New Law Paves Way for IDOT to Use Asphalt Made From Recycled Shingles, Saves More Than $8 Million Annually
PEORIA - August 12, 2011. Governor Pat Quinn today signed legislation that continues his commitment to making state government greener and more efficient. The new law allows the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) to begin using asphalt made from recycled roofing shingles. It also allows businesses to increase the amount of shingles used in asphalt production and requires IDOT to maximize the use of recycled materials in construction projects, saving the state more than $8 million annually.
"In the midst of one of the busiest construction seasons in state history, we must continue to embrace green practices in building our roads," Governor Quinn said. "This law will keep more shingles out of landfills, benefit the environment and save the state millions of dollars by expanding our use of recycled materials."
House Bill 1326, sponsored by Rep. Daniel V. Beiser (D-Alton) and Sen. Dave Koehler (D-Peoria), allows IDOT to use asphalt made with materials from recycling facilities that process shingles, following to regulations established by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. The law also directs IDOT to use recycled materials in its projects as much as possible, saving more than an estimated $8 million annually. The agency must report the results of those efforts to the Illinois House and Senate Transportation Committees each year.
"Under Governor Quinn's leadership, the expanded use of recycled asphalt in roadway pavements is just the latest green initiative the Illinois Department of Transportation has undertaken," said Acting Illinois Transportation Secretary Ann L. Schneider. "Although motorists will not notice the difference, this new law is good for the environment and ultimately will save money."
The new law also allows businesses that specialize in waste collection from construction and demolition sites to double the amount of shingles they can provide to recycling facilities for use later in the production of asphalt.
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Sets Performance Standards for College and University Funding to Improve Accountability
MOLINE - August 12, 2011. Governor Pat Quinn today furthered his goal of making education accessible and affordable for all Illinois students by signing legislation to reform how Illinois funds colleges and universities. House Bill 1503 will create performance standards for higher education institutions to increase accountability and improve student outcomes.
"When it comes to the education and graduation of our students in college, we must demand excellence," Governor Quinn said. "This new law raises the bar for our universities to ensure we are meeting the needs of our students so they have a better opportunity to graduate and find meaningful employment."
Sponsored by Sen. Edward Maloney (D-Chicago) and Rep. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet), House Bill 1503 requires Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) budget recommendations to be based on performance metrics designed to promote and measure student success. The new law creates a commission dedicated to developing a system to allocate state funds and resources to public institutions of higher education based on performance.
"As a former teacher, I know enrolling is just one measure of an institution," Lt. Governor Sheila Simon said. "Performance funding will be an incentive to not just get students in the door, but to improve the odds that students will succeed."
The commission will develop a performance system that focuses on course completion, maintaining the quality of current degree offerings and rewarding the success of institutions that advance the success of students who are at-risk academically or financially, including: first generation college students, students from low-income households and traditionally underrepresented minorities.
"As chairman of the Senate Higher Education Committee, I think this is the most important piece of legislation we moved this session," Sen. Maloney said. "Establishing metrics to start connecting state funding with performance will add accountability to our higher education institutions' practices. This will ultimately result in better opportunities for students."
The commission will include representatives from the Governor's office, General Assembly, public institutions of higher education, state agencies, business and industry, and faculty and staff organizations.
The new law takes effect Jan. 1.
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CHICAGO - August 12, 2011. Governor Pat Quinn today took action on the following bills:
Bill No.: HB 159
An Act Concerning: Regulation
Provides that all funds received by currency exchanges for remittance to utility and other companies be deposited into an escrow account by the next business day, and that the escrow account may not be used for any other use and increases various licensing fees.
