103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB2300

 

Introduced 2/14/2023, by Rep. William "Will" Davis

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
30 ILCS 559/20-15
30 ILCS 559/20-20

    Amends the Illinois Works Job Program Act. Provides that contractors or subcontractors may be eligible to earn bid credits for employing apprentices who have completed the Illinois Works Preapprenticeship Program (previously bid credits were available for public works contracted by the State). Provides that contractors and subcontractors can use bid credits toward future bids for public works projects contracted or funded by the State or an agency of the State in order to increase the likelihood that the contractor and the subcontractors are selected as the contractor for the public works project. Provides that, for contracts and grant agreements executed after the effective date of the amendatory Act, of a specified goal at least half of the labor hours of each prevailing wage classification performed by apprentices shall be performed by graduates of the Illinois Works Preapprenticeship Program. Provides that the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity may grant a reduction or waiver upon a determination that the contractor or subcontractor has demonstrated that insufficient graduates of the Illinois Works Preapprenticeship Program are available to meet the requirements. Provides that contractors and subcontractors must submit a certification to the Department and the agency that is administering the contract, or the grant agreement funding the contract, demonstrating that the contractor or subcontractor has not complied with the labor hour goals and did not receive a reduction or waiver. Provides the penalties for failing to comply with the Illinois Works Apprenticeship Initiative. Effective immediately.


LRB103 30827 DTM 57326 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB2300LRB103 30827 DTM 57326 b

1    AN ACT concerning finance.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Works Jobs Program Act is amended
5by changing Sections 20-15, and 20-20 as follows:
 
6    (30 ILCS 559/20-15)
7    Sec. 20-15. Illinois Works Preapprenticeship Program;
8Illinois Works Bid Credit Program.
9    (a) The Illinois Works Preapprenticeship Program is
10established and shall be administered by the Department. The
11goal of the Illinois Works Preapprenticeship Program is to
12create a network of community-based organizations throughout
13the State that will recruit, prescreen, and provide
14preapprenticeship skills training, for which participants may
15attend free of charge and receive a stipend, to create a
16qualified, diverse pipeline of workers who are prepared for
17careers in the construction and building trades. Upon
18completion of the Illinois Works Preapprenticeship Program,
19the candidates will be skilled and work-ready.
20    (b) There is created the Illinois Works Fund, a special
21fund in the State treasury. The Illinois Works Fund shall be
22administered by the Department. The Illinois Works Fund shall
23be used to provide funding for community-based organizations

 

 

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1throughout the State. In addition to any other transfers that
2may be provided for by law, on and after July 1, 2019 at the
3direction of the Director of the Governor's Office of
4Management and Budget, the State Comptroller shall direct and
5the State Treasurer shall transfer amounts not exceeding a
6total of $25,000,000 from the Rebuild Illinois Projects Fund
7to the Illinois Works Fund.
8    (c) Each community-based organization that receives
9funding from the Illinois Works Fund shall provide an annual
10report to the Illinois Works Review Panel by April 1 of each
11calendar year. The annual report shall include the following
12information:
13        (1) a description of the community-based
14    organization's recruitment, screening, and training
15    efforts;
16        (2) the number of individuals who apply to,
17    participate in, and complete the community-based
18    organization's program, broken down by race, gender, age,
19    and veteran status; and
20    (3) the number of the individuals referenced in item (2)
21    of this subsection who are initially accepted and placed
22    into apprenticeship programs in the construction and
23    building trades.
24    (d) The Department shall create and administer the
25Illinois Works Bid Credit Program that shall provide economic
26incentives, through bid credits, to encourage contractors and

 

 

