SB2306 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB101 14864 HLH 63843 b

101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
SB2306

Introduced 11/13/2019, by Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

20 ILCS 605/605-1043 new
20 ILCS 605/605-1045 new

Amends the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Creates the Office of Inclusion within the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to assist minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses, and businesses owned by persons with disabilities. Provides that private institutions of higher education approved by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission for the purposes of the Monetary Award Program shall submit supplier diversity reports to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning State government.

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

Section 5. The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is amended by adding Sections 605-1043 and 605-1045 as follows:

(20 ILCS 605/605-1043 new)

Sec. 605-1043. Office of Inclusion.

(a) The Office of Inclusion is hereby created within the Department. The Office shall assist minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses and businesses owned by persons with disabilities through targeted programs, resources, and outreach and promotional activities. The Office shall engage in or conduct the following activities:

(1) promoting and conducting outreach efforts with respect to the making of small business loans pursuant to Section 9-4.3 of the Build Illinois Act and assisting minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses and businesses owned by persons with disabilities in applying for and receiving loan funds under that Act;

(2) providing and hosting workshops and public forums and engaging in outreach efforts for minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses and businesses owned by persons with disabilities to encourage participation in programs authorized by the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women and Persons with Disabilities Act and the Illinois Procurement Code;

(3) providing and hosting workshops and public forums and engaging in outreach efforts that assist and educate minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses and businesses owned by persons with disabilities on the process of applying for and becoming certified to apply for State grant funds under the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act; and

(4) providing and hosting workshops and public forums and engaging in outreach efforts that assist and educate aspiring and existing minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses, and businesses owned by persons with disabilities in understanding concepts such as, but not limited to, business formation, business planning, capital access, and marketing a business.

(b) In order to facilitate and encourage the growth of supplier diversity, the Office may have at least one employee that serves as a supplier diversity program manager to (i) collect reports and information concerning entities that manage supplier diversity programs and (ii) conduct public workshops focused on specific industries to collaboratively connect diverse enterprises with entities that manage supplier diversity programs. Those workshops shall be modeled after Illinois Commerce Commission hearings for utilities and railroads and shall include a collaborative discussion of filed supplier diversity reports. The program manager shall hold public workshops for relevant industries including, but not limited to, gaming, hospitals, and public and private higher education. Those workshops shall be held on the following schedule:

(1) gaming: February;

(2) hospitals: April;

(3) public and private higher education: July; and

(4) Economic Development for a Growing Economy (EDGE) tax credit: September.

(c) The Department shall publish a template for supplier diversity reports to be used for EDGE tax credit recipients and private higher education institutions. The reports for private higher education and EDGE tax credit recipients shall contain the following provisions:

(1) the name, address, phone number and email address of the point of contact for potential vendors to register with the entity;

(2) local, State, or private certifications that the entity accepts or recognizes for minority- and women-owned businesses;

(3) the voluntary supplier diversity goals, if any, for the next fiscal year for the entire budget of the entity;

(4) for the last fiscal year, the actual contractual spending for the entire budget of the entity and the actual spending for minority-owned and women-owned businesses, expressed both as actual dollars and as a percentage of the total budget for actual spending for the entity;

(5) narrative explaining the results of the report and the tactics to be employed to achieve the voluntary goals for the next fiscal year; and

(6) the particular areas of spending in the next fiscal year that the entity intends to procure that are most relevant to minority-owned and women-owned businesses.

(d) In addition, the Office shall compile and publish on its website a master database for all points of contract, certifications accepted, and links to the most recent supplier diversity reports submitted to the Department under:

(1) Section 405-530 of the Department of Central Management Services Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois;

(2) Section 5.3 of the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Act;

(3) Section 8f of the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act;

(4) Section 5-57 of the Economic Development for a Growing Economy Tax Credit Act;

(5) Section 5-117 of the Public Utilities Act;

(6) Section 12.2 of the Illinois Horse Racing Act of 1975; and

(7) Section 10 of the Railroad Supplier Diversity Act.

(e) The Office shall administer programs established by the Department, the General Assembly, or both and shall provide grants to minority-owned business, woman-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses, and businesses owned by persons with disabilities. The Office may establish applications, notifications, contracts, and other forms or procedures and may use vendors or contract work to carry out the purposes of this Act. The Office may coordinate assistance for businesses with other State agencies.

(f) The Department shall provide staff, administrative support, and related support to the Office as required to administer this Section and may adopt rules to administer this Section.

(20 ILCS 605/605-1045 new)

Sec. 605-1045. Higher education supplier diversity report. Every private institution of higher education approved by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission for the purposes of the Monetary Award Program shall submit a 2-page report on its voluntary supplier diversity program to the Department in the form and manner required by the Department by April 1 of every year. The Department shall hold an annual workshop open to the public with leaders of private institutions of higher education and minority-owned and women-owned businesses in July of every year.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.