HB4950ham001 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Rep. Jay Hoffman

Filed: 4/13/2026

10400HB4950ham001 LRB104 19990 CCC 36642 a

AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 4950

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 4950 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 5. The Public Contract Fraud Act is amended by changing Section 2 as follows:

(30 ILCS 545/2) (from Ch. 127, par. 132.52)

Sec. 2. Spending money without obtaining title to land; approval of title by Attorney General.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in Section 2 of the Superconducting Super Collider Act or for projects constructed under the Bikeway Act, any person or persons, commissioner or commissioners, or other officer or officers, entrusted with the construction or repair of any public work or improvement, as set forth in Section 1, who shall expend or cause to be expended upon such public work or improvement, the whole or any part of the moneys appropriated therefor, or who shall commence work, or in any way authorize work to be commenced, thereon, without first having obtained a title, by purchase, donation, condemnation or otherwise, to all lands needed for such public work or improvement, running to the People of the State of Illinois; such title to be approved by the Attorney General, and his approval certified by the Secretary of State and placed on record in his office, shall be deemed guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

(b) Approval of title by the Attorney General for all lands needed for a public work or improvement shall not be required as established under subsection (a) of this Section and the State Comptroller may draw warrant in payment of consideration for all such lands without requiring approval of title by the Attorney General if consideration to be paid does not exceed $25,000 and the title acquired for such lands is for:

(1) a fee simple title or easement acquired by the State for highway right-of-way; or

(2) an acquisition of rights or easements of access, crossing, light, air or view to, from or over a freeway vested in abutting property; or

(3) a fee simple title or easement used to place utility lines and connect a permanent public work or improvement owned by the State to main utility lines; or

(4) for the purpose of flood relief or other water resource projects.

(c) This Section does not apply to any otherwise lawful expenditures for the construction, completion, remodeling, maintenance and equipment of buildings and other facilities made in connection with and upon premises owned by the Illinois Building Authority, nor shall this Section apply to improvements to real estate leased by any State agency as defined in the Illinois State Auditing Act, provided the leasehold improvements were contracted for by an agency with leasing authority and in compliance with the rules and regulations promulgated by such agency for that purpose.

(d) Notwithstanding subsection (a), the Department of Transportation may proceed with bidding or awarding a contract or any construction activities once it has complied with the requirements for conditional certification under 23 CFR 635.309(c)(3).

The Department of Transportation shall comply with the requirements under subsection (a) before expending funds on construction activities or property acquisition related to parcels that were outstanding at the time of conditional certification under this subsection (d).

No construction activities shall be undertaken on any property until the requirements under subsection (a) have been met for that property. No delay costs shall be assessed against the State until the Department of Transportation has complied with subsection (a).

(Source: P.A. 103-865, eff. 1-1-25.)

Section 10. The Real Estate Appraiser Licensing Act of 2002 is amended by changing Sections 1-10 and 5-5 as follows:

(225 ILCS 458/1-10)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2027)

Sec. 1-10. Definitions. As used in this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:

"Accredited college or university, junior college, or community college" means a college or university, junior college, or community college that is approved or accredited by the Board of Higher Education, a regional or national accreditation association, or by an accrediting agency that is recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education.

"Address of record" means the designated street address, which may not be a post office box, recorded by the Department in the applicant's or licensee's application file or license file as maintained by the Department.

"Applicant" means a person who applies to the Department for a license under this Act.

"Appraisal" means (noun) the act or process of developing an opinion of value; an opinion of value (adjective) of or pertaining to appraising and related functions, such as appraisal practice or appraisal services.

"Appraisal assignment" means a valuation service provided pursuant to an agreement between an appraiser and a client.

"Appraisal firm" means an appraisal entity that is 100% owned and controlled by a person or persons licensed in Illinois as a certified general real estate appraiser or a certified residential real estate appraiser. "Appraisal firm" does not include an appraisal management company.

