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An Ordinance Adopting Chapter 42B of the Village Code of Ordinances-Administrative Hearing Procedure for Public Safety Employee Benefit Claims
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WHEREAS, the Village of Romeoville, Will County (“Village”) is a municipality duly organized and operating pursuant to the 1970 Illinois Constitution and laws of the State of Illinois; and
WHEREAS, the Village is a "Home Rule Unit" under the 1970 Illinois Constitution; and
WHEREAS, the Illinois Constitution of 1970 provides that a Home Rule Unit may exercise any power and perform any function pertaining to its government and affairs, including but not limited to the power to regulate for the protection of the public health, safety, morals and welfare; to license, to tax; and to incur debt; and
WHEREAS, the Village has in full force and effect a codified set of those ordinances of the Village which are of a general and permanent nature, which said codified set is known and designated as the Village Code of the Village of Romeoville, as amended; and
WHEREAS, the Village of Romeoville finds it necessary and proper to amend its Village Code to provide an administrative hearing procedure for public safety employee benefit claims, which this Board finds is in the best interest of the Village of Romeoville and its citizens and residents.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the President and Board of Trustees of the Village of Romeoville, Will County, Illinois, as follows:
SECTION 1: The recitals above shall be and are hereby incorporated in this Section One as if restated herein.
SECTION 2: That the Village Code of Ordinances shall be and hereby is amended to add a new Chapter 42B to the Village Code of Ordinances, as hereinafter set forth:
CHAPTER 42B--ADMINISTATIVE HEARING PROCEDURE FOR PUBLIC SAFETY EMPLOYEE BENEFIT CLAIMS.
42B.01 Purpose. The purpose of this section is to provide a fair and efficient method of determining the eligibility of a former employee for the benefits enumerated under the Public Safety Employee Benefits Act (820 ILCS 320/1 et seq.) through the process of administrative hearings. All benefits provided former employees pursuant to the Public Safety Employee Benefits Act (Act) will be consistent with the Act. Accordingly, to so determine such eligibility, all former employees seeking such benefits shall make application to the Village therefor in the manner set forth in this Chapter 42B, upon which the Village shall conduct a hearing in the manner set forth in this Chapter 42B to determine whether or not the applicant is eligible for such benefits. Chapter 42B shall be deemed to establish an independent system of administratively adjudicating claims for benefits under the Act, and shall not unless expressly provided herein be subject to or affected by the existence of other systems of administrative adjudication contained within the Village Code of Ordinances.
42B.02 Administrative Hearing Officer. The administrative hearing shall be scheduled and conducted by a hearing officer whose authority and limitations are as follows:
(A) Authority of the hearing officer. The hearing officer shall have all of the authorities granted to her/him under common law relative to the conduct of an administrative hearing, including the authority to:
(1) Preside over Village hearings involving eligibility for benefits under the Act;
(2) Administer oaths;
(3) Hear testimony and accept evidence that is relevant to the issue of eligibility under the Act;
(4) Issue subpoenas to secure attendance of witnesses and the production of relevant papers or documents upon the request of the parties or their representatives;
(5) Rule upon objections in the admissibility of evidence;
(6) Preserve and authenticate the record of the hearing and all exhibits in evidence introduced at the hearing; and
(7) Issue a determination based on the evidence presented at the hearing, the determination of which shall be in writing and shall include a written finding of fact, decision and order.
(B) Hearing officer. The Village President, with the advice and consent of the Village Board of Trustees, is hereby authorized to appoint a person to hold the position of hearing officer for each hearing on benefits under the Act for which application has been filed with the Village. In making said selection, the following information should be considered, at a minimum:
(1) The individual's ability to comply with the job description as set forth herein;
(2) The individual must be an attorney licensed to practice law in the State of Illinois for at least three years and have knowledge of and experience in employment and labor law, general civil procedure, the rules of evidence, and administrative practice; and
(3) Prior to their appointment, hearing officers shall have successfully completed a formal training program which includes the following:
(a) Instruction on the rules of procedure of the administrative hearing which they will conduct;
(b) Orientation to the Act and matters involving benefit eligibility comparable to those they will be called upon to adjudicate;
(c) Observation of administrative hearings; and
(d) Participation in hypothetical cases, including ruling on evidence and issuing final orders.
Any hearing officer appointed to hear and adjudicate matters under Chapter 42A shall also conduct the hearings contemplated by this Chapter to determine eligibility for benefits under the Act.
42B.03 Application Process. Any former employee seeking benefits under the Act from the Village shall make application therefor in the manner hereinafter set forth:
(A) Public Safety Officers, or family member(s) of an injured or deceased Public Safety Officer ("the applicant") seeking benefits under the Act must file a full and complete application for benefits under the Act in writing within 30 days of filing a pension claim with the Village or within 30 days of the date of the adoption of this subchapter in the event that an applicant has filed for benefits under the Act prior to the date of adoption of this subchapter, whichever is later. The Village shall notify applicant if the application is incomplete and applicant shall have five days to remedy their application. Failure to timely file the full and complete application shall result in a forfeiture of the benefits under the Act by failure to properly submit a complete application. The form of the application shall be as set forth in Appendix A to this Chapter. As used in this Chapter, the term Public Safety Officers shall mean and include all sworn personnel of the Village Police Department and Fire Department.
