Court Issues Ruling in Lawsuit Challenging Election Day Closures
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 have been asked whether the ruling extends beyond the two municipalities that were named as plaintiffs in the case (Southern View and Bolingbrook) to apply to other local governments. The ruling states that the statutory amendment that requires government offices to close on Election Day (i.e., Section 2B-10) "does not apply to local governments such as municipalities - including those municipalities that are members of IML and specifically, the Villages of Southern View and Bolingbrook." The IML has advised that the ruling provides each of its member municipalities the independent discretion to determine if their offices should or should not be closed on Election Day. The ruling itself seems broader in application, as it refers to "local governments" and not just municipalities. An appellate court ruling (or better yet, a statutory fix) would certainly help to provide some clarity, but given the short time period until Election Day, that may be unlikely. Local governments may want to reach out to their attorneys if they have questions about the ruling and how it applies to them.
You can read the decision on the IML's website here. You can also read the IML's summary of the lawsuit and ruling here.
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