 |
Home | Search | Browse | About IPO | Staff | Links |
|
Home | Search | Browse | About IPO | Staff | Links |
|
STATEHOUSE INSIDER ISSUES & INSIGHTS FROM THE LEGAL/LEGISLATIVE SCENE
The Illinois General Assembly hit the ground running in 2005 with more than 4,067 bill introductions in the House and 2,116 in the Senate by February 28. Deadlines for hearing bills in committee in the House of origin are March 10, 2005. for the House and March 17, 2005 for the Senate. The deadline for 3rd reading (final passage) in the House is April 15th, and the deadline for 3rd reading (final passage) in the Senate is the same. An adjournment date has been optimistically set for May 27th. Bill Watch In addition to the IAPD/IPRA Legislative Platform, which follows on page 12, there are a number of bills impacting park districts, forest preserves, conservation districts and municipal park and recreation agencies pending approval. Local Government Consolidation House Bill 62, introduced by Representative Lou Lang creates the Local Government Consolidation Commission Act. The measure, as originally introduced, calls for the creation of a 15-member commission on local government consisting of five senators, five representatives, and five citizens chosen by the governor. The commission would study the organization and function of local governments within the state and make recommendations to reduce the number of local governments and to increase their efficiency and economy. The bill requires the commission to report its findings to the General Assembly by December 31, 2006. Before passing the bill over to the Senate the House amended the bill to allow for a 17-member commission with 3 members appointed by each of the legislative leaders. FOIA Fines House Bill 152, sponsored by Representative Paul Froelich, is a measure that, for the first time, would provide for a fine of $1,000 if there is a finding that the Freedom of Information Act was not complied with and the request was stalled in bad faith. Museum Tax Fund Increase House Bill 279, sponsored by Representative Dave Winters, provides for an increase in the Museum Tax Fund of park districts from .07% to .15% subject to referendum. This would bring park museums in counties with a population under 500,000 to a parity with the Chicago Park District authority. Defibrillator Funding House Bill 542 seeks to amend the Illinois Income Tax Act to create a tax check off for the Heartsaver Automatic External Defibrillator Fund. This fund, created in 2004, provides matching grants to units of local government required to have an AED at their physical fitness facilities. IMRF Death Benefit Increase House Bill 922 amends the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) Article of the Illinois Pension Code to increase the death benefit from $3,000 to $5,000. It also amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement. Technology and the Open Meetings Act House Bill 1038 seeks to redefine the word meeting for purposes of the Open Meetings Act. Under the measure, a "meeting" would include gatherings — whether in person or by telephone call, electronic means or other means of contemporaneous interactive communication — of a majority of a quorum of the members of a public body held for the purpose of discussing public business. (Currently the definition of a meeting is a gathering of a majority of a quorum of the members of a public body held for the purpose of discussing public business.) The bill also sets down numerous related definitions, e.g., "quorums" and "disclosures." Meanwhile, Senate Bill 226 would amend the Open Meetings Act to require that public bodies with websites maintained by their own staffs post on their websites the following information, for the specified periods, with respect to their meetings: (i) the agenda of a regular meeting, until the meeting is conducted; (ii) the annual schedule of regular meetings, until public notice of another schedule is approved; (iii) notice of a regular meeting, until the meeting is conducted; and (iv) minutes of an open meeting, for at least 60 days after posting. The bill would also change the deadline for any type of public notice of the agenda of a regular meeting from 48 to 72 hours before the meeting. Ballot Disclosure for Increasing or Decreasing Tax Rate Limits House Bill 1041, sponsored by Representative Jack Franks, seeks to 10 Illinois Parks and Recreation www.ILipra.org amend the Property Tax Code to require that ballot questions concerning increasing or decreasing a rate limit include the purpose for the rate change and reference the resolution of the taxing district adopting the rate change. The measure also would require that the printed ballot include an estimate of the approximate amount to be levied upon a residence in the taxing district with a market value of $100,000 under the current rate and under the proposed rate. That estimate may not be part of the proposition submitted to voters. Bid Requirements for Forest Preserves and Conservation Districts House Bill 1176 would amend the Downstate Forest Preserve District Act to require that contracts for supplies, material, or work involving an expenditure in excess of $20,000 go to the lowest bidder. Exceptions would be made for contracts that involve skill, system integration and other factors, such as contracts for or requiring: personal confidence; professional skill, fitness or ability; utilities, services or supplies that require integration with an existing system or a security system; magazines, books, and periodicals of an educational nature; telecommunication systems; supplies available from only one source; maintenance, repair and replacement parts by authorized service agents; or an emergency that affects public health, safety and welfare. House Bill 1323 seeks to increase the bid limit for conservation districts from $10,000 to $20,000. Unfunded Mandates Legislative action is also taking place on issues such as the States Mandates Act in order to slow the effort of state government to place more mandates and costs on local governments. Follow the Action on the Web One of the questions I am frequently asked is how members can keep current on bills pending in the Illinois General Assembly. A call to the IAPD office regarding legislative action is the most direct way to have your questions answered, but, to get a more global view of bills that impact your agency, I recommend that you go to the IAPD website at www.ilparks.org and click the "Public Policy" option in the column on the right side of the page. On the Public Policy page you will have the option of choosing "Priority Bills," which is IAPD's listing of bills that have the potential of having a direct impact on your agency. This list is updated on Friday afternoon each week the General Assembly is in session. In addition, you may choose "Complete Bill Review," which will take you to a page giving you step-by-step instructions on how to view all bills being tracked by IAPD. This database is a dynamic list that the state's Legislative Information System continuously updates. On this list you will find a one-line synopsis of each bill and its last action. You can modify this report by clicking on "Report Options" at the top left-hand column and expanding the description of each bill. You can read the full text of any bill, review all action taken on a bill, see any amendments that have been added, or do a word search for other bills of interest. How to Get Involved Watch for Legislative Action Bulletins and be sure to respond to them if there is a call to action. As you all know, things move very quickly in the legislative process and it is important to act promptly.
The headlines read: "Two more senior officials ousted at state parks agency," "Governor cuts, state parks bleed," and "State hires GOP leader's brother to run park rangers." Only one story was from Illinois. The other stories were among the more than 40 pages of hits to a query for stories about "parks" on the Stateline.org web site. Stateline gathers stories on state policy, posts and archives them on its site at www.stateline.org. You can read the day's headlines from stories filed from the statehouse bureaus of papers from across the nation, or search the archives for articles on a specific policy issue. The service is a great way to see what problems other states are facing and how they are coping with them. www.ilparks.org March/April 2005 11 |
|
|
