Agricultural Law

(Silverstein, D-Chicago; Feigenholtz, D-Chicago) creates a $100 fee to open a decedent's estate to fund the State Guardianship and Advocacy Commission. It exempts indigents, the State Guardian, any state agency, any local public guardian, and any state's attorney. (2) It also allows the court to appoint a limited guardian for a disabled adult who lacks some but not all of the required capacity. If the court finds that the ward is totally without the required capacity, it may appoint a plenary guardian. (3) It adds criteria for the termination of the guardianship or modification of the guardian's duties. Effective January 1, 2013.

(Harmon, D-Oak Park; Zalewski, D-Chicago) conforms Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code to the 2010 amendments as proposed by the Uniform Law Commission. (See the June Illinois Bar Journal article by Michelle Nijm that discusses this bill in more detail.) Effective July 1, 2013.

(Althoff, R-Crystal Lake; Tyron, R-Crystal Lake) requires work to be done or materials furnished within three years for residential property and five years for any other kind of property. Senate Bill 3792 sunsets on January 1, 2016; at which time the limitation then reverts to three years for any kind of property at that time. Effective January 1, 2013.

(McAsey, D-Lockport; Collins, D-Chicago) creates the Radon Resistant Construction Act. It requires all new residential construction include passive radon resistant construction. "New residential construction" is any original construction of a single-family home or a dwelling containing two or fewer apartments, condominiums, or townhouse. "Passive radon resistant construction" includes an installed pipe that relies solely on the convective flow of air upward for soil-gas depressurization and may consist of multiple pipes routed through conditioned space from below the foundation to the roof above. Effective June 1, 2013.

Public Act 97-720 prohibits a municipality from adopting or enforcing an ordinance or resolution that affects the placement, screening, or height of amateur radio antennas or support structures unless the ordinance or resolution has a reasonable and clearly defined aesthetic, public health, or safety objective and is the minimum practical regulation that is necessary to accomplish these objectives but reasonably accommodates amateur radio communications. Effective June 29, 2012.

(Feigenholtz, D-Chicago; Steans, D-Chicago) is supposed to eliminate Illinois’ $2.7 billion Medicaid funding gap. It repeals the compromise of the Medicaid eligibility rules negotiated last fall between the Department of Healthcare and Family Services and the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. Some of these changes include the following: (1) A home transferred into a trust after the bill becomes law may not be considered homestead property. If the home was transferred into a trust before the bill becomes law, it prevents a person from being eligible for long-term care if the person’s equity interest in this homestead exceeds the minimum home equity as allowed under federal law. (2) People over the age of 65 can no longer participate in a federally created OBRA Pooled Trust unless the beneficiary is a ward of the county public guardian or the State guardian. These parts of this Act (in Section 75) took effect June 14, 2012.

(Harmon, D-Oak Park; Zalewski, D-Chicago) conforms Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code to the 2010 amendments as proposed by the Uniform Law Commission. Passed both chambers. (See the June Illinois Bar Journal article by Michelle Nijm that discusses this bill in more detail.)

(Feigenholtz, D-Chicago; Steans, D-Chicago) is supposed to eliminate Illinois’ $2.7 billion Medicaid funding gap. Included in Senate Bill 2840 is a repeal of the compromise of the Medicaid eligibility rules negotiated last fall between the Department of Healthcare and Family Services and the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. Some of these changes include the following: (1) A home transferred into a trust after the bill becomes law may not be considered homestead property. If the home was transferred into a trust before the bill becomes law, it prevents a person from being eligible for long-term care if the person’s equity interest in this homestead exceeds the minimum home equity as allowed under federal law. (2) People over the age of 65 can no longer participate in a federally created OBRA Pooled Trust unless the beneficiary is a ward of the county public guardian or the State guardian. The bill has an immediate effective date and will therefore take effect when the Governor signs it. House Amendment No. 4 is at the link below, and these provisions may be found starting on page 60. Passed both chambers yesterday.

(Feigenholtz, D-Chicago; Steans, D-Chicago) is supposed to eliminate Illinois’ $2.7 billion Medicaid funding gap. Included in Senate Bill 2840 is a repeal of the compromise of the Medicaid eligibility rules negotiated last fall between the Department of Healthcare and Family Services and the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. Some of these changes include the following: (1) A home transferred into a trust after the bill becomes law may not be considered homestead property. If the home was transferred into a trust before the bill becomes law, it prevents a person from being eligible for long-term care if the person’s equity interest in this homestead exceeds the minimum home equity as allowed under federal law. (2) People over the age of 65 can no longer participate in a federally created OBRA Pooled Trust unless the beneficiary is a ward of the county public guardian or the State guardian. (3) A healthy spouse still living at home will receive only the minimum resource allowance instead of the maximum allowance as previously approved by JCAR. ($110,000 decreased to $22,000) (4) Abolishes spousal refusal entirely so that HFS is not limited to how much it can seek when pursing a support order against a community spouse. Senate Bill 2840 will be heard in House Executive Committee this afternoon. The bill has an immediate effective date and will therefore take effect when the Governor signs it. House Amendment No. 3 is at the link below, and these provisions may be found starting on page 75.

The General Assembly is grappling with a $2.7 billion Medicaid funding gap in the as of yet unpublished "SMART" bill. One of the pieces in it may be a reversal of the Medicaid eligibility rules in the compromise last fall between the Department of Healthcare and Family Services' and the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. An excellent and comprehensive summary of that compromise may be found in the January 2012 Illinois Bar Journal (Diana Law and William Siebers). Some of these changes may include the following: (1) A home held in a trust, even an individual’s personal revocable living trust, shall no longer be considered homestead property. (2) People over the age of 65 can no longer participate in a federally created OBRA Pooled Trust. (3) A healthy spouse still living at home will receive only the minimum resource allowance instead of the maximum allowance as previously approved by JCAR. Whatever action the General Assembly may take on this issue will occur in the next ten days, and we'll try to keep you informed to the extent we can.