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90_SB0855enr
20 ILCS 608/15
20 ILCS 610/Act rep.
20 ILCS 1105/8 from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 7408
30 ILCS 750/8-3 from Ch. 127, par. 2708-3
Amends the Business Assistance and Regulatory Reform Act.
Deletes the provisions concerning certain permit processing
activities of the Office of Permits and Regulatory Assistance
within the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs.
Repeals the Corridors of Opportunity and Development Act.
Amends the Energy Conservation and Coal Development Act to
provide that the Illinois Coal Development Board may submit
to the Governor and General Assembly the coal market report
on October 1 of each year (now March 1). Amends the Build
Illinois Act to provide that the Department of Commerce and
Community Affairs may provide staff, administration, and
other support for the Public Infrastructure Loan and Grant
Programs and pay for the support from the Public
Infrastructure Construction Loan Revolving Fund. Effective
immediately.
LRB9001779PTcw
SB855 Enrolled LRB9001779PTcw
1 AN ACT concerning business programs.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 3. The Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is
5 amended by changing Section 46.19a as follows:
6 (20 ILCS 605/46.19a) (from Ch. 127, par. 46.19a)
7 (Text of Section before amendment by P.A. 89-507)
8 Sec. 46.19a. Employment and technology grants.
9 (1) Grants to provide training in fields affected by
10 critical demands for certain skills may be made as provided
11 in this subsection.
12 (a) The Director of the Department may make grants
13 to eligible employers or to other eligible entities on
14 behalf of employers as authorized in paragraph (b) to
15 provide training for employees in fields for which there
16 are critical demands for certain skills.
17 (b) The Director may accept applications for
18 training grant funds and grant requests from: (i)
19 entities sponsoring multi-company eligible employee
20 training projects as defined in paragraph (c), including
21 business associations, strategic business partnerships,
22 institutions of secondary or higher education, large
23 manufacturers for supplier network companies, federal Job
24 Training Partnership Act administrative entities or grant
25 recipients, and labor organizations when those projects
26 will address common training needs identified by
27 participating companies; and (ii) individual employers
28 that are undertaking eligible employee training projects
29 as defined in paragraph (c), including intermediaries and
30 training agents.
31 (c) The Director may make grants to eligible
SB855 Enrolled -2- LRB9001779PTcw
1 applicants as defined in paragraph (b) for employee
2 training projects that include, but need not be limited
3 to, one or more of the following:
4 (i) training programs in response to new or
5 changing technology being introduced in the
6 workplace;
7 (ii) job-linked training that offers special
8 skills for career advancement or that is preparatory
9 for, and leads directly to, jobs with definite
10 career potential and long-term job security;
11 (iii) training necessary to implement total
12 quality management or improvement or both management
13 and improvement systems within the workplace;
14 (iv) training related to new machinery or
15 equipment;
16 (v) training of employees of companies that
17 are expanding into new markets or expanding exports
18 from Illinois;
19 (vi) basic, remedial, or both basic and
20 remedial training of employees as a prerequisite for
21 other vocational or technical skills training or as
22 a condition for sustained employment;
23 (vii) self-employment training of the
24 unemployed and underemployed with comprehensive,
25 competency-based instructional programs and
26 services; and
27 (viii) other training activities, projects, or
28 both training activities and projects related to the
29 support, development, or evaluation of job training
30 programs, activities, and delivery systems,
31 including training needs assessment and design.
32 (d) Grants shall be made on the terms and
33 conditions that the Department shall determine, provided,
34 however, that no grant made under the provisions of
SB855 Enrolled -3- LRB9001779PTcw
1 paragraph (c) of this subsection shall exceed 50% of the
2 direct costs of all approved training programs provided
3 by the employer or the employer's training agent or other
4 entity as defined in paragraph (b). Under this Section,
5 allowable costs include, but are not limited to:
6 (i) administrative costs of tracking,
7 documenting, reporting, and processing training
8 funds or project costs;
9 (ii) curriculum development;
10 (iii) wages and fringe benefits of employees;
11 (iv) training materials, including scrap
12 product costs;
13 (v) trainee travel expenses;
14 (vi) instructor costs, including wages, fringe
15 benefits, tuition, and travel expenses;
16 (vii) rent, purchase, or lease of training
17 equipment; and
18 (viii) other usual and customary training
19 costs.
20 (e) The Director will shall ensure that a minimum
21 of one periodic on-site grant monitoring visit is visits
22 are conducted by the Department either during the course
23 of the grant period or within 6 months following the end
24 of the grant period. The Department shall verify that
25 the grantee's financial management system is structured
26 to provide for accurate, current, and complete disclosure
27 of the financial results of the grant program in
28 accordance with all provisions, terms, and conditions
29 contained in the grant contract.
30 (f) The Director may establish and collect a
31 schedule of charges from subgrantee entities and other
32 system users under federal job-training programs for
33 participating in and utilizing the department's automated
34 job-training program information systems where such
SB855 Enrolled -4- LRB9001779PTcw
1 systems and the necessary participation and utilization
2 is a requirement of the federal job-training programs.
3 All monies collected pursuant to this paragraph shall be
4 deposited into the Federal Job-Training Information
5 Systems Revolving Fund created in subsection (5).
6 (2) The Department is authorized to establish a program
7 of grants to universities, community colleges, research
8 institutions, research consortiums, other not-for-profit
9 entities, and Illinois businesses for the purpose of
10 fostering research and development in the high technology and
11 the service sector leading to the development of new products
12 and services that can be marketed by Illinois businesses. All
13 grant awards shall include a contract which may provide for
14 payment of negotiated royalties to the Department if the
15 product or service to be developed by the grantee is
16 subsequently licensed for production.
17 (a) Grants may be awarded to universities and
18 research institutions to assist them in making their
19 faculties and facilities available to Illinois
20 businesses. Such grants may be used by a university or
21 research institution for, including but not limited to
22 the following purposes: (i) to establish or enhance
23 computerized cataloging of all research labs and
24 university staff and make such catalogues available to
25 Illinois businesses; (ii) to market products developed by
26 the university to Illinois businesses; (iii) to review
27 publications in order to identify, catalog, and inform
28 Illinois businesses of new practices in areas such as
29 robotics, biotechnology; (iv) to build an on-line,
30 information and technology system that relies on other
31 computerized networks in the United States; (v) to assist
32 in securing temporary replacement for faculty who are
33 granted a leave of absence from their teaching duties for
34 the purpose of working full-time for an Illinois business
SB855 Enrolled -5- LRB9001779PTcw
1 to assist that business with technology transfer.
