FOIA-MASS REQ & VEXATIOUS REQ

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104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB4681

Introduced , by Rep. Daniel Didech

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

5 ILCS 140/2

from Ch. 116, par. 202
5 ILCS 140/3

from Ch. 116, par. 203
5 ILCS 140/3.7 new
5 ILCS 140/11

from Ch. 116, par. 211
5 ILCS 140/12 new

Amends the Freedom of Information Act. Changes the definition of
"commercial purpose". Defines "business day" or "working day", as well as
"mass requester" and "vexatious requester". Requires a public body to
respond to a request for records submitted by a mass requester within 21
days after receipt. Sets forth procedures and requirements regarding mass
requesters. Provides that it is a violation of the Act to knowingly obtain
a public record as a mass requester without disclosing the person's status
as a mass requester, if requested to do so by the public body. Requires
persons denied access to inspect or copy any public record to first notify
the public body of intent to file suit and provide an opportunity to confer
orally, within 10 business days after receipt of the notification, about
curing or resolving the issue. Requires a court to award a public body
attorney's fees and costs against a commercial purpose requester, a
recurrent requester, a mass requester, or a vexatious requester. Allows a
public body to petition the Public Access Counselor for relief from a
requester that the public body alleges is a vexatious requester, including
an order that the public body need not comply with the current request and
other requests from the vexatious requester for up to one year. Sets forth
procedures and requirements regarding vexatious requesters. Makes
conforming changes.
LRB104 18834 BDA 32279 b

A BILL FOR

HB4681
LRB104 18834 BDA 32279 b
1

AN ACT concerning government.

2

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3
represented in the General Assembly:

4

Section 5.
The Freedom of Information Act is amended by
5
changing Sections 2, 3, and 11 and by adding Sections 3.7 and
6
12 as follows:

7

(5 ILCS 140/2)

(from Ch. 116, par. 202)
8

Sec. 2.
Definitions.
As used in this Act:
9

(a) "Public body" means all legislative, executive,
10
administrative, or advisory bodies of the State, state
11
universities and colleges, counties, townships, cities,
12
villages, incorporated towns, school districts and all other
13
municipal corporations, boards, bureaus, committees, or
14
commissions of this State, any subsidiary bodies of any of the
15
foregoing including but not limited to committees and
16
subcommittees thereof, and a School Finance Authority created
17
under Article 1E of the School Code. "Public body" does not
18
include a child death review team or the Illinois Child Death
19
Review Teams Executive Council established under the Child
20
Death Review Team Act, or a regional youth advisory board or
21
the Statewide Youth Advisory Board established under the
22
Department of Children and Family Services Statewide Youth
23
Advisory Board Act.

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1

(b) "Person" means any individual or any individual acting
2
as an agent of a corporation, partnership, firm, organization
3
or association, acting individually or as a group.
4

(c) "Public records" means all records, reports, forms,
5
writings, letters, memoranda, books, papers, maps,
6
photographs, microfilms, cards, tapes, recordings, electronic
7
data processing records, electronic communications, recorded
8
information and all other documentary materials pertaining to
9
the transaction of public business, regardless of physical
10
form or characteristics, having been prepared by or for, or
11
having been or being used by, received by, in the possession
12
of, or under the control of any public body. "Public records"
13
does not include junk mail.
14

(c-5) "Private information" means unique identifiers,
15
including a person's social security number, driver's license
16
number, employee identification number, biometric identifiers,
17
personal financial information, passwords or other access
18
codes, medical records, home or personal telephone numbers,
19
and personal email addresses. Private information also
20
includes home address and personal license plates, except as
21
otherwise provided by law or when compiled without possibility
22
of attribution to any person. For a public body that is a
23
HIPAA-covered entity, "private information" includes
24
electronic medical records and all information, including
25
demographic information, contained within or extracted from an
26
electronic medical records system operated or maintained by

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1
the public body in compliance with State and federal medical
2
privacy laws and regulations, including, but not limited to,
3
the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and
4
its regulations, 45 CFR Parts 160 and 164. As used in this
5
subsection, "HIPAA-covered entity" has the meaning given to
6
the term "covered entity" in 45 CFR 160.103.
7

(c-10) "Commercial purpose" means the use of any part of a
8
public record or records, or information derived from public
9
records, in any form for sale
or

