BOARDS OF EDUCATION -
ENFORCEMENT OF BINDING PUBLIC ACCESS COUNSELOR OPINIONS -
Public Act 99-586 -
Effective Date: January 1, 2017 -
Individuals who file lawsuits to enforce binding opinions from the PAC will have a rebuttable presumption in their favor that the public body violated FOIA if the public body does not challenge or comply with the opinion within 35 days. Additionally, if a court determines that a public body willfully and intentionally failed to comply with FOIA, in addition to the current penalty of $2,500 to $5,000, the court may impose an additional penalty of $1,000 for each day the violation continues. If the public body fails to comply with the court’s order after 30 days, the order is not appealed or stayed and the court will not grant the public body additional time to comply.
Please see full publication below for more information.