"Appraisal management company" means any corporation, limited liability company, partnership, sole proprietorship, subsidiary, unit, or other business entity that directly or indirectly: (1) provides appraisal management services to creditors or secondary mortgage market participants, including affiliates; (2) provides appraisal management services in connection with valuing the consumer's principal dwelling as security for a consumer credit transaction (including consumer credit transactions incorporated into securitizations); and (3) any appraisal management company that, within a given 12-month period, oversees an appraiser panel of 16 or more State-certified appraisers in Illinois or 25 or more State-certified or State-licensed appraisers in 2 or more jurisdictions. "Appraisal management company" includes a hybrid entity.

"Appraisal practice" means valuation services performed by an individual acting as an appraiser, including, but not limited to, appraisal or appraisal review.

"Appraisal qualification board (AQB)" means the independent board of the Appraisal Foundation, which, under the provisions of Title XI of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989, establishes the minimum education, experience, and examination requirements for real property appraisers to obtain a state certification or license.

"Appraisal report" means any communication, written or oral, of an appraisal or appraisal review that is transmitted to a client upon completion of an assignment.

"Appraisal review" means the act or process of developing and communicating an opinion about the quality of another appraiser's work that was performed as part of an appraisal, appraisal review, or appraisal assignment.

"Appraisal Subcommittee" means the Appraisal Subcommittee of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council as established by Title XI.

"Appraiser" means a person who performs real estate or real property appraisals competently and in a manner that is independent, impartial, and objective.

"Appraiser panel" means a network, list, or roster of licensed or certified appraisers approved by the appraisal management company or by the end-user client to perform appraisals as independent contractors for the appraisal management company. "Appraiser panel" includes both appraisers accepted by an appraisal management company for consideration for future appraisal assignments and appraisers engaged by an appraisal management company to perform one or more appraisals. For the purposes of determining the size of an appraiser panel, only independent contractors of hybrid entities shall be counted towards the appraiser panel.

"Associate real estate trainee appraiser" means an entry-level appraiser who holds a license of this classification under this Act with restrictions as to the scope of practice in accordance with this Act.

"Automated valuation model" means an automated system that is used to derive a property value through the use of available property records and various analytic methodologies such as comparable sales prices, home characteristics, and price changes.

"Board" means the Real Estate Appraisal Administration and Disciplinary Board.

"Broker price opinion" means an estimate or analysis of the probable selling price of a particular interest in real estate, which may provide a varying level of detail about the property's condition, market, and neighborhood and information on comparable sales. The activities of a real estate broker or managing broker engaging in the ordinary course of business as a broker, as defined in this Section, shall not be considered a broker price opinion if no compensation is paid to the broker or managing broker, other than compensation based upon the sale or rental of real estate.

"Classroom hour" means 50 minutes of instruction out of each 60-minute segment of coursework.

"Client" means the party or parties who engage an appraiser by employment or contract in a specific appraisal assignment.

"Comparative market analysis" is an analysis or opinion regarding pricing, marketing, or financial aspects relating to a specified interest or interests in real estate that may be based upon an analysis of comparative market data, the expertise of the real estate broker or managing broker, and such other factors as the broker or managing broker may deem appropriate in developing or preparing such analysis or opinion. The activities of a real estate broker or managing broker engaging in the ordinary course of business as a broker, as defined in this Section, shall not be considered a comparative market analysis if no compensation is paid to the broker or managing broker, other than compensation based upon the sale or rental of real estate.

"Coordinator" means the Real Estate Appraisal Coordinator created in Section 25-15.

"Department" means the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

"Email address of record" means the designated email address recorded by the Department in the applicant's application file or the licensee's license file maintained by the Department.

"Evaluation" means a valuation permitted by the appraisal regulations of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council and its federal agencies for transactions that qualify for the appraisal threshold exemption, business loan exemption, or subsequent transaction exemption.

"Federal financial institutions regulatory agencies" means the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the National Credit Union Administration.

"Federally related transaction" means any real estate-related financial transaction in which a federal financial institutions regulatory agency engages in, contracts for, or regulates and requires the services of an appraiser.

"Financial institution" means any bank, savings bank, savings and loan association, credit union, mortgage broker, mortgage banker, licensee under the Consumer Installment Loan Act or the Sales Finance Agency Act, or a corporate fiduciary, subsidiary, affiliate, parent company, or holding company of any such licensee, or any institution involved in real estate financing that is regulated by state or federal law.

"Hybrid entity" means an appraisal management company that hires an appraiser as an employee to perform an appraisal and engages an independent contractor to perform an appraisal.

