103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB0229

 

Introduced 1/31/2023, by Sen. Christopher Belt

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
705 ILCS 505/24  from Ch. 37, par. 439.24
820 ILCS 315/3  from Ch. 48, par. 283

    Amends the Court of Claims Act. Provides that, for the purpose of making up any deficiency in the appropriation for the payment of claims directed pursuant to the Line of Duty Compensation Act, there is appropriated, on a continuing annual basis in each fiscal year, from the General Revenue Fund to the Court of Claims, the amount, if any, by which the total appropriation for the payment of claims directed pursuant to the Line of Duty Compensation Act for the fiscal year is less than the amount required for the payment of claims pursuant to the Line of Duty Compensation Act for that fiscal year. Provides that the amount of any continuing appropriation used by the Court of Claims under the amendatory Act for a given fiscal year shall be charged against the unexpended amount of any appropriation for line of duty awards to the Court of Claims for that fiscal year that subsequently becomes available. Requires the Court of Claims to report to the President and Minority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, and the Governor's Office of Management and Budget on any continuing appropriation that is used at the conclusion of a fiscal year. Amends the Line of Duty Compensation Act. Provides that if a claim is made within 2 years (rather than one year) of the date of death of a law enforcement officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol member, paramedic, fireman, chaplain, or State employee killed in the line of duty, compensation shall be paid to the person designated by the law enforcement officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol member, paramedic, fireman, chaplain, or State employee. Effective immediately.


LRB103 05992 SPS 51016 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB0229LRB103 05992 SPS 51016 b

1    AN ACT concerning employment.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Court of Claims Act is amended by changing
5Section 24 as follows:
 
6    (705 ILCS 505/24)  (from Ch. 37, par. 439.24)
7    Sec. 24. Payment of awards.
8    (1) From funds appropriated by the General Assembly for
9the purposes of this Section the Court may direct immediate
10payment of:
11        (a) All claims arising solely as a result of the
12    lapsing of an appropriation out of which the obligation
13    could have been paid.
14        (b) All claims pursuant to the Line of Duty
15    Compensation Act.
16        (c) All claims pursuant to the "Illinois National
17    Guardsman's and Naval Militiaman's Compensation Act",
18    approved August 12, 1971, as amended.
19        (d) All claims pursuant to the "Crime Victims
20    Compensation Act", approved August 23, 1973, as amended.
21        (d-5) All claims against the State for unjust
22    imprisonment as provided in subsection (c) of Section 8 of
23    this Act.

 

 

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1        (e) All other claims wherein the amount of the award
2    of the Court is less than $50,000.
3    (2) The court may, from funds specifically appropriated
4from the General Revenue Fund for this purpose, direct the
5payment of awards less than $50,000 solely as a result of the
6lapsing of an appropriation originally made from any fund held
7by the State Treasurer. For any such award paid from the
8General Revenue Fund, the court shall thereafter seek an
9appropriation from the fund from which the liability
10originally accrued in reimbursement of the General Revenue
11Fund.
12    (3) In directing payment of a claim pursuant to the Line of
13Duty Compensation Act, the Court must direct the Comptroller
14to add an interest penalty if payment of a claim is not made
15within 6 months after a claim is filed in accordance with
16Section 3 of the Line of Duty Compensation Act and all
17information has been submitted as required under Section 4 of
18the Line of Duty Compensation Act. If payment is not issued
19within the 6-month period, an interest penalty of 1% of the
20amount of the award shall be added for each month or fraction
21thereof after the end of the 6-month period, until final
22payment is made. This interest penalty shall be added
23regardless of whether the payment is not issued within the
246-month period because of the appropriation process, the
25consideration of the matter by the Court, or any other reason.
26    (3.5) The interest penalty payment provided for in

 

 

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1subsection (3) shall be added to all claims for which benefits
2were not paid as of the effective date of P.A. 95-928. The
3interest penalty shall be calculated starting from the
4effective date of P.A. 95-928, provided that the effective
5date of P.A. 95-928 is at least 6 months after the date on
6which the claim was filed in accordance with Section 3 of the
7Line of Duty Compensation Act. In the event that the date 6
8months after the date on which the claim was filed is later
9than the effective date of P.A. 95-928, the Court shall
10calculate the interest payment penalty starting from the date
116 months after the date on which the claim was filed in
12accordance with Section 3 of the Line of Duty Compensation
13Act. This subsection (3.5) of this amendatory Act of the 96th
14General Assembly is declarative of existing law.
15    (3.6) In addition to the interest payments provided for in
16subsections (3) and (3.5), the Court shall direct the
17Comptroller to add a "catch-up" payment to the claims of
18eligible claimants. For the purposes of this subsection (3.6),
19an "eligible claimant" is a claimant whose claim is not paid in
20the year in which it was filed. For purposes of this subsection
21(3.6), "'catch-up' payment" is defined as the difference
22between the amount paid to claimants whose claims were filed
23in the year in which the eligible claimant's claim is paid and
24the amount paid to claimants whose claims were filed in the
25year in which the eligible claimant filed his or her claim. The
26"catch-up" payment is payable simultaneously with the claim

