65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10

(65 ILCS 5/3.1-55-10)

Sec. 3.1-55-10. Interests in contracts.

(a) A municipal officer shall not be financially interested directly in the officer's own name or indirectly in the name of any other person, association, trust, or corporation, in any contract, work, or business of the municipality or in the sale of any article whenever the expense, price, or consideration of the contract, work, business, or sale is paid either from the treasury or by an assessment levied by statute or ordinance. A municipal officer shall not be interested, directly or indirectly, in the purchase of any property that (i) belongs to the municipality, (ii) is sold for taxes or assessments, or (iii) is sold by virtue of legal process at the suit of the municipality. For the purposes of this Section only, however, a municipal officer shall not be deemed interested if the officer is an employee of a company or owns or holds an interest of 1% or less in the municipal officer's individual name in a company, or both, that company is involved in the transaction of business with the municipality, and that company's stock is traded on a nationally recognized securities market, provided the interested member (i) publicly discloses the fact that he or she is an employee or holds an interest of 1% or less in a company before deliberation of the proposed award of the contract; (ii) refrains from evaluating, recommending, approving, deliberating, or otherwise participating in the negotiation, approval, or both, of the contract, work, or business; (iii) abstains from voting on the award of the contract though he or she shall be considered present for purposes of establishing a quorum; and (iv) the contract is approved by a majority vote of those members currently holding office.

A municipal officer shall not be deemed interested if the officer owns or holds an interest of 1% or less, not in the officer's individual name but through a mutual fund or exchange-traded fund, in a company, that company is involved in the transaction of business with the municipality, and that company's stock is traded on a nationally recognized securities market.

This Section does not prohibit any person serving on a municipal advisory panel or commission or nongoverning board or commission from having an interest in a contract, work, or business of the municipality unless the municipal officer's duties include evaluating, recommending, approving, or voting to recommend or approve the contract, work, or business.

(b) Any elected or appointed member of the governing body may, however, provide materials, merchandise, property, services, or labor, subject to the following provisions under either (1) or (2):

(1) If:

(A) the contract is with a person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, or cooperative association in which the interested member of the governing body of the municipality member has less than a 7 1/2% share in the ownership;

(B) the interested member publicly discloses the nature and extent of the interest before or during deliberations concerning the proposed award of the contract;

(C) the interested member abstains from voting on the award of the contract (though the member shall be considered present for the purposes of establishing a quorum);

(D) the contract is approved by a majority vote of those members presently holding office;

(E) the contract is awarded after sealed bids to the lowest responsible bidder if the amount of the contract exceeds $1,500 (but the contract may be awarded without bidding if the amount is less than $1,500); and

(F) the award of the contract would not cause the aggregate amount of all contracts so awarded to the same person, firm, association, partnership, corporation, or cooperative association in the same fiscal year to exceed $25,000.

(2) If:

(A) the award of the contract is approved by a majority vote of the governing body of the municipality (provided that the interested member shall abstain from voting);

(B) the amount of the contract does not exceed $2,000;

(C) the award of the contract would not cause the aggregate amount of all contracts so awarded to the same person, firm, association, partnership, corporation, or cooperative association in the same fiscal year to exceed $4,000;

(D) the interested member publicly discloses the nature and extent of his interest before or during deliberations concerning the proposed award of the contract; and

(E) the interested member abstains from voting on the award of the contract (though the member shall be considered present for the purposes of establishing a quorum).

(b-5) In addition to the above exemptions, any elected or appointed member of the governing body may provide materials, merchandise, property, services, or labor if:

(1) the contract is with a person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, or cooperative association in which the interested member of the governing body of the municipality, advisory panel, or commission has less than a 1% share in the ownership; and

(2) the award of the contract is approved by a majority vote of the governing body of the municipality provided that any such interested member shall abstain from voting; and

(3) such interested member publicly discloses the nature and extent of his interest before or during deliberations concerning the proposed award of the contract; and

(4) such interested member abstains from voting on the award of the contract, though he shall be considered present for the purposes of establishing a quorum.

(c) A contract for the procurement of public utility services by a municipality with a public utility company is not barred by this Section by one or more members of the governing body being an officer or employee of the public utility company, or holding an ownership interest in no more than 7 1/2% in the public utility company, or holding an ownership interest of any size if the municipality has a population of less than 7,500 and the public utility's rates are approved by the Illinois Commerce Commission. An elected or appointed member of the governing body or a nongoverning board or commission having an interest described in this subsection (d) does not have a prohibited interest under this Section.

(d) An officer who violates this Section is guilty of a Class 4 felony. In addition, any office held by an officer so convicted shall become vacant and shall be so declared as part of the judgment of the court.

(e) Nothing contained in this Section, including the restrictions set forth in subsections (b) and (c), shall preclude a contract of deposit of moneys, loans, or other financial services by a municipality with a local bank or local savings and loan association, regardless of whether a member of the governing body of the municipality is interested in the bank or savings and loan association as an officer or employee or as a holder of less than 7 1/2% of the total ownership interest. A member holding an interest described in this subsection (e) in a contract does not hold a prohibited interest for purposes of this Act. The interested member of the governing body must publicly state the nature and extent of the interest during deliberations concerning the proposed award of the contract but shall not participate in any further deliberations concerning the proposed award. The interested member shall not vote on the proposed award. A member abstaining from participation in deliberations and voting under this Section may be considered present for purposes of establishing a quorum. Award of the contract shall require approval by a majority vote of those members presently holding office. Consideration and award of a contract in which a member is interested may only be made at a regularly scheduled public meeting of the governing body of the municipality.

(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section or any other law to the contrary, until January 1, 1994, a member of the city council of a municipality with a population under 20,000 may purchase real estate from the municipality, at a price of not less than 100% of the value of the real estate as determined by a written MAI certified appraisal or by a written certified appraisal of a State certified or licensed real estate appraiser, if the purchase is approved by a unanimous vote of the city council members then holding office (except for the member desiring to purchase the real estate, who shall not vote on the question).

(g) Under either of the following circumstances, a municipal officer may hold a position on the board of a not-for-profit corporation that is interested in a contract, work, or business of the municipality:

(1) If the municipal officer is appointed by the governing body of the municipality to represent the interests of the municipality on a not-for-profit corporation's board, then the municipal officer may actively vote on matters involving either that board or the municipality, at any time, so long as the membership on the not-for-profit board is not a paid position, except that the municipal officer may be reimbursed by the not-for-profit board for expenses incurred as the result of membership on the not-for-profit board.

(2) If the municipal officer is not appointed to the governing body of a not-for-profit corporation by the governing body of the municipality, then the municipal officer may continue to serve; however, the municipal officer shall abstain from voting on any proposition before the municipal governing body directly involving the not-for-profit corporation and, for those matters, shall not be counted as present for the purposes of a quorum of the municipal governing body.

(Source: P.A. 96-277, eff. 1-1-10; 96-1058, eff. 7-14-10.)