HB5486 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

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104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB5486

Introduced 2/13/2026, by Rep. Carol Ammons

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Office of Genealogical Affairs Study Committee Act. Provides that the Office of Genealogical Affairs Study Committee shall have the following duties: (1) to examine the feasibility, scope, and structure of a permanent Office of Genealogical Affairs within the State government; (2) to examine how an Office of Genealogical Affairs could operationalize reparative genealogical services; (3) to examine how an Office of Genealogical Affairs could support forensic and historical accountability efforts; and (4) to examine how an Office of Genealogical Affairs could support administrative genealogical determinations. Provides that the Office of Genealogical Affairs Study Committee shall report to the Governor and the General Assembly no later than 18 months after the effective date of the Act. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning State government.

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

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Office of Genealogical Affairs Study Committee Act.

Section 5. Legislative findings and purpose.

(a) The General Assembly finds that:

(1) Illinois has a documented history of slavery, coerced labor, family separation, racial violence, and State-sanctioned discrimination, including, but not limited to, the enslavement of African Americans at State-operated salt mines, the enforcement of Black Codes, and the long-term exclusion of African American families from full civic participation.

(2) These historical practices resulted in the systematic destruction, fragmentation, or non-creation of genealogical records for African American families and other historically displaced populations, impairing their ability to document family identity, lineage, and inheritance.

(3) Illinois recognizes genealogical access as a public service and democratic good through its archival, records preservation, and genealogical programs, and it recognizes family identity as a legally protected interest for the purposes of adoption, parentage, and child welfare law.

(4) Genealogical knowledge serves not only administrative purposes but also reparative, forensic, public health, and psychosocial functions, including identity formation, family reunification, historical accountability, and access to health-related genetic information.

(5) The State lacks an integrated framework for delivering genealogical services across restorative, forensic, and administrative domains, particularly where traditional documentation is absent.

(b) Therefore, the purpose of this Act is to commission a comprehensive study on the establishment of an Office of Genealogical Affairs, grounded in Illinois law and public service traditions, to determine how the State may equitably provide genealogical services that support identity repair, historical accountability, and, where applicable, administrative determinations.

Section 10. Office of Genealogical Affairs Study Committee.

(a) The Office of Genealogical Affairs Study Committee is created. The members of the Commission shall be as follows:

(1) 11 public members appointed by the Governor with specialties in the following areas or with following expertise:

(A) anthropology and population genetics genealogy;

(B) biological anthropology;

(C) cultural anthropology;

(D) an archivist;

(E) a historian;

(F) a certified genealogist; and

(G) a psycho-social or psycho-mental health professional;

(2) 2 members that are descendant community leadership representatives appointed by the Governor;

(3) one member appointed by the President of the Senate;

(4) one member appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate;

(5) one member appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;

(6) one member appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives; and

(7) 4 ex-officio members:

(A) the Secretary of State, or the Secretary's designee;

(B) the Director of Public Health, or the Director's designee;

(C) the Secretary of Human Services, or the Secretary's designee; and

(D) the Director of the Illinois State Archives, or the Director's designee.

(b) Each Committee member shall serve for a term of 2 years, or until his or successor is appointed, except in the case of initial appoints who shall serve 2 years from the effective date of this Act.

(c) The Committee shall meet monthly beginning in August, 2026.

Section 15. Duties of the Commission.

(a) The Committee shall have the following duties:

(1) to examine the feasibility, scope, and structure of a permanent Office of Genealogical Affairs within State government;

(2) to examine how an Office of Genealogical Affairs could operationalize reparative genealogical services;

(3) to examine how an Office of Genealogical Affairs could support forensic and historical accountability efforts; and

(4) to examine how an Office of Genealogical Affairs could support administrative genealogical determinations.

(b) The Committee may employ skilled experts with the approval of the chairperson, and shall receive the cooperation of those State agencies it deems appropriate to assist the Committee in carrying out its duties.

(c) The Department of Human Services, in consultation with the Department of Public Health, the Illinois State Archives, and the African Descent-Citizens Reparations Commission, shall provide administrative and other support to the Committee.

Section 20. Report to the Governor and General Assembly. No later than 18 months after the effective date of this Act, the Study Committee shall prepare a report to the Governor and the General Assembly, which shall include, but is not limited to:

(1) a recommended statutory placement, governance structure, and staffing model for an Office of Genealogical Affairs;

(2) a phased implementation plan prioritizing reparative forensic services;

(3) ethical, legal, and data-governance frameworks for genealogical and genetic genealogy services;

(4) the estimated costs, funding mechanisms, and interagency coordination needs; and

(5) the options for pilot programs and statewide scaling.

Section 25. Construction. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to mandate genetic testing, limit access to existing genealogical services, or authorize the use of genealogical data for surveillance or for law enforcement purposes.

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