Illinois 2025-2026 Regular Session

Illinois House Bill HB3594 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 HB3594 Introduced , by Rep. Kam Buckner SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act Creates the Extreme Weather Recovery Act. Creates a private cause of action for a harmed party against a responsible party in which the amount in controversy is $10,000 or more. Authorizes a harmed party who has suffered damages in that amount that is alleged to have been caused by climate disaster or extreme weather attributable to climate changes or both to sue a responsible party. The Act's covered period is from 1965 to the effective date of the Act. Prohibits the State or unit of local government or an agent or employee of these governmental units from commencing an action under the Act. Makes legislative findings. Makes definitions. Creates a 3-year statute of limitation in which a harmed party must file or commence an action under the Act. Authorizes the Illinois Emergency Management Agency to adopt rules implementing the Act. Makes other changes. Effective immediately. LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b A BILL FOR 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 HB3594 Introduced , by Rep. Kam Buckner SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act New Act Creates the Extreme Weather Recovery Act. Creates a private cause of action for a harmed party against a responsible party in which the amount in controversy is $10,000 or more. Authorizes a harmed party who has suffered damages in that amount that is alleged to have been caused by climate disaster or extreme weather attributable to climate changes or both to sue a responsible party. The Act's covered period is from 1965 to the effective date of the Act. Prohibits the State or unit of local government or an agent or employee of these governmental units from commencing an action under the Act. Makes legislative findings. Makes definitions. Creates a 3-year statute of limitation in which a harmed party must file or commence an action under the Act. Authorizes the Illinois Emergency Management Agency to adopt rules implementing the Act. Makes other changes. Effective immediately. LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b A BILL FOR
2	2	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 HB3594 Introduced , by Rep. Kam Buckner SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
3	3	New Act New Act
4	4	New Act
5	5	Creates the Extreme Weather Recovery Act. Creates a private cause of action for a harmed party against a responsible party in which the amount in controversy is $10,000 or more. Authorizes a harmed party who has suffered damages in that amount that is alleged to have been caused by climate disaster or extreme weather attributable to climate changes or both to sue a responsible party. The Act's covered period is from 1965 to the effective date of the Act. Prohibits the State or unit of local government or an agent or employee of these governmental units from commencing an action under the Act. Makes legislative findings. Makes definitions. Creates a 3-year statute of limitation in which a harmed party must file or commence an action under the Act. Authorizes the Illinois Emergency Management Agency to adopt rules implementing the Act. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.
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8	8	A BILL FOR
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11	11	1 AN ACT concerning civil law.
12	12	2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
13	13	3 represented in the General Assembly:
14	14	4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
15	15	5 Extreme Weather Recovery Act.
16	16	6 Section 5. Findings; intent; purpose.
17	17	7 (a) The General Assembly finds that:
18	18	8 (i) climate disasters, extreme weather attributable to
19	19	9 climate change, and harms resulting from long-term changes
20	20	10 to the climate system pose a threat to the health, safety,
21	21	11 and security of all residents of, and visitors to,
22	22	12 Illinois;
23	23	13 (ii) climate change poses many costly risks to
24	24	14 Illinois residents, including an increase in precipitation
25	25	15 and severe storms, hotter temperatures, and intensified
26	26	16 drought;
27	27	17 (iii) average annual precipitation in Illinois has
28	28	18 increased by 12% to 15%; and extreme precipitation events
29	29	19 (days with more than 2 inches of precipitation) have
30	30	20 increased by 40% since the beginning of the 20th century,
31	31	21 resulting in more frequent flooding;
32	32	22 (iv) insurance companies lost money on policies
33	33	23 associated with property insurance in Illinois in 2023,
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37	37	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 HB3594 Introduced , by Rep. Kam Buckner SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
38	38	New Act New Act
39	39	New Act
40	40	Creates the Extreme Weather Recovery Act. Creates a private cause of action for a harmed party against a responsible party in which the amount in controversy is $10,000 or more. Authorizes a harmed party who has suffered damages in that amount that is alleged to have been caused by climate disaster or extreme weather attributable to climate changes or both to sue a responsible party. The Act's covered period is from 1965 to the effective date of the Act. Prohibits the State or unit of local government or an agent or employee of these governmental units from commencing an action under the Act. Makes legislative findings. Makes definitions. Creates a 3-year statute of limitation in which a harmed party must file or commence an action under the Act. Authorizes the Illinois Emergency Management Agency to adopt rules implementing the Act. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.
