Full Text of SB1756 101st General Assembly
SB1756eng 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning regulation.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 | | Regulatory Sunrise Review Act. | 6 | | Section 5. Findings and intent. | 7 | | (a) It is the General Assembly's intent that no profession | 8 | | or occupation be subject to regulation by the State unless the | 9 | | regulation is necessary to protect the public health, safety, | 10 | | or welfare of the people of this State. If the need for new | 11 | | regulation is identified, the State may adopt the least | 12 | | restrictive form of regulation necessary to protect the public | 13 | | interest. | 14 | | (b) The General Assembly finds that the regulatory | 15 | | environment in Illinois has grown overly burdensome and has | 16 | | become a strain on both the regulatory authority of the State | 17 | | and the ability of the people of Illinois to enter into and | 18 | | work in various regulated professions. This Act is a means to | 19 | | promote economic growth and decrease barriers to entry into | 20 | | various professions in the State. | 21 | | (c) This Act establishes a system to investigate and review | 22 | | the necessity of new State regulation over a previously | 23 | | unregulated profession or occupation. The Act further provides |
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| 1 | | for a process to investigate what level of regulation is | 2 | | necessary in order to protect the public health, safety, or | 3 | | welfare. | 4 | | Section 10. Definitions. In this Act: | 5 | | "Applicant" means a professional group or organization, an | 6 | | individual, or any other interested party that proposes that a | 7 | | profession or occupation not licensed by the Department before | 8 | | January 1, 2019 be regulated through the licensure process. | 9 | | "Department" means the Department of Financial and | 10 | | Professional Regulation. | 11 | | Section 15. Policy. The General Assembly may not act upon | 12 | | legislation that proposes to license and regulate a profession | 13 | | or occupation not licensed by the Department before January 1, | 14 | | 2019 until a report as provided in this Act has been prepared | 15 | | and submitted to the Secretary of State. | 16 | | Section 20. Resolution; petition for regulation; fee; | 17 | | process of obtaining cost-benefit report. | 18 | | (a) The General Assembly shall commence the process | 19 | | established by this Act to investigate and review the necessity | 20 | | of new State regulation over a previously unregulated | 21 | | profession or occupation by passage of a resolution. | 22 | | (b) Upon passage by the General Assembly of the resolution, | 23 | | an applicant that proposes legislation to license and regulate |
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| 1 | | a profession or occupation by the Department for which no | 2 | | Department licensure or regulation exists shall submit a | 3 | | petition for licensure, on forms provided by the Department, | 4 | | and a non-refundable petition fee of $1,000 to the Department | 5 | | within 30 days after introduction of the legislation. The | 6 | | petition for licensure shall request that a report be prepared | 7 | | assessing the need for the proposed new licensure. The petition | 8 | | fee shall be deposited in the General Professions Dedicated | 9 | | Fund and shall be appropriated to the Department for the | 10 | | ordinary and contingent expenses of the Department in the | 11 | | administration of this Act. | 12 | | (c) Upon receipt of a complete petition and petition fee, | 13 | | the Department shall contract for the preparation of an | 14 | | independent report assessing the need for the proposed new | 15 | | licensure. The report shall be principally authored by a labor | 16 | | market economist with a doctoral degree currently associated | 17 | | with an Illinois post-secondary educational institution or by a | 18 | | person with an advanced quantitative degree and an expertise in | 19 | | cost-benefit analysis currently associated with an Illinois | 20 | | post-secondary educational institution. If the Department is | 21 | | unable to contract with a person meeting the qualifications | 22 | | described in this subsection for the preparation of the | 23 | | independent report, the Department may contract with a person | 24 | | whose qualifications are substantially similar to those | 25 | | described in this subsection. If the Department is unable to | 26 | | enter into a contract for preparation of the independent report |
