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Public Act 102-0695
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| HB0359 Enrolled | LRB102 11611 KTG 16945 b |
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AN ACT concerning military service.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Department of Veterans' Affairs Act is |
amended by adding Section 39 as follows:
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(20 ILCS 2805/39 new) |
Sec. 39. Veterans' Accountability Unit. |
(a) The Department shall create a Veterans' Accountability |
Unit which shall receive complaints and recommendations from: |
(i) veterans and other Illinois residents who seek services |
from the Department; (ii) residents of Veterans' Homes, their |
families, and visitors; (iii) vendors and contractors of the |
Department; and (iv) staff of the Department. |
(b) The Governor shall appoint, and the Senate shall |
confirm, the Director of the Veterans' Accountability Unit. |
The Director shall be appointed for a term of 4 years. |
(c) The Director of the Veterans' Accountability Unit |
shall ensure that the Unit maintains regular office hours and |
establishes both a toll-free helpline and a dedicated |
electronic mail address for the purpose of accepting |
complaints, information, and recommendations. The Director |
shall provide a reasonable means for receiving complaints |
outside of office hours. |
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(d) The Veterans' Accountability Unit shall function |
independently of the Department. The salary and benefits of |
the Director of the Veterans' Accountability Unit and any |
other staff of the Unit, as deemed necessary by the Director, |
along with all other expenses of the Unit shall be paid from |
appropriations to the Department. |
(e) The Director and staff of the Veterans' Accountability |
Unit shall have the authority to access the offices or |
facilities of the Department and the Veterans' Homes and shall |
have access to all information, documents, and personnel of |
the Department as needed to perform the duties of the |
Veterans' Accountability Unit. It is the duty of every |
employee of the Department to cooperate with the Veterans' |
Accountability Unit. The Department shall provide the staff of |
the Veterans' Accountability Unit with physical space in each |
Department office and in each Veterans' Home to conduct |
confidential business as needed to perform the work of the |
Veterans' Accountability Unit. |
(f) The Veterans' Accountability Unit shall ensure all |
complaints, allegations, or incidents of possible misconduct, |
misfeasance, malfeasance, or violations of rules, procedures, |
or laws by any employee, service provider, or contractor of |
the Department are reported to the Office of Executive |
Inspector General for the Agencies of the Illinois Governor. |
(g) The Office of Executive Inspector General for the |
Agencies of the Illinois Governor shall assess the complaints, |
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allegations, and incidents and shall determine whether to (i) |
investigate, (ii) refer to the appropriate agency, (iii) refer |
to any appropriate law enforcement agency, (iv) request a |
response from the Department to the complaint, allegations, or |
incident, or (v) refer to the Veterans' Accountability Unit to |
conduct further inquiry or review if necessary. |
(h) The Director of the Veterans' Accountability Unit may |
recommend changes to the Director of Veterans' Affairs |
concerning Department policies or practices based upon |
information learned or observations made by the Veterans' |
Accountability Unit staff during the course of its duties. The |
Director of the Veterans' Accountability Unit shall meet |
regularly with the Office of Executive Inspector General for |
the Agencies of the Illinois Governor to report this |
information to allow the Office to determine whether further |
investigation is necessary. |
(i) The Veterans' Accountability Unit shall create an |
annual report that includes a summary of the complaints |
received and actions taken in response. This report shall not |
include any referrals to the Office of Executive Inspector |
General for the Agencies of the Illinois Governor that result |
in an investigation. The summaries shall not contain any |
confidential or identifying information concerning the |
subjects or complainants of the reports and investigations. |
(j) Nothing in this Section shall limit investigations by |
the Department of Veterans' Affairs that may otherwise be
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