"License" means the privilege conferred by the Department to a person that has fulfilled all requirements prerequisite to any type of licensure under this Act.

"Licensee" means any person licensed under this Act.

"Multi-state licensing system" means a web-based platform that allows an applicant to submit the application or license renewal application to the Department online.

"Person" means an individual, entity, sole proprietorship, corporation, limited liability company, partnership, and joint venture, foreign or domestic, except that when the context otherwise requires, the term may refer to more than one individual or other described entity.

"Real estate" means an identified parcel or tract of land, including any improvements.

"Real estate related financial transaction" means any transaction involving:

(1) the sale, lease, purchase, investment in, or exchange of real property, including interests in property or the financing thereof;

(2) the refinancing of real property or interests in real property; and

(3) the use of real property or interest in property as security for a loan or investment, including mortgage backed securities.

"Real property" means the interests, benefits, and rights inherent in the ownership of real estate.

"Secretary" means the Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation or the Secretary's designee.

"State certified general real estate appraiser" means an appraiser who holds a license of this classification under this Act and such classification applies to the appraisal of all types of real property without restrictions as to the scope of practice.

"State certified residential real estate appraiser" means an appraiser who holds a license of this classification under this Act and such classification applies to the appraisal of one to 4 units of residential real property without regard to transaction value or complexity, but with restrictions as to the scope of practice in a federally related transaction in accordance with Title XI, the provisions of USPAP, criteria established by the AQB, and further defined by rule.

"Supervising appraiser" means either (i) an appraiser who holds a valid license under this Act as either a State certified general real estate appraiser or a State certified residential real estate appraiser, who co-signs an appraisal report for an associate real estate trainee appraiser or (ii) a State certified general real estate appraiser who holds a valid license under this Act who co-signs an appraisal report for a State certified residential real estate appraiser on properties other than one to 4 units of residential real property without regard to transaction value or complexity.

"Title XI" means Title XI of the federal Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989.

"USPAP" means the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice as promulgated by the Appraisal Standards Board pursuant to Title XI and by rule.

"Valuation services" means services pertaining to aspects of property value.

"Waiver valuation" means a valuation prepared pursuant to the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970, as amended, or pursuant to the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition for Federal and Federally Assisted Programs regulations under 49 CFR Part 24, which is not an appraisal and may not be represented to be an appraisal.

(Source: P.A. 102-20, eff. 1-1-22; 102-687, eff. 12-17-21; 102-970, eff. 5-27-22; 103-236, eff. 1-1-24.)

(225 ILCS 458/5-5)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2027)

Sec. 5-5. Necessity of license; use of title; exemptions.

(a) It is unlawful for a person to (i) act, offer services, or advertise services as a State certified general real estate appraiser, State certified residential real estate appraiser, or associate real estate trainee appraiser, (ii) develop a real estate appraisal, (iii) practice as a real estate appraiser, or (iv) advertise as a real estate appraiser without a license issued under this Act. A person who violates this subsection is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor for a first offense and a Class 4 felony for any subsequent offense.

(a-5) It is unlawful for a person, unless registered as an appraisal management company, to solicit clients or enter into an appraisal engagement with clients without either a certified residential real estate appraiser license or a certified general real estate appraiser license issued under this Act. A person who violates this subsection is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor for a first offense and a Class 4 felony for any subsequent offense.

(b) It is unlawful for a person, other than a person who holds a valid license issued pursuant to this Act as a State certified general real estate appraiser, a State certified residential real estate appraiser, or an associate real estate trainee appraiser to use these titles or any other title, designation, or abbreviation likely to create the impression that the person is licensed as a real estate appraiser pursuant to this Act. A person who violates this subsection is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor for a first offense and a Class 4 felony for any subsequent offense.

(c) This Act does not apply to a person who holds a valid license as a real estate broker or managing broker pursuant to the Real Estate License Act of 2000 who prepares or provides a broker price opinion or comparative market analysis in compliance with Section 10-45 of the Real Estate License Act of 2000.

(d) Nothing in this Act shall preclude a State certified general real estate appraiser, a State certified residential real estate appraiser, or an associate real estate trainee appraiser from rendering appraisals for or on behalf of a partnership, association, corporation, firm, or group. However, no State appraisal license or certification shall be issued under this Act to a partnership, association, corporation, firm, or group.

