2025 ~ Municipal Minute

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

Monday, April 7, 2025

Quorum Forum Podcast: Episode 92: Not in my Park!

Monday, April 07, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

Ancel Glink's Quorum Forum Podcast just released Episode 92: Not in My Park! Regulating Controversial Park Activities Park agencies manage many acres of public space where sometimes controversial activities take place. What authority does your organization have to address E-Scooters & E-Bikes, First Amendment activities, public camping and more? Find out as Ancel Glink attorneys Megan Mack, Erin...

Thursday, April 3, 2025

Court Dismisses Candidate's Appeal of Electoral Board Decision for Late Filing and Failure to Serve

Thursday, April 03, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

A candidate (Candidate) filed nomination papers to run for the office of Township Supervisor. An objection to the Candidate’s nomination was filed, based on a violation of section 10-4 of the Election Code (regarding form of petitions for nomination). The Electoral Board sustained the objection, finding that the Candidate’s nomination papers were invalid. The Candidate, with legal representation,...

Wednesday, April 2, 2025

PAC Finds Police Department in Violation of FOIA in Withholding Resignation and Termination Records

Wednesday, April 02, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In response to a FOIA request seeking copies of resignation/termination records and payroll records for city law enforcement officers, a city police department (Department) disclosed the payroll records, but withheld resignation/termination records citing various exemptions under FOIA. After the requestor appealed to the Public Access Counselor of the Attorney General's Office (PAC), the PAC issued binding...

Freedom of Information

Tuesday, April 1, 2025

Appellate Court Decides Damages Claims in Development Agreement Dispute

Tuesday, April 01, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

A developer entered into a 2012 development agreement with a Village to, among other things, purchase property and grade it for the Village’s later use. The agreement required the developer to transfer the property to the Village within three years. This development agreement resulted in years of litigation between the parties, which recently resulted in an Appellate Court decision on the issue of...

Land Use and Environmental

Monday, March 31, 2025

Court Dismisses Electoral Board Appeal for Improper Service

Monday, March 31, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In November 2024, a candidate for the position of School Board Member (Candidate) filed a statement of candidacy which affirmed that her residence was within the School District. A resident of the School District (Objector) objected to the Candidate’s nominating papers, alleging that her address was incorrect and that she resided outside of the District, making her ineligible for a School Board Member...

Tuesday, March 25, 2025

City's Designation of Historic District Upheld by Appellate Court

Tuesday, March 25, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In 2007, the Chicago City Council adopted an ordinance designating an area of the City as the Arlington-Deming Historic District. That ordinance was challenged in court on various grounds, including that it violated a property owner's due process and equal protection rights and that it was arbitrary and capricious and did not meet the "rational basis" test for legislative decision. Litigation continued...

Constitutional Issues / Land Use and Environmental

Thursday, March 20, 2025

Supreme Court Upholds Dismissal of Tax Misallocation Dispute

Thursday, March 20, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

Last year we reported on an Illinois Appellate Court decision in a tax allocation dispute between two municipalities where sales tax revenues generated from a restaurant located in the Village of Arlington Heights (Village) were mistakenly paid to the City of Rolling Meadows (City) for almost a decade. In January of last year, the Appellate Court held that the trial court erred in dismissing...

Monday, March 17, 2025

Illinois Appellate Court Upholds Push Tax Ordinance

Monday, March 17, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In Illinois Gaming Machine Operators v. The City of Waukegan, the Illinois Gaming Machine Operators Association (IGMOA) and a group of plaintiffs sued the City to challenge an ordinance that imposed a one cent tax per push (push tax) on players of video game terminals. The City’s push tax ordinance required every terminal operator (a company that leases video gaming machines to bars or restaurants)...

Constitutional Issues / Finances

Friday, March 14, 2025

Appellate Court Holds City did not Owe a Duty of Care to an Injured Motorcyclist

Friday, March 14, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In Calhoun v. City of Evanston, a motorcyclist sued the City after crashing his motorcycle on the base of a crosswalk sign. The sign had become detached from the base, leaving only a small, elevated platform. The motorcyclist struck this platform and suffered a broken leg and injured wrist. The motorcyclist filed a negligence complaint against the City claiming the City did not properly remove or...

