Sen. Linda Holmes

Amends the Food Handling Regulation Enforcement Act. Provides that a home kitchen operation does not include a person who produces or packages non-potentially hazardous baked goods for sale by a religious, charitable, or nonprofit organization for fundraising purposes. Adds additional requirements in order to qualify as a home kitchen operation. Makes changes concerning the jurisdiction of the local governing body over home kitchen operations. Defines a term. Removes a provision prohibiting certain types of jams and jellies from cottage food operations. Increases the gross receipt threshold of exempt food from $25,000 to $36,000. Allows the Department to adopt rules to implement the requirements of the amendatory Act.

Amends the Environmental Protection Act. Provides that, beginning July 1, 2015, no person may knowingly mix sharps, including, but not limited to, hypodermic, intravenous, or other medical needles or syringes or other medical household waste containing used or unused sharps, including, but not limited to, hypodermic, intravenous, or other medical needles or syringes or other sharps, with any other material intended for collection as a recyclable material by a residential hauler. Provides that, beginning July 1, 2015, no person may knowingly place sharps into a container intended for collection by a commercial hauler for processing at a recycling center. Provides that, beginning on July 1, 2015, State agencies and local governments, as well as businesses and non-profit organizations may establish various specified sharps disposal programs. Provides that the Environmental Protection Agency may provide educational materials to the public about the safe management and proper disposal of household generated sharps through the use of literature, websites, DVDs, a toll-free number, or any other method which the Agency deems appropriate. Effective immediately.

Mourns the death of Cpl. Sara Medina of Aurora.

Mourns the death of Jesse Vazquez of Montgomery.

Amends the Public Building Commission Act. Makes a technical change to a Section concerning the short title.

Amends the Local Government Consolidation Commission Act of 2011. Extends the final report date to September 30, 2013. Effective immediately.

Creates the Paint Stewardship Act. Requires each producer to join the representative organization. Requires the representative organization to submit a plan to the Director of the Environmental Protection Agency for the establishment of a paint stewardship program. Sets forth requirements for the program. Requires the representative organization, in conjunction with an independent auditor, to propose, and the Agency to approve, a fee that will be added to the cost of all architectural paint sold to retailers and distributors in this State. Creates a state-action antitrust exemption for actions taken under the Act. Prohibits, after the implementation of the paint stewardship program, a producer, distributor, or retailer from selling or offering for sale architectural paint to any person in the State if the producer is not a member of the representative organization. Authorizes the imposition of civil penalties for violations of the Act. Sets forth fees for the program. Amends the State Finance Act. Creates the Paint Stewardship Fund. Effective January 1, 2015.

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Provides that taxpayers are entitled to an income tax credit against the taxes imposed under the River Edge Redevelopment Zone Act equal to 100% of the reasonable and prudent costs incurred by a public utility. Provides that any amount of credit that exceeds a taxpayer's liabilities shall be refunded to the taxpayer. Amends the River Edge Redevelopment Zone Act. Restricts the amount of costs recovered by a public utility from retail customers to $5,000,000. Provides for a repeal date of July 1, 2020 (currently, July 29, 2017).

Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Provides that a health plan that provides coverage for prescription drugs shall ensure that (1) any required copayment or coinsurance applicable to drugs on a specialty tier does not exceed $100 per month for up to a 30-day supply of any single drug and (2) required copayment or coinsurance for drugs on a specialty tier does not exceed, in the aggregate for those specialty tier covered drugs, $200 per month per enrollee. Provides that a health plan that provides coverage for prescription drugs and utilizes a tiered formulary shall implement an exceptions process that allows enrollees to request an exception to the tiered cost-sharing structure. Makes other changes. Effective January 1, 2015.

Amends the Workers' Occupational Diseases Act. Provides that any condition or impairment of health of a firefighter, emergency medical technician, or paramedic that results directly or indirectly from Parkinson's disease resulting in any disability to the employee shall be rebuttably presumed to arise out of and in the course of the employee's firefighting, EMT, or paramedic employment and shall be rebuttably presumed to be causally connected to the hazards or exposures of the employment, except as otherwise specified. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement by the State. Effective immediately.