With school districts utilizing more software and remote learning tools than ever before due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there is an increased need to ensure student data and personally identifiable student information is protected.

Last week the Illinois legislature passed two bills that may significantly impact many employers. If signed, SB 1480 will limit the use of criminal conviction records in employment decisions and create requirements for some private employers to obtain equal pay registration certificates.

Just before its two-year legislative cycle ended on Wednesday, the Illinois legislature passed HB 3653, a 764-page bill that is expected to make extensive changes to law enforcement throughout the state. Governor Pritzker has expressed support for HB 3653, and some provisions will go into effect as early as July 1, 2021 if he signs the bill.

As school districts continue to confront the challenges of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, they may also be facing unprecedented financial challenges. In response to these challenges, all options available to reduce costs, including workforce reductions, may need to be considered. School districts may determine it necessary to implement a reduction-in-force (“RIF”) of its educational support personnel (“ESPs”), including paraprofessionals, administrative assistants, bus drivers, payroll clerks, and custodial and maintenance employees.

In the days since the first COVID-19 vaccinations were administered to healthcare workers in the U.S., the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued new guidance for vaccinations in the workplace. The guidance document explains how an employer’s vaccine program interacts with and implicates anti-discrimination statutes like the ADA, Title VII, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (“GINA”). It also provides parameters for employers who wish to require/administer vaccines.

With all regions in the State operating under mitigation measures which include limits for in-person meetings (10 or 25 persons depending on the region), there is great confusion about whether these measures apply to public bodies holding meetings to conduct public business under the Open Meetings Act (OMA). Based on our detailed review of several…

The Covid-19 pandemic has touched nearly all aspects of daily life and as this In Brief goes out the county is less than two months away from a contentious federal election conducted under circumstances few imagined possible at the start of the year. Though the Consolidated Election is not until April 2021—a time some normalcy is hopefully starting to return to our lives—much of the process for nominating candidates and hearing objections occurs in the fall and winter of this year. There will surely be surprises and questions. We will be here to assist you as they come up.

The Fifth District Appellate Court recently decided the case of Saladrigas v. City of O’Fallon, 2020 IL App (5th) 190466, a class-action lawsuit challenging the validity of a City of O’Fallon Ordinance authorizing the impoundment of motor vehicles used to commit certain offenses, including DUI, driving while license revoked, and driving while license suspended. The City’s Ordinance provided that the City could impound the motor vehicle used in the listed offenses and charge $500 to the owner of the vehicle impounded under the Ordinance.

As the 2020–2021 school year draws closer or, for some, is already here, ISBE and IDPH continue to publish new and updated COVID-19 guidance directed at Pre-K through 12 schools.

Tax increment financing (“TIF”) is a legal mechanism which helps municipalities redevelop a “blighted area” by using property taxes from properties in a defined area (the TIF district) that are redirected away from other taxing districts.