Thursday, March 13, 2025

Court Dismisses Lawsuit Challenging Clerk's Refusal to Certify Candidate's Nomination Papers

Thursday, March 13, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In November 2024, an independent candidate for Mayor (Candidate) filed his nomination papers for the Consolidated Election with the Village Clerk. After a lottery was held to determine the Candidate’s ballot position, the Clerk notified the Candidate that his name would not be certified to the ballot, because the Candidate’s papers were not in “apparent conformity” with the requirements of the Election...

Thursday, March 6, 2025

Quorum Forum Podcast Ep 91: New Developments in Planning Caselaw

Thursday, March 06, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

Ancel Glink's Quorum Forum Podcast just released Episode 91: New Developments in Planning Caselaw. Recently, Ancel Glink attorneys Megan Mack, Erin Monforti, and Katie Nagy participated in the Planning Webcast Series hosted by the Ohio chapter of the American Planning Association and presented by the Illinois chapter. The session covers key cases impacting local governments...

Land Use and Environmental / Seminars

Wednesday, February 26, 2025

Court Finds that Firefighter/Paramedic Entitled to PSEBA Benefits

Wednesday, February 26, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In a recent case involving an interpretation of the Public Safety Employee Benefits Act (PSEBA), the Appellate Court held that a municipality should have granted PSEBA benefits to a firefighter/paramedic. Ford v. Village of Northbrook.A firefighter/paramedic was injured while transferring a patient to the hospital after responding to a call for service. He applied for, and was granted, a line-of-duty...

Tuesday, February 25, 2025

Candidate's Appeal Dismissed For Failure to Serve Petition on Individual Electoral Board Members

Tuesday, February 25, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In a recent judicial appeal to an Electoral Board decision that struck a candidate from the ballot, the Illinois Appellate Court dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction because the candidate failed to serve a copy of the judicial petition on the individual members of the Electoral Board. Williams v. Municipal Officers Electoral Board.The Appellate Court noted that the service requirement of...

Thursday, February 20, 2025

Candidate For Mayor Removed From Ballot

Thursday, February 20, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In a recent election challenge, an Illinois Appellate Court held that a city clerk did not have a conflict of interest to participate as a member of the Electoral Board and struck a candidate's name from the ballot for failing to fasten her nomination papers for candidacy. Benda v. Parkinson, et al.A candidate for office of mayor filed nomination papers and other candidacy documents. An objector filed...

Constitutional Issues / Elections

Wednesday, February 19, 2025

Cook County Tax Exempt Affidavit Information

Wednesday, February 19, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

For all of our Cook County government bodies who read Municipal Minute, we wanted to remind you of the requirement to file a tax exemption affidavit with the Assessor’s Office on or before January 31 of each year for property owned by the government body for the 2024 assessment year. In the past, the Cook County Assessor's Office sent out a notice to each Cook County taxing body with each taxing...

Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Appellate Court Rules New Party Candidates for Village Office Should Be on the Ballot

Tuesday, February 18, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

An Illinois Appellate Court recently overturned an Electoral Board’s decision disqualifying a new party’s slate of candidates for including political images in the candidate’s nomination petitions, and ordered that the candidates' names be placed on the ballot in Maloney v. Janecyk. A political party (Party) filed new party nomination petitions last fall nominating a slate of candidates for...

Monday, February 17, 2025

PAC Issues Binding Opinion Requiring Public Body to Release Unlocked Version of Excel Records

Monday, February 17, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

The Illinois Attorney General's Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued its first binding opinion for 2025, finding a public entity in violation of FOIA. PAC Op. 25-001In response to a FOIA request seeking copies of Microsoft Excel budget workbooks, a County Housing Authority (Authority) disclosed password-protected locked versions of responsive workbooks. The requestor subsequently filed a request for...

