Bill Text: IL HB5234 | 2009-2010 | 96th General Assembly | Enrolled

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Bill Title: Amends provisions of the Illinois Human Rights Act prohibiting sexual harassment in higher education so that they also apply to sexual harassment in elementary and secondary schools. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 4-0)

Status: (Passed) 2010-07-27 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 96-1319 [HB5234 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2009-HB5234-Enrolled.html

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AN ACT concerning human rights.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Human Rights Act is amended by
changing Sections 1-102, 5A-101, 5A-102, 6-101, 7-106, and
7-108 and the heading of Article 5A as follows:
(775 ILCS 5/1-102) (from Ch. 68, par. 1-102)
Sec. 1-102. Declaration of Policy. It is the public policy
of this State:
(A) Freedom from Unlawful Discrimination. To secure for all
individuals within Illinois the freedom from discrimination
against any individual because of his or her race, color,
religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, order of
protection status, marital status, physical or mental
disability, military status, sexual orientation, or
unfavorable discharge from military service in connection with
employment, real estate transactions, access to financial
credit, and the availability of public accommodations.
(B) Freedom from Sexual Harassment-Employment and
Elementary, Secondary, and Higher Education. To prevent sexual
harassment in employment and sexual harassment in elementary,
secondary, and higher education.
(C) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Citizenship

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Status-Employment. To prevent discrimination based on
citizenship status in employment.
(D) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Familial
Status-Real Estate Transactions. To prevent discrimination
based on familial status in real estate transactions.
(E) Public Health, Welfare and Safety. To promote the
public health, welfare and safety by protecting the interest of
all people in Illinois in maintaining personal dignity, in
realizing their full productive capacities, and in furthering
their interests, rights and privileges as citizens of this
State.
(F) Implementation of Constitutional Guarantees. To secure
and guarantee the rights established by Sections 17, 18 and 19
of Article I of the Illinois Constitution of 1970.
(G) Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action. To establish
Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action as the policies of
this State in all of its decisions, programs and activities,
and to assure that all State departments, boards, commissions
and instrumentalities rigorously take affirmative action to
provide equality of opportunity and eliminate the effects of
past discrimination in the internal affairs of State government
and in their relations with the public.
(H) Unfounded Charges. To protect citizens of this State
against unfounded charges of unlawful discrimination, sexual
harassment in employment and sexual harassment in elementary,
secondary, and higher education, and discrimination based on

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citizenship status in employment.
(Source: P.A. 95-668, eff. 10-10-07; 96-447, eff. 1-1-10.)
(775 ILCS 5/Art. 5A heading)
ARTICLE 5A. ELEMENTARY, SECONDARY, AND HIGHER EDUCATION
(775 ILCS 5/5A-101) (from Ch. 68, par. 5A-101)
Sec. 5A-101. Definitions. The following definitions are
applicable strictly in the content of this Article, except that
the term "sexual harassment in elementary, secondary, and
higher education" as defined herein has the meaning herein
ascribed to it whenever that term is used anywhere in this Act.
(A) Institution of Elementary, Secondary, or Higher
Education. "Institution of elementary, secondary, or higher
education" means: (1) a any publicly or privately operated
university, college, community college, junior college,
business or vocational school, or other educational
institution offering degrees and instruction beyond the
secondary school level; or (2) a publicly or privately operated
elementary school or secondary school.
(B) Degree. "Degree" means: (1) a any designation,
appellation, series of letters or words or other symbols which
signifies or purports to signify that the recipient thereof has
satisfactorily completed an organized academic, business or
vocational program of study offered beyond the secondary school
level; or (2) a designation signifying that the recipient has

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graduated from an elementary school or secondary school.
(C) Student. "Student" means any individual admitted to or
applying for admission to an institution of elementary,
secondary, or higher education, or enrolled on a full or part
time basis in a course or program of academic, business or
vocational instruction offered by or through an institution of
elementary, secondary, or higher education.
(D) Elementary, Secondary, or Higher Education
Representative. "Elementary, secondary, or higher education
representative" means and includes the president, chancellor
or other holder of any executive office on the administrative
staff of an institution of higher education, an administrator
of an elementary school or secondary school, a and any member
of the faculty of an institution of higher education, including
but not limited to a dean or associate or assistant dean, a
professor or associate or assistant professor, and a full or
part time instructor or visiting professor, including a
graduate assistant or other student who is employed on a
temporary basis of less than full time as a teacher or
instructor of any course or program of academic, business or
vocational instruction offered by or through an institution of
higher education, and any teacher, instructor, or other
employee of an elementary school or secondary school.
(E) Sexual Harassment in Elementary, Secondary, and Higher
Education. "Sexual harassment in elementary, secondary, and
higher education" means any unwelcome sexual advances or

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requests for sexual favors made by an elementary, secondary, or
a higher education representative to a student, or any conduct
of a sexual nature exhibited by an elementary, secondary, or a
higher education representative toward a student, when such
conduct has the purpose of substantially interfering with the
student's educational performance or creating an intimidating,
hostile or offensive educational environment; or when the
elementary, secondary, or higher education representative
either explicitly or implicitly makes the student's submission
to such conduct a term or condition of, or uses the student's
submission to or rejection of such conduct as a basis for
determining:
(1) Whether the student will be admitted to an institution
of elementary, secondary, or higher education;
(2) The educational performance required or expected of the
student;
(3) The attendance or assignment requirements applicable
to the student;
(4) To what courses, fields of study or programs, including
honors and graduate programs, the student will be admitted;
(5) What placement or course proficiency requirements are
applicable to the student;
(6) The quality of instruction the student will receive;
(7) What tuition or fee requirements are applicable to the
student;
(8) What scholarship opportunities are available to the

