SPRINGFIELD – A measure to require the election of trustees for the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District has been passed by State Senator Linda Holmes (D-Aurora). Senate Bill 100 requires the trustees be elected rather than appointed. The bill was vetoed in August 2018 and came back to and was approved in the Senate Wednesday.

“This public body should be elected rather than appointed to best represent the citizens of our communities,” Holmes said. “Trustee candidates would go on the ballot during consolidated elections if this bill becomes law. It represents government reform that will better serve water quality needs in the future for people in the Fox River Valley.”

The Water Reclamation District was created in the late 1920s and today serves nearly 300,000 residents in Aurora, North Aurora, Boulder Hill, Montgomery, Oswego, Sugar Grove and portions of Yorkville and Batavia, according to the Board’s website.

Senate Bill 100 provides that trustees will be elected at consolidated elections, rather than appointed by members of the General Assembly, beginning with the 2021 consolidated election. Trustees will be elected to staggered 4-year terms. The Board will continue to have 5 total members. Current members of the Board can continue to serve until their terms expire, at which time an elected trustee will take their place on the Board.

Approved by the Senate, the measure now moves to the House for consideration.