Public Act 095-0128
 
HB0742 Enrolled LRB095 07030 AJO 27152 b

    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Whistleblower Act is amended by changing
Sections 5 and 15 and by adding Section 40 as follows:
 
    (740 ILCS 174/5)
    Sec. 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:
    "Employer" means: an individual, sole proprietorship,
partnership, firm, corporation, association, and any other
entity that has one or more employees in this State, including
a political subdivision of the State; a unit of local
government; a school district, combination of school
districts, or governing body of a joint agreement of any type
formed by two or more school districts; a community college
district, State college or university, or any State agency
whose major function is providing educational services; any
authority including a department, division, bureau, board,
commission, or other agency of these entities; and any person
acting within the scope of his or her authority express or
implied on behalf of those entities in dealing with its
employees except that "employer" does not include any
governmental entity.
    "Employee" means any individual who is employed on a
full-time, part-time, or contractual basis by an employer.
(Source: P.A. 93-544, eff. 1-1-04.)
 
    (740 ILCS 174/15)
    Sec. 15. Retaliation for certain disclosures prohibited.
    (a) An employer may not retaliate against an employee who
discloses information in a court, an administrative hearing, or
before a legislative commission or committee, or in any other
proceeding, where the employee has reasonable cause to believe
that the information discloses a violation of a State or
federal law, rule, or regulation.
    (b) An employer may not retaliate against an employee for
disclosing information to a government or law enforcement
agency, where the employee has reasonable cause to believe that
the information discloses a violation of a State or federal
law, rule, or regulation.
(Source: P.A. 93-544, eff. 1-1-04.)
 
    (740 ILCS 174/40 new)
    Sec. 40. Home Rule Limitation. It is the public policy of
this State, pursuant to paragraphs (h) and (i) of Section 6 of
Article VII of the Illinois Constitution that the provisions of
this Act are the exclusive exercise by the State of powers and
functions which might otherwise be exercised by other home rule
units. Such powers and functions may not be exercised
concurrently, either directly or indirectly by any unit of
local government, including any home rule unit except as
otherwise authorized by this Act.
 
    Section 10. The Whistleblower Reward and Protection Act is
amended by changing Sections 2 and 3 as follows:
 
    (740 ILCS 175/2)  (from Ch. 127, par. 4102)
    Sec. 2. Definitions. As used in this Act:
    (a) "State" means the State of Illinois; any agency of
State government; the system of State colleges and
universities, any school district, community college district,
county, municipality, municipal corporation, unit of local
government, and any combination of the above under an
intergovernmental agreement that includes provisions for a
governing body of the agency created by the agreement. and any
of the following entities which may elect to adopt the
provisions of this Act by ordinance or resolution, a copy of
which shall be filed with the Attorney General within 30 days
of its adoption: the system of State colleges and universities,
any school district, any public community college district, any
municipality, municipal corporations, units of local
government, and any combination of the above under an
intergovernmental agreement that includes provisions for a
governing body of the agency created by the agreement.
    (b) "Guard" means the Illinois National Guard.
    (c) "Investigation" means any inquiry conducted by any
investigator for the purpose of ascertaining whether any person
is or has been engaged in any violation of this Act.
    (d) "Investigator" means a person who is charged by the
Department of State Police with the duty of conducting any
investigation under this Act, or any officer or employee of the
State acting under the direction and supervision of the
Department of State Police, through the Division of Operations
or the Division of Internal Investigation, in the course of an
investigation.
    (e) "Documentary material" includes the original or any
copy of any book, record, report, memorandum, paper,
communication, tabulation, chart, or other document, or data
compilations stored in or accessible through computer or other
information retrieval systems, together with instructions and
all other materials necessary to use or interpret such data
compilations, and any product of discovery.
    (f) "Custodian" means the custodian, or any deputy
custodian, designated by the Attorney General under subsection
(i)(1) of Section 6.
    (g) "Product of discovery" includes:
        (1) the original or duplicate of any deposition,
    interrogatory, document, thing, result of the inspection
    of land or other property, examination, or admission, which
    is obtained by any method of discovery in any judicial or
    administrative proceeding of an adversarial nature;
        (2) any digest, analysis, selection, compilation, or
    derivation of any item listed in paragraph (1); and
        (3) any index or other manner of access to any item
    listed in paragraph (1).
(Source: P.A. 91-760, eff. 1-1-01.)
 
    (740 ILCS 175/3)  (from Ch. 127, par. 4103)
    Sec. 3. False claims.
    (a) Liability for certain acts. Any person who:
        (1) knowingly presents, or causes to be presented, to
    an officer or employee of the State or a member of the
    Guard a false or fraudulent claim for payment or approval;
        (2) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or
    used, a false record or statement to get a false or
    fraudulent claim paid or approved by the State;
        (3) conspires to defraud the State by getting a false
    or fraudulent claim allowed or paid;
        (4) has possession, custody, or control of property or
    money used, or to be used, by the State and, intending to
    defraud the State or willfully to conceal the property,
    delivers, or causes to be delivered, less property than the
    amount for which the person receives a certificate or
    receipt;
        (5) authorized to make or deliver a document certifying
    receipt of property used, or to be used, by the State and,
    intending to defraud the State, makes or delivers the
    receipt without completely knowing that the information on
    the receipt is true;
        (6) knowingly buys, or receives as a pledge of an
    obligation or debt, public property from an officer or
    employee of the State, or a member of the Guard, who
    lawfully may not sell or pledge the property; or
        (7) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or
    used, a false record or statement to conceal, avoid or
    decrease an obligation to pay or transmit money or property
    to the State; ,
        (8) knowingly takes adverse employment action against
    an employee for disclosing information to a government or
    law enforcement agency, if the employee has reasonable
    cause to believe that the information discloses a violation
    of State or federal law, rule, or regulation; or
        (9) knowingly retaliates against an employee who has
    disclosed information in a court, an administrative
    hearing, before a legislative commission or committee, or
    in another proceeding and discloses information, if the
    employee has reasonable cause to believe that the
    information discloses a violation of State or federal law,
    rule, or regulation,
is liable to the State for a civil penalty of not less than
$5,500 and not more than $11,000, plus 3 times the amount of
damages which the State sustains because of the act of that
person. A person violating this subsection (a) shall also be
liable to the State for the costs of a civil action brought to
recover any such penalty or damages.
    (b) Knowing and knowingly defined. As used in this Section,
the terms "knowing" and "knowingly" mean that a person, with
respect to information:
        (1) has actual knowledge of the information;
        (2) acts in deliberate ignorance of the truth or
    falsity of the information; or
        (3) acts in reckless disregard of the truth or falsity
    of the information, and no proof of specific intent to
    defraud is required.
    (c) Claim defined. As used in this Section, "claim"
includes any request or demand, whether under a contract or
otherwise, for money or property which is made to a contractor,
grantee, or other recipient if the State provides any portion
of the money or property which is requested or demanded, or if
the State will reimburse such contractor, grantee, or other
recipient for any portion of the money or property which is
requested or demanded. A claim also includes a request or
demand for money damages or injunctive relief on behalf of an
employee who has suffered an adverse employment action taken in
violation of paragraphs (8) or (9) of subsection (a).
    (d) Exclusion. This Section does not apply to claims,
records, or statements made under the Illinois Income Tax Act.
(Source: P.A. 94-1059, eff. 7-31-06.)