Public Act 102-0965
 
HB5015 EnrolledLRB102 23763 NLB 32954 b


  
    AN ACT concerning State government.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  



 
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the 
Illinois America 250 Commission Act.
 
    Section 5. Findings.    The General Assembly finds that:

    (a)   Illinois became the 21st state on December 3, 1818, 42 
years after the formation of the United States of America and 
after thousands of years of Indigenous communities and peoples 
inhabiting the land.

    (b)   Illinois figured prominently in the expansion of the 
United States of America as the scene of extensive French and 
British exploration and early economic generation with the fur 
trade, serving as a frontier boundary for Westward expansion, 
and as a place of forced removal of Indigenous nations.

    (c)   The historic and contemporary systems of inequality 
produced through the enslavement of African American people in 
Illinois must be acknowledged. Though the 1848 State 
Constitution declared slavery to be illegal, the practice of 
enslaving African Americans continued in Illinois, as did 
participation in kidnapping and enslaving African Americans to 
benefit Illinois' economy.  Even following the abolition of 
slavery, the 1908 Race Riot in Springfield led to the 
slaughter of free African Americans and destroyed their 
communities within the Illinois State capital city.

    (d)  Illinois was a key state in the American Civil War, 
deploying over 250,000 soldiers to fight in the war.  Illinois 
served as the home of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of 
the United States of America.  Illinois was the first State to 
ratify the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery.

    (e)  Millions of people have emigrated from and immigrated 
to Illinois, or sought refuge in our State, bringing with them 
their culture, lifeways, knowledge, and labor, which has 
shaped Illinois into one of the nation's most diverse states.  
With its largest city in Illinois, and the 3rd largest in the 
nation, founded by a Black man, John Baptiste Point du Sable, 
more than 110,000 African Americans came to Illinois as a part 
of the Great Migration from the South through the advocacy of 
Robert Abbott's Chicago Defender distributed by the Pullman 
Porters. Illinois has proudly been made home by immigrants and 
their descendants from Ireland, Italy, China, Poland, Eastern 
Europe, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Japan, Central and South America, 
Russia, Somalia, Eritrea, and across the continents of Africa 
and Asia, the Caribbean, Vietnam, Thailand, India, and many 
other parts of the world.

    (f)  Illinois is responsible for numerous social and 
economic improvements that shaped the infrastructure and 
social fabric of  our nation, including, but not limited to, 
the creation of the Illinois and Michigan Canal opening 
navigation and trade between the Mississippi River and the 
Great Lakes; Jane Addams' innovative social work at the Hull 
House; Ida B. Wells' courageous journalism and commitment to 
abolition; inventions like the John Deere steel plow and 
modern barbed wire by Joseph Glidden that reshaped 
agriculture; the opening of Route 66, the Mother Road, 
originating in Chicago; the first McDonald's, a restaurant 
that would change how Americans eat; and the first cellular 
telephone, which changed communication forever.

    (g)   In 2008, the nation elected its first African American 
president, President Barack Obama, who built his career as a 
community organizer, law professor, and elected official in 
Illinois.

    (h)   The 250th anniversary of our nation's founding 
presents an opportunity for Illinoisans and Americans to 
consider this legacy and reflect on a diversity of 
perspectives and experiences that are often left untold.

    (i)   The nation's Semiquincentennial offers a commemoration 
that focuses on all people who call Illinois home, in every 
part of the State and of all ages and backgrounds, and centers 
our shared humanity in this process, as well as our common 
purpose. It offers every person in Illinois the opportunity to 
see themselves within this complex history and create a more 
just future.

 
    Section 10. Creation of Illinois America 250 Commission; 
definition; purpose. The Illinois America 250 Commission is 
created.  As used in this Act, "Commission" means the Illinois 
America 250 Commission.  The principal purpose of the 
Commission shall be to plan, promote, and implement 
appropriate commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of the 
founding of the United States of America 
("Semiquincentennial").
 
    Section 15. Duties.
    (a)  The Commission shall develop, encourage, and execute 
an inclusive commemoration and observance of the founding of 
the United States of America, and Illinois' imperative role in 
the nation's history.
    (b)  The Commission shall promote the inclusive and 
respectful identification, interpretation, documentation, 
preservation, and recognition of cultural and historical 
narratives and resources, including traditional cultural 
knowledge, oral histories, archival materials, objects, 
buildings, structures, sites, and landscapes related to 
Illinois history and prehistory.
    (c)    The Commission shall consider organizing its 
activities under the 5 historic themes established by the 
American Association for State and Local History in "The Field 
Guide for the Semiquincentennial: Making History at 250".
    (d)  The Commission shall serve as the official 
representative of the State of Illinois for the 
Semiquincentennial and all related activities, communications, 
and events.
    (e)  The Governor's office shall encourage various State 
agencies and organizations to work cooperatively to promote 
the Semiquincentennial.
 
    Section 20. Authority; administrative support.  
    (a)  The Commission is authorized to cooperate with the 
United States Semiquincentennial Commission created by Public 
Law 114-196, other states, tribal nations, and national, 
State, and local organizations engaged in activities around 
the United States Semiquincentennial, and other tribal, 
national, regional, State, and local public and private 
organizations having compatible purposes.
    (b)  The Illinois State Museum shall provide administrative 
support to the Commission and may make expenditures according 
to State law.
 
