The Illinois General Assembly recently concluded its spring
legislative session and Ancel Glink’s Greg Jones and
Tyler Smith join
us to talk about recent legislation local governments should know, including
updates on housing grants, e-bike and e-scooter regulations, hemp regulations,
and more! What new laws are your following? Email us at podcast@ancelglink.com!

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In This Episode

  • [00:00] Baseball Fever: Greg and Tyler
    discuss their favorite all-time and underrated players, including Lou
    Whitaker, Barry Bonds, and Anthony Rizzo.
  • [03:45] The “Build
    Plan” vs. The “REAL Act”:     We review Governor Pritzker’s Build
    Plan omnibus package, which sought to preempt local zoning for
    housing but ultimately failed to advance. We also discuss the IML’s
    alternative REAL Act.
  • [09:00] Housing Grants: Even though the
    Build Plan didn’t pass, the FY27 budget allocated hundreds of
    millions for housing, including funds for the Missing Middle program,
    SmartBuy, and Opening Doors.
  • [10:45] E-Bikes &
    E-Scooters:     New
    statewide standards for electric micromobility devices effectively preempt
    home rule authority for regulating these devices, starting January 1,
    2027 .(SB3484)
  • [14:45] The Illinois
    Hemp Act & Cannabis:     Illinois repeals the Industrial Hemp Act to align
    with federal standards, effective November 12, 2026. This bill also
    doubles the legal possession limit for cannabis to 60 grams and
    extends dispensary hours to 2 a.m., subject to local zoning. (SB3222)
  • [17:45] Operational
    Updates:     Briefing
    on HB4541 regarding overpayments under the Unclaimed Property Act and
    HB1353 protecting volunteer emergency workers during training.
  • [19:30] Financial
    Posting & Trusts:     Coverage
    of HB2137 regarding website financial posting requirements,
    SB638 on OPEB trust funds, and SB2102 on electronic filing
    receipts.
  • [22:45] Special
    Districts:     New
    rules for dissolving drainage and sanitation districts in certain
    counties (HB5166) and disconnecting park district territory (HB5542).
  • [26:15] Local Finance
    & IMRF:     Discussing
    SB2769 (Business District fund transfers), SB2826 (IMRF
    separation benefits), and SB2836 (increased audit thresholds for
    FY27).
  • [29:30] Fire Protection
    & School Transfers:     Updates on HB4292 (ambulance fund
    transfers), HB4909 (Taft-Hartley/IMRF contributions), and
    HB4375 (extending school fund transfer periods).
  • [33:00] School Code
    Changes:     An update
    covering psychologist qualifications (HB4397, effective July 1,
    2027), CPR/AED training (HB4788), staff mental health
    procedures (HB4862, starting 2028), and service animal
    handling (SB2761).
  • [37:30] Rights &
    Protections:     Details
    on SB2914 (expanded teacher dismissal warnings) and SB3361 (The
    Jett Hawkins Law regarding religious hairstyles), both effective
    immediately upon signing.
  • [39:45] Open Meetings
    Act:     Can
    you list “Personnel Issues” on a meeting agenda? We review a new
    binding opinion regarding employee termination and the Open Meetings Act.
  • [44:15] Upcoming Events: A summary of where
    to catch Ancel Glink attorneys this summer and fall.

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Upcoming Events

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Resources

Illinois General Assembly Passes Illinois Hemp Act

Updates on Senate Bill 3336 (E-Bikes, etc)

Village Board Violated OMA by Not Including “General
Subject Matter” of Action Item on Agenda 

Illinois General Assembly Spring 2026 End of Session
Tracking

HB111 allocates
funds from the Build Illinois Bond Fund and the Illinois Affordable Housing
Trust Fund for various housing grants, including grants related to the missing
middle housing affordable housing programs, SmartBuy down payment assistance
programs, and Opening Doors down payment assistance programs.

