103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB5521

 

Introduced 2/9/2024, by Rep. Jay Hoffman

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
820 ILCS 130/2

    Amends the Prevailing Wage Act. Provides that the definition of "public works" does not include federal construction projects. Defines "federal construction projects".


LRB103 39493 SPS 69690 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB5521LRB103 39493 SPS 69690 b

1    AN ACT concerning employment.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Prevailing Wage Act is amended by changing
5Section 2 as follows:
 
6    (820 ILCS 130/2)
7    Sec. 2. This Act applies to the wages of laborers,
8mechanics and other workers employed in any public works, as
9hereinafter defined, by any public body and to anyone under
10contracts for public works. This includes any maintenance,
11repair, assembly, or disassembly work performed on equipment
12whether owned, leased, or rented.
13    As used in this Act, unless the context indicates
14otherwise:
15    "Public works" means all fixed works constructed or
16demolished by any public body, or paid for wholly or in part
17out of public funds. "Public works" as defined herein includes
18all projects financed in whole or in part with bonds, grants,
19loans, or other funds made available by or through the State or
20any of its political subdivisions, including but not limited
21to: bonds issued under the Industrial Project Revenue Bond Act
22(Article 11, Division 74 of the Illinois Municipal Code), the
23Industrial Building Revenue Bond Act, the Illinois Finance

 

 

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1Authority Act, the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority Act,
2or the Build Illinois Bond Act; loans or other funds made
3available pursuant to the Build Illinois Act; loans or other
4funds made available pursuant to the Riverfront Development
5Fund under Section 10-15 of the River Edge Redevelopment Zone
6Act; or funds from the Fund for Illinois' Future under Section
76z-47 of the State Finance Act, funds for school construction
8under Section 5 of the General Obligation Bond Act, funds
9authorized under Section 3 of the School Construction Bond
10Act, funds for school infrastructure under Section 6z-45 of
11the State Finance Act, and funds for transportation purposes
12under Section 4 of the General Obligation Bond Act. "Public
13works" also includes (i) all projects financed in whole or in
14part with funds from the Environmental Protection Agency under
15the Illinois Renewable Fuels Development Program Act for which
16there is no project labor agreement; (ii) all work performed
17pursuant to a public private agreement under the Public
18Private Agreements for the Illiana Expressway Act or the
19Public-Private Agreements for the South Suburban Airport Act;
20(iii) all projects undertaken under a public-private agreement
21under the Public-Private Partnerships for Transportation Act
22or the Department of Natural Resources World Shooting and
23Recreational Complex Act; and (iv) all transportation
24facilities undertaken under a design-build contract or a
25Construction Manager/General Contractor contract under the
26Innovations for Transportation Infrastructure Act. "Public

 

 

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1works" also includes all projects at leased facility property
2used for airport purposes under Section 35 of the Local
3Government Facility Lease Act. "Public works" also includes
4the construction of a new wind power facility by a business
5designated as a High Impact Business under Section
65.5(a)(3)(E) and the construction of a new utility-scale solar
7power facility by a business designated as a High Impact
8Business under Section 5.5(a)(3)(E-5) of the Illinois
9Enterprise Zone Act. "Public works" also includes electric
10vehicle charging station projects financed pursuant to the
11Electric Vehicle Act and renewable energy projects required to
12pay the prevailing wage pursuant to the Illinois Power Agency
13Act. "Public works" also includes power washing projects by a
14public body or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds
15in which steam or pressurized water, with or without added
16abrasives or chemicals, is used to remove paint or other
17coatings, oils or grease, corrosion, or debris from a surface
18or to prepare a surface for a coating. "Public works" does not
19include work done directly by any public utility company,
20whether or not done under public supervision or direction, or
21paid for wholly or in part out of public funds. "Public works"
22also includes construction projects performed by a third party
23contracted by any public utility, as described in subsection
24(a) of Section 2.1, in public rights-of-way, as defined in
25Section 21-201 of the Public Utilities Act, whether or not
26done under public supervision or direction, or paid for wholly

 

 

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1or in part out of public funds. "Public works" also includes
2construction projects that exceed 15 aggregate miles of new
3fiber optic cable, performed by a third party contracted by
4any public utility, as described in subsection (b) of Section
52.1, in public rights-of-way, as defined in Section 21-201 of
6the Public Utilities Act, whether or not done under public
7supervision or direction, or paid for wholly or in part out of
8public funds. "Public works" also includes any corrective
9action performed pursuant to Title XVI of the Environmental
10Protection Act for which payment from the Underground Storage
11Tank Fund is requested. "Public works" also includes all
12construction projects involving fixtures or permanent
13attachments affixed to light poles that are owned by a public
14body, including street light poles, traffic light poles, and
15other lighting fixtures, whether or not done under public
16supervision or direction, or paid for wholly or in part out of
17public funds, unless the project is performed by employees
18employed directly by the public body. "Public works" also
19includes work performed subject to the Mechanical Insulation
20Energy and Safety Assessment Act. "Public works" also includes
21the removal, hauling, and transportation of biosolids, lime
22sludge, and lime residue from a water treatment plant or
23facility and the disposal of biosolids, lime sludge, and lime
24residue removed from a water treatment plant or facility at a
25landfill. "Public works" does not include projects undertaken
26by the owner at an owner-occupied single-family residence or

 

 

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1at an owner-occupied unit of a multi-family residence. "Public
2works" does not include work performed for soil and water
3conservation purposes on agricultural lands, whether or not
4done under public supervision or paid for wholly or in part out
5of public funds, done directly by an owner or person who has
6legal control of those lands. "Public works" does not include
7federal construction projects.
8    "Construction" means all work on public works involving
9laborers, workers or mechanics. This includes any maintenance,
10repair, assembly, or disassembly work performed on equipment
11whether owned, leased, or rented.
12    "Federal construction projects" means public works
13contracted for directly by the federal government.
14    "Locality" means the county where the physical work upon
15public works is performed, except (1) that if there is not
16available in the county a sufficient number of competent
17skilled laborers, workers and mechanics to construct the
18public works efficiently and properly, "locality" includes any
19other county nearest the one in which the work or construction
20is to be performed and from which such persons may be obtained
21in sufficient numbers to perform the work and (2) that, with
22respect to contracts for highway work with the Department of
23Transportation of this State, "locality" may at the discretion
24of the Secretary of the Department of Transportation be
25construed to include two or more adjacent counties from which
26workers may be accessible for work on such construction.

 

 

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1    "Public body" means the State or any officer, board or
2commission of the State or any political subdivision or
3department thereof, or any institution supported in whole or
4in part by public funds, and includes every county, city,
5town, village, township, school district, irrigation, utility,
6reclamation improvement or other district and every other
7political subdivision, district or municipality of the state
8whether such political subdivision, municipality or district
9operates under a special charter or not.
10    "Labor organization" means an organization that is the
11exclusive representative of an employer's employees recognized
12or certified pursuant to the National Labor Relations Act.
13    The terms "general prevailing rate of hourly wages",
14"general prevailing rate of wages" or "prevailing rate of
15wages" when used in this Act mean the hourly cash wages plus
16annualized fringe benefits for training and apprenticeship
17programs approved by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of
18Apprenticeship and Training, health and welfare, insurance,
19vacations and pensions paid generally, in the locality in
20which the work is being performed, to employees engaged in
21work of a similar character on public works.
22(Source: P.A. 102-9, eff. 1-1-22; 102-444, eff. 8-20-21;
23102-673, eff. 11-30-21; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 102-1094, eff.
246-15-22; 103-8, eff. 6-7-23; 103-327, eff. 1-1-24; 103-346,
25eff. 1-1-24; 103-359, eff. 7-28-23; 103-447, eff. 8-4-23;
26revised 12-15-23.)