Two individuals submitted
separate FOIA requests to the Illinois State Police (ISP) seeking records
relating to their own Firearm Owners’ Identification (FOID) cards. ISP denied
both requests, citing FOIA exemption 7.5(v), which exempts from disclosure the
names and information of people who have applied for or received FOID cards
under the Firearm Owner’s Identification Card Act. Both requesters then sued ISP,
claiming it denied their FOIA requests in violation of FOIA. The
circuit court and the Appellate Court ruled in favor of the
requesters, finding the requested records were not exempt from disclosure
because the requesters were seeking their own…
Continue Reading Person’s Own FOID Card Records Not Releasable Under FOIA

An Illinois Appellate Court recently validated an intergovernmental
agreement (IGA) that required the municipalities subject to the IGA to require, as a condition of annexation, that developers pay impact fees for road improvements and determined that a developer was required to pay the fees. Habdab v. Lake County.
In 2009, Mundelein (Village), Lake County (County), and two
other municipalities entered an IGA to provide for construction funding for highway
improvements that would serve each municipality. The IGA required
that half of the costs of the improvements be paid by the public and the other
half be paid by impact…
Continue Reading Court Upholds Road Impact Fees Imposed Through IGA and Annexation Agreement

A local liquor commission denied a liquor license to a proposed social club based on the proposed club’s failure to obtain a business license, which had been previously denied because of a lack of parking for the business. The proposed club’s owner appealed the denial to the State Liquor Commission, which upheld the denial, and the owner appealed to the circuit court. The circuit court upheld the denial, finding that both the local liquor commission’s and the State Liquor Commission’s decisions denying the issuance of a liquor license were “well-supported by the record.” On appeal to the Appellate Court, the proposed…
Continue Reading Municipality Properly Denied Liquor License Based on Previous Denial of a Business License

A hunter’s lawsuit against a forest preserve district (District) claiming his constitutional rights were violated by the District because of restrictions on his ability to hunt on private land was recently dismissed in Brenczewski
v. Forest Preserve District of Will County.
In 1996, the owners of a large parcel of land gave a hunter permission to hunt on their land, without charge. Over the next 20 years,
the hunter claimed District employees interfered with his access to the private property and harassed him on multiple occasions. In 2020, District purchased a
small piece of the private property, and as…
Continue Reading Court Upholds Dismissal of Hunter’s Case Against Forest Preserve District

As a general rule,
the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) does not require a public body to
create records – instead, it requires a public body to provide access to
records the public body already has in its possession or under its control,
subject to applicable exemptions. However, there are a few provisions in FOIA that
do require the creation, retention, and, in some cases, the posting of certain
records by public bodies. These requirements are listed below:

…
Continue Reading Record Creation Requirements of FOIA

Ancel Glink has released a new episode of its Quorum Forum Podcast: Episode 77: Housing Affordability at ACSP2023. In this episode (recorded live at the 2023 Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning Annual Conference), Ancel Glink attorneys David Silverman and Dan Bolin discuss how communities are promoting housing affordability and review legal and practical approaches to addressing housing opportunities in Illinois and across the country. Thanks to APA Illinois for inviting us to the conference. 
     Related Stories

• 11th Annual Local Government Law Institute – December 1st
• Court Rejects Challenge to City’s “Shared Housing” Ordinance
• 7th Circuit Upholds Dismissal of

…
Continue Reading Quorum Forum Podcast Ep. 77: Housing Affordability at the ACSP2023

In response to a 2016 FOIA request seeking records relating
to the requestor’s criminal case, the Chicago Police Department disclosed
certain records subject to certain redactions. A few years later, the requestor
submitted another FOIA request seeking records and statements attributed to a
specific witness that testified at the requestor’s criminal trial. Attached to
the second FOIA request was a notarized statement from the witness consenting
to disclosure of her personal information to the requestor. After CPD refused to
disclose the private information of the witness, the requestor sued CPD alleging that
it violated FOIA by withholding the private information…
Continue Reading Court Distinguishes between "Private" and "Personal" Information under FOIA

The Illinois Attorney General doesn’t issue very many general opinions (separate from the PAC opinions) but a recent opinion is worth a read as it involves an unusual issue – a county’s secession from one state to an adjoining state.At the request of the Jerseyville County Board, the County States Attorney requested an opinion from the Illinois Attorney General (AG) as to whether an Illinois county could secede from the State of Illinois and join the State of Missouri. According to the AG’s opinion, the issue had arisen in connection with a discussion by the County Board about the placement…
Continue Reading Illinois County Has No Authority to Secede from Illinois According to the Attorney General