101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
HB0298

 

Introduced , by Rep. David McSweeney

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
25 ILCS 115/4  from Ch. 63, par. 15.1

    Amends the General Assembly Compensation Act. Reduces the district office allowance of members of the General Assembly by 10%. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The General Assembly Compensation Act is amended
5by changing Section 4 as follows:
 
6    (25 ILCS 115/4)  (from Ch. 63, par. 15.1)
7    Sec. 4. Office allowance. Beginning July 1, 2001 and
8through the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st
9General Assembly, each member of the House of Representatives
10is authorized to approve the expenditure of not more than
11$61,000 per year and each member of the Senate is authorized to
12approve the expenditure of not more than $73,000 per year to
13pay for "personal services", "contractual services",
14"commodities", "printing", "travel", "operation of automotive
15equipment", "telecommunications services", as defined in the
16State Finance Act, and the compensation of one or more
17legislative assistants authorized pursuant to this Section, in
18connection with his or her legislative duties and not in
19connection with any political campaign. Beginning on the
20effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General
21Assembly, each member of the House of Representatives is
22authorized to expend 90% of the amount that a member of the
23House of Representatives was authorized to expend for these

 

 

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1purposes on the day before the effective date of this
2amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly, and each member
3of the Senate is authorized to expend 90% of the amount that a
4member of the Senate was authorized to expend for these
5purposes on the day before the effective date of this
6amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly.
7    On July 1, 2002 and on July 1 of each year thereafter, the
8amount authorized per year under this Section for each member
9of the Senate and each member of the House of Representatives
10shall be increased by a percentage increase equivalent to the
11lesser of (i) the increase in the designated cost of living
12index or (ii) 5%. The designated cost of living index is the
13index known as the "Employment Cost Index, Wages and Salaries,
14By Occupation and Industry Groups: State and Local Government
15Workers: Public Administration" as published by the Bureau of
16Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor for the
17calendar year immediately preceding the year of the respective
18July 1st increase date. The increase shall be added to the then
19current amount, and the adjusted amount so determined shall be
20the annual amount beginning July 1 of the increase year until
21July 1 of the next year, subject to any adjustment required by
22this amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly. No increase
23under this provision shall be less than zero.
24    A member may purchase office equipment if the member
25certifies to the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the
26House, as applicable, that the purchase price, whether paid in

 

 

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1lump sum or installments, amounts to less than would be charged
2for renting or leasing the equipment over its anticipated
3useful life. All such equipment must be purchased through the
4Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House, as
5applicable, for proper identification and verification of
6purchase.
7    Each member of the General Assembly is authorized to employ
8one or more legislative assistants, who shall be solely under
9the direction and control of that member, for the purpose of
10assisting the member in the performance of his or her official
11duties. A legislative assistant may be employed pursuant to
12this Section as a full-time employee, part-time employee, or
13contractual employee, at the discretion of the member. If
14employed as a State employee, a legislative assistant shall
15receive employment benefits on the same terms and conditions
16that apply to other employees of the General Assembly. Each
17member shall adopt and implement personnel policies for
18legislative assistants under his or her direction and control
19relating to work time requirements, documentation for
20reimbursement for travel on official State business,
21compensation, and the earning and accrual of State benefits for
22those legislative assistants who may be eligible to receive
23those benefits. The policies shall also require legislative
24assistants to periodically submit time sheets documenting, in
25quarter-hour increments, the time spent each day on official
26State business. The policies shall require the time sheets to

 

 

