Sen. Jil Tracy

Creates the Fund the Police Act. Contains findings. Creates the Fund the Police Grant Fund and provides that moneys the Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board receives from the fund must be used for the purpose of make grants to units of local government for the purposes of: (1) hiring, rehiring, and retention of law enforcement officers, including hiring and retention incentives and overtime; (2) funding body camera mandates, including, but not limited to, the purchase, storage, and other necessary expenses for running local body camera programs, and purchasing law enforcement equipment designed to keep officers and their communities safe; (3) funding additional law enforcement training, including funding for Mobile Team In-Service Training Units throughout the State; (4) assisting with outreach and community policing activities; and (5) assisting with mental health treatment for individuals in county jails. Provides that the Board may set rules relating to requirements for the distribution of grant moneys and determine which law enforcement agencies are eligible and shall consider compliance with the Uniform Crime Reporting Act as a factor in awarding grant moneys. Provides that moneys in the Fund the Police Grant Fund may not be appropriated, assigned, or transferred to another State fund. Provides for a continuing appropriation at the beginning of each fiscal year of $125,000,000 from the General Revenue Fund to the Fund the Police Grant Fund. Amends the State Finance Act by making conforming changes.

Creates the Illinois Veterans' Home in Quincy Foundation Act. Authorizes the Secretary of State to create the Illinois Veterans' Home in Quincy Foundation. Provides further requirements concerning the establishment of the Foundation. Provides for officers of the Foundation. Provides that funds collected by the Foundation shall be used for private partnership projects that will support renovations to the Illinois Veterans Home in Quincy campus, Dudley House, and domiciliary buildings. Provides further requirements concerning Foundation funds. Provides for the adoption of rules. Provides purpose provisions.

Creates the Equitable Access to Electronic Literature Act. Provides that any publisher who offers a contract or license for electronic literary product acquisition to the public shall offer to license the electronic literary product to libraries, if purchased with public funds, on reasonable terms and under reasonable technological protection measures that will permit libraries to provide their patrons with access to the electronic literary products. Provides that a contract or license shall not restrict a library's right or ability to loan or circulate electronic books and digital audiobooks in specified ways. Provides that a person who violates the provisions of the Act commits an unlawful practice within the meaning of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. Effective January 1, 2023.

Amends the Educator Licensure Article of the School Code. Removes the requirement that educator licensure candidates pass a teacher performance assessment. Makes related changes. Effective July 1, 2021.

Amends the Child Care Act of 1969. Provides that the Department of Children and Family Services shall adopt and implement rules to adjust licensing requirements, including, but not limited to, worker qualifications for child care providers within child care deserts that reflect local labor market conditions in order to grant local child care providers enhanced hiring flexibility and expand child care into currently underserved areas. Defines "child care deserts" and "child care provider". Provides that the Department shall submit proposed rules to implement the provisions concerning emergency licensing to the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules no later than December 31, 2023. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Provides that, for taxable years ending on or after December 31, 2022, 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 Coin-Operated Amusement Device and Redemption Machine Tax Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the short title. Senate Floor Amendment No. 2 Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Reinserts the provisions of Senate Amendment No. 1. Removes provisions concerning carry-forward of the credit. Provides that the credit shall be awarded by the Board of Higher Education. Provides that the credit applies for tax years beginning prior to January 1, 2028 (in Senate Amendment No. 1, the credit is exempt from the Act's automatic sunset provision). Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act. Provides that after an initial proclamation declaring that a disaster exists, the Governor may only extend that declaration or make further proclamations regarding the same disaster if the General Assembly passes a resolution within 5 calendar days that approves the extension or further proclamation. Provides that if, due to health or safety concerns, the General Assembly is unable to convene in either regular or special session to approve the extension or further proclamation, the extension or further proclamation may continue in effect until the General Assembly is able to convene in regular or special session if the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Minority Leader of the Senate, and the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives submit written certification to the Governor that the General Assembly is unable to convene to provide the necessary approval of the extension or further proclamation. Effective immediately.

Provides that the amendatory Act may be referred to as the Coal to Solar and Energy Storage Act. Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act, the State Finance Act, and the Public Utilities Act. Authorizes the procurement of renewable energy credits by electric utilities serving more than 300,000 retail customers as of January 1, 2019. Provides for the renewable energy credits to be related to new renewable energy resources installed at the site of electric generation that on January 1, 2019 burned coal as the primary fuel source. Provides for the Illinois Power Agency to manage the procurement of the credits. Establishes the requirements for eligibility for the credits. Requires the electric utilities to file a tariff for the billing and collection of a Coal to Solar and Energy Storage Initiative Charge on each kilowatthour of electricity delivered to its delivery services customers within its service territory at specified rates and to deposit a percentage of its collections in the Coal to Solar and Energy Storage Incentive and Plant Transition Fund. Establishes the Coal to Solar and Energy Storage Incentive and Plant Transition Fund as a special fund in the State treasury to provide transitional support funding to coal-fueled electric utilities participating in the utilization of the renewable energy credits. Effective immediately.

Amends provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure pertaining to class actions. Adds further requirements concerning: prerequisites to the maintenance of a class action (including provisions that a class action may be certified only in the court where the defendant’s principal office is located, the plurality of the class members who are Illinois residents reside, or the cause of action arose for the plurality of class members, and a provision requiring that a class action be superior to other available methods for the fair and efficient adjudication of the controversy); preliminary determinations to be made by the court; notice to the class; coupon and other noncash settlements; loss by class members under a proposed settlement; and attorney's fees.