Action: Signed
Effective Date: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 268
An Act Concerning: State Government
Creates the Local Government Consolidation Commission to report on the consolidation of local governments, and repeals the Local Government Consolidation Commission Act.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 390
An Act Concerning: State Government
Would de-list Pyramid State Park and authorize the Department of Natural Resources to permit Knight Hawk Coal Company to use part of the land to support their adjacent surface mining operation.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 1277
An Act Concerning: Government
Allows further exceptions to the Open Meetings Act to include meetings involving internal or external auditors, or meetings in which the subject involves audits.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 1471
An Act Concerning: Public Employee Benefits
Amends the IMRF Article of the Illinois Pension Code to change the way the annuity reserve is calculated if a retiring employee has accumulated service in more than one participating municipality or instrumentality. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 1521
An Act Concerning: Regulation
Requires the Office of the State Fire Marshal to be responsible for inspecting state-licensed facilities, unless local authorities are enforcing higher standards.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 1700
An Act Concerning: Local Government
Allows for annexed land negotiations between the municipal fire department and the fire protection district to decide the department with jurisdiction over the land.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 1712
An Act Concerning: Civil Law
Amends the Power of Attorney Act, expanding the definition of "excluded power of attorney" to include powers of attorney given primarily for various business, commercial and governmental purposes. Provides that designated portions of the Act do not apply to an excluded power of attorney. Additionally, provides that an excluded power of attorney is not revoked by a subsequent power of attorney; it may only be revoked by the mechanism provided in the excluded power of attorney itself, or by a written instrument that makes specific reference to the excluded power of attorney being revoked.
Action: Amendatorily Vetoed
Bill No.: HB 1748
An Act Concerning: Criminal Law
Requires distribution of HIV/AIDS educational materials, as well as the opportunity to opt out of HIV testing to inmates upon arrival and prior to release.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 1831
An Act Concerning: Education
Eliminates the bilingual program within the educational services block grant.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 1865
An Act Concerning: Regulation
Allows Illinois Power Agency to develop procurement plans for small utilities if they request it.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 1872
An Act Concerning: Public Employee Benefits
Allows a member of the Policemen's Annuity and Benefit Fund to transfer credit to the Police Pension Fund.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 1948
An Act Concerning: State Government
Requires the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority to post on its website the number of surveillance cameras each agency owns or has access to.
Action: Amendatorily Vetoed
Bill No.: HB 1949
An Act Concerning: Local Government
Removes the Illinois Board of Higher Education chair as a member of the Law Enforcement Training Board, and replaces them with the Clerk of the Cook County Circuit Court.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 1956
An Act Concerning: Public Employee Benefits
Makes technical changes to four sections of the IMRF Article of the Pension Code.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 1960
An Act Concerning: Civil Law
Provides that, in certain instances, motions to quash must be filed within 30 days; a motion to quash not filed within the applicable 30-day time limit is barred.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 1966
An Act Concerning: Transportation
Creates the Illinois and Midwest High-Speed Rail Commission, which is required to prepare and issue a report and follow-up report recommending the best governmental structure for a public-private partnership to design, build, operate, maintain and finance a high-speed rail system for the state. Repeals the Act on Jan. 1, 2015.
Action: Vetoed
Bill No.: HB 2270
An Act Concerning: Transportation
Allows the Toll Highway Authority to exercise any powers it has under the Toll Highway Act to construct new railroad tracks.
Action: Amendatorily Vetoed
Bill No.: HB 2550
An Act Concerning: Local Government
Provides that a township board may appoint township enforcement officers, and may remove officers with or without cause. Also gives township enforcement officers the authority to enforce county ordinances in areas of the county located within their township if intergovernmental agreements are in existence.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 2556
An Act Concerning: Local Government
Allows municipalities to collect a reimbursement fee from the county for all prosecutions which result in a finding of guilt, not simply for cases tried before a judge.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 2777
An Act Concerning: Safety
Allows dry-cleaning businesses to make license payments by credit card or business check, and decreases the civil penalties that must be paid for failing to submit the required license fees in a timely manner.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 2853
An Act Concerning: Revising a law by combining multiple enactments and making technical corrections.
Creates the First 2011 General Revisory Act.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 2917
An Act Concerning: Controlled Substances
Rewrites the Illinois Controlled Substances Act to improve the safety of patients, simplify the law for practitioners and dispensers, and allow for collaborative interface with other state industries.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 2991
An Act Concerning: Revenue
Requires a business that uses vending machines to notify the Department of Revenue (DOR) of the number of machines if DOR requests that they add machines.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 3102
An Act Concerning: Local Government
Provides that notices for annexation, special uses, variations or specified zoning hearings do not require a metes and bounds legal description of the territory as long as the notice includes street address(es) and property index number(s).
