HomeMy WebLinkAboutO-25-08VILLAGE OF DEERFIELD
ORDINANCE NO. 2025- 0-25-08
AN ORDINANCE OPTING PARK DISTRICT AND ,SCHOOL DISTRICTS
�jTT nF THE rnnK fnlrTNTV PAT_ -RANT: nR_>(NANC'R
WHEREAS, the Village of Deerfield is an Illinois home rule municipality pursuant to
Article VII, Section 6 of the Illinois Constitution, 1970, -and may, pursuant to its home rule
authority, undertake any action and ,adopt any ordinance relating to its ' government and
affairs; and
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2023, Governor Pritzker signed into law Public Act 102-
1143, known as the Illinois Paid Leave for All Workers Act (820 ILCS 19211,et seq.) ("Act") -
,and
WHEREAS, the Act establishes a mandatory paid leave standard for: all' employees
in Illinois, with exceptions for school district and park district' employees; and
WHEREAS, Article VII, '§ 6(i) of the Illinois'Constitution of 1970 provides that home
rule units of local government may exercise and perform concurrently with the State , any
power or function to the extent that the General Assembly by-law does not specifically Emit
the concurrent exercise of specifically declare the State's exercise to be exclusive; and
WHEREAS, the Act does not preempt the Village's home rule authority; and
WHEREAS, the Cook County Board of 'Commissioners ("County") adopted the Cook
County Paid Leave Ordinance ("County'Ordinance"), effective December 31, 2023, which,
like the Act; requires employers in the County to provide certain -minimum paid leave benefits
to certain -employees.
WHEREAS, the County Board of Commissioners adopted an amendment to the
County Ordinance to temporarily exempt school' districts and park'districts from complying
with the County Ordinance until January 1, 2025'("`Temporary County Exemption")-, and
WHEREAS, despite the State having exempted school districts and park districts
from the Act, the County has not extended the Temporary County Exemption, which means
school 'districts and park districts located in the County must comply with the County
Ordinance beginning on January 1, 2025 and
WHEREAS, the Village recognizes that 'compliance with the County Ordinance
imposes a unique hardship -on units of local government that provide essential services to the
residents of the Village, including the Deerfield Park District, which is organized under the
Illinois Park District Code, and Glenbrook High School District 225, Northbrook School
District 27, and Northbrook School District 28, which are organized under the 44na4s 1 School
Code (collectively, the "Taxing Bodies"); and
WHEREAS, the Village further recognizes that compliance with the County
Ordinance might affect the Taxing Bodies' 'day-to-day operations and their ability to provide
uninterrupted services; and
WHEREAS, the Village deems it necessary to exercise its home rule authority so that
the Taxing Bodies may continue to maintain their existing paid leave benefits program after
the expiration of the Temporary County Exemption; and
WHEREAS, this Ordinance prevails over the County -Ordinance to the extent it
conflicts with the County Ordinance pursuant to Section 6(c) of Article VII of the Illinois
Constitution; and
WHEREAS, the President and Board 2of Trustees have determined that it will serve
and be in the best interest of the Village and its residents to exempt the Taxing Bodies from
the County Ordinance in the manner set forth in this Ordinance, pursuant to the Village's
home rule powers under the Illinois Constitution of 1970;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE VILLAGE BOARD OF
DEERFIELD, LAKE AND COOK COUNTIES, ILLINOIS, as follows:
SECTI N ONE: REM LS. The facts and statements contained in the
preamble to this Ordinance are found to be true and correct and are hereby adopted as part
of this Ordinance.
A. Pursuant to its home rule authority, the Village hereby declares that the
Taxing Bodies are exempt from following the County Ordinance for their own
employees who are primarily engaged in work within the Village of Deerfield
and may continue to offer those employees the same paid leave benefits that
they currently provide to those employees, as such benefits may be amended
from time to time.
B. This Ordinance governs over and supersedes all provisions of the County
Ordinance to the extent it conflicts with the County Ordinance.
C. This Ordinance, once adopted, applies to all employees of the Taxing Bodies
who are primarily engaged in work within the Village of Deerfield.
SEC : , FVFRABILITY. If any _provision of this Ordinance or part
thereof is held invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining provisions of this
Ordinance are to remain in full force and effect, and are to be interpreted, applied, and
enforced so as to achieve, as near as may be, the purpose and intent of this Ordinance to the
greatest extent permitted by applicable law.
SECTION FOTR: EFFECTIVE _DATE. This Ordinance will be in full force and
effect from and after its passage, approval, and publication in the manner provided by law.
[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]
A007 =100 7007 . ')
AYES: Benton, Goldstone, Oppenheim, Shapiro
NAYS: None
ABSTAIN: None
ABSENT: Berg, Jacoby, Metts-Childers
PASSED: April 7, 2025
APPROVED: April 7, 2025
ORDINANCE N0, 0-25-08
Daniel C. Shapiro, Mayor
ATTEST:
Kent S. Str t, Village Cler
4897-5199-7992, v. 2
DeerfiemON
Park
District
February 28, 2025
Kent Street
Village Manager
Village of Deerfield
850 Waukegan Road
Deerfield, IL 60015
Dear Kent:
I am writing on behalf of the Park Board of Commissioners to request the Village Board
consider exempting Deerfield Park District from the Cook County Paid Leave for All Workers
Ordinance.
The State of Illinois enacted the Paid Leave for All Workers Act (PLAWA) (820 ILCS 192/1 et
seq.) in March 2023, specifically exempting Illinois Park and School Districts. However, in
December 2023, Cook Countypassed its own paid leave ordinance, removing this
exemption without consultation or engagement with affected districts, which has resulted
in an unfunded mandate.
Due to the efforts of Park and School Districts, the Cook County Board of Commissioners
has had several discussions regarding amending the County Ordinance to eliminate
discrepancies with The Act (PLAWA), but to date no permanent solution has been passed.
The County Board approved a temporary exemption for Park and School Districts until
January 1, 2025.
The Park District currently provides a comprehensive benefits package, including sick
leave, vacation, holiday and personal days for our full-time employees. The County
Ordinance will primarily require paid leave time for our seasonal and part-time employees.
The additional paid leave requirement of the County Ordinance requires employers provide
certain employees a minimum of one hour of leave for every 40 hours worked, up to 40
hours annually. This creates challenges for the Park District and has the potential to
negatively impact the Park District's ability to provide continuous essential services to the
community, including:
Commissioners Affiliated With
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1. Safety and Operational Concerns: The District already faces staffing challenges
during inclement weather, weekends, holidays, summer camp and more. The
additional benefit time mandated by the Ordinance will require more trained staff to
cover peak time -off periods. This will particularly impact critical programs such as
aquatics, fitness operations, childcare, summer camp, and before and after school
care, as maintaining appropriate staff ratios and required specialized training and
certifications is essential for safety and compliance with state regulations.
2. Increased Costs: The paid leave expenses and cost of replacement staff will add
between $10,000440,000 annually to the District's expenditures. In addition, the
Park District resides in both Cook and Lake County and more resources will be
needed to accurately track staff time that move between locations.
We respectfully request the Village Board to join neighboring communities in adopting an
ordinance of exemption from the County Ordinance. Enclosed are examples of the Village
of Glenview, Village of Glencoe and the Village of Northbrook.
Sincerely,
Annemarie Flaherty
Executive Director
Deerfield Park District