102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB0282

 

Introduced 1/29/2021, by Rep. Natalie A. Manley

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
55 ILCS 5/3-9001  from Ch. 34, par. 3-9001
55 ILCS 5/3-9002  from Ch. 34, par. 3-9002
55 ILCS 5/3-9004  from Ch. 34, par. 3-9004
55 ILCS 5/3-9005  from Ch. 34, par. 3-9005
55 ILCS 5/3-9006  from Ch. 34, par. 3-9006
55 ILCS 5/3-9008  from Ch. 34, par. 3-9008
55 ILCS 5/3-9009  from Ch. 34, par. 3-9009
55 ILCS 5/3-9012  from Ch. 34, par. 3-9012

    Amends the State's Attorney Division of the Counties Code. Provides that, in a county with less than 2,000,000 inhabitants, the State's Attorney may give an opinion, without fee or reward, upon any question of law relating to a County Veterans Assistance Commission. Provides that a County Veterans Assistance Commission may make such a request of the State's Attorney, and the State's Attorney, in the State's Attorney's sole discretion, may grant or decline such a request by a County Veterans Assistance Commission. Makes all provisions of the Division gender neutral. Effective immediately.


LRB102 09919 AWJ 15237 b

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB0282LRB102 09919 AWJ 15237 b

1    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by changing
5Sections 3-9001, 3-9002, 3-9004, 3-9005, 3-9006, 3-9008,
63-9009, and 3-9012 as follows:
 
7    (55 ILCS 5/3-9001)  (from Ch. 34, par. 3-9001)
8    Sec. 3-9001. Oath; bond. Before entering upon the
9respective duties of their office, the state's attorneys shall
10each be commissioned by the governor, and shall take the
11following oath or affirmation:
12    I do solemnly swear (or affirm, as the case may be), that I
13will support the constitution of the United States and the
14constitution of the state of Illinois, and that I will
15faithfully discharge the duties of the office of state's
16attorney according to the best of my ability.
17    Each State's attorney shall also execute a bond, to the
18People of the State of Illinois, (or, if the county is
19self-insured, the county through its self-insurance program
20may provide bonding) with good and sufficient securities in
21the penal sum of $5,000, to be approved by the circuit court
22for the his respective county, which approval shall be
23indorsed upon the bond. The bond, with the approval thereof

 

 

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1indorsed, shall be entered of record in the circuit court, and
2then forwarded by the county clerk to the secretary of state,
3to be filed in the Secretary of State's his office. Each of the
4bonds shall be conditioned upon the faithful discharge of the
5duties of the office, and the paying over all moneys as
6provided by law, which bond shall run to and be for the benefit
7of the state, county, corporation or person injured by a
8breach of any of the conditions thereof.
9(Source: P.A. 88-387.)
 
10    (55 ILCS 5/3-9002)  (from Ch. 34, par. 3-9002)
11    Sec. 3-9002. Commencement of duties. The State's attorney
12shall enter upon the duties of the his office on the first day
13in the month of December following the his election of the
14State's Attorney on which the State's attorney's office is
15required, by statute or by action of the county board, to be
16open.
17(Source: P.A. 86-962.)
 
18    (55 ILCS 5/3-9004)  (from Ch. 34, par. 3-9004)
19    Sec. 3-9004. Failure to give bond or take oath. If any
20person elected to the office of State's attorney shall fail to
21give bond, or take the oath required of the State's Attorney
22him, within twenty days after the person he is declared
23elected, the office shall be deemed vacant, and if, being
24required to give additional bond, as provided in Section

 

 

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13-9003 hereof, the person he fails to do so within twenty days
2after notice of such requirements, the State's Attorney his
3office may, in the discretion of the governor, be declared
4vacant and filled as provided by law.
5(Source: P.A. 86-962.)
 
6    (55 ILCS 5/3-9005)  (from Ch. 34, par. 3-9005)
7    Sec. 3-9005. Powers and duties of State's Attorney.
8    (a) The duty of each State's Attorney shall be:
9        (1) To commence and prosecute all actions, suits,
10    indictments and prosecutions, civil and criminal, in the
11    circuit court for the his county, in which the people of
12    the State or county may be concerned.
13        (2) To prosecute all forfeited bonds and
14    recognizances, and all actions and proceedings for the
15    recovery of debts, revenues, moneys, fines, penalties and
16    forfeitures accruing to the State or the his county, or to
17    any school district or road district in the his county;
18    also, to prosecute all suits in the his county against
19    railroad or transportation companies, which may be
20    prosecuted in the name of the People of the State of
21    Illinois.
22        (3) To commence and prosecute all actions and
23    proceedings brought by any county officer in the State's
24    Attorney's his official capacity.
25        (4) To defend all actions and proceedings brought

