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Illinois Compiled Statutes

Information maintained by the Legislative Reference Bureau
Updating the database of the Illinois Compiled Statutes (ILCS) is an ongoing process. Recent laws may not yet be included in the ILCS database, but they are found on this site as Public Acts soon after they become law. For information concerning the relationship between statutes and Public Acts, refer to the Guide.

Because the statute database is maintained primarily for legislative drafting purposes, statutory changes are sometimes included in the statute database before they take effect. If the source note at the end of a Section of the statutes includes a Public Act that has not yet taken effect, the version of the law that is currently in effect may have already been removed from the database and you should refer to that Public Act to see the changes made to the current law.


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55 ILCS 5/3-7005

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7005) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7005)
    Sec. 3-7005. Meetings. As soon as practicable after the members of the Board have been appointed, they shall meet, upon the call of the Sheriff, and shall organize by selecting a chairman and a secretary. The initial chairman and secretary, and their successors, shall be selected by the Board from among its members for a term of 2 years or for the remainder of their term of office as a member of the Board, whichever is the shorter. Two members of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, except that as additional members are appointed under authority of this amendatory Act of 1997, the number of members that must be present to constitute a quorum shall be the number of members that constitute at least 40% of the Board. The Board shall hold regular quarterly meetings and such other meetings as may be called by the chairman.
(Source: P.A. 90-447, eff. 8-16-97; 90-511, eff. 8-22-97; 90-655, eff. 7-30-98.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7006

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7006) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7006)
    Sec. 3-7006. Rules, regulations and procedures; ranks. Pursuant to recognized merit principles of public employment, the Board shall formulate, adopt, and put into effect rules, regulations and procedures for its operation and the transaction of its business. The Board shall establish a classification of ranks including those positions which shall be exempt from merit classification. The Board shall establish a classification of ranks of the deputy sheriffs in the County Police Department, a classification of all correctional officer employees in the County Department of Corrections, and a classification of all full-time deputy sheriffs not employed as county police officers or county corrections officers and shall set standards and qualifications for each such rank and employee.
    For the purposes of this Division, "full-time" means an average work week of 40 hours throughout the calendar year.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7007

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7007)
    Sec. 3-7007. (Repealed).
(Source: P.A. 86-962. Repealed by P.A. 100-912, eff. 8-17-18.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7008

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7008) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7008)
    Sec. 3-7008. Appointments. The appointment of deputy sheriffs in the Police Department, full-time deputy sheriffs not employed as county police officers or county corrections officers and of employees in the Department of Corrections shall be made from those applicants who have been certified by the Board as being qualified for appointment. Certification for appointment in one department shall not constitute certification for appointment in another department. Certification may be made at any point prior to appointment and may be made in conjunction with the Sheriff's application process. All persons so appointed shall, at the time of their appointment, be not less than 21 years of age, or 20 years of age and have successfully completed 2 years of law enforcement studies at an accredited college or university. Any person appointed subsequent to successful completion of 2 years of such law enforcement studies shall not have power of arrest, nor shall he or she be permitted to carry firearms, until he or she reaches 21 years of age. Any person appointed shall be a citizen of the United States, an individual who is legally authorized to work in the United States under federal law and is authorized under federal law to obtain, carry, or purchase or otherwise possess a firearm, or an individual against whom immigration action has been deferred by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services under the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) process and who is authorized under federal law to obtain, carry, or purchase or otherwise possess a firearm. In addition, all persons so appointed shall be not more than the maximum age limit fixed by the Board from time to time, be of sound mind and body, be of good moral character, have not been convicted of a crime which the Board considers to be detrimental to the applicant's ability to carry out his or her duties, possess such prerequisites of training, education and experience as the Board may from time to time prescribe, and shall be required to pass successfully mental, physical, psychiatric and other tests and examinations as may be prescribed by the Board. Preference shall be given in such appointments to persons who have honorably served in the military or naval services of the United States. All appointees shall serve a probationary period of 12 months and during that period may be discharged at the will of the Sheriff. However, civil service employees of the house of correction who have certified status at the time of the transfer of the house of correction to the County Department of Corrections are not subject to this probationary period, and they shall retain their job titles, such tenure privileges as are now enjoyed and any subsequent title changes shall not cause reduction in rank or elimination of positions.
(Source: P.A. 103-357, eff. 1-1-24.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7009