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| 1 | | for a sum not to exceed $1,000, the Department may utilize | 2 | | existing funds to supplement the $1,000 fee collected. | 3 | | (d) The report shall address the social and economic costs | 4 | | and benefits of licensure, as well as the impact on the labor | 5 | | market, impact on prices, and the rationale for policy | 6 | | intervention. The report shall use modern cost-benefit | 7 | | methods, including the following: | 8 | | (1) defining the proposed licensed population, | 9 | | including estimated number of participants, the users of | 10 | | the services in question, and the Illinois economy | 11 | | statewide; | 12 | | (2) assessing a portfolio of alternatives to | 13 | | licensing, as well as the impact of licensure; | 14 | | (3) cataloging the potential impacts and selected | 15 | | measurement indicators of licensure; | 16 | | (4) predicting the quantitative impacts over the life | 17 | | of the proposed license; | 18 | | (5) monetizing all impacts; | 19 | | (6) calculating the net present value; | 20 | | (7) identifying the distribution of costs and | 21 | | benefits; and | 22 | | (8) performing sensitivity testing. | 23 | | (e) The report shall also address each of the factors and | 24 | | consider the criteria and standards described in Section 25, | 25 | | and shall make a recommendation regarding licensure or other | 26 | | applicable alternatives. |
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| 1 | | (f) A preliminary copy of the report shall be submitted to | 2 | | the Department for its review and comment for a period of at | 3 | | least 30 days. Any comments made by the Department shall be | 4 | | included in the report. | 5 | | (g) The report, including any Department comments, shall be | 6 | | completed within 12 months after the effective date of the | 7 | | Department's contract for the report's creation. The completed | 8 | | report shall be filed with the Secretary of State. | 9 | | (h) After the report is filed with the Secretary of State | 10 | | and after due consideration by the General Assembly, the bill | 11 | | proposing licensure of the profession or occupation may proceed | 12 | | for consideration by the General Assembly. | 13 | | (i) Nothing in this Act shall interfere with the General | 14 | | Assembly otherwise considering legislation on any regulatory | 15 | | matter. | 16 | | Section 25. List of factors; criteria and standards. | 17 | | (a) The following factors shall be considered in the report | 18 | | submitted with a petition for proposed licensure and regulation | 19 | | by the Department: | 20 | | (1) whether regulation is necessary or beneficial, | 21 | | including any potential harm or threat to the public if the | 22 | | profession or occupation is not regulated or specific | 23 | | examples of the harm or threat identified, if any; | 24 | | (2) the extent to which the public will benefit from a | 25 | | method of regulation that permits identification of |
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| 1 | | competent practitioners; | 2 | | (3) the extent to which practitioners are autonomous, | 3 | | as indicated by: | 4 | | (A) the degree to which the profession or | 5 | | occupation requires the use of independent judgment | 6 | | and the skill or experience required in making such | 7 | | judgment; and | 8 | | (B) the degree to which practitioners are | 9 | | supervised; | 10 | | (4) the efforts that have been made to address any | 11 | | concerns that give rise to the need for regulation, | 12 | | including: | 13 | | (A) voluntary efforts, if any, by members of the | 14 | | profession or occupation to: | 15 | | (i) establish a code of ethics; | 16 | | (ii) help resolve disputes between | 17 | | practitioners and consumers; and | 18 | | (iii) establish requirements for continuing | 19 | | education; | 20 | | (B) the existence of any national accreditation or | 21 | | national certification systems for the profession or | 22 | | occupation; | 23 | | (C) recourse to and the extent of use of existing | 24 | | law; and | 25 | | (D) any prior attempts to regulate the profession | 26 | | or occupation in Illinois; |
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| 1 | | (5) whether the following alternatives to licensure | 2 | | would be adequate to protect the public interest: | 3 | | (A) existing, new, or stronger civil remedies or | 4 | | criminal sanctions; | 5 | | (B) regulation of the service rather than the | 6 | | individual practitioners; | 7 | | (C) registration of all practitioners; | 8 | | (D) market competition and third-party or | 9 | | consumer-created ratings and reviews; | 10 | | (E) voluntary or mandatory bonding or insurance; | 11 | | (F) other alternatives; | 12 | | (6) the benefit to the public if licensure is required, | 13 | | including: | 14 | | (A) whether regulation will result in reduction or | 15 | | elimination of the harms or threats identified under | 16 | | paragraph (1) of this subsection; | 17 | | (B) the extent to which the public can be confident | 18 | | that a practitioner is competent; | 19 | | (C) whether renewal will be based only upon payment | 20 | | of a fee or whether renewal will require completion of | 21 | | continuing education or any other requirements; | 22 | | (D) the standards for registration or licensure as | 23 | | compared with the standards of other jurisdictions; | 24 | | and | 25 | | (E) the nature and duration of the educational | 26 | | requirement, if any, including: whether the |
