Sen. Kwame Raoul

Filed: 5/22/2012

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 1882

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 1882, AS AMENDED, by
3replacing everything after the enacting clause with the
4following:
 
5    "Section 5. The Department of Commerce and Economic
6Opportunity Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is
7amended by adding Sections 605-456, 605-460, and 605-465 as
8follows:
 
9    (20 ILCS 605/605-456 new)
10    Sec. 605-456. Survey and report on business incentives.
11    (a) The Department shall contact businesses that are
12located in the State or have been identified as having left the
13State. The Department shall request that the business complete
14a survey, developed by the Department, that includes
15information regarding (i) why the business left, if applicable,
16and the location to which the business relocated and (ii) any

 

 

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1incentives that are needed to keep and attract the business.
2    (b) The Department shall compile the results of the surveys
3and any other relevant information provided to the Department.
4By each July 1, the Department shall report to the General
5Assembly upon its compilation of the previous year's survey
6responses and any of the other relevant information. The report
7must identify, at a minimum, the most common responses,
8categorized by industry and region, regarding (i) why
9businesses left Illinois, (ii) what incentives would have
10influenced businesses to remain in Illinois, and (iii) to which
11cities and states the businesses have relocated.
12    (c) For the purposes of this Section, a business is defined
13as one that is engaged in interstate or intrastate commerce for
14the purpose of manufacturing, processing, assembling,
15warehousing, or distributing products, conducting research and
16development, providing tourism services, or providing services
17in interstate commerce, office industries, or agricultural
18processing, but excluding retail, retail food, health, or
19professional services.
20    (d) The Department shall adopt rules for the implementation
21of this Section.
 
22    (20 ILCS 605/605-460 new)
23    Sec. 605-460. Engineering excellence program.
24    (a) Coordination between engineering schools and private
25business is an important tool in fostering innovation.

 

 

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1Universities have eager students, experienced faculty, and
2state-of-the-art research facilities. Businesses have existing
3markets, production capital, and evolving needs. The General
4Assembly believes that universities and businesses should
5share resources to allow students to participate in the
6research and development area of innovative design and to allow
7businesses to benefit from the developing skills of these
8students.
9    (b) In order to facilitate engineering excellence, the
10Department shall develop a program to achieve the goals set
11forth in subsection (a). Under this program, the Department
12must:
13        (1) Annually contact the State's major public and
14    private universities with engineering schools.
15        (2) Request a one-page written summary of the
16    internship, externship, or residency programs operated by
17    the engineering college of each of the contacted
18    universities.
19        (3) Identify the manufacturing businesses within 50
20    miles of each university that responded under paragraph (2)
21    that could benefit from assistance in the area of
22    innovative design.
23        (4) Send a letter to each manufacturer identified under
24    paragraph (3), informing it of the university's program and
25    advising the business to contact the university if it
26    wishes to participate in the engineering school's program.

 

 

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1    (c) The Department shall adopt rules for the implementation
2of this Section.
 
3    (20 ILCS 605/605-465 new)
4    Sec. 605-465. Comprehensive website information.
5    (a) The Department's official website must contain a
6comprehensive list of State, local, and federal economic
7benefits available to businesses in each of the State's
8counties and municipalities that the Department includes on its
9website. In order to do so:
10        (1) The Department annually must request a summary of
11    available economic benefits from each of the State's
12    counties and municipalities that are linked to the
13    Department's website.
14        (2) The information obtained under paragraph (1) must
15    be published on the related web pages of the Department's
16    website.
17        (3) The Department's website shall also provide
18    information regarding available federal economic benefits
19    to the extent possible.
20    (b) The Department shall adopt rules for the implementation
21of this Section.
 
22    Section 10. The Corporate Accountability for Tax
23Expenditures Act is amended by changing Section 25 as follows:
 

 

 

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1    (20 ILCS 715/25)
2    Sec. 25. Recapture.
3    (a) All development assistance agreements shall contain,
4at a minimum, the following recapture provisions:
5        (1) The recipient must (i) make the level of capital
6    investment in the economic development project specified
7    in the development assistance agreement; (ii) create or
8    retain, or both, the requisite number of jobs, paying not
9    less than specified wages for the created and retained
10    jobs, within and for the duration of the time period
11    specified in the legislation authorizing, or the
12    administrative rules implementing, the development
13    assistance programs and the development assistance
14    agreement.
15        (2) If the recipient fails to create or retain the
16    requisite number of jobs within and for the time period
17    specified, in the legislation authorizing, or the
18    administrative rules implementing, the development
19    assistance programs and the development assistance
20    agreement, the recipient shall be deemed to no longer
21    qualify for the State economic assistance and the
22    applicable recapture provisions shall take effect.
23        (3) If the recipient receives State economic
24    assistance in the form of a High Impact Business
25    designation pursuant to Section 5.5 of the Illinois
26    Enterprise Zone Act and the business receives the benefit