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7009) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7009)
    Sec. 3-7009. Promotions. Promotion of deputy sheriffs in the County Police Department, full-time deputy sheriffs not employed as county police officers or county corrections officers, and of employees in the County Department of Corrections shall be made by the sheriff from those candidates who have been certified to him as being qualified for promotion. Certification for promotion in one department shall not constitute certification for promotion in another department. The Board shall make certifications for promotions on the basis of ascertained merit, experience and physical, mental and other tests and examinations. Those promoted shall serve a probationary period of 12 months and during that period may be reduced to their former rank at the will of the Board. Employees of the house of correction whose names, at the time of the transfer of the house of correction to the County Department of Corrections, appear on a civil service promotional register, shall retain the same status insofar as their eligibility to comparable positions in the employ of the County Department of Corrections is concerned.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7010

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7010) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7010)
    Sec. 3-7010. Rules governing appointments and promotions. All appointments and promotions shall be made in accordance with the provisions of this Division and the rules and regulations of the Board without considering the political affiliation of any applicant.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7011

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7011) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7011)
    Sec. 3-7011. Disciplinary measures. Disciplinary measures prescribed by the Board may be taken by the sheriff for the punishment of infractions of the rules and regulations promulgated by the Board. Such disciplinary measures may include suspension of any deputy sheriff in the County Police Department, any full-time deputy sheriff not employed as a county police officer or county corrections officer and any employee in the County Department of Corrections and any other discipline that does not constitute termination or demotion without complying with the provisions of Section 3-7012 hereof.
(Source: P.A. 100-912, eff. 8-17-18.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7012

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7012) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7012)
    Sec. 3-7012. Removal, demotion or suspension. Except as is otherwise provided in this Division, no deputy sheriff in the County Police Department, no full-time deputy sheriff not employed as a county police officer or county corrections officer and no employee in the County Department of Corrections shall be removed, demoted or suspended except for cause, upon written charges filed with the Board by the Sheriff and a hearing before the Board thereon upon not less than 10 days' notice at a place to be designated by the chairman thereof. At such hearing, the accused deputy sheriff shall be afforded full opportunity to be heard in his or her own defense and to produce proof in his or her defense. The Board shall have the power to secure by its subpoena both the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of books and papers in support of the charges and for the defense. The fees of witnesses for attendance and travel shall be the same as the fees of witnesses before the circuit courts of this State, and shall be paid in the same manner as other expenses of the Board. Each member of the Board shall have the power to administer oaths or affirmations. If the charges against an accused deputy sheriff are established by a preponderance of evidence, the Board shall make a finding of guilty and order either removal, demotion, suspension for a period of not more than 180 days, or such other disciplinary punishment as may be prescribed by the rules and regulations of the Board which, in the opinion of the members thereof, the offense merits. The Board shall render its decision no later than 120 days following the conclusion of any hearings conducted under this Section. Thereupon the sheriff shall direct such removal or other punishment as ordered by the Board and if the accused deputy sheriff refuses to abide by any such disciplinary order, the sheriff shall remove him or her forthwith. On and after June 1, 2018, for an appointed officer rank subject to hearing under this Section that is covered by a collective bargaining agreement, disciplinary measures and the method of review of those measures are subject to mandatory bargaining, including, but not limited to, the use of impartial arbitration as an alternative or supplemental form of due process and any of the procedures laid out in this Section.
    Within 21 days after the conclusion of a hearing overseen by a hearing officer appointed under Section 3-7004, the hearing officer shall issue a recommended order in writing, which shall include findings of fact and a determination of whether cause for discipline has been established by the Sheriff. The hearing officer shall also recommend whether discipline should be imposed and the level of the discipline. Any hearing officer may issue the recommended order. Within 21 days after receipt of service of the recommended order, the Sheriff and the respondent may file with the board written exceptions to any part of the order. Exceptions shall be supported by argument and served on all parties at the time they are filed. If no exceptions are filed, the recommended order shall become the order of the board without further review. The board may set any further rules in accordance with this Section.
    In case of the neglect or refusal of any person to obey a subpoena issued by the Board, any circuit court or a judge thereof, upon application of any member of the Board, may order such person to appear before the Board and give testimony or produce evidence, and any failure to obey such order is punishable by the court as a contempt thereof.
    The provisions of the Administrative Review Law, and all amendments and modifications thereof, and the rules adopted pursuant thereto, shall apply to and govern all proceedings for the judicial review of any order of the Board rendered pursuant to the provisions of this Section.
(Source: P.A. 100-912, eff. 8-17-18.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7013

