Illinois · House Bill 5385 · 104th General Assembly

PUBLIC ATTORNEY ASSISTANCE

HB 5385 Sponsored by Dave Vella In committee

  1. Introduced Feb 6, 2026
  2. In committee Feb 10, 2026
  3. Passed the House Next
  4. Passed the Senate  
  5. To the governor  
  6. Became law  

What it does

The legislature's own summary of the bill, or its official long title.

Amends the Public Interest Attorney Assistance Act. Allows a solo practitioner in or employed by a private practice in a county with 20 or fewer attorneys in private practice to be considered a "public interest attorney" who may apply for loan repayment assistance under the Public Interest Attorney Loan Repayment Assistance Program. Allows a graduate of a law school located in the State who is a licensed attorney in…

Read the full title (130 words)

Amends the Public Interest Attorney Assistance Act. Allows a solo practitioner in or employed by a private practice in a county with 20 or fewer attorneys in private practice to be considered a "public interest attorney" who may apply for loan repayment assistance under the Public Interest Attorney Loan Repayment Assistance Program. Allows a graduate of a law school located in the State who is a licensed attorney in another state in good standing to be eligible for assistance. Adds as an eligibility requirement that an applicant must not have earned more than $120,000 from the practice of law in the prior 12 months. Raises the maximum amount of assistance to $10,000 (rather than $6,000) per year and $50,000 (rather than $30,000) during a program participant's career. Makes other changes.

Every action

5 steps, oldest first, as the legislature records them.

  1. HouseFiled with the Clerk by Rep. Dave Vella
  2. HouseFirst Reading
  3. CommitteeReferred to Rules Committee · House Rules
  4. CommitteeAssigned to Appropriations-Higher Education Committee · House Approp-Higher Education
  5. CommitteeRule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee · House Rules

Roll calls

No recorded votes on this bill yet.

Sponsors

The member who introduced it.

From Illinois's official records (www.ilga.gov), checked Nov 13, 2026. Text links go to the official versions; LegiList does not copy bill text.