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1subcontractors to provide contracting and employment
2opportunities to historically underrepresented populations in
3the construction industry.
4    The Illinois Works Bid Credit Program shall allow
5contractors and subcontractors to earn bid credits for use
6toward future bids for public works projects contracted by the
7State or an agency of the State in order to increase the
8chances that the contractor and the subcontractors will be
9selected.
10    Contractors or subcontractors may be eligible to earn for
11bid credits for employing apprentices who have completed the
12Illinois Works Preapprenticeship Program on public works
13projects contracted by the State or any agency of the State.
14Contractors or subcontractors shall earn bid credits at a rate
15established by the Department and based on labor hours worked
16on State-contracted public works projects by apprentices who
17have completed the Illinois Works Preapprenticeship Program.
18Contractors and subcontractors can use bid credits toward
19future bids for public works projects contracted or funded by
20the State or an agency of the State in order to increase the
21likelihood that the contractor and the subcontractors are
22selected as the contractor for the public works project toward
23which they have applied the bid credit. The Department shall
24establish the rate by rule and shall publish it on the
25Department's website. The rule may include maximum bid credits
26allowed per contractor, per subcontractor, per apprentice, per

 

 

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1bid, or per year.
2    The Illinois Works Credit Bank is hereby created and shall
3be administered by the Department. The Illinois Works Credit
4Bank shall track the bid credits.
5    A contractor or subcontractor who has been awarded bid
6credits under any other State program for employing
7apprentices who have completed the Illinois Works
8Preapprenticeship Program is not eligible to receive bid
9credits under the Illinois Works Bid Credit Program relating
10to the same contract.
11    The Department shall report to the Illinois Works Review
12Panel the following: (i) the number of bid credits awarded by
13the Department; (ii) the number of bid credits submitted by
14the contractor or subcontractor to the agency administering
15the public works contract; and (iii) the number of bid credits
16accepted by the agency for such contract. Any agency that
17awards bid credits pursuant to the Illinois Works Credit Bank
18Program shall report to the Department the number of bid
19credits it accepted for the public works contract.
20    Upon a finding that a contractor or subcontractor has
21reported falsified records to the Department in order to
22fraudulently obtain bid credits, the Department may bar the
23contractor or subcontractor from participating in the Illinois
24Works Bid Credit Program and may suspend the contractor or
25subcontractor from bidding on or participating in any public
26works project. False or fraudulent claims for payment relating

 

 

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1to false bid credits may be subject to damages and penalties
2under applicable law.
3    (e) The Department shall adopt any rules deemed necessary
4to implement this Section. In order to provide for the
5expeditious and timely implementation of this Act, the
6Department may adopt emergency rules. The adoption of
7emergency rules authorized by this subsection is deemed to be
8necessary for the public interest, safety, and welfare.
9(Source: P.A. 101-31, eff. 6-28-19; 101-601, eff. 12-10-19.)
 
10    (30 ILCS 559/20-20)
11    Sec. 20-20. Illinois Works Apprenticeship Initiative.
12    (a) The Illinois Works Apprenticeship Initiative is
13established and shall be administered by the Department.
14        (1) Subject to the exceptions set forth in subsection
15    (b) of this Section, apprentices shall be utilized on all
16    public works projects estimated to cost $500,000 or more
17    in accordance with this subsection (a).
18        (2) For public works projects estimated to cost
19    $500,000 or more, the goal of the Illinois Works
20    Apprenticeship Initiative is that apprentices will perform
21    either 10% of the total labor hours actually worked in
22    each prevailing wage classification or 10% of the
23    estimated labor hours in each prevailing wage
24    classification, whichever is less. For contracts and grant
25    agreements executed after the effective date of this

 

 

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1    amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly, of this goal
2    at least half of the labor hours of each prevailing wage
3    classification performed by apprentices shall be performed
4    by graduates of the Illinois Works Preapprenticeship
5    Program.
6    (b) Before or during the term of a contract subject to this
7Section, the Department may reduce or waive the goals set
8forth in paragraph (2) of subsection (a). Prior to the
9Department granting a request for a reduction or waiver, the
10Department shall determine, in its discretion, whether to hold
11a public hearing on the request. In determining whether to
12hold a public hearing, the Department may consider factors,
13including the scale of the project and whether the contractor
14or subcontractor seeking the reduction or waiver has
15previously requested reductions or waivers on other projects.
16The Department may also consult with the Business Enterprise
17Council under the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women,
18and Persons with Disabilities Act and the Chief Procurement
19Officer of the agency administering the public works contract.
20The Department may grant a reduction or waiver upon a
21determination that:
22        (1) the contractor or subcontractor has demonstrated
23    that insufficient apprentices are available;
24        (2) the reasonable and necessary requirements of the
25    contract do not allow the goal to be met;
26        (3) there is a disproportionately high ratio of

 

 

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1    material costs to labor hours that makes meeting the goal
2    infeasible; or
3        (4) apprentice labor hour goals conflict with existing
4    requirements, including federal requirements, in
5    connection with the public work.
6        (5) The contractor or subcontractor has demonstrated
7    that insufficient graduates of the Illinois Works
8    Preapprenticeship Program are available to meet the
9    requirements of paragraph (2) of subsection (a).
10    (c) Contractors and subcontractors must submit a
11certification to the Department and the agency that is
12administering the contract, or the grant agreement funding the
13contract, demonstrating that the contractor or subcontractor
14has either:
15        (1) met the apprentice labor hour goals set forth in
16    paragraph (2) of subsection (a); or
17        (2) received a reduction or waiver pursuant to
18    subsection (b); or .
19        (3) not complied with the labor hour goals in
20    paragraph (2) of subsection (a) and did not receive a
21    reduction or waiver pursuant to subsection (b).
22    It shall be deemed to be a material breach of the contract,
23or the grant agreement funding the contract, and entitle the
24State to declare a default, terminate the contract or grant
25agreement funding it, and exercise those remedies provided for
26in the contract, at law, or in equity if the contractor or

 

 

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1subcontractor fails to submit the certification required in
2this subsection or submits false or misleading information.
3    Failure to comply with the Illinois Works Apprenticeship
4Initiative may result in the State agency that contracted or
5funded the public works project: (i) terminating the contract
6or agreement involved, (ii) prohibiting the party that
7contracted with the State from participating in public
8contracts or agreements for a period not to exceed 3 years,
9(iii) seeking a penalty of up to 25% of the contract or
10agreement as a result of the violation, or (iv) any
11combination of items (i) through (iii). State agencies shall
12report to the Department all projects that did not comply with
13the Illinois Works Apprenticeship Initiative and any action
14taken against the noncompliant party and shall provide an
15action plan to address the reported instance of noncompliance
16with the Illinois Works Apprenticeship Initiative.
17    (d) No later than one year after the effective date of this
18Act, and by April 1 of every calendar year thereafter, the
19Department of Labor shall submit a report to the Illinois
20Works Review Panel regarding the use of apprentices under the
21Illinois Works Apprenticeship Initiative for public works
22projects. To the extent it is available, the report shall
23include the following information:
24        (1) the total number of labor hours on each project
25    and the percentage of labor hours actually worked by
26    apprentices on each public works project;

 

 

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1        (2) the number of apprentices used in each public
2    works project, broken down by trade; and
3        (3) the number and percentage of minorities, women,
4    and veterans utilized as apprentices on each public works
5    project.
6    (e) The Department shall adopt any rules deemed necessary
7to implement the Illinois Works Apprenticeship Initiative. In
8order to provide for the expeditious and timely implementation
9of this Act, the Department may adopt emergency rules. The
10adoption of emergency rules authorized by this subsection is
11deemed to be necessary for the public interest, safety, and
12welfare.
13    (f) The Illinois Works Apprenticeship Initiative shall not
14interfere with any contracts or grants in existence on the
15effective date of this Act.
16    (g) Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary in this
17Act, any State agency that administers a construction program
18for which federal law or regulations establish standards and
19procedures for the utilization of apprentices may implement
20the Illinois Works Apprenticeship Initiative using the federal
21standards and procedures for the establishment of goals and
22utilization procedures for the State-funded, as well as the
23federally assisted, portions of the program. In such cases,
24these goals shall not exceed those established pursuant to the
25relevant federal statutes or regulations.
26(Source: P.A. 101-31, eff. 6-28-19; 101-601, eff. 12-10-19.)
 

 

 

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1    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
2becoming law.