Public Act 098-1030
 
HB5735 EnrolledLRB098 18440 AMC 53577 b

    AN ACT concerning business.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Home
Repair and Construction Task Force Act.
 
    Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly finds as follows:
        (1) In November, 2013, several tornadoes devastated
    parts of many Illinois towns, including Brookport, Coal
    City/Braidwood, Gifford, New Minden, Pekin, and
    Washington. In previous years, Illinois has suffered
    natural disasters, such as the flooding that destroyed
    parts of southern Illinois in 1993. Storms, tornadoes, and
    flooding have affected numerous parts of the State nearly
    every year.
        (2) Often, after natural disasters such as storms or
    flooding, contractors from outside the local area where the
    disaster occurred come into the area and solicit business.
    In some cases, the contractors engage in high pressure
    sales tactics and collect large down payments from
    homeowners anxious to repair their homes after a disaster,
    and then fail to complete the work in a workmanlike manner
    or leave the area without even beginning the work.
    Homeowners are unable to reach the contractors either
    because the contractors provided a false physical address
    or telephone number or because the contractors are
    unresponsive to calls and letters.
        (3) Each year, the Attorney General's office receives a
    significant number of consumer complaints about home
    repair and construction, and such complaints rank among the
    top 10 consumer complaint types that office receives
    annually. These complaints often involve allegations of
    poor workmanship, failure to complete the contracted for
    work, or failure to begin the contracted for work. These
    complaints often arise after natural disasters, but the
    Attorney General's office also receives numerous
    complaints every year about routine home repair and
    construction outside of a natural disaster.
        (4) The Attorney General wishes to explore whether
    Illinois residents would benefit from legislation that
    requires home repair and construction contractors to
    obtain a license from the Department of Financial and
    Professional Regulation before offering home repair and
    construction services in Illinois and, if so, whether
    potential licensees and all their agents should be required
    to pass a proficiency test and meet certain qualifications
    as a condition of obtaining a license.
 
    Section 10. Definition. As used in this Act, "home repair
and construction" means the building of a new structure
primarily designed or used as a residence or the fixing,
replacing, altering, converting, modernizing, improving, or
making of an addition to any real property primarily designed
or used as a residence other than maintenance, service, or
repairs under $500. "Home repair and construction" includes the
construction, installation, replacement, or improvement of
driveways, swimming pools, porches, kitchens, bathrooms,
basements, chimneys, chimney liners, garages, fences, fallout
shelters, central air conditioning, central heating, boilers,
furnaces, electrical wiring, sewers, plumbing fixtures, storm
doors, windows, roofs, and awnings and other improvements to
structures within the residence or upon the land adjacent to
the residence. "Home repair and construction" does not include
the sale, installation, cleaning, or repair of carpets; the
repair, installation, replacement, or connection of any home
appliance, including, but not limited to, disposals,
refrigerators, ranges, garage door openers, televisions or
television antennas, washing machines, telephones, hot water
heaters, satellite dishes, or other appliances when the person
replacing, installing, repairing, or connecting the home
appliance is an employee or agent of the merchant that sold the
home appliance or sold new products of the same type; or
landscaping.
 
    Section 15. Home Repair and Construction Task Force;
members.
    (a) There is created the Home Repair and Construction Task
Force consisting of the following members:
        (1) one member of the Senate appointed by the President
    of the Senate;
        (2) one member of the Senate appointed by the Minority
    Leader of the Senate;
        (3) one member of the House of Representatives
    appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;
        (4) one member of the House of Representatives
    appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of
    Representatives;
        (5) one member appointed by the Governor;
        (6) one member representing the Department of
    Financial and Professional Regulation appointed by the
    Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation;
        (7) one member representing consumers' interests
    appointed by the Attorney General;
        (8) two members representing the home repair industry
    appointed by the Attorney General;
        (9) three members representing the home builder
    industry appointed by the Attorney General;
        (10) one member representing the retail merchants that
    subcontract with home repair industry and construction
    industry members appointed by the Attorney General;
        (11) one member representing the homeowners insurance
    industry appointed by the Attorney General;
        (12) three members representing unions with members in
    the home repair and construction industries appointed by
    the Attorney General;
        (13) one member representing the interests of Illinois
    municipalities appointed by the Attorney General;
        (14) one member representing the interests of Illinois
    counties appointed by the Attorney General;
        (15) one member appointed by the City of Chicago
    Commissioner of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection;
        (16) one member representing Illinois building
    officials appointed by the Attorney General; and
        (17) one member appointed by the Attorney General, who
    shall be designated the chairperson by the Attorney
    General.
    (b) All appointments to the Task Force shall be made within
60 days after the effective date of this Act.
    (c) Vacancies in the Task Force shall be filled by the
initial appointing authority within 30 days after the vacancy
occurs.
    (d) The members of the Task Force shall serve without
compensation.
    (e) The Task Force may consult with experts and shall
receive the cooperation of those State agencies it deems
appropriate to assist the Task Force in carrying out its
duties.
    (f) The Task Force shall meet initially at the call of the
Attorney General no later than 90 days after the effective date
of this Act, and shall thereafter meet at the call of the
chairperson.
    (g) The Attorney General shall provide administrative and
other support to the Task Force.
 
    Section 20. Duties. The Task Force shall:
        (1) discuss whether the residents of Illinois would
    benefit from legislation requiring home repair and
    construction service providers to obtain a license from the
    Department of Financial and Professional Regulation before
    offering theses services in Illinois;
        (2) if it is determined that licensure is required,
    determine:
            (A) the requirements applicants must meet to
        qualify for a license;
            (B) grounds for denial or revocation of a license;
        and
            (C) any other considerations relevant to a
        licensing requirement; and
        (3) make recommendations to the General Assembly.
 
    Section 25. Report. No later than November 1, 2015, the
Task Force shall summarize its findings and recommendations in
a report to the General Assembly and shall file the report as
provided in Section 3.1 of the General Assembly Organization
Act. Upon filing its report, the Task Force is dissolved.
 
    Section 30. Repealer. This Act is repealed on January 1,
2016.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.