Full Text of HB1576 97th General Assembly
HB1576enr 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning local government.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by | 5 | | changing Sections 10-1-7 and 10-2.1-4 and by adding Sections | 6 | | 10-1-7.1, 10-1-7.2, 10-2.1-6.3, and 10-2.1-6.4 as follows:
| 7 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-1-7) (from Ch. 24, par. 10-1-7)
| 8 | | Sec. 10-1-7. Examination of applicants; disqualifications.
| 9 | | (a) All applicants for offices or places in the classified | 10 | | service, except
those mentioned in Section 10-1-17, are subject | 11 | | to examination. The
examination shall be public, competitive, | 12 | | and open to all citizens of the
United States, with specified | 13 | | limitations as to residence, age, health, habits
and moral | 14 | | character.
| 15 | | (b) Residency requirements in effect at the time an | 16 | | individual enters the
fire or police service of a municipality | 17 | | (other than a municipality that
has more than 1,000,000 | 18 | | inhabitants) cannot be made more restrictive
for that | 19 | | individual during his or her period of service for that | 20 | | municipality,
or be made a condition of promotion, except for | 21 | | the rank or position of Fire or
Police Chief.
| 22 | | (c) No person with a record of misdemeanor convictions | 23 | | except
those under Sections 11-6, 11-7, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, |
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| 1 | | 11-17, 11-18, 11-19,
12-2, 12-6, 12-15, 14-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, | 2 | | 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1,
31-4, 31-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, | 3 | | 32-3, 32-4, 32-8, and subsections (1), (6) and
(8) of Section | 4 | | 24-1 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or arrested for any cause but
| 5 | | not convicted on that cause shall be disqualified from taking | 6 | | the examination
on grounds of habits or moral character, unless | 7 | | the person is attempting to
qualify for a position on the | 8 | | police department, in which case the conviction
or arrest may | 9 | | be considered as a factor in determining the person's habits or
| 10 | | moral character.
| 11 | | (d) Persons entitled to military preference under Section | 12 | | 10-1-16
shall not be subject to limitations specifying age | 13 | | unless they are
applicants for a position as a fireman or a | 14 | | policeman having no previous
employment status as a fireman or | 15 | | policeman in the regularly constituted
fire or police | 16 | | department of the municipality, in which case they must not
| 17 | | have attained their 35th birthday, except any person who has | 18 | | served as an
auxiliary police officer under Section 3.1-30-20 | 19 | | for at least 5 years and is
under 40 years of age.
| 20 | | (e) All employees of a municipality of less than 500,000 | 21 | | population (except
those who would be excluded from the | 22 | | classified service as provided in this
Division 1) who are | 23 | | holding that employment as of the date a municipality
adopts | 24 | | this Division 1, or as of July 17, 1959, whichever date is the | 25 | | later,
and who have held that employment for at least 2 years | 26 | | immediately before that
later date, and all firemen and |
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| 1 | | policemen regardless of length of service who
were either | 2 | | appointed to their respective positions by the board of fire | 3 | | and
police commissioners under the provisions of Division 2 of | 4 | | this Article or who
are serving in a position (except as a | 5 | | temporary employee) in the fire or
police department in the | 6 | | municipality on the date a municipality adopts
this Division 1, | 7 | | or as of July 17, 1959, whichever date is the later, shall
| 8 | | become members of the classified civil service of the | 9 | | municipality
without examination.
| 10 | | (f) The examinations shall be practical in their character, | 11 | | and shall
relate to those matters that will fairly test the | 12 | | relative capacity of the
persons examined to discharge the | 13 | | duties of the positions to which they
seek to be appointed. The | 14 | | examinations shall include tests of physical
qualifications, | 15 | | health, and (when appropriate) manual skill. If an applicant
is | 16 | | unable to pass the physical examination solely as the result of | 17 | | an injury
received by the applicant as the result of the | 18 | | performance of an act of duty
while working as a temporary | 19 | | employee in the position for which he or she is
being examined, | 20 | | however, the physical examination shall be waived and the
| 21 | | applicant shall be considered to have passed the examination. | 22 | | No questions in
any examination shall relate to political or | 23 | | religious opinions or
affiliations. Results of examinations | 24 | | and the eligible registers prepared from
the results shall be | 25 | | published by the commission within 60 days after any
| 26 | | examinations are held.
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| 1 | | (g) The commission shall control all examinations, and may, | 2 | | whenever an
examination is to take place, designate a suitable | 3 | | number of persons,
either in or not in the official service of | 4 | | the municipality, to be
examiners. The examiners shall conduct | 5 | | the examinations as directed by the
commission and shall make a | 6 | | return or report of the examinations to the
commission. If the | 7 | | appointed examiners are in the official service of the
| 8 | | municipality, the examiners shall not receive extra | 9 | | compensation for conducting
the examinations. The commission | 10 | | may at any time substitute any other person,
whether or not in | 11 | | the service of the municipality, in the place of any one
| 12 | | selected as an examiner. The commission members may themselves | 13 | | at any time act
as examiners without appointing examiners. The | 14 | | examiners at any examination
shall not all be members of the | 15 | | same political party.
| 16 | | (h) In municipalities of 500,000 or more population, no | 17 | | person who has
attained his or her 35th birthday shall be | 18 | | eligible to take an examination for
a position as a fireman or | 19 | | a policeman unless the person has had previous
employment | 20 | | status as a policeman or fireman in the regularly constituted | 21 | | police
or fire department of the municipality, except as | 22 | | provided in this Section.
| 23 | | (i) In municipalities of more than 5,000 but not more than | 24 | | 200,000
inhabitants, no person who has attained his or her 35th | 25 | | birthday shall be
eligible to take an examination for a | 26 | | position as a fireman or a policeman
unless the person has had |
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| 1 | | previous employment status as a policeman or fireman
in the | 2 | | regularly constituted police or fire department of the | 3 | | municipality,
except as provided in this Section.
| 4 | | (j) In all municipalities, applicants who are 20 years of | 5 | | age and who have
successfully completed 2 years of law | 6 | | enforcement studies at an accredited
college or university may | 7 | | be considered for appointment to active duty with
the police | 8 | | department. An applicant described in this subsection (j) who | 9 | | is
appointed to active duty shall not have power of arrest, nor | 10 | | shall the
applicant be permitted to carry firearms, until he or | 11 | | she reaches 21 years of
age.
| 12 | | (k) In municipalities of more than 500,000 population, | 13 | | applications for
examination for and appointment to positions | 14 | | as firefighters or police
shall be made available at various | 15 | | branches of the public library of the
municipality.
| 16 | | (l) No municipality having a population less than 1,000,000 | 17 | | shall require
that any fireman appointed to the lowest rank | 18 | | serve a probationary employment
period of longer than one year. | 19 | | The limitation on periods of probationary
employment provided | 20 | | in this amendatory Act of 1989 is an exclusive power and
| 21 | | function of the State. Pursuant to subsection (h) of Section 6 | 22 | | of Article VII
of the Illinois Constitution, a home rule | 23 | | municipality having a population less
than 1,000,000 must | 24 | | comply with this limitation on periods of probationary
| 25 | | employment, which is a denial and limitation of home rule | 26 | | powers.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this |
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| 1 | | Section, the probationary
employment period limitation may be | 2 | | extended for a firefighter who is required, as a condition of | 3 | | employment, to be a certified paramedic, during which time the | 4 | | sole reason that a firefighter may be discharged without a | 5 | | hearing is for failing to meet the requirements for paramedic | 6 | | certification.
| 7 | | (m) To the extent that this Section or any other Section in | 8 | | this Division conflicts with Section 10-1-7.1 or 10-1-7.2, then | 9 | | Section 10-1-7.1 or 10-1-7.2 shall control. | 10 | | (Source: P.A. 94-135, eff. 7-7-05; 94-984, eff. 6-30-06.)
