102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB5007

 

Introduced 1/27/2022, by Rep. Justin Slaughter

 

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

    Amends the General Assembly Compensation Act. Provides that a member of the General Assembly may petition to use a portion of the office allowance provided to that member to pay the expenses of past due utility bills.


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A BILL FOR

 

HB5007LRB102 25456 RJF 34742 b

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
5amended by 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 July 1, 2020, each member of the House of
9Representatives is authorized to approve the expenditure of
10not more than $61,000 per year and each member of the Senate is
11authorized to approve the expenditure of not more than $73,000
12per year to pay for "personal services", "contractual
13services", "commodities", "printing", "travel", "operation of
14automotive equipment", "telecommunications services", as
15defined in the State Finance Act, and the compensation of one
16or more legislative assistants authorized pursuant to this
17Section, in connection with his or her legislative duties and
18not in connection with any political campaign. On July 1, 2002
19and on July 1 of each year thereafter, the amount authorized
20per year under this Section for each member of the Senate and
21each member of the House of Representatives shall be increased
22by a percentage increase equivalent to the lesser of (i) the
23increase in the designated cost of living index or (ii) 5%. The

 

 

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1designated cost of living index is the index known as the
2"Employment Cost Index, Wages and Salaries, By Occupation and
3Industry Groups: State and Local Government Workers: Public
4Administration" as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics
5of the U.S. Department of Labor for the calendar year
6immediately preceding the year of the respective July 1st
7increase date. The increase shall be added to the then current
8amount, and the adjusted amount so determined shall be the
9annual amount beginning July 1 of the increase year until July
101 of the next year. No increase under this provision shall be
11less than zero.
12    Beginning July 1, 2021, each member of the House of
13Representatives is authorized to approve the expenditure of
14not more than $179,000 per year and each member of the Senate
15is authorized to approve the expenditure of not more than
16$214,000 per year to pay for "personal services", "contractual
17services", "commodities", "printing", "travel", "operation of
18automotive equipment", "telecommunications services", as
19defined in the State Finance Act, and the compensation of one
20or more legislative assistants authorized pursuant to this
21Section, in connection with his or her legislative duties and
22not in connection with any political campaign. On July 1, 2022
23and on July 1 of each year thereafter, the amount authorized
24per year under this Section for each member of the Senate and
25each member of the House of Representatives shall be increased
26by a percentage increase equivalent to the lesser of (i) the

 

 

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1increase in the designated cost of living index or (ii) 5%. The
2designated cost of living index is the index known as the
3"Employment Cost Index, Wages and Salaries, By Occupation and
4Industry Groups: State and Local Government Workers: Public
5Administration" as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics
6of the U.S. Department of Labor for the calendar year
7immediately preceding the year of the respective July 1st
8increase date. The increase shall be added to the then current
9amount, and the adjusted amount so determined shall be the
10annual amount beginning July 1 of the increase year until July
111 of the next year. No increase under this provision shall be
12less than zero.
13    A member may purchase office equipment if the member
14certifies to the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the
15House, as applicable, that the purchase price, whether paid in
16lump sum or installments, amounts to less than would be
17charged for renting or leasing the equipment over its
18anticipated useful life. All such equipment must be purchased
19through the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House,
20as applicable, for proper identification and verification of
21purchase.
22    Each member of the General Assembly is authorized to
23employ one or more legislative assistants, who shall be solely
24under the direction and control of that member, for the
25purpose of assisting the member in the performance of his or
26her official duties. A legislative assistant may be employed

 

 

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1pursuant to this Section as a full-time employee, part-time
2employee, or contractual employee, at the discretion of the
3member. If employed as a State employee, a legislative
4assistant shall receive employment benefits on the same terms
5and conditions that apply to other employees of the General
6Assembly. Each member shall adopt and implement personnel
7policies for legislative assistants under his or her direction
8and control relating to work time requirements, documentation
9for reimbursement for travel on official State business,
10compensation, and the earning and accrual of State benefits
11for those legislative assistants who may be eligible to
12receive those benefits. The policies shall also require
13legislative assistants to periodically submit time sheets
14documenting, in quarter-hour increments, the time spent each
15day on official State business. The policies shall require the
16time sheets to be submitted on paper, electronically, or both
17and to be maintained in either paper or electronic format by
18the applicable fiscal office for a period of at least 2 years.
19Contractual employees may satisfy the time sheets requirement
20by complying with the terms of their contract, which shall
21provide for a means of compliance with this requirement. A
22member may satisfy the requirements of this paragraph by
23adopting and implementing the personnel policies promulgated
24by that member's legislative leader under the State Officials
25and Employees Ethics Act with respect to that member's
26legislative assistants.

