Rep. Angie Guerrero-Cuellar

Amends the State Employee Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Provides that a member who is eligible to receive an alternative retirement annuity may elect to receive an estimated payment that shall commence no later than 30 days after the later of either the member's last day of employment or 30 days after the member files for the retirement benefit with the System. Provides that the estimated payment shall be the best estimate by the System of the total monthly amount due to the member based on the information that the System possesses at the time of the estimate. Provides that if the amount of the estimate is greater or less than the actual amount of the monthly annuity, the System shall pay or recover the difference within 6 months after the start of the monthly annuity. Excludes a benefit increase resulting from the amendatory Act from the definition of "new benefit increase". Effective immediately.

Amends the Property Tax Code. Provides that a homestead exemption is granted for property that (i) is located in a county with 1,000,000 or more inhabitants and (ii) is owned and occupied as a principal residence during the taxable year by a qualified municipal worker. Provides that the amount of the homestead exemption shall be a reduction from the equalized assessed value of the property in an amount equal to 5% of the equalized assessed value of the property. Effective immediately.

Amends the School Code. Requires every public elementary and high school to include in its curriculum the study of the contributions made by Latin Americans to the economic, cultural, social, and political development of the United States. Provides that the regional superintendent of schools shall monitor a school district's compliance with the requirement during the regional superintendent's annual compliance visit and make recommendations for improvement. Provides that the failure by a school district or school to comply with the requirement shall result in a written warning for the first offense, and if the school district or school continues to fail to comply with the requirements, the school district or school shall face disciplinary action at the discretion of the regional superintendent. Requires the State Superintendent of Education to prepare and make available to all school boards instructional materials and professional development opportunities that may be used as guidelines for the development of a Latin American unit of study. Effective August 1, 2026.

Amends the Illinois State Police Law. Provides that the Division of Patrol shall enforce the motor carrier safety provisions of the Illinois Vehicle Code and serve as the lead State agency for administering the commercial vehicle safety plan of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Adds human trafficking, sexual assault, and sexual abuse in-service training requirements for Illinois State Police officers. Provides that the Division of Statewide 9-1-1 shall cooperate with federal and State authorities that are engaged in aeronautics and that request to use the Illinois State Police's radio network system. Provides that the State Police shall maintain a statewide statistical police contact recordkeeping system (rather than develop a separate statewide statistical police recordkeeping system) for the study of juvenile delinquency. Provides that, with the permission (rather than written permission) of a child's parent or guardian, the Illinois State police may collect (rather than retain) the fingerprints or DNA (rather than only the fingerprint record) of the child. Specifies that the fingerprints or DNA may be retained by the child's parent or guardian and later used for specified purposes. Amends the Intergovernmental Drug Laws Enforcement Act. Provides that a Metropolitan Enforcement Group may enforce crimes concerning terrorism and threats to public officials and human service providers. Amends the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963. In provisions concerning criminal prosecutions for violations of the Cannabis Control Act, the Illinois Controlled Substances Act, or the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act and criminal prosecutions for reckless homicide, or driving under the influence of alcohol, other drug, or combination of both, or in any civil action held under a statutory summary suspension or revocation hearing, deletes provisions requiring specified information to be attached to laboratory report from the Illinois State Police, Division of Forensic Services. Amends the Freedom from Drone Surveillance Act. In provisions requiring the chief executive officer of a law enforcement agency to report the use of a drone to the State's Attorney under specified circumstances, adds language allowing the report to be made by the chief executive officer's designee. Makes other and conforming changes. Effective immediately.

Maddy summaryHB 476 amends the School Code. It makes a technical change to a section that concerns the short title of a part of the code.

Creates the Drone Safety and Interference Prevention Act. Creates the offenses of (1) unlawful imaging of an emergency response activity; (2) unlawful operation over critical infrastructure facilities; and (3) unlawful operation of a drone over a correctional institution or facility. Defines these offenses and establishes penalties. Provides that a private person or entity operating a drone in the State is prohibited from equipping or using on the drone any firearm, weaponized laser, kinetic impact projectile, chemical agent or irritant, or any other lethal or non-lethal weapon. Provides that a law enforcement officer may seize a drone and any attached equipment, including any image-capturing devices, storage media, or weapons, if the officer has probable cause to believe the drone was used or operated in violation of the Act. Provides that any drone or equipment seized under the Act is subject to forfeiture in accordance with the Criminal Code of 2012 and the Forfeiture Article of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963, as applicable. Provides that the State may use forfeited drones and equipment for law enforcement purposes, including training and counter-drone operations. Provides that prior to forfeiture, the court shall provide notice and an opportunity for hearing to the owner or operator of the drone, unless the drone was abandoned or unclaimed. Provides that, if the court determines, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the drone was used in violation of the Act, the drone shall be forfeited to the State. Provides that any images or data seized under the provision shall be retained only if there is a reasonable suspicion they contain evidence of a crime. Provides that all other data must be deleted within 30 days unless relevant to an ongoing investigation. Provides that the State, any unit of local government, any law enforcement agency or any officers or agents of those entities that are acting reasonably and in good faith to enforce the Act are not civilly liable for damage to or loss of a drone, except for willful or wanton misconduct. Provides that the Act shall be enforced by State and local law enforcement agencies. Provides that enforcement data under the Act shall be reported through the Illinois State Police's existing Uniform Crime Reporting program. Contains a severability provision. Effective January 1, 2027.

Amends the Charter Schools Law of the School Code. Allows the State Board of Education to withhold from each charter school it authorizes up to an additional 3% of the revenue provided to the school as an administrative fee for the purpose of conducting administrative duties related to the administration of the charter school contract, oversight, or authorizing services. Provides that for a charter school authorized by a school board, any amount of agreed funding withheld by the school board as an administrative fee for the purpose of conducting administrative duties related to the administration of the charter school contract, oversight, or authorizing services may not exceed 3% of agreed funding and the amount withheld may not result in the charter school receiving less than the required minimum funding level. Sets forth allowable uses for the administrative fee. Provides that any portion of the administrative fee that is not expended on allowable uses during the fiscal year shall be returned to the charter school. Requires the school board to provide an annual public accounting to the charter school and to the State Board detailing the amount collected as an administrative fee, the allowable uses funded from the fee, and the amount returned from any unexpended fee funds.

Amends the Counties Code and the Illinois Municipal Code. Provides that neither a county nor a municipality may impose a tax on businesses calculated based on the number of employees of the business. Effective immediately.

Amends the Minimum Wage Law. Provides that the regulation of allowances for gratuities as part of the hourly wage rate is an exclusive power and function of the State. Provides that a home rule unit may not regulate allowances for gratuities as part of the hourly wage rate. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Provides that the Illinois Commerce Commission shall allow commercial relocators to recover towing permit fees or vehicle release fees that are lawfully adopted by a unit of local government and imposed by a law enforcement agency as a necessary administrative fee in order to effectuate an existing relocator program in the unit of local government where the law enforcement agency and relocator operate. Allows the Commission to set the maximum amount of towing permit fees or vehicle release fees that a commercial relocator may recover.