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7013) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7013)
    Sec. 3-7013. Political activities. No deputy sheriff in the County Police Department and no employee in the County Department of Corrections shall participate in any manner in the activities or interests of any political party or of any candidate for public office or for the nomination therefor, nor participate in any manner in any political campaign for the nomination or election of candidates for public office. Violation of any provision hereof shall be cause for removal of any deputy sheriff or employee so offending. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to interfere with the right of any person to vote for any candidate and upon any issue as his reason and conscience may dictate.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7014

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7014) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7014)
    Sec. 3-7014. Appropriations. A sufficient sum of money shall be appropriated each year by the county board to carry out the provisions of this Division in the county.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7015

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7015) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7015)
    Sec. 3-7015. Investigations by Board. The Board shall investigate the enforcement of this Division and its rules, and the conduct and action of the appointees herein provided for. In the course of such investigation each member of the Board is empowered to administer oaths, and the Board has the power to secure by subpoena both the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of books and papers relevant to such investigations.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7016

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7016) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7016)
    Sec. 3-7016. Certification of appointments, vacancies and findings. The Board shall certify to the county clerk or other auditing officers, all appointments to offices and places as may be classified, and all vacancies occurring therein, whether by dismissal, resignation, or death, and all findings made or approved by the Board under the provisions of Section 3-7012, that a person may be discharged from the classified service.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-7017

    (55 ILCS 5/3-7017) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-7017)
    Sec. 3-7017. Payments of salaries or wages. No county clerk, comptroller or other auditing officer of the county shall approve the payment of, or be in any manner concerned in paying salary or wages to any person for services as an officer or employee of the county unless such person is occupying an office or place of employment according to the provisions of law and is entitled to payment.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/Div. 3-8

 
    (55 ILCS 5/Div. 3-8 heading)
Division 3-8. Sheriff's Merit System

55 ILCS 5/3-8001

    (55 ILCS 5/3-8001) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-8001)
    Sec. 3-8001. Subtitle. This Division shall be subtitled the "Sheriff's Merit System Law".
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-8002

    (55 ILCS 5/3-8002) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-8002)
    Sec. 3-8002. Applicability and adoption. The county board of every county having a county police department merit board established under "The County Police Department Act", approved August 7, 1967, as amended (repealed), or a merit commission for sheriff's personnel established under Section 58.1 of "An Act to revise the law in relation to counties", approved March 31, 1874, as amended (repealed), shall adopt and implement the merit system provided by this Division and shall modify the merit system now in effect in that county as may be necessary to comply with this Division.
    The county board of any county having a population of less than 1,000,000 which does not have a merit board or merit commission for sheriff's personnel may adopt and implement by ordinance the merit system provided by this Division. If the county board does not adopt such a merit system by an ordinance and if a petition signed by not fewer than 5% or 1000, whichever is less, of the registered electors of any such county is filed with the county clerk requesting a referendum on the adoption of a merit system for deputies in the office of the Sheriff, the county board shall, by appropriate ordinance, cause the question to be submitted to the electors of the county, at a special or general election specified in such ordinance, in accordance with the provisions of Section 28-3 of "The Election Code", approved May 11, 1943, as now or hereafter amended. Notice of the election shall be given as provided in Article 12 of such code. If a majority of those voting on the proposition at such election vote in favor thereof, the county board shall adopt and implement a merit system provided in this Division. When a merit board or merit commission for sheriff's personnel has been established in a county, it may be abolished by the same procedure in which it was established.
    This Division does not apply to any county having a population of more than 1,000,000 nor to any county which has not elected to adopt the merit system provided by this Division and which is not required to do so under this Section.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-8003

