Illinois

Amends the Illinois Finance Authority Act. In provisions concerning bond authorization and financing limits for clean coal projects, coal projects, energy efficiency projects, PACE projects, and renewable energy projects, provides that the limitations apply to outstanding bonds (instead of issued bonds). Provides that those limitations do not include bonds issued to refund the bonds of the Illinois Finance Authority or bonds of predecessor authorities. Provides that no member, officer, or employee of the Illinois Finance Authority may be in any manner financially interested in any contract or agreement upon which that person may be called to act or vote. Requires those members, officers, and employees to abstain from deliberating or voting on the award or material modification of any contract or agreement in which that person holds a financial interest. Provides that no member, officer, or employee of the Illinois Finance Authority may take or receive, or offer to take or receive, any money or other thing of value as a gift, bribe, or means of influencing that person's vote or action in that person's official capacity. Amends the Public Officer Prohibited Activities Act. Provides that certain provisions do not apply to the members and officers of the Illinois Finance Authority. Makes other changes.

Amends the Use Tax Act, the Service Use Tax Act, the Service Occupation Tax Act, and the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act. Provides that, beginning on January 1, 2027, hearing aids are exempt from the taxes under those Acts. Effective immediately.

Amends the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Provides that the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall establish an office to serve as a single point of contact for the purpose of guiding businesses through the various registrations required by Illinois law and any unit of local government. Provides that the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall prepare a report on the various registration or licensing requirements for small business and provide the report to the Governor and the General Assembly by December 31, 2026. Effective immediately.

Amends the Property Tax Code. In provisions concerning the homestead exemption for persons with disabilities, provides that, if the person with a disability is eligible to receive disability benefits under the federal Social Security Act and has a household income that does not exceed 200% of the federal poverty level, then the property is exempt from taxation under the Code. Effective immediately.

Amends the School Code. In a provision granting a school board the power to award certain contracts to the lowest responsible bidder, provides for an exception for contracts that give a preference to State, regional, or local suppliers (rather than only State or regional suppliers) that source local food products.

Amends the Administration Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Requires the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, in consultation with the Department of Human Services, to submit the necessary application to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to amend the State's home and community-based services waiver programs for children and adults with developmental disabilities to provide coverage under the Home-Based Services Program for any therapeutic recreation programs offered by park districts, health clubs, and community colleges.

Amends the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Provides that the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity may, upon an ordinance adopted by a municipality or a county, certify an area as a food desert opportunity zone if the area is a food desert and if the area meets other specified criteria. Provides that grocery stores that open in a food desert opportunity zone may receive certain incentives under the Illinois Income Tax Act, the Use Tax Act, the Service Use Tax Act, the Service Occupation Tax Act, and the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act. Amends those Acts to make conforming changes.

Amends the State Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971. Provides that the Department of Central Management Services shall require all contracts, managed care arrangements, and third-party administrator agreements under the State Employees Group Insurance Program to apply site-neutral payment principles for covered services. Grants the Department rulemaking authority, including specified rules. Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Requires the Department of Insurance to instruct health insurance companies operating in the State to apply site-neutral payment principles for any covered service for any health insurance product the health insurance company sells, manages, offers, or markets in the State. Grants the Department rulemaking authority, including specified rules. Effective January 1, 2027.

Specifies that the amendatory Act may be referred to as the Public Office Eligibility and Criminal Conviction Clarification Act. Amends the Township Code. Repeals a provision that makes a person ineligible to hold any office under the Code if the person, at the time required for taking the oath of office, has been convicted of a felony. Amends the Illinois Municipal Code. In a provision concerning qualification for specified elective offices, deletes provisions which prohibit a person from taking the oath of office if the person has been convicted of a felony.

Amends the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act. Requires waiver of 50% of any nonrefundable license application fees, any nonrefundable fees associated with purchasing a license to operate a cannabis business establishment, and any surety bond or other financial requirements for a Social Equity Applicant who promises to open and operate the business in a Disproportionately Impacted Area and who promises to hire and employ at least 40% of all employees and contracted labor from persons residing in or headquartered in the Disproportionately Impacted Area where the business will be located. Provides that a breach of a promise by an applicant under those provisions shall constitute a violation of the Act. Provides that fee waivers or other requirement waivers under 2 different specified provisions relating to Social Equity Applicants may not be cumulative, and an applicant who qualifies under both may only choose one.

