102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB5109

 

Introduced 1/27/2022, by Rep. Curtis J. Tarver, II

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
5 ILCS 140/2  from Ch. 116, par. 202
5 ILCS 140/7  from Ch. 116, par. 207

    Amends the Freedom of Information Act. Provides that "public body" includes judicial bodies of the State. Exempts from disclosure under the Act all records of a judicial body of this State related to court cases and court decision making.


LRB102 24969 HEP 34224 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB5109LRB102 24969 HEP 34224 b

1    AN ACT concerning government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Freedom of Information Act is amended by
5changing Sections 2 and 7 as follows:
 
6    (5 ILCS 140/2)  (from Ch. 116, par. 202)
7    Sec. 2. Definitions. As used in this Act:
8    (a) "Public body" means all judicial, legislative,
9executive, administrative, or advisory bodies of the State,
10state universities and colleges, counties, townships, cities,
11villages, incorporated towns, school districts and all other
12municipal corporations, boards, bureaus, committees, or
13commissions of this State, any subsidiary bodies of any of the
14foregoing including but not limited to committees and
15subcommittees thereof, and a School Finance Authority created
16under Article 1E of the School Code. "Public body" does not
17include a child death review team or the Illinois Child Death
18Review Teams Executive Council established under the Child
19Death Review Team Act, or a regional youth advisory board or
20the Statewide Youth Advisory Board established under the
21Department of Children and Family Services Statewide Youth
22Advisory Board Act.
23    (b) "Person" means any individual, corporation,

 

 

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1partnership, firm, organization or association, acting
2individually or as a group.
3    (c) "Public records" means all records, reports, forms,
4writings, letters, memoranda, books, papers, maps,
5photographs, microfilms, cards, tapes, recordings, electronic
6data processing records, electronic communications, recorded
7information and all other documentary materials pertaining to
8the transaction of public business, regardless of physical
9form or characteristics, having been prepared by or for, or
10having been or being used by, received by, in the possession
11of, or under the control of any public body.
12    (c-5) "Private information" means unique identifiers,
13including a person's social security number, driver's license
14number, employee identification number, biometric identifiers,
15personal financial information, passwords or other access
16codes, medical records, home or personal telephone numbers,
17and personal email addresses. Private information also
18includes home address and personal license plates, except as
19otherwise provided by law or when compiled without possibility
20of attribution to any person.
21    (c-10) "Commercial purpose" means the use of any part of a
22public record or records, or information derived from public
23records, in any form for sale, resale, or solicitation or
24advertisement for sales or services. For purposes of this
25definition, requests made by news media and non-profit,
26scientific, or academic organizations shall not be considered

 

 

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1to be made for a "commercial purpose" when the principal
2purpose of the request is (i) to access and disseminate
3information concerning news and current or passing events,
4(ii) for articles of opinion or features of interest to the
5public, or (iii) for the purpose of academic, scientific, or
6public research or education.
7    (d) "Copying" means the reproduction of any public record
8by means of any photographic, electronic, mechanical or other
9process, device or means now known or hereafter developed and
10available to the public body.
11    (e) "Head of the public body" means the president, mayor,
12chairman, presiding officer, director, superintendent,
13manager, supervisor or individual otherwise holding primary
14executive and administrative authority for the public body, or
15such person's duly authorized designee.
16    (f) "News media" means a newspaper or other periodical
17issued at regular intervals whether in print or electronic
18format, a news service whether in print or electronic format,
19a radio station, a television station, a television network, a
20community antenna television service, or a person or
21corporation engaged in making news reels or other motion
22picture news for public showing.
23    (g) "Recurrent requester", as used in Section 3.2 of this
24Act, means a person that, in the 12 months immediately
25preceding the request, has submitted to the same public body
26(i) a minimum of 50 requests for records, (ii) a minimum of 15

 

 

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1requests for records within a 30-day period, or (iii) a
2minimum of 7 requests for records within a 7-day period. For
3purposes of this definition, requests made by news media and
4non-profit, scientific, or academic organizations shall not be
5considered in calculating the number of requests made in the
6time periods in this definition when the principal purpose of
7the requests is (i) to access and disseminate information
8concerning news and current or passing events, (ii) for
9articles of opinion or features of interest to the public, or
10(iii) for the purpose of academic, scientific, or public
11research or education.
12    For the purposes of this subsection (g), "request" means a
13written document (or oral request, if the public body chooses
14to honor oral requests) that is submitted to a public body via
15personal delivery, mail, telefax, electronic mail, or other
16means available to the public body and that identifies the
17particular public record the requester seeks. One request may
18identify multiple records to be inspected or copied.
19    (h) "Voluminous request" means a request that: (i)
20includes more than 5 individual requests for more than 5
21different categories of records or a combination of individual
22requests that total requests for more than 5 different
23categories of records in a period of 20 business days; or (ii)
24requires the compilation of more than 500 letter or
25legal-sized pages of public records unless a single requested
26record exceeds 500 pages. "Single requested record" may