2 (b) Grants may be awarded to universities and
3 research institutions, research consortiums and other
4 not-for-profit entities for the purpose of identifying
5 and supporting Illinois businesses engaged in high
6 technology and service sector enterprises. Such Illinois
7 businesses identified and funded shall include recipients
8 of Small Business Innovation Research Program funds under
9 subsections (e) through (k) of Section 9 of the Small
10 Business Act. (Title 15 United States Codes, subsections
11 638(e)-638(k)). Entities receiving grants under this
12 paragraph (b) shall be known as commercialization centers
13 and shall engage in one or more of the following
14 activities:
15 (i) directing research assistance for new
16 venture creations;
17 (ii) general feasibility studies of new
18 venture ideas;
19 (iii) furthering the technical and
20 intellectual skills of the managers and owners of
21 Illinois small businesses;
22 (iv) commercialization of technology and
23 research;
24 (v) development of prototypes and testing new
25 products;
26 (vi) identify and assist in securing
27 financing;
28 (vii) marketing assistance; and
29 (viii) assisting Illinois inventors in finding
30 Illinois manufacturers to produce and market their
31 inventions.
32 A commercialization center may charge a nominal fee
33 or accept royalty agreements for conducting feasibility
34 studies and other services.
SB855 Enrolled -6- LRB9001779PTcw
1 (c) Grants may be awarded by the Department to
2 Illinois businesses to fund research and consultation
3 arrangements between businesses and universities,
4 community colleges, research institutions, research
5 consortiums and other not-for-profit entities within this
6 State.
7 The Department shall give priority to Illinois small
8 businesses in awarding grants. Each grant awarded under
9 this paragraph (c) shall provide funding for up to 50% of
10 the cost of the research or consultation arrangements,
11 not to exceed $100,000; provided that the grant recipient
12 utilizes Illinois not for profit research and academic
13 institutions to perform the research and development
14 function for which grant funds were requested.
15 (d) Grants may be awarded to research consortium
16 and other qualified applicants, in conjunction with
17 private sector or federal funding, for other creative
18 systems that bridge university resources and business,
19 technological, production and development concerns.
20 (e) For the purposes of subsection (2), (i)
21 "Illinois business" means a "small business concern" as
22 defined in Title 15 United States Code, Section 632,
23 which primarily conducts its business in Illinois; (ii)
24 "high technology" means any area of research or
25 development designed to foster greater knowledge or
26 understanding in fields such as computer science,
27 electronics, physics, chemistry or biology for the
28 purpose of producing designing, developing or improving
29 prototypes and new processes; (iii) "private sector"
30 shall have the meaning ascribed to it in Title 29 United
31 States Code, Section 1503; (iv) "University" means either
32 a degree granting institution located in Illinois as
33 defined in Section 2 of the Academic Degree Act, or a
34 State-supported institution of higher learning
SB855 Enrolled -7- LRB9001779PTcw
1 administered by the Board of Trustees of the University
2 of Illinois, the Board of Trustees of Southern Illinois
3 University, the Board of Trustees of Chicago State
4 University, the Board of Trustees of Eastern Illinois
5 University, the Board of Trustees of Governors State
6 University, the Board of Trustees of Illinois State
7 University, the Board of Trustees of Northeastern
8 Illinois University, the Board of Trustees of Northern
9 Illinois University, the Board of Trustees of Western
10 Illinois University, or the Illinois Community College
11 Board; (v) "venture" means any Illinois business engaged
12 in research and development to create new products or
13 services with high growth potential; (vi) Illinois
14 research institutions refers to not-for-profit entities,
15 which include federally-funded research laboratories,
16 that conduct research and development activities for the
17 purpose of producing, designing, developing, or improving
18 prototypes and new processes; and (vii) other
19 not-for-profit entities means non-profit organizations
20 based in Illinois that are primarily devoted to new
21 enterprise or product development.
22 (f) The Department may establish a program of grant
23 assistance on a matching basis to universities, community
24 colleges, small business development centers, community
25 action agencies and other not-for-profit economic
26 development agencies to encourage new enterprise
27 development and new business formation and to encourage
28 enterprises in this State. The Department may provide
29 grants, which shall be exempt from the provisions of
30 subsection (3) of this Section, to universities,
31 community colleges, small business development centers,
32 community action agencies and other not-for-profit
33 economic development entities for the purpose of making
34 loans to small businesses. All grant applications shall
SB855 Enrolled -8- LRB9001779PTcw
1 contain information as required by the Department,
2 including the following: a program operation plan; a
3 certification and assurance that the small business
4 applicants have received business development training or
5 education, have a business and finance plan and have
6 experience in the proposed business area; and a
7 description of the support services which the grant
8 recipient will provide to the small business. No more
9 than 10% of the grant may be used by the grant recipient
10 for administrative costs associated with the grant.
11 Grant recipients may use grant funds under this program
12 to make loans on terms and conditions favorable to the
13 small business and shall give priority to those
14 businesses located in high poverty areas, enterprise
15 zones, or both.
16 (3) There is created within the Department, a Technology
17 Innovation and Commercialization Grants-in-Aid Council which
18 shall consist of 2 representatives of the Department of
19 Commerce and Community Affairs appointed by the Department;
20 one representative of the Illinois Board of Higher Education,
21 appointed by the Board; one representative of science or
22 engineering appointed by the Governor; two representatives of
23 business, appointed by the Governor; one representative of
24 small business, appointed by the Governor; one representative
25 of the Department of Agriculture, appointed by the Director
26 of Agriculture; and one representative of agribusiness,
27 appointed by the Director of Agriculture. The Director of
28 Commerce and Community Affairs shall appoint one of the
29 Department's representatives to serve as chairman of the
30 Council. The Council members shall receive no compensation
31 for their services but shall be reimbursed for their expenses
32 actually incurred by them in the performance of their duties
33 under this subsection. The Department shall provide staff
34 services to the Council. The Council shall provide for review
SB855 Enrolled -9- LRB9001779PTcw
1 and evaluation of all applications received by the Department
2 under subsection (2) of this Section and make recommendations
3 on those projects to be funded. The Council shall also assist
4 the Department in monitoring the projects and in evaluating
5 the impact of the program on technological innovation and
6 business development within the State.
