Bill Text: IL HJRCA0042 | 2011-2012 | 97th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Proposes to amend the Legislature Article of the Illinois Constitution. Provides that, beginning in 2022, Senators shall be divided into two groups. Provides that Senators in the first group shall first be elected for terms of 6 years and then for terms of 4 years. Provides that Senators in the other group shall first be elected for terms of 4 years and then for terms of 6 years. Provides that, beginning in 2022, Representatives shall first be elected for terms of 4 years, then for terms of 2 years, and then for terms of 4 years. Provides that the General Assembly shall be a continuous body for a period beginning and ending at noon on the second Wednesday of January of consecutive odd-numbered years. Specifies that Representatives elected in 2012 shall serve two-year terms and that Representatives elected in 2014 and 2018 shall serve four-year terms. Specifies that Senators elected in 2014 shall serve two-year terms and that Senators elected in 2016 shall serve six-year terms. Effective upon being declared adopted. Applies to the election of General Assembly members in 2014 and thereafter; does not affect the terms of members elected before 2014.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-05-05 - Tabled Pursuant to Rule 46 [HJRCA0042 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2011-HJRCA0042-Introduced.html
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1 | HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
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2 | CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
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3 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | |||||||||||||||||||
4 | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE | |||||||||||||||||||
5 | SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that there shall be submitted to the | |||||||||||||||||||
6 | electors of the State for adoption or rejection at the general | |||||||||||||||||||
7 | election next occurring at least 6 months after the adoption of | |||||||||||||||||||
8 | this resolution a proposition to amend Sections 2 and 5 of | |||||||||||||||||||
9 | Article IV of the Illinois Constitution as follows:
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10 | ARTICLE IV
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11 | THE LEGISLATURE
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12 | (ILCON Art. IV, Sec. 2)
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13 | SECTION 2. LEGISLATIVE COMPOSITION
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14 | (a) One Senator shall be elected from each Legislative | |||||||||||||||||||
15 | District.
Senators elected in 2014 shall serve two-year terms. | |||||||||||||||||||
16 | Senators elected in 2016 shall serve six-year terms. | |||||||||||||||||||
17 | Immediately following each decennial redistricting,
the | |||||||||||||||||||
18 | General Assembly
by law shall divide the Legislative Districts | |||||||||||||||||||
19 | as equally as possible
into two
three groups. During each | |||||||||||||||||||
20 | ten-year period, beginning with
the general election in 2022, | |||||||||||||||||||
21 | Senators from one group shall first be
elected for
terms of
six | |||||||||||||||||||
22 | years and then for terms of four years
four years, four years | |||||||||||||||||||
23 | and two
years; Senators from the second group,
for terms of | |||||||||||||||||||
24 | four years, two years and four years; and Senators from the
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1 | other
third group shall first be elected , for terms of two
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2 | years, four years and then for terms of six
four years. The
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3 | Legislative Districts in each group shall be distributed | ||||||
4 | substantially
equally over the State.
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5 | (b) Each Legislative District shall be divided into two | ||||||
6 | Representative
Districts. In 1982 and every two years | ||||||
7 | thereafter One Representative shall
be elected from each | ||||||
8 | Representative District for a term of two years .
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9 | Representatives elected in 2012 shall serve two-year terms. | ||||||
10 | Representatives elected in 2014 shall serve four-year terms. | ||||||
11 | Representatives elected in 2018 shall serve 4 year terms. | ||||||
12 | During each ten-year period, beginning with the general | ||||||
13 | election in 2022,
Representatives shall first be elected for | ||||||
14 | terms of four years, then for terms
of
two years, and then for | ||||||
15 | terms of four years.
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16 | (c) To be eligible to serve as a member of the General | ||||||
17 | Assembly, a
person must be a United States citizen, at least 21 | ||||||
18 | years old, and for
the two years preceding his election or | ||||||
19 | appointment a resident of the
district which he is to | ||||||
20 | represent. In the general election following a
redistricting, a | ||||||
21 | candidate for the General Assembly may be elected from
any | ||||||
22 | district which contains a part of the district in which he | ||||||
23 | resided
at the time of the redistricting and reelected if a | ||||||
24 | resident of the new
district he represents for 18 months prior | ||||||
25 | to reelection.
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26 | (d) Within thirty days after a vacancy occurs, it shall be |
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1 | filled by
appointment as provided by law. If the vacancy is in | ||||||
2 | a Senatorial office
with more than twenty-eight months | ||||||
3 | remaining in the term, the appointed
Senator shall serve until | ||||||
4 | the next general election, at
which time a
Senator shall be | ||||||
5 | elected to serve for the remainder of
the term. If the
vacancy | ||||||
6 | is in
a Representative office or in
any other Senatorial | ||||||
7 | office,
the appointment shall be for the remainder of the term. | ||||||
8 | An appointee to
fill a vacancy shall be a member of the same | ||||||
9 | political party as the
person he succeeds.
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10 | (e) No member of the General Assembly shall receive | ||||||
11 | compensation as
a public officer or employee from any other | ||||||
12 | governmental entity for time
during which he is in attendance | ||||||
13 | as a member of the General Assembly.
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14 | No member of the General Assembly during the term for which | ||||||
15 | he was
elected or appointed shall be appointed to a public | ||||||
16 | office which shall
have been created or the compensation for | ||||||
17 | which shall have been
increased by the General Assembly during | ||||||
18 | that term.
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19 | (Source: Amendment adopted at general election November 4, | ||||||
20 | 1980.)
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21 | (ILCON Art. IV, Sec. 5)
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22 | SECTION 5. SESSIONS
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23 | (a) The General Assembly shall convene each year on the | ||||||
24 | second
Wednesday of January. The General Assembly shall be a | ||||||
25 | continuous body
for a period beginning and ending at noon on |
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1 | the second Wednesday of January
of consecutive odd-numbered | ||||||
2 | years.
during the term for which members of the
House of | ||||||
3 | Representatives are elected.
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4 | (b) The Governor may convene the General Assembly or the | ||||||
5 | Senate
alone in special session by a proclamation stating the | ||||||
6 | purpose of the
session; and only business encompassed by such | ||||||
7 | purpose, together with
any impeachments or confirmation of | ||||||
8 | appointments shall be transacted.
Special sessions of the | ||||||
9 | General Assembly may also be convened by joint
proclamation of | ||||||
10 | the presiding officers of both houses, issued as
provided by | ||||||
11 | law.
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12 | (c) Sessions of each house of the General Assembly and | ||||||
13 | meetings of
committees, joint committees and legislative | ||||||
14 | commissions shall be open
to the public. Sessions and committee | ||||||
15 | meetings of a house may be closed
to the public if two-thirds | ||||||
16 | of the members elected to that house
determine that the public | ||||||
17 | interest so requires; and meetings of joint
committees and | ||||||
18 | legislative commissions may be so closed if two-thirds of
the | ||||||
19 | members elected to each house so determine.
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20 | (Source: Illinois Constitution.)
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21 | SCHEDULE
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22 | This Constitutional Amendment takes effect upon being | ||||||
23 | declared adopted in
accordance with Section 7 of the Illinois | ||||||
24 | Constitutional Amendment Act and
applies to
the election of | ||||||
25 | members of the General Assembly in 2014 and thereafter. It
does |
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1 | not affect the terms of members elected before 2014.
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