Rep. Keith Farnham

Filed: 3/29/2011

 

 


 

 


 
09700HB1264ham001LRB097 06476 RLJ 52868 a

1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 1264

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 1264 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The General Assembly Compensation Act is
5amended by changing Section 4 as follows:
 
6    (25 ILCS 115/4)  (from Ch. 63, par. 15.1)
7    Sec. 4. Office allowance. Beginning July 1, 2001 and
8through June 30, 2010, each member of the House of
9Representatives is authorized to approve the expenditure of not
10more than $61,000 per year and each member of the Senate is
11authorized to approve the expenditure of not more than $73,000
12per year to pay for "personal services", "contractual
13services", "commodities", "printing", "travel", "operation of
14automotive equipment", "telecommunications services", as
15defined in the State Finance Act, and the compensation of one
16or more legislative assistants authorized pursuant to this

 

 

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1Section, in connection with his or her legislative duties and
2not in connection with any political campaign. Beginning July
31, 2011, each member of the House of Representatives is
4authorized to approve the expenditure of not more than $62,460
5per year and each member of the Senate is authorized to approve
6the expenditure of not more than $74,700 per year to pay for
7"personal services", "contractual services", "commodities",
8"printing", "travel", "operation of automotive equipment",
9"telecommunications services", as defined in the State Finance
10Act, and the compensation of one or more legislative assistants
11authorized pursuant to this Section, in connection with his or
12her legislative duties and not in connection with any political
13campaign. On July 1, 2002 and on July 1 of each year thereafter
14through July 1, 2010, the amount authorized per year under this
15Section for each member of the Senate and each member of the
16House of Representatives shall be increased by a percentage
17increase equivalent to the lesser of (i) the increase in the
18designated cost of living index or (ii) 5%. The designated cost
19of living index is the index known as the "Employment Cost
20Index, Wages and Salaries, By Occupation and Industry Groups:
21State and Local Government Workers: Public Administration" as
22published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S.
23Department of Labor for the calendar year immediately preceding
24the year of the respective July 1st increase date. The increase
25shall be added to the then current amount, and the adjusted
26amount so determined shall be the annual amount beginning July

 

 

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11 of the increase year until July 1 of the next year. No
2increase under this provision shall be less than zero.
3Notwithstanding any provision of this Section to the contrary,
4beginning July 1, 2011, members of the General Assembly are
5prohibited from receiving and shall not receive any annual
6percentage increase in their office allowances based on a cost
7of living adjustment or a fixed amount.
8    A member may purchase office equipment if the member
9certifies to the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the
10House, as applicable, that the purchase price, whether paid in
11lump sum or installments, amounts to less than would be charged
12for renting or leasing the equipment over its anticipated
13useful life. All such equipment must be purchased through the
14Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House, as
15applicable, for proper identification and verification of
16purchase.
17    Each member of the General Assembly is authorized to employ
18one or more legislative assistants, who shall be solely under
19the direction and control of that member, for the purpose of
20assisting the member in the performance of his or her official
21duties. A legislative assistant may be employed pursuant to
22this Section as a full-time employee, part-time employee, or
23contractual employee, at the discretion of the member. If
24employed as a State employee, a legislative assistant shall
25receive employment benefits on the same terms and conditions
26that apply to other employees of the General Assembly. Each

 

 

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1member shall adopt and implement personnel policies for
2legislative assistants under his or her direction and control
3relating to work time requirements, documentation for
4reimbursement for travel on official State business,
5compensation, and the earning and accrual of State benefits for
6those legislative assistants who may be eligible to receive
7those benefits. The policies shall also require legislative
8assistants to periodically submit time sheets documenting, in
9quarter-hour increments, the time spent each day on official
10State business. The policies shall require the time sheets to
11be submitted on paper, electronically, or both and to be
12maintained in either paper or electronic format by the
13applicable fiscal office for a period of at least 2 years.
14Contractual employees may satisfy the time sheets requirement
15by complying with the terms of their contract, which shall
16provide for a means of compliance with this requirement. A
17member may satisfy the requirements of this paragraph by
18adopting and implementing the personnel policies promulgated
19by that member's legislative leader under the State Officials
20and Employees Ethics Act with respect to that member's
21legislative assistants.
22    As used in this Section the term "personal services" shall
23include contributions of the State under the Federal Insurance
24Contribution Act and under Article 14 of the Illinois Pension
25Code. As used in this Section the term "contractual services"
26shall not include improvements to real property unless those

