Bill
HB 2953
Requires localities to report non‑fully sprinklered residential high‑rises to CDB, which will publish a public database with basic building details.
Status
- Introduced: February 6, 2025
- Sponsor: Rep. Michael J. Kelly
- Action: Passed both chambers (House and Senate); vetoed by the Governor on June 25, 2025
- Companion: SB 1864
- Notable amendment: House Amendment 001 (filed March 5, 2025) — refines scope and required data fields
Purpose
- To require municipalities and counties to report residential high‑rise buildings that lack full sprinkler coverage to the Illinois Capital Development Board (CDB) and for the CDB to maintain a publicly available electronic database of those buildings. The goal is increased transparency about which high‑rise residential buildings are not fully sprinklered, to inform residents, fire departments, policymakers and potential retrofit efforts.
Key provisions
- New Section 10.20 added to the Capital Development Board Act.
- Reporting requirement:
- Each municipality and county must provide the CDB a list of each residential high‑rise building in their jurisdiction that:
- Was not required to include sprinklers when constructed; and
- Either has no sprinkler system, has only a partial sprinkler system that does not cover all areas (including living units), or has not been retrofitted with a sprinkler system covering all areas including living units.
- Initial submission deadline: June 30, 2027. Updates required every 5 years thereafter.
- Database and public access:
- The CDB must create and publish an electronic database (e.g., a link on its website) containing the reported information.
- Minimum data fields (as amended): building address, property identification number, number of floors, building height, number of units, and total square footage.
- Definitions:
- “Residential high‑rise building” — any residential building used for human occupancy that is 75 feet or more above the lowest level of fire department vehicle access or is seven or more stories in height.
- “Fire sprinkler system” — defined by reference to the Fire Sprinkler Contractor Licensing Act.
- Enforcement/penalties: The bill sets reporting requirements but does not specify civil or criminal penalties for noncompliance in the text provided.
Who is affected
- Municipalities and counties: required to identify and report qualifying high‑rise residential buildings.
- Capital Development Board: responsible for creating and maintaining the public database.
- Owners and operators of residential high‑rise buildings: data about their buildings will be publicly listed if they meet the criteria.
- Residents, fire departments, policymakers, and organizations concerned with housing and fire safety: gain access to centralized data for planning, public education, retrofit prioritization, and emergency response.
Potential impacts and considerations
- Transparency: creates a centralized, public inventory to inform residents and first responders about non‑sprinklered high‑rises.
- Policy utility: data can support targeting of retrofit programs, building inspections, grant/funding decisions, and fire prevention planning.
- Administrative burden: municipalities, counties and the CDB will incur workload (and potentially costs) to compile, submit, host and update the database. The bill text does not include an appropriation or explicit funding mechanism.
- Privacy and accuracy concerns: public listing of property details may raise owner concerns; ensuring data accuracy and consistent reporting definitions across jurisdictions will be important.
- No enforcement mechanism: without penalties or funding, compliance rates and database completeness could vary.
Legislative note
- House Amendment 001 clarified scope (residential high‑rise), added partial‑system language, and specified minimum data fields. Despite legislative passage, the bill was vetoed by the Governor on June 25, 2025.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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