Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HB5575
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Full Text of HB5575  102nd General Assembly

HB5575enr 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  
  
  

 


 
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1    AN ACT concerning regulation.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Comprehensive Licensing Information to Minimize Barriers Task
6Force Act.
 
7    Section 5. Declaration of public policy.
8    (a) The State finds that persons from historically and
9economically disadvantaged groups have been directly and
10indirectly excluded from opportunity and shared prosperity and
11that it is in the public policy interest of the State to foster
12an environment where all people, particularly those
13equity-focused populations subjected to arbitrary barriers,
14have the freedom to create their own path to success and
15self-actualization.
16    (b) The State also finds that the freedom and access to
17opportunities needed to achieve one's highest potential
18through a lawful occupation is critically important to the
19well-being of people in the State, and that the right to pursue
20a lawful occupation is a fundamental right of all people.
21    (c) Therefore, it is in the public policy interest of the
22State to minimize and remove unnecessary, arbitrary, and
23ineffective barriers to employment and economic prosperity

 

 

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1that disproportionately exclude persons from historically and
2economically disadvantaged groups.
3    (d) The General Assembly finds that occupational licensing
4procedures and programs can unintentionally erect costly
5barriers to employment for low-income persons, persons who
6identify as black, indigenous, and people of color, formerly
7convicted or incarcerated persons, women, and other
8historically and economically disadvantaged populations.
9    (e) It is in the public policy interest of the State to
10ensure that costly, unnecessary personal qualification
11requirements or procedures in current occupational licensing
12policies are minimized or removed in order to expand equitable
13access to employment opportunities for persons in historically
14and economically disadvantaged populations.
 
15    Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
16    "Department" means the Department of Financial and
17Professional Regulation.
18    "Low-income and middle-income licensed occupations" means
19any licensed occupation regulated by the Department where the
20average annual income of those employed in the occupation in
21this State is equal to or less than the median annual income
22for residents of this State as determined by the 2020 United
23States Census.
24    "Task Force" means the Comprehensive Licensing Information
25to Minimize Barriers Task Force.
 

 

 

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1    Section 15. Task Force.
2    (a) The Comprehensive Licensing Information to Minimize
3Barriers Task Force is hereby created within the Department of
4Financial and Professional Regulation.
5    (b) Within 60 days after the effective date of this Act,
6the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall appoint the
7chairperson of the Task Force and the President of the Senate
8shall appoint the vice-chairperson.
9    (c) Within 90 days after the appointment of the
10chairperson and vice-chairperson, the chairperson and
11vice-chairperson of the Task Force shall unanimously appoint
12the following members of the Task Force:
13        (1) one representative from a nonprofit organization
14    that focuses on workforce development;
15        (2) one representative from a nonprofit organization
16    that focuses on reintegrating citizens returning from a
17    period of incarceration;
18        (3) one member of the public that works in a
19    low-income or middle-income licensed occupation and holds
20    an active license in good standing who has faced barriers
21    to employment through licensure, who may be recommended by
22    the member described in paragraph (1);
23        (4) one member of the public that works in a
24    low-income or middle-income licensed occupation and holds
25    an active license in good standing who has faced barriers

 

 

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1    to employment through licensure specifically due to a
2    period of incarceration, who may be recommended by the
3    member described in paragraph (2);
4        (5) one member who holds an advanced degree and is an
5    expert in the field of licensing, workforce development,
6    or labor economics and is currently either a member of the
7    faculty at an accredited college or university in this
8    State or conducting related research through a research
9    institute affiliated with an accredited college or
10    university in this State; and
11        (6) one member who holds an advanced degree and is an
12    expert in the field of public health and safety regulation
13    and is currently either a member of the faculty at an
14    accredited college or university in this State or
15    conducting related research through a research institute
16    affiliated with an accredited college or university in
17    this State.
18    (d) Within 90 days after the appointment of the
19chairperson and vice-chairperson, the following members shall
20be appointed to the Task Force:
21        (1) the Secretary of Financial and Professional
22    Regulation, or the Secretary's appointed designee;
23        (2) one member appointed by the Minority Leader of the
24    House of Representatives; and
25        (3) one member appointed by the Minority Leader of the
26    Senate.

