Bill Text: IL HB4846 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Engrossed

---

Bill Title: Reinserts the provisions of the introduced bill with changes. Further amends the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act to define the term "goal". Removes provisions from the introduced bill providing that no State agency or public institution of higher education shall maintain a policy of establishing contract specific goals for the participation of certified vendors that is inconsistent with or less stringent than the uniform standards for calculating contract specific goals established by the Business Enterprise Program. Removes provisions requiring State agencies and public institutions of higher education to submit reports to the Business Enterprise Council. Removes provisions from the introduced bill concerning procedures for determining whether a vendor has made good faith efforts to meet the contract goals. Provides that the Business Enterprise Program may (in the introduced bill, shall) establish uniform standards for calculating contract specific Business Enterprise Program goals for State contracts and State construction contracts. Provides that, for the purposes of those provisions, the terms "State contract" and "State construction contract" do not include grants from State agencies to grantees for capital improvements or operational expenses.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)

Status: (Engrossed) 2024-05-20 - Referred to Assignments [HB4846 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB4846-Engrossed.html

---

HB4846 Engrossed LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
AN ACT concerning finance.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women,
and Persons with Disabilities Act is amended by changing
Sections 2, 5, and 8 and by adding Section 3.5 as follows:
(30 ILCS 575/2)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on June 30, 2029)
Sec. 2. Definitions.
(A) For the purpose of this Act, the following terms shall
have the following definitions:
(1) "Minority person" shall mean a person who is a
citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States
and who is any of the following:
(a) American Indian or Alaska Native (a person
having origins in any of the original peoples of North
and South America, including Central America, and who
maintains tribal affiliation or community attachment).
(b) Asian (a person having origins in any of the
original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or
the Indian subcontinent, including, but not limited
to, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia,
Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and

HB4846 Engrossed - 2 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
Vietnam).
(c) Black or African American (a person having
origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa).
(d) Hispanic or Latino (a person of Cuban,
Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or
other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race).
(e) Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander (a
person having origins in any of the original peoples
of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands).
(2) "Woman" shall mean a person who is a citizen or
lawful permanent resident of the United States and who is
of the female gender.
(2.05) "Person with a disability" means a person who
is a citizen or lawful resident of the United States and is
a person qualifying as a person with a disability under
subdivision (2.1) of this subsection (A).
(2.1) "Person with a disability" means a person with a
severe physical or mental disability that:
(a) results from:
amputation,
arthritis,
autism,
blindness,
burn injury,
cancer,
cerebral palsy,

HB4846 Engrossed - 3 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
Crohn's disease,
cystic fibrosis,
deafness,
head injury,
heart disease,
hemiplegia,
hemophilia,
respiratory or pulmonary dysfunction,
an intellectual disability,
mental illness,
multiple sclerosis,
muscular dystrophy,
musculoskeletal disorders,
neurological disorders, including stroke and
epilepsy,
paraplegia,
quadriplegia and other spinal cord conditions,
sickle cell anemia,
ulcerative colitis,
specific learning disabilities, or
end stage renal failure disease; and
(b) substantially limits one or more of the
person's major life activities.
Another disability or combination of disabilities may
also be considered as a severe disability for the purposes
of item (a) of this subdivision (2.1) if it is determined

HB4846 Engrossed - 4 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
by an evaluation of rehabilitation potential to cause a
comparable degree of substantial functional limitation
similar to the specific list of disabilities listed in
item (a) of this subdivision (2.1).
(3) "Minority-owned business" means a business which
is at least 51% owned by one or more minority persons, or
in the case of a corporation, at least 51% of the stock in
which is owned by one or more minority persons; and the
management and daily business operations of which are
controlled by one or more of the minority individuals who
own it.
(4) "Women-owned business" means a business which is
at least 51% owned by one or more women, or, in the case of
a corporation, at least 51% of the stock in which is owned
by one or more women; and the management and daily
business operations of which are controlled by one or more
of the women who own it.
(4.1) "Business owned by a person with a disability"
means a business that is at least 51% owned by one or more
persons with a disability and the management and daily
business operations of which are controlled by one or more
of the persons with disabilities who own it. A
not-for-profit agency for persons with disabilities that
is exempt from taxation under Section 501 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 is also considered a "business owned
by a person with a disability".

