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1 | AN ACT concerning government.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Open Meetings Act is amended by changing | ||||||
5 | Sections 1.05 and 4 as follows:
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6 | (5 ILCS 120/1.05)
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7 | Sec. 1.05. Training. | ||||||
8 | (a) Every public body shall designate employees, officers, | ||||||
9 | or members to receive training on compliance with this Act. | ||||||
10 | Each public body shall submit a list of designated employees, | ||||||
11 | officers, or members to the Public Access Counselor. Within 6 | ||||||
12 | months after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the | ||||||
13 | 96th General Assembly, the designated employees, officers, and | ||||||
14 | members must successfully complete an electronic training | ||||||
15 | curriculum, developed and administered by the Public Access | ||||||
16 | Counselor, and thereafter must successfully complete an annual | ||||||
17 | training program. Thereafter, whenever a public body | ||||||
18 | designates an additional employee, officer, or member to | ||||||
19 | receive this training, that person must successfully complete | ||||||
20 | the electronic training curriculum within 30 days after that | ||||||
21 | designation.
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22 | (b) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, each | ||||||
23 | elected or appointed member of a public body subject to this |
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1 | Act who is such a member on the effective date of this | ||||||
2 | amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly must successfully | ||||||
3 | complete the electronic training curriculum developed and | ||||||
4 | administered by the Public Access Counselor. For these members, | ||||||
5 | the training must be completed within one year after the | ||||||
6 | effective date of this amendatory Act. | ||||||
7 | Except as otherwise provided in this Section, each elected | ||||||
8 | or appointed member of a public body subject to this Act who | ||||||
9 | becomes such a member after the effective date of this | ||||||
10 | amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly shall successfully | ||||||
11 | complete the electronic training curriculum developed and | ||||||
12 | administered by the Public Access Counselor. For these members, | ||||||
13 | the training must be completed not later than the 90th day | ||||||
14 | after the date the member: | ||||||
15 | (1) takes the oath of office, if the member is required | ||||||
16 | to take an oath of office to assume the person's duties as | ||||||
17 | a member of the public body; or | ||||||
18 | (2) otherwise assumes responsibilities as a member of | ||||||
19 | the public body, if the member is not required to take an | ||||||
20 | oath of office to assume the person's duties as a member of | ||||||
21 | the governmental body. | ||||||
22 | Each member successfully completing the electronic | ||||||
23 | training curriculum shall file a copy of the certificate of | ||||||
24 | completion with the public body. | ||||||
25 | Completing the required training as a member of the public | ||||||
26 | body satisfies the requirements of this Section with regard to |
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1 | the member's service on a committee or subcommittee of the | ||||||
2 | public body and the member's ex officio service on any other | ||||||
3 | public body. | ||||||
4 | The failure of one or more members of a public body to | ||||||
5 | complete the training required by this Section does not affect | ||||||
6 | the validity of an action taken by the public body. | ||||||
7 | An elected or appointed member of a public body subject to | ||||||
8 | this Act who has successfully completed the training required | ||||||
9 | under this subsection (b) and filed a copy of the certificate | ||||||
10 | of completion with the public body is not required to | ||||||
11 | subsequently complete the training required under this | ||||||
12 | subsection (b). | ||||||
13 | (c) An elected school board member may satisfy the training | ||||||
14 | requirements of this Section by participating in a course of | ||||||
15 | training sponsored or conducted by an organization created | ||||||
16 | under Article 23 of the School Code. The course of training | ||||||
17 | shall include, but not be limited to, instruction in: | ||||||
18 | (1) the general background of the legal requirements | ||||||
19 | for open meetings; | ||||||
20 | (2) the applicability of this Act to public bodies; | ||||||
21 | (3) procedures and requirements regarding quorums, | ||||||
22 | notice, and record-keeping under this Act; | ||||||
23 | (4) procedures and requirements for holding an open | ||||||
24 | meeting and for holding a closed meeting under this Act; | ||||||
25 | and | ||||||
26 | (5) penalties and other consequences for failing to |
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1 | comply with this Act. | ||||||
2 | If an organization created under Article 23 of the School | ||||||
3 | Code provides a course of training under this subsection (c), | ||||||
4 | it must provide a certificate of course completion to each | ||||||
5 | school board member who successfully completes that course of | ||||||
6 | training. | ||||||
7 | (d) An elected or appointed member of the board of trustees | ||||||
8 | of a pension fund established under Article 3 or Article 4 of | ||||||
9 | the Illinois Pension Code may satisfy the training requirements | ||||||
10 | of this Section by participating in a course of training | ||||||
11 | sponsored or conducted by a statewide organization | ||||||
12 | representing police, firefighters, or both. The course of | ||||||
13 | training shall include, but need not be limited to, instruction | ||||||
14 | in: | ||||||
15 | (1) the general background of the legal requirements | ||||||
16 | for open meetings; | ||||||
17 | (2) the applicability of this Act to public bodies; | ||||||
18 | (3) procedures and requirements regarding quorums, | ||||||
19 | notice, and record-keeping under this Act; | ||||||
20 | (4) procedures and requirements for holding an open | ||||||
21 | meeting and for holding a closed meeting under this Act; | ||||||
22 | and | ||||||
23 | (5) penalties and other consequences for failing to | ||||||
24 | comply with this Act. | ||||||
25 | If a course of training is provided under this subsection | ||||||
26 | (d), the statewide organization must provide a certificate of |
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1 | course completion to each board member who successfully | ||||||
2 | completes that course of training. | ||||||
3 | (Source: P.A. 96-542, eff. 1-1-10; 97-504, eff. 1-1-12.)
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4 | (5 ILCS 120/4) (from Ch. 102, par. 44)
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5 | Sec. 4.
Any person violating any of the provisions of this | ||||||
6 | Act, except subsection (b) , or (c) , or (d) of Section 1.05, | ||||||
7 | shall be guilty
of a Class C misdemeanor.
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8 | (Source: P.A. 97-504, eff. 1-1-12.)
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9 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January | ||||||
10 | 1, 2013.
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