General Assembly www.ilga.gov
State House
Springfield, IL 62706
217.782.2099
OVERVIEW
Agency Mission
The legislative power is vested in a General
Assembly consisting of a Senate and a House of
Representatives elected by the electors from 59
Legislative Districts and 118 Representative Districts.
Summary of Agency Operations
The General Assembly enacts, amends, and/or
repeals laws, passes resolutions, adopts
appropriation bills, and conducts inquiries on
proposed legislation. It also acts on amendments to
the United States Constitution and proposes and
submits amendments to the Illinois Constitution for
consideration by voters. In addition to legislative
responsibilities, the Senate is constitutionally
delegated the responsibility of advising and
consenting to most gubernatorial appointments to
state offices, boards, and commissions. The General
Assembly may also impeach and convict executive
and judicial officeholders in the State of Illinois. The
House of Representatives has the sole power of
impeachment, while the Senate serves as
adjudicator.
Summary of Operations of the Legislative
Agencies
The General Assembly is empowered to create
agencies, which support its legislative functions.
The General Assembly Retirement System provides
retirement annuities, survivors' annuities, and other
benefits for members of the General Assembly,
certain elected state officials and their beneficiaries.
The Commission on Government Forecasting and
Accountability, a bipartisan, joint legislative
commission, provides the Illinois General Assembly
with information relevant to the Illinois economy,
taxes, and other sources of revenue and debt
obligations of the state.
The Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, a
bipartisan legislative oversight committee, is
authorized to conduct systematic reviews of
administrative rules promulgated by state agencies.
The committee conducts several integrated review
programs, including a review program for proposed
emergency and peremptory rulemaking, a review of
new public acts and a complaint review program.
The Legislative Audit Commission is responsible for
the oversight of the State Audit Program, review of
the stewardship of public funds, and the monitoring
action to correct weaknesses disclosed by the audits
of state agencies.
The Legislative Information System is the legislative
support service agency responsible for providing the
computer services and technical guidance required
by the General Assembly and its committees,
commissions and agencies.
The Legislative Printing Unit provides printing
services to members of the General Assembly,
legislative committees and commissions, and other
legislative agencies in accordance with the policies
established by the Joint Committee on Legislative
Support Services, and with reasonable rules
promulgated by the Legislative Printing Unit.
Created in 1913 as the first of the modern legislative
service agencies in Illinois, the Legislative Reference
Bureau carries out a wide range of functions relating
to the legal and technical operation of the General
Assembly. The bureau drafts and prepares
legislation, which includes bills, amendments,
resolutions and conference committee reports.
Established in 1937, the Legislative Research Unit is
the chief general research agency for the Illinois
General Assembly. The unit's statutory duty is to
collect information concerning the government and
general welfare of the state, examine the effects of
constitutional provisions and previously enacted
statutes, consider important issues of public policy
and questions of state wide interest, and perform
research and provide information as may be
requested by members of the General Assembly.
The Office of the Architect of the Capitol provides
facilities and meets space needs for the Illinois
General Assembly and its supporting commissions
and bureaus. The office's goal is to provide a more
functional facility, with flexible and efficient space
utilization, resulting in effective processes and
procedures. The Office of the Architect of the Capitol
has capital expenditures that will be included in the
capital budget.
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