7 (4) There is hereby created a special fund in the State
8 Treasury to be known as the Technology Innovation and
9 Commercialization Fund. The moneys in such Fund may be used,
10 subject to appropriation, only for making grants pursuant to
11 subsection (2) of this Section and for the purposes of the
12 Technology Advancement and Development Act. All royalties
13 received by the Department shall be deposited in such Fund.
14 (5) There is hereby created a special fund in the State
15 treasury to be known as the Federal Job-Training Information
16 Systems Revolving Fund. The deposit of monies into this fund
17 shall be limited to the collection of charges pursuant to
18 paragraph (f) of subsection (1) of this Section. The monies
19 in the fund may only be used, subject to appropriation by the
20 General Assembly for the purpose of financing the maintenance
21 and operation of the automated Federal Job-Training
22 Information Systems pursuant to paragraph (f) of subsection
23 (1) of this Section.
24 (6) When the Department is involved in developing a
25 federal or State funded training or retraining program for
26 any employer, the Department will assist and encourage that
27 employer in making every effort to reemploy individuals
28 previously employed at the facility. Further, the Department
29 will provide a list of said employees to said employer for
30 consideration for reemployment and will report the results of
31 this effort to the Illinois Job Training Coordinating
32 Council. This requirement shall be in effect when the
33 following conditions are met:
34 (a) the employer is reopening, or is proposing to
SB855 Enrolled -10- LRB9001779PTcw
1 reopen, a facility which was last closed during the
2 preceding 2 years,
3 (b) a substantial number of the persons who were
4 employed at the facility before its most recent closure
5 remain unemployed, and
6 (c) the product or service produced by, or proposed
7 to be produced by, the employer at the facility is
8 substantially similar to the product or service produced
9 at the facility before its most recent closure.
10 (7) The Department, in cooperation with the Departments
11 of Public Aid and Employment Security, may establish a
12 program to encourage community action agencies to establish
13 programs that will help unemployed and underemployed single
14 parents to identify, access, and develop, through such means
15 as counseling or mentoring, internal and external resources
16 that will enable those single parents to become emotionally
17 and financially self-sufficient. The intended primary
18 beneficiaries of the local programs shall be female heads of
19 households who are at least 22 but less than 46 years of age
20 and who are physically able to work but are unemployed or
21 underemployed. The Department may make grants, subject to
22 the availability of funding, to communities and local
23 agencies for the purpose of establishing local programs as
24 described in this subsection (7). A grant under this
25 subsection (7) shall be made for a period of one year and may
26 be renewed if the Department determines that the program is
27 successful in meeting its objectives. If the Department
28 determines that implementation of a program has resulted in a
29 savings of State moneys that otherwise would have been paid
30 to beneficiaries of the program, the Department, on renewing
31 a grant, may adjust the grant amount for those demonstrated
32 savings. For purposes of this subsection, a person is
33 underemployed if his or her income from employment is less
34 than 185% of the federal official poverty income guideline.
SB855 Enrolled -11- LRB9001779PTcw
1 (Source: P.A. 88-373; 88-456; 88-670, eff. 12-2-94; 89-4,
2 eff. 1-1-96.)
3 (Text of Section after amendment by P.A. 89-507)
4 Sec. 46.19a. Employment and technology grants.
5 (1) Grants to provide training in fields affected by
6 critical demands for certain skills may be made as provided
7 in this subsection.
8 (a) The Director of the Department may make grants
9 to eligible employers or to other eligible entities on
10 behalf of employers as authorized in paragraph (b) to
11 provide training for employees in fields for which there
12 are critical demands for certain skills.
13 (b) The Director may accept applications for
14 training grant funds and grant requests from: (i)
15 entities sponsoring multi-company eligible employee
16 training projects as defined in paragraph (c), including
17 business associations, strategic business partnerships,
18 institutions of secondary or higher education, large
19 manufacturers for supplier network companies, federal Job
20 Training Partnership Act administrative entities or grant
21 recipients, and labor organizations when those projects
22 will address common training needs identified by
23 participating companies; and (ii) individual employers
24 that are undertaking eligible employee training projects
25 as defined in paragraph (c), including intermediaries and
26 training agents.
27 (c) The Director may make grants to eligible
28 applicants as defined in paragraph (b) for employee
29 training projects that include, but need not be limited
30 to, one or more of the following:
31 (i) training programs in response to new or
32 changing technology being introduced in the
33 workplace;
34 (ii) job-linked training that offers special
SB855 Enrolled -12- LRB9001779PTcw
1 skills for career advancement or that is preparatory
2 for, and leads directly to, jobs with definite
3 career potential and long-term job security;
4 (iii) training necessary to implement total
5 quality management or improvement or both management
6 and improvement systems within the workplace;
7 (iv) training related to new machinery or
8 equipment;
9 (v) training of employees of companies that
10 are expanding into new markets or expanding exports
11 from Illinois;
12 (vi) basic, remedial, or both basic and
13 remedial training of employees as a prerequisite for
14 other vocational or technical skills training or as
15 a condition for sustained employment;
16 (vii) self-employment training of the
17 unemployed and underemployed with comprehensive,
18 competency-based instructional programs and
19 services; and
20 (viii) other training activities, projects, or
21 both training activities and projects related to the
22 support, development, or evaluation of job training
23 programs, activities, and delivery systems,
24 including training needs assessment and design.
