HB5824 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB101 21608 RJF 73012 b

101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
HB5824

Introduced 11/10/2020, by Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch - Mary E. Flowers, Mark L. Walker, Marcus C. Evans, Jr., Barbara Hernandez, et al.

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act
20 ILCS 405/405-530 rep.
20 ILCS 605/605-1055 new
35 ILCS 10/5-57
215 ILCS 5/155.47 new
305 ILCS 5/5-30.13

Creates the Higher Education Supplier Diversity Act. Provides that every private institution of higher education approved by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission for the purposes of the Monetary Award Program shall submit a report on its voluntary supplier diversity program to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Amends the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Creates the Office of Diversity and Economic Inclusion within the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to assist diverse businesses through targeted programs, matchmaking workshops, resources, and outreach and promotional activities. Amends the Department of Central Management Services Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Repeals a provision concerning the higher education supplier diversity report. Amends the Economic Development for a Growing Economy Tax Credit Act. Provides that a taxpayer shall not receive a credit under the Act unless the taxpayer submits a required supplier diversity report. Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Provides for insurance company supplier diversity reports. Defines terms. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning State government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Higher Education Supplier Diversity Act.

Section 5. Higher education supplier diversity report.

Every private institution of higher education approved by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission for the purposes of the Monetary Award Program shall submit a report on its voluntary supplier diversity program to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity in the form and manner required by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity by April 1 of every year.

(20 ILCS 405/405-530 rep.)

Section 100. The Department of Central Management Services Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is amended by repealing Section 405-530.

Section 105. The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is amended by adding Section 605-1055 as follows:

(20 ILCS 605/605-1055 new)

Sec. 605-1055. Office of Diversity and Economic Inclusion.

(a) As used in this Section:

"Diverse business" means:

(1) a minority-owned business, as defined by Section 2 of the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act;

(2) a women-owned business, as defined by Section 2 of the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act;

(3) a business owned by a person with a disability, as defined by Section 2 of the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, Persons with Disabilities Act;

(4) a veteran-owned business; or

(5) a business that is at least 51% owned and controlled by one or more socially disadvantaged or economically disadvantaged persons, as the Department shall by rule determine.

"Economically disadvantaged person" means a person whose ability to compete in the free enterprise system has been impaired due to diminished capital and credit opportunities because of his or her identity as a member of a group, without regard to his or her individual qualities, as compared to others in the same line of business and competitive market area.

"Socially disadvantaged person" means a person who has been subjected to cultural, racial, or ethnic prejudice because of his or her identity as a member of a group, without regard to his or her individual qualities.

"Veteran-owned business" means a business owned by a veteran, as that term is defined under Section 45-57 of the Illinois Procurement Code.

(b) The Office of Diversity and Economic Inclusion is hereby created within the Department. The Office shall assist diverse businesses through targeted programs, matchmaking workshops, resources, and outreach and promotional activities. The Office shall engage in or conduct the following activities:

(1) promoting and conducting outreach efforts with respect to the making of small business loans pursuant to Section 9-4.3 of the Build Illinois Act and assisting eligible diverse business under Section 9-4.3 of the Build Illinois Act apply for loan funding;

(2) providing and hosting workshops and public forums and engaging in outreach efforts for diverse businesses to encourage participation in programs authorized by the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act and the Illinois Procurement Code;

(3) providing and hosting workshops and public forums and engaging in outreach efforts that assist and educate diverse businesses on the process of applying for and becoming certified to apply for State grant funds under the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act;

(4) providing and hosting workshops and public forums and engaging in outreach efforts to assist and educate aspiring and existing diverse businesses in understanding concepts such as, but not limited to, business formation, business planning, capital access, and marketing a business; and

(5) conduct matchmaking workshops for established businesses to connect with industries that report their voluntary supplier diversity programs to State agencies for the purpose of assisting diverse businesses to secure additional contractual opportunities from each industry.

(c) The Office shall administer programs established by the Department, the General Assembly, or both, and may provide grants to diverse businesses. The Office may establish applications, notifications, contracts, and other forms or procedures and may use vendors or contract work to carry out the purposes of this Act. The Office may coordinate assistance for businesses with other State agencies.

(d) The Department shall provide staff, administrative support, and related support to the Office as required to administer this Section.

(e) By July 1, 2021, the Office shall establish a supplier diversity program in order to facilitate and encourage the growth of supplier diversity, and shall have a least one employee that serves as a supplier diversity program manager to: (1) collect reports and information concerning entities that manage supplier diversity programs, and publish the reports and information on the website of the Department; and (2) conduct workshops focused on specific industries to collaboratively connect diverse enterprises with entities that manage supplier diversity programs.

(f) The Office shall hold matchmaking workshops to help connect diverse enterprises with industries that report on their voluntary supplier diversity programs. These workshops shall be held at least once per quarter and each shall focus on a particular industry that files supplier diversity reports. Each matchmaking workshop for each industry shall be held on an annual basis in as close to the same month as possible. The matchmaking workshops for each industry shall include, but not be limited to: gaming, hospitals, public and private higher education, insurance, health insurance companies holding Medicaid contracts, and taxpayers receiving tax credits under the Economic Development for a Growing Economy Act. Participation in these matchmaking workshops shall be open to any kind of diverse business that any company within a particular industry recognizes and shall not be limited to those diverse businesses certified by the State or defined by law or rule.

(g) The Office shall compile and publish on the website of the Department a master database consisting of the supplier diversity reports submitted to State agencies pursuant to the following Acts:

(1) Section 405-530 of the Department of Central Management Services Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois;

(2) Section 8f of the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act;

(3) Section 5-57 of the Economic Development for a Growing Economy Act;

(4) Section 5-117 of the Public Utilities Act;

(5) Section 12.2 of the Illinois Horse Racing Act of 1975;

(6) Section 10 of the Railroad Supplier Diversity Act;

(7) Section 155.47 of the Illinois Insurance Code; and

(8) Section 5-30.13 of the Illinois Public Aid Code.