 

 

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1include, but is not limited to, one report, form, e-mail,
2letter, memorandum, book, map, microfilm, tape, or recording.
3    "Voluminous request" does not include a request made by
4news media and non-profit, scientific, or academic
5organizations if the principal purpose of the request is: (1)
6to access and disseminate information concerning news and
7current or passing events; (2) for articles of opinion or
8features of interest to the public; or (3) for the purpose of
9academic, scientific, or public research or education.
10    For the purposes of this subsection (h), "request" means a
11written document, or oral request, if the public body chooses
12to honor oral requests, that is submitted to a public body via
13personal delivery, mail, telefax, electronic mail, or other
14means available to the public body and that identifies the
15particular public record or records the requester seeks. One
16request may identify multiple individual records to be
17inspected or copied.
18    (i) "Severance agreement" means a mutual agreement between
19any public body and its employee for the employee's
20resignation in exchange for payment by the public body.
21(Source: P.A. 98-806, eff. 1-1-15; 98-1129, eff. 12-3-14;
2299-78, eff. 7-20-15; 99-478, eff. 6-1-16.)
 
23    (5 ILCS 140/7)  (from Ch. 116, par. 207)
24    Sec. 7. Exemptions.
25    (1) When a request is made to inspect or copy a public

 

 

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1record that contains information that is exempt from
2disclosure under this Section, but also contains information
3that is not exempt from disclosure, the public body may elect
4to redact the information that is exempt. The public body
5shall make the remaining information available for inspection
6and copying. Subject to this requirement, the following shall
7be exempt from inspection and copying:
8        (a) Information specifically prohibited from
9    disclosure by federal or State law or rules and
10    regulations implementing federal or State law.
11        (b) Private information, unless disclosure is required
12    by another provision of this Act, a State or federal law or
13    a court order.
14        (b-5) Files, documents, and other data or databases
15    maintained by one or more law enforcement agencies and
16    specifically designed to provide information to one or
17    more law enforcement agencies regarding the physical or
18    mental status of one or more individual subjects.
19        (c) Personal information contained within public
20    records, the disclosure of which would constitute a
21    clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, unless
22    the disclosure is consented to in writing by the
23    individual subjects of the information. "Unwarranted
24    invasion of personal privacy" means the disclosure of
25    information that is highly personal or objectionable to a
26    reasonable person and in which the subject's right to

 

 

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1    privacy outweighs any legitimate public interest in
2    obtaining the information. The disclosure of information
3    that bears on the public duties of public employees and
4    officials shall not be considered an invasion of personal
5    privacy.
6        (d) Records in the possession of any public body
7    created in the course of administrative enforcement
8    proceedings, and any law enforcement or correctional
9    agency for law enforcement purposes, but only to the
10    extent that disclosure would:
11            (i) interfere with pending or actually and
12        reasonably contemplated law enforcement proceedings
13        conducted by any law enforcement or correctional
14        agency that is the recipient of the request;
15            (ii) interfere with active administrative
16        enforcement proceedings conducted by the public body
17        that is the recipient of the request;
18            (iii) create a substantial likelihood that a
19        person will be deprived of a fair trial or an impartial
20        hearing;
21            (iv) unavoidably disclose the identity of a
22        confidential source, confidential information
23        furnished only by the confidential source, or persons
24        who file complaints with or provide information to
25        administrative, investigative, law enforcement, or
26        penal agencies; except that the identities of

 

 

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1        witnesses to traffic accidents, traffic accident
2        reports, and rescue reports shall be provided by
3        agencies of local government, except when disclosure
4        would interfere with an active criminal investigation
5        conducted by the agency that is the recipient of the
6        request;
7            (v) disclose unique or specialized investigative
8        techniques other than those generally used and known
9        or disclose internal documents of correctional
10        agencies related to detection, observation or
11        investigation of incidents of crime or misconduct, and
12        disclosure would result in demonstrable harm to the
13        agency or public body that is the recipient of the
14        request;
15            (vi) endanger the life or physical safety of law
16        enforcement personnel or any other person; or
17            (vii) obstruct an ongoing criminal investigation
18        by the agency that is the recipient of the request.
19        (d-5) A law enforcement record created for law
20    enforcement purposes and contained in a shared electronic
21    record management system if the law enforcement agency
22    that is the recipient of the request did not create the
23    record, did not participate in or have a role in any of the
24    events which are the subject of the record, and only has
25    access to the record through the shared electronic record
26    management system.

