SUBSTITUTE ORDINANCE
WHEREAS, the City of Chicago ("City") is a home rule unit of government as defined in Article Vll, §6(a) of the Illinois Constitution, and, as such, may exercise any power and perform any function pertaining to its government and affairs; and
WHEREAS, the City owns and operates Chicago O'Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport (the "Airports") and possesses the power and authority to lease its premises and facilities and to grant other rights and privileges with respect thereto; and
WHEREAS, the City is vested with authority to provide for the needs of aviation, commerce, shipping, and traveling to and around the Airports to promote and develop the Airports, and, in the exercise of such power, to enter into agreements with entities to manage City-owned properties at the Airports, upon such terms and conditions as the corporate authorities of the City shall approve; and
WHEREAS, the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services ("HHS") declared a public health emergency on January 31, 2020, under section 319 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d) and effective March 1, 2020, pursuant to sections 201 and 301 of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 etseq.) and consistent with section 1135 of the Social Security Act (SSA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 1320b-5), it was found and proclaimed that the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States constitutes a national emergency (the "Emergency"); and
WHEREAS, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to orders of shelter-in-place or stay-at-home by state governments throughout the United States, including that of Illinois, and by foreign governments to contain the spread of the pandemic; and
WHEREAS, a substantial reduction in commercial travel to and from the Airports has occurred since declaration of the Emergency with the Airports experiencing significantly reduced enplanements, aircraft operations, and passenger volume, adversely affecting the ability of airport concessionaires (as defined by 49 CFR § 23.3) at the Airports ("Concessionaires") to continue to operate; and
WHEREAS, this City Council hereby finds and determines that the provisions of this Ordinance are public purposes for the benefit of the people of the City and its Airports, and will reduce conditions of unemployment, will help ensure that airport concessions businesses that serve the citizens of the City as well as travelers from around the world remain solvent to resume normal operations when the Emergency ends, and will encourage those businesses' continued development; and
WHEREAS, this City Council further finds that the purpose ofthis Ordinance is, in part, to protect and preserve the employment of individuals affected by the economic impacts of the pandemic at the Airports and to stimulate commercial growth and remove economic stagnation that would otherwise occur without the benefits provided in this Ordinance; and now, therefore:
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CHICAGO: SECTION 1. The above recitals are incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.
SECTION 2. Subject to the criteria in Section 3 of this ordinance, the Commissioner of Aviation ("Commissioner") or her designee is hereby authorized to execute, with the approval of the Chief Financial Officer ofthe City ("CFO"), and the approval ofthe Corporation Counsel as to form and legality, changes to agreements with existing Concessionaires to provide for temporary relief for the Concessionaires in response to the Emergency. Relief shall be as the Commissioner deems appropriate for a particular Concessionaire and may take the form of any of the following, as applicable: (A) rent reductions; (B) adjustments to minimum rent; (C) rent deferral; (D) reduced security deposit or letter of credit requirements; (E) relaxation of mandatory minimum or maximum operating space requirements; (F) short extensions of term to extend amortization of costs; (G) authorization of operational alternatives including, but not limited to kiosks, retail merchandising units, food carts, mobile drink dispensers and other mobile facilities, subject to applicable ordinances and laws; or (H) other relief consistent with federal airport grant assurances and other legal requirements (the "Relief). The Relief may not exceed three years, may be given in renewable increments, may be retroactive to as early as February 1, 2020, and may be conditioned on Concessionaires' compliance with such requirements as are determined by the Commissioner to serve the interests ofthe City in maintaining a strong and resilient concessions program at the Airports. Such Relief conditions must include workforce retention requirements, and at the Commissioner's option, may include, but are not limited to, Relief being given to subtenants/sublicensees of any tier as applicable. To implement this Section, the Commissioner may execute rent or fee accommodation agreements, amend concession agreements or execute new short-term concession agreements to memorialize the Relief and Concessionaires' commitments that condition that Relief, to include term extension, if applicable. Such amendments or short-term agreements may not revisit contract terms unrelated to Relief under this section if not at least as favorable to the City as those in the currently applicable agreement. Rent reductions, adjustments, or deferrals under this section shall be given only when, in the judgment of the Commissioner, the underlying basis for such rent has temporarily declined or materially altered due to the Emergency, or when otherwise consistent with federal airport grant assurances and other legal requirements.
SECTION 3. The Commissioner's exercise of authority under Section 2 ofthis ordinance shall be applied in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration guidance as well as other applicable legal requirements and applied objectively and uniformly to similarly situated businesses. In making a determination to grant Relief to a particular entity, the Commissioner shall be guided by objective factors, such as the business and financial situation ofthe entity and that entity's owner(s); the changed circumstances created by the Emergency; the availability of other governmental or insurance relief that the entity may have or may receive; an appropriate term for such relief; and possible subsequent conditions that, if triggered, would end the Relief. Such a subsequent condition could be the receipt of governmental forms of relief, insurance recovery if any, or an end to the Emergency.
SECTION 4. The Commissioner, with the advice and consent ofthe Corporation Counsel and the CFO, is authorized to promulgate rules governing the programs and Relief described in the sections above. CDA will notify the City Council Committee on Aviation within 30 days of the promulgation of rules, and any amendments made thereto.
SECTION 5. The Commissioner and her designees are authorized to take such actions and execute such other documents as may be necessary or desirable to implement the objectives of this ordinance.
SECTION 6. The Commissioner shall make a quarterly report to the City Council