(h) The Department shall publish a template for supplier diversity reports to be used for taxpayers receiving tax credits under the Economic Development for a Growing Economy Act and private higher education institutions. The template shall include the following provisions:

(1) a point of contact for potential vendors to register with the entity;

(2) certifications that the entity accepts or recognizes for minority-owned and women-owned businesses; entities may define diverse businesses in whatever manner they choose;

(3) the voluntary supplier diversity goals, if any, of the next fiscal year for the next fiscal year for the entire budget of the entity;

(4) for the last fiscal year, the actual contractual spending for the entire budget of the entity and the actual spending for minority-owned and-women-owned businesses, expressed as a percentage of the total budget for actual spending for the entity;

(5) a narrative explaining the results of the report and the tactics to be employed to achieve the voluntary goals for the next fiscal year; and

(6) the particular areas of spending in the next fiscal year that the entity intends to procure that are most relevant to minority-owned and women-owned businesses;

The Department may adopt rules necessary to implement this Section.

Section 110. The Economic Development for a Growing Economy Tax Credit Act is amended by changing Section 5-57 as follows:

(35 ILCS 10/5-57)

Sec. 5-57. Diversity policy Supplier diversity goals; reports. Each taxpayer claiming a credit under this Act shall, no later than April 15 of each taxable year for which the taxpayer claims a credit under this Act, submit to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity an annual report containing the information described in subsections (b), (c), (d), and (e) of Section 5-117 of the Public Utilities Act. Those reports shall be submitted in the form and manner required by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

Any taxpayer seeking to claim a credit under this Act that fails to timely submit the required report shall not receive a credit for that taxable year unless and until such report is finalized and submitted to the Department.

Each taxpayer claiming a credit under this Act shall, no later than April 15 of each taxable year for which the taxpayer claims a credit under this Act, submit to the Department an annual report detailing the diversity of the taxpayer's own workforce, including full-time and part-time employees, contractors, and board members. The report shall be submitted in the form and manner required by the Department. Any taxpayer seeking to claim a credit under this Act that fails to timely submit the required report shall not receive a credit for that taxable year unless and until such report is finalized and submitted to the Department.

(Source: P.A. 100-451, eff. 8-25-17; 100-511, eff. 9-18-17.)

Section 115. The Illinois Insurance Code is amended by adding Section 155.47 as follows:

(215 ILCS 5/155.47 new)

Sec. 155.47. Insurance company supplier diversity report.

(a) Every company authorized to do business in this State or accredited by this State with assets of at least $50,000,000 shall submit a 2-page report on its voluntary supplier diversity program to the Department. The report shall set forth all of the following:

(1) The name, address, phone number, and e-mail address of the point of contact for the supplier diversity program (or the company's procurement program if there is no supplier diversity program) for vendors to register with the program.

(2) Local and State certifications the company accepts or recognizes for minority-owned, women-owned, or veteran-owned business status.

(3) On the second page, a narrative explaining the results of the report and the tactics to be employed to achieve the goals of its voluntary supplier diversity program.

(4) The voluntary goals, if any, for the calendar year for which the report is made in each category for the entire budget of the company and the commodity codes or a description of particular goods and services for the area of procurement in which the company expects most of those goals to focus on in that year.

Each company is required to submit a searchable report, in Portable Document Format (PDF), to the Department on or before April 15, 2021, and on or before April 15 every year thereafter, for the upcoming calendar year.

(b) For each report submitted under subsection (a) of this Section, the Department shall publish the results on its Internet website for 5 years after submission. The Department is not responsible for collecting the reports or for the content of the reports.

(c) The Department shall prepare a one-page template (not including the narrative section) for the voluntary supplier diversity reports.

(d) The Department may adopt such rules as it deems necessary to implement this Section.

Section 120. The Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by renumbering Section 5-30.11 as added by Public Act 101-209 as follows:

(305 ILCS 5/5-30.13)

Sec. 5-30.13 5-30.11. Managed care reports; minority-owned and women-owned businesses. Each Medicaid managed care health plan shall submit a report to the Department by March 1, 2020, and every March 1 thereafter, that includes the following information:

(1) The administrative expenses paid to the Medicaid managed care health plan.

(2) The amount of money the Medicaid managed care health plan has spent with Business Enterprise Program certified businesses.

(3) The amount of money the Medicaid managed care health plan has spent with minority-owned and women-owned businesses that are certified by other agencies or private organizations.

(4) The amount of money the Medicaid managed care health plan has spent with not-for-profit community-based organizations serving predominantly minority communities, as defined by the Department.

(5) The proportion of minorities, people with disabilities, and women that make up the staff of the Medicaid managed care health plan.

(6) Recommendations for increasing expenditures with minority-owned and women-owned businesses.

(7) A list of the types of services to which the Medicaid managed care health plan is contemplating adding new vendors.

(8) The certifications the Medicaid managed care health plan accepts for minority-owned and women-owned businesses.

(9) The point of contact for potential vendors seeking to do business with the Medicaid managed care health plan.

The Department shall publish the reports on its website and shall maintain each report on its website for 5 years. In May of 2020 and every May thereafter, the Department shall hold 2 annual public workshops, one in Chicago and one in Springfield. The workshops shall include each Medicaid managed care health plan and shall be open to vendor communities to discuss the submitted plans and to seek to connect vendors with the Medicaid managed care health plans.

(Source: P.A. 101-209, eff. 8-5-19; revised 10-22-19.)

Section 999. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.