25 (d) Grants shall be made on the terms and
26 conditions that the Department shall determine, provided,
27 however, that no grant made under the provisions of
28 paragraph (c) of this subsection shall exceed 50% of the
29 direct costs of all approved training programs provided
30 by the employer or the employer's training agent or other
31 entity as defined in paragraph (b). Under this Section,
32 allowable costs include, but are not limited to:
33 (i) administrative costs of tracking,
34 documenting, reporting, and processing training
SB855 Enrolled -13- LRB9001779PTcw
1 funds or project costs;
2 (ii) curriculum development;
3 (iii) wages and fringe benefits of employees;
4 (iv) training materials, including scrap
5 product costs;
6 (v) trainee travel expenses;
7 (vi) instructor costs, including wages, fringe
8 benefits, tuition, and travel expenses;
9 (vii) rent, purchase, or lease of training
10 equipment; and
11 (viii) other usual and customary training
12 costs.
13 (e) The Director will shall ensure that a minimum
14 of one periodic on-site grant monitoring visit is visits
15 are conducted by the Department either during the course
16 of the grant period or within 6 months following the end
17 of the grant period. The Department shall verify that
18 the grantee's financial management system is structured
19 to provide for accurate, current, and complete disclosure
20 of the financial results of the grant program in
21 accordance with all provisions, terms, and conditions
22 contained in the grant contract.
23 (f) The Director may establish and collect a
24 schedule of charges from subgrantee entities and other
25 system users under federal job-training programs for
26 participating in and utilizing the department's automated
27 job-training program information systems where such
28 systems and the necessary participation and utilization
29 is a requirement of the federal job-training programs.
30 All monies collected pursuant to this paragraph shall be
31 deposited into the Federal Job-Training Information
32 Systems Revolving Fund created in subsection (5).
33 (2) The Department is authorized to establish a program
34 of grants to universities, community colleges, research
SB855 Enrolled -14- LRB9001779PTcw
1 institutions, research consortiums, other not-for-profit
2 entities, and Illinois businesses for the purpose of
3 fostering research and development in the high technology and
4 the service sector leading to the development of new products
5 and services that can be marketed by Illinois businesses. All
6 grant awards shall include a contract which may provide for
7 payment of negotiated royalties to the Department if the
8 product or service to be developed by the grantee is
9 subsequently licensed for production.
10 (a) Grants may be awarded to universities and
11 research institutions to assist them in making their
12 faculties and facilities available to Illinois
13 businesses. Such grants may be used by a university or
14 research institution for, including but not limited to
15 the following purposes: (i) to establish or enhance
16 computerized cataloging of all research labs and
17 university staff and make such catalogues available to
18 Illinois businesses; (ii) to market products developed by
19 the university to Illinois businesses; (iii) to review
20 publications in order to identify, catalog, and inform
21 Illinois businesses of new practices in areas such as
22 robotics, biotechnology; (iv) to build an on-line,
23 information and technology system that relies on other
24 computerized networks in the United States; (v) to assist
25 in securing temporary replacement for faculty who are
26 granted a leave of absence from their teaching duties for
27 the purpose of working full-time for an Illinois business
28 to assist that business with technology transfer.
29 (b) Grants may be awarded to universities and
30 research institutions, research consortiums and other
31 not-for-profit entities for the purpose of identifying
32 and supporting Illinois businesses engaged in high
33 technology and service sector enterprises. Such Illinois
34 businesses identified and funded shall include recipients
SB855 Enrolled -15- LRB9001779PTcw
1 of Small Business Innovation Research Program funds under
2 subsections (e) through (k) of Section 9 of the Small
3 Business Act. (Title 15 United States Codes, subsections
4 638(e)-638(k)). Entities receiving grants under this
5 paragraph (b) shall be known as commercialization centers
6 and shall engage in one or more of the following
7 activities:
8 (i) directing research assistance for new
9 venture creations;
10 (ii) general feasibility studies of new
11 venture ideas;
12 (iii) furthering the technical and
13 intellectual skills of the managers and owners of
14 Illinois small businesses;
15 (iv) commercialization of technology and
16 research;
17 (v) development of prototypes and testing new
18 products;
19 (vi) identify and assist in securing
20 financing;
21 (vii) marketing assistance; and
22 (viii) assisting Illinois inventors in finding
23 Illinois manufacturers to produce and market their
24 inventions.
25 A commercialization center may charge a nominal fee
26 or accept royalty agreements for conducting feasibility
27 studies and other services.
28 (c) Grants may be awarded by the Department to
29 Illinois businesses to fund research and consultation
30 arrangements between businesses and universities,
31 community colleges, research institutions, research
32 consortiums and other not-for-profit entities within this
33 State.
34 The Department shall give priority to Illinois small
SB855 Enrolled -16- LRB9001779PTcw
1 businesses in awarding grants. Each grant awarded under
2 this paragraph (c) shall provide funding for up to 50% of
3 the cost of the research or consultation arrangements,
4 not to exceed $100,000; provided that the grant recipient
5 utilizes Illinois not for profit research and academic
6 institutions to perform the research and development
7 function for which grant funds were requested.
8 (d) Grants may be awarded to research consortium
9 and other qualified applicants, in conjunction with
10 private sector or federal funding, for other creative
11 systems that bridge university resources and business,
12 technological, production and development concerns.
13 (e) For the purposes of subsection (2), (i)
14 "Illinois business" means a "small business concern" as
15 defined in Title 15 United States Code, Section 632,
16 which primarily conducts its business in Illinois; (ii)
17 "high technology" means any area of research or
18 development designed to foster greater knowledge or
19 understanding in fields such as computer science,
20 electronics, physics, chemistry or biology for the
21 purpose of producing designing, developing or improving
22 prototypes and new processes; (iii) "private sector"
23 shall have the meaning ascribed to it in Title 29 United
24 States Code, Section 1503; (iv) "University" means either
25 a degree granting institution located in Illinois as
26 defined in Section 2 of the Academic Degree Act, or a
27 State-supported institution of higher learning
28 administered by the Board of Trustees of the University
29 of Illinois, the Board of Trustees of Southern Illinois
30 University, the Board of Trustees of Chicago State
31 University, the Board of Trustees of Eastern Illinois
32 University, the Board of Trustees of Governors State
33 University, the Board of Trustees of Illinois State
34 University, the Board of Trustees of Northeastern
SB855 Enrolled -17- LRB9001779PTcw
1 Illinois University, the Board of Trustees of Northern
2 Illinois University, the Board of Trustees of Western
3 Illinois University, or the Illinois Community College
4 Board; (v) "venture" means any Illinois business engaged
5 in research and development to create new products or
6 services with high growth potential; (vi) Illinois
7 research institutions refers to not-for-profit entities,
8 which include federally-funded research laboratories,
9 that conduct research and development activities for the
10 purpose of producing, designing, developing, or improving
11 prototypes and new processes; and (vii) other
12 not-for-profit entities means non-profit organizations
13 based in Illinois that are primarily devoted to new
14 enterprise or product development.
