State of Illinois
92nd General Assembly
Legislation

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92_HB1768

 
                                               LRB9206172REdv

 1        AN ACT concerning forced labor.

 2        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 3    represented in the General Assembly:

 4        Section 1.  Short title.  This Act may be  cited  as  the
 5    State Prohibition of Goods from Forced Labor Act.

 6        Section 5.  Policy. The General Assembly hereby finds and
 7    declares as follows:
 8        (a)  The  people of Illinois do not support the import of
 9    any goods made by forced, convict, or indentured  labor,  not
10    only  because it is a cruel suppression of the human right of
11    free labor and employment  practices,  but  also  because  it
12    creates an unfair trade advantage for the forced, convict, or
13    indentured labor country.
14        (b)  The  federal  Tariff  Act of 1930, while prohibiting
15    the importation of any goods produced in whole or in part  by
16    forced,  convict,  or  indentured  labor,  does  not  require
17    importers  to  provide  certificates of origin at the time of
18    importation to affirm and guarantee no  forced,  convict,  or
19    indentured labor content.
20        (c)  The federal Tariff Act of 1930 also does not require
21    the   United  States  Customs  Service  to  have  an  active,
22    self-initiated  foreign  surveillance  program  of  detecting
23    forced,  convict,  or   indentured   labor-made   goods   and
24    preventing  their  entry  into  the United States, but relies
25    primarily  upon  complaints  made  by  the  public  or  other
26    interested groups.
27        (d)  The State of Illinois  wholeheartedly  supports  the
28    prohibition  on  imports  produced  in  whole  or  in part by
29    forced, convict, or indentured labor and shall not  knowingly
30    acquire any of those goods.
 
                            -2-                LRB9206172REdv
 1        Section 10.  Contract certification.
 2        (a)  Every  contract entered into by any State agency for
 3    the procurement of equipment, materials, or  supplies,  other
 4    than  procurement  related  to  a public works contract, must
 5    specify  that  no  foreign-made  equipment,   materials,   or
 6    supplies  furnished  to  the  State under the contract may be
 7    produced in whole or in part by forced labor, convict  labor,
 8    or  indentured  labor  under  penal sanction.  The contractor
 9    must agree to comply with this provision of the contract.
10        (b)  Any contractor contracting with the State  who  knew
11    that  the  foreign-made  equipment,  materials,  or  supplies
12    furnished  to  the  State  were  produced in whole or part by
13    forced labor, convict labor, or indentured labor under  penal
14    sanction, when entering into a contract under subsection (a),
15    may,  subject  to  subsection  (c),  have  any  or all of the
16    following sanctions imposed:
17             (1)  The  contract  under   which   the   prohibited
18        equipment,  materials,  or  supplies were provided may be
19        voided at the option of the State  agency  to  which  the
20        equipment, materials, or supplies were provided.
21             (2)  The  contractor may be assessed a penalty which
22        must be the greater of $1,000 or an amount  equaling  20%
23        of  the  value  of  the equipment, materials, or supplies
24        that the State agency demonstrates were produced in whole
25        or in part by forced labor, convict labor, or  indentured
26        labor  under penal sanction and that were supplied to the
27        State agency under the contract.
28             (3)  The contractor may be suspended from bidding on
29        a State contract for a period not to exceed 360 days.
30        Any moneys  collected  under  this  subsection  shall  be
31    deposited into the General Revenue Fund.
32        (c)  When  imposing the sanctions described in subsection
33    (b), the contracting agency must notify the contractor of the
34    right to a hearing if requested within 15 days after the date
 
                            -3-                LRB9206172REdv
 1    of the notice.  The hearing must be before an  administrative
 2    law  judge according to the Illinois Administrative Procedure
 3    Act.  The administrative law judge must consider any measures
 4    the contractor has  taken  to  ensure  compliance  with  this
 5    Section  and  may  waive any or all of the sanctions if it is
 6    determined that the contractor has acted in good faith.
 7        The  agency  must   be   assessed   the   cost   of   the
 8    administrative  hearing,  unless  the agency has prevailed in
 9    the hearing, in which case the contractor shall  be  assessed
10    the cost of the hearing.
11        (d)  Any  State  agency  that  investigates  a  complaint
12    against a contractor for violation of this Section must limit
13    its  investigation  to evaluating the information provided by
14    the  person  or  entity  submitting  the  complaint  and  the
15    information provided by the contractor.
16        (e)  For purposes  of  this  Section,  the  term  "forced
17    labor"  has  the same meaning as in the federal Tariff Act of
18    1930.

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