(e) This Act does not apply to a county assessor, township assessor, multi-township assessor, county supervisor of assessments, or any deputy or employee of any county assessor, township assessor, multi-township assessor, or county supervisor of assessments in performance of respective duties in accordance with the provisions of the Property Tax Code.

(e-5) For the purposes of this Act, waiver valuations valuation waivers may be prepared by a licensed appraiser notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, and the following types of valuations are not appraisals and may not be represented to be appraisals, and a license or certification is not required under this Act to perform such valuations if the valuations are created in one of the following manners: performed by (1) an employee of the Illinois Department of Transportation who has completed a minimum of 45 hours of course work in real estate appraisal, including the principles of real estate appraisals, appraisal of partial acquisitions, easement valuation, reviewing appraisals in eminent domain, appraisal for federal aid highway programs, and appraisal review for federal aid highway programs and has at least 2 years' experience in a field closely related to real estate; (2) a county engineer who is a registered professional engineer under the Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989; (3) an employee of a municipality who has (i) completed a minimum of 45 hours of coursework in real estate appraisal, including the principles of real estate appraisals, appraisal of partial acquisitions, easement valuation, reviewing appraisals in eminent domain, appraisal for federal aid highway programs, and appraisal review for federal aid highway programs and (ii) has either 2 years' experience in a field clearly related to real estate or has completed 20 hours of additional coursework that is sufficient for a person to complete waiver valuations as approved by the Federal Highway Administration; or (4) a municipal engineer who has completed coursework that is sufficient for waiver valuations to be approved by the Federal Highway Administration and who is a registered professional engineer under the Professional Engineering Act of 1989, under the following circumstances:

(A) a waiver valuation waiver in an amount not to exceed $35,000 that $20,000 prepared pursuant to the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970, or prepared pursuant to the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition for Federal and Federally-Assisted Programs regulations and which is performed by:

(1) an employee of the Illinois Department of Transportation who is a registered professional engineer under the Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989 or an employee of the Illinois Department of Transportation that is and co-signed, with a license number affixed, by another employee of the Illinois Department of Transportation and who is a registered professional engineer under the Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989, with a license number affixed;

(2) a person who: (i) has at least 2 years' experience in a field closely related to real estate; (ii) has completed a minimum of 45 hours of course work in real estate appraisal, including the principles of real estate appraisals, appraisal of partial acquisitions, easement valuation, reviewing appraisals in eminent domain, appraisal for federal aid highway programs, or appraisal review for federal aid highway programs; and (iii) is an employee of the Illinois Department of Transportation or an employee of a consultant or subconsultant under contract to provide land acquisition services to the Illinois Department of Transportation;

(3) a county or municipal engineer who is a registered professional engineer under the Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989, with an engineer's signature and license number affixed;

(4) a municipal engineer who has completed coursework that is sufficient for waiver valuations to be approved by the Federal Highway Administration and who is a registered professional engineer under the Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989;

(5) or (2) an employee of a county or municipality that is and co-signed with a license number affixed by its respective a county or municipal engineer who is a registered professional engineer under the Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989, with a license number affixed;

(6) an employee of a municipality who:

(A) has completed a minimum of 45 hours of coursework in real estate appraisal, including the principles of real estate appraisals, appraisal of partial acquisitions, easement valuation, reviewing appraisals in eminent domain, appraisal for federal aid highway programs, and appraisal review for federal aid highway programs; and

(B) has either 2 years of experience in a field clearly related to real estate or has completed 20 hours of additional coursework that is sufficient for the employee to complete waiver valuations as approved by the Federal Highway Administration; or

(7) a nonresident appraiser licensed in another jurisdiction who does not represent himself or herself to be an Illinois-licensed appraiser; or and

(B) a waiver valuation waiver in an amount not to exceed $50,000 that (1) is performed by a licensed certified general real estate appraiser, a licensed certified residential real estate appraiser, or an associate real estate trainee appraiser employed by the Illinois Department of Transportation, (2) includes the signature and license numbers of the appraiser or the trainee and the trainee's supervising appraiser, and (3) is co-signed by an employee of the Illinois Department of Transportation who is a registered professional engineer under the Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989, with a license number affixed $20,000 prepared pursuant to the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970, or prepared pursuant to the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition for Federal and Federally-Assisted Programs regulations and which is performed by a county or municipal engineer who is employed by a county or municipality and is a registered professional engineer under the Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989. The valuation shall include the county or municipal engineer's signature and license number.

