103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB3271

 

Introduced 2/6/2024, by Sen. Mike Simmons

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
775 ILCS 5/1-103  from Ch. 68, par. 1-103
775 ILCS 5/3-107 new

    Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act. Defines "source of income" as the lawful manner by which an individual supports himself or herself and his or her dependents including, but not limited to, any lawful source of income or rental assistance from any federal, State, local, or nonprofit-administered benefit or subsidy program including, but not limited to, the Housing Choice Voucher program. Provides that, upon the request of a public housing authority, the Department of Human Rights must conduct an investigation into allegations of a violation as prohibited by the Act affecting source of income and housing choice voucher discrimination, and, if the Department finds such a source of income and housing choice voucher discrimination, it shall initiate enforcement action against each violator under specified provisions of the Act.


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A BILL FOR

 

SB3271LRB103 38612 JRC 68748 b

1    AN ACT concerning human rights.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Human Rights Act is amended by
5changing Section 1-103 and by adding Section 3-107 as follows:
 
6    (775 ILCS 5/1-103)  (from Ch. 68, par. 1-103)
7    Sec. 1-103. General definitions. When used in this Act,
8unless the context requires otherwise, the term:
9    (A) Age. "Age" means the chronological age of a person who
10is at least 40 years old, except with regard to any practice
11described in Section 2-102, insofar as that practice concerns
12training or apprenticeship programs. In the case of training
13or apprenticeship programs, for the purposes of Section 2-102,
14"age" means the chronological age of a person who is 18 but not
15yet 40 years old.
16    (B) Aggrieved party. "Aggrieved party" means a person who
17is alleged or proved to have been injured by a civil rights
18violation or believes he or she will be injured by a civil
19rights violation under Article 3 that is about to occur.
20    (B-5) Arrest record. "Arrest record" means:
21        (1) an arrest not leading to a conviction;
22        (2) a juvenile record; or
23        (3) criminal history record information ordered

 

 

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1    expunged, sealed, or impounded under Section 5.2 of the
2    Criminal Identification Act.
3    (C) Charge. "Charge" means an allegation filed with the
4Department by an aggrieved party or initiated by the
5Department under its authority.
6    (D) Civil rights violation. "Civil rights violation"
7includes and shall be limited to only those specific acts set
8forth in Sections 2-102, 2-103, 2-105, 3-102, 3-102.1, 3-103,
93-102.10, 3-104.1, 3-105, 3-105.1, 4-102, 4-103, 5-102,
105A-102, 6-101, 6-101.5, and 6-102 of this Act.
11    (E) Commission. "Commission" means the Human Rights
12Commission created by this Act.
13    (F) Complaint. "Complaint" means the formal pleading filed
14by the Department with the Commission following an
15investigation and finding of substantial evidence of a civil
16rights violation.
17    (G) Complainant. "Complainant" means a person including
18the Department who files a charge of civil rights violation
19with the Department or the Commission.
20    (G-5) Conviction record. "Conviction record" means
21information indicating that a person has been convicted of a
22felony, misdemeanor or other criminal offense, placed on
23probation, fined, imprisoned, or paroled pursuant to any law
24enforcement or military authority.
25    (H) Department. "Department" means the Department of Human
26Rights created by this Act.

 

 

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1    (I) Disability.
2    (1) "Disability" means a determinable physical or mental
3characteristic of a person, including, but not limited to, a
4determinable physical characteristic which necessitates the
5person's use of a guide, hearing or support dog, the history of
6such characteristic, or the perception of such characteristic
7by the person complained against, which may result from
8disease, injury, congenital condition of birth or functional
9disorder and which characteristic:
10        (a) For purposes of Article 2, is unrelated to the
11    person's ability to perform the duties of a particular job
12    or position and, pursuant to Section 2-104 of this Act, a
13    person's illegal use of drugs or alcohol is not a
14    disability;
15        (b) For purposes of Article 3, is unrelated to the
16    person's ability to acquire, rent, or maintain a housing
17    accommodation;
18        (c) For purposes of Article 4, is unrelated to a
19    person's ability to repay;
20        (d) For purposes of Article 5, is unrelated to a
21    person's ability to utilize and benefit from a place of
22    public accommodation;
23        (e) For purposes of Article 5, also includes any
24    mental, psychological, or developmental disability,
25    including autism spectrum disorders.
26    (2) Discrimination based on disability includes unlawful

