SB1223sam001 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Laura M. Murphy

Filed: 3/13/2019

10100SB1223sam001 LRB101 07927 AWJ 57311 a

AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 1223

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 1223 on page 3, line 20, after the period, by inserting "The Local Government Ethics Commission does not have jurisdiction over: (i) Regional Transit Boards, as that term is defined in Section 1-5 of the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act; (ii) local officials of Regional Transit Boards; or (iii) venders and others doing business with a Regional Transit Board; the Executive Ethics Commission and Executive Inspector General have jurisdiction over Regional Transit Boards and board members, employees, vendors, and others doing business with the Regional Transit Boards under Article 75 of the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act."; and

on page 6, by replacing line 21 with the following:

"unit of local government or local official. The Local Government Inspector General does not have jurisdiction over Regional Transit Boards, as that term is defined in Section 1-5 of the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act, or local officials of Regional Transit Boards; the Executive Inspector General has jurisdiction over Regional Transit Boards and board members, employees, vendors, and others doing business with the Regional Transit Boards under Article 75 of the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act.

If an investigation's focus is split between allegations of misconduct investigated by the Executive Inspector General and allegations investigated by the Local Government Inspector General, the Local Government Inspector General shall take reasonable steps, including continued consultation with the Executive Inspector General, to ensure that his or her investigation will not interfere with or disrupt any investigation by the Executive Inspector General or law enforcement authorities. In instances in which the Local Government Inspector General continues to investigate other allegations associated with allegations that have been referred to the Executive Inspector General under this subsection, the Local Government Inspector General shall report the results of its investigation to the Executive Inspector General."; and

on page 19, line 19, by replacing "body." with "body, including referring allegations of misconduct by State employees or other individuals or entities under the jurisdiction of the Executive Inspector General to the Executive Inspector General for investigation."; and

on page 20, below line 16, by inserting the following:

"Section 75. Confidentiality.

(a) The identity of an individual providing information or reporting possible or alleged misconduct to the Office of the Local Government Inspector General or the Local Government Ethics Commission shall be kept confidential and may not be disclosed without the consent of that individual, unless the individual consents to disclosure of his or her name or disclosure of the individual's identity is otherwise required by law. The confidentiality granted by this subsection does not preclude the disclosure of the identity of a person in any capacity other than as the source of an allegation.

(b) Except as provided under Section 55, commissioners, employees, and agents of the Local Government Ethics Commission, the Local Government Inspector General, and the Office of the Attorney General shall keep confidential and shall not disclose information exempted from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act or by this Act.

(c) In his or her discretion, the Local Government Inspector General may notify complainants and subjects of an investigation with an update on the status of the respective investigation, including when the investigation is opened and closed.

Section 80. Exemptions.

(a) Documents generated by the Offices of the Local Government Inspector General or the Local Government Ethics Commission under this Act are exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.

(b) Allegations and related documents submitted to the Local Government Inspector General and pleadings and related documents brought before the Local Government Ethics Commission are exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act if the Local Government Ethics Commission does not make a finding of a violation of this Act. If the Local Government Ethics Commission finds that a violation has occurred, the entire record of proceedings before the Commission, the decision and recommendation, and the response from the agency head or ultimate jurisdictional authority to the Local Government Ethics Commission are not exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, but information contained therein that is otherwise exempt from the Freedom of Information Act must be redacted before disclosure as provided in the Freedom of Information Act. A summary report released by the Local Government Ethics Commission under Section 55 is a public record, but information redacted by the Local Government Ethics Commission is not a part of the public record.

(c) Meetings of the Local Government Ethics Commission are exempt from the provisions of the Open Meetings Act.

(d) Unless otherwise provided in this Act, all investigatory files and reports of the Office of Local Government Inspector General, other than quarterly reports required under Section 70, are confidential, are exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, and shall not be divulged to any person or agency, except as necessary (i) to a law enforcement authority, (ii) to the ultimate jurisdictional authority,(iii) to the Local Government Ethics Commission, or (iv) to the Office of the Attorney General.".