 

 

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1    against the his county, or against any county or State
2    officer, in the State's Attorney's his official capacity,
3    within the his county.
4        (5) To attend the examination of all persons brought
5    before any judge on habeas corpus, when the prosecution is
6    in the his county.
7        (6) To attend before judges and prosecute charges of
8    felony or misdemeanor, for which the offender is required
9    to be recognized to appear before the circuit court, when
10    in the State's Attorney's his power so to do.
11        (7) To give the State's Attorney's his opinion,
12    without fee or reward, to any county officer in the his
13    county, upon any question or law relating to any criminal
14    or other matter, in which the people or the county may be
15    concerned.
16        (8) To assist the Attorney General whenever it may be
17    necessary, and in cases of appeal from the his county to
18    the Supreme Court, to which it is the duty of the Attorney
19    General to attend, the State's Attorney he shall furnish
20    the Attorney General at least 10 days before such is due to
21    be filed, a manuscript of a proposed statement, brief and
22    argument to be printed and filed on behalf of the people,
23    prepared in accordance with the rules of the Supreme
24    Court. However, if such brief, argument or other document
25    is due to be filed by law or order of court within this
26    10-day period, then the State's Attorney shall furnish

 

 

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1    such as soon as may be reasonable.
2        (9) To pay all moneys received by the State's Attorney
3    him in trust, without delay, to the officer who by law is
4    entitled to the custody thereof.
5        (10) To notify, by first class mail, complaining
6    witnesses of the ultimate disposition of the cases arising
7    from an indictment or an information.
8        (11) To perform such other and further duties as may,
9    from time to time, be enjoined on the State's Attorney him
10    by law.
11        (12) To appear in all proceedings by collectors of
12    taxes against delinquent taxpayers for judgments to sell
13    real estate, and see that all the necessary preliminary
14    steps have been legally taken to make the judgment legal
15    and binding.
16        (13) To notify, by first-class mail, the State
17    Superintendent of Education, the applicable regional
18    superintendent of schools, and the superintendent of the
19    employing school district or the chief school
20    administrator of the employing nonpublic school, if any,
21    upon the conviction of any individual known to possess a
22    certificate or license issued pursuant to Article 21 or
23    21B, respectively, of the School Code of any offense set
24    forth in Section 21B-80 of the School Code or any other
25    felony conviction, providing the name of the certificate
26    holder, the fact of the conviction, and the name and

 

 

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1    location of the court where the conviction occurred. The
2    certificate holder must also be contemporaneously sent a
3    copy of the notice.
4    (b) The State's Attorney of each county shall have
5authority to appoint one or more special investigators to
6serve subpoenas and summonses, make return of process, and
7conduct investigations which assist the State's Attorney in
8the performance of the State's Attorney his duties. In
9counties of the first and second class, the fees for service of
10subpoenas and summonses are allowed by this Section and shall
11be consistent with those set forth in Section 4-5001 of this
12Act, except when increased by county ordinance as provided for
13in Section 4-5001. In counties of the third class, the fees for
14service of subpoenas and summonses are allowed by this Section
15and shall be consistent with those set forth in Section
164-12001 of this Act. A special investigator shall not carry
17firearms except with permission of the State's Attorney and
18only while carrying appropriate identification indicating the
19special investigator's his employment and in the performance
20of the special investigator's his assigned duties.
21    Subject to the qualifications set forth in this
22subsection, special investigators shall be peace officers and
23shall have all the powers possessed by investigators under the
24State's Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor's Act.
25    No special investigator employed by the State's Attorney
26shall have peace officer status or exercise police powers

 

 

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1unless the special investigator he or she successfully
2completes the basic police training course mandated and
3approved by the Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards
4Board or such board waives the training requirement by reason
5of the special investigator's prior law enforcement experience
6or training or both. Any State's Attorney appointing a special
7investigator shall consult with all affected local police
8agencies, to the extent consistent with the public interest,
9if the special investigator is assigned to areas within that
10agency's jurisdiction.
11    Before a person is appointed as a special investigator,
12the person's his fingerprints shall be taken and transmitted
13to the Department of State Police. The Department shall
14examine its records and submit to the State's Attorney of the
15county in which the investigator seeks appointment any
16conviction information concerning the person on file with the
17Department. No person shall be appointed as a special
18investigator if the person he has been convicted of a felony or
19other offense involving moral turpitude. A special
20investigator shall be paid a salary and be reimbursed for
21actual expenses incurred in performing the special
22investigator's his assigned duties. The county board shall
23approve the salary and actual expenses and appropriate the
24salary and expenses in the manner prescribed by law or
25ordinance.
26    (c) The State's Attorney may request and receive from