15 (f) The Department may establish a program of grant
16 assistance on a matching basis to universities, community
17 colleges, small business development centers, community
18 action agencies and other not-for-profit economic
19 development agencies to encourage new enterprise
20 development and new business formation and to encourage
21 enterprises in this State. The Department may provide
22 grants, which shall be exempt from the provisions of
23 subsection (3) of this Section, to universities,
24 community colleges, small business development centers,
25 community action agencies and other not-for-profit
26 economic development entities for the purpose of making
27 loans to small businesses. All grant applications shall
28 contain information as required by the Department,
29 including the following: a program operation plan; a
30 certification and assurance that the small business
31 applicants have received business development training or
32 education, have a business and finance plan and have
33 experience in the proposed business area; and a
34 description of the support services which the grant
SB855 Enrolled -18- LRB9001779PTcw
1 recipient will provide to the small business. No more
2 than 10% of the grant may be used by the grant recipient
3 for administrative costs associated with the grant.
4 Grant recipients may use grant funds under this program
5 to make loans on terms and conditions favorable to the
6 small business and shall give priority to those
7 businesses located in high poverty areas, enterprise
8 zones, or both.
9 (3) There is created within the Department, a Technology
10 Innovation and Commercialization Grants-in-Aid Council which
11 shall consist of 2 representatives of the Department of
12 Commerce and Community Affairs appointed by the Department;
13 one representative of the Illinois Board of Higher Education,
14 appointed by the Board; one representative of science or
15 engineering appointed by the Governor; two representatives of
16 business, appointed by the Governor; one representative of
17 small business, appointed by the Governor; one representative
18 of the Department of Agriculture, appointed by the Director
19 of Agriculture; and one representative of agribusiness,
20 appointed by the Director of Agriculture. The Director of
21 Commerce and Community Affairs shall appoint one of the
22 Department's representatives to serve as chairman of the
23 Council. The Council members shall receive no compensation
24 for their services but shall be reimbursed for their expenses
25 actually incurred by them in the performance of their duties
26 under this subsection. The Department shall provide staff
27 services to the Council. The Council shall provide for review
28 and evaluation of all applications received by the Department
29 under subsection (2) of this Section and make recommendations
30 on those projects to be funded. The Council shall also assist
31 the Department in monitoring the projects and in evaluating
32 the impact of the program on technological innovation and
33 business development within the State.
34 (4) There is hereby created a special fund in the State
SB855 Enrolled -19- LRB9001779PTcw
1 Treasury to be known as the Technology Innovation and
2 Commercialization Fund. The moneys in such Fund may be used,
3 subject to appropriation, only for making grants pursuant to
4 subsection (2) of this Section and for the purposes of the
5 Technology Advancement and Development Act. All royalties
6 received by the Department shall be deposited in such Fund.
7 (5) There is hereby created a special fund in the State
8 treasury to be known as the Federal Job-Training Information
9 Systems Revolving Fund. The deposit of monies into this fund
10 shall be limited to the collection of charges pursuant to
11 paragraph (f) of subsection (1) of this Section. The monies
12 in the fund may only be used, subject to appropriation by the
13 General Assembly for the purpose of financing the maintenance
14 and operation of the automated Federal Job-Training
15 Information Systems pursuant to paragraph (f) of subsection
16 (1) of this Section.
17 (6) When the Department is involved in developing a
18 federal or State funded training or retraining program for
19 any employer, the Department will assist and encourage that
20 employer in making every effort to reemploy individuals
21 previously employed at the facility. Further, the Department
22 will provide a list of said employees to said employer for
23 consideration for reemployment and will report the results of
24 this effort to the Illinois Job Training Coordinating
25 Council. This requirement shall be in effect when the
26 following conditions are met:
27 (a) the employer is reopening, or is proposing to
28 reopen, a facility which was last closed during the
29 preceding 2 years,
30 (b) a substantial number of the persons who were
31 employed at the facility before its most recent closure
32 remain unemployed, and
33 (c) the product or service produced by, or proposed
34 to be produced by, the employer at the facility is
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1 substantially similar to the product or service produced
2 at the facility before its most recent closure.
3 (7) The Department, in cooperation with the Departments
4 of Human Services and Employment Security, may establish a
5 program to encourage community action agencies to establish
6 programs that will help unemployed and underemployed single
7 parents to identify, access, and develop, through such means
8 as counseling or mentoring, internal and external resources
9 that will enable those single parents to become emotionally
10 and financially self-sufficient. The intended primary
11 beneficiaries of the local programs shall be female heads of
12 households who are at least 22 but less than 46 years of age
13 and who are physically able to work but are unemployed or
14 underemployed. The Department may make grants, subject to
15 the availability of funding, to communities and local
16 agencies for the purpose of establishing local programs as
17 described in this subsection (7). A grant under this
18 subsection (7) shall be made for a period of one year and may
19 be renewed if the Department determines that the program is
20 successful in meeting its objectives. If the Department
21 determines that implementation of a program has resulted in a
22 savings of State moneys that otherwise would have been paid
23 to beneficiaries of the program, the Department, on renewing
24 a grant, may adjust the grant amount for those demonstrated
25 savings. For purposes of this subsection, a person is
26 underemployed if his or her income from employment is less
27 than 185% of the federal official poverty income guideline.
28 (Source: P.A. 88-373; 88-456; 88-670, eff. 12-2-94; 89-4,
29 eff. 1-1-96; 89-507, eff. 7-1-97.)
