Sen. Andy Manar

Amends the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Act. Provides that any portion of an advanced grant payment not expended by a grantee within 2 years shall be returned to the Department of Natural Resources for distribution with the remainder of the grant on a reimbursement basis. Clarifies that grant funds may be made available for expenditure by a grantee for a period longer than 2 years as long as the grant funds have been legally obligated by the unit of local government prior to the expiration of the 2-year period. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Provides that each individual who serves as a volunteer firefighter or a volunteer EMS provider during the taxable year is entitled to a credit in an amount equal to $500. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Repeals a Section providing authority to use automated traffic law enforcement systems at intersections in which cameras are used to photograph or video record a motor vehicle's failure to stop and yield as required by traffic control signals. Imposes limits on the power of local governments to use automated traffic law enforcement systems to provide recorded images of a motor vehicle for the purpose of recording its speed. Denies home rule powers. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement from the State. Makes conforming and other technical changes.

Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Provides that a pharmacy benefit manager shall pay the full amount paid by a health insurer or health benefit plan for prescription drug coverage to a pharmacy for such prescription drugs, less the amount of the pharmacy benefit manager's administrative costs. Effective immediately.

Amends the State Finance Act. Provides that, as soon as possible after the effective date of the amendatory Act, the State Comptroller shall order transferred and the State Treasurer shall transfer the sum of $5,000,000 from the General Revenue Fund to the Traffic and Criminal Conviction Surcharge Fund. Effective immediately.

Amends the Tax Increment Allocation Redevelopment Act of the Illinois Municipal Code. Creates a tax increment allocation financing extension for an ordinance adopted on December 16, 1997 by the City of Springfield to create the Enos Park Neighborhood TIF District. Effective immediately.

Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that a provider who has exhausted the written internal appeals process of a managed care organization (MCO) shall be entitled to an external independent third-party review of the MCO's final decision that denies, in whole or in part, a health care service to an enrollee or a claim for reimbursement to a provider for a health care service rendered to an enrollee of the Medicaid managed care organization. Requires an MCO's final decision letter to a provider to include: (i) a statement that the provider's internal appeal rights within the MCO have been exhausted; (ii) a statement that the provider is entitled to an external independent third-party review; (iii) the time period granted to request an external independent third-party review; and (iv) the mailing address to initiate an external independent third-party review. Provides that a party shall be entitled to appeal a final decision of the external independent third-party review within 30 days after the date upon which the appealing party receives the external independent third-party review. Provides that a final decision by the Director of Healthcare and Family Services shall be final and reviewable under the Administrative Review Law. Contains provisions concerning fees to help defray the cost of the administrative hearings; the specific claims of services that are appealable; and the Department's rulemaking authority. Effective immediately. Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Deletes reference to: 305 ILCS 5/5-30.1 Adds reference to: 305 ILCS 5/1-5 from Ch. 23, par. 1-5 Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning construction of the Code.

Appropriates $7,647,000 to the Auditor General for the ordinary and contingent expenses of the Office of the Auditor General. Appropriates $31,352,370 to the Auditor General from the Audit Expense Fund for administrative and operations expenses and audits, studies, investigations, and expenses related to actuarial services. Effective July 1, 2020.

Appropriates $500,000 from the General Revenue Fund to the Board of Trustees of Southern Illinois University for restoration of funding for undergraduate governmental intern stipends and the associated academic credit, as set forth in the Vince Demuzio Governmental Internship Program. Effective July 1, 2020.

Amends the Public Utilities Act. In provisions concerning procedures for a large public utility to acquire a water or sewer utility, provides that if the water or sewer utility being acquired is owned by the State or a political subdivision of the State, a referendum will be required to approve the acquisition of the water or sewer utility by the large public utility (rather than only requiring a public meeting and publication of the terms of acquisition in a newspaper of general circulation in the area that the water or sewer utility operates). Effective immediately.