 

 

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1        (d-6) Records contained in the Officer Professional
2    Conduct Database under Section 9.2 9.4 of the Illinois
3    Police Training Act, except to the extent authorized under
4    that Section. This includes the documents supplied to the
5    Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board from the
6    Illinois State Police and Illinois State Police Merit
7    Board.
8        (e) Records that relate to or affect the security of
9    correctional institutions and detention facilities.
10        (e-5) Records requested by persons committed to the
11    Department of Corrections, Department of Human Services
12    Division of Mental Health, or a county jail if those
13    materials are available in the library of the correctional
14    institution or facility or jail where the inmate is
15    confined.
16        (e-6) Records requested by persons committed to the
17    Department of Corrections, Department of Human Services
18    Division of Mental Health, or a county jail if those
19    materials include records from staff members' personnel
20    files, staff rosters, or other staffing assignment
21    information.
22        (e-7) Records requested by persons committed to the
23    Department of Corrections or Department of Human Services
24    Division of Mental Health if those materials are available
25    through an administrative request to the Department of
26    Corrections or Department of Human Services Division of

 

 

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1    Mental Health.
2        (e-8) Records requested by a person committed to the
3    Department of Corrections, Department of Human Services
4    Division of Mental Health, or a county jail, the
5    disclosure of which would result in the risk of harm to any
6    person or the risk of an escape from a jail or correctional
7    institution or facility.
8        (e-9) Records requested by a person in a county jail
9    or committed to the Department of Corrections or
10    Department of Human Services Division of Mental Health,
11    containing personal information pertaining to the person's
12    victim or the victim's family, including, but not limited
13    to, a victim's home address, home telephone number, work
14    or school address, work telephone number, social security
15    number, or any other identifying information, except as
16    may be relevant to a requester's current or potential case
17    or claim.
18        (e-10) Law enforcement records of other persons
19    requested by a person committed to the Department of
20    Corrections, Department of Human Services Division of
21    Mental Health, or a county jail, including, but not
22    limited to, arrest and booking records, mug shots, and
23    crime scene photographs, except as these records may be
24    relevant to the requester's current or potential case or
25    claim.
26        (f) Preliminary drafts, notes, recommendations,

 

 

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1    memoranda and other records in which opinions are
2    expressed, or policies or actions are formulated, except
3    that a specific record or relevant portion of a record
4    shall not be exempt when the record is publicly cited and
5    identified by the head of the public body. The exemption
6    provided in this paragraph (f) extends to all those
7    records of officers and agencies of the General Assembly
8    that pertain to the preparation of legislative documents.
9        (g) Trade secrets and commercial or financial
10    information obtained from a person or business where the
11    trade secrets or commercial or financial information are
12    furnished under a claim that they are proprietary,
13    privileged, or confidential, and that disclosure of the
14    trade secrets or commercial or financial information would
15    cause competitive harm to the person or business, and only
16    insofar as the claim directly applies to the records
17    requested.
18        The information included under this exemption includes
19    all trade secrets and commercial or financial information
20    obtained by a public body, including a public pension
21    fund, from a private equity fund or a privately held
22    company within the investment portfolio of a private
23    equity fund as a result of either investing or evaluating
24    a potential investment of public funds in a private equity
25    fund. The exemption contained in this item does not apply
26    to the aggregate financial performance information of a

 

 

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1    private equity fund, nor to the identity of the fund's
2    managers or general partners. The exemption contained in
3    this item does not apply to the identity of a privately
4    held company within the investment portfolio of a private
5    equity fund, unless the disclosure of the identity of a
6    privately held company may cause competitive harm.
7        Nothing contained in this paragraph (g) shall be
8    construed to prevent a person or business from consenting
9    to disclosure.
10        (h) Proposals and bids for any contract, grant, or
11    agreement, including information which if it were
12    disclosed would frustrate procurement or give an advantage
13    to any person proposing to enter into a contractor
14    agreement with the body, until an award or final selection
15    is made. Information prepared by or for the body in
16    preparation of a bid solicitation shall be exempt until an
17    award or final selection is made.
18        (i) Valuable formulae, computer geographic systems,
19    designs, drawings and research data obtained or produced
20    by any public body when disclosure could reasonably be
21    expected to produce private gain or public loss. The
22    exemption for "computer geographic systems" provided in
23    this paragraph (i) does not extend to requests made by
24    news media as defined in Section 2 of this Act when the
25    requested information is not otherwise exempt and the only
26    purpose of the request is to access and disseminate