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3152
An Act Concerning: Local Government
Provides that authorization to sell township and township road district personal property is obtained by a vote of the township board or request of the township highway commissioner.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3182
An Act Concerning: State Government
Requires residential and small commercial electric utilities to submit customer account numbers, in addition to names and addresses, to local authorities upon request as a part of soliciting bids and awarding purchasing agreements for aggregation of retail electric loads.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3223
An Act Concerning: Education
Makes changes to the School Code regarding instructional time and school term calendar for remote educational programs.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3281
An Act Concerning: Education
Allows school boards to expel or suspend pupils for gross misconduct perpetrated by electronic means.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 3289
An Act Concerning: Internet
Requires Internet access providers to offer parental controls so that subscribers can monitor or restrict their children's web activity.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3342
An Act Concerning: Transportation
The ITHA may not sell or otherwise provide to third parties personally identifiable information obtained through its electronic toll collection system.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3358
An Act Concerning: Insurance
Reconciles the State Employees Group Insurance Act with the changes in the Illinois Insurance Code regarding care for persons who have been abused.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 3376
An Act Concerning: Public Employee Benefits
Provides that the monthly annuity of a person who first becomes a member under the Article after the effective date of this bill, shall be increased on the Jan. 1 occurring either on or after the attainment of age 60 or the first anniversary of the annuity start date, whichever is later.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3386
An Act Concerning: Government
Changes the definition of "disaster" in the Disaster Service Volunteer Leave Act and the Local Government Disaster Service Volunteer Act to include any disaster declared by proclamation of the Governor under a specific provision of the IEMA Act.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3405
An Act Concerning: Insurance
Clarifies the definition used to determine when a person is eligible to receive insurance coverage under the Medicare plan offered by the Illinois Comprehensive Health Insurance Plan (CHIP).
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3431
An Act Concerning: Criminal Law
Eliminates delivery as an element of possession of a stolen firearm and as an element of aggravated possession of a stolen firearm.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 3449
An Act Concerning: State Government
Requires state payments for an employee's payroll, reimbursement or vendor payment be made through direct deposit. Exempts legislative and judicial branches of government.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3458
An Act Concerning: Local Government
Authorizes parks to enter into design-build contracts, and provides that park districts must use a two-phase procedure to select the successful design-build entity for projects with a budgeted construction cost over $12 million.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3478
An Act Concerning: Civil Law
Allows a lien to be placed on specific items of personal property, including interest earned on that property, and makes other changes concerning charging orders and clarifies when a judgment is first considered an original judgment.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Jan. 1
Bill No.: HB 3539
An Act Concerning: Education
Amends the state aid formula provisions of the School Code by eliminating the General State Aid Hold Harmless funding.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: HB 3550
An Act Concerning: Local Government
Provides that review sessions held after an examination has been given for the purpose of gathering feedback from candidates shall be at no cost to the candidates.
Action: Signed
Date Effective: Immediately
Bill No.: SB 43
An Act Concerning: Revenue
Requires the DOR to establish an online database of tax rates, including use, income, property, and excise taxes by locality.
Action: Signed
Effective Date: Jan. 1
Bill No.: SB 86
An Act Concerning: State Government
Revises the Abuse of Adults with Disabilities Act to include sexual exploitation to the definition of sexual abuse, add a definition for mental abuse, and broaden the physical abuse definition to include culpability when someone directs another person to abuse a person with disabilities.
Action: Signed
Effective Date: Immediately
Bill No.: SB 2004
An Act Concerning: Criminal Law
Amends the Criminal Code of 1961 to provide assault/battery of a person known by the offender to be a person authorized to serve and deliver court documents is enhanced to aggravated assault/battery.
Action: Signed
Effective Date: Jan. 1
Bill No.: SB 2096
An Act Concerning: Education
Repeals the Illinois Accessibility Taskforce, and allows an exemption for school districts with press boxes that meet certain requirements from the Illinois Accessibility Code.
Action: Signed
Effective Date: Jan. 1
Bill No.: SB 2123
An Act Concerning: State Government
Requires the Illinois Workforce Investment Board to annually submit information concerning the board's meetings, budgets for local workforce investment areas, and contracts for all workforce development training and service providers to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.
Action: Signed
Effective Date: Jan. 1
Bill No.: SB 2134
An Act Concerning: Education
Allows a regional superintendent of schools to administer a joint operational program, per request of two or more school districts, present the district with possible services that schools may share and submit an annual report to the State Board of Education, regarding fiscal efficiency.
