Illinois Rep. Hammond’s fire district fund transfer bill passes House and Senate

Passed bill authored by State Rep. Norine K. Hammond aims to permit fire protection district boards to transfer ambulance service funds while maintaining financial stability and public safety, following House and Senate approval, according to the Illinois General Assembly.

In the House, 75 Democrats and 35 Republicans voted in favor of the bill.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, 40 Democrats and 19 Republicans voted in favor of the bill.

Hammond introduced the bill in the Illinois House on Jan. 6, 2026 during the 104th session.

The legislation, known as HB4292, was passed on May 21, 2026 during the general assembly session 104.

According to the Illinois General Assembly site, the legislature summarized the bill’s official text as follows: “Amends the Fire Protection District Act. Provides that the board of trustees of a fire protection district may, by majority vote of the board of trustees, adopt a resolution to transfer moneys from the fire protection district’s ambulance service fund to another fund controlled by the fire protection district if (1) the fire protection district has not approved another transfer from the fire protection district’s ambulance service fund under the provisions in the same year; (2) the moneys remaining in the fire protection district’s ambulance service fund after the transfer are sufficient to pay for the remaining obligations and costs payable from the district’s ambulance service fund in the current and subsequent fiscal years; and (3) the transfer does not impair the fire protection district’s finances or public safety mission, including, but not limited to, emergency medical services, ambulance services, rescue services, fire suppression services, or any other public safety endeavor established by the fire protection district. Effective immediately.”

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill allows a fire protection district’s board of trustees, by majority vote, to transfer money from the district’s ambulance service fund to another fund it controls, despite any other law. The transfer is allowed only once per year and only if enough money remains in the ambulance fund to cover all current and future obligations in the present and upcoming fiscal years. The bill also requires that any transfer not weaken the district’s finances or its public safety mission, including ambulance, emergency medical, rescue and fire suppression services. The bill takes effect immediately upon becoming law.

The bill was sponsored by Rep. John M. Cabello (Republican-90th District), Sen. Terri Bryant (Republican-58th District), and Rep. Tony M. McCombie (Republican-89th District).

Bills in Illinois follow a multi-step legislative process, beginning with introduction in either the House or Senate, followed by committee review, floor debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching the governor for approval or veto. The General Assembly operates on a biennial schedule, and while typically thousands of bills are introduced each session, only a fraction successfully pass through the process to become law.

You can read more about bills and other measures here.

Hammond, a Republican, was elected to the Illinois State House in 2023 to represent the state’s 94th House District, replacing previous state representative Randy Frese.

Lawmakers listed as “Not Voting” were present for the vote but did not cast a vote. Those marked as having an “Excused Absence” were not present and formally provided a reason for their absence, which was accepted.