2020 ~ Municipal Minute

Updates on cases, laws, and other topics of interest to local governments

Thursday, December 31, 2020

Court Finds Immunity for City's Paramedic Actions Under EMS Act

Thursday, December 31, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

An Illinois Appellate Court recently rejected a lawsuit filed against a City relating to EMS services. Gary v. City of Calumet City. In 2014, a woman suffered an asthma attack and was treated by City paramedics after her mother called 911. The woman passed away 10 days later, and her mother sued the City claiming the paramedics acted willfully and wantonly in treating her. The Court disagreed,...

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

Court Dismisses Land Use Claims

Wednesday, December 30, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

An Illinois Appellate Court recently upheld the dismissal of a complaint against a municipality, finding that the landowner had no lawfully vested right and that his regulatory takings claim was precluded by a claim that had already been litigated in federal court. Storey v. City of Alton.In 1999, Michael Storey bought property in Alton in order to develop it into a mobile home development. The property...

Constitutional Issues / Land Use and Environmental

Tuesday, December 29, 2020

PAC Issues Binding Opinion on FOIA and Police Report Involving Juvenile Victim

Tuesday, December 29, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

The PAC issued its eighth binding opinion for 2020 finding a public body in violation of FOIA for withholding a police report involving a juvenile victim in PAC Op. 2020-08. In September, an attorney submitted a FOIA request to a Sheriff’s Office seeking a police report involving the alleged sexual assault of a minor. The attorney submitted the FOIA request on behalf of his client (the minor’s...

Freedom of Information

Monday, December 28, 2020

Access to Candidate Nominating Petitions

Monday, December 28, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

This year is a local election cycle for many Illinois units of local government, and many candidates for local office filed their nominating petitions and other candidacy paperwork last week. A question was recently raised regarding access to candidate nominating petitions and filings, and whether the exemptions under FOIA apply to certain information within those filings.Cerrtainly, nominating petitions...

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

County Dispatch Services Protected by Tort Immunity Act

Tuesday, December 22, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

An Illinois Appellate Court recently held that a county and its employees had immunity from liability in a case brought by the husband of a woman who died after driving under the influence of alcohol. Schultz v. St. Clair County.Plaintiff sued the County, a 9-1-1 agency, the ETSB, and an unnamed dispatcher claiming they were responsible for his wife's death. According to the complaint, the plaintiff...

Monday, December 21, 2020

Court Upholds City's Denial of PSEBA Benefits in Training Exercise

Monday, December 21, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

An Illinois Appellate Court recently ruled in favor of a municipality in a challenge to the City's decision denying PSEBA benefits to a firefighter. Heneghan v. City of EvanstonA City firefighter was injured during a live fire training exercise. He applied for and was approved for an on-duty disability pension for his injuries sustained during the training exercise. He also applied for benefits under...

Friday, December 18, 2020

Election Law Prohibiting "Ballot Selfies" Upheld as Constitutional

Friday, December 18, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

An Illinois Appellate Court recently upheld as constitutional Section 29-9 of the Illinois Election Code (prohibiting photographs of a completed ballot) against a challenge that it violated the First Amendment right to free speech. Oettle v. Guthrie, 2020 IL App (5th) 190306.On November 6, 2018, Oettle went to her assigned polling place to cast her vote. She asked one of the election judges if she...

Constitutional Issues / Elections

Tuesday, December 15, 2020

Governor Extends Tier 3 Mitigations Through January 9th

Tuesday, December 15, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

On Friday, Illinois Governor Pritzker issued another disaster declaration dated December 11, 2020, regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. The December declaration is pretty consistent with the November declaration, including the Governor's finding that in-person attendance of more than ten people at a regular meeting location of a meeting subject to the Open Meetings Act is not feasible. The Governor...