Nothing in this subsection (e-5) shall be construed to allow the State of Illinois, a political subdivision thereof, or any public body to acquire real estate by eminent domain in any manner other than provided for in the Eminent Domain Act.

Any person who is certified or licensed under this Act and performs a waiver valuation in accordance with (1) the requirements of this subsection (e-5) and (2) the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970, as amended, or pursuant to the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition for Federal and Federally Assisted Programs regulations under 49 CFR Part 24 shall be exempt from adherence to all relevant provisions of the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice while conducting waiver valuations in accordance with State and federal law. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to exempt any person who is certified or licensed under this Act from adhering to the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice while conducting appraisals in accordance with this Act.

(f) A State real estate appraisal certification or license is not required under this Act for any person, partnership, association, or corporation that performs appraisals of property owned by that person, partnership, association, or corporation for the sole use of that person, partnership, association, or corporation.

Any person who is certified or licensed under this Act and who performs any of the activities set forth in this subsection (f) must comply with the provisions of this Act. A person who violates this subsection (f) is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor for a first offense and a Class 4 felony for any subsequent offense.

(g) This Act does not apply to an employee, officer, director, or member of a credit or loan committee of a financial institution or any other person engaged by a financial institution when performing an evaluation of real property for the sole use of the financial institution in a transaction for which the financial institution would not be required to use the services of a State licensed or State certified appraiser pursuant to federal regulations adopted under Title XI of the federal Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989.

(h) This Act does not apply to the procurement of an automated valuation model.

(Source: P.A. 102-20, eff. 1-1-22.)

Section 15. The Illinois Highway Code is amended by changing Section 4-501 as follows:

(605 ILCS 5/4-501) (from Ch. 121, par. 4-501)

Sec. 4-501. The Department, in its name, or any county may acquire the fee simple title, or such lesser interest as may be desired, to any public or private land, rights, or other property necessary for the construction, maintenance or operation of State highways, or necessary for locating, relocating, extending, widening or straightening any State highway, or necessary for locating, relocating, extending, widening or straightening an existing street or for laying out, establishing or opening a new street within the corporate limits of any municipality which has been designated by the Department as a street to form a part of or to connect with a State highway leading up to the corporate limits of such municipality, or necessary for any other purpose or use contemplated by this Code by purchase or by the exercise of the right of eminent domain under the eminent domain laws of this State and the Department shall not be required, in any case, to furnish bond.

When, in the judgment of the acquiring agency, it is more practical and economical to acquire the fee to the inaccessible remnants of the tracts of land from which rights-of-way are being acquired than to pay severance damages, such agency may do so by purchase or by an eminent domain proceeding.

When a part of a parcel of land is to be taken for State highway purposes and the accessible remnant is to be left in a shape or condition rendering it of little value to the owner or giving rise to claims for severance or other damages, upon written request of the owner, the acquiring agency may take the whole parcel and may sell or exchange the part not needed for highway purposes.

When acquiring land for a highway on a new location, and when a parcel of land one acre or less in area contains a single family residence, which is in conformance with existing zoning ordinances, and only a part of that parcel is required for State highway purposes causing the remainder of the parcel not to conform with the existing zoning ordinances, or when the location of the right of way line of the proposed highway reduces the distance from an existing single family residence to the right of way line to 10 feet or less, the acquiring agency shall, if the owner so demands, take the whole parcel by negotiation or condemnation. The part not needed for highway purposes may be rented, sold or exchanged by the acquiring agency.

When any farm land is acquired for State highway purposes by the exercise of the right of eminent domain, the rate of compensation to be paid by the acquiring agency shall be computed by taking into consideration the total acreage originally involved in the farm land parcel, including that portion of such parcel already part of a right of way for highway purposes but for which legal title lies in the owner of the parcel.

(Source: P.A. 81-536.)

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