To permit the county commission of each county to lease, rent or to permit the use of a county owned wireless tower or any portion thereof, with exceptions

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Trenton Barnhart and 10 co-sponsors

HB 2787 lets public Illinois universities approve non‑instructional capital projects over $2M without prior IBHE approval.

To Government Organization

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Summary — HB 2787 (Board of Higher Education Act — Capital Improvements)

Status: Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee (as of 2025-04-11)
Introduced: February 2025 (filed Feb 6 / Feb 13, 2025 in available records)
Primary sponsor: Rep. Jay Hoffman (chief co‑sponsor added: Rep. Katie Stuart)
Statute amended: 110 ILCS 205/8 (Board of Higher Education Act)
Title/short description: BD HIGHER ED — CAPITAL IMPROVE

Main purpose

HB 2787 removes a statutory requirement that gave the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) formal approval authority over certain non‑instructional capital projects at State universities. The change eliminates the requirement that universities submit plans for non‑instructional capital improvements costing over $2 million to the IBHE for approval before final commitments are made.

Key provisions

Strikes the language in 110 ILCS 205/8 that required each State university to submit plans for capital improvements of non‑instructional facilities (projects over $2,000,000 as approved by the institution’s board of control) to the Board of Higher Education for approval prior to final commitments.

The statute previously defined “non‑instructional” uses to include stadiums, dormitories, student unions, recreational buildings, parking lots, etc.; that restriction on construction authority is removed for projects above the $2M threshold.

Does not, based on the text provided, alter other IBHE responsibilities in budget review, consideration of tuition/fees, or the Board’s role in reviewing instructional facility needs and overall capital budgeting.

Who is affected

Public State universities in Illinois (trustees and campus administrations) — gain discretion to proceed with non‑instructional capital projects above $2M without prior IBHE approval.

Illinois Board of Higher Education — loses a statutory gatekeeping role over large non‑instructional capital projects.

State-level budget and planning processes — may see reduced centralized oversight of certain campus capital commitments.

Taxpayers and local university boards — potential financial and planning impacts stemming from more autonomous project approvals at the institutional level.

Potential impacts and considerations

Likely effect: faster decision‑making and greater campus autonomy for financing and constructing non‑instructional capital projects.

Tradeoffs: reduced centralized review may increase risk of projects that are inconsistent with statewide higher education strategic planning or result in duplicative/inefficient capital investments from a statewide perspective.

Fiscal oversight: the bill does not remove other budgetary or reporting requirements; the Board still performs budget analysis and can consider physical plant utilization in approving capital budgets for instructional facilities.

Procedural / timeline notes

Filed in early February 2025; referred to the Higher Education Committee and received committee action (Do Pass reported).

Placed on House and Senate calendars; listed as Rule 19(a) / Re‑referred to Rules Committee on 2025‑04‑11 in the provided actions.

Related/companion measure: HB 148 (listed as companion).

Note: The text packet included unrelated legislative text from another jurisdiction (an Arizona HB 2787 concerning ambulance registration). This summary focuses solely on the Illinois measure amending 110 ILCS 205/8 as described above.