HB1532eng 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB1532 Engrossed LRB098 02803 HEP 39857 b

AN ACT concerning civil law.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Code of Civil Procedure is amended by adding Section 9-120.5 as follows:

(735 ILCS 5/9-120.5 new)

Sec. 9-120.5. Offensive use of property.

(a) As used in this Section, "offensive use of property" means the repeated use of leased premises in a manner that disturbs the peace or is detrimental to the health and safety of the neighbors of the premises. To qualify as offensive use of property, all of the following conditions must exist:

(1) on 3 or more separate occasions within a 60-day period, an act is committed on the property which is:

(A) a felony or a Class A misdemeanor;

(B) a violation of subsection (a)(1) of Section 26-1 of the Criminal Code of 2012; or

(C) a violation of a public order regulation adopted under Section 11-5-1, 11-5-2, or 11-5-10 of the Illinois Municipal Code;

(2) a lessee or his or her guest used the premises, permitted the premises to be used, or knew or should have known that the premises would be used in the commission of the act; and

(3) on each occasion, an arrest was made or a citation was issued for the commission of the act.

(b) If the standard for offensive use of property has been met, then the tenancy may be terminated and the owner, lessor, or agent shall be entitled to bring a forcible entry and detainer action under this Section.

(c) If an owner, lessor, or agent terminates a tenancy under this Section, the owner, lessor, or agent shall be required to deliver a 5-day notice to quit to the lessee, specifying the alleged acts and the date of occurrence for each. The notice shall be substantially in the following form:

"To .........(names of tenants) and all other unknown occupants. Because of the repeated use of the residence you rent at ............ (location of the premises) in a manner that disturbs your neighbors or threatens the health and safety of your neighbors, I have chosen to terminate your right to remain in the property. The specific acts, which took place in a 60-day period and resulted in an arrest being made or a citation being issued, are: ................. (insert the alleged acts and the date of occurrence for each). You are hereby notified to return possession of your residence to me within 5 days of this date ............ (date of delivery of notice).

Any person identified in this notice who, because of an act listed in this notice, is a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking may present the court documentation to defend the victim's right to retain possession of the residence. Documentation shall be in the form of medical, court, or police records documenting the violence or a statement from either an employee of a victim service organization or a medical professional from whom the victim sought services.

This demand is being made pursuant to Illinois law (Section 9-120.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 735 ILCS 5/9-120.5, which can be found online for further information)."

The notice shall be signed by the owner, lessor, or agent. No other notice or demand of possession or termination of the tenancy is necessary.

(d) A hearing shall be held not more than 14 days after filing of the forcible entry and detainer action. If the court finds that the standard for offensive use of property has been met, it shall enter judgment for possession of the premises in favor of the plaintiff. The plaintiff shall be entitled to re-enter the premises immediately, or no later than within 7 days of the entry of the judgment for possession of the premises if the court determines such a stay is appropriate to preserve the peace.

(e) The court may stay a judgment for possession for up to 6 months, provided:

(1) all parties agree to the stay;

(2) the court determines the lessee is willing and able to prevent the offensive use of the property from continuing; and

(3) none of the qualifying acts were of a violent nature.

The stay shall be lifted and judgment for possession shall be enforced if, prior to the expiration of the stay, the plaintiff petitions the court to terminate the stay and the court finds that, subsequent to the issuance of the stay, an act has been committed on the property which qualifies as offensive use of property under subsection (a) of this Section. The judgment for possession shall otherwise be automatically vacated at the end of the period of the stay. Upon the lifting of the stay, the plaintiff shall be entitled to re-enter the premises immediately.

(f) The sheriff or other lawfully deputized officer shall execute an order under this Section within 7 days of its entry or within 7 days of the expiration of a stay of judgment.

(g) Nothing in this Section shall limit the rights of an owner, lessor, or agent to bring a forcible entry and detainer action on the basis of other applicable law.

(h) The governmental agencies in whose jurisdiction the leased premises are located shall provide the owner, lessor, or agent with the information reasonably necessary to substantiate the required elements of an action filed under this Section. A municipality or other governmental entity may not require an owner, lessor, or agent to bring a forcible entry and detainer action under this Section or impose a penalty on the owner, lessor, or agent for failure to evict when notification is made.

(i) A tenant or occupant may not be the subject of a forcible detainer under this Section in conjunction with a qualifying act in which that tenant or occupant is the victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking.