HB3267 amends the Illinois General Assembly Operations Act to require both chambers of the General Assembly to be called to order at the scheduled time set by the chamber leaders. It also requires members to be on the floor to record their presence during the designated roll call period, which lasts for the 30 minutes after the invocation and pledge of allegiance. The bill is aimed at tightening attendance and punctuality rules for legislative sessions.
The bill further provides that only the member may record themselves present, with limited exceptions allowing certain leaders to record another person present. A violation of this requirement is treated as an ethics violation. In addition, any member not recorded present within the allowed period would lose their per diem payment, creating a financial penalty for noncompliance.
Impact
If enacted, the bill would add a new Section 25 to the General Assembly Operations Act and impose new procedural and disciplinary requirements on legislators. It would affect how House and Senate sessions are convened, how attendance is recorded, and how legislative pay is administered by tying per diem eligibility to in-person presence during the roll call window. It would also expand the consequences for attendance-related misconduct by classifying improper presence-recording as an ethics violation.
Sentiment
No committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, so there is no direct evidence of debate or bipartisan support/opposition in the available materials. Based on the bill text and caption, the measure appears to reflect a reform-oriented, accountability-focused approach to legislative attendance and session discipline. The overall tone of the proposal is administrative rather than policy-substantive, with an emphasis on enforcing punctuality and personal attendance by lawmakers.
Contention
The main points of contention are likely to be the bill’s strict attendance requirements and penalties. Supporters would likely argue that it promotes accountability, transparency, and respect for the legislative schedule, while opponents may view it as overly rigid, potentially punitive, or difficult to administer in practice. The ethics-violation designation and loss of per diem are the most significant enforcement mechanisms and would likely be the focus of any disagreement, especially for members concerned about flexibility, leadership discretion, or the scope of exceptions for recording presence.