SB0150eng 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SB0150 Engrossed LRB095 07564 RLC 27714 b

AN ACT concerning criminal law.

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 Joint Criminal Law Review Commission Act.

Section 5. Joint Criminal Law Review Commission.

(a) There is created the Joint Criminal Law Review Commission, hereinafter referred to as the Commission, consisting of 13 members appointed as follows:

(1) Three members appointed by the President of the Senate;

(2) Three members appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate;

(3) Three members appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;

(4) Three members appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives; and

(5) One member appointed by the Governor.

(b) Commission members shall serve 2-year terms or until their successors are appointed.

(c) Commission intent. The Commission is intended to:

(1) make the criminal laws of Illinois easier to understand, access, apply, and interpret;

(2) promote obedience to the rule of law; and

(3) reduce the cost and increase the efficiency of the criminal justice system by eliminating disputes relating to criminal laws that result in retrials, delays, and mistakes in the process.

(d) Commission review.

(1) The Commission shall conduct an ongoing study, review, and evaluation of the existing laws pertaining to criminal or penal offenses in the State to ensure that these provisions are constitutional, consistent, appropriately located, and drafted concisely; and

(2) The Commission shall review and evaluate all proposed legislation filed in the Illinois General Assembly relating to criminal or penal offenses to ensure that such legislation is necessary and uniform and adheres to generally accepted drafting principles. The Commission shall review and evaluate each filed legislative proposal to determine whether it:

(A) is constitutional;

(B) is not duplicative of or inadvertently inconsistent with existing law;

(C) contains an appropriate mental state; and

(D) is placed in an appropriate place within the Illinois Compiled Statutes.

(e) Commission recommendations. As to clause (d)(1), review and evaluation of existing law, the Commission shall make recommendations to the General Assembly for actions to be taken. As to clause (d)(2), review and evaluation of proposed legislation, the Commission shall make one of the 3 following recommendations to the General Assembly:

(1) approve the legislative proposal;

(2) approve the legislative proposal with specific changes; or

(3) do not approve the legislative proposal.

(f) Commission authority. The Commission shall make ongoing recommendations to the General Assembly regarding proposed legislation. Commission recommendations shall be advisory in nature.

(g) The Commission shall report to the General Assembly annually or as it deems necessary or useful on the results of its study, review, and evaluation as set forth in clause (d)(1) and the performance of the Commission's duties. The Commission shall also report to the General Assembly on a regular basis or as it deems necessary or useful during the legislative session on the Commission's recommendations relating to proposed legislation as set forth in clause (d)(2).

(h) The Commission may request assistance from any other entity as necessary or useful for the performance of its duties.

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