(B) A complete application for benefits under the Act includes the following:
(1) The name of the applicant, date of hire, detailed information regarding the incident, including information relating to how the injury was sustained in the line of duty (date, time, place, nature of injury, and other factual circumstances surrounding the incident giving rise to said claim), and information pertaining to whether or not the injury at issue constitutes a catastrophic injury within the meaning of the Act;
(2) The applicant's firsthand knowledge explaining, to the Village's satisfaction, how the injury/death directly resulted from:
(a) Response to fresh pursuit;
(b) Response to what is reasonably believed to be an emergency;
(c) Response to an unlawful act perpetrated by another; or
(d) Participation during the investigation of a criminal act;
(3) A signed medical authorization release which authorizes the collection of information related to the incident and the applicant’s injuries including, but not limited to, disability pension proceedings, worker's compensation records, and medical records and specifies the name and address for pertinent health care provider(s);
(4) A signed general information release containing the name and signature of the applicant or her/his authorized representative along with legal proof of said representation and name and signature of witness authorizing the collection of information pertinent to the incident review process;
(5) The name(s) of witnesses to the incident;
(6) The name(s) of witnesses the applicant intends to call at the hearing to determine eligibility for benefits under the Act;
(7) Information and supporting pension documentation filed with the appropriate pension board, and documentation of any decision made by the pension board in question relative to the granting of any pension to the applicant;
(8) Information supporting the eligibility requirements for benefits under the Act; and
(9) Other sources of health insurance benefits currently enrolled in or received by the applicant and/or family members if the applicant is deceased.
(C) The application must be submitted to the Village Human Resources Director in its entirety.
(D) The application must be sworn and notarized to certify the truthfulness of the content of the information. A review of the application shall not occur until the application is complete.
(E) On the date that the application is deemed complete by the Village, the completed application shall then be accepted by the Village as the preliminary record in the matter, subject to the further presentation and development of evidence at the hearing, and a copy of the same shall be date stamped and provided to the applicant.
(F) Upon receipt of a complete application for benefits under the Act, the Village shall set the matter for an administrative hearing before a hearing officer to make a determination on whether to grant the applicant benefits under the Act based on the result of the administrative hearing.
(G) The applicant shall, within 30 days of the date on which the application has been deemed complete by the Village, be given written notice of the date for the scheduled administrative hearing to be served not less than 10 days prior to the commencement of the hearing. If the applicant, upon receiving written notice of the administrative hearing, cannot attend said date, the applicant must contact the hearing officer in writing within seven days after being served. The hearing officer shall establish an alternative hearing date which is within 30 days of the original hearing date. Failure of the applicant to appear at the administrative hearing shall be deemed a default and shall result in the denial of benefits under the Act to the applicant.
(H) No continuances of a scheduled administrative hearing other than as contemplated by subjection (G) above shall be authorized by the hearing officer in proceedings under this Chapter except for good cause shown, and in cases where a continuance is absolutely necessary to protect the rights of the applicant. Lack of preparation by the applicant shall not be grounds for a continuance. Any continuance authorized by a Hearing Officer under this chapter shall be at the discretion of the Hearing Officer.
42B.04 Conduct of Hearing. All administrative hearings under this Chapter to determine eligibility for benefits under the Act shall be conducted in accordance with the following requirements:
(A) All hearings shall be audio recorded, and shall also be attended by a certified court reporter, who shall make a transcript of the proceedings in such hearing. The Village shall bear the cost associated with the attendance of the court reporter.
(B) The applicant and/or her/his representative and the Village shall both be entitled appear at the hearing represented by counsel, and shall be entitled to call witnesses, cross-examine witnesses, elicit testimony, and to present documents, records and other evidence. In furtherance of the same, the applicant and Village may likewise request the hearing officer to issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents, records and other evidence.
(C) After all evidence has been presented at the hearing, the hearing officer shall within 7 days after the conclusion of the hearing, issue a written determination as to whether or not the applicant is entitled to benefits under the Act, which shall contain findings of fact and conclusions of law. This determination shall constitute a final determination for the purpose of judicial review as provided for by law.
(D) Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this Chapter, in the event that the Village Manager or his designee determine, after review of an application, that the applicant is entitled to benefits under the Act, the Village Manager or his designee may issue a written determination thereof and take such further actions as are necessary to coordinate the provision of such benefits to the applicant without the necessity of the hearing process otherwise provided for in this Chapter.
SECTION 3: SEVERABILITY - That the various provisions of this Ordinance are to be considered severable and if any part or portion of this Ordinance shall be held invalid by any Court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 4: CONFLICTS - All prior Ordinances and Resolutions, or parts thereof in conflict or inconsistent with this Ordinance are hereby expressly repealed only to the extent of such conflict or inconsistency.
SECTION 5: EFFECTIVE DATE - This Ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage, approval and publication in pamphlet form as provided by law.