§ 3-5015 — Certificates of discharge or release from active duty

Certificates of discharge or MEMBER-4 copy of certificate of release or discharge from active duty of honorably discharged or separated members of the military, aviation and naval forces of the United States shall be recorded by each recorder, free of charge, in a separate book or computer database which shall be kept for the purpose. The recorder in counties of over 500,000 population shall as soon as practicable after the recording of the original discharge certificate or MEMBER-4 copy of certificate of release or discharge from active duty, deliver to each of the persons named in the discharge certificate or MEMBER-4 copy of certificate of release or discharge from active duty, or the person's agent, one certified copy of the person's discharge certificate or MEMBER-4 copy of certificate of release or discharge from active duty without charge. Additional certified copies shall be furnished by the recorder upon the payment to the recorder of a fee of $1.25, payable in advance, for each such additional certified copy. The recorder may waive the fee for reasonable requests for additional copies if the recorder deems collecting the fee to be a burden to the county, but only if the fee is waived for all reasonable requests for additional copies under this Section. Upon the delivery of the certificate of discharge or MEMBER-4 copy of certificate of release or discharge from active duty after the recordation thereof is completed, and the delivery of one certified copy thereof to the person named in the discharge certificate or MEMBER-4 copy of certificate of release or discharge from active duty or the person's agent, the receipt theretofore issued by the recorder, or a copy thereof shall be surrendered to the recorder, with a signed statement acknowledging the receipt of the discharge certificate or MEMBER-4 copy of certificate of release or discharge from active duty and the certified copy thereof. Certified copies of the certificates of discharge or MEMBER-4 copy of certificate of release or discharge from active duty furnished by the recorder may vary from the size of the original, if in the judgment of the recorder, such certified copies are complete and legible. A military discharge form (DD-214) or any other certificate of discharge or release from active duty document that was issued by the United States government or any state government in reference to those who served with an active or inactive military reserve unit or National Guard force and that was recorded by a County Clerk or Recorder of Deeds is not subject to public inspection, enjoying all the protection covered by the federal Privacy Act of 1974 or any other privacy law. These documents shall be accessible only to the person named in the document, the named person's dependents, the county veterans' service officer, representatives of the Department of Veterans Affairs, or any person with written authorization from the named person or the named person's dependents. Notwithstanding any other provision in this paragraph, these documents shall be made available for public inspection and copying in accordance with the archival schedule adopted by the National Archives and Records Administration and subject to redaction of information that is considered private under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, the federal Freedom of Information Act, and the federal Privacy Act.

Legislative History

(Source: P.A. 103-400, eff. 1-1-24; 104-234, eff. 8-15-25.)