is at or below the tolerable
soil loss level as certified by a local Soil and Water
Conservation District.
(2) An approved farm conservation plan is on file at the
local Soil and Water Conservation District office.
(3) If the farm is required to have a vegetative filter
strip, adjacent to a body of water, the strip was constructed
in accordance with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation
Service Technical Guide.
(4) Evidence of participation in programs such as the
USDA's Conservation Reserve Program, Conservation Reserve
Enhancement Program, and Environmental Quality Incentives
Program, or the Department's Conservation 2000 Conservation
Practices Program, and Agricultural Areas in accordance with
Illinois' Agricultural Areas Conservation and Protection Act,
can be considered but is not required to be designated as a
"Rivers-Friendly Farmer".
Section 25. Rules. The Department of Agriculture shall
adopt rules to implement and administer this Act.
Section 30. Processing Fee. Any local Soil and Water
Conservation District that chooses to review a written
application for the "Rivers-Friendly Farmer" designation may
collect a reasonable fee for services rendered.
The Department of Agriculture may collect an
administrative filing fee of $15 for each application for a
"Rivers-Friendly Farmer" designation. In addition, the
Department shall collect an amount equal to the cost of
providing a sign that designates a farmer as a
"Rivers-Friendly Farmer".
All moneys collected by the Department shall be deposited
into a promotional trust account as provided in Section 40.7
of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Funds
collected shall be used for the purposes of the program
authorized by this Act.
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