UPDATE 1-Illinois sells first $1.5 bln of bonds to pay overdue bills

CHICAGO, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Illinois on Tuesday sold the first $1.5 billion of a planned $6 billion of tax-exempt debt in the U.S. municipal market, with Bank of America Merrill Lynch winning $1 billion of general obligation bonds and J.P. Morgan Securities winning $500 million of bonds in competitive bidding.