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1		HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
2		WHEREAS, Heirs' property is defined by the United States
3		Department of Agriculture as land that has been passed down
4		informally from generation to generation without clear title
5		or documented legal ownership; every heir has rights to the
6		property, but the lack of a clear title creates confusion
7		regarding taxes, the use of the land, and the ability to sell
8		the land; and
9		WHEREAS, Without much trust in the legal system, many of
10		the African American farmers who purchased or were deeded land
11		after the Civil War died without a will, and the property was
12		passed down informally; each successive generation of heirs
13		further divided the title to the property and complicated the
14		heirs' ability to determine the legal owners of the property;
15		and
16		WHEREAS, Some of the consequences that the heirs' property
17		owners face are disagreements over which heirs have the right
18		to occupy the land and how the land may be used, difficulty
19		selling the property due to a lack of a clear title, the
20		exclusion from some governmental support programs, including
21		disaster relief funds, the inability to claim the land as an
22		asset to obtain a mortgage or other loan, and the loss of land
23		due to disagreements over responsibility for the payment of

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1		taxes; and
2		WHEREAS, Heirs' property is the leading cause of
3		involuntary land loss among African Americans, and the United
4		States Department of Agriculture reported the loss of 80
5		percent of the land owned by African American farm owners
6		since 1910; the rate of African American land loss has been far
7		greater than for other racial and ethnic groups in the same
8		time period; it remains a continuing and systemic problem, as
9		it is a significant factor in the wealth gap between white and
10		African American populations, with African Americans having
11		ten percent of the wealth of white Americans; and
12		WHEREAS, There is no national data regarding the amount of
13		land held as heirs' property; some organizations have
14		attempted to develop models to estimate the information; it is
15		challenging to obtain specific data because every state and
16		each county within each state compiles real estate ownership
17		data differently; and
18		WHEREAS, Owning land is significant, especially for
19		African Americans; it allows for increased personal and
20		economic freedom; many Americans, including African Americans,
21		believed that real economic and political independence could
22		only be achieved by owning land; landowners provide economic
23		stability within their communities through payment of property

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1		taxes and support for local business; in addition, they are
2		more likely to be civically engaged, having greater political
3		influence; therefore, be it
4		RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
5		HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
6		SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that there is created the Heirs'
7		Property Study Task Force to examine current and prospective
8		methods to address heirs' property issues in Illinois; and be
9		it further
10		RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall:
11		(1) determine the amount of land in Illinois that is
12		subject to the heirs' property system;
13		(2) study the impacts of federal and State legislation
14		on the partition of the land subject to heirs' property;
15		(3) analyze approaches and methods undertaken by other
16		states to address heirs' property and study if those
17		methods could be applied to Illinois; and
18		(4) determine the costs heirs' property presents to
19		the economic well-being of Illinois and estimate the
20		benefits of proactive measures taken to address heirs'
21		property; and be it further
22		RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall be comprised of the
23		following members, who shall serve without compensation:

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1		(1) 3 members of the House of Representatives
2		appointed by the Speaker of the House, one who shall serve
3		as co-chair;
4		(2) 3 members of the House of Representatives
5		appointed by the House Minority Leader;
6		(3) 3 members of the Senate appointed by the Senate
7		President, one who shall serve as co-chair;
8		(4) 3 members of the Senate appointed by the Senate
9		Minority Leader;
10		(5) The Director of the Department of Agriculture or
11		his or her designee;
12		(6) The Director of the Housing Development Authority
13		or his or her designee;
14		(7) The Director of the Department of Natural
15		Resources or his or her designee; and
16		(8) The Director of the Illinois Municipal League or
17		his or her designee appointed by the Governor; and be it
18		further
19		RESOLVED, The Department of Agriculture shall provide
20		administrative support for the Task Force; and be it further
21		RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall submit its final
22		report to the General Assembly no later than December 31,
23		2024, and upon the filing of its final report, is dissolved.