230 ILCS 10/7.6

(230 ILCS 10/7.6)

Sec. 7.6. Business enterprise program.

(a) For the purposes of this Section, the terms "minority", "minority-owned business", "woman", "women-owned business", "person with a disability", and "business owned by a person with a disability" have the meanings ascribed to them in the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act.

(b) The Board shall, by rule, establish goals for the award of contracts by each owners licensee to businesses owned by minorities, women, and persons with disabilities, expressed as percentages of an owners licensee's total dollar amount of contracts awarded during each calendar year. Each owners licensee must make every effort to meet the goals established by the Board pursuant to this Section. When setting the goals for the award of contracts, the Board shall not include contracts where: (1) any purchasing mandates would be dependent upon the availability of minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, and businesses owned by persons with disabilities ready, willing, and able with capacity to provide quality goods and services to a gaming operation at reasonable prices; (2) there are no or a limited number of licensed suppliers as defined by this Act for the goods or services provided to the licensee; (3) the licensee or its parent company owns a company that provides the goods or services; or (4) the goods or services are provided to the licensee by a publicly traded company.

(c) Each owners licensee shall file with the Board an annual report of its utilization of minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, and businesses owned by persons with disabilities during the preceding calendar year. The reports shall include a self-evaluation of the efforts of the owners licensee to meet its goals under this Section.

(c-5) The Board shall, by rule, establish goals for the award of contracts by each owners licensee to businesses owned by veterans of service in the armed forces of the United States, expressed as percentages of an owners licensee's total dollar amount of contracts awarded during each calendar year. When setting the goals for the award of contracts, the Board shall not include contracts where: (1) any purchasing mandates would be dependent upon the availability of veteran-owned businesses ready, willing, and able with capacity to provide quality goods and services to a gaming operation at reasonable prices; (2) there are no or a limited number of licensed suppliers as defined in this Act for the goods or services provided to the licensee; (3) the licensee or its parent company owns a company that provides the goods or services; or (4) the goods or services are provided to the licensee by a publicly traded company.

Each owners licensee shall file with the Board an annual report of its utilization of veteran-owned businesses during the preceding calendar year. The reports shall include a self-evaluation of the efforts of the owners licensee to meet its goals under this Section.

(d) The owners licensee shall have the right to request a waiver from the requirements of this Section. The Board shall grant the waiver where the owners licensee demonstrates that there has been made a good faith effort to comply with the goals for participation by minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, businesses owned by persons with disabilities, and veteran-owned businesses.

(e) If the Board determines that its goals and policies are not being met by any owners licensee, then the Board may:

(1) adopt remedies for such violations; and

(2) recommend that the owners licensee provide additional opportunities for participation by minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, businesses owned by persons with disabilities, and veteran-owned businesses; such recommendations may include, but shall not be limited to:

(A) assurances of stronger and better focused solicitation efforts to obtain more minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, businesses owned by persons with disabilities, and veteran-owned businesses as potential sources of supply;

(B) division of job or project requirements, when economically feasible, into tasks or quantities to permit participation of minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, businesses owned by persons with disabilities, and veteran-owned businesses;

(C) elimination of extended experience or capitalization requirements, when programmatically feasible, to permit participation of minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, businesses owned by persons with disabilities, and veteran-owned businesses;

(D) identification of specific proposed contracts as particularly attractive or appropriate for participation by minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, businesses owned by persons with disabilities, and veteran-owned businesses, such identification to result from and be coupled with the efforts of items (A) through (C); and

(E) implementation of regulations established for the use of the sheltered market process.

(f) The Board shall file, no later than March 1 of each year, an annual report that shall detail the level of achievement toward the goals specified in this Section over the 3 most recent fiscal years. The annual report shall include, but need not be limited to:

(1) a summary detailing expenditures subject to the goals, the actual goals specified, and the goals attained by each owners licensee; and

(2) an analysis of the level of overall goal achievement concerning purchases from minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, businesses owned by persons with disabilities, and veteran-owned businesses.

(Source: P.A. 99-78, eff. 7-20-15; 100-391, eff. 8-25-17; 100-1152, eff. 12-14-18.)