Corpus Statistics
This describes this site's corpus, not all Illinois FOIA/OMA activity. Every number below is computed from the 821 Attorney General Public Access Counselor opinions and determination letters, plus 287 Illinois court cases, collected for this site — it is not a comprehensive record of every FOIA request or open meeting in Illinois. The PAC only ever reviews a request after someone files a complaint, so this dataset is inherently skewed toward disputes and denials; it says nothing about the much larger, mostly uneventful universe of requests public bodies answered without controversy. Read what follows as "what disputes that reached the PAC or a court looked like," not "how often Illinois public bodies violate the law."
Most-cited statutory provisions
262 distinct citations appear across the corpus's opinions, determination letters, and case law; counts are combined across those sources. Top 20 shown, ranked by total mentions.
5 ILCS 140/3 — The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on.5 ILCS 140/7 — General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection)7(1)(c) — Personal privacy (records whose release would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy)735 ILCS 5/3 — Administrative Review Law, Article III — the general mechanism for appealing a binding PAC opinion into court7(1)(b) — Private information (defined in Sec. 2(c-5) -- e.g. SSNs, driver's license numbers, home addresses in some contexts)5 ILCS 140/9 — When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court.7(1)(d) — Law-enforcement/administrative-proceeding records (general)5 ILCS 120/2 — The core rule: all meetings must be open unless a specific exception in subsection (c) applies. Those exceptions are read narrowly by design and only authorize -- they never require -- closing a meeting. See the exception-by-exception breakdown below the full text for what each of the 40 numbered exceptions actually covers.5 ILCS 140/1 — States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure.7(1)(a) — Federal/State-law confidentiality — or public defender case files, for documents issued under the other amendment version (see Sec. 7)5 ILCS 140/11 — A denied requester can sue in circuit court for an order forcing disclosure. The court can also award attorney's fees and, if it finds the denial was willful and intentional, civil penalties against the public body.7(1)(f) — Preliminary drafts, notes, and deliberative materials (pre-decisional "draft" exemption)5 ILCS 120/2.02 — Detailed public-notice rules: post the year's regular meeting schedule at the start of each year, post an agenda at least 48 hours before each regular meeting (and on the body's website if it has staff-maintained one), and give appropriate notice for special or emergency meetings too.7(1) — General exemption list (cites the lettered exemptions in Sec. 7(1) without naming a specific one)5 ILCS 120/2.06 — Every body must keep written minutes of all meetings (open and closed) and a verbatim audio/video recording of closed sessions specifically. Open-meeting minutes must be approved within 30 days (or by the second subsequent regular meeting) and made public within 10 days after approval. This is the section that governs when closed-session minutes/recordings eventually have to be released too.5 ILCS 140/3(a) — The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on.5 ILCS 140/3(e) — The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on.5 ILCS 140/3(d) — The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on.5 ILCS 120/7 — Lets a member who can't physically attend (illness, work travel, family emergency, unexpected childcare, or active military duty) participate remotely by phone or video, but only if a quorum is still physically present and the body votes to allow it.7(1)(m) — Attorney/auditor communications and litigation-preparation materials (attorney-client-style privilege)Show as a data table
| # | Citation | Plain-language label | Mentions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 ILCS 140/3 | The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 193 |
| 2 | 5 ILCS 140/7 | General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection) | 170 |
| 3 | 7(1)(c) | Personal privacy (records whose release would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy) | 138 |
| 4 | 735 ILCS 5/3 | Administrative Review Law, Article III — the general mechanism for appealing a binding PAC opinion into court | 111 |
| 5 | 7(1)(b) | Private information (defined in Sec. 2(c-5) -- e.g. SSNs, driver's license numbers, home addresses in some contexts) | 104 |
| 6 | 5 ILCS 140/9 | When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court. | 100 |
| 7 | 7(1)(d) | Law-enforcement/administrative-proceeding records (general) | 90 |
| 8 | 5 ILCS 120/2 | The core rule: all meetings must be open unless a specific exception in subsection (c) applies. Those exceptions are read narrowly by design and only authorize -- they never require -- closing a meeting. See the exception-by-exception breakdown below the full text for what each of the 40 numbered exceptions actually covers. | 88 |
| 9 | 5 ILCS 140/1 | States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure. | 84 |
| 10 | 7(1)(a) | Federal/State-law confidentiality — or public defender case files, for documents issued under the other amendment version (see Sec. 7) | 84 |
