101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
HB3317

 

Introduced , by Rep. David McSweeney

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
See Index

    Creates the McHenry County Equitable Standards and Governmental Efficiency Law in the Counties Code. Allows the county board to require the election of specified special district trustees that it appoints. Allows the county board chairperson to: eliminate advisory committees or commissions; create standing committees and appoint members; set county board or committee meeting agendas; have line-item veto powers; and hire independent legal counsel or a parliamentarian or both; approve all appropriation expenditures before they are paid; reduce or divert moneys from a county fund with assets exceeding 150% of the previous year's expenditures on a ratable basis to taxpayers. Allows the county board to appoint an inspector general to investigate waste, fraud, and abuse. Provides that, on the effective date of the amendatory Act, the elected chairperson of the county board is a county office distinct from the county board. Terminates the office of county recorder and the office of the county auditor. Amends the Local Government Reduction and Efficiency Division of the Counties Code. Provides that a county board may prohibit or limit a unit of local government that it has proposed to consolidate from starting a capital program, building project, or land acquisition for a set period of time, not to exceed 2 years, while the county board pursues possible consolidation. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
HOUSING AFFORDABILITY IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by adding Section
55-44065 and Division 5-45 as follows:
 
6    (55 ILCS 5/5-44065 new)
7    Sec. 5-44065. Moratorium on capital programs, building
8projects, and land acquisition for a unit facing consolidation.
9A county board may, by resolution, prohibit or limit a unit of
10local government that it has proposed to consolidate under
11Section 5-44025 from starting a capital program, building
12project, or land acquisition for a set period of time, not to
13exceed 2 years, while the county board pursues possible
14consolidation. The resolution does not prevent the unit of
15local government from building infrastructure in the event of a
16disaster or other bona fide emergency.
 
17    (55 ILCS 5/Div. 5-45 heading new)
18
Division 5-45. McHenry County Equitable
19
Standards and Governmental Efficiency

 
20    (55 ILCS 5/5-45001 new)
21    Sec. 5-45001. Construction; reference to Division.

 

 

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1    (a) This Division applies to McHenry County. If there is a
2conflict between the provisions of this Division and any other
3provision of law, the provisions of this Division will control.
4    (b) This Division may be referred to as the McHenry County
5Equitable Standards and Governmental Efficiency Law.
 
6    (55 ILCS 5/5-45005 new)
7    Sec. 5-45005. Direct election of special district
8trustees. For any special district trustee the county board
9appoints relating to fire protection or other emergency
10services, the county board may, by resolution or ordinance,
11require that the electors of the applicable special district
12elect those trustees.
 
13    (55 ILCS 5/5-45010 new)
14    Sec. 5-45010. Elimination of advisory committees or
15commissions. The county board chairperson may eliminate
16advisory or ad hoc committees or commissions for any of the
17following reasons or other adequate cause the chairperson may
18find: (1) infrequency of committee or commission meetings; or
19(2) lack of qualified candidates coming forward for appointment
20to a committee or commission.
 
21    (55 ILCS 5/5-45015 new)
22    Sec. 5-45015. Creation of standing committees by chairman;
23appointment of members. With the advice and consent of a

 

 

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1majority of the county board, the county board chairman elected
2by the voters of the county may: (1) create standing
3committees; and (2) appoint members and chairpersons to
4standing committees.
 
5    (55 ILCS 5/5-45020 new)
6    Sec. 5-45020. Meeting agendas. The county board
7chairperson, or his or her designee, shall set the agendas for
8all county board meetings, including committee meetings of the
9county board.
 
10    (55 ILCS 5/5-45025 new)
11    Sec. 5-45025. Office of the county auditor discontinued.
12At the end of the term of the county auditor in office on the
13effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General
14Assembly, the office of the county auditor is discontinued. The
15county board shall appoint a nationally recognized public
16accounting firm to perform the duties formerly performed by the
17office of the county auditor.
 
18    (55 ILCS 5/5-45030 new)
19    Sec. 5-45030. County inspector general. The county board
20may appoint an inspector general to investigate waste, fraud,
21and abuse. The inspector general may turn over any findings of
22waste, fraud, and abuse to the State's Attorney for
23prosecution.
 