,
resale,
for

or
solicitation
10
or advertisement for sales or services
, or to provide services
11
to a specific customer or client
. For purposes of this
12
definition, requests made by news media and non-profit,
13
scientific, or academic organizations shall not be considered
14
to be made for a "commercial purpose" when the principal
15
purpose of the request is (i) to access and disseminate
16
information concerning news and current or passing events,
17
(ii) for articles of opinion or features of interest to the
18
public, or (iii) for the purpose of academic, scientific, or
19
public research or education.
20

(c-15) "Business day" or "working day" means a regular day
21
of the week, Monday through Friday, when public offices and
22
most businesses are open. "Business day" or "working day" does
23
not include Saturdays and Sundays and does not include a State
24
holiday, as described in Section 17 of the Promissory Note and
25
Bank Holiday Act, if the public body is closed on the holiday.
26
"Business day" or "working day" also does not include, for

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1
public school districts and other public educational
2
institutions, days during an institution's winter break and
3
spring break, as established by the institution's academic
4
calendar, or the day after Thanksgiving.
5

(d) "Copying" means the reproduction of any public record
6
by means of any photographic, electronic, mechanical or other
7
process, device or means now known or hereafter developed and
8
available to the public body.
9

(e) "Head of the public body" means the president, mayor,
10
chairman, presiding officer, director, superintendent,
11
manager, supervisor or individual otherwise holding primary
12
executive and administrative authority for the public body, or
13
such person's duly authorized designee.
14

(f) "News media" means a newspaper or other periodical
15
issued at regular intervals whether in print or electronic
16
format, a news service whether in print or electronic format,
17
a radio station, a television station, a television network, a
18
community antenna television service, or a person or
19
corporation engaged in making news reels or other motion
20
picture news for public showing.
21

(g) "Recurrent requester", as used in Section 3.2 of this
22
Act, means a person that, in the 12 months immediately
23
preceding the request, has submitted to the same public body
24
(i) a minimum of 50 requests for records, (ii) a minimum of 15
25
requests for records within a 30-day period, or (iii) a
26
minimum of 7 requests for records within a 7-day period. For

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1
purposes of this definition, requests made by news media and
2
non-profit, scientific, or academic organizations shall not be
3
considered in calculating the number of requests made in the
4
time periods in this definition when the principal purpose of
5
the requests is (i) to access and disseminate information
6
concerning news and current or passing events, (ii) for
7
articles of opinion or features of interest to the public, or
8
(iii) for the purpose of academic, scientific, or public
9
research or education.
10

For the purposes of this subsection (g), "request" means a
11
written document (or oral request, if the public body chooses
12
to honor oral requests) that is submitted to a public body via
13
personal delivery, mail, telefax, electronic mail, or other
14
means available to the public body and that identifies the
15
particular public record the requester seeks. One request may
16
identify multiple records to be inspected or copied.
17

(h) "Voluminous request" means a request that: (i)
18
includes more than 5 individual requests for more than 5
19
different categories of records or a combination of individual
20
requests that total requests for more than 5 different
21
categories of records in a period of 20 business days; or (ii)
22
requires the compilation of more than 500 letter or
23
legal-sized pages of public records unless a single requested
24
record exceeds 500 pages. "Single requested record" may
25
include, but is not limited to, one report, form, e-mail,
26
letter, memorandum, book, map, microfilm, tape, or recording.

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1

"Voluminous request" does not include a request made by
2
news media and non-profit, scientific, or academic
3
organizations if the principal purpose of the request is: (1)
4
to access and disseminate information concerning news and
5
current or passing events; (2) for articles of opinion or
6
features of interest to the public; or (3) for the purpose of
7
academic, scientific, or public research or education.
8

For the purposes of this subsection (h), "request" means a
9
written document, or oral request, if the public body chooses
10
to honor oral requests, that is submitted to a public body via
11
personal delivery, mail, telefax, electronic mail, or other
12
means available to the public body and that identifies the
13
particular public record or records the requester seeks. One
14
request may identify multiple individual records to be
15
inspected or copied.
16

(i) "Severance agreement" means a mutual agreement between
17
any public body and its employee for the employee's
18
resignation in exchange for payment by the public body.
19

(j) "Junk mail" means (i) any unsolicited commercial mail
20
sent to a public body and not responded to by an official,
21
employee, or agent of the public body or (ii) any unsolicited
22
commercial electronic communication sent to a public body and
23
not responded to by an official, employee, or agent of the
24
public body.
25

(k) "Mass requester" means a person or cooperating persons
26
submitting one or more requests that seek identical or

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1
substantially similar records from 7 or more public bodies.
2

(l) "Vexatious requester" means a person with a vexatious
3
history of requests as described under Section 12.
4
(Source: P.A. 103-554, eff. 1-1-24; 104-438, eff. 1-1-26.)