 

 

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1    As used in this Section the term "personal services" shall
2include contributions of the State under the Federal Insurance
3Contribution Act and under Article 14 of the Illinois Pension
4Code. As used in this Section the term "contractual services"
5shall not include improvements to real property unless those
6improvements are the obligation of the lessee under the lease
7agreement. Beginning July 1, 1989, as used in the Section, the
8term "travel" shall be limited to travel in connection with a
9member's legislative duties and not in connection with any
10political campaign. Beginning on the effective date of this
11amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly, as used in this
12Section, the term "printing" includes, but is not limited to,
13newsletters, brochures, certificates, congratulatory
14mailings, greeting or welcome messages, anniversary or
15birthday cards, and congratulations for prominent achievement
16cards. As used in this Section, the term "printing" includes
17fees for non-substantive resolutions charged by the Clerk of
18the House of Representatives under subsection (c-5) of Section
191 of the Legislative Materials Act. No newsletter or brochure
20that is paid for, in whole or in part, with funds provided
21under this Section may be printed or mailed during a period
22beginning February 1 of the year of a general primary election
23and ending the day after the general primary election and
24during a period beginning September 1 of the year of a general
25election and ending the day after the general election, except
26that such a newsletter or brochure may be mailed during those

 

 

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1times if it is mailed to a constituent in response to that
2constituent's inquiry concerning the needs of that constituent
3or questions raised by that constituent. Nothing in this
4Section shall be construed to authorize expenditures for
5lodging and meals while a member is in attendance at sessions
6of the General Assembly.
7    Any utility bill for service provided to a member's
8district office for a period including portions of 2
9consecutive fiscal years may be paid from funds appropriated
10for such expenditure in either fiscal year. A member may also
11petition to use a portion of the office allowance provided to
12that member under this Section to pay the expenses of past due
13utility bills.
14    If a vacancy occurs in the office of Senator or
15Representative in the General Assembly, any office equipment
16in the possession of the vacating member shall transfer to the
17member's successor; if the successor does not want such
18equipment, it shall be transferred to the Secretary of the
19Senate or Clerk of the House of Representatives, as the case
20may be, and if not wanted by other members of the General
21Assembly then to the Department of Central Management Services
22for treatment as surplus property under the State Property
23Control Act. Each member, on or before June 30th of each year,
24shall conduct an inventory of all equipment purchased pursuant
25to this Act. Such inventory shall be filed with the Secretary
26of the Senate or the Clerk of the House, as the case may be.

 

 

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1Whenever a vacancy occurs, the Secretary of the Senate or the
2Clerk of the House, as the case may be, shall conduct an
3inventory of equipment purchased.
4    In the event that a member leaves office during his or her
5term, any unexpended or unobligated portion of the allowance
6granted under this Section shall lapse. The vacating member's
7successor shall be granted an allowance in an amount, rounded
8to the nearest dollar, computed by dividing the annual
9allowance by 365 and multiplying the quotient by the number of
10days remaining in the fiscal year.
11    From any appropriation for the purposes of this Section
12for a fiscal year which overlaps 2 General Assemblies, no more
13than 1/2 of the annual allowance per member may be spent or
14encumbered by any member of either the outgoing or incoming
15General Assembly, except that any member of the incoming
16General Assembly who was a member of the outgoing General
17Assembly may encumber or spend any portion of his annual
18allowance within the fiscal year.
19    The appropriation for the annual allowances permitted by
20this Section shall be included in an appropriation to the
21President of the Senate and to the Speaker of the House of
22Representatives for their respective members. The President of
23the Senate and the Speaker of the House shall voucher for
24payment individual members' expenditures from their annual
25office allowances to the State Comptroller, subject to the
26authority of the Comptroller under Section 9 of the State

 

 

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1Comptroller Act.
2    Nothing in this Section prohibits the expenditure of
3personal funds or the funds of a political committee
4controlled by an officeholder to defray the customary and
5reasonable expenses of an officeholder in connection with the
6performance of governmental and public service functions.
7(Source: P.A. 102-16, eff. 6-17-21.)