The Illinois Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued its seventh binding opinion of the year, finding a Village Board of Trustees violated the Open Meetings Act (OMA) by taking improper action to authorize the purchase of a...more
Social media has given public officials the ability to share information quickly and easily with their constituents and followers, even on their own personal Facebook and other social media accounts. When using a personal...more
The Illinois Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued a binding opinion, finding a school board violated the Open Meetings Act (OMA) when it improperly discussed school curriculum during closed session....more
Early this year, the Illinois Appellate Court issued an opinion responding to challenges asserted under the Open Meetings Act (OMA) and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The Appellate Court held that the Village of Oak...more
1/23/2024
/ Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Budgets ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Employees ,
Firemen ,
FOIA ,
Open Meetings Act ,
Public Access Laws ,
Public Hearing ,
Public Meetings ,
State and Local Government ,
Statutory Violations
As we detailed in a prior alert, Section 10-20.21 of the School Code was amended to increase the competitive bidding threshold from $25,000 to $35,000. The amendments went into effect January 1, 2024....more
In a recent binding opinion, the PAC found a public body in violation of the Open Meetings Act (OMA) for restricting the content of public comment where a member of the public attempted to discuss the District’s hiring...more
The Illinois Public Access Counselor (PAC) recently issued two non-binding opinions concerning the applicability of Open Meetings Act (OMA) requirements to board committees....more
The Illinois Appellate Court recently ruled that the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) does not obligate a public body to produce records that it does not already maintain in response to a FOIA request. Further, the Court...more
Governor Pritzker recently signed P.A. 103-0491 (previously SB 1570) into law, which will allow school districts to enter into design-build contracts—as opposed to the currently available design-bid-build delivery...more
8/22/2023
/ Construction Contracts ,
Construction Project ,
Design-Bid-Build ,
Design-Build ,
Illinois ,
New Legislation ,
Project Delivery Methods ,
Public Acts ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Request for Proposals ,
School Districts
Governor Pritzker recently signed into law Public Act 103-0311 (previously HB 2447), which amends two key provisions in the Open Meetings Act (“OMA”) effective as of July 28, 2023....more
Recently, the Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued a new binding opinion concerning the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). In the opinion, the PAC concluded that a police department violated the FOIA by withholding records...more
This month, Governor Pritzker signed Public Act 103-0008 (House Bill 3817) into law, which establishes the Budget Implementation Act for fiscal year 2024. While there are a multitude of amendments to the Act, one significant...more
Recently, the Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued a new binding opinion concerning the Open Meetings Act (OMA). In the opinion, the PAC determined that three city council members did not violate the OMA when they exchanged...more
As we announced on our blog last week, Governor Pritzker’s COVID-19 disaster proclamation ended on May 11. This signals the end of optional remote attendance at meetings and a return to pre-COVID era requirements for remote...more
Governor Pritzker’s disaster proclamation, declaring a public health emergency due to COVID-19, ends today, May 11, 2023. As a result, COVID-leave rights, and other rights contingent upon the Governor’s public health...more
5/11/2023
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Illinois ,
Leave of Absence ,
New Guidance ,
Open Meetings Act ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Remote Learning ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Workplace Safety
The Public Access Counselor (“PAC”) recently issued its Annual Report, which provides an overview of binding PAC opinions and non-binding determination letters issued in 2022, among other topics. We reported on several of the...more
Recently, the Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued a binding opinion concerning the Open Meetings Act (OMA). In the decision, the PAC found that the public body violated the OMA by holding an improper meeting when it hosted a...more
Recently, the Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued a binding opinion concerning the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). In the decision, the PAC upholds a school’s decision to utilize the Section 7(1)(f) (predecisional)...more
Recently, the Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued two non-binding opinions concerning the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), both upholding school district decisions to exert exemptions and withhold key documents under the...more
The United States District Court for the District of New Jersey recently issued a decision regarding the limited First Amendment protections afforded to speakers who use offensive and disruptive speech at school board...more
12/13/2022
/ Appropriate Business Decorum ,
Board Meetings ,
Equal Protection ,
First Amendment ,
Masks ,
Offensive Language ,
Public Comment ,
Public Forum ,
Retaliation ,
School Boards ,
Warning Letters
The Illinois Public Access Counselor (PAC) recently issued a binding decision, PAC 22-012, regarding the Open Meetings Act (OMA), finding that a board of education’s closed session discussions violated the OMA at separate...more
On June 29, 2022, Governor Pritzker signed Public Act 12-1101 (House Bill 4813) into law, amending Section 10-20.21 of the Illinois School Code, which generally requires contracts that are subject to the bidding process to be...more
The Illinois Appellate Court recently issued a new decision regarding the FOIA. In Kraft v. Chicago Police Department, the Court ruled in favor of the police department, finding it properly exempted records as unduly...more
The PAC recently released its second binding opinion of 2022, which provides helpful analysis and guidance regarding the personal and pre-decisional exemptions under the FOIA. The PAC determined that the City of Chicago...more
In Houston Community College System v. Wilson, the United States Supreme Court held that a public body’s verbal censure of a fellow board member did not violate the board member’s First Amendment rights. The censure followed...more
4/6/2022
/ Appeals ,
Article III ,
Board of Trustees ,
Censures ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Open Meetings Act ,
Public Entities ,
Retaliation ,
Reversal ,
Standing