 

 

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1    (e) Members of the Task Force shall serve without
2compensation, but may be reimbursed for necessary expenses
3incurred in the performance of their duties from funds
4appropriated for that purpose.
5    (f) The Department shall provide administrative support to
6the Task Force.
7    (g) Within 60 days after the final selection and
8appointment of the members of the Task Force, the chairperson
9shall convene the first meeting of the Task Force.
10    (h) Meetings of the Task Force shall be held monthly, with
11at least 30 days between the previous meeting and the upcoming
12meeting. Meetings shall be posted publicly.
 
13    Section 20. Report.
14    (a) The Task Force shall conduct an analysis of
15occupational licensing, including, but not limited to,
16processes, procedures, and statutory requirements for
17licensure administered by the Department. The findings of this
18analysis shall be delivered to the General Assembly, the
19Office of Management and Budget, the Department, and the
20public in the form of a final report. For the purpose of
21ensuring that historically and economically disadvantaged
22populations are centered in this analysis, the Task Force
23shall identify low-income and middle-income licensed
24occupations in this State and aggregate the information from
25those occupations under the occupations' respective regulatory

 

 

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1board overseen by the Department to form the basis of the
2report.
3    (b) The report shall contain, to the extent available,
4information collected from sources including, but not limited
5to, the Department, department licensure boards, other State
6boards, relevant departments, or other bodies of the State,
7and supplementary data including, but not limited to, census
8statistics, federal reporting, or published research as
9follows:
10        (1) the number of license applications submitted
11    compared with the number of licenses issued;
12        (2) data concerning the reason why licenses were
13    denied or revoked and a ranking of the most common reasons
14    for denial or revocation;
15        (3) an analysis of the information required of license
16    applicants by the Department compared with the information
17    that the Department is required by statute to verify, to
18    ascertain if applicants are required to submit superfluous
19    information;
20        (4) demographic information for the last 5 years of
21    (i) active license holders, (ii) license holders who were
22    disciplined in that period, (iii) license holders whose
23    licenses were revoked in that period, and (iv) license
24    applicants who were not issued licenses;
25        (5) data aggregated from the last 5 years of monthly
26    enforcement reports, including a ranking of the most

 

 

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1    common reasons for public discipline;
2        (6) the cost of licensure to the individual,
3    including, but not limited to, the fees for initial
4    licensure and renewal, the average cost of training and
5    testing required for initial licensure, and the average
6    cost of meeting continuing education requirements for
7    license renewal;
8        (7) the locations within this State of each program or
9    school that provides the required training and testing
10    needed to obtain or renew a license, and whether the
11    required training and testing can be fulfilled online;
12        (8) the languages in which the required training or
13    testing is offered;
14        (9) the acceptance rates, graduation rates, and
15    dropout rates of the training facilities that provide
16    required training;
17        (10) the percentage of students at each school that
18    offers required training who financed the required
19    training through student loans; and
20        (11) the average annual salary of those in the
21    occupation.
22    (c) The final report shall also contain a general
23description of the steps taken by the Task Force to fulfill the
24report criteria and shall include in an appendix of the report
25any results of the Task Force's analysis in the form of graphs,
26charts, or other data visualizations. The Task Force shall

 

 

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1also exercise due care in the reporting of this information to
2protect sensitive information of personal or proprietary value
3or information that would risk the security of residents of
4this State.
5    (d) The Task Force shall publish the final report by
6December 1, 2023 with recommendations to the General Assembly,
7including recommendations for continued required reporting
8from the Department to better support the General Assembly in
9revoking, modifying, or creating new licensing Acts.
 
10    Section 90. Repeal. This Act is repealed December 1, 2024.
 
11    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
12becoming law.