Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of Public Act 094-0294
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Public Act 094-0294


 

Public Act 0294 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY



 


 
Public Act 094-0294
 
HB1597 Enrolled LRB094 07702 DRH 37878 b

    AN ACT concerning transportation.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by changing
Sections 6-306.5 and 11-208.3 as follows:
 
    (625 ILCS 5/6-306.5)  (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 6-306.5)
    Sec. 6-306.5. Failure to pay fine or penalty for standing,
parking, or compliance violations; suspension of driving
privileges.
    (a) Upon receipt of a certified report, as prescribed by
subsection (c) of this Section, from any municipality stating
that the owner of a registered vehicle has failed to pay any
fine or penalty due and owing as a result of 10 or more
violations of a municipality's vehicular standing, parking, or
compliance regulations established by ordinance pursuant to
Section 11-208.3 of this Code, the Secretary of State shall
suspend the driving privileges of such person in accordance
with the procedures set forth in this Section. The Secretary
shall also suspend the driving privileges of an owner of a
registered vehicle upon receipt of a certified report, as
prescribed by subsection (f) of this Section, from any
municipality stating that such person has failed to satisfy any
fines or penalties imposed by final judgments for 10 or more
violations of local standing, parking, or compliance
regulations after exhaustion of judicial review procedures.
    (b) Following receipt of the certified report of the
municipality as specified in this Section, the Secretary of
State shall notify the person whose name appears on the
certified report that the person's drivers license will be
suspended at the end of a specified period of time unless the
Secretary of State is presented with a notice from the
municipality certifying that the fine or penalty due and owing
the municipality has been paid or that inclusion of that
person's name on the certified report was in error. The
Secretary's notice shall state in substance the information
contained in the municipality's certified report to the
Secretary, and shall be effective as specified by subsection
(c) of Section 6-211 of this Code.
    (c) The report of the appropriate municipal official
notifying the Secretary of State of unpaid fines or penalties
pursuant to this Section shall be certified and shall contain
the following:
        (1) The name, last known address as recorded with the
    Secretary of State, as provided by the lessor of the cited
    vehicle at the time of lease, or as recorded in a United
    States Post Office approved database if any notice sent
    under Section 11-208.3 of this Code is returned as
    undeliverable, and drivers license number of the person who
    failed to pay the fine or penalty and the registration
    number of any vehicle known to be registered to such person
    in this State.
        (2) The name of the municipality making the report
    pursuant to this Section.
        (3) A statement that the municipality sent a notice of
    impending drivers license suspension as prescribed by
    ordinance enacted pursuant to Section 11-208.3, to the
    person named in the report at the address recorded with the
    Secretary of State or at the last address known to the
    lessor of the cited vehicle at the time of lease or, if any
    notice sent under Section 11-208.3 of this Code is returned
    as undeliverable, at the last known address recorded in a
    United States Post Office approved database; the date on
    which such notice was sent; and the address to which such
    notice was sent. In a municipality with a population of
    1,000,000 or more, the report shall also include a
    statement that the alleged violator's State vehicle
    registration number and vehicle make are correct as they
    appear on the citations.
    (d) Any municipality making a certified report to the
Secretary of State pursuant to this Section shall notify the
Secretary of State, in a form prescribed by the Secretary,
whenever a person named in the certified report has paid the
previously reported fine or penalty or whenever the