 

 

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1    information regarding the health, safety, welfare, or
2    legal rights of the general public.
3        (j) The following information pertaining to
4    educational matters:
5            (i) test questions, scoring keys and other
6        examination data used to administer an academic
7        examination;
8            (ii) information received by a primary or
9        secondary school, college, or university under its
10        procedures for the evaluation of faculty members by
11        their academic peers;
12            (iii) information concerning a school or
13        university's adjudication of student disciplinary
14        cases, but only to the extent that disclosure would
15        unavoidably reveal the identity of the student; and
16            (iv) course materials or research materials used
17        by faculty members.
18        (k) Architects' plans, engineers' technical
19    submissions, and other construction related technical
20    documents for projects not constructed or developed in
21    whole or in part with public funds and the same for
22    projects constructed or developed with public funds,
23    including, but not limited to, power generating and
24    distribution stations and other transmission and
25    distribution facilities, water treatment facilities,
26    airport facilities, sport stadiums, convention centers,

 

 

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1    and all government owned, operated, or occupied buildings,
2    but only to the extent that disclosure would compromise
3    security.
4        (l) Minutes of meetings of public bodies closed to the
5    public as provided in the Open Meetings Act until the
6    public body makes the minutes available to the public
7    under Section 2.06 of the Open Meetings Act.
8        (m) Communications between a public body and an
9    attorney or auditor representing the public body that
10    would not be subject to discovery in litigation, and
11    materials prepared or compiled by or for a public body in
12    anticipation of a criminal, civil, or administrative
13    proceeding upon the request of an attorney advising the
14    public body, and materials prepared or compiled with
15    respect to internal audits of public bodies.
16        (n) Records relating to a public body's adjudication
17    of employee grievances or disciplinary cases; however,
18    this exemption shall not extend to the final outcome of
19    cases in which discipline is imposed.
20        (o) Administrative or technical information associated
21    with automated data processing operations, including, but
22    not limited to, software, operating protocols, computer
23    program abstracts, file layouts, source listings, object
24    modules, load modules, user guides, documentation
25    pertaining to all logical and physical design of
26    computerized systems, employee manuals, and any other

 

 

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1    information that, if disclosed, would jeopardize the
2    security of the system or its data or the security of
3    materials exempt under this Section.
4        (p) Records relating to collective negotiating matters
5    between public bodies and their employees or
6    representatives, except that any final contract or
7    agreement shall be subject to inspection and copying.
8        (q) Test questions, scoring keys, and other
9    examination data used to determine the qualifications of
10    an applicant for a license or employment.
11        (r) The records, documents, and information relating
12    to real estate purchase negotiations until those
13    negotiations have been completed or otherwise terminated.
14    With regard to a parcel involved in a pending or actually
15    and reasonably contemplated eminent domain proceeding
16    under the Eminent Domain Act, records, documents, and
17    information relating to that parcel shall be exempt except
18    as may be allowed under discovery rules adopted by the
19    Illinois Supreme Court. The records, documents, and
20    information relating to a real estate sale shall be exempt
21    until a sale is consummated.
22        (s) Any and all proprietary information and records
23    related to the operation of an intergovernmental risk
24    management association or self-insurance pool or jointly
25    self-administered health and accident cooperative or pool.
26    Insurance or self insurance (including any

 

 

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1    intergovernmental risk management association or self
2    insurance pool) claims, loss or risk management
3    information, records, data, advice or communications.
4        (t) Information contained in or related to
5    examination, operating, or condition reports prepared by,
6    on behalf of, or for the use of a public body responsible
7    for the regulation or supervision of financial
8    institutions, insurance companies, or pharmacy benefit
9    managers, unless disclosure is otherwise required by State
10    law.
11        (u) Information that would disclose or might lead to
12    the disclosure of secret or confidential information,
13    codes, algorithms, programs, or private keys intended to
14    be used to create electronic signatures under the Uniform
15    Electronic Transactions Act.
16        (v) Vulnerability assessments, security measures, and
17    response policies or plans that are designed to identify,
18    prevent, or respond to potential attacks upon a
19    community's population or systems, facilities, or
20    installations, the destruction or contamination of which
21    would constitute a clear and present danger to the health
22    or safety of the community, but only to the extent that
23    disclosure could reasonably be expected to jeopardize the
24    effectiveness of the measures or the safety of the
25    personnel who implement them or the public. Information
26    exempt under this item may include such things as details

