Public Act 098-0774
 
HB5701 EnrolledLRB098 18610 JLS 55483 b

    AN ACT concerning employment.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Job
Opportunities for Qualified Applicants Act.
 
    Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly finds that it is
in the public interest to do more to give Illinois employers
access to the broadest pool of qualified applicants possible,
protect the civil rights of those seeking employment, and
ensure that all qualified applicants are properly considered
for employment opportunities and are not pre-screened or denied
an employment opportunity unnecessarily or unjustly.
 
    Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
    "Applicant" means any person pursuing employment with an
employer or with or through an employment agency.
    "Employer" means any person or private entity that has 15
or more employees in the current or preceding calendar year,
and any agent of such an entity or person.
    "Employment agency" means any person or entity regularly
undertaking with or without compensation to procure employees
for an employer or to procure for employees opportunities to
work for an employer and includes an agent of such a person.
    "Employment" means any occupation or vocation.
 
    Section 15. Employer pre-screening.
    (a) An employer or employment agency may not inquire about
or into, consider, or require disclosure of the criminal record
or criminal history of an applicant until the applicant has
been determined qualified for the position and notified that
the applicant has been selected for an interview by the
employer or employment agency or, if there is not an interview,
until after a conditional offer of employment is made to the
applicant by the employer or employment agency.
    (b) The requirements set forth in subsection (a) of this
Section do not apply for positions where:
        (1) employers are required to exclude applicants with
    certain criminal convictions from employment due to
    federal or State law;
        (2) a standard fidelity bond or an equivalent bond is
    required and an applicant's conviction of one or more
    specified criminal offenses would disqualify the applicant
    from obtaining such a bond, in which case an employer may
    include a question or otherwise inquire whether the
    applicant has ever been convicted of any of those offenses;
    or
         (3) employers employ individuals licensed under the
    Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Systems Act.
    (c) This Section does not prohibit an employer from
notifying applicants in writing of the specific offenses that
will disqualify an applicant from employment in a particular
position due to federal or State law or the employer's policy.
 
    Section 20. Administration of Act and rulemaking
authority.
    (a) The Illinois Department of Labor shall investigate any
alleged violations of this Act by an employer or employment
agency. If the Department finds that a violation has occurred,
the Director of Labor may impose the following civil penalties:
        (1) For the first violation, the Director shall issue a
    written warning to the employer or employment agency that
    includes notice regarding penalties for subsequent
    violations and the employer shall have 30 days to remedy
    the violation;
        (2) For the second violation, or if the first violation
    is not remedied within 30 days of notice by the Department,
    the Director may impose a civil penalty of up to $500;
        (3) For the third violation, or if the first violation
    is not remedied within 60 days of notice by the Department,
    the Director may impose an additional civil penalty of up
    to $1,500;
        (4) For subsequent violations, or if the first
    violation is not remedied within 90 days of notice by the
    Department, the Director may impose an additional civil
    penalty of up to $1,500 for every 30 days that passes
    thereafter without compliance.
    (b) Penalties under this Section may be assessed by the
Department and recovered in a civil action brought by the
Department in any circuit court or in any administrative
adjudicative proceeding under this Act. In any such civil
action or administrative adjudicative proceeding under this
Act, the Department shall be represented by the Attorney
General.
    (c) All moneys recovered as civil penalties under this
Section shall be deposited into the Job Opportunities for
Qualified Applicants Enforcement Fund, a special fund which is
created in the State treasury. Moneys in the Fund may be used
only to enforce employer violations of this Act.
    (d) The Department may adopt rules necessary to administer
this Act and may establish an administrative procedure to
adjudicate claims and issue final and binding decisions subject
to the Administrative Review Law.
 
    Section 90. The State Finance Act is amended by adding
Section 5.855 as follows:
 
    (30 ILCS 105/5.855 new)
    Sec. 5.855. The Job Opportunities for Qualified Applicants
Enforcement Fund.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
1, 2015.