 

 

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1    of the exemption authorized under Section 5l of the
2    Retailers' Occupation Tax Act (for the sale of building
3    materials incorporated into a High Impact Business
4    location) and the recipient fails to create or retain the
5    requisite number of jobs, as determined by the legislation
6    authorizing the development assistance programs or the
7    administrative rules implementing such legislation, or
8    both, within the requisite period of time, the recipient
9    shall be required to pay to the State the full amount of
10    the State tax exemption that it received as a result of the
11    High Impact Business designation.
12        (4) If the recipient receives a grant or loan pursuant
13    to the Large Business Development Program, the Business
14    Development Public Infrastructure Program, or the
15    Industrial Training Program and the recipient fails to
16    create or retain the requisite number of jobs for the
17    requisite time period, as provided in the legislation
18    authorizing the development assistance programs or the
19    administrative rules implementing such legislation, or
20    both, or in the development assistance agreement, the
21    recipient shall be required to repay to the State a pro
22    rata amount of the grant; that amount shall reflect the
23    percentage of the deficiency between the requisite number
24    of jobs to be created or retained by the recipient and the
25    actual number of such jobs in existence as of the date the
26    Department determines the recipient is in breach of the job

 

 

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1    creation or retention covenants contained in the
2    development assistance agreement. If the recipient of
3    development assistance under the Large Business
4    Development Program, the Business Development Public
5    Infrastructure Program, or the Industrial Training Program
6    ceases operations at the specific project site, during the
7    5-year period commencing on the date of assistance, the
8    recipient shall be required to repay the entire amount of
9    the grant or to accelerate repayment of the loan back to
10    the State.
11        (5) If the recipient receives a tax credit under the
12    Economic Development for a Growing Economy tax credit
13    program, the development assistance agreement must provide
14    that (i) if the number of new or retained employees falls
15    below the requisite number set forth in the development
16    assistance agreement, the allowance of the credit shall be
17    automatically suspended until the number of new and
18    retained employees equals or exceeds the requisite number
19    in the development assistance agreement; (ii) if the
20    recipient discontinues operations at the specific project
21    site during the 5-year period after the beginning of the
22    first tax year for which the Department issues a tax credit
23    certificate, the recipient shall forfeit all credits taken
24    by the recipient during such 5-year period; and (iii) in
25    the event of a revocation or suspension of the credit, the
26    Department shall contact the Director of Revenue to

 

 

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1    initiate proceedings against the recipient to recover
2    wrongfully exempted Illinois State income taxes and the
3    recipient shall promptly repay to the Department of Revenue
4    any wrongfully exempted Illinois State income taxes. The
5    forfeited amount of credits shall be deemed assessed on the
6    date the Department contacts the Department of Revenue and
7    the recipient shall promptly repay to the Department of
8    Revenue any wrongfully exempted Illinois State income
9    taxes.
10    (b) The Director may elect to waive enforcement of any
11contractual provision arising out of the development
12assistance agreement required by this Act based on a finding
13that the waiver is necessary to avert an imminent and
14demonstrable hardship to the recipient that may result in such
15recipient's insolvency or discharge of workers. If a waiver is
16granted, the recipient must agree to a contractual
17modification, including recapture provisions, to the
18development assistance agreement. The existence of any waiver
19granted pursuant to this subsection (c), the date of the
20granting of such waiver, and a brief summary of the reasons
21supporting the granting of such waiver shall be disclosed
22consistent with the provisions of Section 25 of this Act.
23    (b-5) The Department shall post, on its website, (i) the
24identity of each recipient from whom amounts were recaptured
25under this Section on or after the effective date of this
26amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly, (ii) the date of

 

 

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1the recapture, (iii) a summary of the reasons supporting the
2recapture, and (iv) the amount recaptured from those
3recipients.
4    (c) Beginning June 1, 2004, the Department shall annually
5compile a report on the outcomes and effectiveness of recapture
6provisions by program, including but not limited to: (i) the
7total number of companies that receive development assistance
8as defined in this Act; (ii) the total number of recipients in
9violation of development agreements with the Department; (iii)
10the total number of completed recapture efforts; (iv) the total
11number of recapture efforts initiated; and (v) the number of
12waivers granted. This report shall be disclosed consistent with
13the provisions of Section 20 of this Act.
14    (d) For the purposes of this Act, recapture provisions do
15not include the Illinois Department of Transportation Economic
16Development Program, any grants under the Industrial Training
17Program that are not given as an incentive to a recipient
18business organization, or any successor programs as described
19in the term "development assistance" in Section 5 of this Act.
20(Source: P.A. 97-2, eff. 5-6-11.)
 
