HB3032 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB104 05558 BDA 15588 b

104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB3032

Introduced 2/6/2025, by Rep. Janet Yang Rohr

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

5 ILCS 120/1.02	from Ch. 102, par. 41.02
5 ILCS 120/7

Amends the Open Meetings Act. Provides that an advisory body may conduct an open or closed meeting by audio or video conference without the physical presence of a quorum of its members if certain conditions are met. Defines "advisory body" and "decision-making body". Makes technical changes.

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 Open Meetings Act is amended by changing Sections 1.02 and 7 as follows:

(5 ILCS 120/1.02) (from Ch. 102, par. 41.02)

Sec. 1.02. For the purposes of this Act:

"Advisory body" includes any public body that supports and advises a decision-making body on the implementation of policies but does not make decisions to implement legislation or policy over any part of the State.

"Decision-making body" includes any public body that makes decisions to implement legislation or policy over any part of this State.

"Meeting" means any gathering, whether in person or by video or audio conference, telephone call, electronic means (such as, without limitation, electronic mail, electronic chat, and instant messaging), 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 or, for a 5-member public body, a quorum of the members of a public body held for the purpose of discussing public business.

Accordingly, for a 5-member public body, 3 members of the body constitute a quorum and the affirmative vote of 3 members is necessary to adopt any motion, resolution, or ordinance, unless a greater number is otherwise required.

"Public body" includes all legislative, executive, administrative or advisory bodies of the State, counties, townships, cities, villages, incorporated towns, school districts and all other municipal corporations, boards, bureaus, committees or commissions of this State, and any subsidiary bodies of any of the foregoing including but not limited to committees and subcommittees which are supported in whole or in part by tax revenue, or which expend tax revenue, except the General Assembly and committees or commissions thereof. "Public body" includes tourism boards and convention or civic center boards located in counties that are contiguous to the Mississippi River with populations of more than 250,000 but less than 300,000. "Public body" includes the Health Facilities and Services Review Board. "Public body" does not include a child death review team or the Illinois Child Death Review Teams Executive Council established under the Child Death Review Team Act, an ethics commission acting under the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act, a regional youth advisory board or the Statewide Youth Advisory Board established under the Department of Children and Family Services Statewide Youth Advisory Board Act, the Illinois Independent Tax Tribunal, or the regional interagency fatality review teams and the Illinois Fatality Review Team Advisory Council established under the Adult Protective Services Act.

(Source: P.A. 103-626, eff. 1-1-25.)

(5 ILCS 120/7)

Sec. 7. Attendance by a means other than physical presence.

(a) If a quorum of the members of the public body is physically present as required by Section 2.01, a majority of the public body may allow a member of that body to attend the meeting by other means if the member is prevented from physically attending because of: (i) personal illness or disability; (ii) employment purposes or the business of the public body; (iii) a family or other emergency; or (iv) unexpected childcare obligations. "Other means" is by video or audio conference.

(b) If a member wishes to attend a meeting by other means, the member must notify the recording secretary or clerk of the public body before the meeting unless advance notice is impractical.

(c) A majority of the public body may allow a member to attend a meeting by other means only in accordance with and to the extent allowed by rules adopted by the public body. The rules must conform to the requirements and restrictions of this Section, may further limit the extent to which attendance by other means is allowed, and may provide for the giving of additional notice to the public or further facilitate public access to meetings.

(d) The limitations of this Section shall not apply to (i) closed meetings of (A) public bodies with statewide jurisdiction, (B) Illinois library systems with jurisdiction over a specific geographic area of more than 4,500 square miles, (C) municipal transit districts with jurisdiction over a specific geographic area of more than 4,500 square miles, or (D) local workforce innovation areas with jurisdiction over a specific geographic area of more than 4,500 square miles or (ii) open or closed meetings of State advisory boards or bodies that do not have authority to make binding recommendations or determinations or to take any other substantive action. State advisory boards or bodies, public bodies with statewide jurisdiction, Illinois library systems with jurisdiction over a specific geographic area of more than 4,500 square miles, municipal transit districts with jurisdiction over a specific geographic area of more than 4,500 square miles, and local workforce investment areas with jurisdiction over a specific geographic area of more than 4,500 square miles, however, may permit members to attend meetings by other means only in accordance with and to the extent allowed by specific procedural rules adopted by the body. For the purposes of this Section, "local workforce innovation area" means any local workforce innovation area or areas designated by the Governor pursuant to the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act or its reauthorizing legislation.