 

 

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1    (55 ILCS 5/5-45035 new)
2    Sec. 5-45035. Reduction of county board chairperson's
3powers. A three-fifths vote of the county board is required to
4reduce the chairperson's powers set forth in the county board
5rules.
 
6    (55 ILCS 5/5-45040 new)
7    Sec. 5-45040. Veto power of the chairperson.
8    (a) The chairperson may reduce or veto any appropriations
9made by the county board. Appropriations not reduced or vetoed
10are adopted.
11    (b) The county board may override the chairperson's
12line-item reduction or veto by a three-fifths majority vote of
13the board. If a reduced appropriation is not restored as
14provided in this subsection, the appropriation shall be adopted
15in the reduced amount.
 
16    (55 ILCS 5/5-45045 new)
17    Sec. 5-45045. Independent legal counsel; parliamentarian.
18The chairperson of the county board may hire an independent
19legal counsel or parliamentarian or both using county funds to
20represent the chairperson relating to county matters. If the
21chairperson hires an independent legal counsel or
22parliamentarian or both, the chairperson must reduce county
23spending in the amount required for expenditures under this

 

 

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1Section. The reduction may be made anywhere in the budget at
2the discretion of the chairperson.
 
3    (55 ILCS 5/5-45050 new)
4    Sec. 5-45050. County board chairperson; funding. On the
5effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st General
6Assembly, the elected chairperson of the county board is a
7county office distinct from the county board. The county board
8shall provide adequate funding for the chairperson to have the
9resources and staff required to fulfill his or her duties. The
10county board may not reclassify employees in the chairperson's
11office or transfer employees out of the chairperson's office
12without the chairperson's permission.
 
13    (55 ILCS 5/5-45055 new)
14    Sec. 5-45055. County board health insurance. Health
15insurance benefits paid on behalf of county board members are
16eliminated on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the
17101st General Assembly. The additional funding granted to the
18chairperson under Section 5-45050 shall not exceed the health
19insurance benefits eliminated under this Section.
 
20    (55 ILCS 5/5-45060 new)
21    Sec. 5-45060. Release of appropriated funds. The
22chairperson of the county board shall review each appropriated
23item. No money appropriated by the county board is obligated by

 

 

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1the county unless the chairperson releases the money.
 
2    (55 ILCS 5/5-45065 new)
3    Sec. 5-45065. Reduction or diversion of funds. The county
4chairperson has authority to reduce or divert moneys from a
5county fund with assets exceeding 150% of the previous year's
6expenditures from that fund. Any moneys removed or diverted
7from a fund shall proportionately be distributed on a ratable
8basis to taxpayers.
 
9    (55 ILCS 5/5-45070 new)
10    Sec. 5-45070. County clerk and county recorder
11consolidation. On the effective date of this amendatory Act of
12the 101st General Assembly: (1) the office of the county
13recorder shall cease and the county recorder's term terminated;
14and (2) all duties, personnel of the county recorder, and
15applicable agreements, including, but not limited to,
16collective bargaining agreements relating to personnel, are
17transferred to the county clerk.
 
18    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
19becoming law.

 

 

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1 INDEX
2 Statutes amended in order of appearance
3    55 ILCS 5/5-44065 new
4    55 ILCS 5/Div. 5-45
5    heading new
6    55 ILCS 5/5-45001 new
7    55 ILCS 5/5-45005 new
8    55 ILCS 5/5-45010 new
9    55 ILCS 5/5-45015 new
10    55 ILCS 5/5-45020 new
11    55 ILCS 5/5-45025 new
12    55 ILCS 5/5-45030 new
13    55 ILCS 5/5-45035 new
14    55 ILCS 5/5-45040 new
15    55 ILCS 5/5-45045 new
16    55 ILCS 5/5-45050 new
17    55 ILCS 5/5-45055 new
18    55 ILCS 5/5-45060 new
19    55 ILCS 5/5-45065 new
20    55 ILCS 5/5-45070 new