103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB2265

 

Introduced 2/14/2023, by Rep. Ryan Spain

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
5 ILCS 120/3  from Ch. 102, par. 43

    Amends the Open Meetings Act. Provides that a civil action for violation of the Act may be brought within 60 days after the discovery of failure to comply with specified notice requirements.


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A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Open Meetings Act is amended by changing
5Section 3 as follows:
 
6    (5 ILCS 120/3)  (from Ch. 102, par. 43)
7    Sec. 3. (a) Where the provisions of this Act are not
8complied with, or where there is probable cause to believe
9that the provisions of this Act will not be complied with, any
10person, including the State's Attorney of the county in which
11such noncompliance may occur, may bring a civil action in the
12circuit court for the judicial circuit in which the alleged
13noncompliance has occurred or is about to occur, or in which
14the affected public body has its principal office. The civil
15action described in this Section must be brought (i) , prior to
16or within 60 days of the meeting alleged to be in violation of
17this Act; (ii) or, if facts concerning the meeting are not
18discovered within the 60-day period, within 60 days of the
19discovery of a violation by the State's Attorney if facts
20concerning the meeting are not discovered within the 60-day
21period described in item (i); (iii) or, if the person timely
22files a request for review under Section 3.5, within 60 days of
23the decision by the Attorney General to resolve a request for

 

 

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1review by a means other than the issuance of a binding opinion
2under subsection (e) of Section 3.5 if the person bringing the
3action has timely filed a request for review under that
4section; or (iv) within 60 days after the discovery of a
5violation of this Act by the person bringing the action if the
6public body against which the action is brought failed to
7provide notice of the meeting in accordance with Section 2.02.
8    Records that are obtained by a State's Attorney from a
9public body for purposes of reviewing whether the public body
10has complied with this Act may not be disclosed to the public.
11Those records, while in the possession of the State's
12Attorney, are exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of
13Information Act.
14    (b) In deciding such a case the court may examine in camera
15any portion of the minutes of a meeting at which a violation of
16the Act is alleged to have occurred, and may take such
17additional evidence as it deems necessary.
18    (c) The court, having due regard for orderly
19administration and the public interest, as well as for the
20interests of the parties, may grant such relief as it deems
21appropriate, including granting a relief by mandamus requiring
22that a meeting be open to the public, granting an injunction
23against future violations of this Act, ordering the public
24body to make available to the public such portion of the
25minutes of a meeting as is not authorized to be kept
26confidential under this Act, or declaring null and void any

 

 

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1final action taken at a closed meeting in violation of this
2Act.
3    (d) The court may assess against any party, except a
4State's Attorney, reasonable attorney's fees and other
5litigation costs reasonably incurred by any other party who
6substantially prevails in any action brought in accordance
7with this Section, provided that costs may be assessed against
8any private party or parties bringing an action pursuant to
9this Section only upon the court's determination that the
10action is malicious or frivolous in nature.
11(Source: P.A. 99-714, eff. 8-5-16.)