Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of Public Act 093-0043
Illinois General Assembly

Previous General Assemblies

Public Act 093-0043


 

Public Act 93-0043 of the 93rd General Assembly


Public Act 93-0043

HB0539 Enrolled                      LRB093 04303 JAM 04349 b

    AN ACT concerning freedom of information.

    Be it enacted by the People of  the  State  of  Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:

    Section  5.  The Freedom of Information Act is amended by
changing Section 7 as follows:

    (5 ILCS 140/7) (from Ch. 116, par. 207)
    Sec. 7.  Exemptions.
    (1)  The following shall be exempt  from  inspection  and
copying:
         (a)  Information    specifically   prohibited   from
    disclosure  by  federal  or  State  law  or   rules   and
    regulations adopted under federal or State law.
         (b)  Information    that,    if   disclosed,   would
    constitute a clearly  unwarranted  invasion  of  personal
    privacy, unless the disclosure is consented to in writing
    by  the  individual  subjects  of  the  information.  The
    disclosure of information that bears on the public duties
    of public employees and officials shall not be considered
    an invasion of personal  privacy.   Information  exempted
    under  this  subsection  (b)  shall  include  but  is not
    limited to:
              (i)  files and personal information  maintained
         with   respect   to  clients,  patients,  residents,
         students  or  other  individuals  receiving  social,
         medical,   educational,    vocational,    financial,
         supervisory  or  custodial care or services directly
         or  indirectly  from  federal  agencies  or   public
         bodies;
              (ii)  personnel  files and personal information
         maintained with respect to employees, appointees  or
         elected  officials  of any public body or applicants
         for those positions;
              (iii)  files    and    personal     information
         maintained with respect to any applicant, registrant
         or  licensee  by any public body cooperating with or
         engaged    in    professional    or     occupational
         registration, licensure or discipline;
              (iv)  information  required  of any taxpayer in
         connection with the assessment or collection of  any
         tax unless disclosure is otherwise required by State
         statute; and
              (v)  information   revealing  the  identity  of
         persons  who  file  complaints   with   or   provide
         information  to  administrative,  investigative, law
         enforcement or penal  agencies;  provided,  however,
         that   identification   of   witnesses   to  traffic
         accidents,  traffic  accident  reports,  and  rescue
         reports  may  be  provided  by  agencies  of   local
         government,  except  in  a case for which a criminal
         investigation is  ongoing,  without  constituting  a
         clearly  unwarranted   per  se  invasion of personal
         privacy under this subsection.
         (c)  Records  compiled  by  any  public   body   for
    administrative   enforcement   proceedings  and  any  law
    enforcement or correctional agency  for  law  enforcement
    purposes  or  for  internal matters of a public body, but
    only to the extent that disclosure would:
              (i)  interfere with  pending  or  actually  and
         reasonably  contemplated law enforcement proceedings
         conducted by any  law  enforcement  or  correctional
         agency;
              (ii)  interfere   with  pending  administrative
         enforcement  proceedings  conducted  by  any  public
         body;
              (iii)  deprive a person of a fair trial  or  an
         impartial hearing;
              (iv)  unavoidably  disclose  the  identity of a
         confidential  source  or  confidential   information
         furnished only by the confidential source;
              (v)  disclose     unique     or     specialized
         investigative  techniques other than those generally
         used and known or  disclose  internal  documents  of
         correctional    agencies   related   to   detection,
         observation or investigation of incidents  of  crime
         or misconduct;
              (vi)  constitute   an   invasion   of  personal
         privacy under subsection (b) of this Section;
              (vii)  endanger the life or physical safety  of
         law enforcement personnel or any other person; or
              (viii)  obstruct     an     ongoing    criminal
         investigation.
         (d)  Criminal history record information  maintained
    by  State  or local criminal justice agencies, except the
    following which shall be open for public  inspection  and
    copying:
              (i)  chronologically      maintained     arrest
         information, such  as  traditional  arrest  logs  or
         blotters;
              (ii)  the  name of a person in the custody of a
         law enforcement agency and  the  charges  for  which
         that person is being held;
              (iii)  court records that are public;
              (iv)  records   that  are  otherwise  available
         under State or local law; or
              (v)  records in which the requesting  party  is
         the  individual identified, except as provided under
         part (vii) of paragraph (c)  of  subsection  (1)  of
         this Section.
         "Criminal  history  record  information"  means data
    identifiable  to  an   individual   and   consisting   of
