SB3162 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB100 16614 RJF 31750 b

100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
SB3162

Introduced 2/15/2018, by Sen. Michael Connelly

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

5 ILCS 430/70-5

Amends the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act. Provides that within 6 months after the effective date of this amendatory Act, each governmental entity shall establish an Office of Ethics Compliance that includes an independent ethics commission and an independent Inspector General in a substantially similar format as created for the Executive and Legislative Branches of State Government under the Act. Provides that governmental entities may enter into intergovernmental agreements in order to establish ethics commissions and Inspectors General who serve multiple governmental entities. Provides that the ethics commission and Inspector General established by each governmental entity shall have jurisdiction over violations of a governmental entity's ethics ordinance, Freedom of Information Act compliance, Open Meetings Act compliance, and any allegations of fraud, waste, malfeasance, or violations of other related laws and rules.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The State Officials and Employees Ethics Act is amended by changing Section 70-5 as follows:

(5 ILCS 430/70-5)

Sec. 70-5. Adoption by governmental entities.

(a) Within 6 months after the effective date of this Act, each governmental entity other than a community college district, and each community college district within 6 months after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly, shall adopt an ordinance or resolution that regulates, in a manner no less restrictive than Section 5-15 and Article 10 of this Act, (i) the political activities of officers and employees of the governmental entity and (ii) the soliciting and accepting of gifts by and the offering and making of gifts to officers and employees of the governmental entity. No later than 60 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 100th General Assembly, each governmental unit shall adopt an ordinance or resolution establishing a policy to prohibit sexual harassment. The policy shall include, at a minimum: (i) a prohibition on sexual harassment; (ii) details on how an individual can report an allegation of sexual harassment, including options for making a confidential report to a supervisor, ethics officer, Inspector General, or the Department of Human Rights; (iii) a prohibition on retaliation for reporting sexual harassment allegations, including availability of whistleblower protections under this Act, the Whistleblower Act, and the Illinois Human Rights Act; and (iv) the consequences of a violation of the prohibition on sexual harassment and the consequences for knowingly making a false report.

(b) Within 3 months after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly, the Attorney General shall develop model ordinances and resolutions for the purpose of this Article. The Attorney General shall advise governmental entities on their contents and adoption.

(c) As used in this Article, (i) an "officer" means an elected or appointed official; regardless of whether the official is compensated, and (ii) an "employee" means a full-time, part-time, or contractual employee.

(d) Within 6 months after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 100th General Assembly, each governmental entity shall establish an Office of Ethics Compliance that includes an independent ethics commission and an independent Inspector General in a substantially similar format as created for the Executive and Legislative Branches of State Government under Articles 20 and 25 of this Act. Governmental entities under this subsection (d) may enter into intergovernmental agreements in order to establish ethics commissions and Inspectors General who serve multiple governmental entities. The ethics commissions and Inspectors General established under this subsection (d) shall have jurisdiction over violations of a governmental entity's ethics ordinance, Freedom of Information Act compliance, Open Meetings Act compliance, and any allegations of fraud, waste, malfeasance, or violations of other related laws and rules.

(Source: P.A. 100-554, eff. 11-16-17.)