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43	43	A BILL FOR
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68	68	1 due mostly to damage from severe storms;
69	69	2 (v) the average temperature in Illinois is predicted
70	70	3 to increase by up to 9F by 2100 under a moderate climate
71	71	4 scenario (RCP4.5); the average daily temperature has
72	72	5 already increased by 1 to 2F in most areas of the State;
73	73	6 and the average nighttime temperature has increased by
74	74	7 more than 3F over the last 120 years;
75	75	8 (vi) warmer temperatures will change the composition
76	76	9 of Illinois forests and decrease agricultural yields of
77	77	10 corn, soybeans, and other crops;
78	78	11 (vii) heat stress caused by climate change is likely
79	79	12 to reduce corn yields by 23% to 34% in Illinois by the
80	80	13 middle of this century;
81	81	14 (viii) all Illinoisans are at risk of concrete and
82	82	15 particularized injuries caused by the increasing
83	83	16 prevalence and intensity of climate disasters, extreme
84	84	17 weather attributable to climate change, and harms
85	85	18 resulting from long-term changes to the climate system;
86	86	19 (ix) Illinois has a compelling State interest in
87	87	20 protecting its citizens from climate disasters, extreme
88	88	21 weather attributable to climate change, and harms
89	89	22 resulting from long-term changes to the climate system;
90	90	23 (x) the cost and impact of climate disasters, extreme
91	91	24 weather attributable to climate change, and harms
92	92	25 resulting from long-term changes to the climate system
93	93	26 continue to increase, straining public resources in this
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104	104	1 State; and
105	105	2 (xi) impacts in Illinois causally connected to
106	106	3 responsible parties' qualified products and actions during
107	107	4 the covered period include, but are not limited to:
108	108	5 (A) damage to public property and infrastructure,
109	109	6 as well as adjacent private property and
110	110	7 infrastructure;
111	111	8 (B) natural resource damages to public and private
112	112	9 resources;
113	113	10 (C) increased risk, hours, and compensation to
114	114	11 emergency responders faced with increasingly frequent
115	115	12 and severe events;
116	116	13 (D) significant and costly health and safety
117	117	14 upgrades to public buildings before generally accepted
118	118	15 amortization and depreciation timelines, resulting in
119	119	16 additional taxpayer expenses now and into the future;
120	120	17 (E) significant and costly occupational
121	121	18 productivity losses and costs from workplace health
122	122	19 and safety regulations that are increasingly necessary
123	123	20 and required to protect employers and employees from
124	124	21 increased risks and hazards related to climate change
125	125	22 and extreme weather attributable to climate change;
126	126	23 (F) canceled school days because of climate
127	127	24 disasters and extreme weather attributable to climate
128	128	25 change, resulting in educational harms to students
129	129	26 that have long-lasting impacts on workforce, business,
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140	140	1 and economic development; and
141	141	2 (G) increasing public and private health costs
142	142	3 stemming from indoor and outdoor pollution,
143	143	4 contamination, and exposure to toxic materials,
144	144	5 whether in combination or occurring separately,
145	145	6 exacerbated by the impacts of climate disasters and
146	146	7 extreme weather attributable to climate change;
147	147	8 (xii) a judicial forum is necessary for Illinoisans to
148	148	9 redress the harm that responsible parties have caused and
149	149	10 continue to cause through climate disasters, extreme
150	150	11 weather attributable to climate change, and harms
151	151	12 resulting from long-term changes to the climate system
152	152	13 fueled by their products and actions. Illinois has a
153	153	14 compelling State interest in empowering citizens to
154	154	15 recover, recoup, or rebuild the value of lost, damaged,
155	155	16 and destroyed property, as well as the full extent of
156	156	17 non-economic, compensatory, and punitive damages allowable
157	157	18 under this State's laws and constitution;
158	158	19 (xiii) the courts of this State are the appropriate
159	159	20 venue to provide additional relief to harmed parties as
160	160	21 deemed necessary or proper in the course of legal
161	161	22 proceedings brought under the authority of this Act;
162	162	23 (xiv) this State has a compelling interest in
163	163	24 preserving public resources for traditional public
164	164	25 purposes. It is not the desire of this State to continue
165	165	26 paying for increased damages to harmed parties caused by
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176	176	1 the profit-seeking actions and omissions of responsible
177	177	2 parties' qualified products and actions;
178	178	3 (xv) climate disasters, extreme weather attributable
179	179	4 to climate change, and harms resulting from long-term
180	180	5 changes to the climate system are not acts of God,
181	181	6 unforeseeable, or otherwise classified as a force majeure
182	182	7 event eligible for litigation limitations or defenses,
183	183	8 except as explicitly and unambiguously provided;
184	184	9 (xvi) decades of intentional lies, misinformation, and
185	185	10 disinformation, and misrepresentations by responsible
186	186	11 parties about the connection between qualified products
187	187	12 and climate change has directly and causally contributed
188	188	13 to concrete and particularized injuries in this State from
189	189	14 climate disasters, extreme weather attributable to climate
190	190	15 change, and harms resulting from long-term changes to the
191	191	16 climate system. Continued lies, misinformation, and
192	192	17 disinformation, and misrepresentations pose a threat to
193	193	18 the health, safety, and security of all residents of, and
194	194	19 visitors to, this State. Responsible parties have
195	195	20 long-known the dangers of their qualified products but
196	196	21 continued to deny and lie for profit. Hiding, obfuscating,
197	197	22 and denying information to consumers, elected officials,
198	198	23 and regulators alike harmed and continues to harm
199	199	24 Illinoisans. This State has a compelling interest in
200	200	25 protecting consumers from lies, misinformation, and
201	201	26 disinformation in the marketplace, and encouraging factual
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212	212	1 and truthful information on climate disasters, extreme
213	213	2 weather attributable to climate change, harms resulting
214	214	3 from long-term changes to the climate system, and the
215	215	4 qualified products and actions of responsible parties. The
216	216	5 General Assembly further finds and declares that:
217	217	6 (A) responsible parties have engaged in a
218	218	7 decades-long project to protect their profits with a
219	219	8 coordinated effort to deceive the public about the
220	220	9 reality of the climate crisis;
221	221	10 (B) documents unveiled by litigation and
222	222	11 investigative journalists demonstrate that as early as
223	223	12 the 1950s, responsible parties became aware of the
224	224	13 potentially catastrophic impact of their products.
225	225	14 Even in the face of research conducted by their own
226	226	15 scientists affirming the impacts of their business,
227	227	16 responsible parties outright denied that climate
228	228	17 change was real, spread disinformation to cast doubt
229	229	18 on the science, and fought regulatory action against
230	230	19 qualified products;
231	231	20 (C) the 1970s and 1980s saw the development of a
232	232	21 clear scientific consensus that increasing CO2
233	233	22 concentration in the atmosphere would contribute to
234	234	23 global warming and that the heightened CO2 emissions
235	235	24 were attributable to fossil fuels. These facts were
236	236	25 supported by fossil-fuel industry scientists like
237	237	26 Exxon's James F. Black, who provided these findings in
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248	248	1 a 1977 presentation and a 1978 briefing of Exxon
249	249	2 management. In 1979, W.L. Ferrall outlined that an
250	250	3 internal Exxon study concluded that the "present trend
251	251	4 of fossil-fuel consumption will cause dramatic
252	252	5 environmental effects before the year 2050." In 1982,
253	253	6 R.W. Cohen summarized that Exxon's climate modeling
254	254	7 research was "consistent with the published prediction
255	255	8 of more complex climate models" and "in accord with
256	256	9 the scientific consensus on the effect of increased
257	257	10 atmospheric CO2 on climate." A 1988 Shell report
258	258	11 echoed the Exxon warnings and acknowledged the need to
259	259	12 consider policy changes. The report provided that "the
260	260	13 potential implications for the world are... so large
261	261	14 that policy options need to be considered much
262	262	15 earlier" and that research should be "directed more to
263	263	16 the analysis of policy and energy options than to
264	264	17 studies of what we will be facing exactly";
265	265	18 (D) despite acknowledging that increased CO2
266	266	19 concentrations because of fossil-fuel combustion posed
267	267	20 a considerable threat, responsible parties decided not
268	268	21 to take steps to prevent the risks of climate change.
