102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB1715

 

Introduced 2/17/2021, by Rep. Jay Hoffman

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
430 ILCS 65/10  from Ch. 38, par. 83-10

    Amends the Firearm Owners Identification Card Act. Provides that notwithstanding any prohibitions on granting relief from obtaining a Firearm Owner's Identification Card because of federal law, the Director of the Illinois State Police, or the circuit court for various violations, may grant relief when the federal prohibition on possession of firearms is predicated solely on a provision of the Criminal Code of 2012, including, but not limited to, possession of a firearm by a felon, that would no longer apply to the applicant upon granting of relief under the appeals provisions of the Act. Effective immediately.


LRB102 14598 RLC 19951 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB1715LRB102 14598 RLC 19951 b

1    AN ACT concerning safety.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Firearm Owners Identification Card Act is
5amended by changing Section 10 as follows:
 
6    (430 ILCS 65/10)  (from Ch. 38, par. 83-10)
7    Sec. 10. Appeal to director; hearing; relief from firearm
8prohibitions.
9    (a) Whenever an application for a Firearm Owner's
10Identification Card is denied, whenever the Department fails
11to act on an application within 30 days of its receipt, or
12whenever such a Card is revoked or seized as provided for in
13Section 8 of this Act, the aggrieved party may appeal to the
14Director of State Police for a hearing upon such denial,
15revocation or seizure, unless the denial, revocation, or
16seizure was based upon a forcible felony, stalking, aggravated
17stalking, domestic battery, any violation of the Illinois
18Controlled Substances Act, the Methamphetamine Control and
19Community Protection Act, or the Cannabis Control Act that is
20classified as a Class 2 or greater felony, any felony
21violation of Article 24 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the
22Criminal Code of 2012, or any adjudication as a delinquent
23minor for the commission of an offense that if committed by an

 

 

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1adult would be a felony, in which case the aggrieved party may
2petition the circuit court in writing in the county of his or
3her residence for a hearing upon such denial, revocation, or
4seizure.
5    (b) At least 30 days before any hearing in the circuit
6court, the petitioner shall serve the relevant State's
7Attorney with a copy of the petition. The State's Attorney may
8object to the petition and present evidence. At the hearing
9the court shall determine whether substantial justice has been
10done. Should the court determine that substantial justice has
11not been done, the court shall issue an order directing the
12Department of State Police to issue a Card. However, the court
13shall not issue the order if the petitioner is otherwise
14prohibited from obtaining, possessing, or using a firearm
15under federal law.
16    (c) Any person prohibited from possessing a firearm under
17Sections 24-1.1 or 24-3.1 of the Criminal Code of 2012 or
18acquiring a Firearm Owner's Identification Card under Section
198 of this Act may apply to the Director of State Police or
20petition the circuit court in the county where the petitioner
21resides, whichever is applicable in accordance with subsection
22(a) of this Section, requesting relief from such prohibition
23and the Director or court may grant such relief if it is
24established by the applicant to the court's or Director's
25satisfaction that:
26        (0.05) when in the circuit court, the State's Attorney

 

 

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1    has been served with a written copy of the petition at
2    least 30 days before any such hearing in the circuit court
3    and at the hearing the State's Attorney was afforded an
4    opportunity to present evidence and object to the
5    petition;
6        (1) the applicant has not been convicted of a forcible
7    felony under the laws of this State or any other
8    jurisdiction within 20 years of the applicant's
9    application for a Firearm Owner's Identification Card, or
10    at least 20 years have passed since the end of any period
11    of imprisonment imposed in relation to that conviction;
12        (2) the circumstances regarding a criminal conviction,
13    where applicable, the applicant's criminal history and his
14    reputation are such that the applicant will not be likely
15    to act in a manner dangerous to public safety;
16        (3) granting relief would not be contrary to the
17    public interest; and
18        (4) granting relief would not be contrary to federal
19    law. Notwithstanding any prohibitions on such relief in
20    this paragraph (4), the Director, or circuit court as
21    provided in subsection (a), may grant relief when the
22    federal prohibition on possession of firearms is
23    predicated solely on a provision of the Criminal Code of
24    2012, including, but not limited to, subsection (a) of
25    Section 24-1.1 of that Code, that would no longer apply to
26    the applicant upon granting of relief under this Section.

 

 

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1    (c-5) (1) An active law enforcement officer employed by a
2unit of government, who is denied, revoked, or has his or her
3Firearm Owner's Identification Card seized under subsection
4(e) of Section 8 of this Act may apply to the Director of State
5Police requesting relief if the officer did not act in a manner
6threatening to the officer, another person, or the public as
7determined by the treating clinical psychologist or physician,
8and as a result of his or her work is referred by the employer
9for or voluntarily seeks mental health evaluation or treatment
10by a licensed clinical psychologist, psychiatrist, or
11qualified examiner, and:
12        (A) the officer has not received treatment
13    involuntarily at a mental health facility, regardless of
14    the length of admission; or has not been voluntarily
15    admitted to a mental health facility for more than 30 days
16    and not for more than one incident within the past 5 years;
17    and
18        (B) the officer has not left the mental institution
19    against medical advice.
20    (2) The Director of State Police shall grant expedited
21relief to active law enforcement officers described in
22paragraph (1) of this subsection (c-5) upon a determination by
23the Director that the officer's possession of a firearm does
24not present a threat to themselves, others, or public safety.
25The Director shall act on the request for relief within 30
26business days of receipt of:

