Rep. Mike Fortner

Congratulates Joe Jedlovec on the occasion of his retirement as the Winfield Township Highway Commissioner.

Congratulates the Taoist Tai Chi Society of the USA on the grand opening of its center in St. Charles and proclaims February 23, 2013, as Taoist Tai Chi Awareness Day in the State of Illinois.

Amends the Election Code. Provides that an employer may not require an employee to use earned vacation time or any form of paid leave time to serve as an election judge. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Requires the Fund, by rule, to establish a defined contribution benefit plan. Requires the plan to be qualified under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and to authorize each participating municipality and participating instrumentality to (i) require participation in the plan by any person who first becomes its employee on or after January 1, 2012, (ii) define benefit levels and employer contributions as it sees fit, (iii) make benefit changes as it deems appropriate, and (iv) otherwise administer the plan. Provides that participating municipalities and instrumentalities must elect to participate in the plan by no later than January 1, 2012. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement. Effective immediately.

Amends the General Assembly, State Employees, State Universities, Downstate Teachers, and Judges Articles of the Illinois Pension Code. Requires each retirement system that does not already have a self-managed plan to establish and maintain one. Authorizes participants to irrevocably elect to participate in the self-managed plan. Provides that, for the purpose of calculating traditional benefit package benefits and contributions, the annual salary of a participant may not, except under certain circumstances, exceed the greater of (i) the annual salary cap for new hires or (ii) the annual salary of the participant during the 365 days immediately before the effective date of the amendatory Act. Requires participation in the self-managed plan to the extent that a participant's salary exceeds the salary cap. Revises the schedule of contributions for participants. Shifts a portion of the employer contributions for downstate teachers and university employees from the State to the actual employer. Authorizes the Boards of Trustees of each system to triennially recalculate the normal cost of benefit plans offered by the systems. Defines "traditional benefit package" and "self-managed plan". Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement. Effective immediately.

Amends the General Assembly and Judges Articles of the Illinois Pension Code. Allows persons who first became or become employees in the affected Systems on or after January 1, 2011 to elect to participate in a self-managed program of retirement benefits instead of the program of reformed retirement benefits currently offered. Provides that a self-managed plan shall authorize a participant to accumulate assets for retirement through a combination of employer and employee contributions that may be invested at the participant's direction in mutual funds, collective investment funds, or other investment products and used to purchase annuity contracts. Requires the affected Systems to make the self-managed plan available within 6 months after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Provides that, to the extent that the changes made by the amendatory Act are determined to be a new benefit increase under the new benefit increase provisions, the changes are exempt from the 5-year expiration provision. Effective immediately.

Amends the Election Code. Requires that a State central committee of a political party under Alternative A must be composed of 2 members from each congressional district (one male and one female) elected by the primary voters (now, one member from each district elected by the primary voters or by ward, township, and precinct committeemen). Applies to State central committees elected at or after the 2014 general primary. Provides that, if all of a party's candidates for State central committeemen or State central committeewomen from a congressional district are of the same sex, then the candidate receiving the highest number of votes shall be declared elected a State central committeeman or State central committeewoman from the district, and a vacancy shall be declared to exist in the office of the second member of the State central committee from the district. Provides that candidates for election or to fill a vacancy as State central committeeman or committeewoman under Alternative A, a person must have voted in 3 of the 4 most recent primaries of the political party operating under Alternative A. Makes the State central committeeman and committeewoman in a congressional district the members and co-chairpersons of that party's congressional committee. Effective immediately.

Amends the Election Code. Provides that, if a vacancy in nomination occurs as a result of a failure to nominate a candidate at the general primary election, the vacancy shall be filled only by a person nominated (now, designated) by the appropriate committee of the political party. Provides that the person nominated to fill the vacancy shall file his or her nominating petitions and other required documents, including the committee's resolution to fill a vacancy in nomination (now, notice of appointment), on or before the 75th day following the date of the general primary election (now, there is no time limit on filing the petitions and other documents). Effective July 1, 2012.

Amends the Budget Stabilization Act. Makes changes concerning transfers from the General Revenue Fund to the Pension Stabilization Fund. Amends the General Assembly, State Employees, State Universities, Downstate Teachers, and Judges Articles of the Illinois Pension Code. Requires each State-funded retirement system that does not already have a self-managed plan to establish and maintain one. Authorizes participants to irrevocably elect to participate in such a plan. Provides that, for the purpose of calculating traditional benefit package benefits and contributions, the annual salary of a participant may not, except under certain circumstances, exceed certain limits. Requires participation in the self-managed plan to the extent that a participant's salary exceeds the salary cap. Revises the schedule of contributions for participants. Shifts a portion of the employer contributions for downstate teachers and university employees from the State to the actual employer. Authorizes the boards of trustees of each of these retirement systems to triennially recalculate the normal cost of benefit plans that they offer. Defines "traditional benefit package" and "self-managed plan". Changes the formula for calculating the minimum required State contribution to these systems. Provides that the State is contractually obligated to pay the annual required State contribution to these retirement systems. Contains provisions requiring these retirement systems to bring a mandamus action to compel payment of the required State contribution. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement. Effective immediately.

Amends the State Finance Act. Provides that, beginning with fiscal year 2012 and thereafter, Road Fund moneys may not be appropriated to certain executive agencies. Prohibits certain transfers from the Road Fund and the State Construction Account Fund. Amends the Use Tax Act, the Service Use Tax Act, the Service Occupation Tax Act, and the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act. Provides that, beginning on July 1, 2011, motor fuel and gasohol must be taxed under those Acts at the rate of 1.25% (now, 6.25%). Amends the Motor Fuel Tax Law. Imposes an additional tax of $0.150 per gallon on motor fuel sold in the State. Provides that this additional tax must be adjusted each fiscal year to account for inflation. Provides that the proceeds of this additional tax must be deposited into the Capital Projects Fund and used for capital projects. Contains provisions relating to the Capital Projects Fund that were added or amended by Public Act 96-34, 96-37, or 96-38. Those Public Acts were declared invalid by the First District Appellate Court in , based on a single subject violation. Includes language reenacting those provisions and validating certain actions taken in reasonable reliance on them. Includes findings and a severability provision. Effective July 1, 2011.