ISBA Director of Legislative Affairs Jim Covington reviews legislation in Springfield of interest to ISBA members. This week he covers administrative review, the Open Meetings Act, the Veterans and Servicemembers Court Treatment Act, collections, the Rent Control Preemption Act, the Guardians for Adults with Disabilities Article of the Probate Act of 1975, and the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act.

More information on each bill is available below the video.

Administrative review. Senate Bill 584 (Barickman, R-Bloomington) provides a means for correcting inadvertent failures to correctly name necessary parties in actions for administrative review, which are called misnomers.

(1) It amends the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) to mandate that final administrative orders list all of the parties of record together with their last known address of record. The final order must also include whether there are any agency rules requiring a motion for reconsideration as a part of obtaining a reviewable final administrative decision and, if so, the rules citation.

(2) It amends the ARL to prohibit an action for administrative review to be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction based on the misnomer of any agency that is properly served with summons issued in the action within the applicable time limits. It also prohibits dismissal for failure to perfectly name an agent if a timely action of administrative review has been filed that identifies the final administrative decision under review and makes a good faith effort to properly name the administrative agency.

(3) It amends the ARL to allow a court to correct misnomers for an erroneous identification of the administrative agency.

Senate Bill 584 passed out of Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday but will receive some tweaking amendments.

Open Meetings Act. Senate Bill 1227 (Tracy, R-Quincy) provides that a public body may hold closed meetings for issues involving communications between a public body and an attorney or auditor representing the public body that would not be subject to discovery in litigation. It has just been introduced.

Veterans and Servicemembers Court Treatment Act. Senate Bill 1238 (McCann, R-Carlinville) allows the chief judge at his or her discretion to operate the Veterans and Servicemembers Court program in one or more counties in the circuit, and allow veteran and servicemember defendants from all counties within the circuit to participate. It has just been introduced.

Exempt from collection. Senate Bill 1246 (Bennett, D-Champaign) makes moneys held in educational expense accounts and similar types of educational savings accounts exempt from judgment, attachment, or distress for rent. This would include, but not be limited to, funds invested in an ABLE Account and funds invested in a 529 Plan. It has just been introduced.

Rent Control Preemption Act. House Bill 2430 (Guzzardi, D-Chicago) repeals this Act. It has just been introduced.  

Guardians for Adults with Disabilities Article of the Probate Act of 1975. House Bill 2593 (Martwick, D-Chicago) provides that one of the persons who performed the evaluations upon which the report relating to the adjudication of disability is based shall be a licensed physician unless the evaluation and report are completed by a licensed clinical psychologist and the evaluation is limited to the respondent’s mental condition. It has just been introduced.

Illinois Administrative Procedure Act.  Senate Bill 951 (Oberweis, R-Sugar Grove) provides that the notice to parties in a contested case under the Act shall be served, among other forms of notification, by electronic mail of any decision or order in that case.

Provides that an agency may require all attorneys to designate an electronic mail address to which all documents required under certain specified sections may be transmitted. Provides that if an attorney is required to designate an electronic mail address, he or she must designate one primary electronic mail address, and may designate no more than two secondary electronic mail addresses.

Provides that an agency may request, but not require, an unrepresented party to designate an electronic mail address to which all documents required under certain specified sections may be transmitted.

Allows an agency to, by rule, make electronic mail the default option for service of documents. Provides that service by electronic mail is complete on the first business day following transmission. It has just been introduced.