Executive Report
Attorney general opinion on notices quotes legislative debates
TRANSCRIPTS of legislative debates
were used in an attorney general opinion, possibly for the first time.
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The attorney general quoted the
legislative transcripts to show the intent
of Rep. Brian B. Duff (R., Wilmette),
who sponsored House Bill 1313 (P.A.
78-458). The question was the definition
of the word "notice" in the act relating
to the publication requirements of
government proceedings. (Illinois Revised Statutes, 1975, chapter 100, section 8.2).
Duff's bill extended publication
requirements to home rule units. He
explained it was intended to overcome
the possibility that home rule units
could legally avoid publication requirements. "A citizen in a home rule village,
city or county, should not be a second
class citizen," Duff said. "His right to
know should be equal to that of any citizen in the state."
Under the 1970 Constitution, both
chambers of the General Assembly are
required to keep a transcript of debates
(Article IV, section 7(b)). The attorney general advised that the word notice
"applies to and includes all publication
requirements, including information
about the actions governmental bodies
have taken."
The opinion (File S-1055) was given March 17 to Douglas Marti, state's attorney of Bond County.
Community college traffic regulations
S-1054 to David DeDoncker, state's attorney, Rock Island County 3/17/76
Community college boards have the
power to enact certain traffic regulations. If
the college is in a city, fines go to the city
whether enforced by the city police or college
security personnel. When the college is not in
a city, fines go to the county whether
enforced by the sheriff or college security
personnel. In the latter case, the state's
attorney is required to prosecute. Violations
of local ordinances which parallel state
traffic laws can be prosecuted as state Class
A misdemeanors.
Size of county board
S-1062 to Sen. Karl Berning, chairman,
Commission to Study County Problems,
Springfield, 3/17/76
Neither home rule nor non-home rule
counties may, under normal circumstances,
change the size of the county board between
the decennial reapportionment dates fixed
by law. However, the Constitution provides
(Art. VII, sec. 3(b)) no county other than
Cook may change its method of electing a
county board without a referendum, and if
the county electorate changes the method of
electing board members between the scheduled reapportionment dates, conformity
with the Constitution would seem to require
a departure from the decennial rule regarding size of the board. |
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Federal agency demands return of $188.4 million
ON TOP of the state's other financial
problems, federal officials in mid-April
demanded Illinois return $188.4 million in
community mental health service funds
received between March 1972 and April
1974. State officials said that the decision
made by Clyde Downing, regional commissioner for the social and rehabilitation
service of the U.S. Department of Health,
Education and Welfare in Chicago, would
be appealed to the HEW Washington office
and, if necessary, to the courts. The appeals
process is expected to take several months.
James Carey, Washington Bureau chief for the Copley News Service, in a story
published in the Springfield State Journal-Register linked the claim to a study last year by Martha Derthick of the Brookings Institution, Washington, Uncontrollable
Spending for Social Service Grants. According to the Derthick study, Illinois during the
administration of Gov. Richard B. Ogilvie,
1969-73, was able to obtain memoranda
from federal officials approving what was
being done. Basically, this involved permitting the Department of Public Aid to use
federal funds to "purchase services" from
other state agencies to cover part of the cost
of state programs dealing with drug abuse,
alcoholism, mental health, mental retardation, and juvenile and adult corrections. To
obtain these waivers, Derthick said, Illinois officials went to the White House.
These waivers were possible, the study indicated, because of ambiguities in the federal law.
Illinois briefs
A grant of $11 million has been awarded
to Illinois by the Federal Energy Research
and Development Administration to pay for
preconstruction costs of a coal conversion
facility to be built at the Powerton generating station of Commonwealth Edison near
Pekin.
A new service to provide employers and
jobseekers a means of finding each other for
temporary or part-time service was announced by the Illinois State Employment
Service (ISES). "Temporedy," a free service,
will be available through all the ISES offices
in the state.
Three surface mines — Staunton #1 and
#2 mines in Macoupin County and the
Nokomis-Coalton mine in Montgomery
County are being acquired by the Illinois
Department of Mines and Minerals for
reclamation at an estimated cost of $1.3
million. This action represents the first mine
reclamation project under 1975 legislation.
June 1976 / Illinois Issues / 31