 

 

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1        (A) a notarized statement from the officer in the form
2    prescribed by the Director detailing the circumstances
3    that led to the hospitalization;
4        (B) all documentation regarding the admission,
5    evaluation, treatment and discharge from the treating
6    licensed clinical psychologist or psychiatrist of the
7    officer;
8        (C) a psychological fitness for duty evaluation of the
9    person completed after the time of discharge; and
10        (D) written confirmation in the form prescribed by the
11    Director from the treating licensed clinical psychologist
12    or psychiatrist that the provisions set forth in paragraph
13    (1) of this subsection (c-5) have been met, the person
14    successfully completed treatment, and their professional
15    opinion regarding the person's ability to possess
16    firearms.
17    (3) Officers eligible for the expedited relief in
18paragraph (2) of this subsection (c-5) have the burden of
19proof on eligibility and must provide all information
20required. The Director may not consider granting expedited
21relief until the proof and information is received.
22    (4) "Clinical psychologist", "psychiatrist", and
23"qualified examiner" shall have the same meaning as provided
24in Chapter I of the Mental Health and Developmental
25Disabilities Code.
26    (c-10) (1) An applicant, who is denied, revoked, or has

 

 

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1his or her Firearm Owner's Identification Card seized under
2subsection (e) of Section 8 of this Act based upon a
3determination of a developmental disability or an intellectual
4disability may apply to the Director of State Police
5requesting relief.
6    (2) The Director shall act on the request for relief
7within 60 business days of receipt of written certification,
8in the form prescribed by the Director, from a physician or
9clinical psychologist, or qualified examiner, that the
10aggrieved party's developmental disability or intellectual
11disability condition is determined by a physician, clinical
12psychologist, or qualified to be mild. If a fact-finding
13conference is scheduled to obtain additional information
14concerning the circumstances of the denial or revocation, the
1560 business days the Director has to act shall be tolled until
16the completion of the fact-finding conference.
17    (3) The Director may grant relief if the aggrieved party's
18developmental disability or intellectual disability is mild as
19determined by a physician, clinical psychologist, or qualified
20examiner and it is established by the applicant to the
21Director's satisfaction that:
22        (A) granting relief would not be contrary to the
23    public interest; and
24        (B) granting relief would not be contrary to federal
25    law.
26    (4) The Director may not grant relief if the condition is

 

 

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1determined by a physician, clinical psychologist, or qualified
2examiner to be moderate, severe, or profound.
3    (5) The changes made to this Section by this amendatory
4Act of the 99th General Assembly apply to requests for relief
5pending on or before the effective date of this amendatory
6Act, except that the 60-day period for the Director to act on
7requests pending before the effective date shall begin on the
8effective date of this amendatory Act.
9    (d) When a minor is adjudicated delinquent for an offense
10which if committed by an adult would be a felony, the court
11shall notify the Department of State Police.
12    (e) The court shall review the denial of an application or
13the revocation of a Firearm Owner's Identification Card of a
14person who has been adjudicated delinquent for an offense that
15if committed by an adult would be a felony if an application
16for relief has been filed at least 10 years after the
17adjudication of delinquency and the court determines that the
18applicant should be granted relief from disability to obtain a
19Firearm Owner's Identification Card. If the court grants
20relief, the court shall notify the Department of State Police
21that the disability has been removed and that the applicant is
22eligible to obtain a Firearm Owner's Identification Card.
23    (f) Any person who is subject to the disabilities of 18
24U.S.C. 922(d)(4) and 922(g)(4) of the federal Gun Control Act
25of 1968 because of an adjudication or commitment that occurred
26under the laws of this State or who was determined to be

 

 

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1subject to the provisions of subsections (e), (f), or (g) of
2Section 8 of this Act may apply to the Department of State
3Police requesting relief from that prohibition. The Director
4shall grant the relief if it is established by a preponderance
5of the evidence that the person will not be likely to act in a
6manner dangerous to public safety and that granting relief
7would not be contrary to the public interest. In making this
8determination, the Director shall receive evidence concerning
9(i) the circumstances regarding the firearms disabilities from
10which relief is sought; (ii) the petitioner's mental health
11and criminal history records, if any; (iii) the petitioner's
12reputation, developed at a minimum through character witness
13statements, testimony, or other character evidence; and (iv)
14changes in the petitioner's condition or circumstances since
15the disqualifying events relevant to the relief sought. If
16relief is granted under this subsection or by order of a court
17under this Section, the Director shall as soon as practicable
18but in no case later than 15 business days, update, correct,
19modify, or remove the person's record in any database that the
20Department of State Police makes available to the National
21Instant Criminal Background Check System and notify the United
22States Attorney General that the basis for the record being
23made available no longer applies. The Department of State
24Police shall adopt rules for the administration of this
25Section.
26(Source: P.A. 98-63, eff. 7-9-13; 99-29, eff. 7-10-15; 99-78,

 

 

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1eff. 7-20-15.)
 
2    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
3becoming law.