HB4846 Engrossed - 5 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
(4.2) "Council" means the Business Enterprise Council
for Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities
created under Section 5 of this Act.
(4.3) "Commission" means, unless the context clearly
indicates otherwise, the Commission on Equity and
Inclusion created under the Commission on Equity and
Inclusion Act.
(4.4) "Certified vendor" means a minority-owned
business, women-owned business, or business owned by a
person with a disability that is certified by the Business
Enterprise Program.
(4.5) "Subcontractor" means a person or entity that
enters into a contractual agreement with a prime vendor to
provide, on behalf of the prime vendor, goods, services,
real property, or remuneration or other monetary
consideration that is the subject of the primary State
contract. "Subcontractor" includes a sublessee under a
State contract.
(4.6) "Prime vendor" means any person or entity having
a contract that is subject to this Act with a State agency
or public institution of higher education.
(5) "State contracts" means all contracts entered into
by the State, any agency or department thereof, or any
public institution of higher education, including
community college districts, regardless of the source of
the funds with which the contracts are paid, which are not

HB4846 Engrossed - 6 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
subject to federal reimbursement. "State contracts" does
not include contracts awarded by a retirement system,
pension fund, or investment board subject to Section
1-109.1 of the Illinois Pension Code. This definition
shall control over any existing definition under this Act
or applicable administrative rule.
"State construction contracts" means all State
contracts entered into by a State agency or public
institution of higher education for the repair,
remodeling, renovation or construction of a building or
structure, or for the construction or maintenance of a
highway defined in Article 2 of the Illinois Highway Code.
(6) "State agencies" shall mean all departments,
officers, boards, commissions, institutions and bodies
politic and corporate of the State, but does not include
the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, the
Board of Trustees of Southern Illinois University, the
Board of Trustees of Chicago State University, the Board
of Trustees of Eastern Illinois University, the Board of
Trustees of Governors State University, the Board of
Trustees of Illinois State University, the Board of
Trustees of Northeastern Illinois University, the Board of
Trustees of Northern Illinois University, the Board of
Trustees of Western Illinois University, municipalities or
other local governmental units, or other State
constitutional officers.

HB4846 Engrossed - 7 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
(7) "Public institutions of higher education" means
the University of Illinois, Southern Illinois University,
Chicago State University, Eastern Illinois University,
Governors State University, Illinois State University,
Northeastern Illinois University, Northern Illinois
University, Western Illinois University, the public
community colleges of the State, and any other public
universities, colleges, and community colleges now or
hereafter established or authorized by the General
Assembly.
(8) "Certification" means a determination made by the
Council or by one delegated authority from the Council to
make certifications, or by a State agency with statutory
authority to make such a certification, that a business
entity is a business owned by a minority, woman, or person
with a disability for whatever purpose. A business owned
and controlled by women shall be certified as a
"woman-owned business". A business owned and controlled by
women who are also minorities shall be certified as both a
"women-owned business" and a "minority-owned business".
(9) "Control" means the exclusive or ultimate and sole
control of the business including, but not limited to,
capital investment and all other financial matters,
property, acquisitions, contract negotiations, legal
matters, officer-director-employee selection and
comprehensive hiring, operating responsibilities,

HB4846 Engrossed - 8 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
cost-control matters, income and dividend matters,
financial transactions and rights of other shareholders or
joint partners. Control shall be real, substantial and
continuing, not pro forma. Control shall include the power
to direct or cause the direction of the management and
policies of the business and to make the day-to-day as
well as major decisions in matters of policy, management
and operations. Control shall be exemplified by possessing
the requisite knowledge and expertise to run the
particular business and control shall not include simple
majority or absentee ownership.
(10) "Business" means a business that has annual gross
sales of less than $150,000,000 as evidenced by the
federal income tax return of the business. A certified
vendor with gross sales in excess of this cap may apply to
the Council for certification for a particular contract if
the vendor can demonstrate that the contract would have
significant impact on businesses owned by minorities,
women, or persons with disabilities as suppliers or
subcontractors or in employment of minorities, women, or
persons with disabilities. Firms with gross sales in
excess of this cap that are granted certification by the
Council shall be granted certification for the life of the
contract, including available renewals.
(11) "Utilization plan" means an attachment that is
made to all bids or proposals and that demonstrates the