| 11 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-1-7.1 new) | 12 | | Sec. 10-1-7.1. Original appointments; full-time fire | 13 | | department. | 14 | | (a) Applicability. Unless a commission elects to follow the | 15 | | provisions of Section 10-1-7.2, this Section shall apply to all | 16 | | original appointments to an affected full-time fire | 17 | | department. Existing registers of eligibles shall continue to | 18 | | be valid until their expiration dates, or up to a maximum of 2 | 19 | | years after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the | 20 | | 97th General Assembly. | 21 | | Notwithstanding any statute, ordinance, rule, or other law | 22 | | to the contrary, all original appointments to an affected | 23 | | department to which this Section applies shall be administered | 24 | | in the manner provided for in this Section. Provisions of the | 25 | | Illinois Municipal Code, municipal ordinances, and rules |
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| 1 | | adopted pursuant to such authority and other laws relating to | 2 | | initial hiring of firefighters in affected departments shall | 3 | | continue to apply to the extent they are compatible with this | 4 | | Section, but in the event of a conflict between this Section | 5 | | and any other law, this Section shall control. | 6 | | A home rule or non-home rule municipality may not | 7 | | administer its fire department process for original | 8 | | appointments in a manner that is less stringent than this | 9 | | Section. This Section is a limitation under subsection (i) of | 10 | | Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution on the | 11 | | concurrent exercise by home rule units of the powers and | 12 | | functions exercised by the State. | 13 | | A municipality that is operating under a court order or | 14 | | consent decree regarding original appointments to a full-time | 15 | | fire department before the effective date of this amendatory | 16 | | Act of the 97th General Assembly is exempt from the | 17 | | requirements of this Section for the duration of the court | 18 | | order or consent decree. | 19 | | Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection | 20 | | (a), this Section does not apply to a municipality with more | 21 | | than 1,000,000 inhabitants. | 22 | | (b) Original appointments. All original appointments made | 23 | | to an affected fire department shall be made from a register of | 24 | | eligibles established in accordance with the processes | 25 | | established by this Section. Only persons who meet or exceed | 26 | | the performance standards required by this Section shall be |
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| 1 | | placed on a register of eligibles for original appointment to | 2 | | an affected fire department. | 3 | | Whenever an appointing authority authorizes action to hire | 4 | | a person to perform the duties of a firefighter or to hire a | 5 | | firefighter-paramedic to fill a position that is a new position | 6 | | or vacancy due to resignation, discharge, promotion, death, the | 7 | | granting of a disability or retirement pension, or any other | 8 | | cause, the appointing authority shall appoint to that position | 9 | | the person with the highest ranking on the final eligibility | 10 | | list. If the appointing authority has reason to conclude that | 11 | | the highest ranked person fails to meet the minimum standards | 12 | | for the position or if the appointing authority believes an | 13 | | alternate candidate would better serve the needs of the | 14 | | department, then the appointing authority has the right to pass | 15 | | over the highest ranked person and appoint either: (i) any | 16 | | person who has a ranking in the top 5% of the register of | 17 | | eligibles or (ii) any person who is among the top 5 highest | 18 | | ranked persons on the list of eligibles if the number of people | 19 | | who have a ranking in the top 5% of the register of eligibles | 20 | | is less than 5 people. | 21 | | Any candidate may pass on an appointment once without | 22 | | losing his or her position on the register of eligibles. Any | 23 | | candidate who passes a second time may be removed from the list | 24 | | by the appointing authority provided that such action shall not | 25 | | prejudice a person's opportunities to participate in future | 26 | | examinations, including an examination held during the time a |
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| 1 | | candidate is already on the municipality's register of | 2 | | eligibles. | 3 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 4 | | shall be vested in the Civil Service Commission. All | 5 | | certificates of appointment issued to any officer or member of | 6 | | an affected department shall be signed by the chairperson and | 7 | | secretary, respectively, of the commission upon appointment of | 8 | | such officer or member to the affected department by the | 9 | | commission. Each person who accepts a certificate of | 10 | | appointment and successfully completes his or her probationary | 11 | | period shall be enrolled as a firefighter and as a regular | 12 | | member of the fire department. | 13 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 14 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 15 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 16 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 17 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 18 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 19 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 20 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 21 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 22 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 23 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 24 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 25 | | (c) Qualification for placement on register of eligibles. | 26 | | The purpose of establishing a register of eligibles is to |
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| 1 | | identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the mental | 2 | | aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties required of | 3 | | members of the fire department in order to provide the highest | 4 | | quality of service to the public. To this end, all applicants | 5 | | for original appointment to an affected fire department shall | 6 | | be subject to examination and testing which shall be public, | 7 | | competitive, and open to all applicants unless the municipality | 8 | | shall by ordinance limit applicants to residents of the | 9 | | municipality, county or counties in which the municipality is | 10 | | located, State, or nation. Municipalities may establish | 11 | | educational, emergency medical service licensure, and other | 12 | | pre-requisites for participation in an examination or for hire | 13 | | as a firefighter. Any municipality may charge a fee to cover | 14 | | the costs of the application process. | 15 | | Residency requirements in effect at the time an individual | 16 | | enters the fire service of a municipality cannot be made more | 17 | | restrictive for that individual during his or her period of | 18 | | service for that municipality, or be made a condition of | 19 | | promotion, except for the rank or position of fire chief and | 20 | | for no more than 2 positions that rank immediately below that | 21 | | of the chief rank which are appointed positions pursuant to the | 22 | | Fire Department Promotion Act. | 23 | | No person who is 35 years of age or older shall be eligible | 24 | | to take an examination for a position as a firefighter unless | 25 | | the person has had previous employment status as a firefighter | 26 | | in the regularly constituted fire department of the |
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| 1 | | municipality, except as provided in this Section. The age | 2 | | limitation does not apply to: | 3 | | (1) any person previously employed as a full-time | 4 | | firefighter in a regularly constituted fire department of | 5 | | (i) any municipality or fire protection district located in | 6 | | Illinois, (ii) a fire protection district whose | 7 | | obligations were assumed by a municipality under Section 21 | 8 | | of the Fire Protection District Act, or (iii) a | 9 | | municipality whose obligations were taken over by a fire | 10 | | protection district, or | 11 | | (2) any person who has served a municipality as a | 12 | | regularly enrolled volunteer, paid-on-call, or part-time | 13 | | firefighter for the 5 years immediately preceding the time | 14 | | that the municipality begins to use full-time firefighters | 15 | | to provide all or part of its fire protection service. | 16 | | No person who is under 21 years of age shall be eligible | 17 | | for employment as a firefighter. | 18 | | No applicant shall be examined concerning his or her | 19 | | political or religious opinions or affiliations. The | 20 | | examinations shall be conducted by the commissioners of the | 21 | | municipality or their designees and agents. | 22 | | No municipality shall require that any firefighter | 23 | | appointed to the lowest rank serve a probationary employment | 24 | | period of longer than one year of actual active employment, | 25 | | which may exclude periods of training, or injury or illness | 26 | | leaves, including duty related leave, in excess of 30 calendar |
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| 1 | | days. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section, | 2 | | the probationary employment period limitation may be extended | 3 | | for a firefighter who is required, as a condition of | 4 | | employment, to be a certified paramedic, during which time the | 5 | | sole reason that a firefighter may be discharged without a | 6 | | hearing is for failing to meet the requirements for paramedic | 7 | | certification. | 8 | | In the event that any applicant who has been found eligible | 9 | | for appointment and whose name has been placed upon the final | 10 | | eligibility register provided for in this Division 1 has not | 11 | | been appointed to a firefighter position within one year after | 12 | | the date of his or her physical ability examination, the | 13 | | commission may cause a second examination to be made of that | 14 | | applicant's physical ability prior to his or her appointment. | 15 | | If, after the second examination, the physical ability of the | 16 | | applicant shall be found to be less than the minimum standard | 17 | | fixed by the rules of the commission, the applicant shall not | 18 | | be appointed. The applicant's name may be retained upon the | 19 | | register of candidates eligible for appointment and when next | 20 | | reached for certification and appointment that applicant may be | 21 | | again examined as provided in this Section, and if the physical | 22 | | ability of that applicant is found to be less than the minimum | 23 | | standard fixed by the rules of the commission, the applicant | 24 | | shall not be appointed, and the name of the applicant shall be | 25 | | removed from the register. | 26 | | (d) Notice, examination, and testing components. Notice of |
