97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB1565

 

Introduced 2/15/2011, by Rep. Rita Mayfield

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
775 ILCS 5/1-103  from Ch. 68, par. 1-103
775 ILCS 5/3-104.2 new

    Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act. Adds to the definition of a civil rights violation: a prohibition against a landlord inquiring about an arrest record or refusing to rent a unit because the prospective tenant has an arrest record. Provides that it is a civil rights violation for the owner or the agent of any housing accommodation to inquire whether a prospective tenant has an arrest record or to refuse to rent a unit because the prospective tenant has an arrest record. Provides that these 2 prohibitions shall not apply to an apartment rental in an apartment building with 4 units or less when one is occupied by the owner or to the rental of a room in a private home that is owner-occupied.


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A BILL FOR

 

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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 3-104.2 as
6follows:
 
7    (775 ILCS 5/1-103)  (from Ch. 68, par. 1-103)
8    Sec. 1-103. General Definitions. When used in this Act,
9unless the context requires otherwise, the term:
10    (A) Age. "Age" means the chronological age of a person who
11is at least 40 years old, except with regard to any practice
12described in Section 2-102, insofar as that practice concerns
13training or apprenticeship programs. In the case of training or
14apprenticeship programs, for the purposes of Section 2-102,
15"age" means the chronological age of a person who is 18 but not
16yet 40 years old.
17    (B) Aggrieved Party. "Aggrieved party" means a person who
18is alleged or proved to have been injured by a civil rights
19violation or believes he or she will be injured by a civil
20rights violation under Article 3 that is about to occur.
21    (C) Charge. "Charge" means an allegation filed with the
22Department by an aggrieved party or initiated by the Department
23under its authority.

 

 

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1    (D) Civil Rights Violation. "Civil rights violation"
2includes and shall be limited to only those specific acts set
3forth in Sections 2-102, 2-103, 2-105, 3-102, 3-102.1, 3-103,
43-104, 3-104.1, 3-104.2, 3-105, 3-105.1, 4-102, 4-103, 5-102,
55A-102, 6-101, and 6-102 of this Act.
6    (E) Commission. "Commission" means the Human Rights
7Commission created by this Act.
8    (F) Complaint. "Complaint" means the formal pleading filed
9by the Department with the Commission following an
10investigation and finding of substantial evidence of a civil
11rights violation.
12    (G) Complainant. "Complainant" means a person including
13the Department who files a charge of civil rights violation
14with the Department or the Commission.
15    (H) Department. "Department" means the Department of Human
16Rights created by this Act.
17    (I) Disability. "Disability" means a determinable physical
18or mental characteristic of a person, including, but not
19limited to, a determinable physical characteristic which
20necessitates the person's use of a guide, hearing or support
21dog, the history of such characteristic, or the perception of
22such characteristic by the person complained against, which may
23result from disease, injury, congenital condition of birth or
24functional disorder and which characteristic:
25        (1) For purposes of Article 2 is unrelated to the
26    person's ability to perform the duties of a particular job

 

 

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1    or position and, pursuant to Section 2-104 of this Act, a
2    person's illegal use of drugs or alcohol is not a
3    disability;
4        (2) For purposes of Article 3, is unrelated to the
5    person's ability to acquire, rent or maintain a housing
6    accommodation;
7        (3) For purposes of Article 4, is unrelated to a
8    person's ability to repay;
9        (4) For purposes of Article 5, is unrelated to a
10    person's ability to utilize and benefit from a place of
11    public accommodation.
12    (J) Marital Status. "Marital status" means the legal status
13of being married, single, separated, divorced or widowed.
14    (J-1) Military Status. "Military status" means a person's
15status on active duty in or status as a veteran of the armed
16forces of the United States, status as a current member or
17veteran of any reserve component of the armed forces of the
18United States, including the United States Army Reserve, United
19States Marine Corps Reserve, United States Navy Reserve, United
20States Air Force Reserve, and United States Coast Guard
21Reserve, or status as a current member or veteran of the
22Illinois Army National Guard or Illinois Air National Guard.
23    (K) National Origin. "National origin" means the place in
24which a person or one of his or her ancestors was born.
25    (K-5) "Order of protection status" means a person's status
26as being a person protected under an order of protection issued

 

 

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1pursuant to the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986 or an
2order of protection issued by a court of another state.
3    (L) Person. "Person" includes one or more individuals,
4partnerships, associations or organizations, labor
5organizations, labor unions, joint apprenticeship committees,
6or union labor associations, corporations, the State of
7Illinois and its instrumentalities, political subdivisions,
8units of local government, legal representatives, trustees in
9bankruptcy or receivers.
10    (M) Public Contract. "Public contract" includes every
11contract to which the State, any of its political subdivisions
12or any municipal corporation is a party.
13    (N) Religion. "Religion" includes all aspects of religious
14observance and practice, as well as belief, except that with
15respect to employers, for the purposes of Article 2, "religion"
16has the meaning ascribed to it in paragraph (F) of Section
172-101.
18    (O) Sex. "Sex" means the status of being male or female.
19    (O-1) Sexual orientation. "Sexual orientation" means
20actual or perceived heterosexuality, homosexuality,
21bisexuality, or gender-related identity, whether or not
22traditionally associated with the person's designated sex at
23birth. "Sexual orientation" does not include a physical or
24sexual attraction to a minor by an adult.
25    (P) Unfavorable Military Discharge. "Unfavorable military
26discharge" includes discharges from the Armed Forces of the

 

 

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1United States, their Reserve components or any National Guard
2or Naval Militia which are classified as RE-3 or the equivalent
3thereof, but does not include those characterized as RE-4 or
4"Dishonorable".
5    (Q) Unlawful Discrimination. "Unlawful discrimination"
6means discrimination against a person because of his or her
7race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, sex,
8marital status, order of protection status, disability,
9military status, sexual orientation, or unfavorable discharge
10from military service as those terms are defined in this
11Section.
12(Source: P.A. 95-392, eff. 8-23-07; 95-668, eff. 10-10-07;
1395-876, eff. 8-21-08; 96-328, eff. 8-11-09; 96-447, eff.
141-1-10.)
 
15    (775 ILCS 5/3-104.2 new)
16    Sec. 3-104.2. Refusal to rent because of an arrest record.
17    (a) It is a civil rights violation for the owner or agent
18of any housing accommodation to:
19        (1) inquire into any arrest record of a renter; or
20        (2) refuse to rent or otherwise make unavailable rental
21    property to any person because he or she has an arrest
22    record.
23    (b) Nothing contained in subsection (a) shall prohibit:
24        (1) rental of a housing accommodation in a building
25    which contains housing accommodations for not more than 4

 

 

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1    families living independently of each other, if the owner
2    resides in one of the housing accommodations; or
3        (2) rental of a room or rooms in a private home by an
4    owner if he or she or a member of his or her family resides
5    therein or, while absent for a period of not more than
6    twelve months, if he or she or a member of his or her
7    family intends to return to reside therein.