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Public Act 097-0548
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| HB0237 Enrolled | LRB097 05944 RLJ 46013 b |
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AN ACT concerning State government.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the |
Illinois Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission |
Act.
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Section 5. Purpose. The American Civil War was a defining |
experience in the development of the United States. There is a |
resurgence of interest in the Civil War as shown by the |
publication of many printed resources and the creation of many |
exhibits, reenactments, research organizations, Internet and |
multimedia resources, historic parks, and preservation |
associations focused on the Civil War. |
The years 2011 through 2015 mark the sesquicentennial of |
active hostilities during the American Civil War (1861-1865). |
The sesquicentennial of the Civil War presents a significant |
opportunity for Americans to recall and reflect upon the Civil |
War and its legacy, in a spirit of rededication and reflection, |
and to appreciate the sacrifice that American military members |
have made and are currently making to insure our nation's |
freedom and liberty. |
The State of Illinois, as the home of President Abraham |
Lincoln, played a unique role in the events surrounding the |
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Civil War. Before the war, Lincoln had been a long-time |
advocate of abolition and helped to raise awareness regarding |
the hypocrisy that allowed slavery to exist in a nation founded |
on the principals that all men are created equal. |
Lincoln's public remarks and speeches helped to define the |
issues of the Civil War. Lincoln's earliest public remarks |
following Stephen A. Douglas' speech on the Kansas-Nebraska |
Act, legislation repealing the Missouri Compromise that |
concerned the westward expansion of slavery, on October 16, |
1854 in Peoria set the parameters of debate. In accepting his |
nomination as U.S. Senate nominee, Lincoln delivered his famous |
House Divided Speech from the Old State Capitol in Springfield |
on June 16, 1858. The 7 debates between Abraham Lincoln and |
Stephen A. Douglas in 1858 were also important in previewing |
the issues of the 1860 presidential race and the Civil War. The |
Lincoln-Douglas Debates took place across Illinois occurring |
on August 21 in Ottawa, August 27 in Freeport, September 15 in |
Jonesboro, September 18 in Charleston, October 7 in Galesburg, |
October 13 in Quincy, and October 15 in Alton. |
As the home of President Abraham Lincoln, and the source of |
256,297 Union officers and servicemen organized in 169 separate |
regiments, Illinois had a unique role in the Civil War. The |
contribution of almost 2,000 African-Americans, enrolled in |
Illinois Civil War regiments, demands special recognition. |
Although not offered the same opportunities for promotion as |
other soldiers of similar rank, African-American soldiers |
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proved to be, by Lincoln's own testimony, a decisive element in |
the Union's victory. |
After President Lincoln's assassination, his body was |
brought to the House Chambers of the Old State Capitol to lie |
in state. This event marked the nation's grief for President |
Lincoln and the over 660,000 American's who lost their lives |
fighting for both sides during the Civil War. Lincoln was later |
interred in the Lincoln Tomb State Historic Site, and his |
memory is preserved and celebrated in the State-operated |
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
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Section 10. Composition of the Commission. The Commission |
is composed of 17 members as follows:
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(1) One member of the House of Representatives |
appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, |
one member of the House of Representatives appointed by the |
Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, one member |
of the Senate appointed by the President of the Senate, and |
one member of the Senate appointed by the Minority Leader |
of the Senate; |
(2) One member of the public appointed by the Speaker |
of the House of Representatives, one member of the public |
appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of |
Representatives, one member of the public appointed by the |
President of the Senate, and one member of the public |
appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate; |
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(3) 3 members of the public appointed by the Governor, |
one of whom shall serve as the chairperson; and |
(4) 6 ex officio members as follows:
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(A) the Governor or his or her designee;
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(B) the Director of Historic Preservation or his or |
her designee; |
(C) the Director of Natural Resources or his or her |
designee; |
(D) the Illinois State Historian or his or her |
designee; |
(E) the Director of the Lincoln Presidential |
Library or his or her designee; and |
(F) the Director of the Lincoln Home National |
Historic Site or his or her designee.
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Section 15. Ex officio members.
An ex officio member of the |
Commission vacates the person's position on the Commission if |
the person ceases to hold the position that qualifies the |
person for service on the Commission.
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Section 20. Compensation; expenses. |
(a) A public member of the Commission is not entitled to |
compensation but is entitled to reimbursement for the travel |
expenses incurred by the member while transacting Commission |
business.
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(b) An ex officio member's service on the Commission is an |
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additional duty of the underlying position that qualifies the |
member for service on the Commission. The entitlement of an ex |
officio member to compensation or to reimbursement for travel |
expenses incurred while transacting Commission business is |
governed by the law that applies to the member's service in |
that underlying position, and any payment to the member for |
either purpose must be made from an appropriation that may be |
used for the purpose and is available to the State agency that |
the member serves in that underlying position.
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Section 25. Meetings; quorum; voting. |
(a) The Commission shall meet at least quarterly at the |
times and places in this State that the Commission designates.
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(b) A majority of the members of the Commission constitute |
a quorum for transacting Commission business.
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Section 30. General powers and duties of the Commission. |
The Commission shall:
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(1) Work with the Illinois Historic Preservation |
Agency to plan and sponsor official Illinois Civil War |
Sesquicentennial events, programs, and activities |
appropriate to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the |
American Civil War.
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(2) Encourage the development of programs designed to |
involve all citizens in activities that commemorate the |
150th Anniversary of the American Civil War. |
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(3) Work with the Illinois Historic Preservation |
Agency to develop an official Illinois Civil War |
Sesquicentennial logo. Official Illinois Sesquicentennial |
events will be authorized to display this official logo as |
part of their public branding and identity. |
(4) Work with the Illinois Historic Preservation |
Agency to develop a website for the Commission with a link |
to the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency's existing |
website commemorating the 150th Anniversary of the Civil |
War. |
(5) Prepare and submit a report to the Governor and the |
General Assembly no later than October 31, 2011 and each |
October 31 thereafter through October 31, 2014 concerning |
the events for the next year.
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Section 35. Administrative support. Subject to |
appropriation, the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency shall |
provide administrative and other support to the Commission.
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Section 40. Funding. The Commission may accept monetary |
gifts and grants from any public or private source, to be held |
in a non-appropriated trust fund by the State Treasurer and |
expended solely for the use of the Commission in performing the |
Commission's powers and duties under this Act.
The Commission |
may also accept in-kind gifts.
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