SB1633sam001 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Bill Brady

Filed: 3/10/2009

09600SB1633sam001 LRB096 10788 JAM 23621 a

AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 1633

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 1633 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 5. The State Officials and Employees Ethics Act is amended by changing Sections 20-50 and 20-95 as follows:

(5 ILCS 430/20-50)

Sec. 20-50. Investigation reports; complaint procedure.

(a) If an Executive Inspector General, upon the conclusion of an investigation, determines that reasonable cause exists to believe that a violation has occurred, then the Executive Inspector General shall issue a summary report of the investigation. The report shall be delivered (i) to the Executive Ethics Commission, (ii) to the appropriate ultimate jurisdictional authority, and (iii) if appropriate, to the head of each State agency affected by or involved in the investigation, if appropriate.

(b) The summary report of the investigation shall include the following:

(1) A description of any allegations or other information received by the Executive Inspector General pertinent to the investigation.

(2) A description of any alleged misconduct discovered in the course of the investigation.

(3) Recommendations for any corrective or disciplinary action to be taken in response to any alleged misconduct described in the report, including but not limited to discharge.

(4) Other information the Executive Inspector General deems relevant to the investigation or resulting recommendations.

(c) Not less than 30 days after delivery of the summary report of an investigation under subsection (a), if the Executive Inspector General desires to file a petition for leave to file a complaint, the Executive Inspector General shall notify the Commission and the Attorney General. If the Attorney General determines that reasonable cause exists to believe that a violation has occurred, then the Executive Inspector General, represented by the Attorney General, may file with the Executive Ethics Commission a petition for leave to file a complaint. The petition shall set forth the alleged violation and the grounds that exist to support the petition. The petition for leave to file a complaint must be filed with the Commission within 18 months after the most recent act of the alleged violation or of a series of alleged violations except where there is reasonable cause to believe that fraudulent concealment has occurred. To constitute fraudulent concealment sufficient to toll this limitations period, there must be an affirmative act or representation calculated to prevent discovery of the fact that a violation has occurred. If a petition for leave to file a complaint is not filed with the Commission within 6 months after notice by the Inspector General to the Commission and the Attorney General, then the Commission may set a meeting of the Commission at which the Attorney General shall appear and provide a status report to the Commission.

(d) A copy of the petition must be served on all respondents named in the complaint and on each respondent's ultimate jurisdictional authority in the same manner as process is served under the Code of Civil Procedure.

(e) A respondent may file objections to the petition for leave to file a complaint within 30 days after notice of the petition has been served on the respondent.

(f) The Commission shall meet, either in person or by telephone, in a closed session to review the sufficiency of the complaint. If the Commission finds that complaint is sufficient, the Commission shall grant the petition for leave to file the complaint. The Commission shall issue notice to the Executive Inspector General and all respondents of the Commission's ruling on the sufficiency of the complaint. If the complaint is deemed to sufficiently allege a violation of this Act, then the Commission shall notify the parties and shall include a hearing date scheduled within 4 weeks after the date of the notice, unless all of the parties consent to a later date. If the complaint is deemed not to sufficiently allege a violation, then the Commission shall send by certified mail, return receipt requested, a notice to the parties of the decision to dismiss the complaint.

(g) On the scheduled date the Commission shall conduct a closed meeting, either in person or, if the parties consent, by telephone, on the complaint and allow all parties the opportunity to present testimony and evidence. All such proceedings shall be transcribed.

(h) Within an appropriate time limit set by rules of the Executive Ethics Commission, the Commission shall (i) dismiss the complaint or (ii) issue a recommendation of discipline to the respondent and the respondent's ultimate jurisdictional authority or impose an administrative fine upon the respondent, or both.

(i) The proceedings on any complaint filed with the Commission shall be conducted pursuant to rules promulgated by the Commission.

(j) The Commission may designate hearing officers to conduct proceedings as determined by rule of the Commission.

(k) In all proceedings before the Commission, the standard of proof is by a preponderance of the evidence.

(l) When the Inspector General concludes that there is insufficient evidence that a violation has occurred, the Inspector General shall close the investigation. At the request of the subject of the investigation, the Inspector General shall provide a written statement to the subject of the investigation and to the Commission of the Inspector General's decision to close the investigation. Closure by the Inspector General does not bar the Inspector General from resuming the investigation if circumstances warrant.

(Source: P.A. 93-617, eff. 12-9-03.)

(5 ILCS 430/20-95)

Sec. 20-95. Exemptions.

(a) Documents generated by an ethics officer under this Act, except Section 5-50, are exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act.

(b) Any allegations and related documents submitted to an Executive Inspector General and any pleadings and related documents brought before the Executive Ethics Commission are exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act so long as the Executive Ethics Commission does not make a finding of a violation of this Act. If the Executive Ethics Commission finds that a violation has occurred, the entire record of proceedings before the Commission, the decision and recommendation, and the mandatory report from the agency head or ultimate jurisdictional authority to the Executive Ethics Commission are not exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act but information contained therein that is otherwise exempt from the Freedom of Information Act must be redacted before disclosure as provided in Section 8 of the Freedom of Information Act.

(c) Meetings of the Commission under Sections 20-5 and 20-15 of this Act are exempt from the provisions of the Open Meetings Act.

(d) Unless otherwise provided in this Act, all investigatory files, other than the final founded summary report, and reports of the Office of an Executive Inspector General, other than quarterly reports, are confidential, are exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, and shall not be divulged to any person or agency, except as necessary (i) to the appropriate law enforcement authority if the matter is referred pursuant to this Act, (ii) to the ultimate jurisdictional authority, (iii) to the Executive Ethics Commission; or (iv) to another Inspector General appointed pursuant to this Act. Founded summary reports of investigations and quarterly reports of the Office of an Executive Inspector General shall be publicly released, but information contained therein that is otherwise exempt from the Freedom of Information Act must be redacted before disclosure as provided in Section 8 of the Freedom of Information Act.

Each founded report and the corresponding agency response shall be released publicly within 30 days after receipt of the agency response, with the following exceptions:

(1) Reports that result in referrals to law enforcement agencies.

(2) Reports that result in a compliant filed with the Executive Ethics Commission.

(3) Reports that impact other continuing or related investigations by the Executive Inspector General.

In cases referred to law enforcement or when a compliant is to be filed with the Executive Ethics Commission, the Executive Inspector General shall release those reports at the conclusion of those matters. Founded reports that are related to other continuing or related investigations shall be released publicly as soon as practical to not interfere with existing investigations.

The discretion to redact any portion of a founded report or to issue a summary digest report shall be vested exclusively with the Executive Inspector General.

(Source: P.A. 93-617, eff. 12-9-03.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.".