    descriptions   or   notations   of  arrests,  detentions,
    indictments, informations, pre-trial proceedings, trials,
    or other formal events in the criminal justice system  or
    descriptions  or notations of criminal charges (including
    criminal violations of local  municipal  ordinances)  and
    the   nature   of   any  disposition  arising  therefrom,
    including sentencing, court or correctional  supervision,
    rehabilitation  and  release.  The term does not apply to
    statistical records and reports in which individuals  are
    not  identified  and  from which their identities are not
    ascertainable, or to information  that  is  for  criminal
    investigative or intelligence purposes.
         (e)  Records  that  relate to or affect the security
    of correctional institutions and detention facilities.
         (f)  Preliminary  drafts,  notes,   recommendations,
    memoranda   and  other  records  in  which  opinions  are
    expressed, or policies or actions are formulated,  except
    that  a  specific  record or relevant portion of a record
    shall not be exempt when the record is publicly cited and
    identified by the head of the public body. The  exemption
    provided  in  this  paragraph  (f)  extends  to all those
    records of officers and agencies of the General  Assembly
    that pertain to the preparation of legislative documents.
         (g)  Trade   secrets  and  commercial  or  financial
    information obtained from a person or business where  the
    trade  secrets or information are proprietary, privileged
    or confidential, or where disclosure of the trade secrets
    or information may cause competitive harm, including  all
    information  determined  to be confidential under Section
    4002 of the Technology Advancement and  Development  Act.
    Nothing   contained   in  this  paragraph  (g)  shall  be
    construed to prevent a person or business from consenting
    to disclosure.
         (h)  Proposals and bids for any contract, grant,  or
    agreement,   including   information  which  if  it  were
    disclosed  would  frustrate  procurement   or   give   an
    advantage  to  any  person  proposing  to  enter  into  a
    contractor  agreement  with  the  body, until an award or
    final selection is made.  Information prepared by or  for
    the  body  in  preparation of a bid solicitation shall be
    exempt until an award or final selection is made.
         (i)  Valuable formulae, computer geographic systems,
    designs, drawings and research data obtained or  produced
    by  any  public  body when disclosure could reasonably be
    expected to produce private  gain  or  public  loss.  The
    exemption  for  "computer geographic systems" provided in
    this paragraph (i) does not extend to  requests  made  by
    news  media  as defined in Section 2 of this Act when the
    requested information is not  otherwise  exempt  and  the
    only  purpose of the request is to access and disseminate
    information regarding the  health,  safety,  welfare,  or
    legal rights of the general public.
         (j)  Test   questions,   scoring   keys   and  other
    examination  data  used   to   administer   an   academic
    examination   or  determined  the  qualifications  of  an
    applicant for a license or employment.
         (k)  Architects'  plans  and  engineers'   technical
    submissions  for projects not constructed or developed in
    whole or in part  with  public  funds  and  for  projects
    constructed or developed with public funds, to the extent
    that disclosure would compromise security.
         (l)  Library    circulation    and   order   records
    identifying library users with specific materials.
         (m)  Minutes of meetings of public bodies closed  to
    the public as provided in the Open Meetings Act until the
    public  body  makes  the  minutes available to the public
    under Section 2.06 of the Open Meetings Act.
         (n)  Communications between a  public  body  and  an
    attorney  or  auditor  representing  the public body that
    would not be subject  to  discovery  in  litigation,  and
    materials prepared or compiled by or for a public body in
    anticipation  of  a  criminal,  civil  or  administrative
    proceeding  upon  the request of an attorney advising the
    public body, and  materials  prepared  or  compiled  with
    respect to internal audits of public bodies.
         (o)  Information  received by a primary or secondary
    school, college or university under  its  procedures  for
    the  evaluation  of  faculty  members  by  their academic
    peers.
         (p)  Administrative   or    technical    information
    associated  with  automated  data  processing operations,
    including  but  not  limited   to   software,   operating
    protocols,  computer  program  abstracts,  file  layouts,
    source  listings,  object  modules,  load  modules,  user
    guides,  documentation  pertaining  to  all  logical  and
    physical   design   of   computerized  systems,  employee
    manuals, and any other information  that,  if  disclosed,
    would  jeopardize  the security of the system or its data
    or the security of materials exempt under this Section.
         (q)  Documents or materials relating  to  collective
    negotiating  matters  between  public  bodies  and  their
    employees  or  representatives,  except  that  any  final
    contract  or agreement shall be subject to inspection and
    copying.
         (r)  Drafts, notes,  recommendations  and  memoranda
    pertaining to the financing and marketing transactions of