269	269	22 Instead, they stopped funding major climate research,
270	270	23 and launched campaigns to discredit climate science
271	271	24 and delay actions perceived as contrary to their
272	272	25 business interests. These responsible parties carried
273	273	26 out these campaigns by:
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284	284	1 (1) developing public relations strategies
285	285	2 that were contradictory to their knowledge and
286	286	3 scientific insights;
287	287	4 (2) engaging in public communications
288	288	5 campaigns to promote doubt and downplay the
289	289	6 threats of climate change; and
290	290	7 (3) funding individuals, organizations, and
291	291	8 research aimed at discrediting the growing body of
292	292	9 publicly available climate science.
293	293	10 (E) from 1970 to 2020 the oil and gas industry
294	294	11 responsible parties made nearly $2.8 billion a day and
295	295	12 $1 trillion a year in profit;
296	296	13 (F) responsible parties currently advertise
297	297	14 "green" efforts to the public that mask the lack of
298	298	15 real investment in resiliency and energy-source
299	299	16 transition and the continued prioritization of the
300	300	17 extraction, refinement, and distribution of qualified
301	301	18 products;
302	302	19 (G) a December 2022 report by the Oversight
303	303	20 Committee in Congress also revealed internal documents
304	304	21 from senior leaders in responsible parties that
305	305	22 explicitly reject taking accountability for the
306	306	23 greenhouse gas emissions associated with their
307	307	24 products;
308	308	25 (H) by their conduct and impact, responsible
309	309	26 parties have intentionally obfuscated the truth about
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320	320	1 climate change and outright deceived the public to
321	321	2 continue dependence on their qualified products;
322	322	3 (xvii) intentional lies, misinformation, and
323	323	4 disinformation, and misrepresentations by responsible
324	324	5 parties about the connection between qualified products
325	325	6 they sell or sold and climate change is not political
326	326	7 speech, but fundamentally commercial activity with
327	327	8 incidental political impact; and
328	328	9 (xviii) that responsible parties must be accountable
329	329	10 to harmed parties. The General Assembly hereby explicitly
330	330	11 authorizes a cause of action to harmed parties, including
331	331	12 individuals, businesses, and associations. This State has
332	332	13 a sovereign and compelling State interest in providing a
333	333	14 forum for individuals, businesses, and associations
334	334	15 sustaining injuries and harms caused by responsible
335	335	16 parties' deceptive behavior and linked to the harms of
336	336	17 responsible parties' products and actions. It is the
337	337	18 intent of this State to provide a judicial forum for the
338	338	19 efficient, just, and equitable resolution of harmed
339	339	20 parties' claims for damages stemming from climate
340	340	21 disasters, extreme weather attributable to climate change,
341	341	22 and harms resulting from long-term changes to the climate
342	342	23 system, as defined herein, against responsible parties.
343	343	24 (b) It is the purpose of this Act to create a new cause of
344	344	25 action independent of existing law. Nothing in this Act may be
345	345	26 construed to limit in any way the enforceability of existing
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356	356	1 laws concerning consumer protection, climate, environment,
357	357	2 energy, or natural resources.
358	358	3 Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
359	359	4 (a) "Amount in controversy" means the damages claimed or
360	360	5 relief demanded by the injured party or parties in a lawsuit.
361	361	6 (b) "Extreme event attribution science" means research
362	362	7 aimed at understanding how human-induced changes in the global
363	363	8 climate system affect the probability, severity, and other
364	364	9 characteristics of extreme weather events such as hurricanes
365	365	10 and heat waves. This may include, but not be limited to,
366	366	11 determining the likelihood of the particular event happening
367	367	12 today compared to how it might have unfolded without
368	368	13 human-caused increase in concentration of greenhouse gases in
369	369	14 the atmosphere.
370	370	15 (c) "Climate disaster" means an event that meets any of
371	371	16 the following threshold qualifications and is determined by
372	372	17 impact attribution science or extreme event attribution
373	373	18 science to be substantially worsened (at least statistically
374	374	19 significant) or caused by climate change from responsible
375	375	20 parties' products or extreme weather attributable to climate
376	376	21 change from responsible parties' products:
377	377	22 (i) a "major disaster" as defined by the Federal
378	378	23 Emergency Management Agency in July of 2024, without
379	379	24 recognition of any changes to that definition that may
380	380	25 occur at a later time by subsequent agency administration,
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391	391	1 or removal of the definition from the public domain or
392	392	2 Code of Federal Regulations;
393	393	3 (ii) "any natural catastrophe" (including any
394	394	4 hurricane, tornado, storm, high water, wind-driven water,
395	395	5 tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption,
396	396	6 landslide, mudslide, snowstorm, or drought), or,
397	397	7 regardless of cause, any fire, flood, or explosion, in any
398	398	8 part of the United States, which in the determination of
399	399	9 the President causes damage of sufficient severity and
400	400	10 magnitude to warrant major disaster assistance under this
401	401	11 Act to supplement the efforts and available resources of
402	402	12 states, local governments, and disaster relief
403	403	13 organizations in alleviating the damage, loss, hardship,
404	404	14 or suffering caused thereby. This includes, but is not
405	405	15 limited to, the definition of a natural catastrophe in the
406	406	16 Stafford Act such as any hurricane, tornado, storm, high
407	407	17 water, wind-driven water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake,
408	408	18 volcanic eruption, landslide, mudslide, snowstorm, or
409	409	19 drought or, regardless of cause, any fire, flood or
410	410	20 explosion, in any part of the United States, which in the
411	411	21 determination of the President causes damage of sufficient
412	412	22 severity and magnitude to warrant major disaster
413	413	23 assistance under this the Stafford Act to supplement the
414	414	24 efforts and available resources of local and state
415	415	25 governments and disaster relief organizations in
416	416	26 alleviating the damage, loss, hardship or suffering caused
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427	427	1 thereby;
428	428	2 (iii) a "catastrophic incident" as defined by the
429	429	3 Federal Emergency Management Agency in July of 2024 (not
430	430	4 including events linked to terrorism), without recognition
431	431	5 of any changes to that definition that may occur at a later
432	432	6 time by a later agency administration or removal of the
433	433	7 definition from the public domain or Code of Federal
434	434	8 Regulations;
435	435	9 (iv) any natural or man-made incident that results in
436	436	10 extraordinary levels of mass casualties, damage, or
437	437	11 disruption severely affecting the population,
438	438	12 infrastructure, environment, economy, national morale, or
439	439	13 government functions. A catastrophic event could result in
440	440	14 sustained national impacts over a prolonged period of
441	441	15 time; almost immediately exceeds resources normally
442	442	16 available to local, state, tribal, and private sector
443	443	17 authorities in the impacted area; and significantly
444	444	18 interrupts governmental operations and emergency services
445	445	19 to such an extent that national security could be
446	446	20 threatened;
447	447	21 (v) any event that does qualify, or would have
448	448	22 qualified, for inclusion on the National Centers for
449	449	23 Environmental Information's "Billion-Dollar Weather and
450	450	24 Climate Disasters" program and data list as it existed in
451	451	25 July of 2024, without recognition of any changes weakening
452	452	26 the agency program that may occur at a later time by
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463	463	1 subsequent agency administration or abolition of the
464	464	2 program, National Centers for Environmental Information,
465	465	3 or the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;
466	466	4 and
467	467	5 (vi) a gubernatorial proclamation that a disaster
468	468	6 exists under the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act.
