Full Text of HB1576 97th General Assembly
HB1576eng 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning local government.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by | 5 | | changing Sections 10-1-7 and 10-2.1-4 and by adding Sections | 6 | | 10-1-7.1, 10-1-7.2, 10-2.1-6.3, and 10-2.1-6.4 as follows:
| 7 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-1-7) (from Ch. 24, par. 10-1-7)
| 8 | | Sec. 10-1-7. Examination of applicants; disqualifications.
| 9 | | (a) All applicants for offices or places in the classified | 10 | | service, except
those mentioned in Section 10-1-17, are subject | 11 | | to examination. The
examination shall be public, competitive, | 12 | | and open to all citizens of the
United States, with specified | 13 | | limitations as to residence, age, health, habits
and moral | 14 | | character.
| 15 | | (b) Residency requirements in effect at the time an | 16 | | individual enters the
fire or police service of a municipality | 17 | | (other than a municipality that
has more than 1,000,000 | 18 | | inhabitants) cannot be made more restrictive
for that | 19 | | individual during his or her period of service for that | 20 | | municipality,
or be made a condition of promotion, except for | 21 | | the rank or position of Fire or
Police Chief.
| 22 | | (c) No person with a record of misdemeanor convictions | 23 | | except
those under Sections 11-6, 11-7, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, |
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| 1 | | 11-17, 11-18, 11-19,
12-2, 12-6, 12-15, 14-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, | 2 | | 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1,
31-4, 31-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, | 3 | | 32-3, 32-4, 32-8, and subsections (1), (6) and
(8) of Section | 4 | | 24-1 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or arrested for any cause but
| 5 | | not convicted on that cause shall be disqualified from taking | 6 | | the examination
on grounds of habits or moral character, unless | 7 | | the person is attempting to
qualify for a position on the | 8 | | police department, in which case the conviction
or arrest may | 9 | | be considered as a factor in determining the person's habits or
| 10 | | moral character.
| 11 | | (d) Persons entitled to military preference under Section | 12 | | 10-1-16
shall not be subject to limitations specifying age | 13 | | unless they are
applicants for a position as a fireman or a | 14 | | policeman having no previous
employment status as a fireman or | 15 | | policeman in the regularly constituted
fire or police | 16 | | department of the municipality, in which case they must not
| 17 | | have attained their 35th birthday, except any person who has | 18 | | served as an
auxiliary police officer under Section 3.1-30-20 | 19 | | for at least 5 years and is
under 40 years of age.
| 20 | | (e) All employees of a municipality of less than 500,000 | 21 | | population (except
those who would be excluded from the | 22 | | classified service as provided in this
Division 1) who are | 23 | | holding that employment as of the date a municipality
adopts | 24 | | this Division 1, or as of July 17, 1959, whichever date is the | 25 | | later,
and who have held that employment for at least 2 years | 26 | | immediately before that
later date, and all firemen and |
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| 1 | | policemen regardless of length of service who
were either | 2 | | appointed to their respective positions by the board of fire | 3 | | and
police commissioners under the provisions of Division 2 of | 4 | | this Article or who
are serving in a position (except as a | 5 | | temporary employee) in the fire or
police department in the | 6 | | municipality on the date a municipality adopts
this Division 1, | 7 | | or as of July 17, 1959, whichever date is the later, shall
| 8 | | become members of the classified civil service of the | 9 | | municipality
without examination.
| 10 | | (f) The examinations shall be practical in their character, | 11 | | and shall
relate to those matters that will fairly test the | 12 | | relative capacity of the
persons examined to discharge the | 13 | | duties of the positions to which they
seek to be appointed. The | 14 | | examinations shall include tests of physical
qualifications, | 15 | | health, and (when appropriate) manual skill. If an applicant
is | 16 | | unable to pass the physical examination solely as the result of | 17 | | an injury
received by the applicant as the result of the | 18 | | performance of an act of duty
while working as a temporary | 19 | | employee in the position for which he or she is
being examined, | 20 | | however, the physical examination shall be waived and the
| 21 | | applicant shall be considered to have passed the examination. | 22 | | No questions in
any examination shall relate to political or | 23 | | religious opinions or
affiliations. Results of examinations | 24 | | and the eligible registers prepared from
the results shall be | 25 | | published by the commission within 60 days after any
| 26 | | examinations are held.
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| 1 | | (g) The commission shall control all examinations, and may, | 2 | | whenever an
examination is to take place, designate a suitable | 3 | | number of persons,
either in or not in the official service of | 4 | | the municipality, to be
examiners. The examiners shall conduct | 5 | | the examinations as directed by the
commission and shall make a | 6 | | return or report of the examinations to the
commission. If the | 7 | | appointed examiners are in the official service of the
| 8 | | municipality, the examiners shall not receive extra | 9 | | compensation for conducting
the examinations. The commission | 10 | | may at any time substitute any other person,
whether or not in | 11 | | the service of the municipality, in the place of any one
| 12 | | selected as an examiner. The commission members may themselves | 13 | | at any time act
as examiners without appointing examiners. The | 14 | | examiners at any examination
shall not all be members of the | 15 | | same political party.
| 16 | | (h) In municipalities of 500,000 or more population, no | 17 | | person who has
attained his or her 35th birthday shall be | 18 | | eligible to take an examination for
a position as a fireman or | 19 | | a policeman unless the person has had previous
employment | 20 | | status as a policeman or fireman in the regularly constituted | 21 | | police
or fire department of the municipality, except as | 22 | | provided in this Section.
| 23 | | (i) In municipalities of more than 5,000 but not more than | 24 | | 200,000
inhabitants, no person who has attained his or her 35th | 25 | | birthday shall be
eligible to take an examination for a | 26 | | position as a fireman or a policeman
unless the person has had |
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| 1 | | previous employment status as a policeman or fireman
in the | 2 | | regularly constituted police or fire department of the | 3 | | municipality,
except as provided in this Section.
| 4 | | (j) In all municipalities, applicants who are 20 years of | 5 | | age and who have
successfully completed 2 years of law | 6 | | enforcement studies at an accredited
college or university may | 7 | | be considered for appointment to active duty with
the police | 8 | | department. An applicant described in this subsection (j) who | 9 | | is
appointed to active duty shall not have power of arrest, nor | 10 | | shall the
applicant be permitted to carry firearms, until he or | 11 | | she reaches 21 years of
age.
| 12 | | (k) In municipalities of more than 500,000 population, | 13 | | applications for
examination for and appointment to positions | 14 | | as firefighters or police
shall be made available at various | 15 | | branches of the public library of the
municipality.
| 16 | | (l) No municipality having a population less than 1,000,000 | 17 | | shall require
that any fireman appointed to the lowest rank | 18 | | serve a probationary employment
period of longer than one year. | 19 | | The limitation on periods of probationary
employment provided | 20 | | in this amendatory Act of 1989 is an exclusive power and
| 21 | | function of the State. Pursuant to subsection (h) of Section 6 | 22 | | of Article VII
of the Illinois Constitution, a home rule | 23 | | municipality having a population less
than 1,000,000 must | 24 | | comply with this limitation on periods of probationary
| 25 | | employment, which is a denial and limitation of home rule | 26 | | powers.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this |
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| 1 | | Section, the probationary
employment period limitation may be | 2 | | extended for a firefighter who is required, as a condition of | 3 | | employment, to be a certified paramedic, during which time the | 4 | | sole reason that a firefighter may be discharged without a | 5 | | hearing is for failing to meet the requirements for paramedic | 6 | | certification.
| 7 | | (m) To the extent that this Section or any other Section in | 8 | | this Division conflicts with Section 10-1-7.1 or 10-1-7.2, then | 9 | | Section 10-1-7.1 or 10-1-7.2 shall control. | 10 | | (Source: P.A. 94-135, eff. 7-7-05; 94-984, eff. 6-30-06.)
| 11 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-1-7.1 new) | 12 | | Sec. 10-1-7.1. Original appointments; full-time fire | 13 | | department. | 14 | | (a) Applicability. Unless a commission elects to follow the | 15 | | provisions of Section 10-1-7.2, this Section shall apply to all | 16 | | original appointments to an affected full-time fire | 17 | | department. Existing registers of eligibles shall continue to | 18 | | be valid until their expiration dates, or up to a maximum of 2 | 19 | | years after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the | 20 | | 97th General Assembly. | 21 | | Notwithstanding any statute, ordinance, rule, or other law | 22 | | to the contrary, all original appointments to an affected | 23 | | department to which this Section applies shall be administered | 24 | | in the manner provided for in this Section. Provisions of the | 25 | | Illinois Municipal Code, municipal ordinances, and rules |
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| 1 | | adopted pursuant to such authority and other laws relating to | 2 | | initial hiring of firefighters in affected departments shall | 3 | | continue to apply to the extent they are compatible with this | 4 | | Section, but in the event of a conflict between this Section | 5 | | and any other law, this Section shall control. | 6 | | A home rule or non-home rule municipality may not | 7 | | administer its fire department process for original | 8 | | appointments in a manner that is inconsistent with this | 9 | | Section. This Section is a limitation under subsection (i) of | 10 | | Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution on the | 11 | | concurrent exercise by home rule units of the powers and | 12 | | functions exercised by the State. | 13 | | A municipality that is operating under a court order or | 14 | | consent decree regarding original appointments to a full-time | 15 | | fire department before the effective date of this amendatory | 16 | | Act of the 97th General Assembly is exempt from the | 17 | | requirements of this Section for the duration of the court | 18 | | order or consent decree. | 19 | | (b) Original appointments. All original appointments made | 20 | | to an affected fire department shall be made from a register of | 21 | | eligibles established in accordance with the processes | 22 | | established by this Section. Only persons who meet or exceed | 23 | | the performance standards required by this Section shall be | 24 | | placed on a register of eligibles for original appointment to | 25 | | an affected fire department. | 26 | | Whenever an appointing authority authorizes action to hire |
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| 1 | | a person to perform the duties of a firefighter or to hire a | 2 | | firefighter-paramedic to fill a position that is a new position | 3 | | or vacancy due to resignation, discharge, promotion, death, the | 4 | | granting of a disability or retirement pension, or any other | 5 | | cause, the appointing authority shall appoint to that position | 6 | | the person with the highest ranking on the final eligibility | 7 | | list, except that the appointing authority shall have the right | 8 | | to pass over that person and appoint the next highest ranked | 9 | | person on the list if the appointing authority has reason to | 10 | | conclude that the highest ranked person fails to meet the | 11 | | minimum standards for the position. | 12 | | Any candidate may pass on an appointment once without | 13 | | losing his or her position on the register of eligibles. Any | 14 | | candidate who passes a second time may be removed from the list | 15 | | by the appointing authority provided that such action shall not | 16 | | prejudice a person's opportunities to participate in future | 17 | | examinations, including an examination held during the time a | 18 | | candidate is already on the municipality's register of | 19 | | eligibles. | 20 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 21 | | shall be vested in the Civil Service Commission. All | 22 | | certificates of appointment issued to any officer or member of | 23 | | an affected department shall be signed by the chairperson and | 24 | | secretary, respectively, of the commission upon appointment of | 25 | | such officer or member to the affected department by the | 26 | | commission. Each person who accepts a certificate of |
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| 1 | | appointment and successfully completes his or her probationary | 2 | | period shall be enrolled as a firefighter and as a regular | 3 | | member of the fire department. | 4 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 5 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 6 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 7 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 8 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 9 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 10 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 11 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 12 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 13 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 14 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 15 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 16 | | (c) Qualification for placement on register of eligibles. | 17 | | The purpose of establishing a register of eligibles is to | 18 | | identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the mental | 19 | | aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties required of | 20 | | members of the fire department in order to provide the highest | 21 | | quality of service to the public. To this end, all applicants | 22 | | for original appointment to an affected fire department shall | 23 | | be subject to examination and testing which shall be public, | 24 | | competitive, and open to all applicants unless the municipality | 25 | | shall by ordinance limit applicants to residents of the | 26 | | municipality, county or counties in which the municipality is |
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| 1 | | located, State, or nation. Municipalities may establish | 2 | | educational, emergency medical service licensure, and other | 3 | | pre-requisites for participation in an examination or for hire | 4 | | as a firefighter. Any fee to cover the costs of the application | 5 | | process shall not exceed $25. | 6 | | Residency requirements in effect at the time an individual | 7 | | enters the fire service of a municipality (other than a | 8 | | municipality that has more than 1,000,000 inhabitants) cannot | 9 | | be made more restrictive for that individual during his or her | 10 | | period of service for that municipality, or be made a condition | 11 | | of promotion, except for the rank or position of fire chief and | 12 | | for no more than 2 positions that rank immediately below that | 13 | | of the chief rank which are appointed positions pursuant to the | 14 | | Fire Department Promotion Act. | 15 | | No person who is 35 years of age or older shall be eligible | 16 | | to take an examination for a position as a firefighter unless | 17 | | the person has had previous employment status as a firefighter | 18 | | in the regularly constituted fire department of the | 19 | | municipality, except as provided in this Section. The age | 20 | | limitation does not apply to: | 21 | | (1) any person previously employed as a full-time | 22 | | firefighter in a regularly constituted fire department of | 23 | | (i) any municipality or fire protection district located in | 24 | | Illinois, (ii) a fire protection district whose | 25 | | obligations were assumed by a municipality under Section 21 | 26 | | of the Fire Protection District Act, or (iii) a |
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| 1 | | municipality whose obligations were taken over by a fire | 2 | | protection district, or | 3 | | (2) any person who has served a municipality as a | 4 | | regularly enrolled volunteer, paid-on-call, or part-time | 5 | | firefighter for the 5 years immediately preceding the time | 6 | | that the municipality begins to use full-time firefighters | 7 | | to provide all or part of its fire protection service. | 8 | | No person who is under 21 years of age shall be eligible | 9 | | for employment as a firefighter. | 10 | | No applicant shall be examined concerning his or her | 11 | | political or religious opinions or affiliations. The | 12 | | examinations shall be conducted by the commissioners of the | 13 | | municipality or their designees and agents. | 14 | | No municipality having a population of less than 1,000,000 | 15 | | shall require that any firefighter appointed to the lowest rank | 16 | | serve a probationary employment period of longer than one year | 17 | | of actual active employment, which may exclude periods of | 18 | | training, or injury or illness leaves, including duty related | 19 | | leave, in excess of 30 calendar days. Notwithstanding anything | 20 | | to the contrary in this Section, the probationary employment | 21 | | period limitation may be extended for a firefighter who is | 22 | | required, as a condition of employment, to be a certified | 23 | | paramedic, during which time the sole reason that a firefighter | 24 | | may be discharged without a hearing is for failing to meet the | 25 | | requirements for paramedic certification. | 26 | | In the event that any applicant who has been found eligible |