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| 1 | | the time, place, general scope, merit criteria for any | 2 | | subjective component, and fee of every examination shall be | 3 | | given by the commission, by a publication at least 2 weeks | 4 | | preceding the examination: (i) in one or more newspapers | 5 | | published in the municipality, or if no newspaper is published | 6 | | therein, then in one or more newspapers with a general | 7 | | circulation within the municipality, or (ii) on the | 8 | | municipality's Internet website. Additional notice of the | 9 | | examination may be given as the commission shall prescribe. | 10 | | The examination and qualifying standards for employment of | 11 | | firefighters shall be based on: mental aptitude, physical | 12 | | ability, preferences, moral character, and health. The mental | 13 | | aptitude, physical ability, and preference components shall | 14 | | determine an applicant's qualification for and placement on the | 15 | | final register of eligibles. The examination may also include a | 16 | | subjective component based on merit criteria as determined by | 17 | | the commission. Scores from the examination must be made | 18 | | available to the public. | 19 | | (e) Mental aptitude. No person who does not possess at | 20 | | least a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 21 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. | 22 | | Examination of an applicant's mental aptitude shall be based | 23 | | upon a written examination. The examination shall be practical | 24 | | in character and relate to those matters that fairly test the | 25 | | capacity of the persons examined to discharge the duties | 26 | | performed by members of a fire department. Written examinations |
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| 1 | | shall be administered in a manner that ensures the security and | 2 | | accuracy of the scores achieved. | 3 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 4 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 5 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 6 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 7 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 8 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 9 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 10 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 11 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 12 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 13 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 14 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 15 | | each applicant's physical abilities in the following | 16 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 17 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 18 | | functions of the firefighter's job description): | 19 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 20 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 21 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 22 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 23 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 24 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested may be based | 25 | | on standards developed, or approved, by the local | 26 | | appointing authority. |
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| 1 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 2 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 3 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 4 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 5 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 6 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 7 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 8 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 9 | | Physical ability examinations administered under this | 10 | | Section shall be conducted with a reasonable number of proctors | 11 | | and monitors, open to the public, and subject to reasonable | 12 | | regulations of the commission. | 13 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. Appointing | 14 | | authorities may create a preliminary eligibility register. A | 15 | | person shall be placed on the list based upon his or her | 16 | | passage of the written examination or the passage of the | 17 | | written examination and the physical ability component. | 18 | | Passage of the written examination means a score that is at or | 19 | | above the mean score for all applicants participating in the | 20 | | written test. The appointing authority may conduct the physical | 21 | | ability component and any subjective components subsequent to | 22 | | the posting of the preliminary eligibility register. | 23 | | The examination components for an initial eligibility | 24 | | register shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 25 | | position on the list shall be determined by the following: (i)
| 26 | | the person's score on the written examination, (ii) the person
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| 1 | | successfully passing the physical ability component, and (iii) | 2 | | the
person's results on any subjective component as described | 3 | | in
subsection (d). | 4 | | In order to qualify for placement on the final eligibility | 5 | | register, an applicant's total score, before any applicable | 6 | | preference points are applied, shall be at or above the mean | 7 | | score plus 10%. The local appointing authority may prescribe | 8 | | the score to qualify for placement on the final eligibility | 9 | | register, but the score shall not be less than the mean score | 10 | | plus 10%. | 11 | | The commission shall prepare and keep a register of persons | 12 | | whose total score is not less than the minimum fixed by this | 13 | | Section and who have passed the physical ability examination. | 14 | | These persons shall take rank upon the register as candidates | 15 | | in the order of their relative excellence based on the highest | 16 | | to the lowest total points scored on the mental aptitude, | 17 | | subjective component, and preference components of the test | 18 | | administered in accordance with this Section. No more than 60 | 19 | | days after each examination, an initial eligibility list shall | 20 | | be posted by the commission. The list shall include the final | 21 | | grades of the candidates without reference to priority of the | 22 | | time of examination and subject to claim for preference credit. | 23 | | Commissions may conduct additional examinations, including | 24 | | without limitation a polygraph test, after a final eligibility | 25 | | register is established and before it expires with the | 26 | | candidates ranked by total score without regard to date of |
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| 1 | | examination. No more than 60 days after each examination, an | 2 | | initial eligibility list shall be posted by the commission | 3 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 4 | | priority of time of examination and subject to claim for | 5 | | preference credit. | 6 | | (h) Preferences. The following are preferences: | 7 | | (1) Veteran preference. Persons who were engaged in the | 8 | | military service of the United States for a period of at | 9 | | least one year of active duty and who were honorably | 10 | | discharged therefrom, or who are now or have been members | 11 | | on inactive or reserve duty in such military or naval | 12 | | service, shall be preferred for appointment to and | 13 | | employment with the fire department of an affected | 14 | | department. | 15 | | (2) Fire cadet preference. Persons who have | 16 | | successfully completed 2 years of study in fire techniques | 17 | | or cadet training within a cadet program established under | 18 | | the rules of the Joint Labor and Management Committee | 19 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 20 | | Promotion Act, may be preferred for appointment to and | 21 | | employment with the fire department. | 22 | | (3) Educational preference. Persons who have | 23 | | successfully obtained an associate's degree in the field of | 24 | | fire service or emergency medical services, or a bachelor's | 25 | | degree from an accredited college or university may be | 26 | | preferred for appointment to and employment with the fire |
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| 1 | | department. | 2 | | (4) Paramedic preference. Persons who have obtained | 3 | | certification as an Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic | 4 | | (EMT-P) may be preferred for appointment to and employment | 5 | | with the fire department of an affected department | 6 | | providing emergency medical services. | 7 | | (5) Experience preference. All persons employed by a | 8 | | municipality who have been paid-on-call or part-time | 9 | | certified Firefighter II, certified Firefighter III, State | 10 | | of Illinois or nationally licensed EMT-B or EMT-I, licensed | 11 | | paramedic, or any combination of those capacities may be | 12 | | awarded up to a maximum of 5 points. However, the applicant | 13 | | may not be awarded more than 0.5 points for each complete | 14 | | year of paid-on-call or part-time service. Applicants from | 15 | | outside the municipality who were employed as full-time | 16 | | firefighters or firefighter-paramedics by a fire | 17 | | protection district or another municipality may be awarded | 18 | | up to 5 experience preference points. However, the | 19 | | applicant may not be awarded more than one point for each | 20 | | complete year of full-time service. | 21 | | (6) Residency preference. Applicants whose principal | 22 | | residence is located within the fire department's | 23 | | jurisdiction may be preferred for appointment to and | 24 | | employment with the fire department. | 25 | | Upon request by the commission, the governing body of | 26 | | the municipality or in the case of applicants from outside |
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| 1 | | the municipality the governing body of any fire protection | 2 | | district or any other municipality shall certify to the | 3 | | commission, within 10 days after the request, the number of | 4 | | years of successful paid-on-call, part-time, or full-time | 5 | | service of any person. A candidate may not receive the full | 6 | | amount of preference points under this subsection if the | 7 | | amount of points awarded would place the candidate before a | 8 | | veteran on the eligibility list. If more than one candidate | 9 | | receiving experience preference points is prevented from | 10 | | receiving all of their points due to not being allowed to | 11 | | pass a veteran, the candidates shall be placed on the list | 12 | | below the veteran in rank order based on the totals | 13 | | received if all points under this subsection were to be | 14 | | awarded. Any remaining ties on the list shall be determined | 15 | | by lot. | 16 | | (7) Additional preferences. Up to 5 additional | 17 | | preference points may be awarded for unique categories | 18 | | based on an applicant's experience or background as | 19 | | identified by the commission. | 20 | | (8) Scoring of preferences. The commission shall give | 21 | | preference for original appointment to persons designated | 22 | | in item (1)
by adding to the final grade that they receive | 23 | | 5 points
for the recognized preference achieved. The | 24 | | commission shall determine the number of preference points | 25 | | for each category except (1). The number of preference | 26 | | points for each category shall range from 0 to 5. In |
