HB0745 Engrossed LRB099 04556 AWJ 24584 b
1		AN ACT concerning local government.
2		Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3		represented in the General Assembly:
4		Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by adding Section
5		3-5048 as follows:
6		(55 ILCS 5/3-5048 new)
7		Sec. 3-5048. Will repository.
8		(a) As used in this Section:
9		"Depositor" means an attorney licensed or formerly
10		licensed to practice in the State of Illinois, the attorney's
11		representative, the guardian for the attorney, the personal
12		representative of the attorney's decedent's estate, or the
13		testator.
14		"Depositor affidavit" means an affidavit signed by a
15		non-testator in which the depositor affirms he or she is
16		authorized to submit a registration form and will for scanning
17		on behalf of the testator.
18		"Testator" means a person who executed a will, other than
19		as a witness or official to whom acknowledgment of signing was
20		given.
21		"Will" refers to an original:
22		(1) will;
23		(2) codicil;

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1		(3) will and one or more codicils;
2		(4) trust;
3		(5) trust and one or more trust amendments; or
4		(6) any other attachments, addendums, or other related
5		documents to items (1) through (5).
6		(b) If a county recorder's office maintains a computer
7		system with the capability of scanning and securely storing
8		electronic image files and corresponding index information,
9		the county recorder may implement a county will repository
10		pursuant to this Section to privately store electronic copies
11		of wills. If a county recorder implements a will repository,
12		they shall create a registration form to be signed by the
13		testator which:
14		(1) states the testator's full first, middle, and last
15		name and all previous names by which the testator may have
16		been known;
17		(2) states the testator's date of birth and last four
18		digits of the testator's Social Security number;
19		(3) states the testator's current address;
20		(4) affirms that the document being presented to the
21		county recorder is the testator's will;
22		(5) lists the full names of up to 10 individuals to
23		whom the county recorder is authorized to deliver the will
24		upon the death of the testator and a space to indicate if
25		there are additional names attached. The county recorder
26		shall prepare a form addendum for attachment to the

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1		registration form for the testator to list additional full
2		names in addition to the 10 individuals listed on the
3		registration form. The addendum shall contain a disclaimer
4		that only individuals listed on the registration form or
5		addendum are eligible to retrieve a copy of the will
6		without a court order;
7		(6) has a section reserved for county recorder office
8		staff where the employee accepting the document will write
9		the name of the testator, name of the depositor, date of
10		deposit, confirmation that photo identification was
11		inspected, and a space to indicate the employee name or
12		identification number;
13		(7) has a blank 3 inch by 5 inch section in the upper
14		right corner of the front side to affix a unique document
15		number, date and time of deposit, and amount of recording
16		fee; and
17		(8) has the option to include the location of the
18		original signed copy of the will.
19		(c) If a county has created a will repository, a depositor
20		may present a will for scanning into the will repository if he
21		or she presents a signed and completed registration form as
22		described in subsection (b). If a depositor is not the
23		testator, the county recorder may require proof of authority to
24		register the will for scanning including requiring a depositor
25		affidavit to be completed. A will shall only be accepted for
26		scanning if it is the original signed will.

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1		(d) The county recorder shall collect a fee of $25 for each
2		scanning of a will of up to 10 pages and may charge an
3		additional $1 for each page above 10 pages. The registration
4		form and depositor affidavit, if any, shall not be counted when
5		determining the page count for determining fees. The county
6		recorder shall not collect a separate fee for additional
7		documents concurrently deposited in relation to a single
8		testator or for a single joint will prepared for a husband and
9		wife. Fees collected under this subsection shall be deposited
10		into the recorder's document storage fund as set up by the
11		county treasurer pursuant to Section 3-5018 of the Counties
12		Code.
13		(e) Upon receipt of a will under this Section, the county
14		recorder shall:
15		(1) provide the depositor with a receipt for the
16		registration form and will listing the date and time of
17		filing and the unique document number assigned to the
18		documents;
19		(2) scan in, electronically store, and electronically
20		affix a unique document number, date and time of deposit,
21		and amount of recording fee in the upper right corner of
22		the registration form;
23		(3) scan in and electronically store a copy of the
24		depositor affidavit and will including electronically
25		affixing the unique document number and date of recording
26		on each page of the will;

