HR1363 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1363 LRB097 23481 GRL 72586 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are pleased to congratulate Linda Frank on the occasion of her retirement as Clerk of the Circuit Court for the 6th Judicial Circuit on November 30, 2012; and

WHEREAS, Linda Frank was meritoriously chosen to serve as the Circuit Clerk of Champaign County by the judges of the 6th Judicial Circuit in 1991; she was subsequently elected to the position by the voters of Champaign County in 1992 and re-elected to the position in 1996, 2000, 2004, and 2008; and

WHEREAS, As Circuit Clerk, Linda Frank has been instrumental in the creation of numerous programs that have greatly improved the services provided by the department, including a direct deposit program for child support recipients, the Traffic Safety Program that provides first time offenders with an option to take a class to remove minor violations from their record, and the Mandatory Insurance Program that enables citizens to avoid a court appearance by documenting insurance in the Clerk's office; her work made the Champaign County Courthouse one of the first courthouses in Illinois to offer secured payment of court fees via personal check; she negotiated the first Union contract in Circuit Clerk history; she introduced detailed financial reports on the court system to the Champaign County Board; she was instrumental in providing accessible parking for jurors with disabilities; she arranged for the Urbana Historical Archives to preserve court records in lieu of costly county storage or destruction; she was a member of a team that established county policy of having criminal offenders pay a fine that benefits "Crimestoppers" as part of their sentence; her department is also one of only two Champaign County departments with both increased revenues and decreased expenditures according to the most recent annual financial report for the County; and

WHEREAS, Prior to her tenure as Circuit Clerk, Linda Frank served as a member of the Champaign County Board from 1982 to 1991; she served as chairman of the board's Personal and Public Officials Committee and was a member of the Justice and Public Safety, Health Services, Environmental and Land Use, and General Services Committees; during her stint on the Board, she was responsible for the successful passage of the hotel-motel tax, which helped generate revenue to defray the costs of renovations to Willard Airport; she was also instrumental in the defeat of the Champaign County nuclear waste site, the efforts to initiate an Alzheimer's Unit in Champaign County, and the development of an inter-generational day care center; she also worked with the Champaign Unit 4 School District Special Education Programs from 1986 to 1991 and was a co-owner of Texture Protein Products, Inc. from 1973 to 1975; and

WHEREAS, Linda Frank is affiliated with numerous legal and civic organizations, including the Illinois Association of Court Clerks, the Sixth Circuit Family Violence Council, the Child Support Advisory Committee, the Administrative Office of Illinois Courts, TASH, the National Association of County Officials, the Champaign Chamber of Commerce, the League of Women Voters, the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program's Advisory Council, the DCFS Regional Youth Planning Committee, the Champaign County Republicans, the Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission, the Champaign County Historical Museum Board of Trustees, and the Champaign Unit 4 School District Gifted and Talented Committee; she also served as the County Representative for the National Organization on Disabilities; and

WHEREAS, Linda Frank won the National Award for Excellence in Government for Public Access Services for being the first clerk in the State to offer an innovative computerized remote access to court records; she has also been the recipient of numerous other awards and designations, including the National Achievement Award for Excellence in Government (1995) and the World's Who's Who Among Women (1987); and

WHEREAS, Linda Frank serves as a model of hard work, integrity, and dedication for the people of the State of Illinois; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Linda Frank on the occasion of her retirement and wish her many happy and healthy retirement years; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Linda Frank as a symbol of our esteem and respect.