469	469	7 (d) "Covered period" means the period from January 1, 1965
470	470	8 to the effective date of this Act.
471	471	9 (e) "Extreme weather attributable to climate change" means
472	472	10 weather, climate, or environmental conditions including, but
473	473	11 not limited to, temperature, precipitation, drought, or
474	474	12 flooding that are consistent with impacts or events that are
475	475	13 attributable to climate change and where the intensity,
476	476	14 magnitude, location, timing, or extent of the event lie
477	477	15 outside the historical distribution of measurements for that
478	478	16 type of event or impact for a particular place and time of
479	479	17 year. These events include those that "extreme event
480	480	18 attribution science" determines were made more likely or
481	481	19 severe by climate change.
482	482	20 (f) "Generally accepted amortization and depreciation
483	483	21 timelines" means methods used and encouraged by the Internal
484	484	22 Revenue Service and Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.
485	485	23 (g) "Gross negligence" means negligence that is materially
486	486	24 greater than the mere absence of reasonable care under the
487	487	25 circumstances and that is characterized by indifference to or
488	488	26 reckless disregard of the rights of others.
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498	498	HB3594 - 14 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
499	499	1 (h) "Harmed parties" means any person, business, or
500	500	2 association harmed or suffering damages in the amount of at
501	501	3 least $10,000 as a result of a climate disaster or extreme
502	502	4 weather attributable to climate change.
503	503	5 (i) "Impact attribution science" means research aimed at
504	504	6 understanding how global climate change affects human and
505	505	7 natural systems, including but not limited to localized
506	506	8 physical impacts, such as floods, droughts, and sea level
507	507	9 rise, and the corresponding effects on infrastructure, public
508	508	10 health, ecosystems, agriculture, and economies.
509	509	11 (j) "Long-term changes to the climate system" includes,
510	510	12 but is not limited to: increases in average temperature;
511	511	13 disruptions to ocean chemistry, circulation, and temperature;
512	512	14 sea level rise; variation in precipitation; saltwater
513	513	15 intrusion into drinking water; sunny day flooding; decreased
514	514	16 snowpack and seasonal water availability; drought; and species
515	515	17 mortality and extinction.
516	516	18 (k) "Market-share liability" means liability that is
517	517	19 imposed severally on each member of an industry, based on each
518	518	20 member's share of the market or respective percentage of the
519	519	21 qualified product placed on the market.
520	520	22 (l) "Qualified product" means a fossil-fuel product
521	521	23 including, but not limited to:
522	522	24 (i) Crude petroleum oil and all other hydrocarbons,
523	523	25 regardless of gravity, that are produced at the wellhead
524	524	26 in liquid form by ordinary production methods;
525	525
526	526
527	527
528	528
529	529
530	530	HB3594 - 14 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
531	531
532	532
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534	534	HB3594 - 15 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
535	535	1 (ii) Natural, manufactured, mixed, and byproduct
536	536	2 hydrocarbon gas; or
537	537	3 (iii) Refined crude oil, crude tops, topped crude,
538	538	4 processed crude, processed crude petroleum, residue from
539	539	5 crude petroleum, cracking stock, uncracked fuel oil, fuel
540	540	6 oil, treated crude oil, residuum, gas oil, casinghead
541	541	7 gasoline, natural-gas gasoline, kerosene, benzine, wash
542	542	8 oil, waste oil, blended gasoline, lubricating oil, and
543	543	9 blends or mixtures of oil with one or more liquid products
544	544	10 or byproducts derived from oil or gas.
545	545	11 (m) "Responsible party" means a firm, corporation,
546	546	12 company, partnership, society, joint stock company or any
547	547	13 other entity or association that emitted or caused to be
548	548	14 emitted through the extracting, storing, transporting,
549	549	15 refining, importing, exporting, producing, manufacturing,
550	550	16 distributing, compounding, marketing, or offering for
551	551	17 wholesale or retail sale, a qualified product with total
552	552	18 greenhouse gas emissions of at least one billion metric tons
553	553	19 of carbon dioxide equivalent during the covered period. It
554	554	20 does not include any public utility, public authority, or the
555	555	21 State and its political subdivisions.
556	556	22 (n) "Statute of limitation" means that an action under
557	557	23 this Act must be commended within 3 years after the cause of
558	558	24 action accrued.
