Real Estate Law

(Nekritz, D-Des Plaines; Garrett, D-Lake Forest) authorizes easements for high-speed Internet to the existing easement for cable television. Passed both chambers.

(Zalewski, D-Chicago; Harmon, D-Oak Park) amends the Secured Transactions Article of the Uniform Commercial Code. It provides that a person may not cause to be filed a false record the person knows or reasonably should know is (1) not authorized or permitted under specified provisions; (2) not related to a valid existing or potential commercial or financial transaction, an existing agricultural or other lien, or a judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction; and (3) filed with the intent to harass or defraud the person identified as debtor in the record or any other person. Creates criminal and civil penalties and administrative relief from the Secretary of State. Exempts records filed by a regulated financial institution or its representative. Passed both chambers.

(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.)

(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 above the roof. Passed both chambers.

(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, and the limitation then reverts to three years for any kind of property at that time. Passed both chambers.

(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.

(Althoff, R-Crystal Lake) allows a county collector to mail a property tax bill to the property owner at his or her new address if a property owner conveys a permanent change of address in writing to the United States Postal Service. It also allows the collector to send the tax bill via email at the request of the taxpayer. If the taxpayer makes this request, then the taxpayer must notify the collector of any change in his or her e-mail address as soon as possible after the address is changed. Passed the Senate and arrived in the House.