20 ILCS 3305/8

(20 ILCS 3305/8) (from Ch. 127, par. 1058)

Sec. 8. Mobile support teams; mutual aid.

(a) The Governor or Director, on behalf of the Governor, may enter into agreements with local governments, the federal government, tribal governments, and any public or private agency or entity in achieving any purpose of this Act and in implementing emergency management programs for mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.

(b) The Governor or Director may activate mobile support teams (MSTs) to aid and reinforce the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security, and emergency services and disaster agencies in this State or out-of-state pursuant to the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, as ratified in the Emergency Management Assistance Compact Act, for incidents, disasters, federally declared national special security events, and other large public events.

(c) Each mobile support team shall have a leader or leadership group, who will be responsible for the organization, administration, training, and general operation of the mobile support team.

(d) While activated on behalf of the State, the MST shall report to the Director or designee as the Director retains operational control of MSTs even if they have been tasked to support emergency services and disaster agencies.

(e) Personnel of an MST while activated by the Governor or Director or while engaged in State-approved or State-sponsored training or exercises, whether within or without the State, shall:

(1) If they are paid employees of the State, have the powers, duties, rights, privileges and immunities and receive the compensation incidental to their employment.

(2) If they are paid employees of a political subdivision or body politic of this State, and whether serving within or without that political subdivision or body politic, have the powers, duties, rights, privileges and immunities, and receive the compensation incidental to their employment.

(3) If they are not employees of the State, political subdivision or body politic, or being such employees, are not normally paid for their services, be entitled to at least one dollar per year compensation from the State.

(f) All personnel of MSTs may, while activated by the Governor or Director, be reimbursed by this State for all actual and necessary travel and subsistence expenses related to their activation.

(g) Personnel of a mobile support team who suffer disease, injury or death, while activated by the Governor or Director, shall for the purposes of benefits under the Workers' Compensation Act or Workers' Occupational Diseases Act only, be deemed to be employees of this State. If the person diseased, injured or killed is an employee described in item (3) of subsection (e), the computation of benefits payable under either of those Acts shall be based on income commensurate with comparable State employees doing the same type of work or income from the person's regular employment, whichever is greater.

(h) In lieu of subsection (f), the State may, by agreement, reimburse each political subdivision or body politic from the Disaster Response and Recovery Fund, or from other funding determined by the State, for the compensation paid and the actual and necessary travel and subsistence expenses of paid employees of the political subdivision or body politic while serving, outside of its geographical boundaries on behalf of the State, as members of an MST, and for all payments made for death, disease or injury of those paid employees arising out of and incurred in the course of that duty, and for all losses of or damage to supplies and equipment of the political subdivision or body politic resulting from the operations.

(i) Whenever activated MSTs or units of another state operating under orders of the Governor of their home state, render aid to this State, all questions relating to reimbursement by this State in regard to the assistance rendered shall be determined by the mutual aid agreements, MST agreements, or interstate compacts described in subparagraph (5) of paragraph (c) of Section 6 as are existing at the time of the assistance rendered, pursuant to the Emergency Management Assistance Compact as ratified in the Emergency Management Assistance Compact Act, as are entered into thereafter.

(j) No personnel of MSTs of this State may be ordered by the Governor or Director to operate in any other state unless a request for the same has been made by the Governor or duly authorized representative of the other state pursuant to the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, as ratified in the Emergency Management Assistance Compact Act, or a successor law.

(k) All expenses and compensation reimbursed under this Section may be provided from the Disaster Response and Recovery Fund or other funding determined by the State. The mutual aid agreement shall specify the manner and method in which compensation shall be paid.

(Source: P.A. 104-418, eff. 1-1-26.)