(e) Subject to the requirements of Section 2.06 but notwithstanding any other provision of law, an open or closed meeting subject to this Act may be conducted by audio or video conference, without the physical presence of a quorum of the members, so long as the following conditions are met:

(1) the Governor or the Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health has issued a disaster declaration related to public health concerns because of a disaster as defined in Section 4 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, and all or part of the jurisdiction of the public body is covered by the disaster area;

(2) the head of the public body as defined in subsection (e) of Section 2 of the Freedom of Information Act determines that an in-person meeting or a meeting conducted under this Act is not practical or prudent because of a disaster;

(3) all members of the body participating in the meeting, wherever their physical location, shall be verified and can hear one another and can hear all discussion and testimony;

(4) for open meetings, members of the public present at the regular meeting location of the body can hear all discussion and testimony and all votes of the members of the body, unless attendance at the regular meeting location is not feasible due to the disaster, including the issued disaster declaration, in which case the public body must make alternative arrangements and provide notice pursuant to this Section of such alternative arrangements in a manner to allow any interested member of the public access to contemporaneously hear all discussion, testimony, and roll call votes, such as by offering a telephone number or a web-based link;

(5) at least one member of the body, chief legal counsel, or chief administrative officer is physically present at the regular meeting location, unless unfeasible due to the disaster, including the issued disaster declaration; and

(6) all votes are conducted by roll call, and so each member's vote on each issue can be identified and recorded; .

(7) except Except in the event of a bona fide emergency, 48 hours' notice shall be given of a meeting to be held pursuant to this Section; . notice Notice shall be given to all members of the public body, shall be posted on the website of the public body, and shall also be provided to any news media who has requested notice of meetings pursuant to subsection (a) of Section 2.02 of this Act; . if If the public body declares a bona fide emergency:

(A) notice Notice shall be given pursuant to subsection (a) of Section 2.02 of this Act, and the presiding officer shall state the nature of the emergency at the beginning of the meeting; and .

(B) the The public body must comply with the verbatim recording requirements set forth in Section 2.06 of this Act; .

(8) each Each member of the body participating in a meeting by audio or video conference for a meeting held pursuant to this Section is considered present at the meeting for purposes of determining a quorum and participating in all proceedings; .

(9) in In addition to the requirements for open meetings under Section 2.06, public bodies holding open meetings under this subsection (e) must also keep a verbatim record of all their meetings in the form of an audio or video recording; . verbatim Verbatim records made under this paragraph (9) shall be made available to the public under, and are otherwise subject to, the provisions of Section 2.06; and .

(10) the The public body shall bear all costs associated with compliance with this subsection (e).

(f) Subject to the requirements of Section 2.06 but notwithstanding any other provision of law, an open or closed meeting subject to this Act of an advisory body may be conducted by audio or video conference, without the physical presence of a quorum of the members, so long as the following conditions are met:

(1) the members of the advisory body decide in a majority vote to conduct the meeting by audio or video conference in accordance with and to the extent allowed by rules adopted by the advisory body;

(2) the advisory body provides for the giving of additional notice to the public or further facilitates public access to meetings;

(3) all members of the advisory body participating in the meeting, wherever their physical location, shall be verified and can hear one another and can hear all discussion and testimony;

(4) for open meetings, members of the public present at the regular meeting location of the advisory body can hear all discussion and testimony and all votes of the members of the body, unless attendance at the regular meeting location is not feasible, in which case the public body must make alternative arrangements and provide notice pursuant to this Section of the alternative arrangements in a manner to allow any interested member of the public access to contemporaneously hear all discussion, testimony, and roll call votes, such as by offering a telephone number or a web-based link;

(5) at least one member of the advisory body, chief legal counsel, or chief administrative officer is physically present at the regular meeting location, unless unfeasible;

(6) all votes are conducted by roll call, and each member's vote on each issue can be identified and recorded;

(7) 48 hours' notice shall be given of a meeting to be held pursuant to this Section; notice shall be given to all members of the public body, shall be posted on the website of the public body, and shall also be provided to any news media who has requested notice of meetings pursuant to subsection (a) of Section 2.02 of this Act; the public body must comply with the verbatim recording requirements set forth in Section 2.06 of this Act;

(8) each member of the advisory body participating in a meeting by audio or video conference for a meeting held pursuant to this Section is considered present at the meeting for purposes of determining a quorum and participating in all proceedings;

(9) in addition to the requirements for open meetings under Section 2.06, advisory bodies holding open meetings under this subsection (f) must also keep a verbatim record of all of their meetings in the form of an audio or video recording; verbatim records made under this paragraph (9) shall be made available to the public under, and are otherwise subject to, the provisions of Section 2.06; and

(10) the advisory body shall bear all costs associated with compliance with this subsection (f).

(Source: P.A. 103-311, eff. 7-28-23.)