    Section 25. Membership; meetings. 
    (a)  The Commission shall consist of the following members:
        (1) One member appointed by the Lieutenant Governor.
        (2) One member appointed by the President of the 
    Senate and one member appointed by the Speaker of the 
    House of Representatives.
        (3)  One member appointed by the Senate Minority Leader 
    and one member appointed by the House Minority Leader.
        (4)  The Director of the Illinois State Museum.
        (5)   The Harold Washington Library Archivist.
        (6)   A Black historian reflecting the experiences and 
    contributions of American Descendants of Slavery (ADOS), 
    appointed by the Governor.
        (7)   A historian reflecting the experiences and 
    contributions of Asian and Latina/o/x communities, 
    appointed by the Governor.

        (8)  The following members appointed by the Governor:
            (A)  Three representatives of tribal Nations and 
        communities including the Ojibwe, Odawa, Potawatomi, 
        Shawnee, Osage, Peoria, Miami, Sac and Fox, Mesquaki, 
        Kickapoo, Ho-Chunk,
Menominee, and additional tribal 
        members living in Illinois today.
            (B)  A representative of the Abraham Lincoln 
        Presidential Library and Museum.
            (C)   A representative from the Department of 
        Commerce and Economic Opportunity.
            (D)  A representative of Illinois humanities.
            (E)    A representative of the Illinois Municipal 
        League.
            (F)   Three members of the public with related or 
        relevant backgrounds, expertise, or interests. 
        Knowledge in the following shall be prioritized in 
        making an appointment under this item: the culture, 
        traditions, and history of American Indians/Native 
        Americans; Black Americans; Latinos/Latinas/Hispanic 
        Americans; Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders; the 
        LGBTQAI+ community; immigrants and refugees; veterans' 
        organizations; women's history; the history of 
        Illinois' agriculture, architecture, armed forces, 
        arts, civics, cultural geography, ecology, education, 
        faith-based communities, folklore, government, 
        industry, labor, law, medicine, and transportation; 
        anthropology; archeology; cultural exhibits and 
        museums; heritage tourism; historic preservation; and 
        social justice.
    (b)   The Governor's office, with the assistance of the 
Chair of the Commission and the Illinois State Museum, shall 
be responsible for ensuring that 60% of the appointed members 
of the Commission consist of people who represent historically 
excluded and marginalized communities.
    (c)  The appointing authorities shall coordinate their 
appointments to represent and celebrate the diverse makeup and 
complex cultural geography of this State.
    (d)  The Commission may adopt bylaws for the establishment 
of a quorum and the conducting of business.
    (e)  Members shall serve for the duration of the 
Commission, provided any public official's expiration of a 
term of office shall create a vacancy. Any vacancy occurring 
in the membership of the Commission shall be filled in the same 
manner as the original appointment.
    (f)  The Commission shall hold meetings at least twice a 
year:
        (1)  at times and places to be determined by the Chair; 
    and
        (2)   that are conducted in accordance with the Open 
    Meetings Act.
    (g)   Members shall serve without compensation and shall not 
be reimbursed for expenses incurred in performing their 
duties.
    (h)    The Governor shall appoint a member of the Commission 
to serve as Chair of the Commission.
 
    Section 30. Advisory committees and working groups.  The 
Chair of the Commission, with the concurrence of the 
Commission, shall create one or more advisory committees and 
working groups to advise the Commission. Any advisory 
committee or working group shall conduct meetings in 
accordance with the Open Meetings Act.
 
    Section 35. Illinois America 250 Commission Trust Fund; 
in-kind gifts.  
    (a)   The Commission may accept monetary gifts and grants 
from any public or private source, which shall be held in the 
Illinois America 250 Commission Trust Fund. The Illinois 
America 250 Commission Trust Fund is created as a 
non-appropriated trust fund to be held outside of the State 
treasury, with the State Treasurer as custodian.  All gifts, 
grants, assets, funds, or money received by the Commission 
under this Act shall be deposited and held in the Trust Fund by 
the State Treasurer as ex officio custodian separate and apart 
from all public money or funds of this State and shall be 
administered by the Commission exclusively for the purposes 
set forth in this Act. All money in the Trust Fund shall be 
invested and reinvested by the State Treasurer. All interest 
accruing from these investments shall be deposited into the 
Trust Fund.
    (b)   The Commission may also accept in-kind gifts.
 
    Section 40. Reporting.  The Commission shall make an annual 
written report and make any recommendations to the Governor 
and General Assembly at least 30 days prior to the convening of 
each regular session of the General Assembly, commencing with 
the start of the regular session in 2023 and continuing 
through its final report.
 
    Section 45. Dissolution; repeal.  
    (a) The Commission and its advisory committees and working 
groups are dissolved on June 1, 2027, and any assets remaining 
in the Illinois America 250 Commission Trust Fund shall be 
deposited into the General Revenue Fund.
    (b) This Act is repealed on January 1, 2028.
 
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.