Bill Text: IL HB2964 | 2013-2014 | 98th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act. Makes the gift ban apply to additional classes of persons. Places caps on gifts that may be accepted as exempt under the educational materials and missions exemption and the travel expenses for State business exemption. Deletes exemptions that authorize the acceptance of gifts provided by an individual on the basis of personal friendship; gifts made through bequests, inheritances, and other transfers at death; and gifts of food. Exempts from the gift ban the cost of food or beverages consumed at certain receptions, meals, and meetings. Establishes a procedure for the reporting of all gifts that are accepted as exempt from the gift ban. Authorizes the Secretary of State to institute a system for the reporting of accepted gifts. Increases penalties for violations of the gift ban.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2014-12-03 - Session Sine Die [HB2964 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2013-HB2964-Introduced.html

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98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2013 and 2014 HB2964 Introduced , by Rep. Scott Drury SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
5 ILCS 430/10-10
5 ILCS 430/10-15
5 ILCS 430/10-20 new
5 ILCS 430/50-5
Amends the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act. Makes the gift ban apply to additional classes of persons. Places caps on gifts that may be accepted as exempt under the educational materials and missions exemption and the travel expenses for State business exemption. Deletes exemptions that authorize the acceptance of gifts provided by an individual on the basis of personal friendship; gifts made through bequests, inheritances, and other transfers at death; and gifts of food. Exempts from the gift ban the cost of food or beverages consumed at certain receptions, meals, and meetings. Establishes a procedure for the reporting of all gifts that are accepted as exempt from the gift ban. Authorizes the Secretary of State to institute a system for the reporting of accepted gifts. Increases penalties for violations of the gift ban.
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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning ethics.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The State Officials and Employees Ethics Act is
amended by changing Sections 10-10, 10-15, and 50-5 and by
adding Section 10-20 as follows:
(5 ILCS 430/10-10)
Sec. 10-10. Gift ban. Except as otherwise provided in this
Article, no officer, member, or State employee shall
intentionally solicit or accept any gift from any prohibited
source or in violation of any federal or State statute, rule,
or regulation. This ban applies to and includes any relative of
the officer, member, or State employee, including those people
related to the individual as father, mother, son, daughter,
brother, sister, uncle, aunt, great aunt, great uncle, first
cousin, nephew, niece, husband, wife, civil union partner,
grandfather, grandmother, grandson, granddaughter,
father-in-law, mother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather,
stepmother, stepson, stepdaughter, stepbrother, stepsister,
half brother, or half sister, as well as any individual related
to the individual's spouse in any of the manners described
above the spouse of and immediate family living with the
officer, member, or State employee. No prohibited source shall

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intentionally offer or make a gift that violates this Section.
(Source: P.A. 93-617, eff. 12-9-03.)
(5 ILCS 430/10-15)
Sec. 10-15. Gift ban; exceptions. The restriction in
Section 10-10 does not apply to the following gifts provided to
an officer, member, or State employee:
(1) Opportunities, benefits, and services that are
available on the same conditions as for the general public.
(2) Anything for which the officer, member, or State
employee pays the market value.
(3) Any (i) contribution that is lawfully made under
the Election Code or under this Act or (ii) activities
associated with a fundraising event in support of a
political organization or candidate.
(4) Educational materials and missions, provided that
the maximum daily amount that may be accepted by an
officer, member, or State employee (exclusive of air, rail,
or boat fare) shall not exceed $111 per day. With respect
to air, rail, or boat fare, an officer, member, or State
employee may only accept coach class tickets or their
equivalent and shall only travel on carriers available to
the general public. This exception may be further defined
by rules adopted by the appropriate ethics commission or by
the Auditor General for the Auditor General and employees
of the Office of the Auditor General.