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1		(4) return the original signed registration form,
2		depositor affidavit, and will to the depositor after
3		scanning in and electronically storing the registration
4		form, depositor affidavit, and will pursuant to items (2)
5		and (3) of this subsection;
6		(5) index the will alphabetically by the name of the
7		testator, by the previous names by which the testator may
8		have been known, by the date of registration of the will,
9		by the names of persons on the registration form or
10		addendum who are eligible to retrieve a copy, and by the
11		unique document number; and
12		(6) upon request and payment of the recorder's
13		non-certified copy charge, provide to the testator a
14		non-certified copy of the registration form, depositor
15		affidavit, and will with the electronically affixed unique
16		document number with a maximum fee of $1 per page.
17		(f) A registration form, depositor affidavit, and will
18		scanned or executed under this Section are not public records.
19		The indexes created under item (5) of subsection (e) are not
20		public records.
21		(g) During the testator's lifetime, the county recorder
22		shall:
23		(1) keep the electronic images of the registration
24		form, depositor affidavit, and will in a secure database
25		not available to the public with access limited to recorder
26		office staff necessary for the operation of the repository;

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1		and
2		(2) deliver a certified copy upon request to:
3		(i) the testator;
4		(ii) a person authorized by the testator, in a
5		writing other than the registration form or addendum,
6		to receive a copy of the will; or
7		(iii) a person, entity, court, or government
8		agency authorized to receive a certified copy pursuant
9		to an order entered by a court of competent
10		jurisdiction.
11		(h) If the county recorder has custody of a scanned copy of
12		the will after the death of the testator and is notified of the
13		death of the testator by a person to whom the recorder is
14		authorized to deliver a copy of the will in the registration
15		form by presenting a certified copy of the testator's death
16		certificate or by a certified copy of an order of court
17		determining the testator to be deceased, upon receipt of
18		payment of the recorder's fee for certified copies, the county
19		recorder shall promptly deliver a certified copy to the person
20		or clerk of the circuit court of the county in which the
21		probate of the testator's will may occur as determined under
22		Section 5-1 of the Probate Act of 1975. Copies of the
23		registration form or depositor affidavit shall not be provided
24		to any retriever unless so ordered by a court.
25		(i) Upon inquiry by a person or entity identified in
26		paragraph (2) of subsection (g) or upon inquiry of any person

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1		presenting a certified copy of an order of a court requesting
2		documents scanned under this Section, the county recorder shall
3		inform the person whether the name of the relevant testator
4		appears in the county recorder's index of the will repository.
5		If an inquiry is made for a testator that is not found in the
6		database, or if the inquiry is made by someone not listed as
7		eligible to retrieve a copy, the recorder's office staff may
8		not confirm or deny the existence of documents held under this
9		Section.
10		(j) The county recorder may destroy the scanned copy of the
11		registration form, depositor affidavit, and will scanned under
12		this Section if:
13		(1) the county recorder has not received notice of the
14		death of the testator; and
15		(2) at least 100 years have passed since the date the
16		will was scanned into the repository.
17		(k) The county recorder may use fees generated under this
18		Section for the operational expenses of the will repository and
19		for advertising the will repository.
20		(l) If a testator desires to remove a will from the will
21		repository, or to replace a will, he or she must fill out a
22		removal affidavit proscribed by the recorder's office that
23		affirms his or her desire to remove the will and provide
24		satisfactory identification to confirm he or she is the
25		testator. If the request is to replace a will with a new will,
26		the scanned copy of the will must first be removed using a

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1		removal affidavit and the testator or depositor must submit a
2		new registration form and will following the repository
3		guidelines as described in this Section and pay the required
4		fees. There shall be no fee for removing a will scanned under
5		this Section.
6		(m) Recorder office staff may refuse, without liability, to
7		store a copy of a will if the will presented for scanning is
8		illegible, unable to be imaged, if margins are too small for
9		the unique document number or date to appear on each page, or
10		the will appears to not be an original signed document. Wills
11		to be scanned under this Section must be submitted in person
12		and may not be submitted by electronic means. Recorder office
13		staff may not be held liable, either in their personal or
14		official capacities, for any error or omission in the
15		performance of duties related to this Section except for
16		willful or wanton misconduct.
17		(n) Recorder office staff may request to inspect and copy
18		any identification documents deemed necessary to prove the
19		identity of anyone seeking to register or retrieve a copy of a
20		document under this Section and may refuse service until
21		satisfactory determination of identity is made.
22		(o) Registration forms, depositor affidavits, and wills
23		scanned under this Section are exempt from State and county
24		fees related to the Rental Housing Support Program Act.