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| 1 | | for appointment and whose name has been placed upon the final | 2 | | eligibility register provided for in this Division 1 has not | 3 | | been appointed to a firefighter position within one year after | 4 | | the date of his or her physical ability examination, the | 5 | | commission may cause a second examination to be made of that | 6 | | applicant's physical ability prior to his or her appointment. | 7 | | If, after the second examination, the physical ability of the | 8 | | applicant shall be found to be less than the minimum standard | 9 | | fixed by the rules of the commission, the applicant shall not | 10 | | be appointed. The applicant's name may be retained upon the | 11 | | register of candidates eligible for appointment and when next | 12 | | reached for certification and appointment that applicant may be | 13 | | again examined as provided in this Section, and if the physical | 14 | | ability of that applicant is found to be less than the minimum | 15 | | standard fixed by the rules of the commission, the applicant | 16 | | shall not be appointed, and the name of the applicant shall be | 17 | | removed from the register. | 18 | | (d) Notice, examination, and testing components. Notice of | 19 | | the time, place, general scope, merit criteria for any | 20 | | subjective component, and fee of every examination shall be | 21 | | given by the commission, by a publication at least 2 weeks | 22 | | preceding the examination, in one or more newspapers published | 23 | | in the municipality, or if no newspaper is published therein, | 24 | | then in one or more newspapers with a general circulation | 25 | | within the municipality. The municipality may publish the | 26 | | notice on the municipality's Internet website. Additional |
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| 1 | | notice of the examination may be given as the commission shall | 2 | | prescribe. | 3 | | The examination and qualifying standards for employment of | 4 | | firefighters shall be based on: mental aptitude, physical | 5 | | ability, preferences, moral character, and health. The mental | 6 | | aptitude, physical ability, and preference components shall | 7 | | determine an applicant's qualification for and placement on the | 8 | | final register of eligibles. The examination may also include a | 9 | | subjective component based on merit criteria as determined by | 10 | | the commission. Scores from the examination must be made | 11 | | available to the public. | 12 | | (e) Mental aptitude. No person who does not possess at | 13 | | least a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 14 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. | 15 | | Examination of an applicant's mental aptitude shall be based | 16 | | upon a written examination. The examination shall be practical | 17 | | in character and relate to those matters that fairly test the | 18 | | capacity of the persons examined to discharge the duties | 19 | | performed by members of a fire department. Written examinations | 20 | | shall be administered in a manner that ensures the security and | 21 | | accuracy of the scores achieved. | 22 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 23 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 24 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 25 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 26 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are |
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| 1 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 2 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 3 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 4 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 5 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 6 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 7 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 8 | | each applicant's physical abilities in the following | 9 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 10 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 11 | | functions of the firefighter's job description): | 12 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 13 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 14 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 15 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 16 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 17 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested may be based | 18 | | on standards developed, or approved, by the local | 19 | | appointing authority. | 20 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 21 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 22 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 23 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 24 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 25 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 26 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed |
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| 1 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 2 | | Physical ability examinations administered under this | 3 | | Section shall be conducted with a reasonable number of proctors | 4 | | and monitors, open to the public, and subject to reasonable | 5 | | regulations of the commission. | 6 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. The examination | 7 | | components shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 8 | | position on the list shall be determined by the following: (i) | 9 | | the person's score on the written examination, (ii) the person | 10 | | successfully passing the physical ability component, (iii) the | 11 | | person's results on any subjective component as described in | 12 | | subsection (d), and (iv) the addition of any applicable | 13 | | preference points. | 14 | | Applicants who pass the written examination, the physical | 15 | | ability examination, and any subjective component shall be | 16 | | placed on the initial eligibility register. The passing score | 17 | | for each of these test components shall be determined by | 18 | | calculating a mean score for all applicants participating in | 19 | | each test. In order to qualify for placement on the final | 20 | | eligibility register, an applicant's total score, before any | 21 | | applicable preference points are applied, shall be at or above | 22 | | the mean score plus 10%. The local appointing authority may | 23 | | prescribe the score to qualify for placement on the final | 24 | | eligibility register, but the score shall not be less than the | 25 | | mean score plus 10%. | 26 | | The commission shall prepare and keep a register of persons |
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| 1 | | whose total score is not less than the minimum fixed by this | 2 | | Section. These persons shall take rank upon the register as | 3 | | candidates in the order of their relative excellence based on | 4 | | the highest to the lowest total points scored on the mental | 5 | | aptitude, physical ability, and preference components of the | 6 | | test administered in accordance with this Section. No more than | 7 | | 60 days after each examination, an initial eligibility list | 8 | | shall be posted by the commission. The list shall include the | 9 | | final grades of the candidates without reference to priority of | 10 | | the time of examination and subject to claim for preference | 11 | | credit. | 12 | | Commissions may conduct additional examinations, including | 13 | | without limitation a polygraph test, after a final eligibility | 14 | | register is established and before it expires with the | 15 | | candidates ranked by total score without regard to date of | 16 | | examination. No more than 60 days after each examination, an | 17 | | initial eligibility list shall be posted by the commission | 18 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 19 | | priority of time of examination and subject to claim for | 20 | | preference credit. | 21 | | (h) Preferences. The following are preferences: | 22 | | (1) Veteran preference. Persons who were engaged in the | 23 | | military service of the United States for a period of at | 24 | | least one year of active duty and who were honorably | 25 | | discharged therefrom, or who are now or have been members | 26 | | on inactive or reserve duty in such military or naval |
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| 1 | | service, shall be preferred for appointment to and | 2 | | employment with the fire department of an affected | 3 | | department. | 4 | | (2) Fire cadet preference. Persons who have | 5 | | successfully completed 2 years of study in fire techniques | 6 | | or cadet training within a cadet program established under | 7 | | the rules of the Joint Labor and Management Committee | 8 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 9 | | Promotion Act, may be preferred for appointment to and | 10 | | employment with the fire department. | 11 | | (3) Educational preference. Persons who have | 12 | | successfully obtained an associate's degree in the field of | 13 | | fire service or emergency medical services, or a bachelor's | 14 | | degree from an accredited college or university may be | 15 | | preferred for appointment to and employment with the fire | 16 | | department. | 17 | | (4) Paramedic preference. Persons who have obtained | 18 | | certification as an Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic | 19 | | (EMT-P) may be preferred for appointment to and employment | 20 | | with the fire department of an affected department | 21 | | providing emergency medical services. | 22 | | (5) Experience preference. All persons employed by a | 23 | | municipality who have been paid-on-call or part-time | 24 | | certified Firefighter II, certified Firefighter III, State | 25 | | of Illinois or nationally licensed EMT-B or EMT-I, licensed | 26 | | paramedic, or any combination of those capacities may be |
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| 1 | | awarded up to a maximum of 5 points. However, the applicant | 2 | | may not be awarded more than 0.5 points for each complete | 3 | | year of paid-on-call or part-time service. Applicants from | 4 | | outside the municipality who were employed as full-time | 5 | | firefighters or firefighter-paramedics by a fire | 6 | | protection district or another municipality may be awarded | 7 | | up to 5 experience preference points. However, the | 8 | | applicant may not be awarded more than one point for each | 9 | | complete year of full-time service. | 10 | | (6) Residency preference. Applicants whose principal | 11 | | residence is located within the fire department's | 12 | | jurisdiction may be preferred for appointment to and | 13 | | employment with the fire department. | 14 | | Upon request by the commission, the governing body of | 15 | | the municipality or in the case of applicants from outside | 16 | | the municipality the governing body of any fire protection | 17 | | district or any other municipality shall certify to the | 18 | | commission, within 10 days after the request, the number of | 19 | | years of successful paid-on-call, part-time, or full-time | 20 | | service of any person. A candidate may not receive the full | 21 | | amount of preference points under this subsection if the | 22 | | amount of points awarded would place the candidate before a | 23 | | veteran on the eligibility list. If more than one candidate | 24 | | receiving experience preference points is prevented from | 25 | | receiving all of their points due to not being allowed to | 26 | | pass a veteran, the candidates shall be placed on the list |
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| 1 | | below the veteran in rank order based on the totals | 2 | | received if all points under this subsection were to be | 3 | | awarded. Any remaining ties on the list shall be determined | 4 | | by lot. | 5 | | (7) Additional preferences. Up to 5 additional | 6 | | preference points may be awarded for unique categories | 7 | | based on an applicant's experience or background as | 8 | | identified by the commission. | 9 | | (8) Scoring of preferences. The commission shall give | 10 | | preference for original appointment to persons designated | 11 | | in item (1)
by adding to the final grade that they receive | 12 | | 5 points
for the recognized preference achieved. The | 13 | | commission shall determine the number of preference points | 14 | | for each category except (1). The number of preference | 15 | | points for each category shall range from 0 to 5. In | 16 | | determining the number of preference points, the | 17 | | commission shall prescribe that if a candidate earns the | 18 | | maximum number of preference points in all categories, that | 19 | | number may not be less than 10 nor more than 30. The | 20 | | commission shall give preference for original appointment | 21 | | to persons designated in items (2) through (7) by adding | 22 | | the requisite number of points to the final grade for each | 23 | | recognized preference achieved. The numerical result thus | 24 | | attained shall be applied by the commission in determining | 25 | | the final eligibility list and appointment from the | 26 | | eligibility list. The local appointing authority may |
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| 1 | | prescribe the total number of preference points awarded | 2 | | under this Section, but the total number of preference | 3 | | points shall not be less than 10 points or more than 30 | 4 | | points. | 5 | | No person entitled to any preference shall be required to | 6 | | claim the credit before any examination held under the | 7 | | provisions of this Section, but the preference shall be given | 8 | | after the posting or publication of the initial eligibility | 9 | | list or register at the request of a person entitled to a | 10 | | credit before any certification or appointments are made from | 11 | | the eligibility register, upon the furnishing of verifiable | 12 | | evidence and proof of qualifying preference credit. Candidates | 13 | | who are eligible for preference credit shall make a claim in | 14 | | writing within 10 days after the posting of the initial | 15 | | eligibility list, or the claim shall be deemed waived. Final | 16 | | eligibility registers shall be established after the awarding | 17 | | of verified preference points. All employment shall be subject | 18 | | to the commission's initial hire background review including, | 19 | | but not limited to, criminal history, employment history, moral | 20 | | character, oral examination, and medical and psychological | 21 | | examinations, all on a pass-fail basis. The medical and | 22 | | psychological examinations must be conducted last, and may only | 23 | | be performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 24 | | extended. | 25 | | Any person placed on an eligibility list who exceeds the | 26 | | age requirement before being appointed to a fire department |
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| 1 | | shall remain eligible for appointment until the list is | 2 | | abolished, or his or her name has been on the list for a period | 3 | | of 2 years. No person who has attained the age of 35 years | 4 | | shall be inducted into a fire department, except as otherwise | 5 | | provided in this Section. | 6 | | The commission shall strike off the names of candidates for | 7 | | original appointment after the names have been on the list for | 8 | | more than 2 years. | 9 | | (i) Moral character. No person shall be appointed to a fire | 10 | | department unless he or she is a person of good character; not | 11 | | a habitual drunkard, a gambler, or a person who has been | 12 | | convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude. | 13 | | However, no person shall be disqualified from appointment to | 14 | | the fire department because of the person's record of | 15 | | misdemeanor convictions except those under Sections 11-6, | 16 | | 11-7, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 12-2, 12-6, | 17 | | 12-15, 14-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1, | 18 | | 31-4, 31-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, 32-3, 32-4, 32-8, and subsections | 19 | | 1, 6, and 8 of Section 24-1 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or | 20 | | arrest for any cause without conviction thereon. Any such | 21 | | person who is in the department may be removed on charges | 22 | | brought for violating this subsection and after a trial as | 23 | | hereinafter provided. | 24 | | A classifiable set of the fingerprints of every person who | 25 | | is offered employment as a certificated member of an affected | 26 | | fire department whether with or without compensation, shall be |
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| 1 | | furnished to the Illinois Department of State Police and to the | 2 | | Federal Bureau of Investigation by the commission. | 3 | | Whenever a commission is authorized or required by law to | 4 | | consider some aspect of criminal history record information for | 5 | | the purpose of carrying out its statutory powers and | 6 | | responsibilities, then, upon request and payment of fees in | 7 | | conformance with the requirements of Section 2605-400 of the | 8 | | State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, | 9 | | the Department of State Police is authorized to furnish, | 10 | | pursuant to positive identification, the information contained | 11 | | in State files as is necessary to fulfill the request. | 12 | | (j) Temporary appointments. In order to prevent a stoppage | 13 | | of public business, to meet extraordinary exigencies, or to | 14 | | prevent material impairment of the fire department, the | 15 | | commission may make temporary appointments, to remain in force | 16 | | only until regular appointments are made under the provisions | 17 | | of this Division, but never to exceed 60 days. No temporary | 18 | | appointment of any one person shall be made more than twice in | 19 | | any calendar year. | 20 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 21 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 22 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 23 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 24 | | charges for official misconduct. | 25 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 26 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the |
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| 1 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 2 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 3 | | disciplinary actions. | 4 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-1-7.2 new) | 5 | | Sec. 10-1-7.2. Alternative procedure; original | 6 | | appointment; full-time firefighter. | 7 | | (a) Authority. The Joint Labor and Management Committee | 8 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 9 | | Promotion Act, may establish a community outreach program to | 10 | | market the profession of firefighter and firefighter-paramedic | 11 | | so as to ensure the pool of applicants recruited is of broad | 12 | | diversity and the highest quality. | 13 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 14 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 15 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 16 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 17 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 18 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 19 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 20 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 21 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 22 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 23 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 24 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 25 | | (b) Eligibility. Persons eligible for placement on the |