Amends the School Code. Requires the State Board of Education to establish an Artificial-Intelligence Use in Education Commission to collect information and submit recommendations relative to best educational practices and policies for smartphone and artificial-intelligence use in schools and compile research and collaborate to learn more on what recommendations are most effective for student-learning outcomes. Sets forth the Commission's membership, meetings, responsibilities, and support and reporting requirements. Repeals the provisions on January 1, 2030. Effective January 1, 2027.

Amends the Substance Use Disorder Act. Provides that disclosure of nonexempt records protected under the Act may be disclosed for research activities under the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Act. Amends the Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act. Provides that staff and any designee of the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, members of the Ad Hoc Statewide Domestic Violence Fatality Review Committee of the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority Board, and the regional domestic violence fatality review teams are entitled to receive, inspect, copy, and share HIV-related information of any person subject to a domestic violence fatality review as part of and in accordance with the provisions of the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Act. Provides that the information disclosed is subject to the confidentiality requirements of the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Act. Effective immediately.

Creates the 340B Grantee Contract Pharmacy Access Act. Provides that no person, including a pharmaceutical manufacturer, may deny, restrict, or otherwise limit the acquisition of a 340B drug by a 340B grantee or a 340B contract pharmacy authorized to receive 340B drugs on behalf of the 340B grantee unless the acquisition is prohibited by federal law. Provides that the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation is authorized to enforce the Act and investigate possible violations of the Act by any person, including a pharmaceutical manufacturer. Sets forth provisions concerning preemption. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act. Provides that when a child with a disability that substantially impairs the child's ability to make independent decisions regarding parental relationships reaches the age of majority, the court may allocate parenting time by considering the specified factors as modified by the child's capacity's and expressed preferences.

Amends the Election Code. Provides that no image, symbol, or slogan shall appear in the heading of a petition for nomination other than the required information. Provides that any emblem or label indicating that the petition for nomination was printed by a union printer shall not be considered an image, symbol, or slogan.

Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Expands medical assistance coverage to certain categories of lawfully present noncitizens. Sets income guidelines for qualifying persons age 19 through 64 and income guidelines for persons 65 years of age or older. Removes a provision permitting medical assistance coverage for up to 24 continuous months from the initial eligibility date, if otherwise eligible.

Amends the Freedom of Information Act. Changes the definition of "commercial purpose". Defines "business day" or "working day", as well as "mass requester" and "vexatious requester". Requires a public body to respond to a request for records submitted by a mass requester within 21 days after receipt. Sets forth procedures and requirements regarding mass requesters. Provides that it is a violation of the Act to knowingly obtain a public record as a mass requester without disclosing the person's status as a mass requester, if requested to do so by the public body. Requires persons denied access to inspect or copy any public record to first notify the public body of intent to file suit and provide an opportunity to confer orally, within 10 business days after receipt of the notification, about curing or resolving the issue. Requires a court to award a public body attorney's fees and costs against a commercial purpose requester, a recurrent requester, a mass requester, or a vexatious requester. Allows a public body to petition the Public Access Counselor for relief from a requester that the public body alleges is a vexatious requester, including an order that the public body need not comply with the current request and other requests from the vexatious requester for up to one year. Sets forth procedures and requirements regarding vexatious requesters. Makes conforming changes.

Amends the Common Interest Community Association Act. Provides that financial records of the association for the last 7 years must be made available to unit owners upon request. Provides that financial records include, but are not limited to, the income statement, balance sheet, check register, current budget with monthly variation, detailed records of receipts and expenditures affecting the operation and administration of the association, reserve account details, tax returns and other appropriate accounting records. Amends the Condominium and Common Interest Community Ombudsperson Act. Provides that if the Ombudsperson is unable to resolve the complaint through the dispute resolution process, the Ombudsperson may investigate the complaint. Provides that the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation must examine the issues and the records, make findings of fact and conclusions of law, and issue to the parties a written determination in response to the complaint. Provides that the determination is binding on both the parties, subject to administrative review. Provides that the respondent must comply with the requirements of a written determination from the Department within 7 days after the notice of violation is received. Provides that if a respondent fails to comply with the requirements of a notice of violation within the required time period, and the Department has not received written notice of the respondent's request for an administrative hearing, the Department may impose a penalty, up to a maximum of $5,000 per violation per day, for each day that a violation remains uncorrected. Amends the Condominium Property Act to make some conforming changes.