5

(5 ILCS 140/3)

(from Ch. 116, par. 203)
6

Sec. 3.
(a) Each public body shall make available to any
7
person for inspection or copying all public records, except as
8
otherwise provided in
this Section and
Sections
3.7,
7
, 7.5,

9
and
8.5
, and 12
of this Act. Notwithstanding any other law, a
10
public body may not grant to any person or entity, whether by
11
contract, license, or otherwise, the exclusive right to access
12
and disseminate any public record as defined in this Act.
13

(b) Subject to the fee provisions of Section 6 of this Act,
14
each public body shall promptly provide, to any person who
15
submits a request, a copy of any public record required to be
16
disclosed by subsection (a) of this Section and shall certify
17
such copy if so requested.
18

(c) Requests for inspection or copies shall be made in
19
writing and directed to the public body. Written requests may
20
be submitted to a public body via personal delivery, mail,
21
telefax, or other means available to the public body.
22
Electronic requests under this Section must appear in their
23
entirety within the body of the electronic submission. As a
24
cybersecurity measure, no public body shall be required to
25
open electronically attached files or hyperlinks to view or

HB4681
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LRB104 18834 BDA 32279 b
1
access details of a request. A public body that receives a
2
request that would require the public body to open hyperlinks
3
or attached files shall, within 5 business days, notify the
4
requester of the requirement that the entirety of an
5
electronic request must appear within the body of the
6
electronic submission. A public body may honor oral requests
7
for inspection or copying. A public body may not require that a
8
request be submitted on a standard form or require the
9
requester to specify the purpose for a request, except to
10
determine whether the records are requested for a commercial
11
purpose or whether to grant a request for a fee waiver. All
12
requests for inspection and copying received by a public body
13
shall immediately be forwarded to its Freedom of Information
14
officer or designee.
15

(d) Each public body shall, promptly, either comply with
16
or deny a request for public records within 5 business days
17
after its receipt of the request, unless the time for response
18
is properly extended under subsection (e) of this Section.
19
Denial shall be in writing as provided in Section 9 of this
20
Act. Failure to comply with a written request, extend the time
21
for response, or deny a request within 5 business days after
22
its receipt shall be considered a denial of the request. A
23
public body that fails to respond to a request within the
24
requisite periods in this Section but thereafter provides the
25
requester with copies of the requested public records may not
26
impose a fee for such copies. A public body that fails to

HB4681
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LRB104 18834 BDA 32279 b
1
respond to a request received may not treat the request as
2
unduly burdensome under subsection (g).
3

(e) The time for response under this Section may be
4
extended by the public body for not more than 5 business days
5
from the original due date for any of the following reasons:
6

(i) the requested records are stored in whole or in
7

part at other locations than the office having charge of
8

the requested records;
9

(ii) the request requires the collection of a
10

substantial number of specified records;
11

(iii) the request is couched in categorical terms and
12

requires an extensive search for the records responsive to
13

it;
14

(iv) the requested records have not been located in
15

the course of routine search and additional efforts are
16

being made to locate them;
17

(v) the requested records require examination and
18

evaluation by personnel having the necessary competence
19

and discretion to determine if they are exempt from
20

disclosure under Section 7 of this Act or should be
21

revealed only with appropriate deletions;
22

(vi) the request for records cannot be complied with
23

by the public body within the time limits prescribed by
24

subsection (d) of this Section without unduly burdening or
25

interfering with the operations of the public body;
26

(vii) there is a need for consultation, which shall be

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1

conducted with all practicable speed, with another public
2

body or among 2 or more components of a public body having
3

a substantial interest in the determination or in the
4

subject matter of the request.
5

The person making a request and the public body may agree
6
in writing to extend the time for compliance for a period to be
7
determined by the parties. If the requester and the public
8
body agree to extend the period for compliance, a failure by
9
the public body to comply with any previous deadlines shall
10
not be treated as a denial of the request for the records.
11