559	559	25 (o) "Strict liability" means liability that does not
560	560	26 depend on actual negligence or intent to harm, but that is
561	561
562	562
563	563
564	564
565	565
566	566	HB3594 - 15 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
567	567
568	568
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570	570	HB3594 - 16 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
571	571	1 based on the breach of an absolute duty to make something safe.
572	572	2 Section 15. Civil action enforcement.
573	573	3 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, the requirements of
574	574	4 this Act shall be enforced exclusively through the civil
575	575	5 actions described in this Act.
576	576	6 (b) Any person, other than an officer or employee of a
577	577	7 State or local governmental entity in this State, may bring a
578	578	8 civil action against any responsible party for climate
579	579	9 disasters or extreme weather attributable to climate change or
580	580	10 both as defined in this Act when the following conditions are
581	581	11 met:
582	582	12 (i) The person qualifies as a harmed party.
583	583	13 (ii) During any part of the covered period, the
584	584	14 responsible party did business in Illinois, was registered
585	585	15 to do business in Illinois, was appointed an agent of the
586	586	16 State, or otherwise had sufficient contacts with the State
587	587	17 to give the State jurisdiction over the responsible party
588	588	18 under Illinois law.
589	589	19 (iii) The statute of limitations for the action has
590	590	20 not expired.
591	591	21 (iv) The amount in controversy is at least $10,000.
592	592	22 Plaintiff allegations of the amount in controversy at the
593	593	23 pleading stage must be given judicial deference. Multiple
594	594	24 plaintiffs (regardless of association in a class action)
595	595	25 must be allowed to aggregate claims without common injury
596	596
597	597
598	598
599	599
600	600
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602	602
603	603
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605	605	HB3594 - 17 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
606	606	1 caused by climate disasters or extreme weather
607	607	2 attributable to climate change to reach the amount in
608	608	3 controversy threshold. The courts of this State are
609	609	4 encouraged to process these actions with simplified
610	610	5 procedural rules, streamlined enforcements, and other
611	611	6 remedied mechanisms.
612	612	7 (c) No enforcement of this Act may be taken or threatened
613	613	8 by the State, a political subdivision of the State, or an
614	614	9 executive or administrative officer or employee of the State
615	615	10 or a political subdivision, or a unit of local government or an
616	616	11 attorney representing any one of these governmental entities.
617	617	12 (d) Responsible parties are jointly and severally liable
618	618	13 to the plaintiffs for strict liability if they are a harmed
619	619	14 party.
620	620	15 (e) Harmed parties may commence an action against
621	621	16 responsible parties for recovery of damages in any one of the
622	622	17 following counties:
623	623	18 (i) the county in which all or a substantial part of
624	624	19 the events giving rise to the action occurred;
625	625	20 (ii) the county of residence for any one of the
626	626	21 natural person defendants at the time the cause of action
627	627	22 accrued;
628	628	23 (iii) the county of the principal office in this State
629	629	24 of any one of the defendants that is not a natural person;
630	630	25 or
631	631	26 (iv) the county of residence for any plaintiff if the
632	632
633	633
634	634
635	635
636	636
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638	638
639	639
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641	641	HB3594 - 18 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
642	642	1 plaintiff is a natural person residing in the State.
643	643	2 Notwithstanding any other law, if a civil action is
644	644	3 brought under this Act in one of the venues in this Section16,
645	645	4 the action may not be transferred to a different venue,
646	646	5 including federal court, without the written consent of all
647	647	6 parties.
648	648	7 (g) The fact that harmed parties bring legal action
649	649	8 against responsible parties under this Act may not be an
650	650	9 independent basis for enforcement of any other law of this
651	651	10 State; or the denial, revocation, suspension, or withholding
652	652	11 of any right or privilege conferred by the law of the State or
653	653	12 a political subdivision of the State, or a threat to do the
654	654	13 same.
655	655	14 (h) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to do any of the
656	656	15 following:
657	657	16 (i) Limit the enforceability of any other laws that
658	658	17 regulate or prohibit any conduct relating to climate
659	659	18 disasters, extreme weather, greenhouse gas emissions, or
660	660	19 consumer protection.
661	661	20 (ii) Replace legally mandated disaster recovery funds,
662	662	21 designated disaster recovery funds established by
663	663	22 legislation or administrative rule, contractually
664	664	23 obligated, or court-ordered insurance claim payouts.
665	665	24 (i) If a claimant prevails in an action brought under this
666	666	25 Section, the court shall award all of the following:
667	667	26 (i) The full extent of non-economic, compensatory, and
668	668
669	669
670	670
671	671
672	672
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674	674
675	675
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677	677	HB3594 - 19 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
678	678	1 punitive damages allowable under Illinois law and
679	679	2 Constitution.
680	680	3 (ii) Compensatory damages in an amount of not less
681	681	4 than the fair market value of recovering, recouping,
682	682	5 rebuilding, or remediating the value of lost, damaged, and
683	683	6 destroyed property.
684	684	7 (iii) Compensatory damages in an amount not less than
685	685	8 the cost of injuries to harmed parties including medical
686	686	9 care, mental and behavioral health care, past and present
687	687	10 pain and suffering, or emotional distress.
688	688	11 (j) Notwithstanding any other law, a cause of action under
689	689	12 this Section shall be extinguished unless the action is
690	690	13 commenced no later than 3 years after the cause of action
691	691	14 accrues.
692	692	15 (k) The connection of a climate disaster, extreme weather
693	693	16 attributable to climate change, or harms resulting from
694	694	17 long-term changes to the climate system to alleged injuries
695	695	18 shall be deemed an injury in fact for all residents of, and
696	696	19 visitors to, Illinois. Any such person shall have standing to
697	697	20 bring a civil action under this Act.
698	698	21 (l) Notwithstanding any other law, none of the following
699	699	22 is a defense to an action brought under this Act:
700	700	23 (i) A defendant's ignorance or mistake of law.
701	701	24 (ii) A defendant's belief that the requirements of
702	702	25 this Act are unconstitutional or were unconstitutional.
703	703	26 (iii) A defendant's reliance on any court decision
704	704
705	705
706	706
707	707
708	708
709	709	HB3594 - 19 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
710	710
711	711
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713	713	HB3594 - 20 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
714	714	1 that has been overruled on appeal or by a subsequent
715	715	2 court, even if that court decision had not been overruled
716	716	3 when the defendant engaged in conduct that violates this
717	717	4 Act.
