Edgar County Board Tabled 911 Board Appointments Over Conflict Concerns

The Illinois Attorney General's Opinions Bureau flagged the problem in a 2015 informal opinion. It concluded that the Edgar County Sheriff and his deputies could not serve on the ETSB because the roles were incompatible under the Public Officer Prohibited Activities Act and the Simultaneous Tenure Act. A sheriff or deputy on the board, the opinion said, would be "called upon to act or vote with respect to a contract that inures to the official's benefit." The Illinois Supreme Court has held that the Prohibited Activities Act bars public officers from any transaction that could create "competing interests or loyalties that could hamper their performance."

State law changed this year. Public Act 103-693, effective Jan. 1, 2025, amended the Emergency Telephone System Act to add that sheriffs "are eligible" to serve on ETSBs. The law did not mandate their service, and it did not override the Simultaneous Tenure Act or the Prohibited Activities Act. It also included no recusal procedure for the specific conflict the 2015 opinion identified.

The State's Attorney at the July meeting said the new statute had changed the landscape and that appropriate recusal procedures could take place. The Attorney General's Office has not issued a new opinion on the amended law.

A spokesman for the Edgar County Board did not respond to a request for comment on when the appointments might be reconsidered.