102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY:
The 2022 Fall Veto Session stands adjourned to the call of the Senate President and Speaker of the House. The 102nd General Assembly is scheduled to reconvene in a lame duck session Wednesday, January 4 – Saturday, January 7 and then again on Tuesday, January 10. It is possible some of those session days may be canceled. Note, any legislation with an immediate effective date will require the approval of only a simple majority during the lame-duck session.
The second and final week of the veto session saw action on several key issues highlighted below.
SAFE – T Act Trailer Bill: HB 1095 (Slaughter/Peters), as amended, is a trailer bill to the SAFE-T Act. The sponsor testified that the bill makes changes to clarify the Pre-Trial Fairness Act and how it will be implemented beginning in January 2023. Some of the bill’s changes are highlighted below.
The legislation addresses the transition from the end of cash bail to a new system on January 1, 2023. Under the bill, defendants charged before January 1, 2023 would have the option to remain under the old bail system, or be moved to the new system. A new system is created for granting hearings on these requests as follows: (1) Hearings for lowest level offenses must be within 7 days of request; (2) hearings for those detained, but considered flight risks, would be within 60 days; and (3) hearings for those considered to be potential threats to safety would be within 90 days.
With respect to trespassing, the amendment clarifies that a police officer can arrest an individual for trespassing if (1) the person poses a threat to the community or any person; (2) an arrest is necessary because criminal activity persists after issuance of the citation; or (3) the accused has an obvious medical or mental health issue that poses a risk to their safety. If none of these conditions is present, a citation will be issued.
The legislation further makes the “dangerousness standard” consistent throughout the entire act.
The bill expands the list of crimes that qualify an individual for detention to include non-probationable felonies, forcible felonies, hate crimes, attempts of crimes that are otherwise detainable, as well as other offenses.
The legislation clarifies that judges can issue arrest warrants or summons when individuals miss their court dates.
In addition, the bill makes clear “willful flight” so as to stress the intent: to detain those who are actively evading prosecution.
The bill also makes clarifying language regarding police worn body cameras.
HB 1095 passed both Houses and will head to the Governor’s desk.
Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund: A bipartisan agreement was reached to address the $1.36 billion shortfall in the state’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and to shore up the Fund in the event of future economic downturns. The deal was negotiated via the Agreed Bill Process which includes business and labor organizations as well as members of the General Assembly and the Governor’s office.
Under the agreement, the state will contribute more than $1.8 billion in state funds to the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund, which includes the payment of the remaining federal loan balance borrowed under Title XII of the Social Security Act. The remaining $450 million will be placed into the trust fund from state funds as an interest-free loan. As the loan is repaid by business taxes over the next ten years, funds will be deposited directly into the state’s rainy-day fund.
The agreement works to stabilize the fund, raising the portion of each worker’s salary on which employers pay unemployment taxes (increasing the taxable wage base by 2.4% for the next five years) as well as preparing for future downturns by increasing the target balance of the trust fund from ($1 billion to $1.75 billion). The agreement also delays statutorily mandated “speed bumps” which require automatic tax increases for employers and employee benefit cuts until January 1, 2025.
The proposal will be implemented in two parts. The first part, which includes statutory changes necessary to implement the agreement, passed both houses this week on SB 1698 (Holmes/Hoffman) and now heads to the Governor. The second part, which represents the appropriations to the UI Trust Fund, passed the Senate on SB 2801 (Holmes/Welch) and now heads to the House.
Health Care Omnibus: HB 4846 (Walsh/Gillespie), as amended, is a trailer bill to several healthcare related bills passed during the spring session. HB 4846 passed the Senate by a vote of 57-0 and heads back to the House for concurrence. Specifically, the bill:
- Creates state authorization for rural hospitals to operate under a new federal care delivery model as Rural Emergency Hospitals.
- Allows applications for licensure as an applied behavioral analyst subject to IDFPR rule.
- Makes several clean up changes to the Nursing Home Assessment.
- Makes changes to the ARPA payments for ground ambulance providers.
- Requires IDFPR to provide a one-time fee waiver for podiatrists for FY 23.
- Excludes TRICARE covered days for care provided to recruits or trainees of the US Navy when calculating a hospital’s Medicaid inpatient utilization rate.