718	718	5 (iv) A defendant's reliance on any State or federal
719	719	6 court decision that is not binding on the court in which
720	720	7 the action has been brought.
721	721	8 (v) Nonmutual issue preclusion or nonmutual claim
722	722	9 preclusion.
723	723	10 (vi) Any claim that the enforcement of this Act or the
724	724	11 imposition of civil liability against the defendant will
725	725	12 violate a constitutional right of a third party.
726	726	13 (vii) A defendant's assertion that this Act proscribes
727	727	14 conduct that is separately prohibited by any other law of
728	728	15 Illinois.
729	729	16 (viii) Any claim that defendants' or responsible
730	730	17 parties' qualified products were not misused, or were not
731	731	18 intended to be misused, in an unlawful manner.
732	732	19 (ix) A defendant's assertion that State or federal
733	733	20 laws relating to qualified products and responsible
734	734	21 parties' operations displace, abrogate, or supersede the
735	735	22 actions authorized under this Act, the authority of the
736	736	23 courts of Illinois to provide a forum for the action, or
737	737	24 the authority of the courts of Illinois to provide a
738	738	25 remedy to harmed parties.
739	739	26 (x) A defendant's assertion that choice-of-law and
740	740
741	741
742	742
743	743
744	744
745	745	HB3594 - 20 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
746	746
747	747
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749	749	HB3594 - 21 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
750	750	1 choice-of-forum clauses govern the action, regardless of
751	751	2 whether such clauses apply to harmed parties by basis of
752	752	3 consumer transactions.
753	753	4 (xi) A defendant's assertion that the plaintiff or
754	754	5 plaintiffs assumed a risk of harm through the use of their
755	755	6 products.
756	756	7 (xii) A defendant's forum non conveniens assertion so
757	757	8 long as the jurisdictional requirements of this Act are
758	758	9 satisfied.
759	759	10 (m) An action brought under this Section may be resolved
760	760	11 by settlement through mediation or arbitration upon written
761	761	12 consent of both parties; however, mediation or arbitration may
762	762	13 not be mandated by Illinois courts.
763	763	14 (n) This Act shall not be construed to impose liability on
764	764	15 any speech or conduct protected by the First Amendment to the
765	765	16 United States Constitution, as made applicable to the states
766	766	17 through the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States
767	767	18 Constitution, or by the Illinois Constitution.
768	768	19 (o) Notwithstanding any other law, the State, a State
769	769	20 official or a unit of local government or an attorney
770	770	21 representing any one of these governmental entities may not
771	771	22 intervene in an action brought under this Section. However,
772	772	23 this subsection does not prohibit a person described by this
773	773	24 subsection from filing an amicus curiae brief in the action.
774	774	25 (p) Notwithstanding any other law, a court may not award
775	775	26 attorney's fees or costs to a defendant in an action brought
776	776
777	777
778	778
779	779
780	780
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782	782
783	783
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785	785	HB3594 - 22 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
786	786	1 under this Section, unless the plaintiff was represented by
787	787	2 counsel in the action and plaintiff's counsel is found by the
788	788	3 court or the entity enforcing the rules of professional
789	789	4 conduct of attorney to be in violation of the rules of
790	790	5 professional conduct.
791	791	6 (q) An action under this Section may not be brought
792	792	7 against the federal government, State, or political
793	793	8 subdivision of the State, or an employee of one of those
794	794	9 governmental units on the basis of acts or omissions in the
795	795	10 course of discharge of official duties.
796	796	11 Section 20. Offsets to damages and defenses to liability.
797	797	12 (a) All of the following are offsets to damages:
798	798	13 (i) Payments made to a harmed party under a contract
799	799	14 of insurance. Insurers have the right to commence a
800	800	15 subrogation action against responsible parties for
801	801	16 recovery of payments made to harmed parties under a
802	802	17 contract of insurance regardless of whether the insured
803	803	18 has been made whole.
804	804	19 (ii) Evidence that a harmed party fully recovered from
805	805	20 a public body for alleged injuries.
806	806	21 (b) All of the following are affirmative defenses to an
807	807	22 action commenced under this Act:
808	808	23 (i) Evidence of intentional destruction of property or
809	809	24 intentional worsening of damage to reach the amount in
810	810	25 controversy threshold.
811	811
812	812
813	813
814	814
815	815
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817	817
818	818
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820	820	HB3594 - 23 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
821	821	1 (ii) Evidence of gross negligence by the harmed party.
822	822	2 (iii) The defendant has the burden of proving an
823	823	3 affirmative defense under this subsection by a
824	824	4 preponderance of the evidence.
825	825	5 Section 25. Fee and cost shifting from challenges to
826	826	6 enforcement.
827	827	7 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, any person, including
828	828	8 an entity, attorney, or law firm, who seeks declaratory or
829	829	9 injunctive relief to prevent this State, a political
830	830	10 subdivision, a governmental entity or public official in this
831	831	11 State, or a person in this State from enforcing any portion of
832	832	12 this statute, State rules of civil procedure, or any other
833	833	13 related law that promotes consumer protection and remedies to
834	834	14 injuries from climate disasters, extreme weather attributable
835	835	15 to climate change, and harms resulting from long-term changes
836	836	16 to the climate system, or that represents any litigant seeking
837	837	17 that relief, is jointly and severally liable to pay the
838	838	18 attorney's fees and costs of the prevailing party.
839	839	19 (b) For purposes of this Section, a party is considered a
840	840	20 prevailing party if a court does either of the following:
841	841	21 (i) Dismisses any claim or cause of action brought by
842	842	22 the party seeking the declaratory or injunctive relief
843	843	23 described by this Section, regardless of the reason for
844	844	24 the dismissal.
845	845	25 (ii) Enters judgment in favor of the party opposing
846	846
847	847
848	848
849	849
850	850
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852	852
853	853
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855	855	HB3594 - 24 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
856	856	1 the declaratory or injunctive relief described by this
857	857	2 Section on any claim or cause of action.