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| 1 | | determining the number of preference points, the | 2 | | commission shall prescribe that if a candidate earns the | 3 | | maximum number of preference points in all categories, that | 4 | | number may not be less than 10 nor more than 30. The | 5 | | commission shall give preference for original appointment | 6 | | to persons designated in items (2) through (7) by adding | 7 | | the requisite number of points to the final grade for each | 8 | | recognized preference achieved. The numerical result thus | 9 | | attained shall be applied by the commission in determining | 10 | | the final eligibility list and appointment from the | 11 | | eligibility list. The local appointing authority may | 12 | | prescribe the total number of preference points awarded | 13 | | under this Section, but the total number of preference | 14 | | points shall not be less than 10 points or more than 30 | 15 | | points. | 16 | | No person entitled to any preference shall be required to | 17 | | claim the credit before any examination held under the | 18 | | provisions of this Section, but the preference shall be given | 19 | | after the posting or publication of the initial eligibility | 20 | | list or register at the request of a person entitled to a | 21 | | credit before any certification or appointments are made from | 22 | | the eligibility register, upon the furnishing of verifiable | 23 | | evidence and proof of qualifying preference credit. Candidates | 24 | | who are eligible for preference credit shall make a claim in | 25 | | writing within 10 days after the posting of the initial | 26 | | eligibility list, or the claim shall be deemed waived. Final |
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| 1 | | eligibility registers shall be established after the awarding | 2 | | of verified preference points. All employment shall be subject | 3 | | to the commission's initial hire background review including, | 4 | | but not limited to, criminal history, employment history, moral | 5 | | character, oral examination, and medical and psychological | 6 | | examinations, all on a pass-fail basis. The medical and | 7 | | psychological examinations must be conducted last, and may only | 8 | | be performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 9 | | extended. | 10 | | Any person placed on an eligibility list who exceeds the | 11 | | age requirement before being appointed to a fire department | 12 | | shall remain eligible for appointment until the list is | 13 | | abolished, or his or her name has been on the list for a period | 14 | | of 2 years. No person who has attained the age of 35 years | 15 | | shall be inducted into a fire department, except as otherwise | 16 | | provided in this Section. | 17 | | The commission shall strike off the names of candidates for | 18 | | original appointment after the names have been on the list for | 19 | | more than 2 years. | 20 | | (i) Moral character. No person shall be appointed to a fire | 21 | | department unless he or she is a person of good character; not | 22 | | a habitual drunkard, a gambler, or a person who has been | 23 | | convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude. | 24 | | However, no person shall be disqualified from appointment to | 25 | | the fire department because of the person's record of | 26 | | misdemeanor convictions except those under Sections 11-6, |
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| 1 | | 11-7, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 12-2, 12-6, | 2 | | 12-15, 14-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1, | 3 | | 31-4, 31-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, 32-3, 32-4, 32-8, and subsections | 4 | | 1, 6, and 8 of Section 24-1 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or | 5 | | arrest for any cause without conviction thereon. Any such | 6 | | person who is in the department may be removed on charges | 7 | | brought for violating this subsection and after a trial as | 8 | | hereinafter provided. | 9 | | A classifiable set of the fingerprints of every person who | 10 | | is offered employment as a certificated member of an affected | 11 | | fire department whether with or without compensation, shall be | 12 | | furnished to the Illinois Department of State Police and to the | 13 | | Federal Bureau of Investigation by the commission. | 14 | | Whenever a commission is authorized or required by law to | 15 | | consider some aspect of criminal history record information for | 16 | | the purpose of carrying out its statutory powers and | 17 | | responsibilities, then, upon request and payment of fees in | 18 | | conformance with the requirements of Section 2605-400 of the | 19 | | State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, | 20 | | the Department of State Police is authorized to furnish, | 21 | | pursuant to positive identification, the information contained | 22 | | in State files as is necessary to fulfill the request. | 23 | | (j) Temporary appointments. In order to prevent a stoppage | 24 | | of public business, to meet extraordinary exigencies, or to | 25 | | prevent material impairment of the fire department, the | 26 | | commission may make temporary appointments, to remain in force |
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| 1 | | only until regular appointments are made under the provisions | 2 | | of this Division, but never to exceed 60 days. No temporary | 3 | | appointment of any one person shall be made more than twice in | 4 | | any calendar year. | 5 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 6 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 7 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 8 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 9 | | charges for official misconduct. | 10 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 11 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 12 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 13 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 14 | | disciplinary actions. | 15 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-1-7.2 new) | 16 | | Sec. 10-1-7.2. Alternative procedure; original | 17 | | appointment; full-time firefighter. | 18 | | (a) Authority. The Joint Labor and Management Committee | 19 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 20 | | Promotion Act, may establish a community outreach program to | 21 | | market the profession of firefighter and firefighter-paramedic | 22 | | so as to ensure the pool of applicants recruited is of broad | 23 | | diversity and the highest quality. | 24 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 25 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date |
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| 1 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 2 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 3 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 4 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 5 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 6 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 7 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 8 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 9 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 10 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 11 | | (b) Eligibility. Persons eligible for placement on the | 12 | | master register of eligibles shall consist of the following: | 13 | | Persons who have participated in and received a passing | 14 | | total score on the mental aptitude, physical ability, and | 15 | | preference components of a regionally administered test | 16 | | based on the standards described in this Section. The | 17 | | standards for administering these tests and the minimum | 18 | | passing score required for placement on this list shall be | 19 | | as is set forth in this Section. | 20 | | Qualified candidates shall be listed on the master | 21 | | register of eligibles in highest to lowest rank order based | 22 | | upon their test scores without regard to their date of | 23 | | examination. Candidates listed on the master register of | 24 | | eligibles shall be eligible for appointment for 2 years | 25 | | after the date of the certification of their final score on | 26 | | the register without regard to the date of their |
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| 1 | | examination. After 2 years, the candidate's name shall be | 2 | | struck from the list. | 3 | | Any person currently employed as a full-time member of | 4 | | a fire department or any person who has experienced a | 5 | | non–voluntary (and non-disciplinary) separation from the | 6 | | active workforce due to a reduction in the number of | 7 | | departmental officers, who was appointed pursuant to this | 8 | | Division, Division 2.1 of Article 10 of the Illinois | 9 | | Municipal Code, or the Fire Protection District Act, and | 10 | | who during the previous 24 months participated in and | 11 | | received a passing score on the physical ability and mental | 12 | | aptitude components of the test may request that his or her | 13 | | name be added to the master register. Any eligible person | 14 | | may be offered employment by a local commission under the | 15 | | same procedures as provided by this Section except that the | 16 | | apprenticeship period may be waived and the applicant may | 17 | | be immediately issued a certificate of original | 18 | | appointment by the local commission. | 19 | | (c) Qualifications for placement on register of eligibles. | 20 | | The purpose for establishing a master register of eligibles | 21 | | shall be to identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the | 22 | | mental aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties | 23 | | required of members of the fire department in order to provide | 24 | | the highest quality of service to the public. To this end, all | 25 | | applicants for original appointment to an affected fire | 26 | | department through examination conducted by the Joint Labor and |
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| 1 | | Management Committee (JLMC) shall be subject to examination and | 2 | | testing which shall be public, competitive, and open to all | 3 | | applicants. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 4 | | administered by certified assessors. All qualifying and | 5 | | disqualifying factors applicable to examination processes for | 6 | | local commissions in this amendatory Act of the 97th General | 7 | | Assembly shall be applicable to persons participating in Joint | 8 | | Labor and Management Committee examinations unless | 9 | | specifically provided otherwise in this Section. | 10 | | Notice of the time, place, general scope, and fee of every | 11 | | JLMC examination shall be given by the JLMC or designated | 12 | | testing agency, as applicable, by publication at least 30 days | 13 | | preceding the examination, in one or more newspapers published | 14 | | in the region, or if no newspaper is published therein, then in | 15 | | one or more newspapers with a general circulation within the | 16 | | region. The JLMC may publish the notice on the JLMC's Internet | 17 | | website. Additional notice of the examination may be given as | 18 | | the JLMC shall prescribe. | 19 | | (d) Examination and testing components for placement on | 20 | | register of eligibles. The examination and qualifying | 21 | | standards for placement on the master register of eligibles and | 22 | | employment shall be based on the following components: mental | 23 | | aptitude, physical ability, preferences, moral character, and | 24 | | health. The mental aptitude, physical ability, and preference | 25 | | components shall determine an applicant's qualification for | 26 | | and placement on the master register of eligibles. The |
