5 ILCS 120/2(c)(6)

OMA

Setting a sale/lease price for public body's own property

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Jump to the 4 issues decided under this provision, with a drafting brief ↓

1 upheld (no violation found) · 4 rejected (violation found), out of 5 documents.

Not legal advice, and not a per-exemption ruling — this reflects each document's overall disposition. See the FAQ disclaimer.

How the Public Access Counselor has treated 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(6)

Section 2(c)(6) allows a public body to meet in closed session to set a price for the sale or lease of property it owns. The decisions treat this as a narrow exception limited to price-setting, not a general authorization to discuss real-estate policy, strategy, or transactions in private.

The Public Access Counselor has found violations where boards discussed whether to sell property, discussed the sale of a different property than the one cited, took up an intergovernmental agreement under property exceptions, or went beyond lease price into other lease terms. It found no violation where a board discussed factors directly tied to keeping or changing a previously set sale price, even if that involved a related third-party financial matter.

At a glance: 5 documents from 2017 to 2023(1 binding opinion, 4 determination letters). Most often cited alongside: 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(5) (Purchase or lease of real property) (2); 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(11) (Pending, probable, or imminent litigation) (1).

Recurring issues

Boards discussed whether to sell district-owned property rather than limiting closed discussion to setting the sale price. (Closed-session discussion of property sale or lease pricing, Closed-session discussion of a property sale)
A board cited one property purchase to enter closed session but then discussed the sale of a separate property. (Closed-session discussion of a property sale)
A school board invoked property-related exceptions to discuss an intergovernmental agreement with a city in closed session. (Closed session discussion of an intergovernmental agreement)
A village board went beyond the lease-price topic to discuss other aspects of a cell tower lease in closed session. (Closed-session discussion of a cell tower lease proposal)
A school board discussed sale-price factors in closed session after a price had allegedly already been set through a sealed-bid process. (A school board's closed-session discussion of a property sale price)

Practical points

A public body should confine closed-session discussion under this exception to setting the sale or lease price and handle decisions about whether to sell, other transactions, or related agreements in open session.
A public body should make sure the property actually discussed in closed session matches the property and purpose cited for entering closed session.
Discussion of factors directly bearing on maintaining or adjusting a previously set sale price may still fall within the exception, even if a related third-party financial circumstance is mentioned.

Summary drafted from the linked decisions and checked against them; read the decisions themselves before relying on it. Not legal advice.

All 5 documents citing 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(6)

Issues decided under 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(6)

Individual questions the Public Access Bureau decided under this provision, with the rule it applied, grouped by outcome. Extracted automatically from the letters; check each source letter.

4 issues across 4 determination letters:2 violation found · 2 no violation.

Counts are per issue, not per letter, and come from automated extraction checked against sampled letters. Determination letters are not binding precedent.

Authorities the Bureau cites most on this issue

A board's closed-session discussion of property sale or lease (Pub. Acc. Op. No. 15-003) cited 3 times
Gosnell v. Hogan, 179 Ill. App. 3d 161, 170 (1989) cited 1 times

Drafting brief for an AI assistant

Copy this into your assistant to help draft a request, appeal, or challenge to a denial that turns on this issue. It carries the rules and decisions, not your facts: add those yourself. Machine-readable version: oma-2-c-6.json.

TOPIC: 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(6) - Setting a sale/lease price for public body's own property
SOURCE: Illinois Attorney General Public Access Bureau decisions compiled at https://illinoisfoia.org/exemptions/5-ilcs-120-2-c-6/
NOTE: Determination letters are not binding precedent; they show how the Bureau applies the law. Verify every decision against the source PDF before citing it.

VIOLATION FOUND (2):
- Section 2(c)(6) scope for sale of public property
  Rule: Section 2(c)(6) authorizes closed session only to set a price for the sale or lease of public property, not general discussions about the sale.
  Decision: Closed session discussion of an intergovernmental agreement (non-binding determination letter, October 25, 2021) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-58651/
- Closed session discussions exceeded scope of section 2(c)(6)
  Rule: A public body may close a meeting under section 2(c)(6) only to set a price for the sale or lease of public property, not to discuss general issues about the lease.
  Decision: Closed-session discussion of a cell tower lease proposal (non-binding determination letter, July 11, 2017) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-46770/

NO VIOLATION (2):
- Closed session discussion of property sale price
  Rule: Closed session discussion of property price is proper under section 2(c)(6) when the sale is not finalized and the discussion pertains to setting or maintaining the price.
  Decision: A school board's closed-session discussion of a property sale price (non-binding determination letter, November 12, 2020) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-63270/
- Closed session discussions on setting a price for sale or lease of owned property
  Rule: Section 2(c)(6) allows closed session discussions limited to setting a price for sale or lease of property owned by the public body.
  Decision: Closed-session discussion about a library branch relocation (non-binding determination letter, April 2, 2019) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-55687/

MOST-CITED AUTHORITIES: Ill. Att'y Gen. Pub. Acc. Op. No. 15-003; Gosnell v. Hogan, 179 Ill. App. 3d 161, 170 (1989)

TASK FOR THE ASSISTANT: Using only the decisions above, help draft a letter. Argue from the rule and cite the decision by name and date. Do not invent decisions.

Violation found (2)

Section 2(c)(6) scope for sale of public property
Rule: Section 2(c)(6) authorizes closed session only to set a price for the sale or lease of public property, not general discussions about the sale.
Violation found Closed session discussion of an intergovernmental agreement · October 25, 2021
Closed session discussions exceeded scope of section 2(c)(6)
Rule: A public body may close a meeting under section 2(c)(6) only to set a price for the sale or lease of public property, not to discuss general issues about the lease.
Violation found Closed-session discussion of a cell tower lease proposal · July 11, 2017

No violation (2)

Closed session discussion of property sale price
Rule: Closed session discussion of property price is proper under section 2(c)(6) when the sale is not finalized and the discussion pertains to setting or maintaining the price.
No violation A school board's closed-session discussion of a property sale price · November 12, 2020
Closed session discussions on setting a price for sale or lease of owned property
Rule: Section 2(c)(6) allows closed session discussions limited to setting a price for sale or lease of property owned by the public body.
No violation Closed-session discussion about a library branch relocation · April 2, 2019