(f) When additional time is required for any of the above
12
reasons, the public body shall, within 5 business days after
13
receipt of the request, notify the person making the request
14
of the reasons for the extension and the date by which the
15
response will be forthcoming. Failure to respond within the
16
time permitted for extension shall be considered a denial of
17
the request. A public body that fails to respond to a request
18
within the time permitted for extension but thereafter
19
provides the requester with copies of the requested public
20
records may not impose a fee for those copies. A public body
21
that requests an extension and subsequently fails to respond
22
to the request may not treat the request as unduly burdensome
23
under subsection (g).
24

(g) Requests calling for all records falling within a
25
category shall be complied with unless compliance with the
26
request would be unduly burdensome for the complying public

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1
body and there is no way to narrow the request and the burden
2
on the public body outweighs the public interest in the
3
information. Before invoking this exemption, the public body
4
shall extend to the person making the request an opportunity
5
to confer with it in an attempt to reduce the request to
6
manageable proportions. If any public body responds to a
7
categorical request by stating that compliance would unduly
8
burden its operation and the conditions described above are
9
met, it shall do so in writing, specifying the reasons why it
10
would be unduly burdensome and the extent to which compliance
11
will so burden the operations of the public body. Such a
12
response shall be treated as a denial of the request for
13
information.
14

Repeated requests from the same person for the same
15
records that are unchanged or identical to records previously
16
provided or properly denied under this Act shall be deemed
17
unduly burdensome under this provision.
18

(h) Each public body may promulgate rules and regulations
19
in conformity with the provisions of this Section pertaining
20
to the availability of records and procedures to be followed,
21
including:
22

(i) the times and places where such records will be
23

made available, and
24

(ii) the persons from whom such records may be
25

obtained.
26

(i) The time periods for compliance or denial of a request

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LRB104 18834 BDA 32279 b
1
to inspect or copy records set out in this Section shall not
2
apply to requests for records made for a commercial purpose,
3
requests by a recurrent requester
or mass requester
, or
4
voluminous requests. Such requests shall be subject to the
5
provisions of Sections 3.1, 3.2,
and
3.6
, and 3.7
of this Act,
6
as applicable.
7

(j) Within 5 business days after its receipt of the
8
request, a public body that has a reasonable belief that a
9
request was not submitted by a person may require the
10
requester to verify orally or in writing that the requester is
11
a person. The deadline for the public body to respond to the
12
request shall be tolled until the requester verifies that he
13
or she is a person. If the requester fails to verify that he or
14
she is a person within 30 days after the public body requests
15
such a verification, then the public body may deny the
16
request. For purposes of this subsection (j), a public body
17
may not require the requester to submit personal information,
18
private information, or identifying information to verify that
19
the requester is a person.
20
(Source: P.A. 104-438, eff. 1-1-26.)

21

(5 ILCS 140/3.7 new)
22

Sec. 3.7.
Mass requesters.
23

(a) A public body shall respond to a request for records
24
submitted by a mass requester within 21 business days after
25
receipt. The response shall (i) provide to the requester an

HB4681
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1
estimate of the time required by the public body to provide the
2
records requested and an estimate of the fees to be charged,
3
which the public body may require the person to pay in full
4
before copying the requested documents, (ii) deny the request
5
pursuant to one or more of the exemptions set out in this Act,
6
(iii) notify the requester that the request is unduly
7
burdensome and extend an opportunity to the requester to
8
attempt to reduce the request to manageable proportions, or
9
(iv) provide the records requested.
10

(b) Within 5 business days after its receipt of a request,
11
a public body that has a reasonable belief that a request was
12
submitted by a mass requester may require the requester to
13
verify whether the requester is a mass requester, if the
14
request does not already verify whether the requester is a
15
mass requester. The deadline for the public body to respond to
16
the request under subsection (a) of this Section shall be
17
tolled until the requester verifies whether or not the request
18
was submitted by a mass requester. If the requester fails to
19
verify that he or she is a mass requester within 30 calendar
20
days after the public body requests such a verification, then
21
the public body may deny the request.
22

(c) It is a violation of this Act for a person to knowingly
23
obtain a public record as a mass requester without disclosing
24
the person's status as a mass requester, if requested to do so
25
by the public body.