30 Section 5. The Business Assistance and Regulatory Reform
31 Act is amended by changing Section 15 as follows:
32 (20 ILCS 608/15)
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1 Sec. 15. Providing Information and Expediting Permit
2 Reviews.
3 (a) The office shall provide an information system using
4 a toll-free business assistance number. The number shall be
5 advertised throughout the State. If requested, the caller
6 will be sent a basic business kit, describing the basic
7 requirements and procedures for doing business in Illinois.
8 If requested, the caller shall be directed to one or more of
9 the additional services provided by the office. In addition,
10 the office shall have branches `ocated throughout the State
11 to assist persons who prefer not (or who are unable) to use
12 the call system. All persons providing advice to callers on
13 behalf of the office and all persons responsible for directly
14 providing services to persons visiting the office or one of
15 its branches shall be persons with small business experience
16 in an administrative or managerial capacity.
17 (b) (Blank). The office shall develop and implement a
18 computerized master application procedure to expedite the
19 identification and processing of permits for business
20 undertakings, projects and activities.
21 (1) The application shall be made on a form
22 prescribed by the office, designed primarily for the
23 convenience of applicants confronting requirements of
24 multiple permits from one or more State agencies. The
25 office shall assist any person requesting assistance in
26 completing the application.
27 (2) Upon receipt of a completed master application,
28 the office shall notify each State agency having a
29 possible interest in the proposed business activity.
30 Each agency so notified shall respond within 15 days and
31 advise the office whether one or more permits under its
32 jurisdiction may be required for the activity. The
33 response will also include the fees to be charged. The
34 requirements of this subdivision (b)(2) shall not apply
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1 if the master application contained false, misleading or
2 deceptive information, or failed to include pertinent
3 information, the lack of which could reasonably lead a
4 State agency to misjudge the applicability of permits
5 under its jurisdiction, or if new permit requirements or
6 related standards subsequently became effective for which
7 a State agency had no discretion in establishing the
8 effective date. For purposes of this Act, "State agency"
9 means a department or agency of State government under
10 the jurisdiction and control of the Office of the
11 Governor.
12 (3) After the 15 day notice and response period,
13 the office shall promptly provide the applicant with the
14 necessary application forms and related information for
15 all permits specified by the interested State agencies.
16 Applications may be directly filed with the agencies or
17 with the office, together with the requisite fees. The
18 office may at the request of the applicant conduct a
19 pre-application conference with representatives of the
20 interested State agencies and agencies having
21 responsibilities for business promotion.
22 (c) Any applicant for permits required for a business
23 activity may confer with the office to obtain assistance in
24 the prompt and efficient processing and review of
25 applications. The office may designate an employee of the
26 office to act as a permit assistance manager to:
27 (1) facilitate contacts for the applicant with
28 responsible agencies;
29 (2) arrange conferences to clarify the requirements
30 of interested agencies;
31 (3) consider with State agencies the feasibility of
32 consolidating hearings and data required of the
33 applicant;
34 (4) assist the applicant in resolution of
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1 outstanding issues identified by State agencies; and
2 (5) coordinate federal, State and local regulatory
3 procedures and permit review actions to the extent
4 possible.
5 (d) The office shall publish a directory of State
6 business permits and State programs to assist small
7 businesses.
8 (e) The office shall designate "economically distressed
9 areas", being State enterprise zones that have been
10 designated enterprise zones under the Illinois Enterprise
11 Zone Act because of their high unemployment rate, high
12 poverty rate, or low income. The office shall provide on-site
13 permit assistance in those areas and may require any
14 interested State agency to designate an employee who shall
15 coordinate the handling of permits in that area. Interested
16 State agencies shall, to the maximum extent feasible,
17 establish procedures to expedite applications in economically
18 distressed areas. The office shall attempt to establish
19 agreements with the local governments having jurisdiction in
20 these areas, to allow the office to provide assistance to
21 applicants for permits required by these local governments.
22 (f) The office shall designate permit assistance
23 managers to assist in obtaining the prompt and efficient
24 processing and review of applications for permits required by
25 businesses performing infrastructure projects. Interested
26 State agencies shall, to the maximum extent feasible,
27 establish procedures to expedite applications for
28 infrastructure projects. Applications for permits for
29 infrastructure projects shall be approved or disapproved
30 within 45 days of submission, unless law or regulations
31 specify a different period. If the interested agency is
32 unable to act within that period, the agency shall provide a
33 written notification to the office specifying reasons for its
34 inability to act and the date by which approval or
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1 disapproval shall be determined. The office may require any
2 interested State agency to designate an employee who will
3 coordinate the handling of permits in that area.
4 (g) In addition to its responsibilities in connection
5 with permit assistance, the office shall provide general
6 regulatory information by directing businesses to appropriate
7 officers in State agencies to supply the information
8 requested.
9 (h) The office shall help businesses to locate and apply
10 to training programs available to train current employees in
11 particular skills, techniques or areas of knowledge relevant
12 to the employees' present or anticipated job duties. In
13 pursuit of this objective, the office shall provide
14 businesses with pertinent information about training programs
15 offered by State agencies, units of local government, public
16 universities and colleges, community colleges, and school
17 districts in Illinois.
18 (i) The office shall help businesses to locate and apply
19 to State programs offering to businesses grants, loans, loan
20 or bond guarantees, investment partnerships, technology or
21 productivity consultation, or other forms of business
22 assistance.
23 (j) To the extent authorized by federal law, the office
24 shall assist businesses in ascertaining and complying with
25 the requirements of the federal Americans with Disabilities
26 Act.
27 (k) The office shall provide confidential on-site
28 assistance in identifying problems and solutions in
29 compliance with requirements of the federal Occupational
30 Safety and Health Administration and other State and federal
31 environmental regulations. The office shall work through and
32 contract with the Hazardous Waste Research and Information
33 Center to provide confidential on-site consultation audits
34 that (i) assist regulatory compliance and (ii) identify
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1 pollution prevention opportunities.
2 (l) The office shall provide information on existing
3 loan and business assistance programs provided by the State.
4 (m) Each State agency having jurisdiction to approve or
5 deny a permit shall have the continuing power heretofore or
6 hereafter vested in it to make such determinations. The
7 provisions of this Act shall not lessen or reduce such powers
8 and shall modify the procedures followed in carrying out such
9 powers only to the extent provided in this Act.