Thursday, December 10, 2020

Court Reverses Firefighter Pension Board’s Decision Terminating Disability Payments

Thursday, December 10, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

In Pagorek v. Board of Trustees of the City of Harvey's Firefighter Pension Fund, the Illinois Appellate Court overturned a pension fund board’s decision that had found a firefighter was no longer disabled and did not qualify for a disability pension.Pagorek was hired as a firefighter in 1997. In January 2005, he slipped and fell and experienced severe lower back and leg pain. Pagorek...

Wednesday, December 9, 2020

Appellate Court Upholds Village of Deerfield's Assault Weapon Ban

Wednesday, December 09, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

An Illinois Appellate Court recently issued a ruling in favor of the Village of Deerfield on a challenge to its assault weapon and large magazine ban. Easterday v. Village of Deerfield.In 2013, the Village of Deerfield passed an ordinance regulating the storage and transportation of assault weapons in the Village. The ordinance did not ban these weapons, however. The ordinance was adopted pursuant...

Constitutional Issues

Tuesday, December 8, 2020

Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Religious Uses in COVID Case

Tuesday, December 08, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

As many of you are all ready aware, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling the day before Thanksgiving regarding a challenge to New York Governor Cuomo's executive order restricting attendance at places of worship to address the spread of the virus that has caused the COVID-19 pandemic. Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn et al v. Governor Cuomo. The challenge had been brought by two places...

Constitutional Issues / Covid-19 / Land Use and Environmental

Monday, December 7, 2020

Court Dismisses Church's First Amendment Claims against Village

Monday, December 07, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Our friends at the Law of the Land blog recently reported on a federal district case from Illinois that may be of interest to our readers.In Word Seed Church v Village of Homewood, IL, 2020 WL 6719030 (ND IL. 11/16/2020), a church had sued the Village of Homewood challenging the Village's zoning ordinance because it allegedly impeded the church's ability to establish a place of worship in the Village...

Constitutional Issues / Land Use and Environmental

Thursday, December 3, 2020

New Podcast Released - Social Media Workshop

Thursday, December 03, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Ancel Glink's Quorum Forum podcast just released Episode 47: IAMMA Social Media Workshop! A description of this podcast is below and you can listen to the podcast on the Quorum Forum website here.Quorum Forum Episode 47: IAMMA Social Media Workshop!How do the First Amendment and other laws apply to local government employees on social media? Ancel Glink Attorneys Matt DiCianni and Dan Bolin...

Seminars / Social Media

Wednesday, December 2, 2020

Court Analyzes Subsidiary Body Factors Under FOIA

Wednesday, December 02, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

In 2014, the Better Government Association (BGA) made FOIA requests to the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (MPEA) and Navy Pier, Inc. (NPI) seeking records relating to the operation of Navy Pier. While MPEA supplied some responsive records and indicated that certain other responsive records did not exist, NPI denied the request entirely claiming that it was not a public body subject to...

Freedom of Information

Tuesday, December 1, 2020

Court Overturns Civil Penalty Award in FOIA Case

Tuesday, December 01, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

In Peery v. Madison Cty. State's Attorney's Office, an Illinois Appellate Court overturned an order that imposed civil penalties against a public body under FOIA for failing to disclose certain misplaced records because the evidence did not suggest the records were withheld intentionally, willfully, or otherwise in bad faith.This case arose from four separate FOIA requests submitted to the Madison...

Freedom of Information

Monday, November 30, 2020

PAC Interprets New Remote Meeting Procedures of OMA in Binding Opinion

Monday, November 30, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

It's been 4 months since the PAC issued a binding opinion, but on November 24th, the PAC issued its seventh binding opinion of 2020 finding a public body in violation of the Open Meetings Act in PAC Op. 2020-07 because it muted a portion of its "remote" village board meeting.This summer, the Illinois General Assembly amended the OMA (effective June 12, 2020) to add a new remote meeting procedure...

Covid-19 / Open Meetings

Monday, November 23, 2020

Governor Issues EO Implementing Tier 3 Restrictions

Monday, November 23, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

We previously reported on the Tier 3 mitigation measures that took effect on Friday and that cover the entire State of Illinois. Since the Governor's press release about the new restrictions, he issued the Executive Order 2020-73 that provides further details about the new restrictions, including guidance on some government functions and activities that will be of interest to our readers.EO 2020-73...