    (55 ILCS 5/3-8003) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-8003)
    Sec. 3-8003. Appointment of Merit Commission. Any ordinance providing for the adoption and implementation of a merit system under this Division shall provide for the appointment of a Sheriff's Office Merit Commission consisting of 3 or 5 members appointed by the sheriff with the approval of a majority of the members of the county board. If the sheriff fails to make the appointments within 60 days after the adoption of the ordinance, the members of the commission shall be appointed by the chairman of the county board with the approval of a majority of the members of the county board. No member of the commission shall hold a statutory partisan political office.
    Of the initial appointments to a 3-member Commission, one shall be for a term of 2 years, one for a term of 4 years and one for a term of 6 years. Of the initial appointments to a 5-member Commission, one shall serve for a term of 2 years, one for a term of 3 years, one for a term of 4 years, one for a term of 5 years, and one for a term of 6 years. If a 3-member Commission is increased to a 5-member Commission, the additional members shall be appointed to serve for terms of 3 and 5 years, respectively. The respective successors of the initial members shall be appointed in the same manner as the original appointments for 6 year terms.
    If a vacancy occurs in the office of a commissioner, the sheriff, with the approval of a majority of the members of the county board, shall appoint a suitable person to serve the unexpired portion of that commissioner's term. If the sheriff fails to appoint a person to fill the vacancy within 30 days, the chairman of the county board shall appoint a person to fill the unexpired portion of the term, with the approval of a majority of the members of the county board.
    In a 3-member Commission, no more than 2 of the members appointed may be affiliated with the same political party. In a 5-member Commission, no more than 3 members may be affiliated with the same political party.
    However, in any county which has created a merit board or merit commission for sheriff's employees under prior law, the members of that board or commission shall serve out the unexpired portions of their respective terms and shall carry out their duties in accordance with this Division.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-8004

    (55 ILCS 5/3-8004) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-8004)
    Sec. 3-8004. Removal of Merit Commission. No member of a Merit Commission shall be removed except for palpable incompetence or malfeasance in office upon written charges filed by or at the direction of the sheriff or the county board and heard before the Board of Hearings provided for in this Section. The chief judge for the judicial circuit in which the county is situated and the 2 circuit judges who have longest held judicial office shall constitute the Board of Hearing. If 2 or more circuit judges have held judicial office for the same longest or next longest length of time, choice among those circuit judges shall be made by lot. If there are only 2 circuit judges in the circuit embracing the county, then those 2 judges shall select the third member of the Board of Hearing from among the circuit judges in contiguous circuits.
    The Board of Hearings shall hear and determine the charges and its findings shall be final. If the charges are sustained, the member of the Commission so charged shall be forthwith removed from office by the Board of Hearings and the sheriff with the approval of a majority of the members of the county board shall thereupon proceed to fill the vacancy created by such removal. In any proceeding provided for in this Section, the Board of Hearings and each member thereof, shall have power to administer oaths and to compel by subpoena the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of books and papers.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)

55 ILCS 5/3-8005

    (55 ILCS 5/3-8005) (from Ch. 34, par. 3-8005)
    Sec. 3-8005. Meetings; officers. As soon as practicable after the members of the Merit Commission have been appointed, the sheriff shall call the first meeting and they shall meet and organize by selecting a chairman, a vice chairman and a secretary. The initial officers and their successor shall be selected by the Commission from among its members for a term of 2 years or for the remainder of their term of office as a member of the Commission, whichever is shorter. Two members of a three-member Commission, or 3 members of a five-member Commission, shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. The Commission shall hold regular quarterly meetings and such other meetings as may be called by the Commission.
(Source: P.A. 86-962.)