093_SB0699eng

 
SB699 Engrossed                      LRB093 03432 MKM 10942 b

 1        AN ACT concerning electronic transmissions.

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

 4        Section 5. The Open Meetings Act is amended  by  changing
 5    Sections  1.02,  2.02, 2.05, and 2.06 and by adding Section 7
 6    as follows:

 7        (5 ILCS 120/1.02) (from Ch. 102, par. 41.02)
 8        Sec. 1.02.  For the purposes of this Act:
 9        "Meeting" means any gathering of a majority of  a  quorum
10    of  the  members  of  a  public  body held for the purpose of
11    discussing public business, whether  present  physically,  by
12    teleconference,  video  conference,  or  by  other electronic
13    means that enables identifiable voices or other transmissions
14    to be received  from  any  location  and  enables  concurrent
15    actual  ability  to  communicate  with  the member who is not
16    physically present.
17        "Public  body"  includes  all   legislative,   executive,
18    administrative  or  advisory  bodies  of the State, counties,
19    townships,  cities,  villages,  incorporated  towns,   school
20    districts  and  all  other  municipal  corporations,  boards,
21    bureaus,  committees  or  commissions  of this State, and any
22    subsidiary bodies of any of the foregoing including  but  not
23    limited  to  committees and subcommittees which are supported
24    in whole or in part by  tax  revenue,  or  which  expend  tax
25    revenue,  except  the  General  Assembly  and  committees  or
26    commissions  thereof.  "Public  body" includes tourism boards
27    and convention or civic center  boards  located  in  counties
28    that are contiguous to the Mississippi River with populations
29    of  more  than  250,000 but less than 300,000.  "Public body"
30    includes the Health Facilities Planning Board.  "Public body"
31    does not include a child death review team  or  the  Illinois
 
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 1    Child  Death Review Teams Executive Council established under
 2    the Child Death Review Team  Act  or  an  ethics  commission,
 3    ethics  officer,  or ultimate jurisdictional authority acting
 4    under the State Gift Ban Act as provided  by  Section  80  of
 5    that Act.
 6    (Source: P.A. 91-782, eff. 6-9-00; 92-468, eff. 8-22-01.)

 7        (5 ILCS 120/2.02) (from Ch. 102, par. 42.02)
 8        Sec.  2.02.   Public notice of all meetings, whether open
 9    or closed to the public, shall be given as follows:
10        (a)  Every public body shall give public  notice  of  the
11    schedule  of  regular  meetings  at  the  beginning  of  each
12    calendar  or  fiscal  year and shall state the regular dates,
13    times, and places of such meetings.  For  meetings  at  which
14    one  or  more  members  are  present by teleconference, video
15    conference, or other electronic means, all locations at which
16    the public may participate in the meeting must  be  disclosed
17    in  the  agenda.  An agenda for each regular meeting shall be
18    posted at the principal office of the public body and at  the
19    location where the meeting is to be held at least 48 hours in
20    advance  of the holding of the meeting.  The requirement of a
21    regular meeting agenda shall not preclude  the  consideration
22    of  items  not  specifically  set forth in the agenda. Public
23    notice of any special meeting except a meeting  held  in  the
24    event of a bona fide emergency, or of any rescheduled regular
25    meeting,  or  of  any  reconvened  meeting, shall be given at
26    least 48 hours before such meeting, which notice  shall  also
27    include   the   agenda   for  the  special,  rescheduled,  or
28    reconvened meeting, but the validity of any action  taken  by
29    the  public  body which is germane to a subject on the agenda
30    shall not be affected by other errors  or  omissions  in  the
31    agenda.   The  requirement  of  public  notice  of reconvened
32    meetings does not apply to any case  where  the  meeting  was
33    open  to  the public and (1) it is to be reconvened within 24
 
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 1    hours, or (2) an announcement of the time and  place  of  the
 2    reconvened meeting was made at the original meeting and there
 3    is  no  change  in the agenda. Notice of an emergency meeting
 4    shall be given as soon as practicable, but in any event prior
 5    to the holding of such meeting, to any news medium which  has
 6    filed  an  annual  request for notice under subsection (b) of
 7    this Section.
 8        (b)  Public notice shall be given by posting  a  copy  of
 9    the  notice  at  the principal office of the body holding the
10    meeting or, if no such office  exists,  at  the  building  in
11    which the meeting is to be held. The body shall supply copies
12    of  the  notice of its regular meetings, and of the notice of
13    any special, emergency, rescheduled or reconvened meeting, to
14    any news medium that has filed an  annual  request  for  such
15    notice.  Any  such  news  medium shall also be given the same
16    notice of all special, emergency, rescheduled  or  reconvened
17    meetings  in  the  same  manner as is given to members of the
18    body provided such news medium has given the public  body  an
19    address   or   telephone   number   within   the  territorial
20    jurisdiction of the public body at which such notice  may  be
21    given.
22    (Source: P.A. 88-621, eff. 1-1-95; 89-86, eff. 6-30-95.)