municipality determines that the original report was in error.
A certified copy of such notification shall also be given upon
request and at no additional charge to the person named
therein. Upon receipt of the municipality's notification or
presentation of a certified copy of such notification, the
Secretary of State shall terminate the suspension.
    (e) Any municipality making a certified report to the
Secretary of State pursuant to this Section shall also by
ordinance establish procedures for persons to challenge the
accuracy of the certified report. The ordinance shall also
state the grounds for such a challenge, which may be limited to
(1) the person not having been the owner or lessee of the
vehicle or vehicles receiving 10 or more standing, parking, or
compliance violation notices on the date or dates such notices
were issued; and (2) the person having already paid the fine or
penalty for the 10 or more violations indicated on the
certified report.
    (f) Any municipality, other than a municipality
establishing vehicular standing, parking, and compliance
regulations pursuant to Section 11-208.3, may also cause a
suspension of a person's drivers license pursuant to this
Section. Such municipality may invoke this sanction by making a
certified report to the Secretary of State upon a person's
failure to satisfy any fine or penalty imposed by final
judgment for 10 or more violations of local standing, parking,
or compliance regulations after exhaustion of judicial review
procedures, but only if:
        (1) the municipality complies with the provisions of
    this Section in all respects except in regard to enacting
    an ordinance pursuant to Section 11-208.3;
        (2) the municipality has sent a notice of impending
    drivers license suspension as prescribed by an ordinance
    enacted pursuant to subsection (g) of this Section; and
        (3) in municipalities with a population of 1,000,000 or
    more, the municipality has verified that the alleged
    violator's State vehicle registration number and vehicle
    make are correct as they appear on the citations.
    (g) Any municipality, other than a municipality
establishing standing, parking, and compliance regulations
pursuant to Section 11-208.3, may provide by ordinance for the
sending of a notice of impending drivers license suspension to
the person who has failed to satisfy any fine or penalty
imposed by final judgment for 10 or more violations of local
standing, parking, or compliance regulations after exhaustion
of judicial review procedures. An ordinance so providing shall
specify that the notice sent to the person liable for any fine
or penalty shall state that failure to pay the fine or penalty
owing within 45 days of the notice's date will result in the
municipality notifying the Secretary of State that the person's
drivers license is eligible for suspension pursuant to this
Section. The notice of impending drivers license suspension
shall be sent by first class United States mail, postage
prepaid, to the address recorded with the Secretary of State or
at the last address known to the lessor of the cited vehicle at
the time of lease or, if any notice sent under Section 11-208.3
of this Code is returned as undeliverable, to the last known
address recorded in a United States Post Office approved
database.
    (h) An administrative hearing to contest an impending
suspension or a suspension made pursuant to this Section may be
had upon filing a written request with the Secretary of State.
The filing fee for this hearing shall be $20, to be paid at the
time the request is made. A municipality which files a
certified report with the Secretary of State pursuant to this
Section shall reimburse the Secretary for all reasonable costs
incurred by the Secretary as a result of the filing of the
report, including but not limited to the costs of providing the
notice required pursuant to subsection (b) and the costs
incurred by the Secretary in any hearing conducted with respect
to the report pursuant to this subsection and any appeal from
such a hearing.
    (i) The provisions of this Section shall apply on and after
January 1, 1988.
    (j) For purposes of this Section, the term "compliance
violation" is defined as in Section 11-208.3.
(Source: P.A. 89-190, eff. 1-1-96; 90-145, eff. 1-1-98; 90-481,
eff. 8-17-97.)
 