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| 1 | | master register of eligibles shall consist of the following: | 2 | | Persons who have participated in and received a passing | 3 | | total score on the mental aptitude, physical ability, and | 4 | | preference components of a regionally administered test | 5 | | based on the standards described in this Section. The | 6 | | standards for administering these tests and the minimum | 7 | | passing score required for placement on this list shall be | 8 | | as is set forth in this Section. | 9 | | Qualified candidates shall be listed on the master | 10 | | register of eligibles in highest to lowest rank order based | 11 | | upon their test scores without regard to their date of | 12 | | examination. Candidates listed on the master register of | 13 | | eligibles shall be eligible for appointment for 2 years | 14 | | after the date of the certification of their final score on | 15 | | the register without regard to the date of their | 16 | | examination. After 2 years, the candidate's name shall be | 17 | | struck from the list. | 18 | | Any person currently employed as a full-time member of | 19 | | a fire department or any person who has experienced a | 20 | | non–voluntary (and non-disciplinary) separation from the | 21 | | active workforce due to a reduction in the number of | 22 | | departmental officers, who was appointed pursuant to this | 23 | | Division, Division 2.1 of Article 10 of the Illinois | 24 | | Municipal Code, or the Fire Protection District Act, and | 25 | | who during the previous 24 months participated in and | 26 | | received a passing score on the physical ability and mental |
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| 1 | | aptitude components of the test may request that his or her | 2 | | name be added to the master register. Any eligible person | 3 | | may be offered employment by a local commission under the | 4 | | same procedures as provided by this Section except that the | 5 | | apprenticeship period may be waived and the applicant may | 6 | | be immediately issued a certificate of original | 7 | | appointment by the local commission. | 8 | | (c) Qualifications for placement on register of eligibles. | 9 | | The purpose for establishing a master register of eligibles | 10 | | shall be to identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the | 11 | | mental aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties | 12 | | required of members of the fire department in order to provide | 13 | | the highest quality of service to the public. To this end, all | 14 | | applicants for original appointment to an affected fire | 15 | | department through examination conducted by the Joint Labor and | 16 | | Management Committee (JLMC) shall be subject to examination and | 17 | | testing which shall be public, competitive, and open to all | 18 | | applicants. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 19 | | administered by certified assessors. All qualifying and | 20 | | disqualifying factors applicable to examination processes for | 21 | | local commissions in this amendatory Act of the 97th General | 22 | | Assembly shall be applicable to persons participating in Joint | 23 | | Labor and Management Committee examinations unless | 24 | | specifically provided otherwise in this Section. | 25 | | Notice of the time, place, general scope, and fee of every | 26 | | JLMC examination shall be given by the JLMC or designated |
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| 1 | | testing agency, as applicable, by publication at least 30 days | 2 | | preceding the examination, in one or more newspapers published | 3 | | in the region, or if no newspaper is published therein, then in | 4 | | one or more newspapers with a general circulation within the | 5 | | region. The JLMC may publish the notice on the JLMC's Internet | 6 | | website. Additional notice of the examination may be given as | 7 | | the JLMC shall prescribe. | 8 | | (d) Examination and testing components for placement on | 9 | | register of eligibles. The examination and qualifying | 10 | | standards for placement on the master register of eligibles and | 11 | | employment shall be based on the following components: mental | 12 | | aptitude, physical ability, preferences, moral character, and | 13 | | health. The mental aptitude, physical ability, and preference | 14 | | components shall determine an applicant's qualification for | 15 | | and placement on the master register of eligibles. The | 16 | | consideration of an applicant's general moral character and | 17 | | health shall be administered on a pass-fail basis after a | 18 | | conditional offer of employment is made by a local commission. | 19 | | (e) Mental aptitude. Examination of an applicant's mental | 20 | | aptitude shall be based upon written examination and an | 21 | | applicant's prior experience demonstrating an aptitude for and | 22 | | commitment to service as a member of a fire department. Written | 23 | | examinations shall be practical in character and relate to | 24 | | those matters that fairly test the capacity of the persons | 25 | | examined to discharge the duties performed by members of a fire | 26 | | department. Written examinations shall be administered in a |
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| 1 | | manner that ensures the security and accuracy of the scores | 2 | | achieved. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 3 | | administered by certified assessors. No person who does not | 4 | | possess a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 5 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. Local | 6 | | commissions may establish educational, emergency medical | 7 | | service licensure, and other pre-requisites for hire within | 8 | | their jurisdiction. | 9 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 10 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 11 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 12 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 13 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 14 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 15 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 16 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 17 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 18 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 19 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 20 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 21 | | each applicant's physical abilities in each of the following | 22 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 23 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 24 | | functions of a firefighter's job description): | 25 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 26 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including |
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| 1 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 2 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 3 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 4 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested are to be | 5 | | based on industry standards developed by the JLMC by rule. | 6 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 7 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 8 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 9 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 10 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 11 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 12 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 13 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 14 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. The examination | 15 | | components shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 16 | | position on the master register of eligibles shall be | 17 | | determined by the person's score on the written examination, | 18 | | the person successfully passing the physical ability | 19 | | component, and the addition of any applicable preference | 20 | | points. | 21 | | Applicants who have achieved at least the mean score of all | 22 | | applicants participating in the written examination at the same | 23 | | time, and who successfully pass the physical ability | 24 | | examination shall be placed on the initial eligibility | 25 | | register. For placement on the final eligibility register, the | 26 | | passing score shall be determined by (i) calculating the mean |
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| 1 | | score for all applicants participating in the written test; and | 2 | | (ii) adding 20% to the mean score. Applicants whose total | 3 | | scores, including any applicable preference points, are above | 4 | | the mean score plus 20%, shall be placed on the master register | 5 | | of eligibles by the JLMC. | 6 | | These persons shall take rank upon the register as | 7 | | candidates in the order of their relative excellence based on | 8 | | the highest to the lowest total points scored on the mental | 9 | | aptitude and physical ability components, plus any applicable | 10 | | preference points requested and verified by the JLMC, or | 11 | | approved testing agency. | 12 | | No more than 60 days after each examination, a revised | 13 | | master register of eligibles shall be posted by the JLMC | 14 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 15 | | priority of time of examination. | 16 | | (h) Preferences. The board shall give military, education, | 17 | | and experience preference points to those who qualify for | 18 | | placement on the master register of eligibles, on the same | 19 | | basis as provided for examinations administered by a local | 20 | | commission. | 21 | | No person entitled to preference or credit shall be | 22 | | required to claim the credit before any examination held under | 23 | | the provisions of this Section. The preference shall be given | 24 | | after the posting or publication of the applicant's initial | 25 | | score at the request of the person before finalizing the scores | 26 | | from all applicants taking part in a JLMC examination. |
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| 1 | | Candidates who are eligible for preference credit shall make a | 2 | | claim in writing within 10 days after the posting of the | 3 | | initial scores from any JLMC test or the claim shall be deemed | 4 | | waived. Once preference points are awarded, the candidates | 5 | | shall be certified to the master register in accordance with | 6 | | their final score including preference points. | 7 | | (i) Firefighter apprentice and firefighter-paramedic | 8 | | apprentice. The employment of an applicant to an apprentice | 9 | | position (including a currently employed full-time member of a | 10 | | fire department whose apprenticeship may be reduced or waived) | 11 | | shall be subject to the applicant passing the moral character | 12 | | standards and health examinations of the local commission. In | 13 | | addition, a local commission may require as a condition of | 14 | | employment that the applicant demonstrate current physical | 15 | | ability by either passing the local commission's approved | 16 | | physical ability examination, or by presenting proof of | 17 | | participating in and receiving a passing score on the physical | 18 | | ability component of a JLMC test within a period of up to 12 | 19 | | months before the date of the conditional offer of employment. | 20 | | Applicants shall be subject to the local commission's initial | 21 | | hire background review including criminal history, employment | 22 | | history, moral character, oral examination, and medical | 23 | | examinations which may include polygraph, psychological, and | 24 | | drug screening components, all on a pass-fail basis. The | 25 | | medical examinations must be conducted last, and may only be | 26 | | performed after a conditional offer of employment has been |
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| 1 | | extended. | 2 | | (j) Selection from list. Any municipality or fire | 3 | | protection district that is a party to an intergovernmental | 4 | | agreement under the terms of which persons have been tested for | 5 | | placement on the master register of eligibles shall be entitled | 6 | | to offer employment to any person on the list irrespective of | 7 | | their ranking on the list. The offer of employment shall be to | 8 | | the position of firefighter apprentice or | 9 | | firefighter-paramedic apprentice. | 10 | | Applicants passing these tests may be employed as a | 11 | | firefighter apprentice or a firefighter-paramedic apprentice | 12 | | who shall serve an apprenticeship period of 12 months or less | 13 | | according to the terms and conditions of employment as the | 14 | | employing municipality or district offers, or as provided for | 15 | | under the terms of any collective bargaining agreement then in | 16 | | effect. The apprenticeship period is separate from the | 17 | | probationary period. | 18 | | Service during the apprenticeship period shall be on a | 19 | | probationary basis. During the apprenticeship period, the | 20 | | apprentice's training and performance shall be monitored and | 21 | | evaluated by a Joint Apprenticeship Committee. | 22 | | The Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall consist of 4 | 23 | | members who shall be regular members of the fire department | 24 | | with at least 10 years of full-time work experience as a | 25 | | firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. The fire chief and the | 26 | | president of the exclusive bargaining representative |
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| 1 | | recognized by the employer shall each appoint 2 members to the | 2 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee. In the absence of an exclusive | 3 | | collective bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 4 | | the remaining 2 members who shall be from the ranks of company | 5 | | officer and firefighter with at least 10 years of work | 6 | | experience as a firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. In the | 7 | | absence of a sufficient number of qualified firefighters, the | 8 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee members shall have the amount of | 9 | | experience and the type of qualifications as is reasonable | 10 | | given the circumstances of the fire department. In the absence | 11 | | of a full-time member in a rank between chief and the highest | 12 | | rank in a bargaining unit, the Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 13 | | shall be reduced to 2 members, one to be appointed by the chief | 14 | | and one by the union president, if any. If there is no | 15 | | exclusive bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 16 | | the second member of the Joint Apprenticeship Committee from | 17 | | among qualified members in the ranks of company officer and | 18 | | below. Before the conclusion of the apprenticeship period, the | 19 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall meet to consider the | 20 | | apprentice's progress and performance and vote to retain the | 21 | | apprentice as a member of the fire department or to terminate | 22 | | the apprenticeship. If 3 of the 4 members of the Joint | 23 | | Apprenticeship Committee affirmatively vote to retain the | 24 | | apprentice (if a 2 member Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 25 | | exists, then both members must affirmatively vote to retain the | 26 | | apprentice), the local commission shall issue the apprentice a |
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| 1 | | certificate of original appointment to the fire department. | 2 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 3 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 4 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 5 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 6 | | charges for official misconduct. | 7 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 8 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 9 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 10 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 11 | | disciplinary actions.
| 12 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-2.1-4) (from Ch. 24, par. 10-2.1-4)
| 13 | | Sec. 10-2.1-4. Fire and police departments; Appointment of
| 14 | | members; Certificates of appointments.
| 15 | | The board of fire and police commissioners shall appoint | 16 | | all officers
and members of the fire and police departments of | 17 | | the municipality,
including the chief of police and the chief | 18 | | of the fire department,
unless the council or board of trustees | 19 | | shall by ordinance as to them
otherwise provide; except as | 20 | | otherwise provided in this Section, and
except that in any | 21 | | municipality which adopts or has
adopted this Division 2.1 and | 22 | | also adopts or has adopted Article 5 of
this Code, the chief of | 23 | | police and the chief of the fire department
shall be appointed | 24 | | by the municipal manager, if it is provided by
ordinance in | 25 | | such municipality that such chiefs, or either of them,
shall |
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| 1 | | not be appointed by the board of fire and police commissioners.
| 2 | | If the chief of the fire department or the chief of the | 3 | | police department
or both of them are appointed in the manner | 4 | | provided by ordinance, they
may be removed or discharged by the | 5 | | appointing authority. In such case
the appointing authority | 6 | | shall file with the corporate authorities the reasons
for such | 7 | | removal or discharge, which removal or discharge shall not | 8 | | become
effective unless confirmed by a majority vote of the | 9 | | corporate authorities.
| 10 | | If a member of the department is appointed chief of police | 11 | | or chief
of the fire department prior to being eligible to | 12 | | retire on pension, he
shall be considered as on furlough from | 13 | | the rank he held immediately
prior to his appointment as chief. | 14 | | If he resigns as chief or is
discharged as chief prior to | 15 | | attaining eligibility to retire on pension,
he shall revert to | 16 | | and be established in whatever rank he currently holds,
except | 17 | | for previously appointed positions, and thereafter
be entitled | 18 | | to all the benefits and emoluments of that rank,
without regard | 19 | | as to whether a vacancy then exists in that rank.
| 20 | | All appointments to each department other than that of the | 21 | | lowest
rank, however, shall be from the rank next below that to | 22 | | which the
appointment is made except as otherwise provided in | 23 | | this Section, and
except that the chief of police and the chief | 24 | | of the
fire department may be appointed from among members of | 25 | | the police and
fire departments, respectively, regardless of | 26 | | rank, unless the council
or board of trustees shall have by |
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| 1 | | ordinance as to them otherwise provided.
