HB1716 EngrossedLRB097 08394 JDS 48521 b

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 Freedom of Information Act is amended by
5changing Section 6 as follows:
 
6    (5 ILCS 140/6)  (from Ch. 116, par. 206)
7    Sec. 6. Authority to charge fees.
8    (a) When a person requests a copy of a record maintained in
9an electronic format, the public body shall furnish it in the
10electronic format specified by the requester, if feasible. If
11it is not feasible to furnish the public records in the
12specified electronic format, then the public body shall furnish
13it in the format in which it is maintained by the public body,
14or in paper format at the option of the requester. A public
15body may charge the requester for the actual cost of purchasing
16the recording medium, whether disc, diskette, tape, or other
17medium. In addition, a public body may charge to any requester
18other than a member of the news media the actual cost of
19retrieving and transporting public records from an off-site
20storage facility when the public records are maintained by a
21third-party storage company under contract with the public
22body. A public body may not charge the requester for the costs
23of any search for and review of the records or other personnel

 

 

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1costs associated with reproducing the records. Except to the
2extent that the General Assembly expressly provides, statutory
3fees applicable to copies of public records when furnished in a
4paper format shall not be applicable to those records when
5furnished in an electronic format.
6    (b) Except when a fee is otherwise fixed by statute, each
7public body may charge fees reasonably calculated to reimburse
8its actual cost for reproducing and certifying public records
9and for the use, by any person, of the equipment of the public
10body to copy records. No fees shall be charged for the first 50
11pages of black and white, letter or legal sized copies
12requested by a requester. The fee for black and white, letter
13or legal sized copies shall not exceed 15 cents per page. If a
14public body provides copies in color or in a size other than
15letter or legal, the public body may not charge more than its
16actual cost for reproducing the records. In calculating its
17actual cost for reproducing records or for the use of the
18equipment of the public body to reproduce records, a public
19body shall not include the costs of any search for and review
20of the records or other personnel costs associated with
21reproducing the records. Such fees shall be imposed according
22to a standard scale of fees, established and made public by the
23body imposing them. The cost for certifying a record shall not
24exceed $1.
25    (c) Documents shall be furnished without charge or at a
26reduced charge, as determined by the public body, if the person

 

 

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1requesting the documents states the specific purpose for the
2request and indicates that a waiver or reduction of the fee is
3in the public interest. Waiver or reduction of the fee is in
4the public interest if the principal purpose of the request is
5to access and disseminate information regarding the health,
6safety and welfare or the legal rights of the general public
7and is not for the principal purpose of personal or commercial
8benefit. For purposes of this subsection, "commercial benefit"
9shall not apply to requests made by news media when the
10principal purpose of the request is to access and disseminate
11information regarding the health, safety, and welfare or the
12legal rights of the general public. In setting the amount of
13the waiver or reduction, the public body may take into
14consideration the amount of materials requested and the cost of
15copying them.
16    (d) The imposition of a fee not consistent with subsections
17(6)(a) and (b) of this Act constitutes a denial of access to
18public records for the purposes of judicial review.
19    (e) The fee for each abstract of a driver's record shall be
20as provided in Section 6-118 of "The Illinois Vehicle Code",
21approved September 29, 1969, as amended, whether furnished as a
22paper copy or as an electronic copy.
23(Source: P.A. 96-542, eff. 1-1-10; 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10.)
 
24    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
25becoming law.