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| 1 | | consideration of an applicant's general moral character and | 2 | | health shall be administered on a pass-fail basis after a | 3 | | conditional offer of employment is made by a local commission. | 4 | | (e) Mental aptitude. Examination of an applicant's mental | 5 | | aptitude shall be based upon written examination and an | 6 | | applicant's prior experience demonstrating an aptitude for and | 7 | | commitment to service as a member of a fire department. Written | 8 | | examinations shall be practical in character and relate to | 9 | | those matters that fairly test the capacity of the persons | 10 | | examined to discharge the duties performed by members of a fire | 11 | | department. Written examinations shall be administered in a | 12 | | manner that ensures the security and accuracy of the scores | 13 | | achieved. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 14 | | administered by certified assessors. No person who does not | 15 | | possess a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 16 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. Local | 17 | | commissions may establish educational, emergency medical | 18 | | service licensure, and other pre-requisites for hire within | 19 | | their jurisdiction. | 20 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 21 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 22 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 23 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 24 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 25 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 26 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The |
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| 1 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 2 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 3 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 4 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 5 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 6 | | each applicant's physical abilities in each of the following | 7 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 8 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 9 | | functions of a firefighter's job description): | 10 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 11 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 12 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 13 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 14 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 15 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested are to be | 16 | | based on industry standards developed by the JLMC by rule. | 17 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 18 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 19 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 20 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 21 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 22 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 23 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 24 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 25 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. The examination | 26 | | components shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's |
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| 1 | | position on the master register of eligibles shall be | 2 | | determined by the person's score on the written examination, | 3 | | the person successfully passing the physical ability | 4 | | component, and the addition of any applicable preference | 5 | | points. | 6 | | Applicants who have achieved at least the mean score of all | 7 | | applicants participating in the written examination at the same | 8 | | time, and who successfully pass the physical ability | 9 | | examination shall be placed on the initial eligibility | 10 | | register. For placement on the final eligibility register, the | 11 | | passing score shall be determined by (i) calculating the mean | 12 | | score for all applicants participating in the written test; and | 13 | | (ii) adding 20% to the mean score. Applicants whose total | 14 | | scores, including any applicable preference points, are above | 15 | | the mean score plus 20%, shall be placed on the master register | 16 | | of eligibles by the JLMC. | 17 | | These persons shall take rank upon the register as | 18 | | candidates in the order of their relative excellence based on | 19 | | the highest to the lowest total points scored on the mental | 20 | | aptitude and physical ability components, plus any applicable | 21 | | preference points requested and verified by the JLMC, or | 22 | | approved testing agency. | 23 | | No more than 60 days after each examination, a revised | 24 | | master register of eligibles shall be posted by the JLMC | 25 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 26 | | priority of time of examination. |
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| 1 | | (h) Preferences. The board shall give military, education, | 2 | | and experience preference points to those who qualify for | 3 | | placement on the master register of eligibles, on the same | 4 | | basis as provided for examinations administered by a local | 5 | | commission. | 6 | | No person entitled to preference or credit shall be | 7 | | required to claim the credit before any examination held under | 8 | | the provisions of this Section. The preference shall be given | 9 | | after the posting or publication of the applicant's initial | 10 | | score at the request of the person before finalizing the scores | 11 | | from all applicants taking part in a JLMC examination. | 12 | | Candidates who are eligible for preference credit shall make a | 13 | | claim in writing within 10 days after the posting of the | 14 | | initial scores from any JLMC test or the claim shall be deemed | 15 | | waived. Once preference points are awarded, the candidates | 16 | | shall be certified to the master register in accordance with | 17 | | their final score including preference points. | 18 | | (i) Firefighter apprentice and firefighter-paramedic | 19 | | apprentice. The employment of an applicant to an apprentice | 20 | | position (including a currently employed full-time member of a | 21 | | fire department whose apprenticeship may be reduced or waived) | 22 | | shall be subject to the applicant passing the moral character | 23 | | standards and health examinations of the local commission. In | 24 | | addition, a local commission may require as a condition of | 25 | | employment that the applicant demonstrate current physical | 26 | | ability by either passing the local commission's approved |
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| 1 | | physical ability examination, or by presenting proof of | 2 | | participating in and receiving a passing score on the physical | 3 | | ability component of a JLMC test within a period of up to 12 | 4 | | months before the date of the conditional offer of employment. | 5 | | Applicants shall be subject to the local commission's initial | 6 | | hire background review including criminal history, employment | 7 | | history, moral character, oral examination, and medical | 8 | | examinations which may include polygraph, psychological, and | 9 | | drug screening components, all on a pass-fail basis. The | 10 | | medical examinations must be conducted last, and may only be | 11 | | performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 12 | | extended. | 13 | | (j) Selection from list. Any municipality or fire | 14 | | protection district that is a party to an intergovernmental | 15 | | agreement under the terms of which persons have been tested for | 16 | | placement on the master register of eligibles shall be entitled | 17 | | to offer employment to any person on the list irrespective of | 18 | | their ranking on the list. The offer of employment shall be to | 19 | | the position of firefighter apprentice or | 20 | | firefighter-paramedic apprentice. | 21 | | Applicants passing these tests may be employed as a | 22 | | firefighter apprentice or a firefighter-paramedic apprentice | 23 | | who shall serve an apprenticeship period of 12 months or less | 24 | | according to the terms and conditions of employment as the | 25 | | employing municipality or district offers, or as provided for | 26 | | under the terms of any collective bargaining agreement then in |
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| 1 | | effect. The apprenticeship period is separate from the | 2 | | probationary period. | 3 | | Service during the apprenticeship period shall be on a | 4 | | probationary basis. During the apprenticeship period, the | 5 | | apprentice's training and performance shall be monitored and | 6 | | evaluated by a Joint Apprenticeship Committee. | 7 | | The Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall consist of 4 | 8 | | members who shall be regular members of the fire department | 9 | | with at least 10 years of full-time work experience as a | 10 | | firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. The fire chief and the | 11 | | president of the exclusive bargaining representative | 12 | | recognized by the employer shall each appoint 2 members to the | 13 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee. In the absence of an exclusive | 14 | | collective bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 15 | | the remaining 2 members who shall be from the ranks of company | 16 | | officer and firefighter with at least 10 years of work | 17 | | experience as a firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. In the | 18 | | absence of a sufficient number of qualified firefighters, the | 19 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee members shall have the amount of | 20 | | experience and the type of qualifications as is reasonable | 21 | | given the circumstances of the fire department. In the absence | 22 | | of a full-time member in a rank between chief and the highest | 23 | | rank in a bargaining unit, the Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 24 | | shall be reduced to 2 members, one to be appointed by the chief | 25 | | and one by the union president, if any. If there is no | 26 | | exclusive bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint |
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| 1 | | the second member of the Joint Apprenticeship Committee from | 2 | | among qualified members in the ranks of company officer and | 3 | | below. Before the conclusion of the apprenticeship period, the | 4 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall meet to consider the | 5 | | apprentice's progress and performance and vote to retain the | 6 | | apprentice as a member of the fire department or to terminate | 7 | | the apprenticeship. If 3 of the 4 members of the Joint | 8 | | Apprenticeship Committee affirmatively vote to retain the | 9 | | apprentice (if a 2 member Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 10 | | exists, then both members must affirmatively vote to retain the | 11 | | apprentice), the local commission shall issue the apprentice a | 12 | | certificate of original appointment to the fire department. | 13 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 14 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 15 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 16 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 17 | | charges for official misconduct. | 18 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 19 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 20 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 21 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 22 | | disciplinary actions. | 23 | | (l) Applicability. This Section does not apply to a | 24 | | municipality with more than 1,000,000 inhabitants.