Revenue Omnibus: Both chambers approved an omnibus revenue bill HB 5189 (Zalewski/Villanueva). As amended, HB 5189 (1) clarifies that student loan forgiveness is not taxable income; (2) extends the sunset for deductions on ABLE savings account; (3) authorizes $2 million in tax credits for touring Broadway productions; (4) extends the deadline for property tax payments in Cook County; (5) expands incentives under the REV Act to aid in the recruitment of companies in the electric vehicle sector; (6) and makes changes to address the collection of Motor Fuel Taxes at one gas station in the village of Hinsdale.
Additional Legislation Considered: The General Assembly also considered various other matters this week as outlined below. Any bills on this list that have not passed both houses could be considered during the January lame duck session.
- The House concurred in Senate Amendment # 2 to HB 347 (Hoffman/Harmon) which amends the Sexual Assault Surviors Treatment Act. With respect to pediatric health care facilities, the bill delays implementation of certain fines as hospitals ramp up staffing to fully implement the provision of the Act. The bill further allows St. Louis area pediatric hospitals to treat Illinois patients and extends the reporting deadline for the Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Services Implementation Task Force. HB 347 passed the Senate during the spring session and now heads to the Governor’s desk.
- The Illinois House unanimously concurred with Senate Amendment # 1 to HB 1293 (LaPointe/Harmon) which represents a multi-pronged response to Russia’s war on Ukraine. The measure keys in on six aspects (as discussed in previous editions of this report): Public Funds/Pension; Ukrainian Resettlement Services; Real Estate; Election Integrity; Property-related Crimes; and Higher Education. HB 1293 now heads to the Governor’s desk.
- The Senate approved SB 2953 (Lightford/Smith) which, as amended, increases fees for coroners to provide a permit to cremate a human body. The increased fees will offset the coroner’s expenses in issuing the permits. SB 2953 heads to the House for consideration.
- The House passed SB 1794 (Murphy/DeLuca), which as amended, represents a reform of the municipal utility audit process in Illinois. SB 1794 now heads to the Senate for concurrence.
- The House approved HB 4073 (Kelly/Murphy) which, as amended, is intended to address the vacancy on the Niles Library Board by clarifying that the Secretary of State is authorized to make appointments to a local library board when the vacancy has existed for a certain amount of time. HB 4073 now heads to the Governor’s desk.
- The Senate Executive Committee approved HB 4933 (Ford/Pacione-Zayas) which makes changes concerning the Chicago Board of Education’s requirements and criteria for principals. HB 4933 is pending before the full Senate.
- As amended, HB 1587 (West/Murphy) makes changes regarding appointments to various boards and commissions. HB 1587 passed the Senate by a vote of 39-18 and heads to the House for concurrence.
- HB 3823 (Scherer/Turner), as amended, makes various land transfers. HB 3823 passed both houses and heads to the Governor’s desk.
- HB 4228 (Hoffman/Morrison), as amended, contains trailer language to Public Act 102-0977. HB 4228 passed the Senate 56-0 and now heads to the House for concurrence.
- HB 3080 (Flowers/Fine), as amended, clarifies coverage for treatment of PANS or PANDAS. HB 3080 passed the Senate and now heads to the House for concurrence.
- The Illinois Senate approved HB 4285 (Stuart/Castro) which, as amended, makes various procurement changes related to higher education. HB 4285 now heads to the House for concurrence.
- The Senate Revenue Committee approved SB 2324 (Feigenholtz) which creates the Tourism Marketing and Recovery District Law. The sponsor agreed to work on the bill and offer an amendment during the January lame duck session. SB 2324 is pending before the full Senate.
- HB 5049 (Hoffman/Villivalam) which, as amended by Senate Floor Amendment # 3, creates a special license plate for retired constitutional officers; extends SOS COVID emergency rules regarding annual road tests for seniors and creates a study on age related changes that could impact a driver’s performance on the road. HB 5049 passed both houses and heads to the Governor’s desk.
- The Senate approved SB 4244 (Lightford) which eliminates the residency requirement for county school treasurers in Cook County. SB 4244 heads to the House.
- The Senate approved SB 1622 (Bush/Gong-Gershowitz) which extends protections of the Human Rights Act to the immediate personal staffs of elected public officials. SB 1622 heads to the House.