Freedom of Information

Thursday, February 13, 2025

Appellate Court Disqualifies Village President Candidate From Ballot

Thursday, February 13, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

An Appellate Court recently upheld an Electoral Board's decision to disqualify a candidate for village president based on lack of residency in Poulos v. Smith.A candidate filed nomination petitions and other candidacy paperwork last fall to run for office of village president. The filing attested that the candidate resides in the village in which she is running for office. An objection was filed against...

Friday, February 7, 2025

Quorum Forum Podcast Ep. 90: Immigration Enforcement

Friday, February 07, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

Ancel Glink's Quorum Forum Podcast just released a timely new episode on immigration enforcement. See description below:Quorum Forum - Episode 90: Immigration Enforcement The new federal administration is undertaking new immigration enforcement activities through executive orders, guidance, and more. Ancel Glink partners Keri-Lyn Krafthefer and Margaret Kostopulos join Dan Bolin to discuss what...

Thursday, February 6, 2025

Appellate Court Reconsiders Apartment Demolition Case

Thursday, February 06, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In City of Springfield v. Metropolitan Commercial Bank, the City sued Metropolitan Commercial Bank (Bank) seeking an order of demolition of an apartment complex the Bank had a lien filed against. The City argued that its building inspector examined the premises and found various structural issues, such as standing water, missing windows and doors, and a failing foundation. The City’s building...

Land Use and Environmental

Wednesday, February 5, 2025

Bills Introduced to Amend the Illinois Freedom of Information Act

Wednesday, February 05, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

Yesterday, we reported on some of the bills introduced in the Illinois General Assembly to amend the Open Meetings Act. Today, we share some of the bills recently introduced that would amend the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)Senate Bill 226 - This bill would amend Section 5 of FOIA to expand on the list of records that a public body must maintain and make available to also include a "plain-text...

Freedom of Information

Tuesday, February 4, 2025

Bills Introduced to Amend the Illinois Open Meetings Act

Tuesday, February 04, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

There have been a number of bills introduced in the Illinois General Assembly recently that would amend the Open Meetings Act (OMA) that will be of interest to local governments and worth following. We have summarized a few of these below:House Bill 1572 - This bill would amend the OMA to modify the current requirement that a quorum of a public body be physically present in order to allow other members...

Monday, February 3, 2025

Appellate Court Upholds Dismissal of Candidate's Challenge to Removal From Ballot

Monday, February 03, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

In Williams v. Municipal Officers Electoral Board for the Village of Hazel Crest, an Illinois Appellate Court considered an appeal of a circuit court's dismissal of an appeal of an electoral board's removal of a candidate for the office of village trustee from the ballot. The circuit court had dismissed the case because the candidate failed to comply with the Election Code's requirement that each...

Thursday, January 30, 2025

Illinois Supreme Court Dismisses Election Contest Challenge

Thursday, January 30, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

The Illinois Supreme Court recently issued a new opinion addressing limits on the authority of circuit courts to hear election contest challenges. Ontiveroz v. Khokhar. After the 2021 election, a candidate for the office of village president challenged the election results after losing the election by two votes. In his petition, the candidate claimed that a disqualified candidate had misled...

Thursday, January 16, 2025

Guidance on New Rental Use Tax Amendment

Thursday, January 16, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

A new law went into effect on January 1, 2025, that amended the state's Use Tax Act (Act) regarding taxation of leases of personal property. This post explains how this Act may affect units of local government. The major change to the Act is a new provision that requires the taxation of leases between a retailer and consumer. "Lease" is now defined in the Act as: a transfer of the possession or...

Tuesday, January 14, 2025

Join Ancel Glink at the IAPD/IPRA Conference Jan 23-25, 2025

Tuesday, January 14, 2025 Julie Tappendorf

It's almost time for the IAPD/IPRA annual conference which takes place January 23 - 25, 2025, at the Hyatt Regency, Chicago. Ancel Glink attorneys will be speaking at 13 sessions this year, so if you are attending the conference, please come find us! Date Time Session Speakers Thursday, 1/23/2025 10AM – 11AM Session 112 Real Estate...

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