New laws affecting the courts enacted by the Illinois legislature in 2012 include the following:

HB 4926 Changes the definitions of “drug court professional”, “Veterans and Servicemembers Court professional”, and “mental health court professional” to include peer recovery coaches and coordinators. Provides that a Veterans and Servicemembers Court may be established as a problem solving court and includes a mental health court. Deletes provisions that exclude from a Veterans and Servicemembers Court program or a mental health court program a defendant who has previously completed or has been discharged from such program within 3 years of that completion or discharge. Provides that in addition to other entities prescribed by law, mental health court professionals, Veterans and Servicemembers Court professionals, and juvenile detention facilities may disclose a recipient’s mental health record or communications, without consent, to each other, but only for the purpose of admission, treatment, planning, or discharge.

HB 5187  Requires clerk of court post the rights of crime victims set forth in the Illinois Constitution and in law within 3 feet of the door to any courtroom where criminal proceedings are conducted.

HB 5877 AS AMENDED: Provides that if the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts has a policy and procedure for a state judicial officer to file a written request for non-disclosure of personal information by a government agency with the Administrative Office, the state judicial officer may file the written request with the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts. Provides on a quarterly basis the Administrative Office to ill provide a list of all state judicial officers who have submitted a written request to it and provide the list to the appropriate officer with ultimate supervisory authority for a government agency. Requires he officer hall promptly provide a copy of the list to any and all government agencies under his or her supervision. Specifies receipt of the written request list constitutes the written request to the agency that it not disclose the personal information of the listed state judicial officers. Changes Election Code allowing redaction of a judicial candidate’s home address on a certificate of nomination or nomination papers after the Election Code objection period, to apply only to a judicial officer who is a judicial candidate. Provides that prior to expiration of the objection period the judicial officer’s home address information from the his or her certificate of nomination or nomination papers is available for public inspection; however, after redaction the home address information is only available for an in camera inspection by the court reviewing an objection to a judicial candidate’s certificate of nomination or nomination papers. Allows a judicial officer applying for an Illinois Identification card to use his or her work address in lieu of his or her residence or mailing address in the card application. Includes judicial officers in the list of persons who may use a work or business address instead of a domicile address on a vehicle registration application

SB 180 Permits state comptroller to withhold any payment from the state treasure due to a person if the individual owes a debt to a state court.

SB 1047 Provides that pursuant to an administrative order from the chief judge of the circuit or the presiding judge of the county authorizing such collection, a clerk of the circuit court in any county that imposes a court automation fee shall also charge and collect an additional $10 operations fee for probation and court services department operations.

New laws or resolutions affecting the courts enacted or adopted by the Illinois legislature in 2011 include the following:

HB 176 Increases the fee that the county board may authorize the circuit clerk to collect for automated record keeping to not less than $10 (rather than $1) and not more than $20 (rather than $15). Provides that an additional fine of $25 shall be imposed upon a person convicted of any violation of the Criminal Code of 1961 who was at the time of the commission of the offense in violation of parole orders. Provides that $5 of the fine shall be deposited into the Circuit Court Clerk Operation and Administrative Fund created by the Clerk of the Circuit Court to be used to offset the costs incurred by the Circuit Court Clerk in performing the additional duties required to collect and disburse funds as provided by law.

HB 1258  Provides that of the amounts collected as fines under the Cannabis Control Act, the Illinois Controlled Substances Act, or the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act for emergency response, 99% shall be deposited to the law enforcement agency or fund specified and 1% shall be deposited into the Circuit Court Clerk Operation and Administrative Fund to be used to offset the costs incurred by the Circuit Court Clerk in performing the additional duties required to collect and disburse funds to entities of State and local government as provided by law.

HB 3346 Provides that the Director of State Police may direct the use of an additional fee paid by a defendant in any felony, traffic, misdemeanor, local ordinance, or conservation case upon a judgment of guilty or grant of supervision for homeland security purposes by quarterly transferring these fees into the ILEAS Fund. Provides that, subject to the approval of the ILEAS Executive Board, the amounts transferred from the additional fees into the Fund shall be allocated as follows: (i) 66.6% for homeland security initiatives and (ii) 33.3% for airborne operations.

HB 3417 Provides that moneys collected from the fee imposed on defendants convicted of non-alcohol and non-drug offenses and placed on probation or conditional discharge shall be deposited in the probation and court services fund (rather than the working cash fund).

SB 1586  For judicial candidates, requires at least 1,000 signatures in circuits and subcircuits located in the First Judicial District or 500 signatures in every other Judicial District (currently set at 500 signatures in any circuit or subcircuit).

SB 1631 Provides that, pursuant to an administrative order from the chief judge of the circuit or the presiding judge of the county authorizing such collection, a clerk of the circuit court in any county that imposes a court automation fee shall also charge and collect an additional $10 operations fee for probation and court services department operations. Provides certain exceptions to new $10 fee. Provides that in relation to the payment of salaries of probation officers and other court services personnel whose salaries are reimbursed under the Act in any State fiscal year that the appropriation for reimbursement to counties for probation salaries and services is less than the amount appropriated to the Supreme Court for these purposes for State Fiscal Year 2002, the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts shall adjust this amount appropriated in 2002 by 3% per year and may continue to permit use of the probation and court services fund for salaries in any State fiscal year where the State reimbursement to counties is regularly delayed more than 4 months.

SB 1703 Provides that a clerk of the circuit court in any county that imposes a fee for automated record keeping shall charge and collect an additional fee in an amount equal to the amount of that fee.