093_SB1586

 
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 1        AN ACT concerning open meetings.

 2        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 3    represented in the General Assembly:

 4        Section 5.  The Open Meetings Act is amended by  changing
 5    Sections 2.06 and 3 as follows:

 6        (5 ILCS 120/2.06) (from Ch. 102, par. 42.06)
 7        Sec.  2.06.  (a)  All  public  bodies  shall keep written
 8    minutes of all their meetings, whether open or  closed.  Such
 9    minutes shall include, but need not be limited to:
10             (1)  the date, time and place of the meeting;
11             (2)  the  members  of  the  public  body recorded as
12        either present or absent; and
13             (3)  a  summary  of  discussion   on   all   matters
14        proposed,  deliberated,  or  decided, and a record of any
15        votes taken.
16        (b)  The minutes of meetings open to the public shall  be
17    available for public inspection within 7 days of the approval
18    of  such  minutes  by  the  public  body. Minutes of meetings
19    closed to the public shall be available only after the public
20    body determines that it is no longer necessary to protect the
21    public interest or the privacy of an  individual  by  keeping
22    them confidential.
23        (c)  Each  public  body  shall  periodically, but no less
24    than semi-annually, meet to  review  minutes  of  all  closed
25    meetings.   At  such  meetings a determination shall be made,
26    and reported in  an  open  session  that  (1)  the  need  for
27    confidentiality  still  exists  as  to  all  or part of those
28    minutes or (2) that the minutes or portions thereof no longer
29    require confidential treatment and are available  for  public
30    inspection.
31        (d)  All  public  bodies  shall keep a verbatim record of
 
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 1    any meeting subject to this Act that is closed to the public.
 2    The record shall be kept in the form of  an  audio  or  video
 3    recording  and maintained by the head of the public body or a
 4    person designated by the body.
 5        (e)  If the attorney representing the public body  is  in
 6    attendance  for the purpose of a meeting closed to the public
 7    and determines that all or a portion of  the  closed  meeting
 8    discussion    constitutes    a   privileged   attorney-client
 9    communication, then no  record  shall  be  required  of  that
10    portion  of  the  discussion  that  constitutes  a privileged
11    attorney-client communication. The audio or video  record  of
12    the  closed  meeting  shall reflect that no further record of
13    the closed meeting discussion  was  kept,  citing  privileged
14    attorney-client  communication.  Any  written  record  of the
15    closed meeting as required in subsection (g) of this  Section
16    shall  contain a signed statement from the attorney attesting
17    that  the  portion  of  the  closed  meeting   not   recorded
18    constituted a privileged attorney-client communication.
19        (f)  The  minutes  of meetings closed to the public shall
20    not be open for public inspection or subject to discovery  in
21    any   administrative  or  judicial  proceeding,  except  upon
22    consent of the public body or direction  of  the  court.  The
23    court  may, however, pursuant to Section 3, examine in camera
24    any portion of the minutes of a meeting closed to the  public
25    when  a  civil action is brought in the circuit court for the
26    judicial circuit  in  which  the  alleged  noncompliance  has
27    occurred. The provisions contained in this Section concerning
28    the  availability  of  minutes  of  a  closed  meeting do not
29    supersede the privacy or confidentiality provisions of  State
30    or federal law.
31        (g)  The audio or video minutes of meetings closed to the
32    public  shall  be  retained for a minimum of 180 days. Before
33    destroying the audio or  video  recording,  the  public  body
34    shall approve destruction of the record by a majority vote of
 
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 1    a quorum present. No audio or video record shall be destroyed
 2    during  the  pendency  of  an  investigation or proceeding to
 3    which the record is relevant. Before destroying the audio  or
 4    video  recording  of  a closed meeting, the public body shall
 5    direct the clerk to prepare a written summary of the audio or
 6    video  closed  meeting  minutes  which  shall  be  maintained
 7    pursuant to subsection (c) of this Section.
 8    (Source: P.A. 88-621, eff. 1-1-95.)

 9        (5 ILCS 120/3) (from Ch. 102, par. 43)
10        Sec. 3. (a) Where the provisions  of  this  Act  are  not
11    complied  with,  or  where there is probable cause to believe
12    that the provisions of this Act will not  be  complied  with,
13    any  person,  including the State's Attorney of the county in
14    which such noncompliance may occur, may bring a civil  action
15    in  the  circuit  court for the judicial circuit in which the
16    alleged noncompliance has occurred or is about to  occur,  or
17    in  which  the affected public body has its principal office,
18    prior to or within 180 60 days of the meeting alleged  to  be
19    in  violation of this Act or, if facts concerning the meeting
20    are not discovered within the 180-day 60-day  period,  within
21    180  60  days  of the discovery of a violation by the State's
22    Attorney.
23        (b)  In deciding such a case the  court  may  examine  in
24    camera  any  portion  of  the minutes of a meeting at which a
25    violation of the Act is alleged to  have  occurred,  and  may
26    take such additional evidence as it deems necessary.
27        (c)  The   court,   having   due   regard   for   orderly
28    administration  and  the  public interest, as well as for the
29    interests of the parties, may grant such relief as  it  deems
30    appropriate,   including   granting   a  relief  by  mandamus
31    requiring that a meeting be open to the public,  granting  an
32    injunction  against  future  violations of this Act, ordering
33    the public body to make available to the public such  portion
 
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 1    of  the  minutes of a meeting as is not authorized to be kept
 2    confidential under this Act, or declaring null and  void  any
 3    final  action  taken at a closed meeting in violation of this
 4    Act.
 5        (d)  The court may assess against  any  party,  except  a
 6    State's   Attorney,  reasonable  attorney's  fees  and  other
 7    litigation costs reasonably incurred by any other  party  who
 8    substantially  prevails  in  any action brought in accordance
 9    with this  Section,  provided  that  costs  may  be  assessed
10    against  any  private  party  or  parties  bringing an action
11    pursuant to this Section only upon the court's  determination
12    that the action is malicious or frivolous in nature.
13    (Source: P.A. 88-621, eff. 1-1-95.)

14        Section  99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect upon
15    becoming law.