SPRINGFIELD – Representing mayors and municipal officials from across the state, the Illinois Municipal League (IML) announced its annual ‘Moving Cities Forward’ legislative platform, which aims to ensure the long-term success of Illinois’ 1,295 cities, villages and towns.
The 2023 platform is intended to strengthen local governments’ ability to provide critical services to taxpayers and includes prioritizing fully funding the Local Government Distributive Fund (LGDF); reamortization of downstate public safety pension funds; allowing for electronic publication of government notices; granting local officials the authority to conduct remote meetings; and, creating a statewide digital repository for the storage and maintenance of officer-worn body camera footage.
“These proposals are crucial to the fiscal solvency and overall wellbeing of municipalities across Illinois,” said IML Executive Director Brad Cole. “We’re asking the General Assembly to collaborate with local leaders to ensure that they have the funds and authority needed to best serve their communities, as they provide the local services that protect the health, safety and welfare of their shared constituencies.”
A primary goal of the ‘Moving Cities Forward’ platform is full restoration of LGDF, which is funded by a designated portion of state income tax revenues. LGDF was created to allocate 10% of state income tax revenues back to municipalities to help fund critical programs. After a series of funding cuts that began in 2011, LGDF is now just 6.16% of individual income tax collections and 6.845% of corporate income tax collections.
“This funding is essential to help offset the growing costs incurred from everyday cost increases and unfunded state mandates. Most communities spend all – and often more – of their LGDF allotment on state-mandated pension payments alone. To make up for the lack of state funding, municipalities are often forced to raise taxes on families,” said IML President, Village President Catherine M. Adduci of River Forest. “We need the state to be a true partner with us to get back to full funding.”
To further stabilize municipal budgets, legislation is needed to reform downstate public pension funds by extending the scheduled date these pensions must be funded to 2050 or later. This would not reduce pension benefits, but ensures municipalities are better equipped to meet their financial obligations. Currently, municipal employers are required to contribute an amount sufficient to bring the total assets of the funds to 90% of the total actuarial liabilities by the end of the Municipal Fiscal Year (MFY) 2040. This is a significantly shorter deadline than other funds in Illinois, even though downstate pension funds have better funded ratios.
Municipal leaders are also supporting legislation that permits state and local public bodies to conduct remote meetings without the issuance of a gubernatorial or Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) disaster declaration. This proposal allows local leaders to determine when in-person meetings are unsafe and impractical for their own communities and enhances public engagement in public meetings.
“Local governments should not have to depend on a disaster declaration from the Governor or IDPH as a precursor to hold remote meetings. When in-person meetings aren’t feasible, officials need the flexibility to meet virtually and promptly address the challenges facing their communities,” said IML First Vice President, Mayor Mark T. Kupsky of Fairview Heights. “Remote meetings are vital for not only allowing essential work to be carried out by officials but opening the door for more transparency and constituent participation.”
The platform also advocates for local officials to have the option to fulfill public notice mandates electronically. Current state law imposes a significant number of mandated posting requirements for communicating governmental information to the public. This proposal would allow municipalities to fulfill any statutorily-mandated newspaper posting requirement by providing notice on the municipality’s website and on a publicly available, searchable online database operated independently from the municipality.
In addition, municipal leaders are calling for the creation of a statewide digital repository for the storage and maintenance of officer-worn body camera footage. The Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity Act, known as the SAFE-T Act, requires all law enforcement agencies to implement the use of officer-worn body cameras by no later than January 1, 2025. Police departments, particularly in small communities, will face significant data storage costs. By establishing a statewide repository, municipalities would have the option to buy into a centralized system that streamlines and standardizes storage while also cutting taxpayer expense.
For more information about IML’s full 2023 ‘Moving Cities Forward’ Agenda please visit Moving Cities Forward 2023.
‘Moving Cities Forward’
Restoration of Local Government Distributive Fund (LGDF) Revenues
HB 1116 (Rep. DeLuca, D-Chicago Heights) and SB 180 (Sen. Murphy, D-Des Plaines)
LGDF distributions play a role in funding critical municipal services and keeping the local tax burden low. Without LGDF, communities across Illinois would need to explore increases to other fees or taxes – including property taxes. When enacted, 10% of total income taxes in the state were dedicated to LGDF. Now, the state dedicates only 6.16% of individual income tax collections and 6.845% of corporate income tax collections. This proposal would incrementally increase amounts transferred from the State of Illinois’ General Revenue Fund to LGDF to 10% of net revenue realized from income taxes imposed on individuals, trusts, estates and corporations.
Reamortization of Downstate Public Safety Pension Funds
HB 1185 (Rep. Vella, D-Rockford)
The current amortization schedule for downstate police and firefighter pension funds is significantly shorter than other statewide, state-administered and Chicago-based pension systems despite downstate public safety pension funds having better funding ratios (excluding the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund). This proposal would extend the amortization date for downstate public safety pension funds from the end of MFY 2040 to MFY 2050 or later, and provide immediate financial relief to affected communities.
Authority to Fulfill Public Notice Mandates Electronically
HB 3154 (Rep. Ford, D-Chicago) and SB 61 (Sen. Castro, D-Elgin)
Public notice requirements are an important and beneficial service provided to citizens. These requirements also add costs to local governments and their taxpayers, particularly for mandates to place notices in newspapers or mail them to residents. This proposal would grant municipal governments the option to fulfill any statutorily-mandated newspaper posting requirement by providing notice on the municipality’s website and on a publicly available, searchable online database operated independently from the municipality. This is a shift to utilize modern technology in a way that recognizes how the public increasingly finds and views public notices.
Authority to Conduct Remote Meetings
HB 1408 (Rep. Yang Rohr, D-Naperville) and SB 103 (Sen. Castro, D-Elgin)
This proposal would permit public officials to conduct a remote meeting without the issuance of a gubernatorial or IDPH disaster declaration. Specifically, this proposal would allow the head of a public body to determine if an in-person meeting would pose a risk to the health or safety of members of the public or the public body, or that conducting a remote meeting is in the best interest of the public or the public body.
Storage of Officer-Worn Body Camera Footage
HB 1611 (Rep. Didech, D-Buffalo Grove)
State law requires all law enforcement agencies to employ the use of officer-worn body cameras by no later than January 1, 2025. Currently, each law enforcement agency must retain recordings made on officer-worn body cameras for a period of at least 90 days. Costs associated with data storage impose significant pressures on municipal budgets relating to public safety. This proposal would require the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology (DoIT) to establish a statewide digital repository for the collection, storage, retention and retrieval of any officer-worn body camera recording, and to make this repository available to any law enforcement agency.
These issues are just a few of the priorities outlined in ‘Moving Cities Forward’. Please visit our website at www.iml.org for more information on IML legislative priorities.
ABOUT THE ILLINOIS MUNICIPAL LEAGUE
The Illinois Municipal League is the statewide association representing local communities throughout Illinois. Founded in 1913, IML has worked continuously for the benefit of all 1,295 municipalities in Illinois to provide a formal voice on matters involving common interests.