21    Section 15. The Energy Assistance Act is amended by
22changing Section 6 as follows:
 
23    (305 ILCS 20/6)  (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 1406)
24    Sec. 6. Eligibility, Conditions of Participation, and

 

 

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1Energy Assistance.
2    (a) Any person who is a resident of the State of Illinois
3and whose household income is not greater than an amount
4determined annually by the Department, in consultation with the
5Policy Advisory Council, may apply for assistance pursuant to
6this Act in accordance with regulations promulgated by the
7Department. In setting the annual eligibility level, the
8Department shall consider the amount of available funding and
9may not set a limit higher than 150% of the federal nonfarm
10poverty level as established by the federal Office of
11Management and Budget; except that for the period ending June
1230, 2013, 2012, or until the expenditure of federal resources
13allocated for energy assistance programs by the American
14Recovery and Reinvestment Act, whichever occurs first, the
15Department may not establish limits higher than 200% of that
16poverty level or the maximum level provided for by federal
17guidelines.
18    (b) Applicants who qualify for assistance pursuant to
19subsection (a) of this Section shall, subject to appropriation
20from the General Assembly and subject to availability of funds
21to the Department, receive energy assistance as provided by
22this Act. The Department, upon receipt of monies authorized
23pursuant to this Act for energy assistance, shall commit funds
24for each qualified applicant in an amount determined by the
25Department. In determining the amounts of assistance to be
26provided to or on behalf of a qualified applicant, the

 

 

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1Department shall ensure that the highest amounts of assistance
2go to households with the greatest energy costs in relation to
3household income. The Department shall include factors such as
4energy costs, household size, household income, and region of
5the State when determining individual household benefits. In
6setting assistance levels, the Department shall attempt to
7provide assistance to approximately the same number of
8households who participated in the 1991 Residential Energy
9Assistance Partnership Program. Such assistance levels shall
10be adjusted annually on the basis of funding availability and
11energy costs. In promulgating rules for the administration of
12this Section the Department shall assure that a minimum of 1/3
13of funds available for benefits to eligible households with the
14lowest incomes and that elderly and disabled households are
15offered a priority application period.
16    (c) If the applicant is not a customer of record of an
17energy provider for energy services or an applicant for such
18service, such applicant shall receive a direct energy
19assistance payment in an amount established by the Department
20for all such applicants under this Act; provided, however, that
21such an applicant must have rental expenses for housing greater
22than 30% of household income.
23    (c-1) This subsection shall apply only in cases where: (1)
24the applicant is not a customer of record of an energy provider
25because energy services are provided by the owner of the unit
26as a portion of the rent; (2) the applicant resides in housing

 

 

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1subsidized or developed with funds provided under the Rental
2Housing Support Program Act or under a similar locally funded
3rent subsidy program, or is the voucher holder who resides in a
4rental unit within the State of Illinois and whose monthly rent
5is subsidized by the tenant-based Housing Choice Voucher
6Program under Section 8 of the U.S. Housing Act of 1937; and
7(3) the rental expenses for housing are no more than 30% of
8household income. In such cases, the household may apply for an
9energy assistance payment under this Act and the owner of the
10housing unit shall cooperate with the applicant by providing
11documentation of the energy costs for that unit. Any
12compensation paid to the energy provider who supplied energy
13services to the household shall be paid on behalf of the owner
14of the housing unit providing energy services to the household.
15The Department shall report annually to the General Assembly on
16the number of households receiving energy assistance under this
17subsection and the cost of such assistance. The provisions of
18this subsection (c-1), other than this sentence, are
19inoperative after August 31, 2012.
20    (d) If the applicant is a customer of an energy provider,
21such applicant shall receive energy assistance in an amount
22established by the Department for all such applicants under
23this Act, such amount to be paid by the Department to the
24energy provider supplying winter energy service to such
25applicant. Such applicant shall:
26        (i) make all reasonable efforts to apply to any other

 

 

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1    appropriate source of public energy assistance; and
2        (ii) sign a waiver permitting the Department to receive
3    income information from any public or private agency
4    providing income or energy assistance and from any
5    employer, whether public or private.
6    (e) Any qualified applicant pursuant to this Section may
7receive or have paid on such applicant's behalf an emergency
8assistance payment to enable such applicant to obtain access to
9winter energy services. Any such payments shall be made in
10accordance with regulations of the Department.
11    (f) The Department may, if sufficient funds are available,
12provide additional benefits to certain qualified applicants:
13        (i) for the reduction of past due amounts owed to
14    energy providers; and
15        (ii) to assist the household in responding to
16    excessively high summer temperatures or energy costs.
17    Households containing elderly members, children, a person
18    with a disability, or a person with a medical need for
19    conditioned air shall receive priority for receipt of such
20    benefits.
21(Source: P.A. 96-154, eff. 1-1-10; 96-157, eff. 9-1-09;
2296-1000, eff. 7-2-10.)
 
23    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
24becoming law.".