 

 

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1discrimination against an individual because of the
2individual's association with a person with a disability.
3    (J) Marital status. "Marital status" means the legal
4status of being married, single, separated, divorced, or
5widowed.
6    (J-1) Military status. "Military status" means a person's
7status on active duty in or status as a veteran of the armed
8forces of the United States, status as a current member or
9veteran of any reserve component of the armed forces of the
10United States, including the United States Army Reserve,
11United States Marine Corps Reserve, United States Navy
12Reserve, United States Air Force Reserve, and United States
13Coast Guard Reserve, or status as a current member or veteran
14of the Illinois Army National Guard or Illinois Air National
15Guard.
16    (K) National origin. "National origin" means the place in
17which a person or one of his or her ancestors was born.
18    (K-5) "Order of protection status" means a person's status
19as being a person protected under an order of protection
20issued pursuant to the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986,
21Article 112A of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963, the
22Stalking No Contact Order Act, or the Civil No Contact Order
23Act, or an order of protection issued by a court of another
24state.
25    (L) Person. "Person" includes one or more individuals,
26partnerships, associations or organizations, labor

 

 

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1organizations, labor unions, joint apprenticeship committees,
2or union labor associations, corporations, the State of
3Illinois and its instrumentalities, political subdivisions,
4units of local government, legal representatives, trustees in
5bankruptcy or receivers.
6    (L-5) Pregnancy. "Pregnancy" means pregnancy, childbirth,
7or medical or common conditions related to pregnancy or
8childbirth.
9    (M) Public contract. "Public contract" includes every
10contract to which the State, any of its political
11subdivisions, or any municipal corporation is a party.
12    (M-5) Race. "Race" includes traits associated with race,
13including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective
14hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists.
15    (N) Religion. "Religion" includes all aspects of religious
16observance and practice, as well as belief, except that with
17respect to employers, for the purposes of Article 2,
18"religion" has the meaning ascribed to it in paragraph (F) of
19Section 2-101.
20    (O) Sex. "Sex" means the status of being male or female.
21    (O-1) Sexual orientation. "Sexual orientation" means
22actual or perceived heterosexuality, homosexuality,
23bisexuality, or gender-related identity, whether or not
24traditionally associated with the person's designated sex at
25birth. "Sexual orientation" does not include a physical or
26sexual attraction to a minor by an adult.

 

 

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1    (O-5) Source of income. "Source of income" means the
2lawful manner by which an individual supports himself or
3herself and his or her dependents including, but not limited
4to, any lawful source of income or rental assistance from any
5federal, State, local, or nonprofit-administered benefit or
6subsidy program including, but not limited to, the Housing
7Choice Voucher program.
8    (P) Unfavorable military discharge. "Unfavorable military
9discharge" includes discharges from the Armed Forces of the
10United States, their Reserve components, or any National Guard
11or Naval Militia which are classified as RE-3 or the
12equivalent thereof, but does not include those characterized
13as RE-4 or "Dishonorable".
14    (Q) Unlawful discrimination. "Unlawful discrimination"
15means discrimination against a person because of his or her
16actual or perceived: race, color, religion, national origin,
17ancestry, age, sex, marital status, order of protection
18status, disability, military status, sexual orientation,
19pregnancy, or unfavorable discharge from military service as
20those terms are defined in this Section.
21(Source: P.A. 102-362, eff. 1-1-22; 102-419, eff. 1-1-22;
22102-558, eff. 8-20-21; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 102-896, eff.
231-1-23; 102-1102, eff. 1-1-23; 103-154, eff. 6-30-23.)
 
24    (775 ILCS 5/3-107 new)
25    Sec. 3-107. Housing choice voucher discrimination

 

 

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1investigation.
2    (a) Upon the request of a public housing authority, the
3Department shall conduct an investigation into violations of
4Section 3-102, specifically source of income and housing
5choice voucher discrimination, in the area served by the
6public housing authority.
7    (b) Upon a finding of source of income and housing choice
8voucher discrimination in violation of Section 3-102, the
9Department shall initiate enforcement action against each
10violator pursuant to Article 7B.