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student;
(9) What extracurricular teams the student will be a member
of or in what extracurricular competitions the student will
participate;
(10) Any grade the student will receive in any examination
or in any course or program of instruction in which the student
is enrolled;
(11) The progress of the student toward successful
completion of or graduation from any course or program of
instruction in which the student is enrolled; or
(12) What degree, if any, the student will receive.
(Source: P.A. 83-91.)
(775 ILCS 5/5A-102) (from Ch. 68, par. 5A-102)
Sec. 5A-102. Civil Rights Violations-Elementary,
Secondary, and Higher Education. It is a civil rights
violation:
(A) Elementary, Secondary, or Higher Education
Representative. For any elementary, secondary, or higher
education representative to commit or engage in sexual
harassment in elementary, secondary, or higher education.
(B) Institution of Elementary, Secondary, or Higher
Education. For any institution of elementary, secondary, or
higher education to fail to take remedial action, or to fail to
take appropriate disciplinary action against an elementary,
secondary, or a higher education representative employed by

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such institution, when such institution knows that such
elementary, secondary, or higher education representative was
committing or engaging in or committed or engaged in sexual
harassment in elementary, secondary, or higher education.
(Source: P.A. 96-574, eff. 8-18-09.)
(775 ILCS 5/6-101) (from Ch. 68, par. 6-101)
Sec. 6-101. Additional Civil Rights Violations. It is a
civil rights violation for a person, or for two or more persons
to conspire, to:
(A) Retaliation. Retaliate against a person because he or
she has opposed that which he or she reasonably and in good
faith believes to be unlawful discrimination, sexual
harassment in employment or sexual harassment in elementary,
secondary, and higher education, discrimination based on
citizenship status in employment, or because he or she has made
a charge, filed a complaint, testified, assisted, or
participated in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under
this Act;
(B) Aiding and Abetting; Coercion. Aid, abet, compel or
coerce a person to commit any violation of this Act;
(C) Interference. Wilfully interfere with the performance
of a duty or the exercise of a power by the Commission or one of
its members or representatives or the Department or one of its
officers or employees.
(D) Definitions. For the purposes of this Section, "sexual

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harassment" and "citizenship status" shall have the same
meaning as defined in Section 2-101 of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 87-579.)
(775 ILCS 5/7-106) (from Ch. 68, par. 7-106)
Sec. 7-106. Recruitment; Research; Public Communication)
For the purpose of promoting equal employment and housing
opportunities and eliminating unlawful discrimination, sexual
harassment in employment and sexual harassment in elementary,
secondary, and higher education, the Department shall have
authority to:
(A) Recruitment. Cooperate with public and private
organizations, as well as the Department of Central Management
Services, in encouraging individuals in underrepresented
classifications to seek employment in state government.
(B) Publications; Research. Issue publications, conduct
research, and make surveys as it deems necessary.
(C) Public Hearings. Hold public hearings to obtain
information from the general public on the effectiveness of the
state's equal employment opportunity program and the
protection against unlawful discrimination, sexual harassment
in employment and sexual harassment in elementary, secondary,
and higher education afforded by this Act and to accept public
recommendations concerning changes in the program and the Act
for inclusion in its annual report.
(D) Promotion of Communication and Goodwill. Establish a

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program to cooperate with civic, religious and educational
organizations in order to improve human communication and
understanding, foster equal opportunities in employment and
housing, and promote and encourage communication, goodwill and
interfaith and interracial harmony.
(Source: P.A. 85-1229; 86-1343.)
(775 ILCS 5/7-108) (from Ch. 68, par. 7-108)
Sec. 7-108. Local Departments, Commissions.
(A) Authority. A political subdivision, or two or more
political subdivisions acting jointly, may create a local
department or commission as it or they see fit to promote the
purposes of this Act and to secure for all individuals within
the jurisdiction of the political subdivision or subdivisions
freedom from unlawful discrimination, sexual harassment in
employment and sexual harassment in elementary, secondary, and
higher education. The provisions of any ordinance enacted by
any municipality or county which prohibits broader or different
categories of discrimination than are prohibited by this Act
are not invalidated or affected by this Act.
(B) Concurrent Jurisdiction. When the Department and a
local department or commission have concurrent jurisdiction
over a complaint, either may transfer the complaint to the
other under regulations established by the Department.
(C) Exclusive Jurisdiction. When the Department or a local
department or commission has jurisdiction over a complaint and

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the other does not, the Department or local department or
commission without jurisdiction may transfer the complaint to
the other under regulations established by the Department.
(D) To secure and guarantee the rights established by
Sections 17, 18 and 19 of Article I of the Illinois
Constitution, any ordinance, resolution, rule or regulation of
any county, municipality or other unit of local government or
of any local department or commission which prohibits,
restricts, narrows or limits the housing choice of any person
is unenforceable and void. Nothing in this amendatory Act of
1981 prohibits a unit of local government from making special
outreach efforts to inform members of minority groups of
housing opportunities available in areas of majority white
concentration and make similar efforts to inform the majority
white population of available housing opportunities located in
areas of minority concentration. This paragraph is applicable
to home rule units as well as non-home rule units.
Pursuant to Article VII, Section 6, paragraph (i) of the
Illinois Constitution, this amendatory Act of 1981 is a
limitation of the power of home rule units.
(Source: P.A. 85-1229; 86-1343.)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon