Sen. Seth Lewis

Amends the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Act. Provides that, notwithstanding any other provision of law, moneys in the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Fund may not be appropriated, assigned, or transferred to another State fund. Effective immediately.

Amends the Local Records Act. Provides that a unit of local government required to store public records under the Act may satisfy the requirements of the Act by storing the public records in an electronic form.

Amends the Illinois Procurement Code. Provides that each chief procurement officer may designate as a veteran-owned small business set-aside a fair proportion of construction, supply, and service contracts for award to veteran-owned small businesses in Illinois. Requires the chief procurement officer to report certain information to the General Assembly.

Amends the Freedom of Information Act. Provides that, as used in the Act, the term "commercial purpose" means, among other things, the use of any part of a public record or records, or information derived from public records, in any form for any use or purpose that furthers the commercial, trade, or profit interests of the requester or the person on whose behalf the request is made.

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Provides that, for taxable years ending on or after December 31, 2025, the credit for employee child care shall be in an amount equal to: (1) 50% of the start-up costs expended by the corporate taxpayer to provide a child care facility for the children of its employees; and (2) 20% of the annual amount paid by the corporate taxpayer to (i) provide an on-site child care facility for the children of its employees, (ii) provide child care offsite for the children of its employees, or (iii) a combination of (i) and (ii) (currently, 30% of the start-up costs and 5% of the annual amount paid by the taxpayer in providing the child care facility). Provides that the taxpayer may coordinate with an independent child care facility to provide care for the children of employees. Effective immediately.

Amends the Private Detective, Private Alarm, Private Security, Fingerprint Vendor, and Locksmith Act of 2004. Provides that the Private Detective, Private Alarm, Private Security, Fingerprint Vendor, and Locksmith Board shall consist of 12 (rather than 13) members. Removes the requirement that one member of the Board be a licensed private detective or licensed private security contractor who provides canine odor detection services. Provides that a majority of appointed Board members constitutes a quorum.

Creates the Healing Through History Act. Requires the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to provide prospective adoptive families, no less than 30 days prior to adoption finalization, with a complete, unredacted copy of the child's full case record, including, but not limited to: (i) all placement histories and foster home records; (ii) all caseworker notes and observations; (iii) all educational, psychological, and behavioral reports; (iv) all therapy or counseling notes, subject to certain federal requirements; and (v) all medical records in full, including historical records. Provides that former foster youth aged 18 or older are entitled to receive the same information and records at no cost in both physical and digital form. Contains provisions concerning ongoing record access post-adoption or post-emancipation; the development of Department protocols and infrastructure necessary to collect, preserve, and transmit full child records; exemption and confidentiality protections; federal disclosure requirements; and other matters. Effective January 1, 2026.

Maddy summarySB 939 amends the School Code by making a technical correction to the short title of a specific section. It does not change any substantive educational policies or programs. This procedural adjustment solely affects the formal naming of a section within the School Code. No new requirements, funding, or direct impacts on students, schools, or educators are created by this bill.

Congratulates Firefighter-Paramedic Gino Casciola of Addison Fire Protection District #1 on being awarded the Illinois Fire Service Medal of Valor. Thanks him for his service and dedication to the Addison community and the State of Illinois.

Amends the Illinois Estate and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax Act. Provides that, for persons dying on or after January 1, 2027, if a valid election has been made under the Internal Revenue Code allowing a person to take into account a federal deceased spousal unused exclusion amount for the purposes of calculating the person's federal estate tax, then the person's Illinois exclusion amount shall include the Illinois deceased spousal unused exclusion amount for the deceased spouse with respect to whom the federal election was made. Effective immediately.