100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
SB2329

 

Introduced 1/24/2018, by Sen. Julie A. Morrison

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
225 ILCS 57/45
225 ILCS 57/47 new

    Amends the Massage Licensing Act. Defines "sexual misconduct". Provides that it is a violation if an owner or manager of a massage establishment knows or reasonably suspects that an employee has committed sexual misconduct against another person on the premises of, or on behalf of, the massage establishment and fails to report to the appropriate law enforcement agency. Provides that a person in violation of the provisions is subject to a fine of not more than $1,500 for each unreported case or revocation of his or her massage therapy license, or both. Increases the fine in instances in which the violator is 17 years of age or older and holds a position of trust, authority, or supervision against a victim between 13 and 18 years old. Provides that it is a violation if an owner or manager of a massage establishment fails to display the policies and procedures relating to sexual misconduct in a manner visible to customers of the massage establishment. Provides injunctive relief available upon the second or subsequent violation of the provisions. Provides that nothing in the provisions requires a law enforcement officer to whom a report of sexual misconduct is made to investigate or charge an individual without the consent of the alleged victim. Provides that a violation of the provisions by a licensed massage therapist is grounds for discipline by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.


LRB100 16437 SMS 31566 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB2329LRB100 16437 SMS 31566 b

1    AN ACT concerning regulation.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Massage Licensing Act is amended by changing
5Section 45 and by adding Section 47 as follows:
 
6    (225 ILCS 57/45)
7    (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2022)
8    Sec. 45. Grounds for discipline.
9    (a) The Department may refuse to issue or renew, or may
10revoke, suspend, place on probation, reprimand, or take other
11disciplinary or non-disciplinary action, as the Department
12considers appropriate, including the imposition of fines not to
13exceed $10,000 for each violation, with regard to any license
14or licensee for any one or more of the following:
15        (1) violations of this Act or of the rules adopted
16    under this Act;
17        (2) conviction by plea of guilty or nolo contendere,
18    finding of guilt, jury verdict, or entry of judgment or by
19    sentencing of any crime, including, but not limited to,
20    convictions, preceding sentences of supervision,
21    conditional discharge, or first offender probation, under
22    the laws of any jurisdiction of the United States: (i) that
23    is a felony; or (ii) that is a misdemeanor, an essential

 

 

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1    element of which is dishonesty, or that is directly related
2    to the practice of the profession;
3        (3) professional incompetence;
4        (4) advertising in a false, deceptive, or misleading
5    manner;
6        (5) aiding, abetting, assisting, procuring, advising,
7    employing, or contracting with any unlicensed person to
8    practice massage contrary to any rules or provisions of
9    this Act;
10        (6) engaging in immoral conduct in the commission of
11    any act, such as sexual abuse, sexual misconduct, or sexual
12    exploitation, related to the licensee's practice;
13        (7) engaging in dishonorable, unethical, or
14    unprofessional conduct of a character likely to deceive,
15    defraud, or harm the public;
16        (8) practicing or offering to practice beyond the scope
17    permitted by law or accepting and performing professional
18    responsibilities which the licensee knows or has reason to
19    know that he or she is not competent to perform;
20        (9) knowingly delegating professional responsibilities
21    to a person unqualified by training, experience, or
22    licensure to perform;
23        (10) failing to provide information in response to a
24    written request made by the Department within 60 days;
25        (11) having a habitual or excessive use of or addiction
26    to alcohol, narcotics, stimulants, or any other chemical

 

 

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1    agent or drug which results in the inability to practice
2    with reasonable judgment, skill, or safety;
3        (12) having a pattern of practice or other behavior
4    that demonstrates incapacity or incompetence to practice
5    under this Act;
6        (13) discipline by another state, District of
7    Columbia, territory, or foreign nation, if at least one of
8    the grounds for the discipline is the same or substantially
9    equivalent to those set forth in this Section;
10        (14) a finding by the Department that the licensee,
11    after having his or her license placed on probationary
12    status, has violated the terms of probation;
13        (15) willfully making or filing false records or
14    reports in his or her practice, including, but not limited
15    to, false records filed with State agencies or departments;
16        (16) making a material misstatement in furnishing
17    information to the Department or otherwise making
18    misleading, deceptive, untrue, or fraudulent
19    representations in violation of this Act or otherwise in
20    the practice of the profession;
21        (17) fraud or misrepresentation in applying for or
22    procuring a license under this Act or in connection with
23    applying for renewal of a license under this Act;
24        (18) inability to practice the profession with
25    reasonable judgment, skill, or safety as a result of
26    physical illness, including, but not limited to,