| 11 | 5 ILCS 140/11 | A denied requester can sue in circuit court for an order forcing disclosure. The court can also award attorney's fees and, if it finds the denial was willful and intentional, civil penalties against the public body. | 77 |
| 12 | 7(1)(f) | Preliminary drafts, notes, and deliberative materials (pre-decisional "draft" exemption) | 77 |
| 13 | 5 ILCS 120/2.02 | Detailed public-notice rules: post the year's regular meeting schedule at the start of each year, post an agenda at least 48 hours before each regular meeting (and on the body's website if it has staff-maintained one), and give appropriate notice for special or emergency meetings too. | 67 |
| 14 | 7(1) | General exemption list (cites the lettered exemptions in Sec. 7(1) without naming a specific one) | 67 |
| 15 | 5 ILCS 120/2.06 | Every body must keep written minutes of all meetings (open and closed) and a verbatim audio/video recording of closed sessions specifically. Open-meeting minutes must be approved within 30 days (or by the second subsequent regular meeting) and made public within 10 days after approval. This is the section that governs when closed-session minutes/recordings eventually have to be released too. | 62 |
| 16 | 5 ILCS 140/3(a) | The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 58 |
| 17 | 5 ILCS 140/3(e) | The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 43 |
| 18 | 5 ILCS 140/3(d) | The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 42 |
| 19 | 5 ILCS 120/7 | Lets a member who can't physically attend (illness, work travel, family emergency, unexpected childcare, or active military duty) participate remotely by phone or video, but only if a quorum is still physically present and the body votes to allow it. | 41 |
| 20 | 7(1)(m) | Attorney/auditor communications and litigation-preparation materials (attorney-client-style privilege) | 41 |
Outcomes by exemption / exception
This is the most journalistically useful cut of the data: for each cited FOIA exemption or OMA exception, how the dispute was ultimately resolved. "Violation found" means the PAC (or a court) concluded the public body improperly invoked that exemption/exception and the record should have been disclosed or the meeting should have been open; "No violation" means it was properly invoked. Read a row's bar left to right — a citation with a long red segment relative to its green segment is one the PAC most often finds public bodies over-claiming. "Other / appellate" folds in the smaller outcome categories (insufficient information, and appellate dispositions like affirmed/reversed for citations that also show up in case law). Top 18 citations by total resolved disputes shown.
5 ILCS 140/3The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on.
77% of decided cases found a violation (119 of 154)
Violation found: 119No violation: 35Partial violation: 16Closed, no action: 23
5 ILCS 140/7General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection)
72% of decided cases found a violation (103 of 144)
Violation found: 103No violation: 41Partial violation: 17Closed, no action: 9
7(1)(c)Personal privacy (records whose release would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy)
79% of decided cases found a violation (72 of 91)
Violation found: 72No violation: 19Partial violation: 16Closed, no action: 7Other / appellate: 24
735 ILCS 5/3Administrative Review Law, Article III — the general mechanism for appealing a binding PAC opinion into court
95% of decided cases found a violation (104 of 110)
Violation found: 104No violation: 6Partial violation: 1
7(1)(b)Private information (defined in Sec. 2(c-5) -- e.g. SSNs, driver's license numbers, home addresses in some contexts)
80% of decided cases found a violation (57 of 71)
Violation found: 57No violation: 14Partial violation: 11Closed, no action: 9Other / appellate: 13
5 ILCS 140/9When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court.
96% of decided cases found a violation (96 of 100)
Violation found: 96No violation: 4
7(1)(d)Law-enforcement/administrative-proceeding records (general)
82% of decided cases found a violation (53 of 65)
Violation found: 53No violation: 12Partial violation: 9Closed, no action: 6Other / appellate: 10
5 ILCS 120/2The core rule: all meetings must be open unless a specific exception in subsection (c) applies. Those exceptions are read narrowly by design and only authorize -- they never require -- closing a meeting. See the exception-by-exception breakdown below the full text for what each of the 40 numbered exceptions actually covers.
79% of decided cases found a violation (60 of 76)
Violation found: 60No violation: 16Partial violation: 8Closed, no action: 3Other / appellate: 1
7(1)(a)Federal/State-law confidentiality — or public defender case files, for documents issued under the other amendment version (see Sec. 7)
54% of decided cases found a violation (26 of 48)
Violation found: 26No violation: 22Partial violation: 6Closed, no action: 12Other / appellate: 18
5 ILCS 140/1States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure.
96% of decided cases found a violation (81 of 84)
Violation found: 81No violation: 3
7(1)(f)Preliminary drafts, notes, and deliberative materials (pre-decisional "draft" exemption)
70% of decided cases found a violation (42 of 60)
Violation found: 42No violation: 18Partial violation: 8Closed, no action: 4Other / appellate: 5
5 ILCS 140/11A denied requester can sue in circuit court for an order forcing disclosure. The court can also award attorney's fees and, if it finds the denial was willful and intentional, civil penalties against the public body.
