HB0237 EngrossedLRB097 05944 RLJ 46013 b

1    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Illinois Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission
6Act.
 
7    Section 5. Purpose. The American Civil War was a defining
8experience in the development of the United States. There is a
9resurgence of interest in the Civil War as shown by the
10publication of many printed resources and the creation of many
11exhibits, reenactments, research organizations, Internet and
12multimedia resources, historic parks, and preservation
13associations focused on the Civil War.
14    The years 2011 through 2015 mark the sesquicentennial of
15active hostilities during the American Civil War (1861-1865).
16The sesquicentennial of the Civil War presents a significant
17opportunity for Americans to recall and reflect upon the Civil
18War and its legacy, in a spirit of rededication and reflection,
19and to appreciate the sacrifice that American military members
20have made and are currently making to insure our nation's
21freedom and liberty.
22    The State of Illinois, as the home of President Abraham
23Lincoln, played a unique role in the events surrounding the

 

 

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1Civil War. Before the war, Lincoln had been a long-time
2advocate of abolition and helped to raise awareness regarding
3the hypocrisy that allowed slavery to exist in a nation founded
4on the principals that all men are created equal.
5    Lincoln's public remarks and speeches helped to define the
6issues of the Civil War. Lincoln's earliest public remarks
7following Stephen A. Douglas' speech on the Kansas-Nebraska
8Act, legislation repealing the Missouri Compromise that
9concerned the westward expansion of slavery, on October 16,
101854 in Peoria set the parameters of debate. In accepting his
11nomination as U.S. Senate nominee, Lincoln delivered his famous
12House Divided Speech from the Old State Capitol in Springfield
13on June 16, 1858. The 7 debates between Abraham Lincoln and
14Stephen A. Douglas in 1858 were also important in previewing
15the issues of the 1860 presidential race and the Civil War. The
16Lincoln-Douglas Debates took place across Illinois occurring
17on August 21 in Ottawa, August 27 in Freeport, September 15 in
18Jonesboro, September 18 in Charleston, October 7 in Galesburg,
19October 13 in Quincy, and October 15 in Alton.
20    As the home of President Abraham Lincoln, and the source of
21256,297 Union officers and servicemen organized in 169 separate
22regiments, Illinois had a unique role in the Civil War. The
23contribution of almost 2,000 African-Americans, enrolled in
24Illinois Civil War regiments, demands special recognition.
25Although not offered the same opportunities for promotion as
26other soldiers of similar rank, African-American soldiers

 

 

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1proved to be, by Lincoln's own testimony, a decisive element in
2the Union's victory.
3    After President Lincoln's assassination, his body was
4brought to the House Chambers of the Old State Capitol to lie
5in state. This event marked the nation's grief for President
6Lincoln and the over 660,000 American's who lost their lives
7fighting for both sides during the Civil War. Lincoln was later
8interred in the Lincoln Tomb State Historic Site, and his
9memory is preserved and celebrated in the State-operated
10Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
 
11    Section 10. Composition of the Commission. The Commission
12is composed of 17 members as follows:
13        (1) One member of the House of Representatives
14    appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives,
15    one member of the House of Representatives appointed by the
16    Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, one member
17    of the Senate appointed by the President of the Senate, and
18    one member of the Senate appointed by the Minority Leader
19    of the Senate;
20        (2) One member of the public appointed by the Speaker
21    of the House of Representatives, one member of the public
22    appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of
23    Representatives, one member of the public appointed by the
24    President of the Senate, and one member of the public
25    appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate;

 

 

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1        (3) 3 members of the public appointed by the Governor,
2    one of whom shall serve as the chairperson; and
3        (4) 6 ex officio members as follows:
4            (A) the Governor or his or her designee;
5            (B) the Director of Historic Preservation or his or
6        her designee;
7            (C) the Director of Natural Resources or his or her
8        designee;
9            (D) the Illinois State Historian or his or her
10        designee;
11            (E) the Director of the Lincoln Presidential
12        Library or his or her designee; and
13            (F) the Director of the Lincoln Home National
14        Historic Site or his or her designee.
 
15    Section 15. Ex officio members. An ex officio member of the
16Commission vacates the person's position on the Commission if
17the person ceases to hold the position that qualifies the
18person for service on the Commission.
 
19    Section 20. Compensation; expenses.
20    (a) A public member of the Commission is not entitled to
21compensation but is entitled to reimbursement for the travel
22expenses incurred by the member while transacting Commission
23business.
24    (b) An ex officio member's service on the Commission is an

 

 

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1additional duty of the underlying position that qualifies the
2member for service on the Commission. The entitlement of an ex
3officio member to compensation or to reimbursement for travel
4expenses incurred while transacting Commission business is
5governed by the law that applies to the member's service in
6that underlying position, and any payment to the member for
7either purpose must be made from an appropriation that may be
8used for the purpose and is available to the State agency that
9the member serves in that underlying position.
 
10    Section 25. Meetings; quorum; voting.
11    (a) The Commission shall meet at least quarterly at the
12times and places in this State that the Commission designates.
13    (b) A majority of the members of the Commission constitute
14a quorum for transacting Commission business.
 
15    Section 30. General powers and duties of the Commission.
16The Commission shall:
17        (1) Work with the Illinois Historic Preservation
18    Agency to plan and sponsor official Illinois Civil War
19    Sesquicentennial events, programs, and activities
20    appropriate to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the
21    American Civil War.
22        (2) Encourage the development of programs designed to
23    involve all citizens in activities that commemorate the
24    150th Anniversary of the American Civil War.

 

 

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1        (3) Work with the Illinois Historic Preservation
2    Agency to develop an official Illinois Civil War
3    Sesquicentennial logo. Official Illinois Sesquicentennial
4    events will be authorized to display this official logo as
5    part of their public branding and identity.
6        (4) Work with the Illinois Historic Preservation
7    Agency to develop a website for the Commission with a link
8    to the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency's existing
9    website commemorating the 150th Anniversary of the Civil
10    War.
11        (5) Prepare and submit a report to the Governor and the
12    General Assembly no later than October 31, 2011 and each
13    October 31 thereafter through October 31, 2014 concerning
14    the events for the next year.
 
15    Section 35. Administrative support. The Illinois Historic
16Preservation Agency shall provide administrative and other
17support to the Commission.
 
18    Section 40. Funding. The Commission may accept monetary
19gifts and grants from any public or private source, to be held
20in a non-appropriated trust fund by the State Treasurer and
21expended solely for the use of the Commission in performing the
22Commission's powers and duties under this Act. The Commission
23may also accept in-kind gifts.
 

 

 

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1    Section 45. Dissolution of the Commission. The Commission
2shall be dissolved on December 31, 2015, and any assets
3remaining in the Commission's trust fund shall be deposited
4into the General Revenue Fund.
 
5    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
6becoming law.