10 (n) (1) Each State agency shall fully cooperate with the
11 office in providing information, documentation, personnel or
12 facilities requested by the office.
13 (2) Each State agency having jurisdiction of any permit
14 to which the master application procedure is applicable shall
15 designate an employee to act as permit liaison office with
16 the office in carrying out the provisions of this Act.
17 (o) (1) The office has authority, but is not required,
18 to keep and analyze appropriate statistical data regarding
19 the number of permits issued by State agencies, the amount of
20 time necessary for the permits to be issued, the cost of
21 obtaining such permits, the types of projects for which
22 specific permits are issued, a geographic distribution of
23 permits, and other pertinent data the office deems
24 appropriate.
25 The office shall make such data and any analysis of the
26 data available to the public.
27 (2) The office has authority, but is not required, to
28 conduct or cause to be conducted a thorough review of any
29 agency's permit requirements and the need by the State to
30 require such permits. The office shall draw on the review,
31 on its direct experience, and on its statistical analyses to
32 prepare recommendations regarding how to:
33 (i) eliminate unnecessary or antiquated permit
34 requirements;
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1 (ii) consolidate duplicative or overlapping permit
2 requirements;
3 (iii) simplify overly complex or lengthy
4 application procedures;
5 (iv) expedite time-consuming agency review and
6 approval procedures; or
7 (v) otherwise improve the permitting processes in
8 the State.
9 The office shall submit copies of all recommendations
10 within 5 days of issuance to the affected agency, the
11 Governor, the General Assembly, and the Joint Committee on
12 Administrative Rules.
13 (p) The office has authority to review State forms on
14 its own initiative or upon the request of another State
15 agency to ascertain the burden, if any, of complying with
16 those forms. If the office determines that a form is unduly
17 burdensome to business, it may recommend to the agency
18 issuing the form either that the form be eliminated or that
19 specific changes be made in the form.
20 (q) Not later than March 1 of each year, beginning March
21 1, 1995, the office shall submit an annual report of its
22 activities during the preceding year to the Governor and
23 General Assembly. The report shall describe the activities
24 of the office during the preceding year and shall contain
25 statistical information on the permit assistance activities
26 of the office.
27 (Source: P.A. 88-404.)
28 (20 ILCS 610/Act rep.)
29 Section 10. The Corridors of Opportunity and Development
30 Act is repealed.
31 Section 15. The Energy Conservation and Coal Development
32 Act is amended by changing Section 8 as follows:
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1 (20 ILCS 1105/8) (from Ch. 96 1/2, par. 7408)
2 Sec. 8. Illinois Coal Development Board.
3 (a) There shall be established, within the Department,
4 the Illinois Coal Development Board, hereinafter in this
5 Section called the Board. The Board shall be composed of 13
6 voting members including: the Director of the Department, who
7 shall be Chairman thereof; the Director of Natural Resources
8 or that Director's designee; the Director of the Office of
9 Mines and Minerals within the Department of Natural
10 Resources; the two co-chairpersons of the Citizens Council on
11 Energy Resources, created by Public Act 84-15; and 8 persons
12 appointed by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the
13 Senate, including representatives of Illinois industries that
14 are involved in the extraction, utilization or transportation
15 of Illinois coal, persons representing financial or banking
16 interests in the State, and persons experienced in
17 international business and economic development. These
18 members shall be chosen from persons of recognized ability
19 and experience in their designated field. The 8 appointed
20 members shall serve for terms of 4 years, unless otherwise
21 provided in this subsection. The initial terms of the
22 original appointees shall expire on July 1, 1985, except that
23 the Governor shall designate 3 of the original appointees to
24 serve initial terms that shall expire on July 1, 1983. The
25 initial term of the member appointed by the Governor to fill
26 the office created after July 1, 1985 shall expire on July 1,
27 1989. The initial terms of the members appointed by the
28 Governor to fill the offices created by this amendatory Act
29 of 1993 shall expire on July 1, 1995, and July 1, 1997, as
30 determined by the Governor.
31 The Board shall meet at least annually or at the call of
32 the Chairman. At any time the majority of the Board may
33 petition the Chairman for a meeting of the Board. Seven
34 members of the Board shall constitute a quorum. Members of
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1 the Board shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary
2 expenses incurred while performing their duties as members of
3 the Board from funds appropriated to the Department for such
4 purpose.
5 (b) The Board shall have the following powers and
6 duties:
7 (1) To develop an annual agenda which may include
8 but is not limited to research and methodologies
9 conducted for the purpose of increasing the utilization
10 of Illinois' coal and other fossil fuel resources, with
11 emphasis on high sulfur coal, in the following areas:
12 coal extraction, preparation and characterization; coal
13 technologies (combustion, gasification, liquefaction, and
14 related processes); marketing; public awareness and
15 education, as those terms are used in the Illinois Coal
16 Technology Development Assistance Act; transportation;
17 procurement of sites and issuance of permits; and
18 environmental impacts.
19 (2) To support and coordinate Illinois coal
20 research, and to approve projects consistent with the
21 annual agenda and budget for coal research and the
22 purposes of this Act. The Board shall review and, if
23 acceptable, approve the annual budget and operating plan
24 submitted by the Department for administration of the
25 Board's projects and funds.
26 (3) To promote the coordination of available
27 research information on the production, preparation,
28 distribution and uses of Illinois coal. The Board shall
29 advise the existing research institutions within the
30 State on areas where research may be necessary.
31 (4) To cooperate to the fullest extent possible
32 with State and federal agencies and departments,
33 independent organizations, and other interested groups,
34 public and private, for the purposes of promoting
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1 Illinois coal resources.
2 (5) To submit an annual report to the Governor and
3 the General Assembly outlining the progress and
4 accomplishments made in the year, providing an accounting
5 of funds received and disbursed, reviewing the status of
6 research contracts, and furnishing other relevant
7 information.
