Beginning Jan. 1, local governments will no longer be able to require police officers to meet ticket quotas, under new legislation signed into law last week, State Sen. Dave Luechtefeld (R-Okawville) said.

Senate Bill 3411 will prohibit counties and municipalities from requiring a law enforcement officer to issue a specific number of citations within a designated time period.

The local governments would also be prohibited from using the number of tickets an officer writes as a criteria for evaluating the officer’s performance.

State Rep. Jerry Costello (D-Smithton) supported the bill.

“Tickets should be issued based on the severity of the infraction, not because an officer is a few citations short of a quota,” Costello said.

In other state legislative news, Governor Pat Quinn recently signed a bill into law that eases restrictions on poker runs, which are popular for motorcycle enthusiasts.

The new poker run rules take enforcement out of the hands of the state and give counties the authority to issue licenses for these events. During poker runs, bikers typically ride from one tavern to another collecting poker hands.