    (625 ILCS 5/11-208.3)  (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 11-208.3)
    Sec. 11-208.3. Administrative adjudication of violations
of traffic regulations concerning the standing, parking, or
condition of vehicles.
    (a) Any municipality may provide by ordinance for a system
of administrative adjudication of vehicular standing and
parking violations and vehicle compliance violations as
defined in this subsection. The administrative system shall
have as its purpose the fair and efficient enforcement of
municipal regulations through the administrative adjudication
of violations of municipal ordinances regulating the standing
and parking of vehicles, the condition and use of vehicle
equipment, and the display of municipal wheel tax licenses
within the municipality's borders. The administrative system
shall only have authority to adjudicate civil offenses carrying
fines not in excess of $250 that occur after the effective date
of the ordinance adopting such a system under this Section. For
purposes of this Section, "compliance violation" means a
violation of a municipal regulation governing the condition or
use of equipment on a vehicle or governing the display of a
municipal wheel tax license.
    (b) Any ordinance establishing a system of administrative
adjudication under this Section shall provide for:
        (1) A traffic compliance administrator authorized to
    adopt, distribute and process parking and compliance
    violation notices and other notices required by this
    Section, collect money paid as fines and penalties for
    violation of parking and compliance ordinances, and
    operate an administrative adjudication system. The traffic
    compliance administrator also may make a certified report
    to the Secretary of State under Section 6-306.5.
        (2) A parking, standing, or compliance violation
    notice that shall specify the date, time, and place of
    violation of a parking, standing, or compliance
    regulation; the particular regulation violated; the fine
    and any penalty that may be assessed for late payment, when
    so provided by ordinance; the vehicle make and state
    registration number; and the identification number of the
    person issuing the notice. With regard to municipalities
    with a population of 1 million or more, it shall be grounds
    for dismissal of a parking violation if the State
    registration number or vehicle make specified is
    incorrect. The violation notice shall state that the
    payment of the indicated fine, and of any applicable
    penalty for late payment, shall operate as a final
    disposition of the violation. The notice also shall contain
    information as to the availability of a hearing in which
    the violation may be contested on its merits. The violation
    notice shall specify the time and manner in which a hearing
    may be had.
        (3) Service of the parking, standing, or compliance
    violation notice by affixing the original or a facsimile of
    the notice to an unlawfully parked vehicle or by handing
    the notice to the operator of a vehicle if he or she is
    present. A person authorized by ordinance to issue and
    serve parking, standing, and compliance violation notices
    shall certify as to the correctness of the facts entered on
    the violation notice by signing his or her name to the
    notice at the time of service or in the case of a notice
    produced by a computerized device, by signing a single
    certificate to be kept by the traffic compliance
    administrator attesting to the correctness of all notices
    produced by the device while it was under his or her
    control. The original or a facsimile of the violation
    notice or, in the case of a notice produced by a
    computerized device, a printed record generated by the
    device showing the facts entered on the notice, shall be
    retained by the traffic compliance administrator, and
    shall be a record kept in the ordinary course of business.
    A parking, standing, or compliance violation notice
    issued, signed and served in accordance with this Section,
    a copy of the notice, or the computer generated record
    shall be prima facie correct and shall be prima facie
    evidence of the correctness of the facts shown on the
    notice. The notice, copy, or computer generated record
    shall be admissible in any subsequent administrative or
    legal proceedings.
        (4) An opportunity for a hearing for the registered
    owner of the vehicle cited in the parking, standing, or
    compliance violation notice in which the owner may contest
    the merits of the alleged violation, and during which
    formal or technical rules of evidence shall not apply;
    provided, however, that under Section 11-1306 of this Code
    the lessee of a vehicle cited in the violation notice
    likewise shall be provided an opportunity for a hearing of
    the same kind afforded the registered owner. The hearings
    shall be recorded, and the person conducting the hearing on
    behalf of the traffic compliance administrator shall be
    empowered to administer oaths and to secure by subpoena
    both the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the
    production of relevant books and papers. Persons appearing
    at a hearing under this Section may be represented by
    counsel at their expense. The ordinance may also provide
    for internal administrative review following the decision
    of the hearing officer.
        (5) Service of additional notices, sent by first class