Wednesday, November 18, 2020

Tier 3 COVID Mitigation Measures Take Effect on Friday

Wednesday, November 18, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

It will come as no surprise to most readers, but the State of Illinois is going to see new mitigation measures to try to control the COVID-19 pandemic. As we've reported in the past, all regions in the State are currently in Phase 4, with individual regions also being subject to either Tier 1 or Tier 2 measures that restrict certain activities such as indoor dining and size of gatherings. Effective...

Monday, November 16, 2020

Appellate Court Invalidates Kane County Court's TRO Regarding Indoor Dining Restrictions

Monday, November 16, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

There have been a number of lawsuits brought against Illinois Governor Pritzker relating to recent mitigation measures taken to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of these lawsuits included claims brought by restaurants to challenge bans on indoor dining and bar service. One case made its way to the Second District Appellate Court which issued a ruling last week invalidating a TRO that was issued...

Wednesday, November 11, 2020

Reminder: IMRF Website Posting Requirements Deadline of January 1, 2021

Wednesday, November 11, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Earlier this year, we wrote about Public Act 101-0504, which amended the Illinois Pension Code. This new law requires certain website posting requirements for the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) and participating municipalities.Municipalities participating in the IMRF that maintain a website must post a link to the IMRF’s “Employer Cost & Participation Information” webpage on their websites...

Tuesday, November 10, 2020

Is Video Gaming Permitted During COVID-19 Mitigation Measures?

Tuesday, November 10, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

As you know, the Governor has recently imposed further mitigation measures throughout the State of Illinois regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. Some regions are currently in Tier 1, which bans indoor dining and indoor bar service and restricts gatherings to 25 people, among other restrictions. Other regions are currently, or will be shortly, in Tier 2, which also bans indoor dining and indoor bar service...

Monday, November 9, 2020

Court Rules on Reasonable Accommodations in Code Enforcement Case

Monday, November 09, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

In City of Harvard v. Nevitt, the Illinois Appellate Court ruled in favor of the City in a code enforcement case against a resident, rejecting the resident's argument that the City should have provided a reasonable accommodation for his wife's disability under the Americans' with Disabilities Act (ADA) or the Fair Housing Amendments Act (FHAA).In December 2018, a resident of the City of Harvard applied...

Land Use and Environmental

Thursday, November 5, 2020

6th Circuit Court of Appeals Rules on Social Media Case

Thursday, November 05, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Early last month, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling in a case filed by a City employee who was terminated for posting a comment on Facebook after the City determined that the comment was racially charged. In Bennett v. Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, the Court of Appeals upheld the government employer's termination of the employee for the social media...

Constitutional Issues / Social Media

Wednesday, November 4, 2020

IICLE Local Government Law Institute 2020 Seminar

Wednesday, November 04, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Calling all local government lawyers! One month from today, the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (IICLE) will be hosting its 8th annual Local Government Law all-day seminar, which will be conducted entirely remotely this year. More information about this year's seminar is below:Title: Local Government Law InstituteDate/Time: December 4, 2020 from 8:45 to 4:45Place: WebinarDescription...

Monday, November 2, 2020

Join us Today at Noon for a Live Election Podcast!

Monday, November 02, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Quorum Forum 46: 2021 Election Special!With the 2020 general election campaigns drawing to a close this week, preparations for the 2021 local government elections are well underway. Today at noon (Monday, November 2, 2020), we'll welcome Ancel Glink Attorney Ken Menzel to the podcast to discuss common areas of confusion and important things to know about the upcoming local government elections....

Elections / Seminars

Thursday, October 29, 2020

Tier 1 Mitigation Measures Announced for Lake and McHenry Counties Effective Saturday

Thursday, October 29, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

If it seems like we are reporting every day on new COVID-19 mitigation measures, that's because we are. New mitigation measures are being announced by the State of Illinois nearly every day and yesterday was no exception. The Illinois Governor announced that tier 1 mitigation measures will take effect on Saturday, October 31st, in Lake and McHenry Counties (Region 9). As we have reported on...

