Tag PAC
It’s 2022 and the PAC is back! In its first opinion in 2022, in a binding opinion, the PAC ruled in favor of a public body in a FOIA appeal involving the attorney-client privilege exception of FOIA. On October 4, 2021,… Continue Reading →
On March 4, 2021, the PAC issued a binding opinion finding a City Council in violation of the Open Meetings Act when it went into closed session under the “probable or imminent litigation” exception, Section 2(c)(11) of the OMA and the… Continue Reading →
The Illinois Public Access Counselor’s (PAC) Office recently issued a binding PAC opinion finding a public body in violation of the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for improperly denying a FOIA request for records concerning a juvenile victim. This… Continue Reading →
A few days before the Thanksgiving holiday, the Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued its seventh binding opinion (PAC Opinion No. 20-007) in 2020 regarding the conduct of remote public meetings during a public health emergency. The PAC found that a… Continue Reading →
A constant question for boards is whether discussions are best suited for an open or closed session. The Open Meetings Act requires that all meetings of public bodies be open to the public. 5 ILCS 120/2. However, there are multiple exceptions… Continue Reading →
The Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA” or “Act”), 5 ILCS 140/1 et seq., continues to present complications and problems for local governments. In Public Access Opinion 18-007 dated June 26, 2018, the Public Access Counselor (“PAC”) recently addressed the proper… Continue Reading →
The Open Meetings Act (OMA) requires that a board provide a sufficient explanation, referred to as a “public recital,” of agenda items before voting on them (5 ILCS 120/2 (e)). What this exactly means is open for debate as shown… Continue Reading →
On July 19, 2016, Governor Bruce Rauner signed House Bill 4715, which imposes two new requirements upon public bodies responding to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA or the Act), 5 ILCS 140/1 et seq. requests. The law will go into… Continue Reading →
An Illinois Court of Appeals followed the clear language of the Open Meetings Act (the Act) and reversed a recent Illinois Attorney General (AG) Public Access Counselor’s (PAC) opinion that would have expanded the amount of information required to be… Continue Reading →