23        (5 ILCS 120/2.05) (from Ch. 102, par. 42.05)
24        Sec. 2.05.  Recording meetings.
25        (a)  Subject  to  the  provisions of Section 8-701 of the
26    Code of Civil Procedure "An Act in relation to the rights  of
27    witnesses  at  proceedings  conducted by a court, commission,
28    administrative agency or other tribunal in this  State  which
29    are  televised  or  broadcast or at which motion pictures are
30    taken", approved July 14, 1953, as amended,  any  person  may
31    record  the  proceedings  at  meetings required to be open by
32    this Act by tape, film or other means.  The authority holding
33    the meeting shall prescribe reasonable rules  to  govern  the
 
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 1    right to make such recordings.
 2        If  a  witness at any meeting required to be open by this
 3    Act which is conducted by a commission, administrative agency
 4    or other tribunal, refuses to testify on the grounds that  he
 5    may  not  be  compelled  to  testify  if  any  portion of his
 6    testimony is to  be  broadcast  or  televised  or  if  motion
 7    pictures  are  to be taken of him while he is testifying, the
 8    authority holding the meeting shall prohibit  such  recording
 9    during the testimony of the witness.  Nothing in this Section
10    shall  be  construed to extend the right to refuse to testify
11    at any meeting not subject to the provisions of Section 8-701
12    of the Code of Civil Procedure "An Act  in  relation  to  the
13    rights  of  witnesses  at  proceedings  conducted by a court,
14    commission, administrative agency or other tribunal  in  this
15    State  which  are  televised  or broadcast or at which motion
16    pictures are taken", approved July 14, 1953, as amended.
17        (b)  In any contested case, as defined  by  the  Illinois
18    Administrative  Procedure  Act,  no  live  testimony  may  be
19    offered  except  upon  the  physical  presence  of the person
20    testifying unless all parties to the contested case waive the
21    requirement of physical presence.   Affidavits,  depositions,
22    or  other  recorded  evidence  are  otherwise  admissible  as
23    provided by law.
24    (Source: P.A. 82-378.)

25        (5 ILCS 120/2.06) (from Ch. 102, par. 42.06)
26        Sec.  2.06.   (a)  All  public  bodies shall keep written
27    minutes of all their meetings, whether open or  closed.  Such
28    minutes shall include, but need not be limited to:
29             (1)  the date, time and place of the meeting;
30             (2)  the  members  of  the  public  body recorded as
31        either present or absent and  whether  the  members  were
32        physically present or present by electronic means; and
33             (3)  a   summary   of   discussion  on  all  matters
 
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 1        proposed, deliberated, or decided, and a  record  of  any
 2        votes taken.
 3        (b)  The  minutes of meetings open to the public shall be
 4    available for public inspection within 7 days of the approval
 5    of such minutes by  the  public  body.  Minutes  of  meetings
 6    closed to the public shall be available only after the public
 7    body determines that it is no longer necessary to protect the
 8    public  interest  or  the privacy of an individual by keeping
 9    them confidential.
10        (c)  Each public body shall  periodically,  but  no  less
11    than  semi-annually,  meet  to  review  minutes of all closed
12    meetings.  At such meetings a determination  shall  be  made,
13    and  reported  in  an  open  session  that  (1)  the need for
14    confidentiality still exists as  to  all  or  part  of  those
15    minutes or (2) that the minutes or portions thereof no longer
16    require  confidential  treatment and are available for public
17    inspection.
18    (Source: P.A. 88-621, eff. 1-1-95.)

19        (5 ILCS 120/7 new)
20        Sec. 7.  Attendance by electronic means.
21        (a)  At any regular, special,  emergency,  or  reconvened
22    meeting  held  pursuant  to  the  public  notice  and  agenda
23    requirements  of  this Act, so long as a majority of a quorum
24    of the members of the public body are present  at  the  place
25    designated in the notice of the meeting, a member of a public
26    body may attend the meeting by electronic means if the member
27    is  prevented  from  physically  attending  because  of:  (i)
28    personal   illness  or  disability;  (ii)  absence  from  the
29    district  of  the  public  body  for  personal  reasons,  for
30    employment purposes, or for the business of the public  body;
31    or  (iii)  a  family  or  other  emergency.  Unless  a member
32    presents a document from his or her  physician  attesting  to
33    the  member's  inability  to  physically  attend a meeting or
 
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 1    meetings, a member may not attend by  electronic  means  more
 2    than  half  of  the  meetings  of  that public body held in a
 3    calendar year.
 4        (b)  If a member wishes to attend a meeting by electronic
 5    means, the member shall notify the public body  at  least  48
 6    hours  before  the  meeting  unless impracticable. The public
 7    body  shall  determine   if   the   notice   requirement   is
 8    impracticable on a case-by-case basis.
 9        (c)  A member shall be considered present for purposes of
10    determining  a  quorum if the member is present by electronic
11    means, except in the case of meetings to:  (i)  vote  on  the
12    issuance of bonds; or (ii) hold any hearing required by law.
13        (d)  If  one  or more members are present at a meeting by
14    electronic means, the  public  body  shall  issue  a  written
15    notice at the meeting stating the following: (i) the names of
16    the  members present by electronic means; (ii) the electronic
17    means that the member will use to  attend  the  meeting;  and
18    (iii)  the  location of the monitor or speakerphone receiving
19    communications from the member present by electronic means.
20        (e)  If one or more members of the public body  attend  a
21    meeting by electronic means, then all votes of the body shall
22    be by roll call.
23        (f)  If a member is present by electronic means, then the
24    member  must  identify  himself  or  herself  by  name and be
25    recognized by the presiding officer before communicating.
26        (g)  Any voice,  electronic,  or  other  transmission  by
27    electronic  means  made during the meeting by a member who is
28    attending a public meeting by electronic means shall be  made
29    available  to  the  public  concurrent  with the transmission
30    except for  those  meetings  subject  to  the  exceptions  in
31    subsection (c) of Section 2 of this Act.
32        (h)  A   public   body  may  promulgate  any  rules,  not
33    inconsistent with this Act, concerning attendance at meetings
34    by  electronic  means  and  may  prescribe   more   stringent
 
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 1    requirements,  which  shall  be binding upon the public body,
 2    that would give further notice to the public  and  facilitate
 3    public access to meetings.