New Mitigation Measures Announced for Chicago

Thursday, October 29, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Just a few days after we wrote about new mitigation measures for Suburban Cook County and the St. Louis area, the State announced new mitigation measures for the City of Chicago (Region 11), effective Friday. The tier 1 restrictions are the same as what we reported on with these other regions - no indoor dining or bar service and restrictions on gatherings, meetings, and events to 25 people....

Wednesday, October 28, 2020

Illinois Attorney General to Host FOIA Webinar

Wednesday, October 28, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

The Illinois Attorney General’s Office will host a webinar on November 6, 2020 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. to help public bodies and FOIA officers with responding to requests for records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).The webinar will cover basic FOIA requirements, frequently used exemptions, redacting information, and responses to request public records. The webinar will also discuss...

Freedom of Information / Seminars

Tuesday, October 27, 2020

Homeowner Prevails in Zoning Case Against Neighbor

Tuesday, October 27, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

An Illinois Appellate Court recently upheld an injunction against a residential property owner operating a boarding house and a vehicle parking and storage facility in an Adjoining Landowner Act lawsuit (65 ILCS 5/11-13-15) brought by a neighboring resident. Frederick v. Gaca.Frederick filed a lawsuit against his neighbors alleging a variety of claims regarding the use of residential property...

Land Use and Environmental

Monday, October 26, 2020

Mitigation Measures Imposed on Suburban Cook and Metro East Regions

Monday, October 26, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

We reported last week on a variety of new mitigation measures imposed by the State of Illinois on certain regions in the state. Today, the State announced new mitigation measures for Regions 4 (Metro East) and 10 (Suburban Cook County. These measures include bans on indoor dining and indoor bar service, and restrictions on meetings, events, and gatherings to 25 people. These new restrictions go into...

Deadline of October 31, 2020 for Discrimination and Sexual Harassment Reporting

Monday, October 26, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

During the last legislative session, the Illinois General Assembly passed the Workplace Transparency Act (WTA), which overhauled sexual harassment reporting and training requirements across the State of Illinois for employers, including units of government. Initially, the law required employers to report the number of adverse judgments issued in 2019 on July 1, 2020. Recently, the Illinois...

Thursday, October 22, 2020

Public Body Did Not Waive Ability to Redact Records in FOIA Case

Thursday, October 22, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

In a recent court ruling, the First District Appellate Court concluded that the Schaumburg Police Department did not waive its right to redact accident reports in response to a FOIA request even though the Department had previously provided unredacted copies of the same reports to a third-party vendor in order to comply with the Department's mandatory reporting obligations under the Vehicle Code. Mancini...

Freedom of Information

Wednesday, October 21, 2020

State Imposes New Restrictions on Illinois Regions

Wednesday, October 21, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Regions 7 and 8 (Will, Kankakee, Kane, and DuPage Counties)This afternoon, the Governor announced new mitigation efforts for Regions 7 and 8, which take effect on Friday, October 23, 2020. Region 7 includes Will and Kankakee Counties and Region 8 includes Kane and DuPage Counties. According to the Governor's press release, both regions have shown a positivity rate higher than 8%. The mitigation...

Monday, October 19, 2020

Court Issues Ruling in Lawsuit Challenging Election Day Closures

Monday, October 19, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Last week, an Illinois circuit court issued a ruling in the case brought by the Illinois Municipal League (IML) against the State of Illinois to challenge the recent statute making November 3, 2020 (Election Day) a state holiday and requiring local government offices to close. The IML had argued that it was an unfunded mandate to municipalities, and the circuit court agreed in its ruling last week.We...

Covid-19 / Elections

Friday, October 9, 2020

Qurum Forum Podcast 45: Housing and Homelessness

Friday, October 09, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Planners and land use professionals will be interested in tuning into the most recent episode of Quorum Forum, Episode 45: Housing and Homelessness. In this episode, partners David Silverman and Dan Bolin discuss the latest on accessory dwelling units, recent constitutional challenges to local ordinances affecting homeless populations, and answer questions about the latest legal issues affecting...