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(5) Travel expenses for a meeting to discuss State
business, provided that the maximum daily amount that may
be accepted by an officer, member, or State employee
(exclusive of air, rail, or boat fare) shall not exceed
$111 per day. With respect to air, rail or boat fare, an
officer, member, or State employee may only accept coach
class tickets or their equivalent and shall only travel on
carriers available to the general public. This exception
may be further defined by rules adopted by the appropriate
ethics commission or by the Auditor General for the Auditor
General and employees of the Office of the Auditor General.
(6) A gift from a relative, meaning those people
related to the individual as father, mother, son, daughter,
brother, sister, uncle, aunt, great aunt, great uncle,
first cousin, nephew, niece, husband, wife, civil union
partner, grandfather, grandmother, grandson,
granddaughter, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law,
daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law,
stepfather, stepmother, stepson, stepdaughter,
stepbrother, stepsister, half brother, half sister, and
any individual related to the individual's spouse in any of
the manners described above including the father, mother,
grandfather, or grandmother of the individual's spouse and
the individual's fiance or fiancee.
(7) (Blank). Anything provided by an individual on the
basis of a personal friendship unless the member, officer,

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or employee has reason to believe that, under the
circumstances, the gift was provided because of the
official position or employment of the member, officer, or
employee and not because of the personal friendship.
In determining whether a gift is provided on the basis
of personal friendship, the member, officer, or employee
shall consider the circumstances under which the gift was
offered, such as:
(i) the history of the relationship between the
individual giving the gift and the recipient of the
gift, including any previous exchange of gifts between
those individuals;
(ii) whether to the actual knowledge of the member,
officer, or employee the individual who gave the gift
personally paid for the gift or sought a tax deduction
or business reimbursement for the gift; and
(iii) whether to the actual knowledge of the
member, officer, or employee the individual who gave
the gift also at the same time gave the same or similar
gifts to other members, officers, or employees.
(8) (Blank). Food or refreshments not exceeding $75 per
person in value on a single calendar day; provided that the
food or refreshments are (i) consumed on the premises from
which they were purchased or prepared or (ii) catered. For
the purposes of this Section, "catered" means food or
refreshments that are purchased ready to eat and delivered

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by any means.
(9) Food, refreshments, lodging, transportation, and
other benefits resulting from the outside business or
employment activities (or outside activities that are not
connected to the duties of the officer, member, or employee
as an office holder or employee) of the officer, member, or
employee, or the spouse of the officer, member, or
employee, if the benefits have not been offered or enhanced
because of the official position or employment of the
officer, member, or employee, and are customarily provided
to others in similar circumstances.
(10) Intra-governmental and inter-governmental gifts.
For the purpose of this Act, "intra-governmental gift"
means any gift given to a member, officer, or employee of a
State agency from another member, officer, or employee of
the same State agency; and "inter-governmental gift" means
any gift given to a member, officer, or employee of a State
agency, by a member, officer, or employee of another State
agency, of a federal agency, or of any governmental entity.
(11) (Blank). Bequests, inheritances, and other
transfers at death.
(12) Any item or items from any one prohibited source
during any calendar year having a cumulative total value of
less than $100.
(13) Admission to and the cost of food or beverages
consumed at a reception, meal or meeting by an organization

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before whom the recipient appears to speak or answer
questions as part of a scheduled program and to which all
members of the General Assembly were invited.
Each of the exceptions listed in this Section is mutually
exclusive and independent of one another.
(Source: P.A. 93-617, eff. 12-9-03.)
(5 ILCS 430/10-20 new)
Sec. 10-20. Disclosure of accepted gifts.
(a) Any officer, member, or State employee who receives any
item from a prohibited source pursuant to an exception set
forth in Section 10-15 shall, within 15 days after receipt,
file with the Secretary of State a report disclosing the
receipt of the gift. The report shall be verified under oath
pursuant to Section 1-109 of the Code of Civil Procedure
attesting to the accuracy of the report. The report shall be a
public record and shall: (i) list the name of the officer,
member, or State employee who accepted the gift; (ii) describe
in detail each individual gift received; (iii) include the date
on which the gift was received; (iv) include the amount of the
gift or, if the exact amount is not known, the fair market
value of each gift; (v) include the name, address, and employer
of the prohibited source who provided the gift; (vi) describe
the subject matter of any lobbying activity, as that term is
defined in the Lobbyist Registration Act, that occurred in
connection with the gift; and (vii) state the specific

