Village of Thornton, IL Fire Department

[4-5-2010(1)]

Established. There is hereby created a foreign fire insurance board of the Village of Thornton (the "board"), comprised of officers elected as set forth below, whose purpose is to establish rules and regulations with respect to the management of funds to be received by the Village as foreign fire insurance tax receipts, and to direct the expenditure of said funds for the maintenance, use and benefit of the Village of Thornton Fire Department. All funds received by the Village from the foreign fire insurance gross receipts tax shall be deposited in a special fund with the Village treasury called the "foreign fire insurance tax fund."

Officers and elections.

The officers of the board shall consist of a president, vice president, treasurer and secretary, who shall hold office for one year, and until the election and installation of their successors unless removed from office as provided herein.

All persons engaged in firefighting or fire prevention who are permanent, paid, on-call, or part time, employees of the Thornton Fire Department will be eligible for active membership.

Rights of candidates. Every candidate for office shall have the right to request distribution of campaign literature by mail or otherwise, to all members at the candidates' own expense. There shall be no discrimination in favor of, or against, any candidate with regard to the membership lists.

Method of nomination and election. Nominations for office will be made at the March business meeting. Nominations can also be made before the election at the April business meeting. Election will be held at the regular business meeting in April and will be by a simple majority vote of the active membership.

Ballots preserved. The ballots and all other records of an election will be preserved by the secretary for a period of one year following each election.

Vacancies of office. When an office becomes vacant by reason of death, resignation, or removal of the incumbent, the board shall, no later than 30 days from the date the office was vacated, elect by a majority vote of the active membership a successor who will serve only the remainder of the term filled.

Fire chief. The fire chief of the department shall be an ex officio official member of the board, as mandated by state law.

Meetings.

The board shall, in accordance with the Open Meetings Act, establish a regular time and place for its meetings and post notice thereof. These meetings shall be held at least quarterly, after the monthly department business meeting. The chairman shall preside at these meetings. The secretary shall keep a record of all proceedings, resolutions and actions of the board, and these records shall be open to the public. Three members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. The affirmative vote of three members of the board shall constitute approval of the business before it. Any person shall be entitled to appear and be heard on any matter before the board. A member must follow board rules to present any information.

Special meetings. Special meetings may be called by the president or by no less than three board members. All members shall be notified at least two days prior to the meeting. He/she shall be informed of the business to be considered at such meeting and no other business than that stated shall be conducted at such meeting.

Open meetings. All meetings of the board will be conducted in accordance and in compliance with the Illinois Open Meetings Act.

Duties of officers.

President. It shall be the duty of the president to preside at all meetings of the board. He shall be the executive head of the board. He shall be an executive officer of all committees. He shall appoint such committees as may be provided for herein or as allowed by law, and such special committees as may be authorized by the board. He shall have general supervision of the activities of the other officers and chairman of the committees. The president shall discharge on behalf of the board such duties as may be imposed upon him by applicable law, including the execution and filing of any reports to federal or state agencies, and he shall cause to be maintained by the board such reports as the law requires to be kept in support of reports filed by it. The president shall sign, along with the treasurer, all checks paid by the board for purchases and bills.

Vice president. The vice president shall assist the president in such a manner as the president shall determine. In the absence of the president, he shall preside at meetings of the board. If the office of the president becomes vacant, the vice president shall be the acting president until the office of the president is filled by an election of the board. The vice president shall discharge on behalf of the board such other duties as may be imposed upon him by applicable law.

Secretary. The secretary shall have custody of all documents, records, books and papers belonging to the board, except as may be otherwise provided herein. He shall keep an accurate record of the meetings of the board. He shall attest all official documents with his signature. He shall promptly conduct all correspondence of the board. He shall maintain the official list of active members, which shall be kept accurately and on a current basis. The secretary shall discharge on behalf of the board such other duties as may be imposed upon him by applicable law.

Treasurer. The treasurer shall receive all monies due the board, from whatsoever source. The Village Treasurer shall supply an annual accounting of all receipts. Disbursement of funds shall be by check, which shall also be signed by the president. He shall maintain and keep a current record of all financial transactions promptly and accurately. He shall forward a report of all receipts and expenditures of the fund to the President and Board of Trustees annually. The treasurer shall be bonded in such amounts as required by applicable law and approved by the Village President. The expense of such bonding shall be borne by the board. The treasurer of the board shall make revenue, investment, expense and other financial and operating records of the board, as required by the Village auditors, available during the Village's annual audit, so that as part of that annual procedure, board funds shall be audited to verify that purchases have been and are being made for the maintenance, use and benefit of the Thornton fire department, and that investments have been made in accordance with the Village's then current investment policy. The Treasurer shall discharge on behalf of the board such other duties as may be imposed upon him by applicable law.

Powers and duties of the board.

The board shall have the power to approve the expenditure of monies from the fund for the maintenance, use and benefit of the department. No expenditure shall be made from the fund without approval of the board.

The board may amend or revoke rules and regulations for governing the board and the execution of the duties of the board, and provide for election of the board and management of the fund.

It shall be the duty of the board to exercise general supervision and control of the funds and property of the board. It shall have the authority to act in the name of the tax fund during intervals between meetings, such as being subject to confirmation by the board at the next regular meeting.

The board shall develop and maintain a listing of those items that the board feels are appropriate expenditures for the maintenance, use and benefit of the Village of Thornton Fire Department.

The officers in place on the effective date of this article shall stay in place in their respective capacities until the election of their successors as provided herein.