    United States mail, postage prepaid, to the address of the
    registered owner of the cited vehicle as recorded with the
    Secretary of State or, if any notice to that address is
    returned as undeliverable, to the last known address
    recorded in a United States Post Office approved database,
    or, under Section 11-1306 of this Code, to the lessee of
    the cited vehicle at the last address known to the lessor
    of the cited vehicle at the time of lease or, if any notice
    to that address is returned as undeliverable, to the last
    known address recorded in a United States Post Office
    approved database. The service shall be deemed complete as
    of the date of deposit in the United States mail. The
    notices shall be in the following sequence and shall
    include but not be limited to the information specified
    herein:
            (i) A second notice of violation. This notice shall
        specify the date and location of the violation cited in
        the parking, standing, or compliance violation notice,
        the particular regulation violated, the vehicle make
        and state registration number, the fine and any penalty
        that may be assessed for late payment when so provided
        by ordinance, the availability of a hearing in which
        the violation may be contested on its merits, and the
        time and manner in which the hearing may be had. The
        notice of violation shall also state that failure
        either to pay the indicated fine and any applicable
        penalty, or to appear at a hearing on the merits in the
        time and manner specified, will result in a final
        determination of violation liability for the cited
        violation in the amount of the fine or penalty
        indicated, and that, upon the occurrence of a final
        determination of violation liability for the failure,
        and the exhaustion of, or failure to exhaust, available
        administrative or judicial procedures for review, any
        unpaid fine or penalty will constitute a debt due and
        owing the municipality.
            (ii) A notice of final determination of parking,
        standing, or compliance violation liability. This
        notice shall be sent following a final determination of
        parking, standing, or compliance violation liability
        and the conclusion of judicial review procedures taken
        under this Section. The notice shall state that the
        unpaid fine or penalty is a debt due and owing the
        municipality. The notice shall contain warnings that
        failure to pay any fine or penalty due and owing the
        municipality within the time specified may result in
        the municipality's filing of a petition in the Circuit
        Court to have the unpaid fine or penalty rendered a
        judgment as provided by this Section, or may result in
        suspension of the person's drivers license for failure
        to pay fines or penalties for 10 or more parking
        violations under Section 6-306.5.
        (6) A Notice of impending drivers license suspension.
    This notice shall be sent to the person liable for any fine
    or penalty that remains due and owing on 10 or more parking
    violations. The notice shall state that failure to pay the
    fine or penalty owing within 45 days of the notice's date
    will result in the municipality notifying the Secretary of
    State that the person is eligible for initiation of
    suspension proceedings under Section 6-306.5 of this Code.
    The notice shall also state that the person may obtain a
    photostatic copy of an original ticket imposing a fine or
    penalty by sending a self addressed, stamped envelope to
    the municipality along with a request for the photostatic
    copy. The notice of impending drivers license suspension
    shall be sent by first class United States mail, postage
    prepaid, to the address recorded with the Secretary of
    State or, if any notice to that address is returned as
    undeliverable, to the last known address recorded in a
    United States Post Office approved database.
        (7) Final determinations of violation liability. A
    final determination of violation liability shall occur
    following failure to pay the fine or penalty after a
    hearing officer's determination of violation liability and
    the exhaustion of or failure to exhaust any administrative
    review procedures provided by ordinance. Where a person
    fails to appear at a hearing to contest the alleged
    violation in the time and manner specified in a prior
    mailed notice, the hearing officer's determination of
    violation liability shall become final: (A) upon denial of
    a timely petition to set aside that determination, or (B)
    upon expiration of the period for filing the petition
    without a filing having been made.
        (8) A petition to set aside a determination of parking,
    standing, or compliance violation liability that may be
    filed by a person owing an unpaid fine or penalty. The
    petition shall be filed with and ruled upon by the traffic
    compliance administrator in the manner and within the time
    specified by ordinance. The grounds for the petition may be
    limited to: (A) the person not having been the owner or
    lessee of the cited vehicle on the date the violation
    notice was issued, (B) the person having already paid the
    fine or penalty for the violation in question, and (C)
    excusable failure to appear at or request a new date for a
    hearing. With regard to municipalities with a population of