| 25 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-2.1-4) (from Ch. 24, par. 10-2.1-4)
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| 1 | | Sec. 10-2.1-4. Fire and police departments; Appointment of
| 2 | | members; Certificates of appointments.
| 3 | | The board of fire and police commissioners shall appoint | 4 | | all officers
and members of the fire and police departments of | 5 | | the municipality,
including the chief of police and the chief | 6 | | of the fire department,
unless the council or board of trustees | 7 | | shall by ordinance as to them
otherwise provide; except as | 8 | | otherwise provided in this Section, and
except that in any | 9 | | municipality which adopts or has
adopted this Division 2.1 and | 10 | | also adopts or has adopted Article 5 of
this Code, the chief of | 11 | | police and the chief of the fire department
shall be appointed | 12 | | by the municipal manager, if it is provided by
ordinance in | 13 | | such municipality that such chiefs, or either of them,
shall | 14 | | not be appointed by the board of fire and police commissioners.
| 15 | | If the chief of the fire department or the chief of the | 16 | | police department
or both of them are appointed in the manner | 17 | | provided by ordinance, they
may be removed or discharged by the | 18 | | appointing authority. In such case
the appointing authority | 19 | | shall file with the corporate authorities the reasons
for such | 20 | | removal or discharge, which removal or discharge shall not | 21 | | become
effective unless confirmed by a majority vote of the | 22 | | corporate authorities.
| 23 | | If a member of the department is appointed chief of police | 24 | | or chief
of the fire department prior to being eligible to | 25 | | retire on pension, he
shall be considered as on furlough from | 26 | | the rank he held immediately
prior to his appointment as chief. |
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| 1 | | If he resigns as chief or is
discharged as chief prior to | 2 | | attaining eligibility to retire on pension,
he shall revert to | 3 | | and be established in whatever rank he currently holds,
except | 4 | | for previously appointed positions, and thereafter
be entitled | 5 | | to all the benefits and emoluments of that rank,
without regard | 6 | | as to whether a vacancy then exists in that rank.
| 7 | | All appointments to each department other than that of the | 8 | | lowest
rank, however, shall be from the rank next below that to | 9 | | which the
appointment is made except as otherwise provided in | 10 | | this Section, and
except that the chief of police and the chief | 11 | | of the
fire department may be appointed from among members of | 12 | | the police and
fire departments, respectively, regardless of | 13 | | rank, unless the council
or board of trustees shall have by | 14 | | ordinance as to them otherwise provided.
A chief of police or | 15 | | the chief of the fire department, having been appointed
from | 16 | | among members
of the police or fire department, respectively, | 17 | | shall be permitted, regardless
of rank, to
take promotional
| 18 | | exams and be promoted to a higher classified rank than he | 19 | | currently holds,
without having to
resign as chief of police or | 20 | | chief of the fire department.
| 21 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 22 | | shall be
vested in the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners | 23 | | and all
certificates of appointments issued to any officer or | 24 | | member of the fire
or police department of a municipality shall | 25 | | be signed by the chairman
and secretary respectively of the | 26 | | board of fire and police commissioners
of such municipality, |
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| 1 | | upon appointment of such officer or member of the
fire and | 2 | | police department of such municipality by action of the board
| 3 | | of fire and police commissioners. In any municipal fire | 4 | | department that employs full-time firefighters and is subject | 5 | | to a collective bargaining agreement, a person who has not | 6 | | qualified for regular appointment under the provisions of this | 7 | | Division 2.1 shall not be used as a temporary or permanent | 8 | | substitute for classified members of a municipality's fire | 9 | | department or for regular appointment as a classified member of | 10 | | a municipality's fire department unless mutually agreed to by | 11 | | the employee's certified bargaining agent. Such agreement | 12 | | shall be considered a permissive subject of bargaining. | 13 | | Municipal fire departments covered by the changes made by this | 14 | | amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly that are using | 15 | | non-certificated employees as substitutes immediately prior to | 16 | | the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 95th General | 17 | | Assembly may, by mutual agreement with the certified bargaining | 18 | | agent, continue the existing practice or a modified practice | 19 | | and that agreement shall be considered a permissive subject of | 20 | | bargaining. A home rule unit may not regulate the hiring of | 21 | | temporary or substitute members of the municipality's fire | 22 | | department in a manner that is inconsistent with this Section. | 23 | | This Section is a limitation under subsection (i) of Section 6 | 24 | | of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution on the concurrent | 25 | | exercise by home rule units of powers and functions exercised | 26 | | by the State.
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| 1 | | The term "policemen" as used in this Division does not | 2 | | include
auxiliary police officers except as provided for in | 3 | | Section 10-2.1-6.
| 4 | | Any full time member of a regular fire or police department | 5 | | of any
municipality which comes under the provisions of this | 6 | | Division or adopts
this Division 2.1 or which has adopted any | 7 | | of the prior Acts pertaining to
fire and police commissioners, | 8 | | is a city officer.
| 9 | | Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, the | 10 | | Chief of
Police of a department in a non-homerule municipality | 11 | | of more than 130,000
inhabitants may, without the advice or | 12 | | consent of the Board of
Fire and Police Commissioners, appoint | 13 | | up to 6 officers who shall be known
as deputy chiefs or | 14 | | assistant deputy chiefs, and whose rank shall be
immediately | 15 | | below that of Chief. The deputy or assistant deputy chiefs may
| 16 | | be appointed from any rank of sworn officers of that | 17 | | municipality, but no
person who is not such a sworn officer may | 18 | | be so appointed. Such deputy
chief or assistant deputy chief | 19 | | shall have the authority to direct and
issue orders to all | 20 | | employees of the Department holding the rank of captain
or any | 21 | | lower rank.
