Bill Text: IL HB2868 | 2025-2026 | 104th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) Article of the Illinois Pension Code. In a provision concerning eligibility for total and permanent disability benefits, provides that if the participating employee was a sheriff's law enforcement employee at the time disability was incurred, the participating employee shall be deemed to have engaged in gainful activity only if that participating employee is employed as a sheriff's law enforcement employee or in a substantially similar capacity. Provides that the amount of the monthly total and permanent disability benefit shall be 100% of the final rate of earnings on the date disability was incurred if the participating employee was a sheriff's law enforcement employee at the time disability was incurred. Provides that a person who was a sheriff's law enforcement employee at the time disability was incurred may receive earnings from a participating municipality or participating instrumentality if that person is not employed as a sheriff's law enforcement employee because of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or be of a long continued and indefinite duration. Provides that such a person must report to the Fund, in a form and manner prescribed by the Fund, the amount of earnings received for that employment, and the amount of the disability benefits to which that person is entitled shall be reduced by the amount of earnings received for that employment. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-02-06 - Referred to Rules Committee [HB2868 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2025-HB2868-Introduced.html

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104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 HB2868 Introduced , by Rep. Amy Elik SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
40 ILCS 5/7-150 from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-150
40 ILCS 5/7-152
30 ILCS 805/8.49 new
Amends the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) Article of the Illinois Pension Code. In a provision concerning eligibility for total and permanent disability benefits, provides that if the participating employee was a sheriff's law enforcement employee at the time disability was incurred, the participating employee shall be deemed to have engaged in gainful activity only if that participating employee is employed as a sheriff's law enforcement employee or in a substantially similar capacity. Provides that the amount of the monthly total and permanent disability benefit shall be 100% of the final rate of earnings on the date disability was incurred if the participating employee was a sheriff's law enforcement employee at the time disability was incurred. Provides that a person who was a sheriff's law enforcement employee at the time disability was incurred may receive earnings from a participating municipality or participating instrumentality if that person is not employed as a sheriff's law enforcement employee because of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or be of a long continued and indefinite duration. Provides that such a person must report to the Fund, in a form and manner prescribed by the Fund, the amount of earnings received for that employment, and the amount of the disability benefits to which that person is entitled shall be reduced by the amount of earnings received for that employment. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement. Effective immediately.
LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b
STATE MANDATES ACT MAY REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT MAY APPLY
A BILL FOR
HB2868 LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b
AN ACT concerning public employee benefits.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Pension Code is amended by
changing Sections 7-150 and 7-152 as follows:
(40 ILCS 5/7-150) (from Ch. 108 1/2, par. 7-150)
Sec. 7-150. Total and permanent disability benefits;
eligibility benefits - Eligibility. Total and permanent
disability benefits shall be payable to participating
employees as hereinafter provided, including those employees
receiving disability benefit on July 1, 1962.
(a) A participating employee shall be considered totally
and permanently disabled if:
1. He is unable to engage in any gainful activity
because of any medically determinable physical or mental
impairment which can be expected to result in death or be
of a long continued and indefinite duration, other than as
a result of self-inflicted injury or addiction to narcotic
drugs; if the participating employee was a sheriff's law
enforcement employee at the time disability was incurred,
the participating employee shall be deemed to have engaged
in gainful activity only if that participating employee is
employed as a sheriff's law enforcement employee or in a

HB2868 - 2 - LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b
substantially similar capacity;
2. The Board has received a written certification by
at least 1 licensed and practicing physician stating that
the employee meets the qualifications of subparagraph 1 of
this paragraph (a).
(b) A totally and permanently disabled employee is
entitled to a permanent disability benefit provided:
1. He has exhausted his temporary disability benefits.
2. He:
(i) has at least one year of service immediately
preceding the date the disability was incurred and has
made contributions to the fund for at least the number
of months of service normally required in his position
during a 12 month period, or has at least 5 years of
service credit, the last year of which immediately
preceded the date the disability was incurred; or
(ii) had qualified under clause (i) above, but had
an interruption in service of not more than 3 months in
the 12 months preceding the date the temporary
disability was incurred and was not paid a separation
benefit; or
(iii) had qualified under clause (i) above, but
had an interruption after 20 or more years of
creditable service, was not paid a separation benefit,
and returned to service prior to the date the
disability was incurred.

HB2868 - 3 - LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b
Item (iii) of this subdivision shall apply to all
employees whose disabilities were incurred on or after
July 1, 1985, and any such employee who becomes eligible
for a disability benefit under item (iii) shall be
entitled to receive a lump sum payment of any accumulated
disability benefits which may accrue from the date the
disability was incurred until the effective date of this
amendatory Act of 1987.
Periods of qualified leave granted in compliance with
the federal Family and Medical Leave Act shall be ignored
for purposes of determining the number of consecutive
months of employment under this subdivision (b)2.
3. He is receiving no earnings from a participating
municipality or instrumentality thereof or participating
instrumentality, except as allowed under subsection (f) or
(f-5) of Section 7-152.
4. He has not refused to submit to a reasonable
physical examination by a physician appointed by the
Board.
5. His disability is not the result of a mental or
physical condition which existed on the earliest date of
service from which he has uninterrupted service, including
prior service, at the date of his disability, provided
that this limitation shall not be applicable to a
participating employee who, without receiving a disability
benefit, receives 5 years of creditable service.