A chief of police or | 2 | | the chief of the fire department, having been appointed
from | 3 | | among members
of the police or fire department, respectively, | 4 | | shall be permitted, regardless
of rank, to
take promotional
| 5 | | exams and be promoted to a higher classified rank than he | 6 | | currently holds,
without having to
resign as chief of police or | 7 | | chief of the fire department.
| 8 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 9 | | shall be
vested in the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners | 10 | | and all
certificates of appointments issued to any officer or | 11 | | member of the fire
or police department of a municipality shall | 12 | | be signed by the chairman
and secretary respectively of the | 13 | | board of fire and police commissioners
of such municipality, | 14 | | upon appointment of such officer or member of the
fire and | 15 | | police department of such municipality by action of the board
| 16 | | of fire and police commissioners. In any municipal fire | 17 | | department that employs full-time firefighters and is subject | 18 | | to a collective bargaining agreement, a person who has not | 19 | | qualified for regular appointment under the provisions of this | 20 | | Division 2.1 shall not be used as a temporary or permanent | 21 | | substitute for classified members of a municipality's fire | 22 | | department or for regular appointment as a classified member of | 23 | | a municipality's fire department unless mutually agreed to by | 24 | | the employee's certified bargaining agent. Such agreement | 25 | | shall be considered a permissive subject of bargaining. | 26 | | Municipal fire departments covered by the changes made by this |
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| 1 | | amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly that are using | 2 | | non-certificated employees as substitutes immediately prior to | 3 | | the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 95th General | 4 | | Assembly may, by mutual agreement with the certified bargaining | 5 | | agent, continue the existing practice or a modified practice | 6 | | and that agreement shall be considered a permissive subject of | 7 | | bargaining. A home rule unit may not regulate the hiring of | 8 | | temporary or substitute members of the municipality's fire | 9 | | department in a manner that is inconsistent with this Section. | 10 | | This Section is a limitation under subsection (i) of Section 6 | 11 | | of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution on the concurrent | 12 | | exercise by home rule units of powers and functions exercised | 13 | | by the State.
| 14 | | The term "policemen" as used in this Division does not | 15 | | include
auxiliary police officers except as provided for in | 16 | | Section 10-2.1-6.
| 17 | | Any full time member of a regular fire or police department | 18 | | of any
municipality which comes under the provisions of this | 19 | | Division or adopts
this Division 2.1 or which has adopted any | 20 | | of the prior Acts pertaining to
fire and police commissioners, | 21 | | is a city officer.
| 22 | | Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, the | 23 | | Chief of
Police of a department in a non-homerule municipality | 24 | | of more than 130,000
inhabitants may, without the advice or | 25 | | consent of the Board of
Fire and Police Commissioners, appoint | 26 | | up to 6 officers who shall be known
as deputy chiefs or |
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| 1 | | assistant deputy chiefs, and whose rank shall be
immediately | 2 | | below that of Chief. The deputy or assistant deputy chiefs may
| 3 | | be appointed from any rank of sworn officers of that | 4 | | municipality, but no
person who is not such a sworn officer may | 5 | | be so appointed. Such deputy
chief or assistant deputy chief | 6 | | shall have the authority to direct and
issue orders to all | 7 | | employees of the Department holding the rank of captain
or any | 8 | | lower rank.
A deputy chief of police or assistant deputy chief | 9 | | of police, having been
appointed from any rank
of sworn | 10 | | officers of that municipality, shall be permitted, regardless | 11 | | of rank,
to take promotional
exams and be promoted to a higher | 12 | | classified rank than he currently holds,
without having to
| 13 | | resign as deputy chief of police or assistant deputy chief of | 14 | | police.
| 15 | | Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, a | 16 | | non-homerule
municipality of 130,000 or fewer inhabitants, | 17 | | through its council or board
of trustees, may, by ordinance, | 18 | | provide for a position of deputy chief to be
appointed by the | 19 | | chief of the police department. The ordinance shall provide
for | 20 | | no more than one deputy chief position if the police department | 21 | | has fewer
than 25 full-time police officers and for no more | 22 | | than 2 deputy chief positions
if the police department has 25 | 23 | | or more full-time police officers. The deputy
chief position
| 24 | | shall be an exempt rank immediately below that of Chief. The | 25 | | deputy chief may
be appointed from any rank of sworn, full-time | 26 | | officers of the municipality's
police department, but must have |
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| 1 | | at least 5 years of full-time service as a
police officer in | 2 | | that department. A deputy chief shall serve at the
discretion | 3 | | of the Chief and, if removed from the position,
shall revert to | 4 | | the rank currently held, without regard as to whether a
vacancy | 5 | | exists in
that rank. A deputy chief
of police, having been | 6 | | appointed from any rank of sworn full-time officers of
that | 7 | | municipality's
police department, shall be permitted, | 8 | | regardless of rank, to take promotional
exams and be
promoted | 9 | | to a higher classified rank than he currently holds, without | 10 | | having to
resign as deputy
chief of police.
| 11 | | No municipality having a population less than 1,000,000 | 12 | | shall require
that any firefighter appointed to the lowest
rank | 13 | | serve a probationary employment period of longer than one year. | 14 | | The
limitation on periods of probationary employment provided | 15 | | in this
amendatory Act of 1989 is an exclusive power and | 16 | | function of the State.
Pursuant to subsection (h) of Section 6 | 17 | | of Article VII of the Illinois
Constitution, a home rule | 18 | | municipality having a population less than 1,000,000
must | 19 | | comply with this limitation on periods of probationary | 20 | | employment, which
is a denial and limitation of home rule | 21 | | powers. Notwithstanding anything to
the contrary in this | 22 | | Section, the probationary employment period limitation
may be | 23 | | extended for a firefighter who is required, as a condition of | 24 | | employment, to be a certified paramedic, during which time the | 25 | | sole reason that a firefighter may be discharged without a | 26 | | hearing is for failing to meet the requirements for paramedic |
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| 1 | | certification.
| 2 | | To the extent that this Section or any other Section in | 3 | | this Division conflicts with Section 10-2.1-6.3 or 10-2.1-6.4, | 4 | | then Section 10-2.1-6.3 or 10-2.1-6.4 shall control. | 5 | | (Source: P.A. 94-135, eff. 7-7-05; 94-984, eff. 6-30-06; | 6 | | 95-490, eff. 6-1-08 .)
| 7 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-2.1-6.3 new) | 8 | | Sec. 10-2.1-6.3. Original appointments; full-time fire | 9 | | department. | 10 | | (a) Applicability. Unless a commission elects to follow the | 11 | | provisions of Section 10-2.1-6.4, this Section shall apply to | 12 | | all original appointments to an affected full-time fire | 13 | | department. Existing registers of eligibles shall continue to | 14 | | be valid until their expiration dates, or up to a maximum of 2 | 15 | | years after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the | 16 | | 97th General Assembly. | 17 | | Notwithstanding any statute, ordinance, rule, or other law | 18 | | to the contrary, all original appointments to an affected | 19 | | department to which this Section applies shall be administered | 20 | | in the manner provided for in this Section. Provisions of the | 21 | | Illinois Municipal Code, municipal ordinances, and rules | 22 | | adopted pursuant to such authority and other laws relating to | 23 | | initial hiring of firefighters in affected departments shall | 24 | | continue to apply to the extent they are compatible with this | 25 | | Section, but in the event of a conflict between this Section |
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| 1 | | and any other law, this Section shall control. | 2 | | A home rule or non-home rule municipality may not | 3 | | administer its fire department process for original | 4 | | appointments in a manner that is inconsistent with this | 5 | | Section. This Section is a limitation under subsection (i) of | 6 | | Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution on the | 7 | | concurrent exercise by home rule units of the powers and | 8 | | functions exercised by the State. | 9 | | A municipality that is operating under a court order or | 10 | | consent decree regarding original appointments to a full-time | 11 | | fire department before the effective date of this amendatory | 12 | | Act of the 97th General Assembly is exempt from the | 13 | | requirements of this Section for the duration of the court | 14 | | order or consent decree. | 15 | | (b) Original appointments. All original appointments made | 16 | | to an affected fire department shall be made from a register of | 17 | | eligibles established in accordance with the processes | 18 | | established by this Section. Only persons who meet or exceed | 19 | | the performance standards required by this Section shall be | 20 | | placed on a register of eligibles for original appointment to | 21 | | an affected fire department. | 22 | | Whenever an appointing authority authorizes action to hire | 23 | | a person to perform the duties of a firefighter or to hire a | 24 | | firefighter-paramedic to fill a position that is a new position | 25 | | or vacancy due to resignation, discharge, promotion, death, the | 26 | | granting of a disability or retirement pension, or any other |
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| 1 | | cause, the appointing authority shall appoint to that position | 2 | | the person with the highest ranking on the final eligibility | 3 | | list, except that the appointing authority shall have the right | 4 | | to pass over that person and appoint the next highest ranked | 5 | | person on the list if the appointing authority has reason to | 6 | | conclude that the highest ranked person fails to meet the | 7 | | minimum standards for the position. | 8 | | Any candidate may pass on an appointment once without | 9 | | losing his or her position on the register of eligibles. Any | 10 | | candidate who passes a second time may be removed from the list | 11 | | by the appointing authority provided that such action shall not | 12 | | prejudice a person's opportunities to participate in future | 13 | | examinations, including an examination held during the time a | 14 | | candidate is already on the municipality's register of | 15 | | eligibles. | 16 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 17 | | shall be vested in the board of fire and police commissioners. | 18 | | All certificates of appointment issued to any officer or member | 19 | | of an affected department shall be signed by the chairperson | 20 | | and secretary, respectively, of the board upon appointment of | 21 | | such officer or member to the affected department by action of | 22 | | the board. Each person who accepts a certificate of appointment | 23 | | and successfully completes his or her probationary period shall | 24 | | be enrolled as a firefighter and as a regular member of the | 25 | | fire department. | 26 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any |
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| 1 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 2 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 3 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 4 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 5 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 6 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 7 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 8 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 9 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 10 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 11 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 12 | | (c) Qualification for placement on register of eligibles. | 13 | | The purpose of establishing a register of eligibles is to | 14 | | identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the mental | 15 | | aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties required of | 16 | | members of the fire department in order to provide the highest | 17 | | quality of service to the public. To this end, all applicants | 18 | | for original appointment to an affected fire department shall | 19 | | be subject to examination and testing which shall be public, | 20 | | competitive, and open to all applicants unless the municipality | 21 | | shall by ordinance limit applicants to residents of the | 22 | | municipality, county or counties in which the municipality is | 23 | | located, State, or nation. Municipalities may establish | 24 | | educational, emergency medical service licensure, and other | 25 | | pre-requisites for participation in an examination or for hire | 26 | | as a firefighter. Any fee to cover the costs of the application |
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| 1 | | process shall not exceed $25. | 2 | | Residency requirements in effect at the time an individual | 3 | | enters the fire service of a municipality (other than a | 4 | | municipality that has more than 1,000,000 inhabitants) cannot | 5 | | be made more restrictive for that individual during his or her | 6 | | period of service for that municipality, or be made a condition | 7 | | of promotion, except for the rank or position of fire chief and | 8 | | for no more than 2 positions that rank immediately below that | 9 | | of the chief rank which are appointed positions pursuant to the | 10 | | Fire Department Promotion Act. | 11 | | No person who is 35 years of age or older shall be eligible | 12 | | to take an examination for a position as a firefighter unless | 13 | | the person has had previous employment status as a firefighter | 14 | | in the regularly constituted fire department of the | 15 | | municipality, except as provided in this Section. The age | 16 | | limitation does not apply to: | 17 | | (1) any person previously employed as a full-time | 18 | | firefighter in a regularly constituted fire department of | 19 | | (i) any municipality or fire protection district located in | 20 | | Illinois, (ii) a fire protection district whose | 21 | | obligations were assumed by a municipality under Section 21 | 22 | | of the Fire Protection District Act, or (iii) a | 23 | | municipality whose obligations were taken over by a fire | 24 | | protection district, or | 25 | | (2) any person who has served a municipality as a | 26 | | regularly enrolled volunteer, paid-on-call, or part-time |
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| 1 | | firefighter for the 5 years immediately preceding the time | 2 | | that the municipality begins to use full-time firefighters | 3 | | to provide all or part of its fire protection service. | 4 | | No person who is under 21 years of age shall be eligible | 5 | | for employment as a firefighter. | 6 | | No applicant shall be examined concerning his or her | 7 | | political or religious opinions or affiliations. The | 8 | | examinations shall be conducted by the commissioners of the | 9 | | municipality or their designees and agents. | 10 | | No municipality having a population of less than 1,000,000 | 11 | | shall require that any firefighter appointed to the lowest rank | 12 | | serve a probationary employment period of longer than one year | 13 | | of actual active employment, which may exclude periods of | 14 | | training, or injury or illness leaves, including duty related | 15 | | leave, in excess of 30 calendar days. Notwithstanding anything | 16 | | to the contrary in this Section, the probationary employment | 17 | | period limitation may be extended for a firefighter who is | 18 | | required, as a condition of employment, to be a certified | 19 | | paramedic, during which time the sole reason that a firefighter | 20 | | may be discharged without a hearing is for failing to meet the | 21 | | requirements for paramedic certification. | 22 | | In the event that any applicant who has been found eligible | 23 | | for appointment and whose name has been placed upon the final | 24 | | eligibility register provided for in this Section has not been | 25 | | appointed to a firefighter position within one year after the | 26 | | date of his or her physical ability examination, the commission |
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| 1 | | may cause a second examination to be made of that applicant's | 2 | | physical ability prior to his or her appointment. If, after the | 3 | | second examination, the physical ability of the applicant shall | 4 | | be found to be less than the minimum standard fixed by the | 5 | | rules of the commission, the applicant shall not be appointed. | 6 | | The applicant's name may be retained upon the register of | 7 | | candidates eligible for appointment and when next reached for | 8 | | certification and appointment that applicant may be again | 9 | | examined as provided in this Section, and if the physical | 10 | | ability of that applicant is found to be less than the minimum | 11 | | standard fixed by the rules of the commission, the applicant | 12 | | shall not be appointed, and the name of the applicant shall be | 13 | | removed from the register. | 14 | | (d) Notice, examination, and testing components. Notice of | 15 | | the time, place, general scope, merit criteria for any | 16 | | subjective component, and fee of every examination shall be | 17 | | given by the commission, by a publication at least 2 weeks | 18 | | preceding the examination, in one or more newspapers published | 19 | | in the municipality, or if no newspaper is published therein, | 20 | | then in one or more newspapers with a general circulation | 21 | | within the municipality. The municipality may publish the | 22 | | notice on the municipality's Internet website. Additional | 23 | | notice of the examination may be given as the commission shall | 24 | | prescribe. | 25 | | The examination and qualifying standards for employment of | 26 | | firefighters shall be based on: mental aptitude, physical |