- The Senate approved HB 1859 (Burke/Martwick) which is an initiative of the Cook County Forest Preserve District which allows the Forest Preserve District to make a full actuarial payment into the system. HB 1859 heads back to the House for concurrence.
- Both chambers approved HB 2406 (Stuart/Hunter) which, as amended, extends sunset and deadline provisions of numerous Acts. SB 2406 now heads to the Governor’s desk.
- The Senate approved HB 4218 (Hernandez/Villanueva) which requires all facilities of the Department of Corrections to provide menstrual hygiene products free of charge. HB 4218 passed both houses and heads to the Governor’s desk.
- The Senate Executive Committee approved HB 5542 (Kifowit/Cunningham) which is an omnibus veteran’s affairs bill. HB 5542 is now pending before the full Senate.
- Both chambers approved SB 1595 (Cunningham/Hurley) which, as amended, is an omnibus TIF extension bill. SB 1595 now heads to the Governor’s desk.
Economic Forecast and Revenue Update: The Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability released its FY 2023 Economic Forecast and Revenue Update. Of note, the Commission is increasing its FY 2023 revenue outlook by $4.9 billion to $51.329 billion. According to their analysis, “While inflation is no doubt a concern for the nation’s economy going forward, it has provided short-term benefits in the form of elevated tax revenues from sales taxes (higher prices), income taxes (higher wages), and interest income (higher interest rates). While there are signs of slowing in certain revenue areas, a sudden shift in trends is not expected, leading to upward pressure to increase these economically driven revenue source estimates for FY 2023.” Read the full report here.
103rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Members of the 103rd General Assembly are to be sworn into office at noon on January 11. The Governor will deliver a combined State of the State and Budget Address on February 15. Note that the General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn the 2023 spring session on May 19 – – roughly two weeks earlier than the traditional May 31 adjournment.
The Senate is scheduled for 53 session days. The Senate Calendar can be viewed here. The House calendar is not available at the time of this writing.
2023 Key Session Deadlines:
January 11: Inauguration of the 103rd General Assembly
January 27: Deadline – Senate LRB Requests
February 10: Deadline – Introduction of Substantive Senate Bills in the Senate
February 15: Governor’s State of the State/Budget Address
February 28: Consolidated Primary Election
March 10: Deadline – Substantive Senate Bills Out of Senate Committee
March 31: Deadline – Third Reading Substantive Senate Bills in the Senate
April 4: Consolidated Election
April 28: Deadline – House Bills out of Senate Committee
May 11: Deadline – Third Reading Substantive House Bills in Senate
May 19: Adjournment
GOVERNOR’S HIGHLIGHTS:
Cannabis Regulation Oversight Officer: Governor JB Pritzker announced Erin A. Johnson will serve as the state’s Cannabis Regulation Oversight Officer. She replaces Danielle Perry, who previously served as the CROO. The state’s Cannabis Regulation Oversight Office is a part of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation and is responsible for coordinating with numerous state agencies to direct the regulation and taxation of Illinois’ cannabis industry.
Avian Flu Resurgence: At least 300 waterbirds, primarily snow geese, have died of suspected avian influenza at public hunting areas throughout southern Illinois, according to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Dead wild birds have been found at Baldwin Lake, Pyramid State Recreation Area, Rend Lake, and Carlyle Lake in recent days. The Department will continue to monitor for ongoing outbreaks during the fall bird migration.
Public Health Infrastructure Funding: Illinois will receive $86 million in federal funding to strengthen the state’s public health workforce and infrastructure. This first-of-its-kind funding from the CDC will support efforts by IDPH and its local health department partners to promote and protect health and address health disparities in communities throughout Illinois. Read more here about how the funding will be used.
ELECTION UPDATE:
Democrat Maria Peterson, who challenged Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie, conceded this week. Peterson lost to McConchie by 393 votes.
After the certification of election results, Democrat Jenn Ladisch Douglass officially defeated Republican State Representative Deanne Mazzochi.
Secretary of State Elect Alexi Giannoulias announced his transition team. Of note, his Republican challenger Representative Dan Brady will serve on the transition team. Transition team information is here.
The filing period for municipal elections has closed. Currently, there are 11 candidates filed to run for Mayor of the City of Chicago. Petition challenges are expected and may narrow the field. The full list of candidates is here.