99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2015 and 2016
HB6315

 

Introduced 2/11/2016, by Rep. Jehan A. Gordon-Booth

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
New Act
20 ILCS 5000/Act rep.

    Creates the Task Force on Inventorying Employment Restrictions Act of 2016. Reconstitutes the Task Force on Inventorying Employment Restrictions in the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority. Provides that for each occupation under specified State agency jurisdiction for which there are employment restrictions based on criminal records, each State agency must provide the Task Force with a report, on or before November 1, 2016 and each even-numbered year thereafter, for the previous 2-year period, setting forth certain information concerning job titles, the statutory or regulatory authority for the restrictions, and other information required by the Act. Provides that on or before September 1, 2017 and each subsequent odd-numbered year, all State agencies shall produce a report for the Task Force that describes the employment restrictions that are based on criminal records for each occupation under the agency's jurisdiction and that of its boards, if any. Provides that the Task Force shall report to the Governor and the General Assembly its findings, including recommendations as to any employment restrictions that are not reasonably related to public safety, before January 1 of each even-numbered year beginning in 2018. Repeals the Task Force on Inventorying Employment Restrictions Act. Deletes provisions from this Act that were in the previous Act that stated that the provisions of the Act are subject to resources being made available to the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority to implement the Act. Effective immediately.


LRB099 19333 RLC 43725 b

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB6315LRB099 19333 RLC 43725 b

1    AN ACT concerning employment.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Task
5Force on Inventorying Employment Restrictions Act of 2016.
 
6    Section 5. Purpose. The General Assembly finds and
7declares that:
8    (1) public safety dictates the adoption of employment
9restrictions to protect vulnerable populations, to prevent the
10risk of loss and liability, and to minimize the likelihood of
11harm to the public, fellow employees and customers;
12    (2) gainful employment after release from prison is one of
13the critical elements necessary to achieve successful reentry
14after prison and that employment has been shown to reduce
15recidivism;
16    (3) to make our communities safer, public safety also
17requires that employment opportunities not be so restricted
18that people with criminal records are unable to engage in
19gainful employment;
20    (4) many State laws and policies impose restrictions on the
21employment of persons with criminal records including State
22government jobs, jobs in State-licensed, regulated and funded
23entities, and jobs requiring State certification;

 

 

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1    (5) no comprehensive review of these restrictions has been
2undertaken to evaluate whether the restrictions are
3substantially related to the safety, trust and responsibility
4required of the job or to the goal of furthering public safety;
5    (6) a less restrictive approach is preferred if it both
6furthers public safety and preserves employment opportunities;
7and
8    (7) the State's agencies, boards, and commissions can
9assume a leadership role in providing employment opportunities
10to people with criminal records by reviewing their employment
11policies and practices and identifying barriers to employment
12that can safely be removed to enable people with criminal
13records to demonstrate their rehabilitation.
 
14    Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act: "State
15agencies" means the following State agencies, boards, and
16commissions: Department on Aging, Department of Agriculture,
17Office of Appellate Defender, Office of the State's Attorneys
18Appellate Prosecutor, Illinois Arts Council, Office of the
19Attorney General, Auditor General, Capital Development Board,
20Department of Central Management Services, Department of
21Children and Family Services, Civil Service Commission,
22Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity,
23Illinois Commerce Commission, Illinois Community College
24Board, State of Illinois Comprehensive Health Insurance Plan,
25Office of the Comptroller, Department of Corrections, Criminal

 

 

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1Justice Information Authority, Illinois Council on
2Developmental Disabilities, Illinois Deaf and Hard of Hearing
3Commission, Commission on Discrimination and Hate Crimes,
4State Board of Education, Illinois Educational Labor Relations
5Board, State Board of Elections, Illinois Emergency Management
6Agency, Department of Employment Security, Environmental
7Protection Agency, Illinois State Fair, Illinois Finance
8Authority, Department of Financial and Professional
9Regulation, Office of the First Lady, Illinois Gaming Board,
10Office of the Governor, Guardianship and Advocacy Commission,
11Department of Healthcare and Family Services, Board of Higher
12Education, Historic Preservation Agency, Illinois Housing
13Development Authority, Illinois Human Rights Commission,
14Department of Human Rights, Department of Human Services,
15Illinois State Board of Investment, Department of Juvenile
16Justice, Office of the Lieutenant Governor, Department of
17Labor, Illinois Labor Relations Board, Illinois Law
18Enforcement Training Standards Board, Illinois Liquor Control
19Commission, Illinois Lottery, Governor's Office of Management
20and Budget, Illinois Medical District Commission, Department
21of Military Affairs, Department of Natural Resources,
22Pollution Control Board, Prairie State 2000 Authority,
23Property Tax Appeal Board, Department of Public Health,
24Illinois Prisoner Review Board, Illinois Racing Board,
25Department of Revenue, Office of the Secretary of State, State
26Fire Marshal, Illinois State Police, State Police Merit Board,