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| 1 | | ability, preferences, moral character, and health. The mental | 2 | | aptitude, physical ability, and preference components shall | 3 | | determine an applicant's qualification for and placement on the | 4 | | final register of eligibles. The examination may also include a | 5 | | subjective component based on merit criteria as determined by | 6 | | the commission. Scores from the examination must be made | 7 | | available to the public. | 8 | | (e) Mental aptitude. No person who does not possess at | 9 | | least a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 10 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. | 11 | | Examination of an applicant's mental aptitude shall be based | 12 | | upon a written examination. The examination shall be practical | 13 | | in character and relate to those matters that fairly test the | 14 | | capacity of the persons examined to discharge the duties | 15 | | performed by members of a fire department. Written examinations | 16 | | shall be administered in a manner that ensures the security and | 17 | | accuracy of the scores achieved. | 18 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 19 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 20 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 21 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 22 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 23 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 24 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 25 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 26 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor |
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| 1 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 2 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 3 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 4 | | each applicant's physical abilities in the following | 5 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 6 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 7 | | functions of the firefighter's job description): | 8 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 9 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 10 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 11 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 12 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 13 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested may be based | 14 | | on standards developed, or approved, by the local | 15 | | appointing authority. | 16 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 17 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 18 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 19 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 20 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 21 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 22 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 23 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 24 | | Physical ability examinations administered under this | 25 | | Section shall be conducted with a reasonable number of proctors | 26 | | and monitors, open to the public, and subject to reasonable |
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| 1 | | regulations of the commission. | 2 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. The examination | 3 | | components shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 4 | | position on the list shall be determined by the following: (i) | 5 | | the person's score on the written examination, (ii) the person | 6 | | successfully passing the physical ability component, (iii) the | 7 | | person's results on any subjective component as described in | 8 | | subsection (d), and (iv) the addition of any applicable | 9 | | preference points. | 10 | | Applicants who pass the written examination, the physical | 11 | | ability examination, and any subjective component shall be | 12 | | placed on the initial eligibility register. The passing score | 13 | | for each of these test components shall be determined by | 14 | | calculating a mean score for all applicants participating in | 15 | | each test. In order to qualify for placement on the final | 16 | | eligibility register, an applicant's total score, before any | 17 | | applicable preference points are applied, shall be at or above | 18 | | the mean score plus 10%. The local appointing authority may | 19 | | prescribe the score to qualify for placement on the final | 20 | | eligibility register, but the score shall not be less than the | 21 | | mean score plus 10%. | 22 | | The commission shall prepare and keep a register of persons | 23 | | whose total score is not less than the minimum fixed by this | 24 | | Section. These persons shall take rank upon the register as | 25 | | candidates in the order of their relative excellence based on | 26 | | the highest to the lowest total points scored on the mental |
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| 1 | | aptitude, physical ability, and preference components of the | 2 | | test administered in accordance with this Section. No more than | 3 | | 60 days after each examination, an initial eligibility list | 4 | | shall be posted by the commission. The list shall include the | 5 | | final grades of the candidates without reference to priority of | 6 | | the time of examination and subject to claim for preference | 7 | | credit. | 8 | | Commissions may conduct additional examinations, including | 9 | | without limitation a polygraph test, after a final eligibility | 10 | | register is established and before it expires with the | 11 | | candidates ranked by total score without regard to date of | 12 | | examination. No more than 60 days after each examination, an | 13 | | initial eligibility list shall be posted by the commission | 14 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 15 | | priority of time of examination and subject to claim for | 16 | | preference credit. | 17 | | (h) Preferences. The following are preferences: | 18 | | (1) Veteran preference. Persons who were engaged in the | 19 | | military service of the United States for a period of at | 20 | | least one year of active duty and who were honorably | 21 | | discharged therefrom, or who are now or have been members | 22 | | on inactive or reserve duty in such military or naval | 23 | | service, shall be preferred for appointment to and | 24 | | employment with the fire department of an affected | 25 | | department. | 26 | | (2) Fire cadet preference. Persons who have |
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| 1 | | successfully completed 2 years of study in fire techniques | 2 | | or cadet training within a cadet program established under | 3 | | the rules of the Joint Labor and Management Committee | 4 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 5 | | Promotion Act, may be preferred for appointment to and | 6 | | employment with the fire department. | 7 | | (3) Educational preference. Persons who have | 8 | | successfully obtained an associate's degree in the field of | 9 | | fire service or emergency medical services, or a bachelor's | 10 | | degree from an accredited college or university may be | 11 | | preferred for appointment to and employment with the fire | 12 | | department. | 13 | | (4) Paramedic preference. Persons who have obtained | 14 | | certification as an Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic | 15 | | (EMT-P) shall be preferred for appointment to and | 16 | | employment with the fire department of an affected | 17 | | department providing emergency medical services. | 18 | | (5) Experience preference. All persons employed by a | 19 | | municipality who have been paid-on-call or part-time | 20 | | certified Firefighter II, State of Illinois or nationally | 21 | | licensed EMT-B or EMT-I, or any combination of those | 22 | | capacities shall be awarded 0.5 point for each year of | 23 | | successful service in one or more of those capacities, up | 24 | | to a maximum of 5 points. Certified Firefighter III and | 25 | | State of Illinois or nationally licensed paramedics shall | 26 | | be awarded one point per year up to a maximum of 5 points. |
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| 1 | | Applicants from outside the municipality who were employed | 2 | | as full-time firefighters or firefighter-paramedics by a | 3 | | fire protection district or another municipality for at | 4 | | least 2 years shall be awarded 5 experience preference | 5 | | points. These additional points presuppose a rating scale | 6 | | totaling 100 points available for the eligibility list. If | 7 | | more or fewer points are used in the rating scale for the | 8 | | eligibility list, the points awarded under this subsection | 9 | | shall be increased or decreased by a factor equal to the | 10 | | total possible points available for the examination | 11 | | divided by 100. | 12 | | (6) Residency preference. Applicants whose principal | 13 | | residence is located within the fire department's | 14 | | jurisdiction shall be preferred for appointment to and | 15 | | employment with the fire department. | 16 | | Upon request by the commission, the governing body of | 17 | | the municipality or in the case of applicants from outside | 18 | | the municipality the governing body of any fire protection | 19 | | district or any other municipality shall certify to the | 20 | | commission, within 10 days after the request, the number of | 21 | | years of successful paid-on-call, part-time, or full-time | 22 | | service of any person. A candidate may not receive the full | 23 | | amount of preference points under this subsection if the | 24 | | amount of points awarded would place the candidate before a | 25 | | veteran on the eligibility list. If more than one candidate | 26 | | receiving experience preference points is prevented from |
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| 1 | | receiving all of their points due to not being allowed to | 2 | | pass a veteran, the candidates shall be placed on the list | 3 | | below the veteran in rank order based on the totals | 4 | | received if all points under this subsection were to be | 5 | | awarded. Any remaining ties on the list shall be determined | 6 | | by lot. | 7 | | (7) Additional preferences. Up to 5 additional | 8 | | preference points may be awarded for unique categories | 9 | | based on an applicant's experience or background as | 10 | | identified by the commission. | 11 | | (8) Scoring of preferences. The commission shall give | 12 | | preference for original appointment
to persons designated | 13 | | in item (1)
by adding to the final grade that they receive | 14 | | 5 points
for the recognized preference achieved. The | 15 | | commission shall determine the number of preference points | 16 | | for each category except (1). The number of preference | 17 | | points for each category shall range from 0 to 5. In | 18 | | determining the number of preference points, the | 19 | | commission shall prescribe that if a candidate earns the | 20 | | maximum number of preference points in all categories, that | 21 | | number may not be less than 10 nor more than 30. The | 22 | | commission shall give preference for original appointment | 23 | | to persons designated in items (2) through (7) by adding | 24 | | the requisite number of points to the final grade for each | 25 | | recognized preference achieved. The numerical result thus | 26 | | attained shall be applied by the commission in determining |
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| 1 | | the final eligibility list and appointment from the | 2 | | eligibility list. The local appointing authority may | 3 | | prescribe the total number of preference points awarded | 4 | | under this Section, but the total number of preference | 5 | | points shall not be less than 10 points or more than 30 | 6 | | points. | 7 | | No person entitled to any preference shall be required to | 8 | | claim the credit before any examination held under the | 9 | | provisions of this Section, but the preference shall be given | 10 | | after the posting or publication of the initial eligibility | 11 | | list or register at the request of a person entitled to a | 12 | | credit before any certification or appointments are made from | 13 | | the eligibility register, upon the furnishing of verifiable | 14 | | evidence and proof of qualifying preference credit. Candidates | 15 | | who are eligible for preference credit shall make a claim in | 16 | | writing within 10 days after the posting of the initial | 17 | | eligibility list, or the claim shall be deemed waived. Final | 18 | | eligibility registers shall be established after the awarding | 19 | | of verified preference points. All employment shall be subject | 20 | | to the commission's initial hire background review including, | 21 | | but not limited to, criminal history, employment history, moral | 22 | | character, oral examination, and medical and psychological | 23 | | examinations, all on a pass-fail basis. The medical and | 24 | | psychological examinations must be conducted last, and may only | 25 | | be performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 26 | | extended. |
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| 1 | | Any person placed on an eligibility list who exceeds the | 2 | | age requirement before being appointed to a fire department | 3 | | shall remain eligible for appointment until the list is | 4 | | abolished, or his or her name has been on the list for a period | 5 | | of 2 years. No person who has attained the age of 35 years | 6 | | shall be inducted into a fire department, except as otherwise | 7 | | provided in this Section. | 8 | | The commission shall strike off the names of candidates for | 9 | | original appointment after the names have been on the list for | 10 | | more than 2 years. | 11 | | (i) Moral character. No person shall be appointed to a fire | 12 | | department unless he or she is a person of good character; not | 13 | | a habitual drunkard, a gambler, or a person who has been | 14 | | convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude. | 15 | | However, no person shall be disqualified from appointment to | 16 | | the fire department because of the person's record of | 17 | | misdemeanor convictions except those under Sections 11-6, | 18 | | 11-7, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 12-2, 12-6, | 19 | | 12-15, 14-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1, | 20 | | 31-4, 31-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, 32-3, 32-4, 32-8, and subsections | 21 | | 1, 6, and 8 of Section 24-1 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or | 22 | | arrest for any cause without conviction thereon. Any such | 23 | | person who is in the department may be removed on charges | 24 | | brought for violating this subsection and after a trial as | 25 | | hereinafter provided. | 26 | | A classifiable set of the fingerprints of every person who |
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| 1 | | is offered employment as a certificated member of an affected | 2 | | fire department whether with or without compensation, shall be | 3 | | furnished to the Illinois Department of State Police and to the | 4 | | Federal Bureau of Investigation by the commission. | 5 | | Whenever a commission is authorized or required by law to | 6 | | consider some aspect of criminal history record information for | 7 | | the purpose of carrying out its statutory powers and | 8 | | responsibilities, then, upon request and payment of fees in | 9 | | conformance with the requirements of Section 2605-400 of the | 10 | | State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, | 11 | | the Department of State Police is authorized to furnish, | 12 | | pursuant to positive identification, the information contained | 13 | | in State files as is necessary to fulfill the request. | 14 | | (j) Temporary appointments. In order to prevent a stoppage | 15 | | of public business, to meet extraordinary exigencies, or to | 16 | | prevent material impairment of the fire department, the | 17 | | commission may make temporary appointments, to remain in force | 18 | | only until regular appointments are made under the provisions | 19 | | of this Division, but never to exceed 60 days. No temporary | 20 | | appointment of any one person shall be made more than twice in | 21 | | any calendar year. | 22 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 23 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 24 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 25 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 26 | | charges for official misconduct. |
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| 1 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 2 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 3 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 4 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 5 | | disciplinary actions. | 6 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-2.1-6.4 new) | 7 | | Sec. 10-2.1-6.4. Alternative procedure; original | 8 | | appointment; full-time firefighter. | 9 | | (a) Authority. The Joint Labor and Management Committee | 10 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 11 | | Promotion Act, may establish a community outreach program to | 12 | | market the profession of firefighter and firefighter-paramedic | 13 | | so as to ensure the pool of applicants recruited is of broad | 14 | | diversity and the highest quality. | 15 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 16 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 17 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 18 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 19 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 20 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 21 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 22 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 23 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 24 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 25 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform |
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| 1 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 2 | | (b) Eligibility. Persons eligible for placement on the | 3 | | master register of eligibles shall consist of the following: | 4 | | Persons who have participated in and received a passing | 5 | | total score on the mental aptitude, physical ability, and | 6 | | preference components of a regionally administered test | 7 | | based on the standards described in this Section. The | 8 | | standards for administering these tests and the minimum | 9 | | passing score required for placement on this list shall be | 10 | | as is set forth in this Section. | 11 | | Qualified candidates shall be listed on the master | 12 | | register of eligibles in highest to lowest rank order based | 13 | | upon their test scores without regard to their date of | 14 | | examination. Candidates listed on the master register of | 15 | | eligibles shall be eligible for appointment for 2 years | 16 | | after the date of the certification of their final score on | 17 | | the register without regard to the date of their | 18 | | examination. After 2 years, the candidate's name shall be | 19 | | struck from the list. | 20 | | Any person currently employed as a full-time member of | 21 | | a fire department or any person who has experienced a | 22 | | non–voluntary (and non-disciplinary) separation from the | 23 | | active workforce due to a reduction in the number of | 24 | | departmental officers, who was appointed pursuant to | 25 | | Division 1 of Article 10 of the Illinois Municipal Code, | 26 | | Division 2.1 of Article 10 of the Illinois Municipal Code, |
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| 1 | | or the Fire Protection District Act, and who during the | 2 | | previous 24 months participated in and received a passing | 3 | | score on the physical ability and mental aptitude | 4 | | components of the test may request that his or her name be | 5 | | added to the master register. Any eligible person may be | 6 | | offered employment by a local commission under the same | 7 | | procedures as provided by this Section except that the | 8 | | apprenticeship period may be waived and the applicant may | 9 | | be immediately issued a certificate of original | 10 | | appointment by the local commission. | 11 | | (c) Qualifications for placement on register of eligibles. | 12 | | The purpose for establishing a master register of eligibles | 13 | | shall be to identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the | 14 | | mental aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties | 15 | | required of members of the fire department in order to provide | 16 | | the highest quality of service to the public. To this end, all | 17 | | applicants for original appointment to an affected fire | 18 | | department through examination conducted by the Joint Labor and | 19 | | Management Committee (JLMC) shall be subject to examination and | 20 | | testing which shall be public, competitive, and open to all | 21 | | applicants. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 22 | | administered by certified assessors. All qualifying and | 23 | | disqualifying factors applicable to examination processes for | 24 | | local commissions in this amendatory Act of the 97th General | 25 | | Assembly shall be applicable to persons participating in Joint | 26 | | Labor and Management Committee examinations unless |
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| 1 | | specifically provided otherwise in this Section. | 2 | | Notice of the time, place, general scope, and fee of every | 3 | | JLMC examination shall be given by the JLMC or designated | 4 | | testing agency, as applicable, by a publication at least 30 | 5 | | days preceding the examination, in one or more newspapers | 6 | | published in the region, or if no newspaper is published | 7 | | therein, then in one or more newspapers with a general | 8 | | circulation within the region. The JLMC may publish the notice | 9 | | on the JLMC's Internet website. Additional notice of the | 10 | | examination may be given as the JLMC shall prescribe. | 11 | | (d) Examination and testing components for placement on | 12 | | register of eligibles. The examination and qualifying | 13 | | standards for placement on the master register of eligibles and | 14 | | employment shall be based on the following components: mental | 15 | | aptitude, physical ability, preferences, moral character, and | 16 | | health. The mental aptitude, physical ability, and preference | 17 | | components shall determine an applicant's qualification for | 18 | | and placement on the master register of eligibles. The | 19 | | consideration of an applicant's general moral character and | 20 | | health shall be administered on a pass-fail basis after a | 21 | | conditional offer of employment is made by a local commission. | 22 | | (e) Mental aptitude. Examination of an applicant's mental | 23 | | aptitude shall be based upon written examination and an | 24 | | applicant's prior experience demonstrating an aptitude for and | 25 | | commitment to service as a member of a fire department. Written | 26 | | examinations shall be practical in character and relate to |
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| 1 | | those matters that fairly test the capacity of the persons | 2 | | examined to discharge the duties performed by members of a fire | 3 | | department. Written examinations shall be administered in a | 4 | | manner that ensures the security and accuracy of the scores | 5 | | achieved. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 6 | | administered by certified assessors. No person who does not | 7 | | possess a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 8 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. Local | 9 | | commissions may establish educational, emergency medical | 10 | | service licensure, and other pre-requisites for hire within | 11 | | their jurisdiction. | 12 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 13 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 14 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 15 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 16 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 17 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 18 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 19 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 20 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 21 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 22 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 23 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 24 | | each applicant's physical abilities in each of the following | 25 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 26 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential |
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| 1 | | functions of a firefighter's job description): | 2 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 3 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 4 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 5 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 6 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 7 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested are to be | 8 | | based on industry standards developed by the JLMC by rule. | 9 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 10 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 11 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 12 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 13 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 14 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 15 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 16 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 17 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. The examination | 18 | | components shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 19 | | position on the master register of eligibles shall be | 20 | | determined by the person's score on the written examination, | 21 | | the person successfully passing the physical ability | 22 | | component, and the addition of any applicable preference | 23 | | points. | 24 | | Applicants who have achieved at least the mean score of all | 25 | | applicants participating in the written examination at the same | 26 | | time, and who successfully pass the physical ability |
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| 1 | | examination shall be placed on the initial eligibility | 2 | | register. For placement on the final eligibility register, the | 3 | | passing score shall be determined by (i) calculating the mean | 4 | | score for all applicants participating in the written test; and | 5 | | (ii) adding 20% to the mean score. Applicants whose total | 6 | | scores, including any applicable preference points, are above | 7 | | the mean score plus 20%, shall be placed on the master register | 8 | | of eligibles by the JLMC. | 9 | | These persons shall take rank upon the register as | 10 | | candidates in the order of their relative excellence based on | 11 | | the highest to the lowest total points scored on the mental | 12 | | aptitude and physical ability components, plus any applicable | 13 | | preference points requested and verified by the JLMC, or | 14 | | approved testing agency. | 15 | | No more than 60 days after each examination, a revised | 16 | | master register of eligibles shall be posted by the JLMC | 17 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 18 | | priority of time of examination. | 19 | | (h) Preferences. The board shall give military, education, | 20 | | and experience preference points to those who qualify for | 21 | | placement on the master register of eligibles, on the same | 22 | | basis as provided for examinations administered by a local | 23 | | commission. | 24 | | No person entitled to preference or credit shall be | 25 | | required to claim the credit before any examination held under | 26 | | the provisions of this Section. The preference shall be given |
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| 1 | | after the posting or publication of the applicant's initial | 2 | | score at the request of the person before finalizing the scores | 3 | | from all applicants taking part in a JLMC examination. | 4 | | Candidates who are eligible for preference credit shall make a | 5 | | claim in writing within 10 days after the posting of the | 6 | | initial scores from any JLMC test or the claim shall be deemed | 7 | | waived. Once preference points are awarded, the candidates | 8 | | shall be certified to the master register in accordance with | 9 | | their final score including preference points. | 10 | | (i) Firefighter apprentice and firefighter-paramedic | 11 | | apprentice. The employment of an applicant to an apprentice | 12 | | position (including a currently employed full-time member of a | 13 | | fire department whose apprenticeship may be reduced or waived) | 14 | | shall be subject to the applicant passing the moral character | 15 | | standards and health examinations of the local commission. In | 16 | | addition, a local commission may require as a condition of | 17 | | employment that the applicant demonstrate current physical | 18 | | ability by either passing the local commission's approved | 19 | | physical ability examination, or by presenting proof of | 20 | | participating in and receiving a passing score on the physical | 21 | | ability component of a JLMC test within a period of up to 12 | 22 | | months before the date of the conditional offer of employment. | 23 | | Applicants shall be subject to the local commission's initial | 24 | | hire background review including criminal history, employment | 25 | | history, moral character, oral examination, and medical | 26 | | examinations which may include polygraph, psychological, and |
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| 1 | | drug screening components, all on a pass-fail basis. The | 2 | | medical examinations must be conducted last, and may only be | 3 | | performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 4 | | extended. | 5 | | (j) Selection from list. Any municipality or fire | 6 | | protection district that is a party to an intergovernmental | 7 | | agreement under the terms of which persons have been tested for | 8 | | placement on the master register of eligibles shall be entitled | 9 | | to offer employment to any person on the list irrespective of | 10 | | their ranking on the list. The offer of employment shall be to | 11 | | the position of firefighter apprentice or | 12 | | firefighter-paramedic apprentice. | 13 | | Applicants passing these tests may be employed as a | 14 | | firefighter apprentice or a firefighter-paramedic apprentice | 15 | | who shall serve an apprenticeship period of 12 months or less | 16 | | according to the terms and conditions of employment as the | 17 | | employing municipality or district offers, or as provided for | 18 | | under the terms of any collective bargaining agreement then in | 19 | | effect. The apprenticeship period is separate from the | 20 | | probationary period. | 21 | | Service during the apprenticeship period shall be on a | 22 | | probationary basis. During the apprenticeship period, the | 23 | | apprentice's training and performance shall be monitored and | 24 | | evaluated by a Joint Apprenticeship Committee. | 25 | | The Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall consist of 4 | 26 | | members who shall be regular members of the fire department |
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| 1 | | with at least 10 years of full-time work experience as a | 2 | | firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. The fire chief and the | 3 | | president of the exclusive bargaining representative | 4 | | recognized by the employer shall each appoint 2 members to the | 5 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee. In the absence of an exclusive | 6 | | collective bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 7 | | the remaining 2 members who shall be from the ranks of company | 8 | | officer and firefighter with at least 10 years of work | 9 | | experience as a firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. In the | 10 | | absence of a sufficient number of qualified firefighters, the | 11 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee members shall have the amount of | 12 | | experience and the type of qualifications as is reasonable | 13 | | given the circumstances of the fire department. In the absence | 14 | | of a full-time member in a rank between chief and the highest | 15 | | rank in a bargaining unit, the Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 16 | | shall be reduced to 2 members, one to be appointed by the chief | 17 | | and one by the union president, if any. If there is no | 18 | | exclusive bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 19 | | the second member of the Joint Apprenticeship Committee from | 20 | | among qualified members in the ranks of company officer and | 21 | | below. Before the conclusion of the apprenticeship period, the | 22 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall meet to consider the | 23 | | apprentice's progress and performance and vote to retain the | 24 | | apprentice as a member of the fire department or to terminate | 25 | | the apprenticeship. If 3 of the 4 members of the Joint | 26 | | Apprenticeship Committee affirmatively vote to retain the |
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| 1 | | apprentice (if a 2 member Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 2 | | exists, then both members must affirmatively vote to retain the | 3 | | apprentice), the local commission shall issue the apprentice a | 4 | | certificate of original appointment to the fire department. | 5 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 6 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 7 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 8 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 9 | | charges for official misconduct. | 10 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 11 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 12 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 13 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 14 | | disciplinary actions. | 15 | | Section 10. The Fire Protection District Act is amended by | 16 | | changing Section 16.04a and by adding Sections 16.06b and | 17 | | 16.06c as follows:
| 18 | | (70 ILCS 705/16.04a) (from Ch. 127 1/2, par. 37.04a)
| 19 | | Sec. 16.04a.
The board of fire commissioners shall appoint | 20 | | all
officers and members of the fire departments of the | 21 | | district, except the
Chief of the fire department. The board of | 22 | | trustees shall appoint the Chief
of the fire department, who | 23 | | shall serve at the pleasure of the board, and may
enter into a | 24 | | multi-year contract not exceeding 3 years with the Chief.
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| 1 | | If a member of the department is appointed Chief of the | 2 | | fire department
prior to being eligible to retire on pension he | 3 | | shall be considered as on
furlough from the rank he held | 4 | | immediately prior to his appointment as
Chief. If he resigns as | 5 | | Chief or is discharged as Chief prior to attaining
eligibility | 6 | | to retire on pension, he shall revert to and be established in
| 7 | | such prior rank, and thereafter be entitled to all the benefits | 8 | | and
emoluments of such prior rank, without regard as to whether | 9 | | a vacancy then
exists in such rank. In such instances, the | 10 | | Chief shall be deemed to have
continued to accrue seniority in | 11 | | the department during his period of
service as Chief, or time | 12 | | in grade in his former rank to which he shall
revert during his | 13 | | period of service as Chief, except solely for purposes of
any | 14 | | layoff as provided in Section 16.13b hereafter.
| 15 | | All appointments to each department other than that of the | 16 | | lowest rank,
however, shall be from the rank next below that to | 17 | | which the appointment is
made, except that the Chief of the | 18 | | fire department may be appointed from
among members of the fire | 19 | | department, regardless of rank.
| 20 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 21 | | shall be vested
in the board of fire commissioners and all | 22 | | certificates of appointments
issued to any officer or member of | 23 | | the fire department shall be signed by
the chairman and | 24 | | secretary respectively of the board of fire commissioners
upon | 25 | | appointment of such officer or member of the fire department by | 26 | | action
of the board of fire commissioners.
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| 1 | | To the extent that this Section or any other Section in | 2 | | this Act conflicts with Section 16.06b or 16.06c, then Section | 3 | | 16.06b or 16.06c shall control. | 4 | | (Source: P.A. 91-948, eff. 1-1-02.)