8 (6) To focus on existing coal research efforts in
9 carrying out its mission. The Board shall attempt to make
10 use of existing research facilities in Illinois or other
11 institutions carrying out research on Illinois coal. As
12 far as practicable, the Board shall make maximum use of
13 the research facilities available at the Illinois State
14 Geological Survey, the Coal Extraction and Utilization
15 Research Center, the Illinois Coal Development Park and
16 universities and colleges located within the State of
17 Illinois. Subject to the approval of the Department, and
18 in conjunction with its statutory responsibilities, the
19 Board may create a consortium or center which conducts,
20 coordinates and supports coal research activities in the
21 State of Illinois. Programmatic activities of such a
22 consortium or center shall be subject to approval by the
23 Board and shall be consistent with the purposes of this
24 Act. The Board may authorize expenditure of funds in
25 support of the administrative and programmatic operations
26 of such a center or consortium consistent with its
27 statutory authority. Administrative actions undertaken
28 by or for such a center or consortium shall be subject to
29 the approval of the Department.
30 (7) To make a reasonable attempt, before initiating
31 any research under this Act, to avoid duplication of
32 effort and expense by coordinating the research efforts
33 among various agencies, departments, universities or
34 organizations, as the case may be.
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1 (8) To adopt, amend and repeal rules, regulations
2 and bylaws governing its organization, the conduct of
3 business, and the exercise of its powers and duties.
4 (9) To authorize the expenditure of monies from the
5 Coal Technology Development Assistance Fund, the Public
6 Utility Fund and other funds in the State Treasury
7 appropriated to the Department, consistent with the
8 purposes of this Act.
9 (10) To seek, accept, and expend gifts or grants in
10 any form, from any public agency or from any other
11 source. Such gifts and grants may be held in trust by
12 the Department and expended at the direction of the Board
13 and in the exercise of the Board's powers and performance
14 of the Board's duties.
15 (11) To publish, from time to time, the results of
16 Illinois coal research projects funded through the Board.
17 (12) To authorize loans from appropriations from
18 the Build Illinois Bond Purposes Fund, the Build Illinois
19 Bond Fund and the Illinois Industrial Coal Utilization
20 Fund.
21 (13) To authorize expenditures of monies for coal
22 development projects under the authority of Section 13 of
23 the General Obligation Bond Act.
24 (c) The Board shall also have and exercise the following
25 powers and duties:
26 (1) To create and maintain thorough, current and
27 accurate records on all markets for and actual uses of
28 coal mined in Illinois, and to make such records
29 available to the public upon request.
30 (2) To identify all current and anticipated future
31 technical, economic, institutional, market,
32 environmental, regulatory and other impediments to the
33 utilization of Illinois coal.
34 (3) To monitor and evaluate all proposals and plans
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1 of public utilities related to compliance with the
2 requirements of Title IV of the federal Clean Air Act
3 Amendments of 1990, or with any other law which might
4 affect the use of Illinois coal, for the purposes of (i)
5 determining the effects of such proposals or plans on the
6 use of Illinois coal, and (ii) identifying alternative
7 plans or actions which would maintain or increase the use
8 of Illinois coal.
9 (4) To develop strategies and to propose policies
10 to promote environmentally responsible uses of Illinois
11 coal for meeting electric power supply requirements and
12 for other purposes.
13 (5) To issue a report to the Governor and the
14 General Assembly by October 1, 1991, and by March 1 of
15 each year thereafter, describing all findings,
16 conclusions and recommendations required by and developed
17 pursuant to this subsection; provided, however, that
18 interim reports may be issued whenever in the opinion of
19 the Board there may be a need to do so.
20 (Source: P.A. 88-391; 89-445, eff. 2-7-96.)
21 Section 20. The Build Illinois Act is amended by
22 changing Section 8-3 as follows:
23 (30 ILCS 750/8-3) (from Ch. 127, par. 2708-3)
24 Sec. 8-3. Powers of the Department. The Department has
25 the power to:
26 (a) provide business development public infrastructure
27 loans or grants from appropriations from the Build Illinois
28 Bond Fund, the Build Illinois Purposes Fund and the Public
29 Infrastructure Construction Loan Fund to local governments to
30 provide or improve a community's public infrastructure so as
31 to create or retain private sector jobs pursuant to the
32 provisions of this Article;
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1 (b) provide affordable financing of public
2 infrastructure loans and grants to, or on behalf of, local
3 governments, local public entities, medical facilities, and
4 public health clinics from appropriations from the Public
5 Infrastructure Construction Loan Fund for the purpose of
6 assisting with the financing, or application and access to
7 financing, of a community's public infrastructure necessary
8 to health, safety, and economic development;
9 (c) enter into agreements, accept funds or grants, and
10 engage in cooperation with agencies of the federal
11 government, or state or local governments to carry out the
12 purposes of this Article, and to use funds appropriated
13 pursuant to this Article to participate in federal
14 infrastructure loan and grant programs upon such terms and
15 conditions as may be established by the federal government;
16 (d) establish application, notification, contract, and
17 other procedures, rules, or regulations deemed necessary and
18 appropriate to carry out the provisions of this Article;
19 (e) coordinate assistance under this program with
20 activities of the Illinois Development Finance Authority in
21 order to maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of State
22 development programs;
23 (f) coordinate assistance under the Affordable Financing
24 of Public Infrastructure Loan and Grant Program with the
25 activities of the Illinois Development Finance Authority,
26 Illinois Rural Bond Bank, Illinois Farm Development
27 Authority, Illinois Housing Development Authority, Illinois
28 Environmental Protection Agency, and other federal and State
29 programs and entities providing financing assistance to
30 communities for public health, safety, and economic
31 development infrastructure;.
32 (f-5) provide staff, administration, and related support
33 required to manage the programs authorized under this Article
34 and pay for the staffing, administration, and related support
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1 from the Public Infrastructure Construction Loan Revolving
2 Fund;
3 (g) exercise such other powers as are necessary or
4 incidental to the foregoing.
5 (Source: P.A. 88-453.)
6 Section 95. No acceleration or delay. Where this Act
7 makes changes in a statute that is represented in this Act by
8 text that is not yet or no longer in effect (for example, a
9 Section represented by multiple versions), the use of that
10 text does not accelerate or delay the taking effect of (i)
11 the changes made by this Act or (ii) provisions derived from
12 any other Public Act.
13 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
14 becoming law.