(The Center Square) – Of the nearly 300 new laws that took effect in Illinois on New Year’s Day, two measures impact mosquito abatement.
State Sen. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, sponsored SB 3342, which requires 24-hour notice before state or local governments apply a pesticide to a public right-of-way.
The bill’s House sponsor, state Rep. Laura Faver Dias, D-Grayslake, explained the penalties local governments would face if they fail to comply.
“$250 for the first violation, $500 for the second, and a thousand for the third or subsequent violation,” Faver Dias said.
State Rep. Jeff Keicher, R-Sycamore, questioned Faver Dias about hornets nests or other cases which might require quick action.
“If there’s an emergency situation that needs to be remediated right away, it is not your intention as the sponsor that we fine government units. We want them to be proactive and take action, correct?” Keicher asked.
“Yes, and there is specific language that clarifies that with mosquito abatement district authority,” Faver Dias said.
The Illinois Department of Agriculture is charged with enforcement of the mandate, which the General Assembly approved during the spring legislative session and Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed on Aug. 9.
State Sen. Laura Fine, D-Glenview, sponsored SB 2938 to expand territories by which a mosquito abatement district can annex another territory.
The bill’s House sponsor, state Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, D-Glenview, cited a formerly rural area in Glenview that became residential after the map of the mosquito abatement district was drawn.
Gong-Gershowitz said the law does not force communities to be annexed.
“This is still leaving it up to the residents in order to decide if they want to expand the boundaries,” Gong-Gershowitz said.
Pritzker signed the bill on Aug. 9. The measure is one of 293 new laws that took effect in Illinois on Jan. 1.