858	858	3 (c) Regardless of whether a prevailing party sought to
859	859	4 recover attorney's fees or costs in the underlying action, a
860	860	5 prevailing party under this Section may bring a civil action
861	861	6 to recover attorney's fees and costs against a person,
862	862	7 including an entity, attorney, or law firm, that sought
863	863	8 declaratory or injunctive relief described by this Section no
864	864	9 later than the third anniversary of the date on which, as
865	865	10 applicable:
866	866	11 (i) The dismissal or judgment described by this
867	867	12 Section becomes final upon the conclusion of appellate
868	868	13 review.
869	869	14 (ii) The time for seeking appellate review expires.
870	870	15 (d) None of the following are a defense to an action
871	871	16 brought under this Section:
872	872	17 (i) A prevailing party under this Section failed to
873	873	18 seek recovery of attorney's fees or costs in the
874	874	19 underlying action.
875	875	20 (ii) The court in the underlying action declined to
876	876	21 recognize or enforce the requirements of this Section.
877	877	22 (iii) The court in the underlying action held that any
878	878	23 provision of this Section is invalid, unconstitutional, or
879	879	24 preempted by federal law, notwithstanding the doctrines of
880	880	25 issue or claim preclusion.
881	881
882	882
883	883
884	884
885	885
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887	887
888	888
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890	890	HB3594 - 25 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
891	891	1 Section 30. Limitations of the Act. This Act may not be
892	892	2 construed to do any of the following:
893	893	3 (a) Authorize the commencement of an action under this
894	894	4 Act against an entity that is not a responsible party.
895	895	5 (b) Authorize the commencement of an action under this
896	896	6 Act when the amount in controversy requirements are not
897	897	7 met.
898	898	8 (c) Wholly or partly repeal, either expressly or by
899	899	9 implication, any other statute that regulates or prohibits
900	900	10 any conduct relating to climate disasters, extreme weather
901	901	11 attributable to climate change, and harms resulting from
902	902	12 long-term changes to the climate system.
903	903	13 Section 35. Sovereign, governmental, and official
904	904	14 immunity.
905	905	15 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, the State has sovereign
906	906	16 immunity, a political subdivision of the State has
907	907	17 governmental immunity, and each officer and employee of this
908	908	18 State or a political subdivision has official immunity in any
909	909	19 action, claim, or counterclaim or any type of legal or
910	910	20 equitable action that challenges the validity of any provision
911	911	21 or application of this Act on constitutional grounds or
912	912	22 otherwise.
913	913	23 (b) A provision of State law may not be construed to waive
914	914	24 or abrogate an immunity described by this Section unless it
915	915	25 expressly waives immunity under this Section.
916	916
917	917
918	918
919	919
920	920
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922	922
923	923
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925	925	HB3594 - 26 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
926	926	1 Section 40. Severability.
927	927	2 (a) It is the intent of the General Assembly that every
928	928	3 provision in this Act and every application of the provisions
929	929	4 in this Act are severable from each other.
930	930	5 (b) If any application of any provision in this Act is
931	931	6 found by a court to be invalid or unconstitutional, the
932	932	7 remaining applications of that provision to all other persons
933	933	8 and circumstances shall be severed and shall not be affected.
934	934	9 All constitutionally valid applications of this Act shall be
935	935	10 severed from any applications that a court finds to be
936	936	11 invalid, leaving the valid applications in force, because it
937	937	12 is the General Assembly's intent that the valid applications
938	938	13 be allowed to stand alone. Even if a reviewing court finds a
939	939	14 provision of this Act to impose an unconstitutional burden in
940	940	15 a large or substantial fraction of relevant cases, the
941	941	16 applications that do not present an unconstitutional burden
942	942	17 shall be severed from the remaining applications and shall
943	943	18 remain in force, and shall be treated as if the General
944	944	19 Assembly had enacted a statute limited to the persons, group
945	945	20 of persons, or circumstances for which the statute's
946	946	21 application does not present an unconstitutional burden.
947	947	22 (c) If any court declares or finds a provision of this Act
948	948	23 facially unconstitutional, when discrete applications of that
949	949	24 provision can be enforced against a person, group of persons,
950	950	25 or circumstances without violating the United States
951	951
952	952
953	953
954	954
955	955
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957	957
958	958
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960	960	HB3594 - 27 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
961	961	1 Constitution and the Illinois Constitution, those applications
962	962	2 shall be severed from all remaining applications of the
963	963	3 provision, and the provision shall be interpreted as if the
964	964	4 General Assembly had enacted a provision limited to the
965	965	5 persons, group of persons, or circumstances for which the
966	966	6 provision's application will not violate the United States
967	967	7 Constitution and the Illinois Constitution.
968	968	8 (d) The General Assembly further declares that it would
969	969	9 have enacted this Act and each provision regardless of the
970	970	10 fact that any provision or application of this Act were to be
971	971	11 declared unconstitutional or to represent an unconstitutional
972	972	12 burden.
973	973	13 (e) If any provision of this Act is found by any court to
974	974	14 be unconstitutionally vague, then the applications of that
975	975	15 provision that do not present constitutional vagueness
976	976	16 problems shall be severed and remain in force.
977	977	17 (f) A court may not decline to enforce the severability
978	978	18 requirements of this Section on the ground that severance
979	979	19 would rewrite the statute or involve the court in legislative
980	980	20 or lawmaking activity. A court that declines to enforce or
981	981	21 enjoins a State official from enforcing a statutory provision
982	982	22 of this Act does not rewrite a statute, as the statute
983	983	23 continues to contain the same words as before the court's
984	984	24 decision.
985	985	25 (g) A statute that provides financial benefits to victims
986	986	26 or survivors of climate disasters, extreme weather
987	987
988	988
989	989
990	990
991	991
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993	993
994	994
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997	997	1 attributable to climate change, or harms resulting from
998	998	2 long-term changes to the climate system or results in the
999	999	3 collection of damages by the State for damage to consumers and
1000	1000	4 State interests, may not be construed to repeal any other
1001	1001	5 statute that addresses climate disasters, extreme weather
1002	1002	6 attributable to climate change, and harms resulting from
1003	1003	7 long-term changes to the climate system, either wholly or
1004	1004	8 partly, unless the later-enacted statute explicitly states
1005	1005	9 that it is repealing the other statute.