 

 

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1    deterioration through the aging process, loss of motor
2    skill, or a mental illness or disability;
3        (19) charging for professional services not rendered,
4    including filing false statements for the collection of
5    fees for which services are not rendered;
6        (20) practicing under a false or, except as provided by
7    law, an assumed name; or
8        (21) cheating on or attempting to subvert the licensing
9    examination administered under this Act; or
10        (22) violating subsection (b) or (c) of Section 47.
11    All fines shall be paid within 60 days of the effective
12date of the order imposing the fine.
13    (b) A person not licensed under this Act and engaged in the
14business of offering massage therapy services through others,
15shall not aid, abet, assist, procure, advise, employ, or
16contract with any unlicensed person to practice massage therapy
17contrary to any rules or provisions of this Act. A person
18violating this subsection (b) shall be treated as a licensee
19for the purposes of disciplinary action under this Section and
20shall be subject to cease and desist orders as provided in
21Section 90 of this Act.
22    (c) The Department shall revoke any license issued under
23this Act of any person who is convicted of prostitution, rape,
24sexual misconduct, or any crime that subjects the licensee to
25compliance with the requirements of the Sex Offender
26Registration Act and any such conviction shall operate as a

 

 

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1permanent bar in the State of Illinois to practice as a massage
2therapist.
3    (d) The Department may refuse to issue or may suspend the
4license of any person who fails to file a tax return, to pay
5the tax, penalty, or interest shown in a filed tax return, or
6to pay any final assessment of tax, penalty, or interest, as
7required by any tax Act administered by the Illinois Department
8of Revenue, until such time as the requirements of the tax Act
9are satisfied in accordance with subsection (g) of Section
102105-15 of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois.
11    (e) The Department shall deny a license or renewal
12authorized by this Act to a person who has defaulted on an
13educational loan or scholarship provided or guaranteed by the
14Illinois Student Assistance Commission or any governmental
15agency of this State in accordance with item (5) of subsection
16(a) of Section 2105-15 of the Civil Administrative Code of
17Illinois.
18    (f) In cases where the Department of Healthcare and Family
19Services has previously determined that a licensee or a
20potential licensee is more than 30 days delinquent in the
21payment of child support and has subsequently certified the
22delinquency to the Department, the Department may refuse to
23issue or renew or may revoke or suspend that person's license
24or may take other disciplinary action against that person based
25solely upon the certification of delinquency made by the
26Department of Healthcare and Family Services in accordance with

 

 

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1item (5) of subsection (a) of Section 2105-15 of the Civil
2Administrative Code of Illinois.
3    (g) The determination by a circuit court that a licensee is
4subject to involuntary admission or judicial admission, as
5provided in the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities
6Code, operates as an automatic suspension. The suspension will
7end only upon a finding by a court that the patient is no
8longer subject to involuntary admission or judicial admission
9and the issuance of a court order so finding and discharging
10the patient.
11    (h) In enforcing this Act, the Department or Board, upon a
12showing of a possible violation, may compel an individual
13licensed to practice under this Act, or who has applied for
14licensure under this Act, to submit to a mental or physical
15examination, or both, as required by and at the expense of the
16Department. The Department or Board may order the examining
17physician to present testimony concerning the mental or
18physical examination of the licensee or applicant. No
19information shall be excluded by reason of any common law or
20statutory privilege relating to communications between the
21licensee or applicant and the examining physician. The
22examining physicians shall be specifically designated by the
23Board or Department. The individual to be examined may have, at
24his or her own expense, another physician of his or her choice
25present during all aspects of this examination. The examination
26shall be performed by a physician licensed to practice medicine

 

 