Land Use and Environmental / Social Media

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

IDPH COVID Guidance for Election Polling Places

Wednesday, October 07, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Awhile back, the Illinois Department of Health (IDPH) issued COVID-19 guidance for election polling places. You can read the guidance on the IDPH's website here. A summary of some of the key provisions are below:1. Each local election authority (usually the county or election commission) must adopt a written COVID-19 prevention plan for each polling place in its jurisdiction that includes at a minimum...

Covid-19 / Elections

Tuesday, October 6, 2020

Upcoming APA Webinar on Drones

Tuesday, October 06, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

APA Planning and Law Division in partnership with APA Learn is presenting a webinar on October 22nd on Drones. Information about the webinar and registration is below:Sky's the Limit: Drone Regulatory ImplicationsThursday, October 22, 2020 12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. CTCM and CLE creditAerial drones (sometimes described as “UAS” or “UAV”), have a host of planning applications across urban, regional,...

Land Use and Environmental / Seminars

Monday, October 5, 2020

IDPH Releases Halloween Guidance

Monday, October 05, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

We reported previously about the CDC's guidance on fall holidays, including Halloween. The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has now released its own guidelines for fall activities, which supplement the recently-updated DCEO guidance on other seasonal staples, such as pumpkin patches, hayrides, and haunted houses. Trick-or-TreatingTrick-or-treating is allowed, provided that groups are...

Friday, October 2, 2020

Quorum Forum Podcast 44: APA-IL Planning Law Symposium

Friday, October 02, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Ancel Glink's Quorum Forum Podcast just released its latest episode, Episode 44: APA-IL Planning Law Symposium.The Illinois Chapter of the American Planning Association just held its virtual 2020 State Conference featuring the APA-IL Planning Law Symposium presented by Ancel Glink's Quorum Forum podcast. Trevor Dick from the City of Aurora joined Ancel Glink partners ShawnTe Raines, David Silverman,...

Land Use and Environmental / Social Media

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

PAC Says List of Blocked Social Media Users is Subject to FOIA

Tuesday, September 29, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

In a recent advisory opinion, the PAC office of the Illinois Attorney General found a public body in violation of FOIA because it failed to turn over records pertaining to blocked Twitter and Facebook accounts and users. The requester had filed a FOIA requesting a list of all persons or users who had been blocked on the village's social media accounts. The village denied the request saying it had...

Freedom of Information / Social Media

Monday, September 28, 2020

PAC Finds City Council Violated OMA in Call Updates on Pandemic Actions

Monday, September 28, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

As has been widely reported by local news, the Public Access Counselor (PAC) office of the Attorney General recently issued an opinion finding the City of Chicago City Council in violation of the Open Meetings Act for allegedly conducting phone meetings with a majority of a quorum of the Council outside of a noticed meeting. 2020 PAC 62918ProPublica Illinois filed a request for review with the PAC...

Covid-19 / Open Meetings

Thursday, September 24, 2020

Class Action Challenging Chicago's Water Main Replacement Program Dismissed

Thursday, September 24, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

The Illinois Supreme Court recently held that the trial court properly dismissed a class action lawsuit against the City of Chicago that had claimed that the City's water main replacement program increased the risk of harm to the plaintiffs of lead poisoning. Specifically, the Supreme Court determined that the plaintiffs did not establish that they suffered any bodily harm by any alleged negligence...

Land Use and Environmental

Tuesday, September 22, 2020

Halloween Guidance Posted by CDC

Tuesday, September 22, 2020 Julie Tappendorf

Illinoisans have not yet received official guidance from the State of Illinois on Halloween activities and events. However, yesterday the CDC posted guidance about Halloween activities and other fall holidays on its website that may be of interest to readers.The CDC has assigned various levels of risk to Halloween-related activities. For those wondering how traditional trick-or-treating will be categorized...

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