1006	1006	10 (h) Every statute that provides financial benefits to
1007	1007	11 victims or survivors of climate disasters, extreme weather
1008	1008	12 attributable to climate change, and harms resulting from
1009	1009	13 long-term changes to the climate system or results in the
1010	1010	14 collection of damages by the State for damage to consumers and
1011	1011	15 State interests from climate disasters, extreme weather
1012	1012	16 attributable to climate change, and harms resulting from
1013	1013	17 long-term changes to the climate system, is severable in each
1014	1014	18 of its applications to every person and circumstance. If any
1015	1015	19 statute that provides financial benefits to victims or
1016	1016	20 survivors of climate disasters, extreme weather attributable
1017	1017	21 to climate change, and harms resulting from long-term changes
1018	1018	22 to the climate system, or results in the collection of damages
1019	1019	23 by the State for damage to consumers and State interests from
1020	1020	24 climate disasters, extreme weather attributable to climate
1021	1021	25 change, and harms resulting from long-term changes to the
1022	1022	26 climate system, is found by any court to be unconstitutional,
1023	1023
1024	1024
1025	1025
1026	1026
1027	1027
1028	1028	HB3594 - 28 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
1029	1029
1030	1030
1031	1031	HB3594- 29 -LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b HB3594 - 29 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
1032	1032	HB3594 - 29 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
1033	1033	1 either on its face or as applied, then all applications of that
1034	1034	2 statute that do not violate the United States Constitution and
1035	1035	3 the Illinois Constitution shall be severed from the
1036	1036	4 unconstitutional applications and shall remain enforceable,
1037	1037	5 notwithstanding any other law, and the statute shall be
1038	1038	6 interpreted as if containing language limiting the statute's
1039	1039	7 application to the persons, group of persons, or circumstances
1040	1040	8 for which the statute's application will not violate the
1041	1041	9 United States Constitution and the Illinois Constitution.
1042	1042	10 Section 45. Savings.
1043	1043	11 (a) All existing litigation filed in State courts under
1044	1044	12 the statutes of this State may not be expressly or impliedly
1045	1045	13 preempted, displaced, mooted, or dismissed upon any other
1046	1046	14 prudential consideration arguably arising from this Act.
1047	1047	15 (b) To the extent that any aspect of every and all existing
1048	1048	16 litigation filed in the courts of this State is reviewed for
1049	1049	17 the application of this Act, it is severable in each of its
1050	1050	18 applications to every person and circumstance. If any statute
1051	1051	19 that provides financial benefits to victims or survivors of
1052	1052	20 climate disasters, extreme weather attributable to climate
1053	1053	21 change, and harms resulting from long-term changes to the
1054	1054	22 climate system, or results in the collection of damages by the
1055	1055	23 State for damage to consumers and State interests from climate
1056	1056	24 disasters, extreme weather attributable to climate change, and
1057	1057	25 harms resulting from long-term changes to the climate system,
1058	1058
1059	1059
1060	1060
1061	1061
1062	1062
1063	1063	HB3594 - 29 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
1064	1064
1065	1065
1066	1066	HB3594- 30 -LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b HB3594 - 30 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
1067	1067	HB3594 - 30 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
1068	1068	1 is found by any court to be unconstitutional, either on its
1069	1069	2 face or as applied, then all applications of that statute that
1070	1070	3 do not violate the United States Constitution and the Illinois
1071	1071	4 Constitution shall be severed from the unconstitutional
1072	1072	5 applications and shall remain enforceable, notwithstanding any
1073	1073	6 other law, and the statute shall be interpreted as if
1074	1074	7 containing language limiting the statute's application to the
1075	1075	8 persons, group of persons, or circumstances for which the
1076	1076	9 statute's application will not violate the United States
1077	1077	10 Constitution and the Illinois Constitution.
1078	1078	11 (c) The remedies provided in this Act are in addition to
1079	1079	12 any other remedy available to a person or the State at common
1080	1080	13 law or under statute. This Act may not be interpreted to
1081	1081	14 prevent a person or the State from pursuing a civil action or
1082	1082	15 any other remedy available at common law or under statute.
1083	1083	16 (d) This Act does not do any of the following:
1084	1084	17 (i) Relieve the liability of an entity for damages
1085	1085	18 resulting from climate change as provided by law.
1086	1086	19 (ii) Preempt, displace, or restrict any rights or
1087	1087	20 remedies of a person, the State, units of local
1088	1088	21 government, or tribal government under law relating to a
1089	1089	22 past, present, or future allegation of any of the
1090	1090	23 following:
1091	1091	24 (A) Deception concerning the effects of fossil
1092	1092	25 fuels on climate change.
1093	1093	26 (B) Damage or injury resulting from the role of
1094	1094
1095	1095
1096	1096
1097	1097
1098	1098
1099	1099	HB3594 - 30 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
1100	1100
1101	1101
1102	1102	HB3594- 31 -LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b HB3594 - 31 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
1103	1103	HB3594 - 31 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b
1104	1104	1 fossil fuels in contributing to climate change.
1105	1105	2 (C) Failure to avoid damage or injury related to
1106	1106	3 climate change, including claims for nuisance,
1107	1107	4 trespass, design defect, negligence, failure to warn,
1108	1108	5 or deceptive or unfair practices and claims for
1109	1109	6 injunctive, declaratory, monetary, or other relief.
1110	1110	7 (e) This Act does not preempt, supersede, or displace any
1111	1111	8 State law or local ordinance, regulation, policy, or program
1112	1112	9 that does any of the following:
1113	1113	10 (i) Limit, set, or enforce standards for emissions of
1114	1114	11 greenhouse gases.
1115	1115	12 (ii) Monitor, report, or keep records of emissions of
1116	1116	13 greenhouse gases.
1117	1117	14 (iii) Collect revenue through fees or levy taxes.
1118	1118	15 (iv) Conduct or support investigations.
1119	1119
1120	1120
1121	1121
1122	1122
1123	1123
1124	1124	HB3594 - 31 - LRB104 07136 JRC 17173 b