 

 

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1employers, labor unions, telephone companies, and utility
2companies location information concerning putative fathers and
3noncustodial parents for the purpose of establishing a child's
4paternity or establishing, enforcing, or modifying a child
5support obligation. In this subsection, "location information"
6means information about (i) the physical whereabouts of a
7putative father or noncustodial parent, (ii) the putative
8father or noncustodial parent's employer, or (iii) the salary,
9wages, and other compensation paid and the health insurance
10coverage provided to the putative father or noncustodial
11parent by the employer of the putative father or noncustodial
12parent or by a labor union of which the putative father or
13noncustodial parent is a member.
14    (d) (Blank).
15    (e) The State's Attorney shall have the authority to enter
16into a written agreement with the Department of Revenue for
17pursuit of civil liability under subsection (E) of Section
1817-1 of the Criminal Code of 2012 against persons who have
19issued to the Department checks or other orders in violation
20of the provisions of paragraph (1) of subsection (B) of
21Section 17-1 of the Criminal Code of 2012, with the Department
22to retain the amount owing upon the dishonored check or order
23along with the dishonored check fee imposed under the Uniform
24Penalty and Interest Act, with the balance of damages, fees,
25and costs collected under subsection (E) of Section 17-1 of
26the Criminal Code of 2012 or under Section 17-1a of that Code

 

 

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1to be retained by the State's Attorney. The agreement shall
2not affect the allocation of fines and costs imposed in any
3criminal prosecution.
4    (f) In a county with less than 2,000,000 inhabitants, the
5State's Attorney may give an opinion, without fee or reward,
6upon any question of law relating to a County Veterans
7Assistance Commission. A County Veterans Assistance Commission
8may make such a request of the State's Attorney, and the
9State's Attorney, in the State's Attorney's sole discretion,
10may grant or decline such a request by a County Veterans
11Assistance Commission.
12(Source: P.A. 101-275, eff. 8-9-19.)
 
13    (55 ILCS 5/3-9006)  (from Ch. 34, par. 3-9006)
14    Sec. 3-9006. Internal operations of office; simultaneous
15county board tenure.
16    (a) Internal operations of the office. The State's
17Attorney shall control the internal operations of the State's
18Attorney's his or her office and procure the necessary
19equipment, materials, and services to perform the duties of
20that office.
21    (b) Simultaneous county board tenure. A duly appointed
22Assistant State's Attorney may serve as an Assistant State's
23Attorney and, simultaneously, serve as a county board member
24for a county located outside of the jurisdiction of the
25State's Attorney Office that the Assistant State's Attorney he

 

 

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1or she serves. An Assistant State's Attorney serving as a
2county board member is subject to any internal mechanisms
3established by the State's Attorney to avoid conflicts of
4interest in the performance of the individual's his or her
5duties as an Assistant State's Attorney.
6(Source: P.A. 95-1014, eff. 12-15-08.)
 
7    (55 ILCS 5/3-9008)  (from Ch. 34, par. 3-9008)
8    Sec. 3-9008. Appointment of attorney to perform duties.
9    (a) (Blank).
10    (a-5) The court on its own motion, or an interested person
11in a cause or proceeding, civil or criminal, may file a
12petition alleging that the State's Attorney is sick, absent,
13or unable to fulfill the State's Attorney's his or her duties.
14The court shall consider the petition, any documents filed in
15response, and if necessary, grant a hearing to determine
16whether the State's Attorney is sick, absent, or otherwise
17unable to fulfill the State's Attorney's his or her duties. If
18the court finds that the State's Attorney is sick, absent, or
19otherwise unable to fulfill the State's Attorney's his or her
20duties, the court may appoint some competent attorney to
21prosecute or defend the cause or proceeding.
22    (a-10) The court on its own motion, or an interested
23person in a cause or proceeding, civil or criminal, may file a
24petition alleging that the State's Attorney has an actual
25conflict of interest in the cause or proceeding. The court

 

 