    the  public body. The records of ownership, registration,
    transfer, and exchange of municipal debt obligations, and
    of  persons  to  whom  payment  with  respect  to   these
    obligations is made.
         (s)  The records, documents and information relating
    to   real   estate   purchase  negotiations  until  those
    negotiations have been completed or otherwise terminated.
    With regard to a parcel involved in a pending or actually
    and reasonably  contemplated  eminent  domain  proceeding
    under  Article  VII  of  the  Code  of  Civil  Procedure,
    records,  documents  and  information  relating  to  that
    parcel  shall  be  exempt  except as may be allowed under
    discovery rules adopted by the  Illinois  Supreme  Court.
    The records, documents and information relating to a real
    estate sale shall be exempt until a sale is consummated.
         (t)  Any and all proprietary information and records
    related  to  the  operation  of an intergovernmental risk
    management association or self-insurance pool or  jointly
    self-administered  health  and  accident  cooperative  or
    pool.
         (u)  Information     concerning    a    university's
    adjudication  of  student  or   employee   grievance   or
    disciplinary  cases,  to the extent that disclosure would
    reveal the  identity  of  the  student  or  employee  and
    information  concerning any public body's adjudication of
    student or employee  grievances  or  disciplinary  cases,
    except for the final outcome of the cases.
         (v)  Course  materials or research materials used by
    faculty members.
         (w)  Information  related  solely  to  the  internal
    personnel rules and practices of a public body.
         (x)  Information  contained   in   or   related   to
    examination, operating, or condition reports prepared by,
    on behalf of, or for the use of a public body responsible
    for   the   regulation   or   supervision   of  financial
    institutions or insurance companies, unless disclosure is
    otherwise required by State law.
         (y)  Information  the   disclosure   of   which   is
    restricted  under  Section  5-108 of the Public Utilities
    Act.
         (z)  Manuals or instruction to staff that relate  to
    establishment  or  collection  of liability for any State
    tax or that relate to investigations by a public body  to
    determine violation of any criminal law.
         (aa)  Applications,  related  documents, and medical
    records    received    by    the    Experimental    Organ
    Transplantation  Procedures  Board  and   any   and   all
    documents  or  other records prepared by the Experimental
    Organ  Transplantation  Procedures  Board  or  its  staff
    relating to applications it has received.
         (bb)  Insurance or  self  insurance  (including  any
    intergovernmental  risk  management  association  or self
    insurance  pool)  claims,   loss   or   risk   management
    information, records, data, advice or communications.
         (cc)  Information and records held by the Department
    of  Public  Health  and  its  authorized  representatives
    relating   to   known  or  suspected  cases  of  sexually
    transmissible disease or any information  the  disclosure
    of  which  is  restricted  under  the  Illinois  Sexually
    Transmissible Disease Control Act.
         (dd)  Information   the   disclosure   of  which  is
    exempted under Section 30 of the Radon Industry Licensing
    Act.
         (ee)  Firm performance evaluations under Section  55
    of  the  Architectural,  Engineering,  and Land Surveying
    Qualifications Based Selection Act.
         (ff)  Security portions  of  system  safety  program
    plans,  investigation reports, surveys, schedules, lists,
    data, or information compiled, collected, or prepared  by
    or   for  the  Regional  Transportation  Authority  under
    Section 2.11 of the Regional Transportation Authority Act
    or the  St.  Clair  County  Transit  District  under  the
    Bi-State Transit Safety Act.
         (gg)  Information   the   disclosure   of  which  is
    restricted and exempted under Section 50 of the  Illinois
    Prepaid Tuition Act.
         (hh)  Information   the   disclosure   of  which  is
    exempted under Section 80 of the State Gift Ban Act.
         (ii)  Beginning July 1, 1999, information that would
    disclose or might lead to the  disclosure  of  secret  or
    confidential information, codes, algorithms, programs, or
    private  keys intended to be used to create electronic or
    digital signatures under the Electronic Commerce Security
    Act.
         (jj)  Information contained  in  a  local  emergency
    energy  plan  submitted  to  a municipality in accordance
    with a local emergency  energy  plan  ordinance  that  is
    adopted under Section 11-21.5-5 of the Illinois Municipal
    Code.
         (kk)  Information    and    data    concerning   the
    distribution of surcharge moneys collected  and  remitted
    by   wireless   carriers  under  the  Wireless  Emergency
    Telephone Safety Act.
    (2)  This  Section  does  not  authorize  withholding  of
information or limit  the  availability  of  records  to  the
public,  except  as  stated  in  this  Section  or  otherwise
provided in this Act.
(Source:  P.A.  91-137,  eff.  7-16-99; 91-357, eff. 7-29-99;
91-660, eff. 12-22-99;  92-16,  eff.  6-28-01;  92-241,  eff.
8-3-01;  92-281,  eff.  8-7-01; 92-645, eff. 7-11-02; 92-651,
eff. 7-11-02.)

    Section 99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect  July
1, 2003.

Effective Date: 07/01/03