96% of decided cases found a violation (74 of 77)
Violation found: 74No violation: 3
7(1)General exemption list (cites the lettered exemptions in Sec. 7(1) without naming a specific one)
91% of decided cases found a violation (51 of 56)
Violation found: 51No violation: 5Partial violation: 1Closed, no action: 2Other / appellate: 8
5 ILCS 120/2.02Detailed public-notice rules: post the year's regular meeting schedule at the start of each year, post an agenda at least 48 hours before each regular meeting (and on the body's website if it has staff-maintained one), and give appropriate notice for special or emergency meetings too.
72% of decided cases found a violation (31 of 43)
Violation found: 31No violation: 12Partial violation: 17Closed, no action: 6Other / appellate: 1
5 ILCS 120/2.06Every body must keep written minutes of all meetings (open and closed) and a verbatim audio/video recording of closed sessions specifically. Open-meeting minutes must be approved within 30 days (or by the second subsequent regular meeting) and made public within 10 days after approval. This is the section that governs when closed-session minutes/recordings eventually have to be released too.
69% of decided cases found a violation (33 of 48)
Violation found: 33No violation: 15Partial violation: 6Closed, no action: 7Other / appellate: 1
5 ILCS 140/3(a)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on.
100% of decided cases found a violation (58 of 58)
Violation found: 58
5 ILCS 140/3(e)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on.
100% of decided cases found a violation (43 of 43)
Violation found: 43
5 ILCS 140/3(d)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on.
98% of decided cases found a violation (40 of 41)
Violation found: 40No violation: 1
Show as a data table
| Citation | Violation found | No violation | Partial | Closed / no action | Other | Total | Violation rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
5 ILCS 140/3 | 119 | 35 | 16 | 23 | 193 | 77% | |
5 ILCS 140/7 | 103 | 41 | 17 | 9 | 170 | 72% | |
7(1)(c) | 72 | 19 | 16 | 7 | 24 | 138 | 79% |
735 ILCS 5/3 | 104 | 6 | 1 | 111 | 95% | ||
7(1)(b) | 57 | 14 | 11 | 9 | 13 | 104 | 80% |
5 ILCS 140/9 | 96 | 4 | 100 | 96% | |||
7(1)(d) | 53 | 12 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 90 | 82% |
5 ILCS 120/2 | 60 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 88 | 79% |
7(1)(a) | 26 | 22 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 84 | 54% |
5 ILCS 140/1 | 81 | 3 | 84 | 96% | |||
7(1)(f) | 42 | 18 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 77 | 70% |
5 ILCS 140/11 | 74 | 3 | 77 | 96% | |||
7(1) | 51 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 67 | 91% |
5 ILCS 120/2.02 | 31 | 12 | 17 | 6 | 1 | 67 | 72% |
5 ILCS 120/2.06 | 33 | 15 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 62 | 69% |
5 ILCS 140/3(a) | 58 | 58 | 100% | ||||
5 ILCS 140/3(e) | 43 | 43 | 100% | ||||
5 ILCS 140/3(d) | 40 | 1 | 41 | 98% |
Volume over time
Documents issued per year, stacked by statute track. "Unknown" is a document this site's automated classification couldn't confidently assign to FOIA or OMA. Early years have very few documents (the corpus is sparse before the mid-2010s), so treat single-digit counts with caution.
FOIAOMAFOIA+OMATrack not determined
Show as a data table
| Year | FOIA | OMA | FOIA+OMA | Unknown | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1972 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1973 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1974 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 1975 | 6 | 6 | |||
| 1976 | 2 | 1 | 3 | ||
| 1977 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1978 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 1979 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1980 | 4 | 4 | |||
| 1981 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 1983 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1984 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 1985 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1986 | 4 | 4 | |||
| 1987 | 5 | 2 | 7 | ||
| 1988 | 4 | 3 | 7 | ||
| 1989 | 7 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 1990 | 3 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 1991 | 1 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 1992 | 3 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1993 | 3 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1994 | 5 | 5 | |||
| 1995 | 3 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 1996 | 3 | 3 | |||
| 2005 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 2006 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2007 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 2008 | 4 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 2009 | 3 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2010 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 2011 | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||
| 2012 | 11 | 8 | 2 | 21 | |
| 2013 | 22 | 11 | 3 | 36 | |
| 2014 | 19 | 8 | 27 | ||
| 2015 | 20 | 9 | 29 | ||
| 2016 | 25 | 13 | 3 | 41 | |
| 2017 | 28 | 41 | 1 | 70 | |
| 2018 | 30 | 57 | 1 | 88 | |
| 2019 | 23 | 50 | 1 | 1 | 75 |
| 2020 | 18 | 24 | 1 | 43 | |
| 2021 | 20 | 23 | 1 | 44 | |
| 2022 | 31 | 48 | 79 | ||
| 2023 | 20 | 45 | 1 | 66 | |
| 2024 | 17 | 45 | 1 | 63 | |
| 2025 | 21 | 19 | 1 | 41 | |
| 2026 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 17 |
Exemptions/exceptions cited together
Which citations tend to show up in the same document. This just means the two were both discussed somewhere in the same opinion, letter, or case — not that they were argued as alternatives to each other or that one caused the other. Top 25 pairs by co-occurrence count.