| 5 | | (70 ILCS 705/16.06b new) | 6 | | Sec. 16.06b. Original appointments; full-time fire | 7 | | department. | 8 | | (a) Applicability. Unless a commission elects to follow the | 9 | | provisions of Section 16.06c, this Section shall apply to all | 10 | | original appointments to an affected full-time fire | 11 | | department. Existing registers of eligibles shall continue to | 12 | | be valid until their expiration dates, or up to a maximum of 2 | 13 | | years after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the | 14 | | 97th General Assembly. | 15 | | Notwithstanding any statute, ordinance, rule, or other law | 16 | | to the contrary, all original appointments to an affected | 17 | | department to which this Section applies shall be administered | 18 | | in the manner provided for in this Section. Provisions of the | 19 | | Illinois Municipal Code, Fire Protection District Act, fire | 20 | | district ordinances, and rules adopted pursuant to such | 21 | | authority and other laws relating to initial hiring of | 22 | | firefighters in affected departments shall continue to apply to | 23 | | the extent they are compatible with this Section, but in the | 24 | | event of a conflict between this Section and any other law, | 25 | | this Section shall control. |
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| 1 | | A fire protection district that is operating under a court | 2 | | order or consent decree regarding original appointments to a | 3 | | full-time fire department before the effective date of this | 4 | | amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly is exempt from the | 5 | | requirements of this Section for the duration of the court | 6 | | order or consent decree. | 7 | | (b) Original appointments. All original appointments made | 8 | | to an affected fire department shall be made from a register of | 9 | | eligibles established in accordance with the processes | 10 | | required by this Section. Only persons who meet or exceed the | 11 | | performance standards required by the Section shall be placed | 12 | | on a register of eligibles for original appointment to an | 13 | | affected fire department. | 14 | | Whenever an appointing authority authorizes action to hire | 15 | | a person to perform the duties of a firefighter or to hire a | 16 | | firefighter-paramedic to fill a position that is a new position | 17 | | or vacancy due to resignation, discharge, promotion, death, the | 18 | | granting of a disability or retirement pension, or any other | 19 | | cause, the appointing authority shall appoint to that position | 20 | | the person with the highest ranking on the final eligibility | 21 | | list, except that the appointing authority shall have the right | 22 | | to pass over that person and appoint the next highest ranked | 23 | | person on the list if the appointing authority has reason to | 24 | | conclude that the highest ranked person fails to meet the | 25 | | minimum standards for the position. | 26 | | Any candidate may pass on an appointment once without |
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| 1 | | losing his or her position on the register of eligibles. Any | 2 | | candidate who passes a second time may be removed from the list | 3 | | by the appointing authority provided that such action shall not | 4 | | prejudice a person's opportunities to participate in future | 5 | | examinations, including an examination held during the time a | 6 | | candidate is already on the fire district's register of | 7 | | eligibles. | 8 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 9 | | shall be vested in the board of fire commissioners, or board of | 10 | | trustees serving in the capacity of a board of fire | 11 | | commissioners. All certificates of appointment issued to any | 12 | | officer or member of an affected department shall be signed by | 13 | | the chairperson and secretary, respectively, of the commission | 14 | | upon appointment of such officer or member to the affected | 15 | | department by action of the commission. Each person who accepts | 16 | | a certificate of appointment and successfully completes his or | 17 | | her probationary period shall be enrolled as a firefighter and | 18 | | as a regular member of the fire department. | 19 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 20 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 21 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 22 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 23 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 24 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 25 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 26 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, |
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| 1 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 2 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 3 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 4 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 5 | | (c) Qualification for placement on register of eligibles. | 6 | | The purpose of establishing a register of eligibles is to | 7 | | identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the mental | 8 | | aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties required of | 9 | | members of the fire department in order to provide the highest | 10 | | quality of service to the public. To this end, all applicants | 11 | | for original appointment to an affected fire department shall | 12 | | be subject to examination and testing which shall be public, | 13 | | competitive, and open to all applicants unless the district | 14 | | shall by ordinance limit applicants to residents of the | 15 | | district, county or counties in which the district is located, | 16 | | State, or nation. Districts may establish educational, | 17 | | emergency medical service licensure, and other pre-requisites | 18 | | for participation in an examination or for hire as a | 19 | | firefighter. Any fee to cover the costs of the application | 20 | | process shall not exceed $25. | 21 | | Residency requirements in effect at the time an individual | 22 | | enters the fire service of a district cannot be made more | 23 | | restrictive for that individual during his or her period of | 24 | | service for that district, or be made a condition of promotion, | 25 | | except for the rank or position of fire chief and for no more | 26 | | than 2 positions that rank immediately below that of the chief |
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| 1 | | rank which are appointed positions pursuant to the Fire | 2 | | Department Promotion Act. | 3 | | No person who is 35 years of age or older shall be eligible | 4 | | to take an examination for a position as a firefighter unless | 5 | | the person has had previous employment status as a firefighter | 6 | | in the regularly constituted fire department of the district, | 7 | | except as provided in this Section. The age limitation does not | 8 | | apply to: | 9 | | (1) any person previously employed as a full-time | 10 | | firefighter in a regularly constituted fire department of | 11 | | (i) any municipality or fire protection district located in | 12 | | Illinois, (ii) a fire protection district whose | 13 | | obligations were assumed by a municipality under Section 21 | 14 | | of the Fire Protection District Act, or (iii) a | 15 | | municipality whose obligations were taken over by a fire | 16 | | protection district, or | 17 | | (2) any person who has served a fire district as a | 18 | | regularly enrolled volunteer, paid-on-call, or part-time | 19 | | firefighter for the 5 years immediately preceding the time | 20 | | that the district begins to use full-time firefighters to | 21 | | provide all or part of its fire protection service. | 22 | | No person who is under 21 years of age shall be eligible | 23 | | for employment as a firefighter. | 24 | | No applicant shall be examined concerning his or her | 25 | | political or religious opinions or affiliations. The | 26 | | examinations shall be conducted by the commissioners of the |
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| 1 | | district or their designees and agents. | 2 | | No district shall require that any firefighter appointed to | 3 | | the lowest rank serve a probationary employment period of | 4 | | longer than one year of actual active employment, which may | 5 | | exclude periods of training, or injury or illness leaves, | 6 | | including duty related leave, in excess of 30 calendar days. | 7 | | Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section, the | 8 | | probationary employment period limitation may be extended for a | 9 | | firefighter who is required, as a condition of employment, to | 10 | | be a certified paramedic, during which time the sole reason | 11 | | that a firefighter may be discharged without a hearing is for | 12 | | failing to meet the requirements for paramedic certification. | 13 | | In the event that any applicant who has been found eligible | 14 | | for appointment and whose name has been placed upon the final | 15 | | eligibility register provided for in this Section has not been | 16 | | appointed to a firefighter position within one year after the | 17 | | date of his or her physical ability examination, the commission | 18 | | may cause a second examination to be made of that applicant's | 19 | | physical ability prior to his or her appointment. If, after the | 20 | | second examination, the physical ability of the applicant shall | 21 | | be found to be less than the minimum standard fixed by the | 22 | | rules of the commission, the applicant shall not be appointed. | 23 | | The applicant's name may be retained upon the register of | 24 | | candidates eligible for appointment and when next reached for | 25 | | certification and appointment that applicant may be again | 26 | | examined as provided in this Section, and if the physical |
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| 1 | | ability of that applicant is found to be less than the minimum | 2 | | standard fixed by the rules of the commission, the applicant | 3 | | shall not be appointed, and the name of the applicant shall be | 4 | | removed from the register. | 5 | | (d) Notice, examination, and testing components. Notice of | 6 | | the time, place, general scope, merit criteria for any | 7 | | subjective component, and fee of every examination shall be | 8 | | given by the commission, by a publication at least 2 weeks | 9 | | preceding the examination, in one or more newspapers published | 10 | | in the district, or if no newspaper is published therein, then | 11 | | in one or more newspapers with a general circulation within the | 12 | | district. The fire protection district may publish the notice | 13 | | on the fire protection district's Internet website. Additional | 14 | | notice of the examination may be given as the commission shall | 15 | | prescribe. | 16 | | The examination and qualifying standards for employment of | 17 | | firefighters shall be based on: mental aptitude, physical | 18 | | ability, preferences, moral character, and health. The mental | 19 | | aptitude, physical ability, and preference components shall | 20 | | determine an applicant's qualification for and placement on the | 21 | | final register of eligibles. The examination may also include a | 22 | | subjective component based on merit criteria as determined by | 23 | | the commission. Scores from the examination must be made | 24 | | available to the public. | 25 | | (e) Mental aptitude. No person who does not possess at | 26 | | least a high school diploma or an equivalent high school |
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| 1 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. | 2 | | Examination of an applicant's mental aptitude shall be based | 3 | | upon a written examination. The examination shall be practical | 4 | | in character and relate to those matters that fairly test the | 5 | | capacity of the persons examined to discharge the duties | 6 | | performed by members of a fire department. Written examinations | 7 | | shall be administered in a manner that ensures the security and | 8 | | accuracy of the scores achieved. | 9 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 10 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 11 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 12 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 13 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 14 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 15 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 16 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 17 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 18 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 19 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 20 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 21 | | each applicant's physical abilities in the following | 22 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 23 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 24 | | functions of the firefighter's job description): | 25 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 26 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including |
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| 1 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 2 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 3 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 4 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested may be based | 5 | | on standards developed, or approved, by the local | 6 | | appointing authority. | 7 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 8 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 9 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 10 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 11 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 12 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 13 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 14 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 15 | | Physical ability examinations administered under this | 16 | | Section shall be conducted with a reasonable number of proctors | 17 | | and monitors, open to the public, and subject to reasonable | 18 | | regulations of the commission. | 19 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. The examination | 20 | | components shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 21 | | position on the list shall be determined by the following: (i) | 22 | | the person's score on the written examination, (ii) the person | 23 | | successfully passing the physical ability component, (iii) the | 24 | | person's results on any subjective component as described in | 25 | | subsection (d), and (iv) the addition of any applicable | 26 | | preference points. |
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| 1 | | Applicants who pass the written examination, the physical | 2 | | ability examination, and any subjective component shall be | 3 | | placed on the initial eligibility register. The passing score | 4 | | for each of these test components shall be determined by | 5 | | calculating a mean score for all applicants participating in | 6 | | each test. In order to qualify for placement on the final | 7 | | eligibility register, an applicant's total score, before any | 8 | | applicable preference points are applied, shall be at or above | 9 | | the mean score plus 10%. The local appointing authority may | 10 | | prescribe the score to qualify for placement on the final | 11 | | eligibility register, but the score shall not be less than the | 12 | | mean score plus 10%. | 13 | | The commission shall prepare and keep a register of persons | 14 | | whose total score is not less than the minimum fixed by this | 15 | | Section. These persons shall take rank upon the register as | 16 | | candidates in the order of their relative excellence based on | 17 | | the highest to the lowest total points scored on the mental | 18 | | aptitude, physical ability, and preference components of the | 19 | | test administered in accordance with this Section. No more than | 20 | | 60 days after each examination, an initial eligibility list | 21 | | shall be posted by the commission. The list shall include the | 22 | | final grades of the candidates without reference to priority of | 23 | | the time of examination and subject to claim for preference | 24 | | credit. | 25 | | Commissions may conduct additional examinations, including | 26 | | without limitation a polygraph test, after a final eligibility |
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| 1 | | register is established and before it expires with the | 2 | | candidates ranked by total score without regard to date of | 3 | | examination. No more than 60 days after each examination, an | 4 | | initial eligibility list shall be posted by the commission | 5 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 6 | | priority of time of examination and subject to claim for | 7 | | preference credit. | 8 | | (h) Preferences. The following are preferences: | 9 | | (1) Veteran preference. Persons who were engaged in the | 10 | | military service of the United States for a period of at | 11 | | least one year of active duty and who were honorably | 12 | | discharged therefrom, or who are now or have been members | 13 | | on inactive or reserve duty in such military or naval | 14 | | service, shall be preferred for appointment to and | 15 | | employment with the fire department of an affected | 16 | | department. | 17 | | (2) Fire cadet preference. Persons who have | 18 | | successfully completed 2 years of study in fire techniques | 19 | | or cadet training within a cadet program established under | 20 | | the rules of the Joint Labor and Management Committee | 21 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 22 | | Promotion Act, may be preferred for appointment to and | 23 | | employment with the fire department. | 24 | | (3) Educational preference. Persons who have | 25 | | successfully obtained an associate's degree in the field of | 26 | | fire service or emergency medical services, or a bachelor's |
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| 1 | | degree from an accredited college or university may be | 2 | | preferred for appointment to and employment with the fire | 3 | | department. | 4 | | (4) Paramedic preference. Persons who have obtained | 5 | | certification as an Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic | 6 | | (EMT-P) may be preferred for appointment to and employment | 7 | | with the fire department of an affected department | 8 | | providing emergency medical services. | 9 | | (5) Experience preference. All persons employed by a | 10 | | district who have been paid-on-call or part-time certified | 11 | | Firefighter II, certified Firefighter III, State of | 12 | | Illinois or nationally licensed EMT-B or EMT-I, licensed | 13 | | paramedic, or any combination of those capacities may be | 14 | | awarded up to a maximum of 5 points. However, the applicant | 15 | | may not be awarded more than 0.5 points for each complete | 16 | | year of paid-on-call or part-time service. Applicants from | 17 | | outside the district who were employed as full-time | 18 | | firefighters or firefighter-paramedics by a fire | 19 | | protection district or municipality for at least 2 years | 20 | | may be awarded up to 5 experience preference points. | 21 | | However, the applicant may not be awarded more than one | 22 | | point for each complete year of full-time service. | 23 | | (6) Residency preference. Applicants whose principal | 24 | | residence is located within the fire department's | 25 | | jurisdiction may be preferred for appointment to and | 26 | | employment with the fire department. |
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| 1 | | Upon request by the commission, the governing body of | 2 | | the district or in the case of applicants from outside the | 3 | | district the governing body of any other fire protection | 4 | | district or any municipality shall certify to the | 5 | | commission, within 10 days after the request, the number of | 6 | | years of successful paid-on-call, part-time, or full-time | 7 | | service of any person. A candidate may not receive the full | 8 | | amount of preference points under this subsection if the | 9 | | amount of points awarded would place the candidate before a | 10 | | veteran on the eligibility list. If more than one candidate | 11 | | receiving experience preference points is prevented from | 12 | | receiving all of their points due to not being allowed to | 13 | | pass a veteran, the candidates shall be placed on the list | 14 | | below the veteran in rank order based on the totals | 15 | | received if all points under this subsection were to be | 16 | | awarded. Any remaining ties on the list shall be determined | 17 | | by lot. | 18 | | (7) Additional preferences. Up to 5 additional | 19 | | preference points may be awarded for unique categories | 20 | | based on an applicant's experience or background as | 21 | | identified by the commission. | 22 | | (8) Scoring of preferences. The
commission shall give | 23 | | preference for original appointment
to persons designated | 24 | | in item (1)
by adding to the final grade that they receive | 25 | | 5 points
for the recognized preference achieved. The | 26 | | commission shall determine the number of preference points |
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| 1 | | for each category except (1). The number of preference | 2 | | points for each category shall range from 0 to 5. In | 3 | | determining the number of preference points, the | 4 | | commission shall prescribe that if a candidate earns the | 5 | | maximum number of preference points in all categories, that | 6 | | number may not be less than 10 nor more than 30. The | 7 | | commission shall give preference for original appointment | 8 | | to persons designated in items (2) through (7) by adding | 9 | | the requisite number of points to the final grade for each | 10 | | recognized preference achieved. The numerical result thus | 11 | | attained shall be applied by the commission in determining | 12 | | the final eligibility list and appointment from the | 13 | | eligibility list. The local appointing authority may | 14 | | prescribe the total number of preference points awarded | 15 | | under this Section, but the total number of preference | 16 | | points shall not be less than 10 points or more than 30 | 17 | | points. | 18 | | No person entitled to any preference shall be required to | 19 | | claim the credit before any examination held under the | 20 | | provisions of this Section, but the preference shall be given | 21 | | after the posting or publication of the initial eligibility | 22 | | list or register at the request of a person entitled to a | 23 | | credit before any certification or appointments are made from | 24 | | the eligibility register, upon the furnishing of verifiable | 25 | | evidence and proof of qualifying preference credit. Candidates | 26 | | who are eligible for preference credit shall make a claim in |
