HB5029 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB101 14904 RJF 63893 b

101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
HB5029

Introduced 2/18/2020, by Rep. Avery Bourne, Daniel Swanson, Tony McCombie, Norine K. Hammond, Michael T. Marron, et al.

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Downstate Impact Note Act. Provides that every bill, the purpose or effect of which is to have an impact upon downstate Illinois, shall have prepared for it prior to second reading in the house of introduction a brief explanatory statement or note on the anticipated impact on downstate Illinois, which shall be known as a Downstate Impact Note. Provides requirements for the preparation and contents of Downstate Impact Notes. Provides that the fact that a Downstate Impact Note is prepared for any bill shall not preclude or restrict the appearance before any committee of the General Assembly of any official or authorized employee of any State board, commission, department, agency, or other entity who desires to be heard in support of or in opposition to the bill. Provides confidentiality requirements concerning the subject matter of bills submitted for Note preparation. Defines "downstate Illinois". Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Downstate Impact Note Act.

Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:

"Downstate Illinois" means all counties in this State other than the counties of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will.

Section 10. Applicability. Every bill, the purpose or effect of which is to have an impact, either positive or negative, upon downstate Illinois, shall have prepared for it prior to second reading in the house of introduction a brief explanatory statement or note on the anticipated impact on downstate Illinois. These statements shall be known as Downstate Impact Notes.

Section 15. Preparation of the Note.

(a) Upon the request of the sponsor of a bill described in Section 10, the Office of Community Development of the Department Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall prepare a written Note setting forth the information required by Section 10. The Note shall be designated a Downstate Impact Note and shall be furnished to the sponsor within 10 calendar days after the request. If, because of the complexity of the bill, additional time is required for the preparation of the Note, the Department may so notify the sponsor and request an extension of time not to exceed 5 additional days within which to furnish the Note. An extension may not, however, be beyond May 15 following the date of the request.

(b) Whenever the sponsor of any measure is of the opinion that no Downstate Impact Note is necessary, any member of either house may thereafter request that a Note be obtained, and in such case the matter shall be decided by majority vote of those present and voting in the house of which he or she is a member. If the sponsor believes that a Downstate Impact Note request has been filed in bad faith, the sponsor may ask for a vote to render one or more Note requests inapplicable.

(c) Whenever a bill is amended on the floor of either house in a manner as to bring it within the description of bills set forth in Section 10, a majority of that house may propose that no action be taken upon the amendment until the sponsor of the amendment presents a Downstate Impact Note to the members.

Section 20. Content of the Note.

(a) The Note shall be factual, brief, and concise and shall provide as reliable of a statement of the bill's anticipated impact as is possible under the circumstances. The Note shall include both the immediate effect and, if determinable or reasonably foreseeable, the long-range effect of the bill. The Note must state whether the bill will have a disparate impact upon downstate Illinois relative to its impact upon the State as a whole, and take into consideration any additional impact that the bill may have upon downstate Illinois communities that are within 30 miles of the Illinois State line.

(b) No comment or opinion shall be included in the Downstate Impact Note with regard to the merits of the measure for which the Note is prepared; however, technical or mechanical defects may be noted. The Downstate Impact Note shall be signed by the Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity or his or her designee.

Section 25. Right to a hearing. The fact that a Downstate Impact Note is prepared for any bill shall not preclude or restrict the appearance before any committee of the General Assembly of any official or authorized employee of any State board, commission, department, agency, or other entity who desires to be heard in support of or in opposition to the bill.

Section 30. Confidentiality. The subject matter of bills submitted to the Office of Community Development shall be kept in strict confidence by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and no information relating to the bill or its impact upon downstate Illinois shall be divulged by any official or employee of the Department, except to the bill's sponsor or his or her designee, before the bill's introduction in the General Assembly.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.