The District is authorized by Illinois statute (70 ILCS 2605/1, et seq.) to protect the public health and safety by abating and preventing pollution through the regulation and control of the quantity and quality of sewage, industrial wastes, and other wastes admitted to or discharged into the sewerage systems, sewage treatment facilities, and waters under the jurisdiction of the District. To that end, the District has enacted a User Charge Ordinance which establishes the rates, referred to as “User Charges”, for wastewater treatment services provided to non-residential wastewater dischargers within the District’s jurisdiction. As a regulating entity, the District has also enacted a Sewage and Waste Control Ordinance (“SWCO”) that governs the District’s pretreatment program for various classes of dischargers. The SWCO sets the limits for various pollutants that a facility’s discharged wastewater may contain and establishes an enforcement program when a discharger violates those limits. When a discharger fails to pay the User Charges it owes or fails to pay the non-compliance enforcement charges assessed against it for violating the SWCO, the District’s Law Department is called upon to assist in the collection of those delinquent monies. Quite frequently, the District finds that the User has filed for bankruptcy protection. Given the complexity of bankruptcy laws, the District finds that it requires assistance from outside legal counsel with an expertise in this area of the law, and specifically as to the rights of a governmental entity as a creditor. In addition, the District has in the past sought counsel relative to lien and mortgage foreclosure actions, wage garnishments, assignments for the benefit of creditors, recommendations for write-offs, and other possible ancillary matters related to creditor issues. The District seeks proposals from qualified law firms to provide professional legal services in connection with the District’s rights as a creditor in collection and bankruptcy proceedings, and further, relative to lien and mortgage foreclosure actions, wage garnishments, assignments for the benefit of creditors, recommendations for write-offs, and other possible ancillary matters related to creditor issues. One firm will be selected to serve on an as-needed basis for bankruptcy and collection matters by the Law Department. The term of this agreement is dependent upon receiving the District’s Board of Commissioners approval, and the execution of the agreement, and will end no later than December 31, 2028.