Action: Signed
Effective Date: Jan. 1
Bill No.: SB 2255
An Act Concerning: Regulation
Provides that a collaborating physician or podiatrist may delegate authority to an advanced practice nurse to prescribe any Schedule II controlled substances if all conditions are met. Provides that an advanced practice nurse who writes a prescription for a controlled substance without the valid license may be fined by the Department not more than $50 per prescription.
Action: Signed
Effective Date: Immediately
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Commission Will Explore Inequalities Across a Wide Variety of Areas
CHICAGO - August 13, 2011. Governor Pat Quinn today signed House Bill 1547, creating the Commission to End the Disparities Facing the African-American Community. The commission will research the disparities facing African-Americans in the areas of healthcare, health services, employment, education, criminal justice, housing, and other social and economic issues. Its findings will be reported to the General Assembly.
"We know that disparities exist within the African-American community, preventing some from achieving their full potential," Governor Quinn said. "In Illinois, we want everybody in, and nobody left out. We won't shy away from examining the root causes of inequality, and working to correct them."
The commission will be comprised of a bipartisan group of legislators from both houses of the General Assembly, the directors of the Departments of Human Services, Healthcare and Family Services, Children and Family Services, Public Health, Aging, Labor, Employment Security, Commerce and Economic Opportunity, State Board of Education, Board of Higher Education, Corrections, Juvenile Justice, or their designees.
It will also include the Executive Director of the Illinois African-American Family Commission, and up to 10 other individuals representing African-American communities around the state with backgrounds in the research areas. The president of the Illinois Senate and speaker of the Illinois House will name co-chairs for this Commission, and all members will serve without compensation.
The Commission must hold one or more public hearings, and report findings with recommendations to the General Assembly by Dec. 31, 2013. The Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Chicago will provide staff and administrative support services.
House Bill 1547, sponsored by Rep. Monique Davis (D-Chicago) and Sen. Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago), goes into effect immediately.
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Law Protects Illinois Families' Right to Grieve With Reverence and Dignity
SPRINGFIELD - August 14, 2011. Governor Pat Quinn today signed legislation to protect the funerals of those who have given their lives for our country. The new law expands Illinois' Let Them Rest in Peace law to prohibit protests within 300 feet of a funeral site and ensure that no protest can take place within 30 minutes before and after a funeral or memorial service.
"Every family has a fundamental right to conduct a funeral with reverence and dignity," said Governor Quinn. "This law ensures that the families of those who have given their lives for our country can grieve without harassment. It is our duty to honor their sacrifice by ensuring they are remembered with the respect and solemnity."
House Bill 180, sponsored by Sen. A.J. Wilhelmi (D-Joliet) and Rep. Kay Hatcher (R-Yorkville), strengthens an existing law spearheaded by then-Lt. Governor Quinn in 2006 that prohibits protests within 30 minutes of a service and within 200 feet of a funeral site. The Governor signed the new law as part of Veterans' Day at the Illinois State Fair and was joined by Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs (IDVA) Acting Director Erica Borggren, Assistant Adjutant General of the Illinois National Guard Major General Dennis L. Celletti.
Throughout his career, Governor Quinn has served as a strong advocate for Illinois' Veterans and servicemembers. As state treasurer, he launched "Operation Home Front" during the Gulf War to inform National Guard members and reservists about their rights under the Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act. As Lt. Governor, he championed the 2003 creation of the Illinois Military Family Relief Fund, which provides financial assistance to the families of Illinois National Guard members and reservists called to active duty.
As Governor, he has signed legislation to extend and increase tax credits for businesses that hire Veterans. Recently he signed legislation to ensure Veteran-owned businesses are able to compete for state contracts. The Governor has also led passage of and signed legislation to help the children of military families to easily transfer school credit following relocation. Children and grandparents of servicemembers are also now eligible for Family Military Leave.
Governor Quinn also created the Task Force on Veterans' Jobs to help Veterans apply their military training to state professional licensure requirements. Colleges are now required to post all benefits available to Illinois Veterans and assign a staff member to serve as the point of contact for student-Veterans who need information and assistance. The Governor also laid the framework for construction of a new Veterans' home in Chicago and established an Assistant Director for Women Veterans' Affairs at IDVA, to create a new focus on the needs of Illinois women who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces.
For more information about these and other programs for our Veterans, visit OperationHomefront.org or call the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs at 217-782-6641 or 312-814-2460.
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