 

 

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1award.
2    (3.7) For the purpose of making up any deficiency in the
3appropriation for the payment of claims directed pursuant to
4the Line of Duty Compensation Act, there is hereby
5appropriated, on a continuing annual basis in each fiscal
6year, from the General Revenue Fund to the Court of Claims, the
7amount, if any, by which the total appropriation for the
8payment of claims directed pursuant to the Line of Duty
9Compensation Act for the fiscal year is less than the amount
10required for the payment of claims pursuant to the Line of Duty
11Compensation Act for that fiscal year. The amount of any
12continuing appropriation used by the Court of Claims under
13this subsection (3.7) for a given fiscal year shall be charged
14against the unexpended amount of any appropriation for line of
15duty awards to the Court of Claims for that fiscal year that
16subsequently becomes available. The Court of Claims shall
17report to the President and Minority Leader of the Senate, the
18Speaker and Minority Leader of the House of Representatives,
19and the Governor's Office of Management and Budget on any
20continuing appropriation that is used at the conclusion of a
21fiscal year.
22    (4) From funds appropriated by the General Assembly for
23the purposes of paying claims under paragraph (c) of Section
248, the court must direct payment of each claim and the payment
25must be received by the claimant within 60 days after the date
26that the funds are appropriated for that purpose.

 

 

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1(Source: P.A. 100-1124, eff. 11-27-18.)
 
2    Section 10. The Line of Duty Compensation Act is amended
3by changing Section 3 as follows:
 
4    (820 ILCS 315/3)   (from Ch. 48, par. 283)
5    Sec. 3. Duty death benefit.
6    (a) If a claim therefor is made within 2 years one year of
7the date of death of a law enforcement officer, civil defense
8worker, civil air patrol member, paramedic, fireman, chaplain,
9or State employee killed in the line of duty, or if a claim
10therefor is made within 2 years of the date of death of an
11Armed Forces member killed in the line of duty, compensation
12shall be paid to the person designated by the law enforcement
13officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol member,
14paramedic, fireman, chaplain, State employee, or Armed Forces
15member. However, if the Armed Forces member was killed in the
16line of duty before October 18, 2004, the claim must be made
17within one year of October 18, 2004. In addition, if a death
18occurred after December 31, 2016 and before January 1, 2021,
19the claim may be made no later than December 31, 2022
20notwithstanding any other deadline established under this Act
21with respect to filing a claim for a duty death benefit.
22    (b) The amount of compensation, except for an Armed Forces
23member, shall be $10,000 if the death in the line of duty
24occurred prior to January 1, 1974; $20,000 if such death

 

 

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1occurred after December 31, 1973 and before July 1, 1983;
2$50,000 if such death occurred on or after July 1, 1983 and
3before January 1, 1996; $100,000 if the death occurred on or
4after January 1, 1996 and before May 18, 2001; $118,000 if the
5death occurred on or after May 18, 2001 and before July 1,
62002; and $259,038 if the death occurred on or after July 1,
72002 and before January 1, 2003. For an Armed Forces member
8killed in the line of duty (i) at any time before January 1,
92005, the compensation is $259,038 plus amounts equal to the
10increases for 2003 and 2004 determined under subsection (c)
11and (ii) on or after January 1, 2005, the compensation is the
12amount determined under item (i) plus the applicable increases
13for 2005 and thereafter determined under subsection (c).
14    (c) Except as provided in subsection (b), for deaths
15occurring on or after January 1, 2003, the death compensation
16rate for death in the line of duty occurring in a particular
17calendar year shall be the death compensation rate for death
18occurring in the previous calendar year (or in the case of
19deaths occurring in 2003, the rate in effect on December 31,
202002) increased by a percentage thereof equal to the
21percentage increase, if any, in the index known as the
22Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: U.S. city
23average, unadjusted, for all items, as published by the United
24States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, for
25the 12 months ending with the month of June of that previous
26calendar year.

 

 

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1    (d) If no beneficiary is designated or if no designated
2beneficiary survives at the death of the law enforcement
3officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol member,
4paramedic, fireman, chaplain, or State employee killed in the
5line of duty, the compensation shall be paid in accordance
6with a legally binding will left by the law enforcement
7officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol member,
8paramedic, fireman, chaplain, or State employee. If the law
9enforcement officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol
10member, paramedic, fireman, chaplain, or State employee did
11not leave a legally binding will, the compensation shall be
12paid as follows:
13        (1) when there is a surviving spouse, the entire sum
14    shall be paid to the spouse;
15        (2) when there is no surviving spouse, but a surviving
16    descendant of the decedent, the entire sum shall be paid
17    to the decedent's descendants per stirpes;
18        (3) when there is neither a surviving spouse nor a
19    surviving descendant, the entire sum shall be paid to the
20    parents of the decedent in equal parts, allowing to the
21    surviving parent, if one is dead, the entire sum; and
22        (4) when there is no surviving spouse, descendant or
23    parent of the decedent, but there are surviving brothers
24    or sisters, or descendants of a brother or sister, who
25    were receiving their principal support from the decedent
26    at his death, the entire sum shall be paid, in equal parts,

