Full Text of SB1368

SB1368 Engrossed LRB104 08902 KTG 18957 b

AN ACT concerning military service.

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

Section 5. The Military Veterans Assistance Act is amended by changing Section 9 as follows:

(330 ILCS 45/9) (from Ch. 23, par. 3089)

Sec. 9. Veterans Assistance Commission.

(a) In counties having 2 or more veteran service organizations as may be recognized by law, the veteran service organizations may come together to form a Veterans Assistance Commission of such county. The Veterans Assistance Commission of such county may act as the central service office for all veterans and their families and for the families of deceased veterans. The Commission shall be composed of delegates and alternates from a majority of such veteran service organizations selected annually as determined by each veteran service organization. When so organized a Commission shall be clothed with all the powers and may be charged with all the duties theretofore devolving upon the different veteran service organizations within the county as provided in Section 2.

(1) Every January 1, all Veterans Assistance Commissions shall publish a notice to each veteran service organization within their respective county calling on them to select delegates and alternates for that county's Veterans Assistance Commission by the methods provided in this subsection. The Veterans Assistance Commissions shall allow each veteran service organization until March 1 to respond, at which time those selected and duly appointed delegates and alternates shall begin their term of office with full voting rights. Once selected, delegates and alternates are bound by the Public Officer Prohibited Activities Act.

(2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), veteran service organizations shall be permitted to select one delegate and one alternate.

(3) In counties with 5 or more of the same veteran service organizations, all the constituent veteran service organizations shall be permitted to select up to 5 delegates and 5 alternates to represent that veteran service organization instead of each constituent veteran service organization selecting one delegate and one alternate. For the purposes of meeting the majority requirement of this subsection, when the constituent groups of a veteran service organization choose to select those delegates and alternates, those selected and duly appointed delegates and alternates shall represent the aggregate percentage of the constituent groups.

(4) If a veteran service organization serves more than one county, then it shall be permitted to select one delegate and one alternate for the Veterans Assistance Commission in each county in which at least 25% of its members reside.

(5) All undertakings of, or actions taken by, the Commission shall require a vote from a majority of the full commission membership. No committee or other subgroup of delegates and alternates formed by the Commission, whether selected or appointed, may be granted the power or authority to act in the place of or on behalf of the full body of the duly selected or appointed Commission membership.

(6) No superintendent or any other employee of the Veterans Assistance Commission may retain the position of delegate or alternate or any voting rights while employed by the Veterans Assistance Commission.

(7) No committee or other subgroup of delegates and alternates formed by the Commission, whether selected or appointed, may bar any other duly appointed Commission member from attending or otherwise being present during any closed meetings or sessions of that committee or group.

(8) The county may, at its discretion, appoint a representative to the Commission who may attend any public meeting of the Commission. That representative shall be a veteran, may not have voting rights, may not hold any office or title on the Commission, and may not be present during any nonpublic meeting of the Commission, except as authorized in this Act. For matters of executive session, the non-voting county appointee may attend meetings that are closed in accordance with paragraphs (1), (3), (5), (6), or (11) of subsection (c) of Section 2 of the Open Meetings Act for litigation matters not relating to litigation between the Commission and the County.

(b) The Commission and its selected or appointed superintendent shall have oversight of the distribution of all moneys and supplies appropriated for the benefit of military veterans and their families, subject to such rules, regulations, administrative procedures or audit reviews as are required by this Act and as are necessary as approved by the Commission to carry out the spirit and intent of this Act. No warrant authorized under this Act may be issued for the payment of money without the presentation of an itemized statement or claim, approved by the superintendent of the Commission.

(c) The superintendent of the Veterans Assistance Commission, selected, appointed, or hired by the Commission is an at-will employee who shall be answerable to, and shall report to, the Commission.

(d) The superintendent shall be evaluated annually and a written report shall be generated. A copy of the report from the evaluation shall be provided to the entire Commission membership.

(e) A superintendent may be removed from office if, after delegates from no less than 3 different veteran service organizations file a written request calling for the superintendent's removal, there is a vote from a majority of the full Commission membership in favor of such removal.

