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Public Act 102-0653 | ||||
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AN ACT concerning government.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Open Meetings Act is amended by changing | ||||
Section 2.06 as follows: | ||||
(5 ILCS 120/2.06) (from Ch. 102, par. 42.06) | ||||
Sec. 2.06. Minutes; right to speak. | ||||
(a) All public bodies shall keep written minutes of all | ||||
their
meetings, whether open or closed,
and a verbatim
record | ||||
of all their closed meetings in the form of an audio or video | ||||
recording.
Minutes
shall include, but need not be limited to: | ||||
(1) the date, time and place of the meeting; | ||||
(2) the members of the public body recorded as either | ||||
present or absent and whether the members were physically | ||||
present or present by means of video or audio conference;
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and | ||||
(3) a summary of discussion on all matters proposed, | ||||
deliberated,
or decided, and a record of any votes taken. | ||||
(b) A public body shall approve the minutes of its open | ||||
meeting within 30 days after that meeting or at the public | ||||
body's second subsequent regular meeting, whichever is later. | ||||
The minutes of meetings open to the public shall be available | ||||
for
public inspection within 10 days after the approval of |
such minutes by the public
body. Beginning July 1, 2006, at the | ||
time it complies with the other requirements of this | ||
subsection, a public body that has a website that the | ||
full-time staff of the public body maintains shall post the | ||
minutes of a regular meeting of its governing body open to the | ||
public on the public body's website within 10 days after the | ||
approval of the minutes by the public body. Beginning July 1, | ||
2006, any minutes of meetings open to the public posted on the | ||
public body's website shall remain posted on the website for | ||
at least 60 days after their initial posting.
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(c) The verbatim record may be destroyed without | ||
notification to or the
approval of a records commission or the | ||
State Archivist under the Local Records
Act or the State | ||
Records Act no less than 18 months after the completion of the
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meeting recorded but only after: | ||
(1) the public body
approves the destruction of a | ||
particular recording; and | ||
(2) the public body approves minutes of the closed | ||
meeting that meet the
written minutes requirements of | ||
subsection (a) of this Section. | ||
(d) Each public body shall periodically , but no less than
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semi-annually,
meet to review minutes of all closed meetings. | ||
Meetings to review minutes shall occur every 6 months, or as | ||
soon thereafter as is practicable, taking into account the | ||
nature and meeting schedule of the public body. Committees | ||
which are ad hoc in nature shall review closed session minutes |
at the later of (1) 6 months from the date of the last review | ||
of closed session minutes or (2) at the next scheduled meeting | ||
of the ad hoc committee. At such
meetings a determination | ||
shall be made, and reported in an open session that
(1) the | ||
need for confidentiality still exists as to all or part of | ||
those
minutes or (2) that the minutes or portions thereof no
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longer require
confidential
treatment and are available for | ||
public inspection. The failure of a public body to strictly | ||
comply with the semi-annual review of closed session written | ||
minutes, whether before or after the effective date of this | ||
amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly, shall not cause | ||
the written minutes or related verbatim record to become | ||
public or available for inspection in any judicial proceeding, | ||
other than a proceeding involving an alleged violation of this | ||
Act, if the public body, within 60 days of discovering its | ||
failure to strictly comply with the technical requirements of | ||
this subsection, reviews the closed session minutes and | ||
determines and thereafter reports in open session that either | ||
(1) the need for confidentiality still exists as to all or part | ||
of the minutes or verbatim record, or (2) that the minutes or | ||
recordings or portions thereof no longer require confidential | ||
treatment and are available for public inspection. | ||
(e) Unless the public body has made a determination that | ||
the verbatim
recording no longer requires confidential | ||
treatment or otherwise consents to
disclosure, the verbatim | ||
record of a meeting closed to the public shall not be
open for |
public inspection or subject to discovery in any | ||
administrative
or judicial proceeding other than one brought | ||
to enforce this Act. In the case of a civil
action brought to | ||
enforce this Act, the court, if the judge believes such an | ||
examination is necessary, must conduct such in camera
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examination of the verbatim record as it finds appropriate in | ||
order to
determine whether there has been a violation of this | ||
Act. In the case of a
criminal proceeding, the court may | ||
conduct an
examination in order to
determine what portions, if | ||
any, must be made available to the parties for use
as evidence | ||
in the prosecution. Any such initial inspection must be held | ||
in camera. If the court
determines that a complaint or suit | ||
brought for noncompliance under this Act
is valid it may, for | ||
the purposes of discovery, redact from the minutes of the
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meeting closed to the public any information deemed to qualify | ||
under the
attorney-client privilege. The provisions of this | ||
subsection do not supersede
the privacy or confidentiality | ||
provisions of State or federal law. Access to verbatim | ||
recordings shall be provided to duly elected officials or | ||
appointed officials filling a vacancy of an elected office in | ||
a public body, and access shall be granted in the public body's | ||
main office or official storage location, in the presence of a | ||
records secretary, an administrative official of the public | ||
body, or any elected official of the public body. No verbatim | ||
recordings shall be recorded or removed from the public body's | ||
main office or official storage location, except by vote of |
the public body or by court order. Nothing in this subsection | ||
(e) is intended to limit the Public Access Counselor's access | ||
to those records necessary to address a request for | ||
administrative review under Section 7.5 of this Act. | ||
(f) Minutes of meetings closed to the public shall be | ||
available only after
the public body determines that it is no | ||
longer necessary to protect the public
interest or the privacy | ||
of an individual by keeping them confidential, except that | ||
duly elected officials or appointed officials filling a | ||
vacancy of an elected office in a public body shall be provided | ||
access to minutes of meetings closed to the public. Access to | ||
minutes shall be granted in the public body's main office or | ||
official storage location, in the presence of a records | ||
secretary, an administrative official of the public body, or | ||
any elected official of the public body. No minutes of | ||
meetings closed to the public shall be removed from the public | ||
body's main office or official storage location, except by | ||
vote of the public body or by court order. Nothing in this | ||
subsection (f) is intended to limit the Public Access | ||
Counselor's access to those records necessary to address a | ||
request for administrative review under Section 7.5 of this | ||
Act. | ||
(g) Any person shall be permitted an opportunity to | ||
address public officials under the rules established and | ||
recorded by the public body. | ||
(h) When a public body is dissolved, disbanded, |
eliminated, or consolidated by executive action, legislative | ||
action, or referendum, and its functions and responsibilities | ||
are assumed by a unit of local government, the unit of local | ||
government which assumes the functions of the prior public | ||
body shall review the closed session minutes of that public | ||
body pursuant to subsection (d). | ||
(Source: P.A. 99-515, eff. 6-30-16.)
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