| Citation A | Citation B | Cited together |
|---|---|---|
5 ILCS 140/1States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure. | 5 ILCS 140/9When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court. | 81 |
5 ILCS 140/9When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court. | 735 ILCS 5/3Administrative Review Law, Article III — the general mechanism for appealing a binding PAC opinion into court | 81 |
5 ILCS 140/1States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure. | 735 ILCS 5/3Administrative Review Law, Article III — the general mechanism for appealing a binding PAC opinion into court | 76 |
5 ILCS 140/11A denied requester can sue in circuit court for an order forcing disclosure. The court can also award attorney's fees and, if it finds the denial was willful and intentional, civil penalties against the public body. | 5 ILCS 140/9When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court. | 76 |
5 ILCS 140/11A denied requester can sue in circuit court for an order forcing disclosure. The court can also award attorney's fees and, if it finds the denial was willful and intentional, civil penalties against the public body. | 735 ILCS 5/3Administrative Review Law, Article III — the general mechanism for appealing a binding PAC opinion into court | 70 |
5 ILCS 140/1States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure. | 5 ILCS 140/11A denied requester can sue in circuit court for an order forcing disclosure. The court can also award attorney's fees and, if it finds the denial was willful and intentional, civil penalties against the public body. | 69 |
7(1)(b)Private information (defined in Sec. 2(c-5) -- e.g. SSNs, driver's license numbers, home addresses in some contexts) | 7(1)(c)Personal privacy (records whose release would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy) | 62 |
5 ILCS 140/7General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection) | 7(1)(c)Personal privacy (records whose release would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy) | 58 |
5 ILCS 140/3(a)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 5 ILCS 140/9When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court. | 57 |
5 ILCS 140/7General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection) | 5 ILCS 140/9When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court. | 57 |
5 ILCS 140/1States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure. | 5 ILCS 140/3(a)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 55 |
5 ILCS 140/3The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 7(1)(c)Personal privacy (records whose release would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy) | 54 |
5 ILCS 140/3(a)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 735 ILCS 5/3Administrative Review Law, Article III — the general mechanism for appealing a binding PAC opinion into court | 52 |
5 ILCS 140/7General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection) | 735 ILCS 5/3Administrative Review Law, Article III — the general mechanism for appealing a binding PAC opinion into court | 51 |
5 ILCS 140/1States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure. | 5 ILCS 140/7General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection) | 49 |
5 ILCS 140/3The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 5 ILCS 140/7General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection) | 48 |
5 ILCS 140/11A denied requester can sue in circuit court for an order forcing disclosure. The court can also award attorney's fees and, if it finds the denial was willful and intentional, civil penalties against the public body. | 5 ILCS 140/3(a)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 45 |
5 ILCS 140/7General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection) | 7(1)(b)Private information (defined in Sec. 2(c-5) -- e.g. SSNs, driver's license numbers, home addresses in some contexts) | 44 |
5 ILCS 140/3(a)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 5 ILCS 140/7General exemptions provision (cites Sec. 7 as a whole without naming a specific subsection) | 43 |
5 ILCS 140/1States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure. | 5 ILCS 140/3(e)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 42 |
5 ILCS 140/3(e)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 5 ILCS 140/9When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court. | 42 |
5 ILCS 140/3(e)The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 735 ILCS 5/3Administrative Review Law, Article III — the general mechanism for appealing a binding PAC opinion into court | 41 |
5 ILCS 140/9When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court. | 7(1)General exemption list (cites the lettered exemptions in Sec. 7(1) without naming a specific one) | 41 |
5 ILCS 140/3The Act's workhorse section: public bodies must make records available on request; requests can be submitted in writing by mail, personal delivery, fax, or other means the body accepts; and -- critically -- a body generally has 5 business days to comply or deny (extendable by 5 more business days in specific circumstances). This is the section most PAC disputes about late or incomplete responses turn on. | 7(1)(b)Private information (defined in Sec. 2(c-5) -- e.g. SSNs, driver's license numbers, home addresses in some contexts) | 40 |
5 ILCS 140/1States the law's purpose: government records belong to the public by default, so people can see what officials are doing and hold them accountable. This is the policy lens courts and the PAC use to interpret every other section -- when in doubt, the Act favors disclosure. | 7(1)General exemption list (cites the lettered exemptions in Sec. 7(1) without naming a specific one) | 40 |