A deputy chief of police or assistant deputy chief | 22 | | of police, having been
appointed from any rank
of sworn | 23 | | officers of that municipality, shall be permitted, regardless | 24 | | of rank,
to take promotional
exams and be promoted to a higher | 25 | | classified rank than he currently holds,
without having to
| 26 | | resign as deputy chief of police or assistant deputy chief of |
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| 1 | | police.
| 2 | | Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, a | 3 | | non-homerule
municipality of 130,000 or fewer inhabitants, | 4 | | through its council or board
of trustees, may, by ordinance, | 5 | | provide for a position of deputy chief to be
appointed by the | 6 | | chief of the police department. The ordinance shall provide
for | 7 | | no more than one deputy chief position if the police department | 8 | | has fewer
than 25 full-time police officers and for no more | 9 | | than 2 deputy chief positions
if the police department has 25 | 10 | | or more full-time police officers. The deputy
chief position
| 11 | | shall be an exempt rank immediately below that of Chief. The | 12 | | deputy chief may
be appointed from any rank of sworn, full-time | 13 | | officers of the municipality's
police department, but must have | 14 | | at least 5 years of full-time service as a
police officer in | 15 | | that department. A deputy chief shall serve at the
discretion | 16 | | of the Chief and, if removed from the position,
shall revert to | 17 | | the rank currently held, without regard as to whether a
vacancy | 18 | | exists in
that rank. A deputy chief
of police, having been | 19 | | appointed from any rank of sworn full-time officers of
that | 20 | | municipality's
police department, shall be permitted, | 21 | | regardless of rank, to take promotional
exams and be
promoted | 22 | | to a higher classified rank than he currently holds, without | 23 | | having to
resign as deputy
chief of police.
| 24 | | No municipality having a population less than 1,000,000 | 25 | | shall require
that any firefighter appointed to the lowest
rank | 26 | | serve a probationary employment period of longer than one year. |
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| 1 | | The
limitation on periods of probationary employment provided | 2 | | in this
amendatory Act of 1989 is an exclusive power and | 3 | | function of the State.
Pursuant to subsection (h) of Section 6 | 4 | | of Article VII of the Illinois
Constitution, a home rule | 5 | | municipality having a population less than 1,000,000
must | 6 | | comply with this limitation on periods of probationary | 7 | | employment, which
is a denial and limitation of home rule | 8 | | powers. Notwithstanding anything to
the contrary in this | 9 | | Section, the probationary employment period limitation
may be | 10 | | extended for a firefighter who is required, as a condition of | 11 | | employment, to be a certified paramedic, during which time the | 12 | | sole reason that a firefighter may be discharged without a | 13 | | hearing is for failing to meet the requirements for paramedic | 14 | | certification.
| 15 | | To the extent that this Section or any other Section in | 16 | | this Division conflicts with Section 10-2.1-6.3 or 10-2.1-6.4, | 17 | | then Section 10-2.1-6.3 or 10-2.1-6.4 shall control. | 18 | | (Source: P.A. 94-135, eff. 7-7-05; 94-984, eff. 6-30-06; | 19 | | 95-490, eff. 6-1-08 .)
| 20 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-2.1-6.3 new) | 21 | | Sec. 10-2.1-6.3. Original appointments; full-time fire | 22 | | department. | 23 | | (a) Applicability. Unless a commission elects to follow the | 24 | | provisions of Section 10-2.1-6.4, this Section shall apply to | 25 | | all original appointments to an affected full-time fire |
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| 1 | | department. Existing registers of eligibles shall continue to | 2 | | be valid until their expiration dates, or up to a maximum of 2 | 3 | | years after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the | 4 | | 97th General Assembly. | 5 | | Notwithstanding any statute, ordinance, rule, or other law | 6 | | to the contrary, all original appointments to an affected | 7 | | department to which this Section applies shall be administered | 8 | | in the manner provided for in this Section. Provisions of the | 9 | | Illinois Municipal Code, municipal ordinances, and rules | 10 | | adopted pursuant to such authority and other laws relating to | 11 | | initial hiring of firefighters in affected departments shall | 12 | | continue to apply to the extent they are compatible with this | 13 | | Section, but in the event of a conflict between this Section | 14 | | and any other law, this Section shall control. | 15 | | A home rule or non-home rule municipality may not | 16 | | administer its fire department process for original | 17 | | appointments in a manner that is less stringent than this | 18 | | Section. This Section is a limitation under subsection (i) of | 19 | | Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution on the | 20 | | concurrent exercise by home rule units of the powers and | 21 | | functions exercised by the State. | 22 | | A municipality that is operating under a court order or | 23 | | consent decree regarding original appointments to a full-time | 24 | | fire department before the effective date of this amendatory | 25 | | Act of the 97th General Assembly is exempt from the | 26 | | requirements of this Section for the duration of the court |
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| 1 | | order or consent decree. | 2 | | Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection | 3 | | (a), this Section does not apply to a municipality with more | 4 | | than 1,000,000 inhabitants. | 5 | | (b) Original appointments. All original appointments made | 6 | | to an affected fire department shall be made from a register of | 7 | | eligibles established in accordance with the processes | 8 | | established by this Section. Only persons who meet or exceed | 9 | | the performance standards required by this Section shall be | 10 | | placed on a register of eligibles for original appointment to | 11 | | an affected fire department. | 12 | | Whenever an appointing authority authorizes action to hire | 13 | | a person to perform the duties of a firefighter or to hire a | 14 | | firefighter-paramedic to fill a position that is a new position | 15 | | or vacancy due to resignation, discharge, promotion, death, the | 16 | | granting of a disability or retirement pension, or any other | 17 | | cause, the appointing authority shall appoint to that position | 18 | | the person with the highest ranking on the final eligibility | 19 | | list. If the appointing authority has reason to conclude that | 20 | | the highest ranked person fails to meet the minimum standards | 21 | | for the position or if the appointing authority believes an | 22 | | alternate candidate would better serve the needs of the | 23 | | department, then the appointing authority has the right to pass | 24 | | over the highest ranked person and appoint either: (i) any | 25 | | person who has a ranking in the top 5% of the register of | 26 | | eligibles or (ii) any person who is among the top 5 highest |
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| 1 | | ranked persons on the list of eligibles if the number of people | 2 | | who have a ranking in the top 5% of the register of eligibles | 3 | | is less than 5 people. | 4 | | Any candidate may pass on an appointment once without | 5 | | losing his or her position on the register of eligibles. Any | 6 | | candidate who passes a second time may be removed from the list | 7 | | by the appointing authority provided that such action shall not | 8 | | prejudice a person's opportunities to participate in future | 9 | | examinations, including an examination held during the time a | 10 | | candidate is already on the municipality's register of | 11 | | eligibles. | 12 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 13 | | shall be vested in the board of fire and police commissioners. | 14 | | All certificates of appointment issued to any officer or member | 15 | | of an affected department shall be signed by the chairperson | 16 | | and secretary, respectively, of the board upon appointment of | 17 | | such officer or member to the affected department by action of | 18 | | the board. Each person who accepts a certificate of appointment | 19 | | and successfully completes his or her probationary period shall | 20 | | be enrolled as a firefighter and as a regular member of the | 21 | | fire department. | 22 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 23 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 24 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 25 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 26 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform |
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| 1 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 2 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 3 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 4 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 5 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 6 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 7 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 8 | | (c) Qualification for placement on register of eligibles. | 9 | | The purpose of establishing a register of eligibles is to | 10 | | identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the mental | 11 | | aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties required of | 12 | | members of the fire department in order to provide the highest | 13 | | quality of service to the public. To this end, all applicants | 14 | | for original appointment to an affected fire department shall | 15 | | be subject to examination and testing which shall be public, | 16 | | competitive, and open to all applicants unless the municipality | 17 | | shall by ordinance limit applicants to residents of the | 18 | | municipality, county or counties in which the municipality is | 19 | | located, State, or nation. Municipalities may establish | 20 | | educational, emergency medical service licensure, and other | 21 | | pre-requisites for participation in an examination or for hire | 22 | | as a firefighter. Any municipality may charge a fee to cover | 23 | | the costs of the application process. | 24 | | Residency requirements in effect at the time an individual | 25 | | enters the fire service of a municipality cannot be made more | 26 | | restrictive for that individual during his or her period of |
