An appellete court decision in Wirts v. Quinn et al. issued on January 26, 2011 stated that Public Act 96-34, (the “Act”) including the Video Gamin Act was unconstitutional. The Wirtz case was filed by plaintiffs W. Rockwell Wirtz and Wirtz Beverage Illinois. W. Rockwell (Rocky) Wirtz is the owner of the Chicago Blackhawks as well as the beverage distribution company that services our local area bars and restaurants, Judge and Dolph. Our local establishments contribute to the 1.5 billion dollars in annual sales the Wirtz Beverage Group boasts on their website.
The appellate court struck down the Act as unconstitutional because if found the Act violated the Illinois Constitution’s Single Subject Rule. The Rule requires that laws passed by the General Assembly must be confined to one subject. The appellate court held that the Act contained a variety of provisions that had “no natural and logical connection” to each other, and, therefore violated the Rule. The appellate court rejected the argument that all of these provisions have a logical connection to “revenue”.
The Attorney General for the State of Illinois will file an appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court. Once filed, the case is automatically stayed, meaning that the holding of the Wirtz Opinion will not be enforceable until the Illinois Supremem Court decides the case. The Illinois Supreme Court could quickly render a decision or a decision could take time. However, given the economic uncertainty Illinois currently faces as a result of the Wirtz Opinion, it is believe that it is certainly possible that the Illinois Supreme Court will render a decision quickly.
