(225 ILCS 745/35)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2026)

Sec. 35. Board of Licensing for Professional Geologists; members; qualifications; duties.

(a) The Secretary shall appoint a Board of Licensing for Professional Geologists which shall serve in an advisory capacity to the Secretary. The Board shall be composed of 8 persons, 7 of whom shall be voting members appointed by the Secretary, who shall give due consideration to recommendations by members of the profession of geology and of geology organizations within the State. In addition, the State Geologist or his or her designated representative, shall be an advisory, non-voting member of the Board.

(b) Insofar as possible, the geologists appointed to serve on the Board shall be generally representative of the occupational and geographical distribution of geologists within this State.

(c) Of the 7 appointed voting members of the Board, 6 shall be geologists and one shall be a member of the general public with no family or business connection with the practice of geology.

(d) Each of the appointed geologist members of the Board shall be a Licensed Professional Geologist licensed under this Act with at least 10 years of experience.

(e) Voting members shall be appointed to 4-year terms. Partial terms of over 2 years in length shall be considered full terms.

(f) Members shall hold office until the expiration of their terms or until their successors have been appointed and have qualified.

(g) No voting member of the Board shall serve more than 2 consecutive full terms.

(h) Vacancies in the membership of the Board shall be filled by appointment for the remainder of the unexpired term.

(i) The Secretary may remove or suspend any appointed member of the Board for cause at any time before the expiration of his or her term. The Secretary shall be the sole arbiter of cause.

(j) The Board shall annually elect one of its members as chairperson and one of its members as vice-chair.

(k) The members of the Board shall be reimbursed for all legitimate and necessary expenses authorized by the Department incurred in attending the meetings of the Board.

(l) The Board may make recommendations to the Secretary to establish the examinations and their method of grading.

(m) The Board may submit written recommendations to the Secretary concerning formulation of rules and a Code of Professional Conduct and Ethics. The Board may recommend or endorse revisions and amendments to the Code and to the rules from time to time.

(n) The Board may make recommendations on matters relating to continuing education of Licensed Professional Geologists, including the number of hours necessary for license renewal, waivers for those unable to meet that requirement, and acceptable course content. These recommendations shall not impose an undue burden on the Department or an unreasonable restriction on those seeking a license renewal.

(o) Four voting Board members constitutes a quorum. A quorum is required for all Board decisions.

(Source: P.A. 99-26, eff. 7-10-15.)