5 ILCS 120/2(c)

How the Public Access Counselor has treated 5 ILCS 120/2(c)

Section 2(c) of the Open Meetings Act lists the narrow topics a public body may discuss in closed session, and a meeting must otherwise remain open. The decisions in this group cite Section 2(c) as a whole, without focusing on a single numbered exception, to test whether a closed discussion was allowed at all.

Across these decisions the Public Access Counselor applied the exceptions narrowly and found violations where closed discussions went beyond any permitted topic. Examples included tax-increment-financing loans, book-removal and curriculum decisions, budgets and pay raises, audits and rule changes, bidding and consolidation plans, and property or financial matters, as well as failures to follow proper closing procedures and to take final action in open session.

At a glance: 16 documents from 2013 to 2026(7 binding opinions, 9 determination letters). Most often cited alongside: 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(1) (Employee/contractor appointment, discipline, or performance) (1).

Recurring issues

• Public bodies cited personnel as the reason for closure but then discussed unrelated business such as loans, budgets, pay raises, or book-removal decisions. (A village board's closed-session discussion of overdue loans, Closed-session discussion of a book's removal from curriculum, Closed-session discussion of water rates and tax levies)
• Boards discussed general policy and operations topics like audits, rule changes, police consolidation, bidding, and library relocation in closed session with no applicable exception. (Closed-session discussion of audit status and rule changes, Closed-session discussion of police service consolidation, Closed-session discussion of a bidding process)
• Public bodies took or implemented final action in closed session, such as employment separation terms, policy changes, or disbanding a department, instead of voting in open session. (A school board's final action on a separation agreement in closed session, A school board's closed-session discussion of a book removal policy, Closed-session discussion of a police services contract)
• Public bodies failed to follow required closed-session procedures, including identifying the exception, limiting discussion to that topic, and keeping sufficiently detailed minutes. (A finance committee's closed meeting on a hiring freeze, A board's closed-session discussion of property sale or lease, Closed-session discussion of police service consolidation)

Practical points

• Identify the specific closed-session basis before closing and keep all closed discussion within that permitted topic.
• Take any final vote or policy decision in open session with enough public detail to identify the action.
• Keep closed-session minutes that summarize what was actually discussed so compliance can be reviewed.

Summary drafted from the linked decisions and checked against them; read the decisions themselves before relying on it. Not legal advice.