Administrative Order 3 (2002)

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR September 5, 2002

Public Act 92-566 (effective June 25, 2002), which authorizes new early-retirement incentives, provides that the heads of departments may extend the December 31, 2002 deadline of terminating employment for certain “key employees” opting for early retirement. The provision restricts the extensions from continuing past April 30, 2003 and mandates that the State Employees' Retirement System of Illinois be notified of the extension in writing by December 31, 2002. To balance (i) the continued uncertainty of the economic outlook of the State with (ii) the continued operation of State government by essential personnel, this Administrative Order establishes the procedure for department heads to request the employment-extensions for key personnel. Through this outlined procedure, the State will ensure that a surplus of State personnel will not be designated as key employees in an effort to avoid further adverse impact upon the State budget deficit.

All departments, agencies, boards and commissions under the jurisdiction of the Governor are required to implement the restrictions specified in this Order. All other officers, agencies, boards, commissions, and authorities not under the jurisdiction of the Governor are encouraged to implement similar measures. These restrictions apply to all personnel positions proposed to be extended under subsection (d) of Section 14-108.3 of the Illinois Pension Code, 40 ILCS 5/14-108.3.

Procedure for Extending the Employment of Key Employees:

Except as provided in this Administrative Order, the termination deadline for an early retirement shall not be extended nor shall an individual be designated as a key employee without the prior written approval of the Governor’s Office. This prohibition against extending employment of key employees without proper approval applies to all early-retirement positions. All departments, agencies, boards and commissions under the jurisdiction of the Governor are required to submit requests for employment-extensions of key personnel on forms or in a manner prescribed by the Governor’s Office. In addition, the requests shall be presented to the Governor’s Office in a timely manner to enable proper review before the December 31, 2002 deadline for written notification to the State Employees' Retirement System of Illinois.

The Department request shall be reviewed and ruled upon by a Committee composed of the Governor’s General Counsel, the Governor’s Director of Policy and Development, and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget - or these members’ respective designees. The Committee may approve an employment-extension of a proposed key employee if the department’s request reveals a compelling governmental interest and justification in extending the termination date past December 31, 2002. Decisions of this committee will be communicated through the Bureau of the Budget. No extension of employment and no notification to the State Employees' Retirement System of Illinois shall be made without written approval being received from the Committee through the Bureau of the Budget.

To promote the precise implementation of this Administrative Order, each agency shall designate a single point of contact within the agency for the purpose of sending and receiving the requests or other forms required by this Order. Questions regarding this Administrative Order may be directed to Diane Ford, General Counsel [217-524-1398].