 

 

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1State Retirement Systems, Office of the State Treasurer, State
2Universities Civil Service System, State Universities
3Retirement System, Illinois Student Assistance Commission,
4Illinois Supreme Court, Illinois Teachers' Retirement System,
5Illinois State Toll Highway Authority, Department of
6Transportation, Department of Veterans Affairs', Governor's
7Office of Women's Affairs, and Illinois Workers' Compensation
8Commission.
 
9    Section 15. Task Force.
10    (a) The Task Force on Inventorying Employment Restrictions
11is hereby created in the Illinois Criminal Justice Information
12Authority. The purpose of the Task Force is to review the
13statutes, administrative rules, policies and practices that
14restrict employment of persons with a criminal history, as set
15out in subsection (c) of this Section, and to report to the
16Governor and the General Assembly those employment
17restrictions and their impact on employment opportunities for
18people with criminal records. The report shall also identify
19any employment restrictions that are not reasonably related to
20public safety.
21    (b) Within 60 days after the effective date of this Act,
22the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of
23Representatives, the Minority Leader of the Senate, and the
24Minority Leader of the House of Representatives shall each
25appoint 2 members of the General Assembly to the Task Force.

 

 

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1The term of office of any member of the public appointed by the
2President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of
3Representatives, the Minority Leader of the Senate, or the
4Minority Leader of the House of Representatives serving on the
5effective date of this Act shall end on that date. The Governor
6shall appoint the Task Force chairperson. In addition, the
7Director or Secretary of each of the following, or his or her
8designee, are members: the Department of Human Services, the
9Department of Corrections, the Department of Commerce and
10Economic Opportunity, the Department of Children and Family
11Services, the Department of Human Rights, the Department of
12Central Management Services, the Department of Employment
13Security, the Department of Public Health, the Department of
14State Police, the Illinois State Board of Education, the
15Illinois Board of Higher Education, the Illinois Community
16College Board, and the Illinois Criminal Justice Information
17Authority. Members shall not receive compensation. The
18Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority shall provide
19staff and other assistance to the Task Force.
20    (c) On or before September 1, 2017 and each subsequent
21odd-numbered year, all State agencies shall produce a report
22for the Task Force that describes the employment restrictions
23that are based on criminal records for each occupation under
24the agency's jurisdiction and that of its boards, if any,
25including, but not limited to, employment within the agency;
26employment in facilities licensed, regulated, supervised, or

 

 

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1funded by the agency; employment under contracts with the
2agency; and employment in occupations that the agency licenses
3or provides certifications to practice. For each occupation
4subject to a criminal records-based restriction, the agency
5shall set forth the following:
6        (1) the job title, occupation, job classification, or
7    restricted place of employment, including the range of
8    occupations affected in such places;
9        (2) the statute, regulation, policy, and procedure
10    that authorizes the restriction of applicants for
11    employment and licensure, current employees, and current
12    licenses;
13        (3) the substance and terms of the restriction, and:
14            (A) if the statute, regulation, policy or practice
15        enumerates disqualifying offenses, a list of each
16        disqualifying offense, the time limits for each
17        offense, and the point in time when the time limit
18        begins;
19            (B) if the statute, regulation, policy or practice
20        does not enumerate disqualifying offenses and instead
21        provides for agency discretion in determining
22        disqualifying offenses, the criteria the agency has
23        adopted to apply the disqualification to individual
24        cases. Restrictions based on agency discretion
25        include, but are not limited to, restrictions based on
26        an offense "related to" the practice of a given

 

 