 

 

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1improvements are the obligation of the lessee under the lease
2agreement. Beginning July 1, 1989, as used in the Section, the
3term "travel" shall be limited to travel in connection with a
4member's legislative duties and not in connection with any
5political campaign. Beginning on the effective date of this
6amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly, as used in this
7Section, the term "printing" includes, but is not limited to,
8newsletters, brochures, certificates, congratulatory mailings,
9greeting or welcome messages, anniversary or birthday cards,
10and congratulations for prominent achievement cards. As used in
11this Section, the term "printing" includes fees for
12non-substantive resolutions charged by the Clerk of the House
13of Representatives under subsection (c-5) of Section 1 of the
14Legislative Materials Act. No newsletter or brochure that is
15paid for, in whole or in part, with funds provided under this
16Section may be printed or mailed during a period beginning
17February 1 of the year of a general primary election and ending
18the day after the general primary election and during a period
19beginning September 1 of the year of a general election and
20ending the day after the general election, except that such a
21newsletter or brochure may be mailed during those times if it
22is mailed to a constituent in response to that constituent's
23inquiry concerning the needs of that constituent or questions
24raised by that constituent. Nothing in this Section shall be
25construed to authorize expenditures for lodging and meals while
26a member is in attendance at sessions of the General Assembly.

 

 

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1    Any utility bill for service provided to a member's
2district office for a period including portions of 2
3consecutive fiscal years may be paid from funds appropriated
4for such expenditure in either fiscal year.
5    If a vacancy occurs in the office of Senator or
6Representative in the General Assembly, any office equipment in
7the possession of the vacating member shall transfer to the
8member's successor; if the successor does not want such
9equipment, it shall be transferred to the Secretary of the
10Senate or Clerk of the House of Representatives, as the case
11may be, and if not wanted by other members of the General
12Assembly then to the Department of Central Management Services
13for treatment as surplus property under the State Property
14Control Act. Each member, on or before June 30th of each year,
15shall conduct an inventory of all equipment purchased pursuant
16to this Act. Such inventory shall be filed with the Secretary
17of the Senate or the Clerk of the House, as the case may be.
18Whenever a vacancy occurs, the Secretary of the Senate or the
19Clerk of the House, as the case may be, shall conduct an
20inventory of equipment purchased.
21    In the event that a member leaves office during his or her
22term, any unexpended or unobligated portion of the allowance
23granted under this Section shall lapse. The vacating member's
24successor shall be granted an allowance in an amount, rounded
25to the nearest dollar, computed by dividing the annual
26allowance by 365 and multiplying the quotient by the number of

 

 

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1days remaining in the fiscal year.
2    From any appropriation for the purposes of this Section for
3a fiscal year which overlaps 2 General Assemblies, no more than
41/2 of the annual allowance per member may be spent or
5encumbered by any member of either the outgoing or incoming
6General Assembly, except that any member of the incoming
7General Assembly who was a member of the outgoing General
8Assembly may encumber or spend any portion of his annual
9allowance within the fiscal year.
10    The appropriation for the annual allowances permitted by
11this Section shall be included in an appropriation to the
12President of the Senate and to the Speaker of the House of
13Representatives for their respective members. The President of
14the Senate and the Speaker of the House shall voucher for
15payment individual members' expenditures from their annual
16office allowances to the State Comptroller, subject to the
17authority of the Comptroller under Section 9 of the State
18Comptroller Act.
19    Nothing in this Section prohibits the expenditure of
20personal funds or the funds of a political committee controlled
21by an officeholder to defray the customary and reasonable
22expenses of an officeholder in connection with the performance
23of governmental and public service functions.
24(Source: P.A. 95-6, eff. 6-20-07; 96-555, eff. 8-18-09; 96-886,
25eff. 1-1-11.)
 

 

 

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1    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
2becoming law.".