LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER-SAFETY

HB 5276 amends Illinois' Public Official Safety and Privacy Act (5 ILCS 347/10) by adding law enforcement officers to the legal definition of "public official." This change directly extends privacy protections to law enforcement officers, requiring governmental agencies to remove their personal information - including home addresses, phone numbers, and email - from publicly available records upon written request. The bill updates Section 10 of the Act to include law enforcement officers under the same privacy safeguards already provided to legislators, constitutional officers, and other public officials. This policy change ensures officers can request the removal of their personal data from public databases maintained by government agencies.