Rep. Adam Niemerg

Creates the Free Speech Protection Act. Provides that a person who has received permission to place a sign or display on State-supported property has the right to exercise freedom of speech. Provides that the Act does not authorize or protect a sign or display that: is libelous, slanderous, or obscene; constitutes an unwarranted invasion of privacy; violates federal or State law; a reasonable person would understand as intended to denigrate or hold up to ridicule the beliefs of a religion, including, but not limited to, the display of a recognized or altered version of a symbol of a religion in such a manner; or incites others to commit an unlawful act, or to materially and substantially disrupt the orderly operation of the State-supported property in question. Provides that no State agency, official, or employee shall be held liable in any civil or criminal action for any expression made through a sign or display. Effective immediately.

Amends the Firearm Concealed Carry Act. Deletes a provision that prohibits a licensee from knowingly carrying a firearm into any building, classroom, laboratory, medical clinic, hospital, artistic venue, athletic venue, entertainment venue, officially recognized university-related organization property, whether owned or leased, and any real property, including parking areas, sidewalks, and common areas under the control of a public or private community college, college, or university.

Creates the Infant Born Alive Protection Act. Provides that any physician who intentionally performs an abortion when there is a reasonable likelihood or possibility of sustained survival of the fetus outside the womb shall utilize the method most likely to preserve the life and health of the fetus, and that failure to do so is a Class 3 felony. Prohibits the performance or inducement of an abortion when the fetus is viable unless there is in attendance a physician other than the physician performing or inducing the abortion who shall take control of and provide immediate medical care for any child born alive as a result of the abortion. Provides that any living individual organism of the species homo sapiens who has been born alive is legally an individual under the Criminal Code of 2012. Provides that a Class 3 felony is committed when a physician under specified circumstances intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly fails to exercise the same conduct to preserve the life and health of a child as would be required for a child born alive at the same gestational age. Provides that nothing in the Act requires a physician to employ a method of abortion which, in the medical judgment of the physician, would increase medical risk to the mother. Except in specified circumstances, requires specified persons to inform a woman upon whom an abortion is to be performed when an anesthetic or analgesic is available for use to abolish or alleviate organic pain caused to the fetus by the particular method of abortion to be employed and provides that failure to do so is a Class B misdemeanor.

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Reduces the rate of tax on individuals, trusts, estates, and certain pass-through entities from 4.95% to 3.75%. Reduces the rate of tax on corporations from 7% to 6%. Effective immediately.

Amends the Children and Family Services Act. In provisions concerning the Advocacy Office for Children and Families, requires the Advocacy Office to designate for each foster child an employee with legal knowledge of the foster process to guide foster parents throughout the foster process and keep them informed of their rights and responsibilities. Amends the Foster Parent Law. Creates a private right of action under specified provisions of the Act concerning foster parent rights.

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Creates a deduction in an amount equal to the amount received by the taxpayer in gratuities during the taxable year. Provides that the deduction is exempt from the Act's automatic sunset provision. Effective immediately.

Maddy summaryHB 2609 reduces Illinois' corporate income tax rate from 7% to 5.5% for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2025. This bill directly affects corporations operating in Illinois that pay state income tax, lowering their tax burden. The key provision amends Section 201 of the Illinois Income Tax Act to establish the new 5.5% rate, replacing the current 7% rate for qualifying tax years. The change takes effect for corporations filing taxes on income earned in 2025 and beyond.

Amends the Election Code. Provides that the county clerk of a county where a decedent last resided shall (rather than may) issue certifications of death records from the electronic reporting system for death registrations and shall (rather than may) use that system to cancel the registration of any person who has died during the preceding month. Requires a county coroner, medical examiner, or physician for a county or any other individual responsible for certification of death under the Vital Records Act to promptly transmit certified records to the county clerk within 7 days after the death. Requires the county clerk and coroner to report quarterly to its affiliated county board and certify its full compliance with the provisions and accuracy of the voter rolls. Allows an individual to request a copy of the county clerk's or coroner's report and allows for relief if the county clerk fails to provide an accurate report within specified time frames.

Creates the Campus Free Speech Protection Act. Requires the governing board of each public institution of higher education to adopt policies governing free expression. Sets forth what those policies must ensure. Contains provisions concerning making those policies available to faculty and students. Sets forth both prohibited and permissible conduct. Provides for remedies for violations of the policies.

Restores the statutes to the form in which they existed before their amendment by Public Act 102-662. Repeals the Energy Transition Act, the Energy Community Reinvestment Act, the Community Energy, Climate, and Jobs Planning Act, and the Illinois Clean Energy Jobs and Justice Fund Act. Effective immediately.