House Sponsors: FEIGENHOLTZ, BURKE, BUGIELSKI AND LANG. Short description: EMERGENCY HEALTH POWERS ACT Synopsis of Bill as introduced: Creates the Illinois Emergency Health Powers Act. Allows the Governor, by executive order, to declare a public health emergency if specified conditions are met. Gives the Governor broad emergency powers, including financial powers. Designates the Department of Public Health as the public health authority and the Department of State Police as the public safety authority. Also designates local government agencies as public health and public safety agencies. Allows the Departments and local agencies to specifically authorize others to act. Provides for termination of a declaration of a public health emergency by the Governor or the General Assembly and provides for automatic termination after 30 days unless renewed. Provides for detecting, reporting, and tracking public health emergencies, for activation of disaster response and recovery agencies, and for dissemination of information. Authorizes special powers for the protection of persons (including medical exams and tests, isolation and quarantine, and access to protected health information) and for the management of property (including quick-take powers of eminent domain). Authorizes special powers for licensing and appointing health personnel. Provides for certain penalties. Provides for immunity from liability. Provides that the Act controls over conflicting laws and rules. Preempts home rule powers. Exempts from the reimbursement requirements of the State Mandates Act. Amends the Code of Civil Procedure to authorize quick-take powers of eminent domain. Effective immediately. FISCAL NOTE (Illinois Emergency Management Agency) HB 3809 would allow for expenditures for eligible costs up to $50,000,000 for any fiscal year in which a public health emergency is declared and would provide for prior year expen- ditures to pay for costs incurred in a previous year. Prior year expenses must apply toward the $50,000,000 expense limit for the fiscal year in which they were authorized. FISCAL NOTE (Illinois State Police) If HB 3809 were to become law, there would be no fiscal impact to the Illinois State Police. FISCAL NOTE (Illinois Department of Public Health) The fiscal impact of House Bill 3809 on DPH is indeterminable at this time and will largely depend on if the Governor is ever forced to declare a "public health emergency" and the nature and severity of the emergency. STATE MANDATES NOTE (Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs) In the opinion of DCCA, HB 3809 creates a service mandate for which reimbursement of 50%-100% of the increased costs to units of local government would normally be required under the State Mandates Act. It also creates a local government organization and structure mandate for which reimbursement is not required. HB 3809, however, amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation of the bill's provisions without reimbursement. Last action on Bill: SESSION SINE DIE Last action date: JAN-07-2003 Location: House Amendments to Bill: AMENDMENTS ADOPTED: HOUSE - 0 SENATE - 0 END OF INQUIRY Full Text Bill Status