SB3484 provides
state-wide standards for recreation devices, such as E-Bikes and E-Scooters,
amends definitions under the Illinois Vehicle Code, and provides new use
regulations for electric micromobility devices, including where it could be
operated, a person must be at least 16 years of age, and prohibits any
municipality from regulating electronic micromobility devices.

SB3222 provides
changes to how hemp products are regulated in Illinois by repealing the
existing Industrial Hemp Act and creating the Illinois Hemp Act which new
regulatory definitions and requirements for various hemp-derived products based
on THC and cannabinoid content and provides that local government and other
State agencies may enact additional legislation to enforce the Act.

HB4541 adds
overpayment to government entities to the definition of property under the
Uniform Unclaimed Property Act and provides that governmental entities must
transfer overpayment to the state, where the State Treasurer then holds the
funds while actively trying to return them to the payor.

HB1353 provides
volunteer emergency workers employment protections while participating in
required training, including prohibiting employers from penalizing these
workers or requiring them to take vacation time to participate in emergency
trainings.

HB2137 requires
governmental bodies to post and make available for public inspection certain
financial information on government websites if a public body maintains a
public facing website.

SB638 provides
that if the money in the general fund of a municipality exceeds the
municipality’s operating expenses for the immediately preceding calendar year,
then the municipality may establish an OPEB trust or deposit moneys into an
existing OPEB trust.

SB2102 provides
that if a taxing district files its budget and appropriations ordinance and
estimate of revenues electronically, the county clerk’s office receiving the
filing must accept and acknowledge the electronic filing by providing a receipt
to the taxing district.

HB5166 amends how
certain special districts of government, such as drainage and sanitation
districts, in Illinois may be dissolved.

HB5542 provides
the governing board of trustees of a park district may adopt a determination to
waive the full payment of any unpaid park district assessments outstanding at
the time a petition to disconnect territory is submitted.

SB2769 provides a
municipality may transfer money among Business District Tax Allocation Funds of
business districts if the business districts are under the control of the
municipality and the transferred money is used for the purposes of paying
business district project costs as defined in the Act.

SB2826 amends
eligibility for benefits under the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) by
providing that any participating employee who has separated from the service of
the participating municipality may elect to take a separation benefit in lieu
of the retirement annuity.

SB2836 provides
that beginning with fiscal year 2027, any governmental unit receiving revenue
of less than $1,400,000 for any fiscal year (rather than less than $850,000 for
any fiscal year) shall sign, copy, and file completed reports under the
Governmental Account Audit Act.

HB4292 provides
that the board of trustees of a fire protection district may adopt a resolution
to transfer moneys from the fire protection district’s ambulance service fund
to another fund controlled by the fire protection district provided certain
requirements are met.

HB4909 provides
that an Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) contributor is
eligible to contribute to a Taft-Hartley pension plan and requires municipal
employers to contribute to these pension plans. 

HB4375 amends the
Illinois School Code by extending the period in which school districts may
transfer money allocated to specified funds.

HB4397 amends the
Illinois School Code to provide additional qualifications for school
psychologists.

HB4788 requires
all Illinois secondary schools to include training for students on how to
properly preform CPR and use AED in accordance with standards of the American
Red Cross, the American Heart Association, or another nationally recognized
certifying organization.

HB4862 requires
Illinois school district boards to develop and implement new staff mental
health procedures.

SB2761 amends the
Illinois School Code to require that in-service training for school staff
regarding students’ health conditions must include training on the proper
handling of service animals in school settings.

SB2914 provides,
in dismissal of contract proceedings for teachers under the Illinois School
Code, expanded requirements for mandated written warning that must be issued to
a teacher before a hearing on charges may be scheduled.

SB3361 creates the
Religious Hair and Facial Hair Protections Act, also known as the Jett Hawkins
Law, requiring that nonpublic elementary and secondary schools cannot prohibit
religious hairstyles, hair-related religious practices, or religious-related facial
hair.

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Credits

This podcast is intended to provide timely general information but
should not be considered a substitute for legal advice. Read our full
disclaimer at www.ancelglink.com/disclaimers.