HB2868 - 4 - LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b
6. He is not separated from the service of his
employing participating municipality or instrumentality
thereof or participating instrumentality on the date his
temporary disability was incurred; for the purposes of
payment of total and permanent disability benefits, a
participating employee, whose employment relationship is
terminated by his employing municipality, shall be deemed
not to be separated from the service of his employing
municipality or participating instrumentality if he
continues disabled by the same condition and so long as he
is otherwise entitled to such disability benefit.
7. He has not refused to apply for a disability
benefit under the Federal Social Security Act at the
request of the Board.
8. He has not failed or refused to consent to and sign
an authorization allowing the Board to receive copies of
or to examine his medical and hospital records.
9. He has not failed or refused to provide complete
information regarding any other employment for
compensation he has received since becoming disabled.
(c) A participating employee shall remain eligible and may
make application for a total and permanent disability benefit
within 90 days after the termination of his temporary
disability benefits or within such longer period terminating
at the end of the period during which his employing
municipality is prevented from employing him by reason of any

HB2868 - 5 - LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b
statutory prohibition.
(Source: P.A. 101-151, eff. 7-26-19.)
(40 ILCS 5/7-152)
Sec. 7-152. Disability benefits; amount benefits - Amount.
The amount of the monthly temporary and total and permanent
disability benefits shall be 50% of the participating
employee's final rate of earnings on the date disability was
incurred (however, if the participant was a sheriff's law
enforcement employee on the date disability was incurred, then
the amount of the monthly total and permanent disability
benefits shall be 100% of the final rate of earnings on the
date disability was incurred), subject to the following
adjustments:
(a) If the participating employee has a reduced rate of
earnings at the time his employment ceases because of
disability, the rate of earnings shall be computed on the
basis of his last 12 month period of full-time employment.
(b) If the participating employee is eligible for a
disability benefit under the federal Social Security Act, the
amount of monthly disability benefits shall be reduced, but
not to less than $10 a month, by the amount he would be
eligible to receive as a disability benefit under the federal
Social Security Act, whether or not because of service as a
covered employee under this Article. The reduction shall be
effective as of the month the employee is eligible for Social

HB2868 - 6 - LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b
Security disability benefits. The Board may make such
reduction if it appears that the employee may be so eligible
pending determination of eligibility and make an appropriate
adjustment if necessary after such determination. If the
employee, because of his refusal to accept rehabilitation
services under the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 or the
federal Social Security Act, or because he is receiving
workers' compensation benefits, has his Social Security
benefits reduced or terminated, the disability benefit shall
be reduced as if the employee were receiving his full Social
Security disability benefit.
(c) If the employee (i) is over the age for a full Social
Security old-age insurance benefit, (ii) was not eligible for
a Social Security disability benefit immediately before
reaching that age, and (iii) is eligible for a full Social
Security old-age insurance benefit, then the amount of the
monthly disability benefit shall be reduced, but not to less
than $10 a month, by the amount of the old-age insurance
benefit to which the employee is entitled, whether or not the
employee applies for the Social Security old-age insurance
benefit. This reduction shall be made in the month after the
month in which the employee attains the age for a full Social
Security old-age insurance benefit. However, if the employee
was receiving a Social Security disability benefit before
reaching the age for a full Social Security old-age insurance
benefit, the disability benefits after that age shall be

HB2868 - 7 - LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b
determined under subsection (b) of this Section.
(d) The amount of disability benefits shall not be reduced
by reason of any increase, other than one resulting from a
correction in the employee's wage records, in the amount of
disability or old-age insurance benefits under the federal
Social Security Act which takes effect after the month of the
initial reduction under paragraph (b) or (c) of this Section.
(e) If the employee in any month receives compensation
from gainful employment which is more than 25% of the final
rate of earnings on which his disability benefits are based,
the temporary disability benefit payable for that month shall
be reduced by an amount equal to such excess.
(f) An employee who has been disabled for at least 30 days
may return to work for the employer on a part-time basis for a
trial work period of up to one year, during which the
disability shall be deemed to continue. Service credit shall
continue to accrue and the disability benefit shall continue
to be paid during the trial work period, but the benefit shall
be reduced by the amount of earnings received by the disabled
employee. Return to service on a full-time basis shall
terminate the trial work period. The reduction under this
subsection (f) shall be in lieu of the reduction, if any,
required under subsection (e).
(f-5) A person who was a sheriff's law enforcement
employee at the time disability was incurred may receive
earnings from a participating municipality or participating

HB2868 - 8 - LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b
instrumentality if that person is not employed as a sheriff's
law enforcement employee because of any medically determinable
physical or mental impairment that can be expected to result
in death or be of a long continued and indefinite duration.
However, that person must report to the Fund, in a form and
manner prescribed by the Fund, the amount of earnings received
for that employment, and the amount of the disability benefits
to which that person is entitled shall be reduced by the amount
of earnings received for that employment.
(g) Beginning January 1, 1988, every total and permanent
disability benefit shall be increased by 3% of the original
amount of the benefit, not compounded, on each January 1
following the later of (1) the date the total and permanent
disability benefit begins, or (2) the date the total and
permanent disability benefit would have begun if the employee
had been paid a temporary disability benefit for 30 months.
(Source: P.A. 92-424, eff. 8-17-01.)
Section 90. The State Mandates Act is amended by adding
Section 8.49 as follows:
(30 ILCS 805/8.49 new)
Sec. 8.49. Exempt mandate. Notwithstanding Sections 6 and
8 of this Act, no reimbursement by the State is required for
the implementation of any mandate created by this amendatory
Act of the 104th General Assembly.

HB2868 - 9 - LRB104 12044 RPS 22139 b