HB4846 Engrossed - 9 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
bidder's or offeror's efforts to meet the
contract-specific Business Enterprise Program goal. The
utilization plan shall indicate whether the prime vendor
intends to meet the Business Enterprise Program goal
through its own performance, if it is a certified vendor,
or through the use of subcontractors that are certified
vendors. The utilization plan shall demonstrate that the
Vendor has either: (1) met the entire contract goal or (2)
requested a full or partial waiver of the contract goal.
If the prime vendor intends to use a subcontractor that is
a certified vendor to fulfill the contract goal, a
participation agreement executed between the prime vendor
and the certified subcontractor must be included with the
utilization plan.
(12) "Business Enterprise Program" means the Business
Enterprise Program of the Commission on Equity and
Inclusion.
(13) "Good faith effort" means actions undertaken by a
vendor to achieve a contract specific Business Enterprise
Program goal that, by scope, intensity, and
appropriateness to the objective, can reasonably be
expected to fulfill the program's requirements.
(14) "Goal" means the participation levels of
certified vendors on State contracts.
(B) When a business is owned at least 51% by any
combination of minority persons, women, or persons with

HB4846 Engrossed - 10 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
disabilities, even though none of the 3 classes alone holds at
least a 51% interest, the ownership requirement for purposes
of this Act is considered to be met. The certification
category for the business is that of the class holding the
largest ownership interest in the business. If 2 or more
classes have equal ownership interests, the certification
category shall be determined by the business.
(Source: P.A. 102-29, eff. 6-25-21; 102-1119, eff. 1-23-23;
103-570, eff. 1-1-24.)
(30 ILCS 575/3.5 new)
Sec. 3.5. Uniform standard of contract goals.
(a) The Business Enterprise Program may establish uniform
standards for calculating contract specific Business
Enterprise Program goals for all State contracts and State
construction contracts subject to this Act. In establishing
those standards, the Business Enterprise Program may consider
normal industry practice, the scope of the work to be
performed under a contract, the availability of vendors that
are able to perform the scope of the work to be performed under
a contract, the availability of certified vendors that are
able to perform the work to be performed under a contract, and
the State's progress to date toward meeting the aspirational
goals set forth in this Act.
(b) Each State agency that is subject to this Act and each
public institution of higher education that is subject to this

HB4846 Engrossed - 11 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
Act may, in accordance with the provisions of this Act, set
goals concerning participation in State contracts, including
State construction contracts, to which the State agency or
public institution of higher education is party. Goals
involving State contracts above the small purchase threshold,
as defined in Section 20-20 of the Illinois Procurement Code,
may be submitted to the Business Enterprise Program for
approval, denial, or modification.
(c) As used in this Section, the terms "State contract"
and "State construction contract" do not include grants from
State agencies to grantees for capital improvements or
operational expenses.
(30 ILCS 575/5) (from Ch. 127, par. 132.605)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on June 30, 2029)
Sec. 5. Business Enterprise Council.
(1) To help implement, monitor, and enforce the goals of
this Act, there is created the Business Enterprise Council for
Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities, hereinafter
referred to as the Council, composed of the Chairperson of the
Commission on Equity and Inclusion, the Secretary of Human
Services and the Directors of the Department of Human Rights,
the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the
Department of Central Management Services, the Department of
Transportation and the Capital Development Board, or their
duly appointed representatives, with the Comptroller, or his

HB4846 Engrossed - 12 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
or her designee, serving as an advisory member of the Council.
Ten individuals representing businesses that are
minority-owned, women-owned, or owned by persons with
disabilities, 2 individuals representing the business
community, and a representative of public institutions of
higher education shall be appointed by the Governor. These
members shall serve 2-year terms and shall be eligible for
reappointment. Any vacancy occurring on the Council shall also
be filled by the Governor. Any member appointed to fill a
vacancy occurring prior to the expiration of the term for
which his or her predecessor was appointed shall be appointed
for the remainder of such term. Members of the Council shall
serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for any
ordinary and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of
their duties.
The Chairperson of the Commission shall serve as the
Council chairperson and shall select, subject to approval of
the Council, a Secretary responsible for the operation of the
program who shall serve as the Division Manager of the
Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with
Disabilities Division of the Commission on Equity and
Inclusion.
The Director of each State agency and the chief executive
officer of each public institution of higher education shall
appoint a liaison to the Council. The liaison shall be
responsible for submitting to the Council any reports and