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1        profession; an offense or act of "moral turpitude"; and
2        an offense evincing a lack of "good moral character";
3        (4) the procedures used by the agency to identify an
4    individual's criminal history, including but not limited
5    to disclosures on applications and background checks
6    conducted by law enforcement or private entities;
7        (5) the procedures used by the agency to determine and
8    review whether an individual's criminal history
9    disqualifies that individual;
10        (6) the year the restriction was adopted, and its
11    rationale;
12        (7) any exemption, waiver, or review mechanisms
13    available to seek relief from the disqualification based on
14    a showing of rehabilitation or otherwise, including the
15    terms of the mechanism, the nature of the relief it
16    affords, and whether an administrative and judicial appeal
17    is authorized; and
18        (8) any statute, rule, policy and practice that
19    requires an individual convicted of a felony to have his
20    civil rights restored to become qualified for the job; and
21    9 copies of the following documents:
22            (A) forms, applications, and instructions provided
23        to applicants and those denied or terminated from jobs
24        or licenses based on their criminal record;
25            (B) forms, rules, and procedures that the agency
26        employs to provide notice of disqualification, to

 

 

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1        review applications subject to disqualification, and
2        to provide for exemptions and appeals of
3        disqualification;
4            (C) memos, guidance, instructions to staff,
5        scoring criteria and other materials used by the agency
6        to evaluate the criminal histories of applicants,
7        licensees, and employees; and
8            (D) forms and notices used to explain waiver,
9        exemption and appeals procedures for denial,
10        suspensions and terminations of employment or
11        licensure based on criminal history.
12    (d) Each State agency shall participate in a review to
13determine the impact of the employment restrictions based on
14criminal records and the effectiveness of existing
15case-by-case review mechanisms. The information required under
16this subsection (d) shall be limited to the data and
17information in the possession of the State agency on the
18effective date of this Act. With respect to compliance with the
19requirements of this subsection (d), a State agency is under no
20obligation to collect additional data or information. For each
21occupation under the agency's jurisdiction for which there are
22employment restrictions based on criminal records, each State
23agency must provide the Task Force with a report, on or before
24November 1, 2016 and each even-numbered year thereafter, for
25the previous 2-year period, setting forth:
26        (1) the total number of people currently employed in

 

 

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1    the occupation whose employment or licensure required
2    criminal history disclosure, background checks or
3    restrictions;
4        (2) the number and percentage of individuals who
5    underwent a criminal history background check;
6        (3) the number and percentage of individuals who were
7    merely required to disclose their criminal history without
8    a criminal history background check;
9        (4) the number and percentage of individuals who were
10    found disqualified based on criminal history disclosure by
11    the applicant;
12        (5) the number and percentage of individuals who were
13    found disqualified based on a criminal history background
14    check;
15        (6) the number and percentage of individuals who sought
16    an exemption or waiver from the disqualification;
17        (7) the number and percentage of individuals who sought
18    an exemption or waiver who were subsequently granted the
19    exemption or waiver at the first level of agency review (if
20    multiple levels of review are available);
21        (8) the number and percentage of individuals who sought
22    an exemption or waiver who were subsequently granted the
23    exemption or waiver at the next level of agency review (if
24    multiple levels of review are available);
25        (9) the number and percentage of individuals who were
26    denied an exemption or waiver at the final level of agency

 

 

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1    review, and then sought review through an administrative
2    appeal;
3        (10) the number and percentage of individuals who were
4    denied an exemption or waiver at the final level of agency
5    review, and then sought review through an administrative
6    appeal and were then found qualified after such a review;
7        (11) the number and percentage of individuals who were
8    found disqualified where no waiver or exemption process is
9    available;
10        (12) the number and percentage of individuals who were
11    found disqualified where no waiver or exemption process is
12    available and who sought administrative review and then
13    were found qualified; and
14        (13) if the agency maintains records of active licenses
15    or certifications, the executive agency shall provide the
16    total number of employees in occupations subject to
17    criminal history restrictions.
18    (e) The Task Force shall report to the Governor and the
19General Assembly its findings, including recommendations as to
20any employment restrictions that are not reasonably related to
21public safety, before January 1 of each even-numbered year
22beginning in 2018.
 
23    (20 ILCS 5000/Act rep.)
24    Section 97. The Task Force on Inventorying Employment
25Restrictions Act is repealed.
 

 

 

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1    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
2becoming law.