Public Act 095-0928
 
SB2489 Enrolled LRB095 16322 WGH 42346 b

    AN ACT concerning certain individuals killed in the line of
duty.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The State Prompt Payment Act is amended by
changing Section 3-1 as follows:
 
    (30 ILCS 540/3-1)  (from Ch. 127, par. 132.403-1)
    Sec. 3-1. The Illinois Court of Claims shall, in its
investigation of payments due claimants, provide for interest
penalties as prescribed in this Act; however, interest
penalties in claims pursuant to the Line of Duty Compensation
Act shall be paid in accordance with subsection (3) of Section
24 of the Court of Claims Act.
(Source: P.A. 87-773; 87-1232.)
 
    Section 10. The Court of Claims Act is amended by changing
Sections 22 and 24 as follows:
 
    (705 ILCS 505/22)  (from Ch. 37, par. 439.22)
    Sec. 22. Every claim cognizable by the Court and not
otherwise sooner barred by law shall be forever barred from
prosecution therein unless it is filed with the Clerk of the
Court within the time set forth as follows:
    (a) All claims arising out of a contract must be filed
within 5 years after it first accrues, saving to minors, and
persons under legal disability at the time the claim accrues,
in which cases the claim must be filed within 5 years from the
time the disability ceases.
    (b) All claims cognizable against the State by vendors of
goods or services under "The Illinois Public Aid Code",
approved April 11, 1967, as amended, must file within one year
after the accrual of the cause of action, as provided in
Section 11-13 of that Code.
    (c) All claims arising under paragraph (c) of Section 8 of
this Act must be filed within 2 years after the person
asserting such claim is discharged from prison, or is granted a
pardon by the Governor, whichever occurs later, except as
otherwise provided by the Crime Victims Compensation Act.
    (d) All claims arising under paragraph (f) of Section 8 of
this Act must be filed within the time set forth one year of
the date of the death of the law enforcement officer or fireman
as provided in Section 3 of the Line of Duty "Law Enforcement
Officers and Firemen Compensation Act", approved September 30,
1969, as amended.
    (e) All claims arising under paragraph (h) of Section 8 of
this Act must be filed within one year of the date of the death
of the guardsman or militiaman as provided in Section 3 of the
"Illinois National Guardsman's and Naval Militiaman's
Compensation Act", approved August 12, 1971, as amended.
    (f) All claims arising under paragraph (g) of Section 8 of
this Act must be filed within one year of the crime on which a
claim is based as provided in Section 6.1 of the "Crime Victims
Compensation Act", approved August 23, 1973, as amended.
    (g) All claims arising from the Comptroller's refusal to
issue a replacement warrant pursuant to Section 10.10 of the
State Comptroller Act must be filed within 5 years after the
issue date of such warrant.
    (h) All other claims must be filed within 2 years after it
first accrues, saving to minors, and persons under legal
disability at the time the claim accrues, in which case the
claim must be filed within 2 years from the time the disability
ceases.
    (i) The changes made by this amendatory Act of 1989 shall
apply to all warrants issued within the 5 year period preceding
the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1989.
    (j) All time limitations established under this Act and the
rules promulgated under this Act shall be binding and
jurisdictional, except upon extension authorized by law or rule
and granted pursuant to a motion timely filed.
(Source: P.A. 86-458.)
 
    (705 ILCS 505/24)  (from Ch. 37, par. 439.24)
    Sec. 24. Payment of awards.
    (1) From funds appropriated by the General Assembly for the
purposes of this Section the Court may direct immediate payment
of:
        (a) All claims arising solely as a result of the
    lapsing of an appropriation out of which the obligation
    could have been paid.
        (b) All claims pursuant to the Line of Duty "Law
    Enforcement Officers and Firemen Compensation Act",
    approved September 30, 1969, as amended.
        (c) All claims pursuant to the "Illinois National
    Guardsman's and Naval Militiaman's Compensation Act",
    approved August 12, 1971, as amended.
        (d) All claims pursuant to the "Crime Victims
    Compensation Act", approved August 23, 1973, as amended.
        (e) All other claims wherein the amount of the award of
    the Court is less than $5,000.
    (2) The court may, from funds specifically appropriated
from the General Revenue Fund for this purpose, direct the
payment of awards less than $50,000 solely as a result of the
lapsing of an appropriation originally made from any fund held
by the State Treasurer. For any such award paid from the
General Revenue Fund, the court shall thereafter seek an
appropriation from the fund from which the liability originally
accrued in reimbursement of the General Revenue Fund.
    (3) In directing payment of a claim pursuant to the Line of
Duty Compensation Act, the Court must direct the Comptroller to
add an interest penalty if payment of a claim is not made
within 6 months after a claim is filed in accordance with
Section 3 of the Line of Duty Compensation Act and all
information has been submitted as required under Section 4 of
the Line of Duty Compensation Act. If payment is not issued
within the 6-month period, an interest penalty of 1% of the
amount of the award shall be added for each month or fraction
thereof after the end of the 6-month period, until final
payment is made. This interest penalty shall be added
regardless of whether the payment is not issued within the
6-month period because of the appropriation process, the
consideration of the matter by the Court, or any other reason.
(Source: P.A. 92-357, eff. 8-15-01.)
 
