Rep. Lisa M. Dugan

Amends the Senior Citizens and Disabled Persons Property Tax Relief and Pharmaceutical Assistance Act. In a provision concerning eligibility for grants under the Act, increases the household income eligibility limitations for grant year 2006, and provides that, for grant years 2007 and thereafter, the limitations shall be increased annually by the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for the previous calendar year. Effective immediately.

Amends the Wildlife Code. Provides that there shall not be a limit on the number of resident or non-resident archery deer hunting permits. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Provides that, beginning with the 2007 registration year, an applicant for Gold Star plates shall receive the plates without paying any registration fee or fee for issuance of the plates.

Amends the Property Tax Code. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the definition of "taxing district".

Creates the Health Benefit Purchasing Cooperatives Act. Authorizes health benefit purchasing cooperatives for the self-employed, small businesses, and farmers. Provides that one nonstock health benefit purchasing cooperative (cooperative) may be organized in geographic areas of the State designated by the Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation. Provides that the purpose of a cooperative is to provide health care benefits to an individual who is a member of the cooperative, to officers and eligible employees of a member of the cooperative, and to eligible dependents of such individuals. Provides that each cooperative must annually submit to the Secretary a report on the significant findings from the project that includes, at a minimum, available information on: (a) the effect on health care coverage premiums in its geographic area; (b) the extent to which the cooperative has had an impact on the number of uninsureds in its geographic area; and (c) the degree to which health care consumers were involved in developing and implementing the health benefit purchasing arrangement.

Makes appropriations to the Board of Trustees of Governors State University for its ordinary and contingent expenses. Effective July 1, 2005.

Amends the Downstate Teacher Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Provides that provisions concerning the employer's contribution for salary increases in excess of 6% do not apply to salary increases as a result of accepting school-sponsored, extra-curricular assignments. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Provides for the issuance of Iraqi Freedom license plates at an additional initial charge of $40 and an additional renewal charge of $27 with eligibility requirements to be determined by the Secretary of State. Provides that $15 of the initial charge and $2 of the renewal charge shall be paid into the Secretary of State Special License Plate Fund and $25 of the initial charge and $25 of the renewal charge shall be paid into the Illinois Veterans Assistance Fund. Amends the Illinois Lottery Law. Provides that the moneys deposited into the Illinois Veterans Assistance Fund from the sale of Iraqi Freedom license plates may, subject to appropriation, be used by the Department of Veterans' Affairs to provide grants to assist in the financial and educational support of minor and dependent children of veterans who died or were disabled in the line of duty.

Creates the Health Care Enterprise Zone Act. Provides that the Department of Public Health may certify certain areas in the State suffering from a shortage of medical services as health care enterprise zones or specialty shortage zones. Provides that, for the taxable years ending on or after December 31, 2006, a health care professional who practices at least 50% of the year in an area of Illinois that has been certified as a health care enterprise zone or as a specialty shortage zone may apply to the Department requesting a certification of an income tax credit. Sets forth the amounts of the credit. Sets forth conditions for the revocation of benefits under the Act. Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act to create the income tax credit certified under the Health Care Enterprise Zone Act. Amends the Property Tax Code. Provides that taxing districts may abate the property taxes for the property of any facility operated by a health care professional as part of his or her practice in a health care enterprise zone or specialty shortage zone certified under the Health Care Enterprise Zone Act. Provides that the aggregate amount of abated taxes for all taxing districts in any county may not exceed $5,000,000 per year.

Amends the Illinois Renewable Fuels Development Program Act. Provides that a recipient of Program grants must be constructing, modifying, altering, or retrofitting an (i) ethanol plant (now, just plant) that has annual production capacity of no less than 30,000,000 gallons of renewable fuel per year or a (ii) biodiesel plant. Requires the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to establish and administer grant programs including: the Illinois Renewable Fuels Majority Blended Ethanol Program, the Illinois Corn Grain to Fuel Research Consortium Assistance Program, the Illinois Renewable Fuels Corn-to-Hydrogen Fuel Cell Research Program, the Illinois Renewable Fuels Biodiesel Infrastructure Grant Program, the Illinois Renewable Fuels Ethanol Development Intergovernmental Assistance Program. Sets forth the purposes and conditions for these grant programs. Provides that subject to appropriation (now, subject to appropriation from the Build Illinois Bond Fund), the Director is authorized to award Renewable Fuels Development Program Fund grants. Sets forth that the annual aggregate amount for these grants shall not exceed $25,000,000 in Fiscal year 2007 and 2008 and $15,000,000 thereafter (now, may not exceed $15,000,000). Specifies how these grant funds shall be allocated. Sets forth certain limitations on spending on the various Program grants including for research conducted at the National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Facility at SIU-Edwardsville not to exceed $1,000,000 annually, and a one-time grant in FY 2007 not to exceed $3,000,000 for construction, remodeling, and expansion of the National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Facility at SIU-Edwardsville. Provides that normal operating and execution of renewable fuels programs in existence on January 1, 2006 within the Department from the Renewable Fuels Development Program Fund shall not exceed $5,000,000 annually. Amends the State Finance Act to create the Renewable Fuels Development Program Fund as a special fund in the State treasury to fund these grant programs. Sets forth certain conditions for the operation of this Fund. Provides for certain annual payments from the General Revenue Fund to the Renewable Fuels Development Program Fund. Amends the Use Tax Act, the Service Use Tax Act, the Service Occupation Tax Act, and the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act, to provide that on or after July 1, 2006 and on or before June 30, 2016, those tax rates apply to 90% of the proceeds of sales made on gasohol (now, apply to 80% of the proceeds of sales made on gasohol). Amends the Motor Fuel and Petroleum Standards Act to provide that beginning January 1, 2008 a minimum of 10% of all motor fuel sold or offered for sale in Illinois must be denatured ethanol and that beginning January 1, 2012 a minimum of 15% of all motor fuel sold or offered for sale in Illinois must be denatured ethanol. Effective July 1, 2006.