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90_SB0971
65 ILCS 5/Art. 1, Div. 2.1 heading new
65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-1 new
65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-2 new
65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-3 new
65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-4 new
65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-5 new
65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-6 new
65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-7 new
65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-8 new
65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-9 new
Amends the Illinois Municipal Code. Provides that a
municipality may provide for a system of administrative
adjudication of violations of certain municipal ordinances.
Provides that administrative adjudication is not the
exclusive method to enforce municipal ordinances. Sets the
powers and qualifications of hearing officers. Provides for
notice and opportunity for a hearing at administrative
proceedings. Provides that the rules of evidence do not
apply in administrative hearings. Provides for judicial
review of administrative decisions. Allows a municipality to
enforce judgments of hearing officers. Provides that
existing systems of administrative adjudication shall not be
affected.
LRB9003017MWpc
LRB9003017MWpc
1 AN ACT to amend the Illinois Municipal Code by adding
2 Division 2.1 to Article 1.
3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
4 represented in the General Assembly:
5 Section 5. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by
6 adding Division 2.1 to Article 1 as follows:
7 (65 ILCS 5/Art. 1, Div. 2.1 heading new)
8 DIVISION 2.1. ADMINISTRATIVE ADJUDICATIONS
9 (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-1 new)
10 Sec. 1-2.1-1. Administrative adjudication of municipal
11 code violations. Any municipality may provide by ordinance
12 for a system of administrative adjudication of municipal code
13 violations to the extent permitted by the Illinois
14 Constitution. A "municipal code violation" means any
15 violation of a municipal ordinance, except for any offense
16 under the Illinois Vehicle Code or a similar offense that is
17 a traffic regulation governing the movement of vehicles and
18 except for any reportable offense under Section 6-204 of the
19 Illinois Vehicle Code.
20 (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-2 new)
21 Sec. 1-2.1-2. Administrative adjudication procedures not
22 exclusive. The adoption by a municipality of a system of
23 administrative adjudication does not preclude the
24 municipality from using other methods to enforce municipal
25 ordinances.
26 (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-3 new)
27 Sec. 1-2.1-3. Code hearing units; powers of hearing
28 officers.
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1 (a) An ordinance establishing a system of administrative
2 adjudication, pursuant to this Division, shall provide for a
3 code hearing unit within an existing agency or as a separate
4 agency in the municipal government. The ordinance shall
5 establish the jurisdiction of a code hearing unit that is
6 consistent with this Division. The "jurisdiction" of a code
7 hearing unit refers to the particular code violations that it
8 may adjudicate.
9 (b) Adjudicatory hearings shall be presided over by
10 hearing officers. The powers and duties of a hearing officer
11 shall include:
12 (1) hearing testimony and accepting evidence that
13 is relevant to the existence of the code violation;
14 (2) issuing subpoenas directing witnesses to appear
15 and give relevant testimony at the hearing, upon the
16 request of the parties or their representatives;
17 (3) preserving and authenticating the record of the
18 hearing and all exhibits and evidence introduced at the
19 hearing;
20 (4) issuing and signing a written finding,
21 decision, and order stating whether a code violation
22 exists; and
23 (5) imposing penalties consistent with applicable
24 code provisions and assessing costs upon finding a party
25 liable for the charged violation, except, however, that
26 in no event shall the hearing officer have authority to
27 impose a penalty of incarceration.
28 (c) Prior to conducting administrative adjudication
29 proceedings, administrative hearing officers shall have
30 successfully completed a formal training program that
31 includes the following:
32 (1) instruction on the rules of procedure of the
33 administrative hearings that they will conduct;
34 (2) orientation to each subject area of the code
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1 violations that they will adjudicate;
2 (3) observation of administrative hearings; and
3 (4) participation in hypothetical cases, including
4 ruling on evidence and issuing final orders.
5 In addition, all administrative hearing officers must
6 meet at least one of the following qualifications: (i) be
7 licensed to practice law in the State of Illinois; (ii) have
8 previously served as a hearing officer for a minimum of one
9 year for the State or any municipal corporation or political
10 subdivision of this State; or (iii) have at least 4 years of
11 professional experience in the subject area of the code
12 violations that they will adjudicate.
13 (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-4 new)
14 Sec. 1-2.1-4. Administrative hearing proceedings.
15 (a) Any ordinance establishing a system of
16 administrative adjudication pursuant to this Division shall
17 afford the parties due process of law, including notice and
18 opportunity for hearing.
19 (b) Parties shall be given notice of an adjudicatory
20 hearing that includes the type and nature of the code
21 violation to be adjudicated, the date and location of the
22 adjudicatory hearing, the legal authority and jurisdiction
23 under which the hearing is to be held, and the penalties for
24 failure to appear at the hearing.
25 (c) Parties shall be provided with an opportunity for a
26 hearing during which they may be represented by counsel,
27 present witnesses, and cross-examine opposing witnesses.
28 Parties may request the hearing officer to issue subpoenas to
29 direct the attendance and testimony of relevant witnesses and
30 the production of relevant documents.
31 (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-5 new)
32 Sec. 1-2.1-5. Rules of evidence shall not govern. The
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1 formal and technical rules of evidence do not apply in an
2 adjudicatory hearing permitted under this Division.
3 (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-6 new)
4 Sec. 1-2.1-6. Judicial review. The decision of a hearing
5 officer that a code violation does or does not exist shall
6 constitute a final determination for purposes of judicial
7 review under the Illinois Administrative Review Law.
8 (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-7 new)
9 Sec. 1-2.1-7. Enforcement of judgment.
10 (a) Any fine, other sanction, or costs imposed, or part
11 of any fine, other sanction, or costs imposed, remaining
12 unpaid after the exhaustion of or the failure to exhaust
13 judicial review procedures under the Illinois Administrative
14 Review Law area are a debt due and owing the municipality and
15 may be collected in accordance with applicable law.
16 (b) After expiration of the period in which judicial
17 review under the Illinois Administrative Review Law may be
18 sought for a final determination of a code violation, unless
19 stayed by a court of competent jurisdiction, the findings,
20 decision, and order of the hearing officer may be enforced in
21 the same manner as a judgment entered by a court of competent
22 jurisdiction.
23 (c) In any case in which a hearing officer finds that a
24 defendant has failed to comply with a judgment ordering a
25 defendant to correct a code violation or imposing any fine or
26 other sanction as a result of a code violation, any expenses
27 incurred by a municipality to enforce the judgment including,
28 but not limited to, attorney's fees, court costs, and costs
29 related to property demolition or foreclosure after they are
30 fixed by the hearing officer, shall be a debt due and owing
31 the municipality and may be collected in accordance with
32 applicable law.
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1 (d) A lien shall be imposed on the real or personal
2 estate, or both, of the defendant in the amount of any debt
3 due and owing the municipality under this Section. The lien
4 shall be enforceable in the same manner as a lien of
5 judgment.
6 (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-8 new)
7 Sec. 1-2.1-8. Impact on existing administrative
8 adjudication systems. The Division shall not affect the
9 validity of systems of administrative adjudication that were
10 authorized by State law, including home rule authority, and
11 in existence prior to the effective date of this amendatory
12 Act of 1996.
13 (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1-9 new)
14 Sec. 1-2.1-9. Impact on home rule authority. This
15 Division shall not preempt municipalities from adopting other
16 systems of administrative adjudication pursuant to their home
17 rule powers.