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90_HB0543
5 ILCS 120/2 from Ch. 102, par. 42
Amends the Open Meetings Act. Provides that when a
public body has 5 or fewer members, any 2 members may meet to
discuss legislative, executive, or administrative
responsibilities without violating the provisions of the Act.
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1 AN ACT to amend the Open Meetings Act by changing Section
2 2.
3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
4 represented in the General Assembly:
5 Section 5. The Open Meetings Act is amended by changing
6 Section 2 as follows:
7 (5 ILCS 120/2) (from Ch. 102, par. 42)
8 Sec. 2. Open meetings.
9 (a) Openness required. All meetings of public bodies
10 shall be open to the public unless excepted in subsection (c)
11 and closed in accordance with Section 2a or unless exempted
12 in subsection (f).
13 (b) Construction of exceptions. The exceptions contained
14 in subsection (c) are in derogation of the requirement that
15 public bodies meet in the open, and therefore, the exceptions
16 are to be strictly construed, extending only to subjects
17 clearly within their scope. The exceptions authorize but do
18 not require the holding of a closed meeting to discuss a
19 subject included within an enumerated exception.
20 (c) Exceptions. A public body may hold closed meetings
21 to consider the following subjects:
22 (1) The appointment, employment, compensation,
23 discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific
24 employees of the public body, including hearing testimony
25 on a complaint lodged against an employee to determine
26 its validity.
27 (2) Collective negotiating matters between the
28 public body and its employees or their representatives,
29 or deliberations concerning salary schedules for one or
30 more classes of employees.
31 (3) The selection of a person to fill a public
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1 office, as defined in this Act, including a vacancy in a
2 public office, when the public body is given power to
3 appoint under law or ordinance, or the discipline,
4 performance or removal of the occupant of a public
5 office, when the public body is given power to remove the
6 occupant under law or ordinance.
7 (4) Evidence or testimony presented in open
8 hearing, or in closed hearing where specifically
9 authorized by law, to a quasi-adjudicative body, as
10 defined in this Act, provided that the body prepares and
11 makes available for public inspection a written decision
12 setting forth its determinative reasoning.
13 (5) The purchase or lease of real property for the
14 use of the public body, including meetings held for the
15 purpose of discussing whether a particular parcel should
16 be acquired.
17 (6) The setting of a price for sale or lease of
18 property owned by the public body.
19 (7) The sale or purchase of securities,
20 investments, or investment contracts.
21 (8) Emergency security procedures and the use of
22 personnel and equipment to respond to actual danger to
23 the safety of employees, students, staff or public
24 property, provided that a description of the actual
25 danger shall be made a part of the motion to close the
26 meeting.
27 (9) Student disciplinary cases.
28 (10) The placement of individual students in
29 special education programs and other matters relating to
30 individual students.
31 (11) Litigation, when an action against, affecting
32 or on behalf of the particular public body has been filed
33 and is pending before a court or administrative tribunal,
34 or when the public body finds that an action is probable
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1 or imminent, in which case the basis for the finding
2 shall be recorded and entered into the minutes of the
3 closed meeting.
4 (12) The establishment of reserves or settlement of
5 claims as provided in the Local Governmental and
6 Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act, if otherwise
7 the disposition of a claim or potential claim might be
8 prejudiced, or the review or discussion of claims, loss
9 or risk management information, records, data, advice or
10 communications from or with respect to any insurer of the
11 public body or any intergovernmental risk management
12 association or self insurance pool of which the public
13 body is a member.
14 (13) Conciliation of complaints of discrimination
15 in the sale or rental of housing, when closed meetings
16 are authorized by the law or ordinance prescribing fair
17 housing practices and creating a commission or
18 administrative agency for their enforcement.
19 (14) Informant sources, the hiring or assignment of
20 undercover personnel or equipment, or ongoing, prior or
21 future criminal investigations, when discussed by a
22 public body with criminal investigatory responsibilities.
23 (15) Professional ethics or performance when
24 considered by an advisory body appointed to advise a
25 licensing or regulatory agency on matters germane to the
26 advisory body's field of competence.
27 (16) Self evaluation, practices and procedures or
28 professional ethics, when meeting with a representative
29 of a statewide association of which the public body is a
30 member.
31 (17) The recruitment, credentialing, discipline or
32 formal peer review of physicians or other health care
33 professionals for a hospital, or other institution
34 providing medical care, that is operated by the public
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1 body.
2 (18) Deliberations for decisions of the Prisoner
3 Review Board.
4 (19) Review or discussion of applications received
5 under the Experimental Organ Transplantation Procedures
6 Act.
7 (20) The classification and discussion of matters
8 classified as confidential or continued confidential by
9 the State Employees Suggestion Award Board.
10 (21) Discussion of minutes of meetings lawfully
11 closed under this Act, whether for purposes of approval
12 by the body of the minutes or semi-annual review of the
13 minutes as mandated by Section 2.06.
14 (22) The business of the State Emergency Medical
15 Services Disciplinary Review Board.
16 (d) Definitions. For purposes of this Section:
17 "Employee" means a person employed by a public body whose
18 relationship with the public body constitutes an
19 employer-employee relationship under the usual common law
20 rules, and who is not an independent contractor.
21 "Public office" means a position created by or under the
22 Constitution or laws of this State, the occupant of which is
23 charged with the exercise of some portion of the sovereign
24 power of this State. The term "public office" shall include
25 members of the public body, but it shall not include
26 organizational positions filled by members thereof, whether
27 established by law or by a public body itself, that exist to
28 assist the body in the conduct of its business.
29 "Quasi-adjudicative body" means an administrative body
30 charged by law or ordinance with the responsibility to
31 conduct hearings, receive evidence or testimony and make
32 determinations based thereon, but does not include local
33 electoral boards when such bodies are considering petition
34 challenges.
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1 (e) Final action. No final action may be taken at a
2 closed meeting. Final action shall be preceded by a public
3 recital of the nature of the matter being considered and
4 other information that will inform the public of the business
5 being conducted.
6 (f) Exemption. When the public body has 5 or fewer
7 members, any 2 members may meet to discuss legislative,
8 executive, or administrative responsibilities without
9 violating the provisions of this Act.
10 (Source: P.A. 88-530; 88-621, eff. 1-1-95; 89-86, eff.
11 6-30-95; 89-177, eff. 7-19-95; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96.)