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exception or exceptions in Section 10-15 pursuant to which the
gift was accepted and why those exceptions bring the officer,
member, or State employee's acceptance of the gift outside the
purview of Section 10-10. If the gift was accepted in
connection with an educational mission or travel to a meeting
to discuss State business, the report shall provide a daily
account of all gifts accepted following the requirements set
forth in this subsection (a).
(b) The Secretary of State may create a standard form that
an officer, member, or State employee shall use in complying
with subsection (a).
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act or any
other law, the Secretary of State may institute an
Internet-based system for the reports described in subsection
(a). The determination to institute such a system shall be in
the sole discretion of the Secretary of State and shall meet
the requirements set out in this Section. In any system of
Internet-based filing of the reports described in subsection
(a) instituted by the Secretary of State:
(1) Any filing of an Internet-based report shall be the
equivalent of the filing of the verified, written, dated,
and signed report described in subsection (a).
(2) If the Secretary of State institutes an
Internet-based filing system for the reports described in
subsection (a), the Secretary shall establish a
password-protected website to receive the filings of those

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statements. A website established under this Section shall
set forth and provide a means for the filer to respond to
the form's required questions. A website established under
this Section shall set forth and provide a means for
generating a printable receipt page, acknowledging filing.
(3) In the first year of the implementation of a system
of Internet-based filing of the reports described in
subsection (a), each person required to file such a
statement is to be notified in writing of his or her
obligation to file his or her report by way of the
Internet-based system. If access to the website requires a
code or password, this information shall be included in the
notice prescribed by this paragraph.
(4) When a person required to file a report described
in subsection (a) has supplied the Secretary of State with
an e-mail address for the purpose of receiving notices
under this Act by e-mail, a notice sent by e-mail shall be
the equivalent of a notice sent by first class mail. A
person who has supplied such an e-mail address shall notify
the Secretary of State when his or her e-mail address
changes or if he or she no longer wishes to receive notices
by e-mail.
(5) If the Secretary of State institutes a system of
Internet-based filing of the reports described in
subsection (a), he or she shall make the contents of such
reports filed with him or her available for inspection and

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copying on a publicly accessible website in a searchable
format. Such postings shall not include the addresses of
the filers or of any prohibited source set forth therein.
(5 ILCS 430/50-5)
Sec. 50-5. Penalties.
(a) A person is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor if that
person intentionally violates any provision of Section 5-15,
5-30, 5-40, or 5-45 or Article 15.
(a-1) An ethics commission may levy an administrative fine
for a violation of Section 5-45 of this Act of up to 3 times the
total annual compensation that would have been obtained in
violation of Section 5-45.
(b) A person who intentionally violates any provision of
Section 5-20, 5-35, 5-50, or 5-55 is guilty of a business
offense subject to a fine of at least $1,001 and up to $5,000.
(c) A person who intentionally violates any provision of
Article 10 is guilty of a Class 4 felony and is subject to a
fine in an amount equal to the greater of (i) $1,001 or (ii)
five times the total value of all items received in violation
of Article 10. A person who intentionally violates any
provision of Article 10 is guilty of a business offense and
subject to a fine of at least $1,001 and up to $5,000.
(d) Any person who intentionally makes a false report
alleging a violation of any provision of this Act to an ethics
commission, an inspector general, the State Police, a State's

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Attorney, the Attorney General, or any other law enforcement
official is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
(e) An ethics commission may levy an administrative fine of
up to $5,000 against any person who violates this Act, who
intentionally obstructs or interferes with an investigation
conducted under this Act by an inspector general, or who
intentionally makes a false, frivolous, or bad faith
allegation.
(f) In addition to any other penalty that may apply,
whether criminal or civil, a State employee who intentionally
violates any provision of Section 5-5, 5-15, 5-20, 5-30, 5-35,
5-45, or 5-50, Article 10, Article 15, or Section 20-90 or
25-90 is subject to discipline or discharge by the appropriate
ultimate jurisdictional authority.
(Source: P.A. 96-555, eff. 8-18-09.)