Sen. Larry K. Bomke

Amends the Illinois Act on the Aging. Requires the Department on Aging to gather information about the special needs of older rural residents and to evaluate the adequacy and accessibility of existing programs for older rural residents. Creates the Older Rural Adults Task Force to gather information and make recommendations. Sets forth the membership of the Task Force. Provides that the Task Force may hold regional hearings and shall submit a report to the General Assembly no later than January 1, 2009. Provides that the Task Force shall be dissolved upon the submission of the report. Effective immediately.

Amends the Elder Abuse and Neglect Act. Provides that in the case of a report of alleged or suspected abuse or neglect that places an eligible adult at risk of injury or death, a provider agency shall respond to the report without delay and shall ensure that it is capable of responding to such a report 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. Provides that a provider agency may use an on-call system to respond to reports of alleged or suspected abuse or neglect after hours and on weekends. Effective immediately.

Mourns the death of Earl Struck of Springfield.

Amends the Criminal Code of 1961 relating to disorderly conduct. Provides that engaging in any loud protests of singing, chanting, whistling, or yelling with or without noise amplification, displaying any visual images that convey fighting words or actual or veiled threats against any other person, engaging in a directed protest march or picket at any public location when any of these activities are conducted within 300 feet of any entrance to a facility being used for a funeral or memorial service, or blocking access to such facility at any time during the period starting 30 minutes before any funeral or memorial service is scheduled to begin and ending 30 minutes after the funeral or memorial service terminates is disorderly conduct in which the penalty is a Class C misdemeanor. Provides that the provisions of the Act are severable. Effective immediately.

Amends the Conveyances Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the Act's short title.

Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Provides that if any of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission's student loans are sold or transferred to a private entity, then the private entity must offer the same interest and fee rate reduction plan on the loan that the Commission would have offered if the loan was held by the Commission. Effective immediately.

Amends the State Employee Article of the Pension Code to remove the Social Security offset against existing widow and survivor annuities and for all annuitants, beginning January 1, 2007. Provides that, after January 1, 2007, covered employees may elect to have the Social Security offset removed from their widows' or survivors' annuity by increasing their retirement contribution by 0.5%. Exempts the changes from the provisions of the Article concerning new benefit increases. Effective immediately.

Amends the Firearm Owners Identification Card Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning legislative policy.

Amends the Mortgage Certificate of Release Act. Provides that, if any title insurance company or its duly appointed title insurance agent, knowing the mortgage to be paid pursuant to the lender's written payoff statement, fails to file a certificate of release within one month after the payment of the debt secured by the mortgage or trust deed, the title company shall be liable for and pay to the party aggrieved the sum of $200, for each offense, which may be recovered by the party aggrieved in a civil action together with reasonable attorney's fees. Provides that, in any such action, introduction of a loan payment book or receipt that indicates that the obligation has been paid shall be sufficient evidence to raise a presumption that the obligation has been paid. Provides that, upon a finding for the party aggrieved, the court shall order the title insurance company or its duly appointed title insurance agent, to make, execute, and deliver the certificate of release that complies with the requirements of this Act.

Proposes to amend the Revenue Article of the Illinois Constitution. Adds a new Section concerning highway funds. Provides that no moneys derived from fees, excises, or license taxes relating to registration, titles, operation, or use of vehicles on public highways, or to fuels used for propelling vehicles, including bond proceeds, shall be expended for other than costs of administering laws related to vehicles, statutory refunds and adjustments provided in those laws, payment of highway obligations, costs for construction, reconstruction, maintenance, repair, and betterment of public highways, roads, streets, and bridges, and other statutory highway purposes, the State or local share to match federal aid highway funds, administrative costs of the Department of Transportation or any successor agency, expenses of grade separation of public highways and railroad crossings, protection of at-grade public highways and railroad crossings, expense of State enforcement of traffic laws and, with respect to local governments, other transportation purposes as authorized by law. Provides that the total amount appropriated in any fiscal year for the sum of the cost of State enforcement of traffic laws, plus the cost of collecting and administering those fees, excises, and license, plus the cost of administering laws relating to motor vehicles, may not exceed 8% of the total amount of those fees, excises, or taxes, collected by the State of Illinois, in the most recent complete fiscal year. Provides that federal funds may be spent for any purposes authorized by federal law. Effective upon being declared adopted in accordance with Section 7 of the Illinois Constitutional Amendment Act.