 

 

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1    to the dependent brothers or sisters or dependent
2    descendant of a brother or sister. Dependency shall be
3    determined by the Court of Claims based upon the
4    investigation and report of the Attorney General.
5The changes made to this subsection (d) by this amendatory Act
6of the 94th General Assembly apply to any pending case as long
7as compensation has not been paid to any party before the
8effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General
9Assembly.
10    (d-1) For purposes of subsection (d), in the case of a
11person killed in the line of duty who was born out of wedlock
12and was not an adoptive child at the time of the person's
13death, a person shall be deemed to be a parent of the person
14killed in the line of duty only if that person would be an
15eligible parent, as defined in Section 2-2 of the Probate Act
16of 1975, of the person killed in the line of duty. This
17subsection (d-1) applies to any pending claim if compensation
18was not paid to the claimant of the pending claim before the
19effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General
20Assembly.
21    (d-2) If no beneficiary is designated or if no designated
22beneficiary survives at the death of the Armed Forces member
23killed in the line of duty, the compensation shall be paid in
24entirety according to the designation made on the most recent
25version of the Armed Forces member's Servicemembers' Group
26Life Insurance Election and Certificate ("SGLI").

 

 

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1    If no SGLI form exists at the time of the Armed Forces
2member's death, the compensation shall be paid in accordance
3with a legally binding will left by the Armed Forces member.
4    If no SGLI form exists for the Armed Forces member and the
5Armed Forces member did not leave a legally binding will, the
6compensation shall be paid to the persons and in the priority
7as set forth in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (d) of
8this Section.
9    This subsection (d-2) applies to any pending case as long
10as compensation has not been paid to any party before the
11effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General
12Assembly.
13    (e) If there is no beneficiary designated or if no
14designated beneficiary survives at the death of the law
15enforcement officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol
16member, paramedic, fireman, chaplain, State employee, or Armed
17Forces member killed in the line of duty and there is no other
18person or entity to whom compensation is payable under this
19Section, no compensation shall be payable under this Act.
20    (f) No part of such compensation may be paid to any other
21person for any efforts in securing such compensation.
22    (g) This amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly
23applies to claims made on or after October 18, 2004 with
24respect to an Armed Forces member killed in the line of duty.
25    (h) In any case for which benefits have not been paid
26within 6 months of the claim being filed in accordance with

 

 

SB0229- 10 -LRB103 05992 SPS 51016 b

1this Section, which is pending as of the effective date of this
2amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly, and in which
3there are 2 or more beneficiaries, at least one of whom would
4receive at least a portion of the total benefit regardless of
5the manner in which the Court of Claims resolves the claim, the
6Court shall direct the Comptroller to pay the minimum amount
7of money which the determinate beneficiary would receive
8together with all interest payment penalties which have
9accrued on that portion of the award being paid within 30 days
10of the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th
11General Assembly. For purposes of this subsection (h),
12"determinate beneficiary" means the beneficiary who would
13receive any portion of the total benefit claimed regardless of
14the manner in which the Court of Claims adjudicates the claim.
15    (i) The Court of Claims shall ensure that all individuals
16who have filed an application to claim the duty death benefit
17for a deceased member of the Armed Forces pursuant to this
18Section or for a fireman pursuant to this Section, or their
19designated representative, shall have access, on a timely
20basis and in an efficient manner, to all information related
21to the court's consideration, processing, or adjudication of
22the claim, including, but not limited to, the following:
23        (1) a reliable estimate of when the Court of Claims
24    will adjudicate the claim, or if the Court cannot estimate
25    when it will adjudicate the claim, a full written
26    explanation of the reasons for this inability; and

 

 

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1        (2) a reliable estimate, based upon consultation with
2    the Comptroller, of when the benefit will be paid to the
3    claimant.
4    (j) The Court of Claims shall send written notice to all
5claimants within 2 weeks of the initiation of a claim
6indicating whether or not the application is complete. For
7purposes of this subsection (j), an application is complete if
8a claimant has submitted to the Court of Claims all documents
9and information the Court requires for adjudicating and paying
10the benefit amount. For purposes of this subsection (j), a
11claim for the duty death benefit is initiated when a claimant
12submits any of the application materials required for
13adjudicating the claim to the Court of Claims. In the event a
14claimant's application is incomplete, the Court shall include
15in its written notice a list of the information or documents
16which the claimant must submit in order for the application to
17be complete. In no case may the Court of Claims deny a claim
18and subsequently re-adjudicate the same claim for the purpose
19of evading or reducing the interest penalty payment amount
20payable to any claimant.
21(Source: P.A. 102-215, eff. 7-30-21.)
 
22    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
23becoming law.