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| 1 | | educational requirement includes a substantial amount | 2 | | of supervised field experience; whether educational | 3 | | programs exist in this State; whether there will be an | 4 | | experience requirement; whether the experience must be | 5 | | acquired under a registered, certified, or licensed | 6 | | practitioner; whether there are alternative routes of | 7 | | entry or methods of satisfying the eligibility | 8 | | requirements and qualifications; whether all | 9 | | applicants will be required to pass an examination; | 10 | | and, if an examination is required, by whom it will be | 11 | | developed and how the costs of development will be met; | 12 | | (7) the extent to which regulation might harm the | 13 | | public, including: | 14 | | (A) whether regulation will restrict entry into | 15 | | the profession or occupation, including: | 16 | | (i) whether the standards are the least | 17 | | restrictive necessary to ensure safe and effective | 18 | | performance; and | 19 | | (ii) whether persons who are registered or | 20 | | licensed in another jurisdiction that has | 21 | | requirements that are substantially equivalent to | 22 | | those of this State will be eligible for | 23 | | endorsement or some form of reciprocity; and | 24 | | (B) whether there are similar professions or | 25 | | occupations that should be included or portions of the | 26 | | profession or occupation that should be excluded from |
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| 1 | | regulation; | 2 | | (8) how the standards of the profession or occupation | 3 | | will be maintained, including: | 4 | | (A) whether effective quality assurance standards | 5 | | exist in the profession or occupation, such as legal | 6 | | requirements associated with specific programs that | 7 | | define or enforce standards or a code of ethics; and | 8 | | (B) how the proposed form of regulation will ensure | 9 | | quality, including: | 10 | | (i) the extent to which a code of ethics, if | 11 | | any, will be adopted; and | 12 | | (ii) the grounds for suspension, revocation, | 13 | | or refusal to renew registration, certification, | 14 | | or licensure; | 15 | | (9) how the additional cost that the Department will | 16 | | incur in licensing the profession or occupation will be | 17 | | recouped through licensing application and renewal fees; | 18 | | (10) a profile of the practitioners in this State, | 19 | | including a list of associations, organizations, and other | 20 | | groups representing the practitioners and including an | 21 | | estimate of the number of practitioners in each group; and | 22 | | (11) whether the profession or occupation is currently | 23 | | regulated in any other state and what methods of regulation | 24 | | each state utilizes. | 25 | | (b) A profession or occupation shall be regulated by the | 26 | | State only when the following criteria are met: |
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| 1 | | (1) it can be demonstrated that the unregulated | 2 | | practice of the profession or occupation can clearly harm | 3 | | or endanger the health, safety, or welfare of the public | 4 | | and the potential for the harm is recognizable and not | 5 | | remote or speculative; | 6 | | (2) the public can reasonably be expected to benefit | 7 | | from an assurance of initial and continuing professional | 8 | | ability; | 9 | | (3) the public cannot be effectively protected by other | 10 | | means; and | 11 | | (4) regulation of the profession does not impose | 12 | | significant new economic hardships on the public, | 13 | | significantly diminish the supply of qualified | 14 | | practitioners, or otherwise create barriers to service | 15 | | that are not consistent with the public welfare or | 16 | | interest. | 17 | | Section 30. Review by the General Assembly. After | 18 | | evaluating the petition, report, and Department comments and | 19 | | considering governmental and societal costs and benefits, if | 20 | | the General Assembly finds that it is necessary to regulate a | 21 | | profession or occupation, the least restrictive method of | 22 | | regulation may be imposed, consistent with the public interest | 23 | | and this Section. In addition, the items in the following list | 24 | | shall be considered in the following numbered order before | 25 | | making a determination: |
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| 1 | | (1) If existing common law and statutory civil remedies | 2 | | and criminal sanctions are insufficient to reduce or | 3 | | eliminate existing harm, regulation shall occur through | 4 | | enactment of stronger civil remedies and criminal | 5 | | sanctions. | 6 | | (2) If there exists a national accreditation or | 7 | | certification system for the profession or occupation that | 8 | | adequately ensures quality and protects the public health, | 9 | | safety, and welfare, regulation by the State shall be | 10 | | restricted to addressing those concerns that are not | 11 | | covered by the national program. | 12 | | (3) If the threat to the public health, safety, or | 13 | | welfare is insufficiently large to justify licensure, | 14 | | regulation shall be through a system of registration. | 15 | | (4) If it is apparent that the public cannot be | 16 | | adequately protected by any other means, a system of | 17 | | licensure shall be imposed. | 18 | | Section 35. Severability. If any part of the application of | 19 | | this Act is held invalid, the remainder of its application to | 20 | | other situations, groups, or persons shall not be affected.
| 21 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 22 | | becoming law. |
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