    Section 15. The Line of Duty Compensation Act is amended by
changing Section 3 as follows:
 
    (820 ILCS 315/3)   (from Ch. 48, par. 283)
    Sec. 3. Duty death benefit.
    (a) If a claim therefor is made within one year of the date
of death of a law enforcement officer, civil defense worker,
civil air patrol member, paramedic, fireman, chaplain, or State
employee, or Armed Forces member killed in the line of duty, or
if a claim therefor is made within 2 years of the date of death
of an Armed Forces member killed in the line of duty,
compensation shall be paid to the person designated by the law
enforcement officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol
member, paramedic, fireman, chaplain, State employee, or Armed
Forces member. However, if the Armed Forces member was killed
in the line of duty before October 18, 2004, the claim must be
made within one year of October 18, 2004.
    (b) The amount of compensation, except for an Armed Forces
member, shall be $10,000 if the death in the line of duty
occurred prior to January 1, 1974; $20,000 if such death
occurred after December 31, 1973 and before July 1, 1983;
$50,000 if such death occurred on or after July 1, 1983 and
before January 1, 1996; $100,000 if the death occurred on or
after January 1, 1996 and before May 18, 2001; $118,000 if the
death occurred on or after May 18, 2001 and before July 1,
2002; and $259,038 if the death occurred on or after July 1,
2002 and before January 1, 2003. For an Armed Forces member
killed in the line of duty (i) at any time before January 1,
2005, the compensation is $259,038 plus amounts equal to the
increases for 2003 and 2004 determined under subsection (c) and
(ii) on or after January 1, 2005, the compensation is the
amount determined under item (i) plus the applicable increases
for 2005 and thereafter determined under subsection (c).
    (c) Except as provided in subsection (b), for deaths
occurring on or after January 1, 2003, the death compensation
rate for death in the line of duty occurring in a particular
calendar year shall be the death compensation rate for death
occurring in the previous calendar year (or in the case of
deaths occurring in 2003, the rate in effect on December 31,
2002) increased by a percentage thereof equal to the percentage
increase, if any, in the index known as the Consumer Price
Index for All Urban Consumers: U.S. city average, unadjusted,
for all items, as published by the United States Department of
Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, for the 12 months ending
with the month of June of that previous calendar year.
    (d) If no beneficiary is designated or if no designated
beneficiary survives at the death of the law enforcement
officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol member,
paramedic, fireman, chaplain, or State employee killed in the
line of duty, the compensation shall be paid in accordance with
a legally binding will left by the law enforcement officer,
civil defense worker, civil air patrol member, paramedic,
fireman, chaplain, or State employee. If the law enforcement
officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol member,
paramedic, fireman, chaplain, or State employee did not leave a
legally binding will, the compensation shall be paid as
follows:
        (1) when there is a surviving spouse, the entire sum
    shall be paid to the spouse;
        (2) when there is no surviving spouse, but a surviving
    descendant of the decedent, the entire sum shall be paid to
    the decedent's descendants per stirpes;
        (3) when there is neither a surviving spouse nor a
    surviving descendant, the entire sum shall be paid to the
    parents of the decedent in equal parts, allowing to the
    surviving parent, if one is dead, the entire sum; and
        (4) when there is no surviving spouse, descendant or
    parent of the decedent, but there are surviving brothers or
    sisters, or descendants of a brother or sister, who were
    receiving their principal support from the decedent at his
    death, the entire sum shall be paid, in equal parts, to the
    dependent brothers or sisters or dependent descendant of a
    brother or sister. Dependency shall be determined by the
    Court of Claims based upon the investigation and report of
    the Attorney General.
The changes made to this subsection (d) by this amendatory Act
of the 94th General Assembly apply to any pending case as long
as compensation has not been paid to any party before the
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General
Assembly.
    (d-1) For purposes of subsection (d), in the case of a
person killed in the line of duty who was born out of wedlock
and was not an adoptive child at the time of the person's
death, a person shall be deemed to be a parent of the person
killed in the line of duty only if that person would be an
eligible parent, as defined in Section 2-2 of the Probate Act
of 1975, of the person killed in the line of duty. This
subsection (d-1) applies to any pending claim if compensation
was not paid to the claimant of the pending claim before the
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General
Assembly.
    (d-2) If no beneficiary is designated or if no designated
beneficiary survives at the death of the Armed Forces member
killed in the line of duty, the compensation shall be paid in
entirety according to the designation made on the most recent
version of the Armed Forces member's Servicemembers' Group Life
Insurance Election and Certificate ("SGLI").
    If no SGLI form exists at the time of the Armed Forces
member's death, the compensation shall be paid in accordance
with a legally binding will left by the Armed Forces member.
    If no SGLI form exists for the Armed Forces member and the
Armed Forces member did not leave a legally binding will, the
compensation shall be paid to the persons and in the priority
as set forth in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (d) of
this Section.
    This subsection (d-2) applies to any pending case as long
as compensation has not been paid to any party before the
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General
Assembly.
    (e) If there is no beneficiary designated or if no
designated beneficiary survives at the death of the law
enforcement officer, civil defense worker, civil air patrol
member, paramedic, fireman, chaplain, State employee, or Armed
Forces member killed in the line of duty and there is no other
person or entity to whom compensation is payable under this
Section, no compensation shall be payable under this Act.
    (f) No part of such compensation may be paid to any other
person for any efforts in securing such compensation.
    (g) This amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly
applies to claims made on or after October 18, 2004 with
respect to an Armed Forces member killed in the line of duty.
(Source: P.A. 93-1047, eff. 10-18-04; 93-1073, eff. 1-18-05;
94-843, eff. 6-8-06; 94-844, eff. 6-8-06.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.

Effective Date: 8/26/2008