Local Government Law

(Bryant, R-Mt. Vernon; Radogno, R-Lemont) provides that a requester that files an action seeking to enforce a binding opinion will have a rebuttable presumption that the public body willfully and intentionally failed to comply with this Act if: the attorney general issues a binding opinion under § 9.5 and the public body does not file for administrative review nor comply with it within 35 days after the binding opinion is served on the public body. This presumption may be rebutted by the public body showing that it is making a good-faith effort to comply with the binding opinion, but the compliance was not possible within the 35-day time frame. This section applies to binding opinions of the attorney general requested or issued on or after January 1, 2017.

It also allows the court to impose an additional penalty of up to $1,000 for each day the violation continues if: the public body fails to comply with the court’s order after 30 days; the court’s order is not appealed or stayed; and the court does not grant the public body additional time to comply with a court order to disclose public records. Changes apply to actions filed on or after January 1, 2017.

(McGuire, D-Crest Hill; Fortner, R-West Chicago) allows a board of review to serve by electronic means if the taxing district consents to electronic service and provides the board of review with a valid e-mail address for this purpose if a change in assessed valuation of $100,000 or more is sought. Effective July 15, 2016.

(Link, D-Gurnee; Jackson, D- E. St. Louis) reduces from seven to five years before unclaimed property held by the government or court is considered to be abandoned. Effective January 1, 2017. 

(Hernandez, D-Cicero; Martinez, D-Chicago) increases the amount of civil penalties for civil rights violations in real estate transactions. Effective January 1, 2017. 

(Haine, D-Alton; Zalewski, D-Chicago) clarifies that a county or municipality may assess an administrative fee for impounding vehicles only for violations listed in the current Vehicle Code. If the administrative hearing officer finds that a county or municipality exceeded its authority to impound a vehicle under the Vehicle Code, the county or municipality is liable to the car’s owner for the storage fees and reasonable attorney’s fees. Makes other changes. Passed both chambers.

(McSweeney, R-Cary; Tom Cullerton, D-Villa Park) requires that school districts, community colleges, and non-home rule units of local government regulate travel, meal, and lodging expenses of officers and employees and members of their governing boards. Prohibits reimbursing entertainment expenses. The ordinance or resolution must include: (1) the types of official business for which travel, meal, and lodging expenses are allowable; (2) maximum allowable reimbursement for those expenses; and (3) a standardized form for submission of those expenses. Requires that the governing board or corporate authority must approve by a roll call vote at an open meeting any expenses of a member of the governing board and expenses of officers and employees over the maximum amount. The submitted documents are public records under the FOIA Act. Passed both chambers. 

(Ives, R-Wheaton; Connelly, R-Naperville) requires public bodies to give access to verbatim recordings and minutes of closed meetings to officials filling vacancies of elected officials in public bodies. Access is to be granted in the public body’s main office or official storage location in the presence of a records secretary, an administrative official of the public body, or any elected official of the public body. These records may not be recorded or removed from official storage unless the pubic body votes otherwise or so ordered by the courts. Effective June 20, 2016. 

(Nekritz, D-Buffalo Grove; Steans, D-Chicago) makes a number of changes to this Act. (1) Exempts from FOIA any information collected by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. This exemption does not extend to educational, training, and outreach material, statistical data, or operational information maintained by the Department in administering the Act. (2) Clarifies that neither the Ombudsperson nor the Department has the authority to consider matters that may constitute unlawful discrimination under local, State, or federal law. (3) Makes numerous technical changes including deleting the registration requirement by an entity. (4) Pushes back the repeal date of the entire Act by one year to July 1, 2022. Passed both chambers.