(f) Each Veterans Assistance Commission shall establish and maintain bylaws that outline the framework, policies, and procedures for conducting the business of the Commission and for the rules and regulations that apply to its members. Those bylaws shall reflect compliance with all relevant laws at the time they are established and shall be revised as necessary to remain in compliance with current law. The establishment of those bylaws, and any revisions thereafter, shall require a minimum two-thirds majority vote of approval from a majority of the full Commission membership.

(g) Each Veterans Assistance Commission shall, in writing, adopt all applicable policies already established and in place in its respective county, including, but not limited to, policies related to compensation, employee rights, ethics, procurement, and budget, and shall adapt those policies to fit its organizational structure. Those policies shall then be considered the policies of the Veterans Assistance Commission and they shall be implemented and adhered to, accordingly, by the superintendent and by the Commission. The Commission shall amend its adopted policies whenever a county board amends an applicable policy within 60 days of the county board amendment.

(h) No warrant authorized under this Act may be issued for the payment of money without the presentation of an itemized statement or claim, approved by the superintendent of the Commission and reported to the full Commission membership.

(i) Each Veterans Assistance Commission shall perform an annual audit in accordance with the Governmental Account Audit Act using either the auditing services provided by its respective county or the services of an independent auditor whose services shall be paid for by the Commission. A copy of that audit report shall be provided to the president or chairperson of the county board.

(j) Veterans Assistance Commissions and county boards subject to this Act shall cooperate fully with the boards, commissions, agencies, departments, and institutions of the State. The funds held and made available by the county, the State, or any other source shall be subject to financial and compliance audits in accordance with the Illinois State Auditing Act.

(k) The Veterans Assistance Commission shall be in charge of the administration of any benefits provided under Articles VI and IX of the Illinois Public Aid Code for military veterans and their families.

(l) The Veterans Assistance Commission shall represent veterans in their application for or attempts to obtain benefits and services through State and federal agencies, including representing veterans in their appeals of adverse decisions.

(m) The superintendent of the Veterans Assistance Commission and its employees must comply with the procedures and regulations adopted by the Veterans Assistance Commission and the regulations of the Department of Human Services.

(n) To further the intent of this Act of assisting military veterans, this Act is to be construed so that the Veterans Assistance Commission shall provide needed services to eligible veterans.

(o)(1) In counties that do not have a Veterans Assistance Commission prior to January 1, 2026, and in which there exists a judicial circuit whose jurisdictional boundaries include multiple counties, veteran service organizations located within any of those counties that are within the judicial circuit's jurisdictional boundaries may come together and create a Jurisdictional Veterans Assistance Commission that shall provide services to veterans and their families who reside in those participating counties. Each participating county shall levy the minimum amount of 0.02%, as indicated in Section 2, and deposit the proceeds in the county treasury of the seat of that judicial circuit. These proceeds shall be used for employment of staff of the Veterans Assistance Commission and financial assistance for the veterans and their families that reside within the geographical boundaries of that judicial circuit. The Veterans Assistance Commission shall be known as the Veterans Assistance Commission of that judicial circuit.

(2) Participating counties shall provide the support and materials required to administer a Jurisdictional Veterans Assistance Commission in the same manner individual counties are required under this Act to provide support and materials to single-county Veterans Assistance Commissions.

(3) The superintendent of a Veterans Assistance Commission formed in accordance with paragraph (1) shall be selected from among all honorably discharged veterans of all participating counties within that judicial circuit's boundaries and shall maintain a centrally located office within that judicial circuit. However, for a Veterans Assistance Commission formed within a large judicial circuit, the superintendent is not precluded from having multiple offices that shall be owned and maintained by the Veterans Assistance Commission.

(4) Delegates and alternates shall be selected by the veterans service organizations of that judicial circuit in the same manner as prescribed in paragraph (1) of subsection (a).

(5) Any existing Veterans Assistance Commission that is part of a Judicial Circuit that is comprised of multiple counties, as of January 1, 2025, may merge into a Veterans Assistance Commission of that Judicial Circuit with its neighboring counties. Those existing Veterans Assistance Commissions that choose not to merge may continue to exist independently while the other counties combine to form a new Veterans Assistance Commission of that judicial circuit.

(Source: P.A. 102-484, eff. 8-20-21; 102-732, eff. 1-1-23; 102-1132, eff. 2-10-23.)