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1shall consider the petition, any documents filed in response,
2and if necessary, grant a hearing to determine whether the
3State's Attorney has an actual conflict of interest in the
4cause or proceeding. If the court finds that the petitioner
5has proven by sufficient facts and evidence that the State's
6Attorney has an actual conflict of interest in a specific
7case, the court may appoint some competent attorney to
8prosecute or defend the cause or proceeding.
9    (a-15) Notwithstanding subsections (a-5) and (a-10) of
10this Section, the State's Attorney may file a petition to
11recuse the State's Attorney himself or herself from a cause or
12proceeding for any other reason the State's Attorney he or she
13deems appropriate and the court shall appoint a special
14prosecutor as provided in this Section.
15    (a-20) Prior to appointing a private attorney under this
16Section, the court shall contact public agencies, including,
17but not limited to, the Office of Attorney General, Office of
18the State's Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor, or local State's
19Attorney's Offices throughout the State, to determine a public
20prosecutor's availability to serve as a special prosecutor at
21no cost to the county and shall appoint a public agency if they
22are able and willing to accept the appointment. An attorney so
23appointed shall have the same power and authority in relation
24to the cause or proceeding as the State's Attorney would have
25if present and attending to the cause or proceedings.
26    (b) In case of a vacancy of more than one year occurring in

 

 

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1any county in the office of State's attorney, by death,
2resignation or otherwise, and it becomes necessary for the
3transaction of the public business, that some competent
4attorney act as State's attorney in and for such county during
5the period between the time of the occurrence of such vacancy
6and the election and qualification of a State's attorney, as
7provided by law, the vacancy shall be filled upon the written
8request of a majority of the circuit judges of the circuit in
9which is located the county where such vacancy exists, by
10appointment as provided in The Election Code of some competent
11attorney to perform and discharge all the duties of a State's
12attorney in the said county, such appointment and all
13authority thereunder to cease upon the election and
14qualification of a State's attorney, as provided by law. Any
15attorney appointed for any reason under this Section shall
16possess all the powers and discharge all the duties of a
17regularly elected State's attorney under the laws of the State
18to the extent necessary to fulfill the purpose of such
19appointment, and shall be paid by the county the State's
20Attorney he serves not to exceed in any one period of 12
21months, for the reasonable amount of time actually expended in
22carrying out the purpose of such appointment, the same
23compensation as provided by law for the State's attorney of
24the county, apportioned, in the case of lesser amounts of
25compensation, as to the time of service reasonably and
26actually expended. The county shall participate in all

 

 

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1agreements on the rate of compensation of a special
2prosecutor.
3    (c) An order granting authority to a special prosecutor
4must be construed strictly and narrowly by the court. The
5power and authority of a special prosecutor shall not be
6expanded without prior notice to the county. In the case of the
7proposed expansion of a special prosecutor's power and
8authority, a county may provide the court with information on
9the financial impact of an expansion on the county. Prior to
10the signing of an order requiring a county to pay for
11attorney's fees or litigation expenses, the county shall be
12provided with a detailed copy of the invoice describing the
13fees, and the invoice shall include all activities performed
14in relation to the case and the amount of time spent on each
15activity.
16(Source: P.A. 99-352, eff. 1-1-16.)
 
17    (55 ILCS 5/3-9009)  (from Ch. 34, par. 3-9009)
18    Sec. 3-9009. Private fee and employment prohibited. The
19State's attorney shall not receive any fee or reward from or in
20behalf of any private person for any services within the
21State's Attorney's his official duties and shall not be
22retained or employed, except for the public, in a civil case
23depending upon the same state of facts on which a criminal
24prosecution shall depend.
25(Source: P.A. 86-962.)
 

 

 

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1    (55 ILCS 5/3-9012)  (from Ch. 34, par. 3-9012)
2    Sec. 3-9012. Compensation. A State's attorney who serves 2
3or more counties shall receive such compensation from the
4State Treasury as is provided by law for the State's attorney
5of a single county. The State's Attorney He shall be paid by
6the counties such compensation as may be agreed upon by the
7county boards within the salary range prescribed by law
8applicable to a single county with a population equal to the
9combined population of the counties the State's Attorney he
10serves. Unless the county boards agree upon a lesser amount,
11the State's Attorney he shall be paid the highest permissible
12salary within such range. The amount to be paid by the counties
13shall be apportioned among them on the basis of their
14population. Seventy-five percent (75%) of the amount provided
15by law to be paid from the State treasury for the services of
16the State's attorney in the case of a single county is payable
17to each of the counties served by the same State's attorney,
18except that the amounts paid to those counties under this
19Section in any year may not exceed, in the aggregate, the
20annual salary paid to that State's attorney from both county
21and State funds, in which case reduction of the State's
22contribution to each county shall be reduced proportionately
23according to population of each participating county.
24(Source: P.A. 86-962.)
 
25    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon

 

 

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1becoming law.