HB4846 Engrossed - 13 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
documents necessary under this Act.
(2) The Council's authority and responsibility shall be
to:
(a) Devise a certification procedure to assure that
businesses taking advantage of this Act are legitimately
classified as businesses owned by minorities, women, or
persons with disabilities and a registration procedure to
recognize, without additional evidence of Business
Enterprise Program eligibility, the certification of
businesses owned by minorities, women, or persons with
disabilities certified by the City of Chicago, Cook
County, or other jurisdictional programs with requirements
and procedures equaling or exceeding those in this Act.
(b) Maintain a list of all businesses legitimately
classified as businesses owned by minorities, women, or
persons with disabilities to provide to State agencies and
public institutions of higher education.
(c) Review rules and regulations for the
implementation of the program for businesses owned by
minorities, women, and persons with disabilities.
(d) Review compliance plans submitted by each State
agency and public institution of higher education pursuant
to this Act.
(e) Make annual reports as provided in Section 8f to
the Governor and the General Assembly on the status of the
program.

HB4846 Engrossed - 14 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
(f) Serve as a central clearinghouse for information
on State contracts, including the maintenance of a list of
all pending State contracts upon which businesses owned by
minorities, women, and persons with disabilities may bid.
At the Council's discretion, maintenance of the list may
include 24-hour electronic access to the list along with
the bid and application information.
(g) Establish a toll-free telephone number to
facilitate information requests concerning the
certification process and pending contracts.
(h) Adopt a procedure to grant automatic certification
to businesses holding a certification from at least one of
the following entities: (i) the Illinois Unified
Certification Program; (ii) the Women's Business
Development Center in Chicago; (iii) the Chicago Minority
Supplier Development Council; or (iv) any other similar
entity offering such certification to businesses.
(i) Develop and maintain a repository for
non-certified vendors that: (i) have applied for
certification and have been denied; (ii) have started, but
not completed, the certification process; (iii) have
achieved certification, but did not seek renewal; or (iv)
are known businesses owned by minorities, women, or
persons with disabilities.
(3) No premium bond rate of a surety company for a bond
required of a business owned by a minority, woman, or person

HB4846 Engrossed - 15 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
with a disability bidding for a State contract shall be higher
than the lowest rate charged by that surety company for a
similar bond in the same classification of work that would be
written for a business not owned by a minority, woman, or
person with a disability.
(4) Any Council member who has direct financial or
personal interest in any measure pending before the Council
shall disclose this fact to the Council and refrain from
participating in the determination upon such measure.
(5) The Secretary shall have the following duties and
responsibilities:
(a) To be responsible for the day-to-day operation of
the Council.
(b) To serve as a coordinator for all of the State's
programs for businesses owned by minorities, women, and
persons with disabilities and as the information and
referral center for all State initiatives for businesses
owned by minorities, women, and persons with disabilities.
(c) To establish an enforcement procedure whereby the
Council may recommend to the appropriate State legal
officer that the State exercise its legal remedies which
shall include (1) termination of the contract involved,
(2) prohibition of participation by the respondent in
State public contracts for a period not to exceed 3 years,
(3) imposition of a penalty in the amount of the
discrepancy between the commitment contained in the

HB4846 Engrossed - 16 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
utilization plan, as such amount may be amended over the
term of the contract, and the qualifying payments made to
the eligible certified vendors listed in the utilization
plan a penalty not to exceed any profit acquired as a
result of violation, or (4) any combination thereof. Such
procedures shall require prior approval by Council. All
funds collected as penalties under this subsection shall
be used exclusively for maintenance and further
development of the Business Enterprise Program and
encouragement of participation in State procurement by
minorities, women, and persons with disabilities.
(d) To devise appropriate policies, regulations, and
procedures for including participation by businesses owned
by minorities, women, and persons with disabilities as
prime contractors, including, but not limited to: (i)
encouraging the inclusions of qualified businesses owned
by minorities, women, and persons with disabilities on
solicitation lists, (ii) investigating the potential of
blanket bonding programs for small construction jobs, and
(iii) investigating and making recommendations concerning
the use of the sheltered market process.
(e) To devise procedures for the waiver of the
participation goals in appropriate circumstances.
(f) To accept donations and, with the approval of the
Council or the Chairperson of the Commission on Equity and
Inclusion, grants related to the purposes of this Act; to