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1

(5 ILCS 140/11)

(from Ch. 116, par. 211)
2

Sec. 11.
(a) Any person denied access to inspect or copy
3
any public record by a public body may file suit for injunctive
4
or declaratory relief
, provided that the person first notifies
5
the public body in writing of his or her intent to file suit
6
and provides an opportunity for the public body to confer
7
orally, within 10 business days after receipt of the notice,
8
about curing or resolving the issue. The written notice and
9
opportunity to confer about curing or resolving the issue is a
10
condition precedent to filing suit and must be attached to the
11
complaint along with any response from the public body
.
12

(a-5) In accordance with Section 11.6 of this Act, a
13
requester may file an action to enforce a binding opinion
14
issued under Section 9.5 of this Act.
15

(b) Where the denial is from a public body of the State,
16
suit may be filed in the circuit court for the county where the
17
public body has its principal office or where the person
18
denied access resides.
19

(c) Where the denial is from a municipality or other
20
public body, except as provided in subsection (b) of this
21
Section, suit may be filed in the circuit court for the county
22
where the public body is located.
23

(d) The circuit court shall have the jurisdiction to
24
enjoin the public body from withholding public records and to
25
order the production of any public records improperly withheld
26
from the person seeking access. If the public body can show

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1
that exceptional circumstances exist, and that the body is
2
exercising due diligence in responding to the request, the
3
court may retain jurisdiction and allow the agency additional
4
time to complete its review of the records.
5

(e) On motion of the plaintiff, prior to or after in camera
6
inspection, the court shall order the public body to provide
7
an index of the records to which access has been denied. The
8
index shall include the following:
9

(i) A description of the nature or contents of each
10

document withheld, or each deletion from a released
11

document, provided, however, that the public body shall
12

not be required to disclose the information which it
13

asserts is exempt; and
14

(ii) A statement of the exemption or exemptions
15

claimed for each such deletion or withheld document.
16

(f) In any action considered by the court, the court shall
17
consider the matter de novo, and shall conduct such in camera
18
examination of the requested records as it finds appropriate
19
to determine if such records or any part thereof may be
20
withheld under any provision of this Act. The burden shall be
21
on the public body to establish that its refusal to permit
22
public inspection or copying is in accordance with the
23
provisions of this Act. Any public body that asserts that a
24
record is exempt from disclosure has the burden of proving
25
that it is exempt by clear and convincing evidence.
26

(g) In the event of noncompliance with an order of the

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1
court to disclose, the court may enforce its order against any
2
public official or employee so ordered or primarily
3
responsible for such noncompliance through the court's
4
contempt powers.
5

(h) Except as to causes the court considers to be of
6
greater importance, proceedings arising under this Section
7
shall take precedence on the docket over all other causes and
8
be assigned for hearing and trial at the earliest practicable
9
date and expedited in every way.
10

(i) If a person seeking the right to inspect or receive a
11
copy of a public record prevails in a proceeding under this
12
Section, the court shall award such person reasonable
13
attorney's fees and costs. In determining what amount of
14
attorney's fees is reasonable, the court shall consider the
15
degree to which the relief obtained relates to the relief
16
sought. The changes contained in this subsection apply to an
17
action filed on or after January 1, 2010 (the effective date of
18
Public Act 96-542).
If the public body prevails in its defense
19
of a proceeding under this Section brought by a commercial
20
purpose requester, a recurrent requester, a mass requester, or
21
a vexatious requester, the court shall award the public body
22
reasonable attorney's fees and costs to be paid by the
23
requester.
24

(j) If the court determines that a public body willfully
25
and intentionally failed to comply with this Act, or otherwise
26
acted in bad faith, the court shall also impose upon the public

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1
body a civil penalty of not less than $2,500 nor more than
2
$5,000 for each occurrence. In assessing the civil penalty,
3
the court shall consider in aggravation or mitigation the
4
budget of the public body and whether the public body has
5
previously been assessed penalties for violations of this Act.
6
The court may impose an additional penalty of up to $1,000 for
7
each day the violation continues if:
8

