DeKalb Times

Jeff Keicher introduced HB2514 in the Illinois House on Feb. 3, 2025, during the general assembly session 104, according to the Illinois General Assembly.

According to the Illinois General Assembly site, the legislature summarized the bill's official text as follows: "Amends the Illinois Prescribed Burning Act. Establishes the procedures required before conducting a prescribed burning. Provides that no landowner, agent of the landowner, or certified prescribed burn manager shall be liable for damage, injury, or loss caused by a prescribed burn or resulting smoke of a prescribed burn unless the landowner, agent of the landowner, or certified prescribed burn manager is proven to be grossly negligent. Effective immediately."

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill amends the Illinois Prescribed Burning Act by specifying procedures for conducting prescribed burns and establishing liability protections. It requires obtaining written consent from the landowner and having a certified prescribed burn manager present during the burn. The manager must approve a written prescription for the burn. Notification of the local fire department and reasonable efforts to inform adjoining property owners are mandated. The bill provides that landowners, their agents, and certified prescribed burn managers are not liable for damages, injuries, or losses arising from a prescribed burn or its smoke unless gross negligence is proven. It emphasizes prescribed burning as in the public interest, not constituting a nuisance if compliant with relevant statutes, and recognizably a property right. The act takes effect immediately upon becoming law.

Jeff Keicher has proposed another two bills since the beginning of the 104th session.

Keicher graduated from Northern Illinois University in 1996 with a BS.

Jeff Keicher is currently serving in the Illinois State House, representing the state's 70th House District. He replaced previous state representative Robert W. Pritchard in 2018.

Bills in Illinois follow a multi-step legislative process, beginning with introduction in either the House or Senate, followed by committee review, floor debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching the governor for approval or veto. The General Assembly operates on a biennial schedule, and while typically thousands of bills are introduced each session, only a fraction successfully pass through the process to become law.

You can read more about bills and other measures here.

Bill Number	Date Introduced	Short Description
HB2514	02/03/2025	Amends the Illinois Prescribed Burning Act. Establishes the procedures required before conducting a prescribed burning. Provides that no landowner, agent of the landowner, or certified prescribed burn manager shall be liable for damage, injury, or loss caused by a prescribed burn or resulting smoke of a prescribed burn unless the landowner, agent of the landowner, or certified prescribed burn manager is proven to be grossly negligent. Effective immediately.
HB1142	01/09/2025	Amends the Tax Increment Allocation Redevelopment Act of the Illinois Municipal Code. Provides that, before an ordinance may be adopted approving a redevelopment project area, the redevelopment project area must be approved by referendum of the voters of the affected taxing districts. Includes requirements for the ordinance or resolution proposing the redevelopment project area, for submission of and language for the referendum, and approval of the referendum when a majority of the voters in each of the affected taxing districts approve the referendum. Modifies notice requirements for the public meeting, and requires the notification of all voters of the affected taxing districts. Requires notice by publication, mailing, and on the website of the municipality (rather than by publication and mailing), and modifies the timing in which notices must be sent. Requires that a notice also must contain a copy of the proposed ordinance designating the redevelopment project area, a list of all taxes levied by each of the taxing districts that constitute the joint review board, a statement of the projected impact that the redevelopment project area will have on those taxing district, and the proposed referendum language. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.
HB1222	01/09/2025	Amends the Tax Increment Allocation Redevelopment Act of the Illinois Municipal Code. Provides that, after the effective date of the amendatory Act, the General Assembly shall not approve the extension of a redevelopment project and the retirement of its obligations to a date that is beyond the 35th calendar year after the year in which the ordinance approving the redevelopment project areas was adopted. Effective immediately.