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| 1 | | writing within 10 days after the posting of the initial | 2 | | eligibility list, or the claim shall be deemed waived. Final | 3 | | eligibility registers shall be established after the awarding | 4 | | of verified preference points. All employment shall be subject | 5 | | to the commission's initial hire background review including, | 6 | | but not limited to, criminal history, employment history, moral | 7 | | character, oral examination, and medical and psychological | 8 | | examinations, all on a pass-fail basis. The medical and | 9 | | psychological examinations must be conducted last, and may only | 10 | | be performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 11 | | extended. | 12 | | Any person placed on an eligibility list who exceeds the | 13 | | age requirement before being appointed to a fire department | 14 | | shall remain eligible for appointment until the list is | 15 | | abolished, or his or her name has been on the list for a period | 16 | | of 2 years. No person who has attained the age of 35 years | 17 | | shall be inducted into a fire department, except as otherwise | 18 | | provided in this Section. | 19 | | The commission shall strike off the names of candidates for | 20 | | original appointment after the names have been on the list for | 21 | | more than 2 years. | 22 | | (i) Moral character. No person shall be appointed to a fire | 23 | | department unless he or she is a person of good character; not | 24 | | a habitual drunkard, a gambler, or a person who has been | 25 | | convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude. | 26 | | However, no person shall be disqualified from appointment to |
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| 1 | | the fire department because of the person's record of | 2 | | misdemeanor convictions except those under Sections 11-6, | 3 | | 11-7, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 12-2, 12-6, | 4 | | 12-15, 14-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1, | 5 | | 31-4, 31-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, 32-3, 32-4, 32-8, and subsections | 6 | | 1, 6, and 8 of Section 24-1 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or | 7 | | arrest for any cause without conviction thereon. Any such | 8 | | person who is in the department may be removed on charges | 9 | | brought for violating this subsection and after a trial as | 10 | | hereinafter provided. | 11 | | A classifiable set of the fingerprints of every person who | 12 | | is offered employment as a certificated member of an affected | 13 | | fire department whether with or without compensation, shall be | 14 | | furnished to the Illinois Department of State Police and to the | 15 | | Federal Bureau of Investigation by the commission. | 16 | | Whenever a commission is authorized or required by law to | 17 | | consider some aspect of criminal history record information for | 18 | | the purpose of carrying out its statutory powers and | 19 | | responsibilities, then, upon request and payment of fees in | 20 | | conformance with the requirements of Section 2605-400 of the | 21 | | State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, | 22 | | the Department of State Police is authorized to furnish, | 23 | | pursuant to positive identification, the information contained | 24 | | in State files as is necessary to fulfill the request. | 25 | | (j) Temporary appointments. In order to prevent a stoppage | 26 | | of public business, to meet extraordinary exigencies, or to |
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| 1 | | prevent material impairment of the fire department, the | 2 | | commission may make temporary appointments, to remain in force | 3 | | only until regular appointments are made under the provisions | 4 | | of this Section, but never to exceed 60 days. No temporary | 5 | | appointment of any one person shall be made more than twice in | 6 | | any calendar year. | 7 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 8 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 9 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 10 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 11 | | charges for official misconduct. | 12 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 13 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 14 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 15 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 16 | | disciplinary actions. | 17 | | (70 ILCS 705/16.06c new) | 18 | | Sec. 16.06c. Alternative procedure; original appointment; | 19 | | full-time firefighter. | 20 | | (a) Authority. The Joint Labor and Management Committee | 21 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 22 | | Promotion Act, may establish a community outreach program to | 23 | | market the profession of firefighter and firefighter-paramedic | 24 | | so as to ensure the pool of applicants recruited is of broad | 25 | | diversity and the highest quality. |
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| 1 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 2 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 3 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 4 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 5 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 6 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 7 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 8 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 9 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 10 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 11 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 12 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 13 | | (b) Eligibility. Persons eligible for placement on the | 14 | | master register of eligibles shall consist of the following: | 15 | | Persons who have participated in and received a passing | 16 | | total score on the mental aptitude, physical ability, and | 17 | | preference components of a regionally administered test | 18 | | based on the standards described in this Section. The | 19 | | standards for administering these tests and the minimum | 20 | | passing score required for placement on this list shall be | 21 | | as is set forth in this Section. | 22 | | Qualified candidates shall be listed on the master | 23 | | register of eligibles in highest to lowest rank order based | 24 | | upon their test scores without regard to their date of | 25 | | examination. Candidates listed on the master register of | 26 | | eligibles shall be eligible for appointment for 2 years |
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| 1 | | after the date of the certification of their final score on | 2 | | the register without regard to the date of their | 3 | | examination. After 2 years, the candidate's name shall be | 4 | | struck from the list. | 5 | | Any person currently employed as a full-time member of | 6 | | a fire department or any person who has experienced a | 7 | | non–voluntary (and non-disciplinary) separation from the | 8 | | active workforce due to a reduction in the number of | 9 | | departmental officers, who was appointed pursuant to | 10 | | Division 1 of Article 10 of the Illinois Municipal Code, | 11 | | Division 2.1 of Article 10 of the Illinois Municipal Code, | 12 | | or the Fire Protection District Act, and who during the | 13 | | previous 24 months participated in and received a passing | 14 | | score on the physical ability and mental aptitude | 15 | | components of the test may request that his or her name be | 16 | | added to the master register. Any eligible person may be | 17 | | offered employment by a local commission under the same | 18 | | procedures as provided by this Section except that the | 19 | | apprenticeship period may be waived and the applicant may | 20 | | be immediately issued a certificate of original | 21 | | appointment by the local commission. | 22 | | (c) Qualifications for placement on register of eligibles. | 23 | | The purpose for establishing a master register of eligibles | 24 | | shall be to identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the | 25 | | mental aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties | 26 | | required of members of the fire department in order to provide |
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| 1 | | the highest quality of service to the public. To this end, all | 2 | | applicants for original appointment to an affected fire | 3 | | department through examination conducted by the Joint Labor and | 4 | | Management Committee (JLMC) shall be subject to examination and | 5 | | testing which shall be public, competitive, and open to all | 6 | | applicants. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 7 | | administered by certified assessors. All qualifying and | 8 | | disqualifying factors applicable to examination processes for | 9 | | local commissions in this amendatory Act of the 97th General | 10 | | Assembly shall be applicable to persons participating in Joint | 11 | | Labor and Management Committee examinations unless | 12 | | specifically provided otherwise in this Section. | 13 | | Notice of the time, place, general scope, and fee of every | 14 | | JLMC examination shall be given by the JLMC or designated | 15 | | testing agency, as applicable, by a publication at least 30 | 16 | | days preceding the examination, in one or more newspapers | 17 | | published in the region, or if no newspaper is published | 18 | | therein, then in one or more newspapers with a general | 19 | | circulation within the region. The JLMC may publish the notice | 20 | | on the JLMC's Internet website. Additional notice of the | 21 | | examination may be given as the JLMC shall prescribe. | 22 | | (d) Examination and testing components for placement on | 23 | | register of eligibles. The examination and qualifying | 24 | | standards for placement on the master register of eligibles and | 25 | | employment shall be based on the following components: mental | 26 | | aptitude, physical ability, preferences, moral character, and |
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| 1 | | health. The mental aptitude, physical ability, and preference | 2 | | components shall determine an applicant's qualification for | 3 | | and placement on the master register of eligibles. The | 4 | | consideration of an applicant's general moral character and | 5 | | health shall be administered on a pass-fail basis after a | 6 | | conditional offer of employment is made by a local commission. | 7 | | (e) Mental aptitude. Examination of an applicant's mental | 8 | | aptitude shall be based upon written examination and an | 9 | | applicant's prior experience demonstrating an aptitude for and | 10 | | commitment to service as a member of a fire department. Written | 11 | | examinations shall be practical in character and relate to | 12 | | those matters that fairly test the capacity of the persons | 13 | | examined to discharge the duties performed by members of a fire | 14 | | department. Written examinations shall be administered in a | 15 | | manner that ensures the security and accuracy of the scores | 16 | | achieved. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 17 | | administered by certified assessors. No person who does not | 18 | | possess a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 19 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. Local | 20 | | commissions may establish educational, emergency medical | 21 | | service licensure, and other pre-requisites for hire within | 22 | | their jurisdiction. | 23 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 24 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 25 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 26 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the |
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| 1 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 2 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 3 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 4 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 5 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 6 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 7 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 8 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 9 | | each applicant's physical abilities in each of the following | 10 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 11 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 12 | | functions of a firefighter's job description): | 13 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 14 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 15 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 16 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 17 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 18 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested are to be | 19 | | based on industry standards developed by the JLMC by rule. | 20 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 21 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 22 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 23 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 24 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 25 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 26 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed |
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| 1 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 2 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. The examination | 3 | | components shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 4 | | position on the master register of eligibles shall be | 5 | | determined by the person's score on the written examination, | 6 | | the person successfully passing the physical ability | 7 | | component, and the addition of any applicable preference | 8 | | points. | 9 | | Applicants who have achieved at least the mean score of all | 10 | | applicants participating in the written examination at the same | 11 | | time, and who successfully pass the physical ability | 12 | | examination shall be placed on the initial eligibility | 13 | | register. For placement on the final eligibility register, the | 14 | | passing score shall be determined by (i) calculating the mean | 15 | | score for all applicants participating in the written test; and | 16 | | (ii) adding 20% to the mean score. Applicants whose total | 17 | | scores, including any applicable preference points, are above | 18 | | the mean score plus 20%, shall be placed on the master register | 19 | | of eligibles by the JLMC. | 20 | | These persons shall take rank upon the register as | 21 | | candidates in the order of their relative excellence based on | 22 | | the highest to the lowest total points scored on the mental | 23 | | aptitude and physical ability components, plus any applicable | 24 | | preference points requested and verified by the JLMC, or | 25 | | approved testing agency. | 26 | | No more than 60 days after each examination, a revised |
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| 1 | | master register of eligibles shall be posted by the JLMC | 2 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 3 | | priority of time of examination. | 4 | | (h) Preferences. The board shall give military, education, | 5 | | and experience preference points to those who qualify for | 6 | | placement on the master register of eligibles, on the same | 7 | | basis as provided for examinations administered by a local | 8 | | commission. | 9 | | No person entitled to preference or credit shall be | 10 | | required to claim the credit before any examination held under | 11 | | the provisions of this Section. The preference shall be given | 12 | | after the posting or publication of the applicant's initial | 13 | | score at the request of the person before finalizing the scores | 14 | | from all applicants taking part in a JLMC examination. | 15 | | Candidates who are eligible for preference credit shall make a | 16 | | claim in writing within 10 days after the posting of the | 17 | | initial scores from any JLMC test or the claim shall be deemed | 18 | | waived. Once preference points are awarded, the candidates | 19 | | shall be certified to the master register in accordance with | 20 | | their final score including preference points. | 21 | | (i) Firefighter apprentice and firefighter-paramedic | 22 | | apprentice. The employment of an applicant to an apprentice | 23 | | position (including a currently employed full-time member of a | 24 | | fire department whose apprenticeship may be reduced or waived) | 25 | | shall be subject to the applicant passing the moral character | 26 | | standards and health examinations of the local commission. In |
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| 1 | | addition, a local commission may require as a condition of | 2 | | employment that the applicant demonstrate current physical | 3 | | ability by either passing the local commission's approved | 4 | | physical ability examination, or by presenting proof of | 5 | | participating in and receiving a passing score on the physical | 6 | | ability component of a JLMC test within a period of up to 12 | 7 | | months before the date of the conditional offer of employment. | 8 | | Applicants shall be subject to the local commission's initial | 9 | | hire background review including criminal history, employment | 10 | | history, moral character, oral examination, and medical | 11 | | examinations which may include polygraph, psychological, and | 12 | | drug screening components, all on a pass-fail basis. The | 13 | | medical examinations must be conducted last, and may only be | 14 | | performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 15 | | extended. | 16 | | (j) Selection from list. Any municipality or fire | 17 | | protection district that is a party to an intergovernmental | 18 | | agreement under the terms of which persons have been tested for | 19 | | placement on the master register of eligibles shall be entitled | 20 | | to offer employment to any person on the list irrespective of | 21 | | their ranking on the list. The offer of employment shall be to | 22 | | the position of firefighter apprentice or | 23 | | firefighter-paramedic apprentice. | 24 | | Applicants passing these tests may be employed as a | 25 | | firefighter apprentice or a firefighter-paramedic apprentice | 26 | | who shall serve an apprenticeship period of 12 months or less |
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| 1 | | according to the terms and conditions of employment as the | 2 | | employing municipality or district offers, or as provided for | 3 | | under the terms of any collective bargaining agreement then in | 4 | | effect. The apprenticeship period is separate from the | 5 | | probationary period. | 6 | | Service during the apprenticeship period shall be on a | 7 | | probationary basis. During the apprenticeship period, the | 8 | | apprentice's training and performance shall be monitored and | 9 | | evaluated by a Joint Apprenticeship Committee. | 10 | | The Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall consist of 4 | 11 | | members who shall be regular members of the fire department | 12 | | with at least 10 years of full-time work experience as a | 13 | | firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. The fire chief and the | 14 | | president of the exclusive bargaining representative | 15 | | recognized by the employer shall each appoint 2 members to the | 16 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee. In the absence of an exclusive | 17 | | collective bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 18 | | the remaining 2 members who shall be from the ranks of company | 19 | | officer and firefighter with at least 10 years of work | 20 | | experience as a firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. In the | 21 | | absence of a sufficient number of qualified firefighters, the | 22 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee members shall have the amount of | 23 | | experience and the type of qualifications as is reasonable | 24 | | given the circumstances of the fire department. In the absence | 25 | | of a full-time member in a rank between chief and the highest | 26 | | rank in a bargaining unit, the Joint Apprenticeship Committee |
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| 1 | | shall be reduced to 2 members, one to be appointed by the chief | 2 | | and one by the union president, if any. If there is no | 3 | | exclusive bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 4 | | the second member of the Joint Apprenticeship Committee from | 5 | | among qualified members in the ranks of company officer and | 6 | | below. Before the conclusion of the apprenticeship period, the | 7 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall meet to consider the | 8 | | apprentice's progress and performance and vote to retain the | 9 | | apprentice as a member of the fire department or to terminate | 10 | | the apprenticeship. If 3 of the 4 members of the Joint | 11 | | Apprenticeship Committee affirmatively vote to retain the | 12 | | apprentice (if a 2 member Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 13 | | exists, then both members must affirmatively vote to retain the | 14 | | apprentice), the local commission shall issue the apprentice a | 15 | | certificate of original appointment to the fire department. | 16 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 17 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 18 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 19 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 20 | | charges for official misconduct. | 21 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 22 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 23 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 24 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 25 | | disciplinary actions.
| 26 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
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| 1 | | becoming law.
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