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| 1 | AN ACT concerning civil law.
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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 Landlord and Tenant Act is amended by adding | ||||||
| 5 | Section 15 as follows: | ||||||
| 6 | (765 ILCS 705/15 new) | ||||||
| 7 | Sec. 15. Changing or rekeying of the dwelling unit lock. | ||||||
| 8 | (a) A lessor of a dwelling unit shall comply with the | ||||||
| 9 | provisions of this Section regarding the changing or rekeying | ||||||
| 10 | of the dwelling unit lock. For the purposes of this Section, | ||||||
| 11 | "dwelling unit" means a room or suite of rooms used for human | ||||||
| 12 | habitation and for which a lessor and a lessee have a written | ||||||
| 13 | lease agreement. | ||||||
| 14 | (b) After a dwelling unit has been vacated and on or before | ||||||
| 15 | the day that a new lessee takes possession of the dwelling | ||||||
| 16 | unit, the lessor shall change or rekey the immediate access to | ||||||
| 17 | the lessee's individual dwelling unit. For the purposes of this | ||||||
| 18 | Section, "change or rekey" means: | ||||||
| 19 | (1) replacing the lock; | ||||||
| 20 | (2) replacing the locking or cylinder mechanism in the | ||||||
| 21 | lock so that a different key is used to unlock the lock; | ||||||
| 22 | (3) changing the combination on a combination or | ||||||
| 23 | digital lock; | ||||||
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| 1 | (4) changing an electronic lock so that the means or | ||||||
| 2 | method of unlocking the lock is changed from the | ||||||
| 3 | immediately prior tenant; or | ||||||
| 4 | (5) otherwise changing the means of gaining access to | ||||||
| 5 | the lessee's locked individual dwelling unit so that it is | ||||||
| 6 | not identical to the prior lessee's means of gaining access | ||||||
| 7 | to the lessee's locked individual dwelling unit. | ||||||
| 8 | (c) If a lessor does not change or rekey the lock as | ||||||
| 9 | required in this Section, and a theft occurs at that dwelling | ||||||
| 10 | unit that is attributable to the lessor's failure to change or | ||||||
| 11 | rekey the lock, the landlord is liable for any damages from the | ||||||
| 12 | theft that occurs as a result of the lessor's failure to comply | ||||||
| 13 | with this Section. | ||||||
| 14 | (d) The provisions of this Section do not apply if the | ||||||
| 15 | lessee has obtained the right to change or rekey the dwelling | ||||||
| 16 | unit lock pursuant to a written lease agreement. | ||||||
| 17 | (e) The provisions of this Section do not apply to (i) an | ||||||
| 18 | apartment rental in an apartment building with 4 units or less | ||||||
| 19 | when one of the units is occupied by the owner or (ii) the | ||||||
| 20 | rental of a room in a private home that is owner-occupied.
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| 21 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January | ||||||
| 22 | 1, 2012.
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