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1be submitted on paper, electronically, or both and to be
2maintained in either paper or electronic format by the
3applicable fiscal office for a period of at least 2 years.
4Contractual employees may satisfy the time sheets requirement
5by complying with the terms of their contract, which shall
6provide for a means of compliance with this requirement. A
7member may satisfy the requirements of this paragraph by
8adopting and implementing the personnel policies promulgated
9by that member's legislative leader under the State Officials
10and Employees Ethics Act with respect to that member's
11legislative assistants.
12    As used in this Section the term "personal services" shall
13include contributions of the State under the Federal Insurance
14Contribution Act and under Article 14 of the Illinois Pension
15Code. As used in this Section the term "contractual services"
16shall not include improvements to real property unless those
17improvements are the obligation of the lessee under the lease
18agreement. Beginning July 1, 1989, as used in the Section, the
19term "travel" shall be limited to travel in connection with a
20member's legislative duties and not in connection with any
21political campaign. Beginning on the effective date of this
22amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly, as used in this
23Section, the term "printing" includes, but is not limited to,
24newsletters, brochures, certificates, congratulatory mailings,
25greeting or welcome messages, anniversary or birthday cards,
26and congratulations for prominent achievement cards. As used in

 

 

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1this Section, the term "printing" includes fees for
2non-substantive resolutions charged by the Clerk of the House
3of Representatives under subsection (c-5) of Section 1 of the
4Legislative Materials Act. No newsletter or brochure that is
5paid for, in whole or in part, with funds provided under this
6Section may be printed or mailed during a period beginning
7February 1 of the year of a general primary election and ending
8the day after the general primary election and during a period
9beginning September 1 of the year of a general election and
10ending the day after the general election, except that such a
11newsletter or brochure may be mailed during those times if it
12is mailed to a constituent in response to that constituent's
13inquiry concerning the needs of that constituent or questions
14raised by that constituent. Nothing in this Section shall be
15construed to authorize expenditures for lodging and meals while
16a member is in attendance at sessions of the General Assembly.
17    Any utility bill for service provided to a member's
18district office for a period including portions of 2
19consecutive fiscal years may be paid from funds appropriated
20for such expenditure in either fiscal year.
21    If a vacancy occurs in the office of Senator or
22Representative in the General Assembly, any office equipment in
23the possession of the vacating member shall transfer to the
24member's successor; if the successor does not want such
25equipment, it shall be transferred to the Secretary of the
26Senate or Clerk of the House of Representatives, as the case

 

 

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1may be, and if not wanted by other members of the General
2Assembly then to the Department of Central Management Services
3for treatment as surplus property under the State Property
4Control Act. Each member, on or before June 30th of each year,
5shall conduct an inventory of all equipment purchased pursuant
6to this Act. Such inventory shall be filed with the Secretary
7of the Senate or the Clerk of the House, as the case may be.
8Whenever a vacancy occurs, the Secretary of the Senate or the
9Clerk of the House, as the case may be, shall conduct an
10inventory of equipment purchased.
11    In the event that a member leaves office during his or her
12term, any unexpended or unobligated portion of the allowance
13granted under this Section shall lapse. The vacating member's
14successor shall be granted an allowance in an amount, rounded
15to the nearest dollar, computed by dividing the annual
16allowance by 365 and multiplying the quotient by the number of
17days remaining in the fiscal year.
18    From any appropriation for the purposes of this Section for
19a fiscal year which overlaps 2 General Assemblies, no more than
201/2 of the annual allowance per member may be spent or
21encumbered by any member of either the outgoing or incoming
22General Assembly, except that any member of the incoming
23General Assembly who was a member of the outgoing General
24Assembly may encumber or spend any portion of his annual
25allowance within the fiscal year.
26    The appropriation for the annual allowances permitted by

 

 

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1this Section shall be included in an appropriation to the
2President of the Senate and to the Speaker of the House of
3Representatives for their respective members. The President of
4the Senate and the Speaker of the House shall voucher for
5payment individual members' expenditures from their annual
6office allowances to the State Comptroller, subject to the
7authority of the Comptroller under Section 9 of the State
8Comptroller Act.
9    Nothing in this Section prohibits the expenditure of
10personal funds or the funds of a political committee controlled
11by an officeholder to defray the customary and reasonable
12expenses of an officeholder in connection with the performance
13of governmental and public service functions.
14(Source: P.A. 95-6, eff. 6-20-07; 96-555, eff. 8-18-09; 96-886,
15eff. 1-1-11.)
 
16    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
17becoming law.