Amends the School Boards Article of the School Code. Requires a school district that administers a self-report survey to its students that may reveal personal, protected information to obtain parental or guardian consent in writing if the student is under the age of 18 before the student may participate in the self-report survey. Requires a school district to afford a parent or guardian the opportunity to review, either electronically or in person, the scope of the questions to be asked. Provides that refusal to grant consent for a student to participate in the self-report survey shall not be a reason for disciplinary action, academic penalty, suspension, or expulsion or any other sanction of the student. Effective immediately.

Amends the Chicago Teacher Article of Illinois Pension Code. Provides that the total payments under a provision concerning the Board providing partial reimbursement of health insurance costs may not exceed $100,000,000 (instead of $65,000,000) in any year. Provides that the amount shall annually thereafter be increased by the annual unadjusted percentage increase (but not less than zero) in the consumer price index for the 12 months ending with the September preceding each November 1, including all previous adjustments. Defines "consumer price index".

Amends the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act. In provisions regarding the Access and Functional Needs Advisory Committee, provides that the Advisory Committee shall comply with all provisions of the Open Meetings Act except that the Advisory Committee is exempt from the provisions that specifically require a quorum of members of a public body to be physically present at the location of an open meeting. Allows Advisory Committee members to attend meetings of the Access and Functional Needs Advisory Committee remotely by video or audio conference with all attending members counting toward a quorum, provided there is at least one member in physical attendance at the publicly posted physical location of the meeting.

Creates the Family Justice Centers Act. Authorizes cities, counties, the State, and community-based nonprofits to establish multiagency, multidisciplinary Family Justice Centers to serve survivors of domestic violence, sexual violence, stalking, and human trafficking. Sets requirements for center operations, including survivor consent and confidentiality policies, privacy protections, collaboration with law enforcement and community providers, operating agreements, survivor feedback processes, and annual training standards. Provides a framework for coordinated service delivery among participating agencies. Declares findings. Defines terms.

Amends the State Budget Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois and the Balanced Budget Note Act. Provides that the Pension Stabilization Fund is considered a general fund or a State general fund for the purposes of those Acts. Amends the State Finance Act. Provides that certain amounts transferred from the Budget Stabilization Fund to the General Revenue Fund are not required to be repaid into the Budget Stabilization Fund if the amount of accounts payable exceeds $4,000,000,000. Makes changes concerning monthly reports from State agencies to the Comptroller. Amends the Budget Stabilization Act. Provides that, beginning in Fiscal Year 2027, the General Assembly's appropriations and transfers or diversions as required by law from general funds shall not exceed 99% of the estimated general funds revenues for the fiscal year if (i) revenue estimates of the State's general funds revenues for the fiscal year exceed the prior fiscal year's estimated general funds revenues by more than 4% and (ii) projected accounts payable are estimated by the Comptroller to be less than $3,000,000,000 for the fiscal year. Makes other changes concerning transfers from the Budget Stabilization Fund. Effective immediately.

Amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Provides that, in addition to any other disposition authorized by law, the court shall order any person arrested for patronizing a person engaged in the sex trade to participate in the Buyer Accountability Program and pay a fee of $1,000. Provides for the distribution of the fees. Establishes an education program to be known as the Buyer Accountability Program, which shall consist of an instructional program on prostitution and human trafficking schemes offered in one or more locations throughout the State. Establishes who may establish the program in various areas of the State. Provides that the program shall include information intended to increase the person's awareness of: (1) the causes of prostitution and its relationship to human trafficking; (2) the health and safety risks connected with prostitution, including its impact on the community; (3) the consequences of convictions for prostitution or human trafficking, including penalties for subsequent convictions on both patronizers and victims; and (4) the pervasiveness of human trafficking as well as the long-term physical and psychological harms of prostitution and human trafficking on its victims. Provides that a program must be approved by the Attorney General. Provides that the Attorney General shall notify the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts that the program has been established and approved by the Attorney General.

Amends the Open Meetings Act. Provides that the requirement that a quorum be physically present at the location of an open meeting shall not apply to the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities. Amends the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities Law. Provides that a member of the Council may request permission of the chairperson to attend a meeting by video or audio conference, and that request shall be granted if the member is prevented from physically attending due to personal illness or disability or if the member is required to provide care to a family member who has a disability. Effective immediately.