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1in all its branches. Failure of an individual to submit to a
2mental or physical examination, when directed, shall result in
3an automatic suspension without hearing.
4    A person holding a license under this Act or who has
5applied for a license under this Act who, because of a physical
6or mental illness or disability, including, but not limited to,
7deterioration through the aging process or loss of motor skill,
8is unable to practice the profession with reasonable judgment,
9skill, or safety, may be required by the Department to submit
10to care, counseling, or treatment by physicians approved or
11designated by the Department as a condition, term, or
12restriction for continued, reinstated, or renewed licensure to
13practice. Submission to care, counseling, or treatment as
14required by the Department shall not be considered discipline
15of a license. If the licensee refuses to enter into a care,
16counseling, or treatment agreement or fails to abide by the
17terms of the agreement, the Department may file a complaint to
18revoke, suspend, or otherwise discipline the license of the
19individual. The Secretary may order the license suspended
20immediately, pending a hearing by the Department. Fines shall
21not be assessed in disciplinary actions involving physical or
22mental illness or impairment.
23    In instances in which the Secretary immediately suspends a
24person's license under this Section, a hearing on that person's
25license must be convened by the Department within 15 days after
26the suspension and completed without appreciable delay. The

 

 

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1Department and Board shall have the authority to review the
2subject individual's record of treatment and counseling
3regarding the impairment to the extent permitted by applicable
4federal statutes and regulations safeguarding the
5confidentiality of medical records.
6    An individual licensed under this Act and affected under
7this Section shall be afforded an opportunity to demonstrate to
8the Department or Board that he or she can resume practice in
9compliance with acceptable and prevailing standards under the
10provisions of his or her license.
11(Source: P.A. 97-514, eff. 8-23-11; 98-756, eff. 7-16-14.)
 
12    (225 ILCS 57/47 new)
13    Sec. 47. Failure of a massage establishment owner or
14manager to report sexual misconduct.
15    (a) In this Section:
16        (1) "Massage establishment" means a business that
17    offers the services of massage therapists for
18    compensation.
19        (2) "Sexual misconduct" means:
20            (A) making sexually demeaning or sexually
21        suggestive comments about or to a client, including
22        comments about a client's body or clothing;
23            (B) unnecessarily exposing a client's body or
24        watching a client dress or undress, unless the client
25        specifically requests assistance due to disability;

 

 

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1            (C) discussing or commenting on a client's
2        potential sexual performance or requesting details of
3        a client's sexual history or preferences; or
4            (D) volunteering information to a client about his
5        or her sexual problems, preferences, or fantasies.
6    (b) It is a violation of this Section if an owner or
7manager of a massage establishment:
8        (1) knows or reasonably suspects that an employee of
9    the massage establishment committed sexual misconduct
10    against another person on the premises of, or while
11    performing services on behalf of, the massage
12    establishment; and
13        (2) fails to report such knowledge or reasonable
14    suspicion to the appropriate law enforcement agency.
15    A person in violation of this subsection (b) is subject to
16a fine of not more than $1,500 for each unreported case,
17suspension or revocation of his or her massage therapy license,
18or both.
19    A violation of this subsection (b) in which the violator is
2017 years of age or over and holds a position of trust,
21authority, or supervision in relation to the victim, and the
22victim is at least 13 years of age but under 18 years of age, is
23subject to a fine of not more than $2,500, suspension or
24revocation of his or her massage therapy license, or both.
25    (c) It is a violation of this Section if an owner or
26manager of a massage establishment fails to display the

 

 

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1policies and procedures of the massage establishment relating
2to sexual misconduct prevention and response, including the
3policy or procedure for reporting sexual misconduct to the
4appropriate law enforcement agency, in a manner that is visible
5to customers of the massage establishment. A person in
6violation of this subsection is subject to a fine of up to $500
7each day that proper signage is not posted.
8    (d) Upon the second or a subsequent violation of subsection
9(b) or (c), the Department may apply to the circuit court for
10injunctive relief in the form of:
11        (1) prohibiting the owner of owning a massage
12    establishment or the manager of managing a massage
13    establishment; or
14        (2) prohibiting the owner or manager from employing a
15    licensed massage therapist.
16    (e) Nothing in this Section requires a law enforcement
17officer to whom a report of sexual misconduct is made to
18investigate or charge an individual with an offense without the
19consent of the alleged victim of the offense.