(1) the public body fails to comply with the court's
9

order after 30 days;
10

(2) the court's order is not on appeal or stayed; and
11

(3) the court does not grant the public body
12

additional time to comply with the court's order to
13

disclose public records.
14

The changes contained in this subsection made by Public
15
Act 96-542 apply to an action filed on or after January 1, 2010
16
(the effective date of Public Act 96-542).
17

(k) The changes to this Section made by this amendatory
18
Act of the 99th General Assembly apply to actions filed on or
19
after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th
20
General Assembly.
21
(Source: P.A. 99-586, eff. 1-1-17; 99-642, eff. 7-28-16
.)

22

(5 ILCS 140/12 new)
23

Sec. 12.
Petition for relief from a vexatious requester.
24

(a) A public body may petition the Public Access Counselor
25
for relief from a requester that the public body alleges is a

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LRB104 18834 BDA 32279 b
1
vexatious requester. Such petition shall be a sworn and
2
notarized statement and shall detail the conduct which the
3
public body alleges demonstrates a vexatious history of
4
requests, which may include, but is not limited to:
5

(1) the number of requests filed;
6

(2) the scope of the requests;
7

(3) the nature, content, language, or subject matter
8

of the requests;
9

(4) the nature, content, language, or subject matter
10

of other oral and written communications to the public
11

body from the requester; and
12

(5) a pattern of conduct that amounts to an abuse of
13

the right to access information under the Freedom of
14

Information Act or an interference with the operation of
15

the public body.
16

(b) A requester's history of requests need not include any
17
particular number of requests or categories of records in
18
order to be deemed vexatious under this Section, and a
19
requester who is not a recurrent requester still may be
20
vexatious. However, the Public Access Counselor shall deem a
21
requester vexatious if the requester has submitted to a single
22
public body:
23

(1) within a period of 12 months, any combination of
24

requests seeking 60 categories of records;
25

(2) within a period of 30 calendar days, any
26

combination of requests seeking 20 categories of records;

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LRB104 18834 BDA 32279 b
1

or
2

(3) within a period of 7 calendar days, any
3

combination of requests seeking 15 categories of records.
4

(c) A petition under this Section must be submitted no
5
later than 7 business days after receipt of the most recent
6
request at issue. The Public Access Counselor may consolidate
7
petitions by multiple public bodies related to the same
8
requester or coordinating requesters. Upon receipt of such
9
petition, the Public Access Counselor shall review the
10
petition and, if the Public Access Counselor determines that
11
further inquiry is warranted, shall provide the alleged
12
vexatious requester with an opportunity to respond and provide
13
further information within 7 business days. If a response is
14
filed, the public body shall be provided with 5 business days
15
to submit a reply to the Public Access Counselor. The Public
16
Access Counselor shall issue a binding opinion on the petition
17
or dismiss the petition within 30 calendar days after receipt
18
of the public body's reply or the final date to submit a reply,
19
whichever date is earlier. Upon a grant of such petition, the
20
Public Access Counselor may provide appropriate relief
21
commensurate with the vexatious conduct, including, but not
22
limited to, an order that the public body need not comply with
23
the current request and other requests from the vexatious
24
requester for a specified period of time, not to exceed one
25
year.
26

(d) Any party aggrieved by the Public Access Counselor's

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LRB104 18834 BDA 32279 b
1
granting of such petition may file an action for
2
administrative review of the binding opinion under the
3
Administrative Review Law in Cook or Sangamon County, not
4
later than 35 days after the binding opinion is received. If a
5
petition is filed, the public body's time for response to the
6
Freedom of Information Act Request and any additional requests
7
from the same requester is tolled until the Public Access
8
Counselor issues a determination that no further inquiry is
9
warranted or a binding opinion. If the petition is granted,
10
the public body's response, if any, shall be determined by the
11
opinion or determination. If the petition is denied, the
12
public body shall respond to the request within 7 business
13
days after receipt of the binding opinion.
14

(e) For purposes of this Section, a request made by news
15
media shall not be considered in determining whether a
16
requester is a vexatious requester when the principal purpose
17
of the request is for investigative reporting by the news
18
media regarding the health, safety, and welfare or the legal
19
rights of the general public. The requester has the burden of
20
proving the principal purpose of the request.

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