HB4846 Engrossed - 17 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
conduct seminars related to the purpose of this Act and to
charge reasonable registration fees; and to sell
directories, vendor lists, and other such information to
interested parties, except that forms necessary to become
eligible for the program shall be provided free of charge
to a business or individual applying for the Business
Enterprise Program.
(Source: P.A. 101-601, eff. 1-1-20; 101-657, eff. 1-1-22;
102-29, eff. 6-25-21; 102-558, eff. 8-20-21; 102-721, eff.
1-1-23.)
(30 ILCS 575/8) (from Ch. 127, par. 132.608)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on June 30, 2029)
Sec. 8. Enforcement.
(1) The Commission on Equity and Inclusion shall make such
findings, recommendations and proposals to the Governor as are
necessary and appropriate to enforce this Act. If, as a result
of its monitoring activities, the Commission determines that
its goals and policies are not being met by any State agency or
public institution of higher education, the Commission may
recommend any or all of the following actions:
(a) Establish enforcement procedures whereby the
Commission may recommend to the appropriate State agency,
public institutions of higher education, or law
enforcement officer that legal or administrative remedies
be initiated for violations of contract provisions or

HB4846 Engrossed - 18 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
rules issued hereunder or by a contracting State agency or
public institutions of higher education. State agencies
and public institutions of higher education shall be
authorized to adopt remedies for such violations which
shall include (1) termination of the contract involved,
(2) prohibition of participation of the respondents in
public contracts for a period not to exceed one year, (3)
the assessment of a penalty in the amount of the
discrepancy between the commitment contained in the
utilization plan, as such amount may be amended over the
term of the contract, and the qualifying payments made to
the certified vendors listed in the utilization plan
imposition of a penalty not to exceed any profit acquired
as a result of violation, or (4) any combination thereof.
(b) If the Commission concludes that a compliance plan
submitted under Section 6 is unlikely to produce the
participation goals for businesses owned by minorities,
women, and persons with disabilities within the then
current fiscal year, the Commission may recommend that the
State agency or public institution of higher education
revise its plan to provide additional opportunities for
participation by businesses owned by minorities, women,
and persons with disabilities. Such recommended revisions
may include, but shall not be limited to, the following:
(i) assurances of stronger and better focused
solicitation efforts to obtain more businesses owned

HB4846 Engrossed - 19 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
by minorities, women, and persons with disabilities as
potential sources of supply;
(ii) division of the scope of work job or project
requirements, when economically feasible, into tasks
or quantities to permit participation of businesses
owned by minorities, women, and persons with
disabilities;
(iii) elimination of extended experience or
capitalization requirements, when programmatically
feasible, to permit participation of businesses owned
by minorities, women, and persons with disabilities;
(iv) identification of specific proposed contracts
as particularly attractive or appropriate for
participation by businesses owned by minorities,
women, and persons with disabilities, such
identification to result from and be coupled with the
efforts of subparagraphs (i) through (iii);
(v) implementation of those regulations
established for the use of the sheltered market
process.
(2) State agencies and public institutions of higher
education shall monitor a vendor's compliance with its
utilization plan and the terms of its contract. Without
limitation, a vendor's failure to comply with its contractual
commitments as contained in the utilization plan; failure to
cooperate in providing information regarding its compliance

HB4846 Engrossed - 20 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b
with its utilization plan; or the provision of false or
misleading information or statements concerning compliance,
certification status, or eligibility of the Business
Enterprise Program-certified vendor, good faith efforts, or
any other material fact or representation shall constitute a
material breach of the contract and entitle the State agency
or public institution of higher education to declare a
default, terminate the contract, or exercise those remedies
provided for in the contract, at law, or in equity.
(3) Prior to the expiration or termination of a contract,
State agencies and public institutions of higher education
shall evaluate the contractor's fulfillment of the contract
goals for participation by certified businesses owned by
minorities, women, and persons with disabilities. The agency
or public institution of higher education shall prepare a
report of the vendor's compliance with the contract goals and
file it with the Secretary. If the Secretary determines that
the vendor did not fulfill the contract goals, the vendor
shall be in breach of the contract and may be subject to
remedies or sanctions, unless the vendor can show that it made
good faith efforts to meet the contract goals. Such remedies
or sanctions for failing to make good faith efforts may
include (i) disqualification of the contractor from doing
business with the State for a period of no more than one year,
or (ii) cancellation, without any penalty to the State, of any
contract entered into by the vendor, or (iii) the assessment

HB4846 Engrossed - 21 - LRB103 36525 MXP 66631 b