    1 million or more, it shall be grounds for dismissal of a
    parking violation if the State registration number or
    vehicle make specified is incorrect. After the
    determination of parking, standing, or compliance
    violation liability has been set aside upon a showing of
    just cause, the registered owner shall be provided with a
    hearing on the merits for that violation.
        (9) Procedures for non-residents. Procedures by which
    persons who are not residents of the municipality may
    contest the merits of the alleged violation without
    attending a hearing.
        (10) A schedule of civil fines for violations of
    vehicular standing, parking, and compliance regulations
    enacted by ordinance pursuant to this Section, and a
    schedule of penalties for late payment of the fines,
    provided, however, that the total amount of the fine and
    penalty for any one violation shall not exceed $250.
        (11) Other provisions as are necessary and proper to
    carry into effect the powers granted and purposes stated in
    this Section.
    (c) Any municipality establishing vehicular standing,
parking, and compliance regulations under this Section may also
provide by ordinance for a program of vehicle immobilization
for the purpose of facilitating enforcement of those
regulations. The program of vehicle immobilization shall
provide for immobilizing any eligible vehicle upon the public
way by presence of a restraint in a manner to prevent operation
of the vehicle. Any ordinance establishing a program of vehicle
immobilization under this Section shall provide:
        (1) Criteria for the designation of vehicles eligible
    for immobilization. A vehicle shall be eligible for
    immobilization when the registered owner of the vehicle has
    accumulated the number of unpaid final determinations of
    parking, standing, or compliance violation liability as
    determined by ordinance.
        (2) A notice of impending vehicle immobilization and a
    right to a hearing to challenge the validity of the notice
    by disproving liability for the unpaid final
    determinations of parking, standing, or compliance
    violation liability listed on the notice.
        (3) The right to a prompt hearing after a vehicle has
    been immobilized or subsequently towed without payment of
    the outstanding fines and penalties on parking, standing,
    or compliance violations for which final determinations
    have been issued. An order issued after the hearing is a
    final administrative decision within the meaning of
    Section 3-101 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
        (4) A post immobilization and post-towing notice
    advising the registered owner of the vehicle of the right
    to a hearing to challenge the validity of the impoundment.
    (d) Judicial review of final determinations of parking,
standing, and compliance violations and final administrative
decisions issued after hearings regarding vehicle
immobilization and impoundment made under this Section shall be
subject to the provisions of the Administrative Review Law.
    (e) Any fine, penalty, or part of any fine or any penalty
remaining unpaid after the exhaustion of, or the failure to
exhaust, administrative remedies created under this Section
and the conclusion of any judicial review procedures shall be a
debt due and owing the municipality and, as such, may be
collected in accordance with applicable law. Payment in full of
any fine or penalty resulting from a standing, parking, or
compliance violation shall constitute a final disposition of
that violation.
    (f) After the expiration of the period within which
judicial review may be sought for a final determination of
parking, standing, or compliance violation, the municipality
may commence a proceeding in the Circuit Court for purposes of
obtaining a judgment on the final determination of violation.
Nothing in this Section shall prevent a municipality from
consolidating multiple final determinations of parking,
standing, or compliance violation against a person in a
proceeding. Upon commencement of the action, the municipality
shall file a certified copy or record of the final
determination of parking, standing, or compliance violation,
which shall be accompanied by a certification that recites
facts sufficient to show that the final determination of
violation was issued in accordance with this Section and the
applicable municipal ordinance. Service of the summons and a
copy of the petition may be by any method provided by Section
2-203 of the Code of Civil Procedure or by certified mail,
return receipt requested, provided that the total amount of
fines and penalties for final determinations of parking,
standing, or compliance violations does not exceed $2500. If
the court is satisfied that the final determination of parking,
standing, or compliance violation was entered in accordance
with the requirements of this Section and the applicable
municipal ordinance, and that the registered owner or the
lessee, as the case may be, had an opportunity for an
administrative hearing and for judicial review as provided in
this Section, the court shall render judgment in favor of the
municipality and against the registered owner or the lessee for
the amount indicated in the final determination of parking,
standing, or compliance violation, plus costs. The judgment
shall have the same effect and may be enforced in the same
manner as other judgments for the recovery of money.
(Source: P.A. 92-695, eff. 1-1-03.)

Effective Date: 1/1/2006