 

 

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1    pertaining to the mobilization or deployment of personnel
2    or equipment, to the operation of communication systems or
3    protocols, or to tactical operations.
4        (w) (Blank).
5        (x) Maps and other records regarding the location or
6    security of generation, transmission, distribution,
7    storage, gathering, treatment, or switching facilities
8    owned by a utility, by a power generator, or by the
9    Illinois Power Agency.
10        (y) Information contained in or related to proposals,
11    bids, or negotiations related to electric power
12    procurement under Section 1-75 of the Illinois Power
13    Agency Act and Section 16-111.5 of the Public Utilities
14    Act that is determined to be confidential and proprietary
15    by the Illinois Power Agency or by the Illinois Commerce
16    Commission.
17        (z) Information about students exempted from
18    disclosure under Sections 10-20.38 or 34-18.29 of the
19    School Code, and information about undergraduate students
20    enrolled at an institution of higher education exempted
21    from disclosure under Section 25 of the Illinois Credit
22    Card Marketing Act of 2009.
23        (aa) Information the disclosure of which is exempted
24    under the Viatical Settlements Act of 2009.
25        (bb) Records and information provided to a mortality
26    review team and records maintained by a mortality review

 

 

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1    team appointed under the Department of Juvenile Justice
2    Mortality Review Team Act.
3        (cc) Information regarding interments, entombments, or
4    inurnments of human remains that are submitted to the
5    Cemetery Oversight Database under the Cemetery Care Act or
6    the Cemetery Oversight Act, whichever is applicable.
7        (dd) Correspondence and records (i) that may not be
8    disclosed under Section 11-9 of the Illinois Public Aid
9    Code or (ii) that pertain to appeals under Section 11-8 of
10    the Illinois Public Aid Code.
11        (ee) The names, addresses, or other personal
12    information of persons who are minors and are also
13    participants and registrants in programs of park
14    districts, forest preserve districts, conservation
15    districts, recreation agencies, and special recreation
16    associations.
17        (ff) The names, addresses, or other personal
18    information of participants and registrants in programs of
19    park districts, forest preserve districts, conservation
20    districts, recreation agencies, and special recreation
21    associations where such programs are targeted primarily to
22    minors.
23        (gg) Confidential information described in Section
24    1-100 of the Illinois Independent Tax Tribunal Act of
25    2012.
26        (hh) The report submitted to the State Board of

 

 

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1    Education by the School Security and Standards Task Force
2    under item (8) of subsection (d) of Section 2-3.160 of the
3    School Code and any information contained in that report.
4        (ii) Records requested by persons committed to or
5    detained by the Department of Human Services under the
6    Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act or committed to
7    the Department of Corrections under the Sexually Dangerous
8    Persons Act if those materials: (i) are available in the
9    library of the facility where the individual is confined;
10    (ii) include records from staff members' personnel files,
11    staff rosters, or other staffing assignment information;
12    or (iii) are available through an administrative request
13    to the Department of Human Services or the Department of
14    Corrections.
15        (jj) Confidential information described in Section
16    5-535 of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois.
17        (kk) The public body's credit card numbers, debit card
18    numbers, bank account numbers, Federal Employer
19    Identification Number, security code numbers, passwords,
20    and similar account information, the disclosure of which
21    could result in identity theft or impression or defrauding
22    of a governmental entity or a person.
23        (ll) Records concerning the work of the threat
24    assessment team of a school district.
25        (mm) All records of a judicial body of this State
26    related to court cases and court decision making.

 

 

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1    (1.5) Any information exempt from disclosure under the
2Judicial Privacy Act shall be redacted from public records
3prior to disclosure under this Act.
4    (2) A public record that is not in the possession of a
5public body but is in the possession of a party with whom the
6agency has contracted to perform a governmental function on
7behalf of the public body, and that directly relates to the
8governmental function and is not otherwise exempt under this
9Act, shall be considered a public record of the public body,
10for purposes of this Act.
11    (3) This Section does not authorize withholding of
12information or limit the availability of records to the
13public, except as stated in this Section or otherwise provided
14in this Act.
15(Source: P.A. 101-434, eff. 1-1-20; 101-452, eff. 1-1-20;
16101-455, eff. 8-23-19; 101-652, eff. 1-1-22; 102-38, eff.
176-25-21; 102-558, eff. 8-20-21; revised 11-22-21.)