HB2930eng 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB2930 Engrossed LRB094 05321 JAM 35365 b

AN ACT concerning elections.

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

Section 5. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by changing Section 3.1-10-50 as follows:

(65 ILCS 5/3.1-10-50)

Sec. 3.1-10-50. Vacancies.

(a) A municipal officer may resign from office. A vacancy occurs in an office by reason of resignation, failure to elect or qualify (in which case the incumbent shall remain in office until the vacancy is filled), death, permanent physical or mental disability rendering the person incapable of performing the duties of his or her office, conviction of a disqualifying crime, abandonment of office, removal from office, or removal of residence from the municipality or, in the case of aldermen of a ward or trustees of a district, removal of residence from the ward or district, as the case may be. An admission of guilt of a criminal offense that would, upon conviction, disqualify the municipal officer from holding that office, in the form of a written agreement with State or federal prosecutors to plead guilty to a felony, bribery, perjury, or other infamous crime under State or federal law, shall constitute a resignation from that office, effective at the time the plea agreement is made. For purposes of this Section, a conviction for an offense that disqualifies the municipal officer from holding that office shall occur on the date of the return of a guilty verdict or, in the case of a trial by the court, the entry of a finding of guilt.

(b) If a vacancy occurs in an elective municipal office with a 4-year term and there remains an unexpired portion of the term of at least 28 months, and the vacancy occurs at least 130 days before the general municipal election next scheduled under the general election law, the vacancy shall be filled for the remainder of the term at that general municipal election. Whenever an election is held for this purpose, the municipal clerk shall certify the office to be filled and the candidates for the office to the proper election authorities as provided in the general election law. If the vacancy is in the office of mayor, the city council shall elect one of their members acting mayor; if the vacancy is in the office of president, the vacancy shall be filled by the appointment by the trustees of an acting president from the members of the board of trustees. In villages with a population of less than 5,000, if each of the members of the board of trustees either declines the appointment as acting president or is not approved for the appointment by a majority vote of the trustees presently holding office, then the board of trustees may appoint as acting president any other village resident who is qualified to hold municipal office. The acting mayor or acting president shall perform the duties and possess all the rights and powers of the mayor or president until a successor to fill the vacancy has been elected and has qualified. If the vacancy is in any other elective municipal office, then until the office is filled by election, the mayor or president shall appoint a qualified person to the office subject to the advice and consent of the city council or trustees.

(c) In a 2 year term, or if the vacancy occurs later than the time provided in subsection (b) in a 4 year term, a vacancy in the office of mayor shall be filled by the corporate authorities electing one of their members acting mayor; if the vacancy is in the office of president, the vacancy shall be filled by the appointment by the trustees of an acting president from the members of the board of trustees. In villages with a population of less than 5,000, if each of the members of the board of trustees either declines the appointment as acting president or is not approved for the appointment by a majority vote of the trustees presently holding office, then the board of trustees may appoint as acting president any other village resident who is qualified to hold municipal office. The acting mayor or acting president shall perform the duties and possess all the rights and powers of the mayor or president until a mayor or president is elected at the next general municipal election and has qualified. A vacancy in any elective office other than mayor or president shall be filled by appointment by the mayor or president, with the advice and consent of the corporate authorities.

(d) The election of an acting mayor or acting president in a municipality with a population under 500,000 does not create a vacancy in the original office of the person on the city council or as a trustee, as the case may be, unless the person resigns from the original office following election as acting mayor or acting president. If the person resigns from the original office following election as acting mayor or acting president, then the original office must be filled pursuant to the terms of this Section and the acting mayor or acting president shall exercise the powers of the mayor or president and shall vote and have veto power in the manner provided by law for a mayor or president. If the person does not resign from the original office following election as acting mayor or acting president, then the acting mayor or acting president shall exercise the powers of the mayor or president but shall be entitled to vote only in the manner provided for as the holder of the original office and shall not have the power to veto. If the person does not resign from the original office following election as acting mayor or acting president, and if that person's original term of office has not expired when a mayor or president is elected and has qualified for office, the acting mayor or acting president shall return to the original office for the remainder of the term thereof.

(e) (d) Municipal officers appointed or elected under this Section shall hold office until their successors are elected and have qualified.

(f) (e) An appointment to fill a vacancy in the office of alderman shall be made within 60 days after the vacancy occurs. The requirement that an appointment be made within 60 days is an exclusive power and function of the State and is a denial and limitation under Article VII, Section 6, subsection (h) of the Illinois Constitution of the power of a home rule municipality to require that an appointment be made within a different period after the vacancy occurs.

(Source: P.A. 90-429, eff. 8-15-97; 90-707, eff. 8-7-98; 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January 1, 2006.