Rep. Grant Wehrli

Creates the Taxpayer Advocate and Empowerment Act. Creates the Office of Taxpayer Advocate as an independent agency. Provides that the Taxpayer Advocate shall be appointed by a joint resolution of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Provides that the Taxpayer Advocate shall serve for an 8-year term. Sets forth the duties and salary of the Taxpayer Advocate. Provides for 2 Deputy Taxpayer Advocates and employees of the Office of Taxpayer Advocate. Effective January 1, 2020.

Amends the Short-Term, Limited-Duration Health Insurance Coverage Act. Provides that a short-term, limited-duration health insurance coverage policy must have an expiration date that is less than 366 days (rather than 181 days) and may be renewed or extended (rather than prohibiting a policy to be renewable or extendable within a period of 365 days after the individual's coverage under the policy ends). Effective immediately.

Amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Provides that whoever, being an officer, director, agent, or employee of, or affiliated in any capacity with any State government participates, shares in, or receives directly or indirectly any money, profit, property, or benefit through any contract with the unit of State government with the intent to defraud the unit of State government is guilty of a Class 3 felony.

Creates the Entrepreneur-in-Residence Act. Creates the Entrepreneur-in-Residence Pilot Program. Provides for the appointment, term of service, and compensation of entrepreneurs-in-residence. Requires the Director or Secretary of specified State agencies to appoint entrepreneurs-in-residence, and issue a report on the Program to the General Assembly and the Governor by January 1, 2024. Provides for the duties of appointed entrepreneurs-in-residence. Provides that an entrepreneur-in-residence shall report directly to his or her appointing authority. Repeals the Act on January 1, 2026. Defines terms. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act. Provides that, among other restrictions, no legislator may accept or participate in any way in any representation case before the State of Illinois or any unit of local government in this State on any matter filed on or after February 1, 2019 that involves a challenge to any tax or proposed assessment of any tax or fee. Provides that the prohibition against participation in such a representation case does not apply in regards to a person with whom the legislator maintains a close economic association, unless a fee or compensation received regarding any matter that involves a challenge to any tax or proposed assessment of any tax or fee is received by the legislator directly or indirectly through any interest in a partnership, limited liability corporation, or other business entity. Modifies the term "representation case" to include matters before a unit of local government. Effective immediately.

Amends the General Assembly Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Restricts participation in the General Assembly Retirement System by members of the General Assembly to persons who become participants before the effective date of the amendatory Act and provides that, beginning on that date, the System shall not accept any new participants who are members of the General Assembly. Makes related changes. Effective immediately.

Amends the General Assembly, State Employee, State Universities, Downstate Teachers, and Judges Articles of the Illinois Pension Code. Provides that by no later than July 1, 2020, each System shall establish and post on its website a searchable database of the names of all persons receiving an annuity from the System and the amount of the annuity paid by the System to that person each month. Requires the database to be updated on a monthly basis. Provides that under no circumstances shall the information in that database include the name of any annuitant under the age of 18 or any identifying information other than the annuitant's name and the amount of annuity paid to that annuitant each month. Effective immediately.

Amends the School Code. Provides for legislative findings. Provides that if a school district employee or volunteer, student, or student's parent or guardian reports a threat made by a student, the principal of that student's school must immediately investigate the threat using specified criteria to determine its credibility; defines "threat". Provides that if the principal determines the threat is credible, he or she shall immediately report the threat to a local law enforcement agency for investigation. Provides that after the principal notifies the local law enforcement agency, the school district must take disciplinary action against the student. Provides that following each reported threat, regardless of whether it was deemed credible, the principal must submit a report to the school board to be reviewed at its next regularly scheduled board meeting or special meeting; specifies the report's requirements. Provides that after the school board reviews the report, the principal must submit the report to the State Board of Education and the State Board must submit an annual report to the General Assembly compiling all of the reports it received in the prior school year. Effective immediately.

Amends the Criminal Code of 2012 concerning unlawful use of weapons. Provides that 120 days after the effective date of the amendatory Act, it is unlawful for a person to knowingly import, sell, manufacture, transfer, or possess, in this State, a bump-fire stock for a semi-automatic firearm that does not convert the semi-automatic firearm into a machine gun. Defines "bump-fire stock" as a butt stock designed to be attached to a semi-automatic firearm and designed, made, or altered, and intended to increase the rate of fire achievable with the firearm to that of a fully automatic firearm by using the energy from the recoil of the firearm to generate reciprocating action that facilitates repeated activation of the trigger. Provides that a violation is a Class 4 felony. Effective immediately.

Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that the Department of Healthcare and Family Services must implement an average commercial rate supplemental payment program for ground ambulance services providers for dates of service beginning no later than January 1, 2020. Provides that no later than July 1, 2019, the Department must submit to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services an Illinois Title XIX State Plan amendment to implement an average commercial rate supplemental payment program for ground ambulance services providers; and that the Department must require Medicaid managed care organizations, including managed care community networks, to pay the approved average commercial rates in coordination with the Department. Effective immediately.