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| 1 | | service for that municipality, or be made a condition of | 2 | | promotion, except for the rank or position of fire chief and | 3 | | for no more than 2 positions that rank immediately below that | 4 | | of the chief rank which are appointed positions pursuant to the | 5 | | Fire Department Promotion Act. | 6 | | No person who is 35 years of age or older shall be eligible | 7 | | to take an examination for a position as a firefighter unless | 8 | | the person has had previous employment status as a firefighter | 9 | | in the regularly constituted fire department of the | 10 | | municipality, except as provided in this Section. The age | 11 | | limitation does not apply to: | 12 | | (1) any person previously employed as a full-time | 13 | | firefighter in a regularly constituted fire department of | 14 | | (i) any municipality or fire protection district located in | 15 | | Illinois, (ii) a fire protection district whose | 16 | | obligations were assumed by a municipality under Section 21 | 17 | | of the Fire Protection District Act, or (iii) a | 18 | | municipality whose obligations were taken over by a fire | 19 | | protection district, or | 20 | | (2) any person who has served a municipality as a | 21 | | regularly enrolled volunteer, paid-on-call, or part-time | 22 | | firefighter for the 5 years immediately preceding the time | 23 | | that the municipality begins to use full-time firefighters | 24 | | to provide all or part of its fire protection service. | 25 | | No person who is under 21 years of age shall be eligible | 26 | | for employment as a firefighter. |
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| 1 | | No applicant shall be examined concerning his or her | 2 | | political or religious opinions or affiliations. The | 3 | | examinations shall be conducted by the commissioners of the | 4 | | municipality or their designees and agents. | 5 | | No municipality shall require that any firefighter | 6 | | appointed to the lowest rank serve a probationary employment | 7 | | period of longer than one year of actual active employment, | 8 | | which may exclude periods of training, or injury or illness | 9 | | leaves, including duty related leave, in excess of 30 calendar | 10 | | days. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section, | 11 | | the probationary employment period limitation may be extended | 12 | | for a firefighter who is required, as a condition of | 13 | | employment, to be a certified paramedic, during which time the | 14 | | sole reason that a firefighter may be discharged without a | 15 | | hearing is for failing to meet the requirements for paramedic | 16 | | certification. | 17 | | In the event that any applicant who has been found eligible | 18 | | for appointment and whose name has been placed upon the final | 19 | | eligibility register provided for in this Section has not been | 20 | | appointed to a firefighter position within one year after the | 21 | | date of his or her physical ability examination, the commission | 22 | | may cause a second examination to be made of that applicant's | 23 | | physical ability prior to his or her appointment. If, after the | 24 | | second examination, the physical ability of the applicant shall | 25 | | be found to be less than the minimum standard fixed by the | 26 | | rules of the commission, the applicant shall not be appointed. |
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| 1 | | The applicant's name may be retained upon the register of | 2 | | candidates eligible for appointment and when next reached for | 3 | | certification and appointment that applicant may be again | 4 | | examined as provided in this Section, and if the physical | 5 | | ability of that applicant is found to be less than the minimum | 6 | | standard fixed by the rules of the commission, the applicant | 7 | | shall not be appointed, and the name of the applicant shall be | 8 | | removed from the register. | 9 | | (d) Notice, examination, and testing components. Notice of | 10 | | the time, place, general scope, merit criteria for any | 11 | | subjective component, and fee of every examination shall be | 12 | | given by the commission, by a publication at least 2 weeks | 13 | | preceding the examination: (i) in one or more newspapers | 14 | | published in the municipality, or if no newspaper is published | 15 | | therein, then in one or more newspapers with a general | 16 | | circulation within the municipality, or (ii) on the | 17 | | municipality's Internet website. Additional notice of the | 18 | | examination may be given as the commission shall prescribe. | 19 | | The examination and qualifying standards for employment of | 20 | | firefighters shall be based on: mental aptitude, physical | 21 | | ability, preferences, moral character, and health. The mental | 22 | | aptitude, physical ability, and preference components shall | 23 | | determine an applicant's qualification for and placement on the | 24 | | final register of eligibles. The examination may also include a | 25 | | subjective component based on merit criteria as determined by | 26 | | the commission. Scores from the examination must be made |
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| 1 | | available to the public. | 2 | | (e) Mental aptitude. No person who does not possess at | 3 | | least a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 4 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. | 5 | | Examination of an applicant's mental aptitude shall be based | 6 | | upon a written examination. The examination shall be practical | 7 | | in character and relate to those matters that fairly test the | 8 | | capacity of the persons examined to discharge the duties | 9 | | performed by members of a fire department. Written examinations | 10 | | shall be administered in a manner that ensures the security and | 11 | | accuracy of the scores achieved. | 12 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 13 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 14 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 15 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 16 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 17 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 18 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 19 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 20 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 21 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 22 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 23 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 24 | | each applicant's physical abilities in the following | 25 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 26 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential |
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| 1 | | functions of the firefighter's job description): | 2 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 3 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 4 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 5 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 6 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 7 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested may be based | 8 | | on standards developed, or approved, by the local | 9 | | appointing authority. | 10 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 11 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 12 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 13 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 14 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 15 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 16 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 17 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 18 | | Physical ability examinations administered under this | 19 | | Section shall be conducted with a reasonable number of proctors | 20 | | and monitors, open to the public, and subject to reasonable | 21 | | regulations of the commission. | 22 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. Appointing | 23 | | authorities may create a preliminary eligibility register. A | 24 | | person shall be placed on the list based upon his or her | 25 | | passage of the written examination or the passage of the | 26 | | written examination and the physical ability component. |
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| 1 | | Passage of the written examination means a score that is at or | 2 | | above the mean score for all applicants participating in the | 3 | | written test. The appointing authority may conduct the physical | 4 | | ability component and any subjective components subsequent to | 5 | | the posting of the preliminary eligibility register. | 6 | | The examination components for an initial eligibility | 7 | | register shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 8 | | position on the list shall be determined by the following: (i)
| 9 | | the person's score on the written examination, (ii) the person
| 10 | | successfully passing the physical ability component, and (iii) | 11 | | the
person's results on any subjective component as described | 12 | | in
subsection (d). | 13 | | In order to qualify for placement on the final eligibility | 14 | | register, an applicant's total score, before any applicable | 15 | | preference points are applied, shall be at or above the mean | 16 | | score plus 10%. The local appointing authority may prescribe | 17 | | the score to qualify for placement on the final eligibility | 18 | | register, but the score shall not be less than the mean score | 19 | | plus 10%. | 20 | | The commission shall prepare and keep a register of persons | 21 | | whose total score is not less than the minimum fixed by this | 22 | | Section and who have passed the physical ability examination. | 23 | | These persons shall take rank upon the register as candidates | 24 | | in the order of their relative excellence based on the highest | 25 | | to the lowest total points scored on the mental aptitude, | 26 | | subjective component, and preference components of the test |
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| 1 | | administered in accordance with this Section. No more than 60 | 2 | | days after each examination, an initial eligibility list shall | 3 | | be posted by the commission. The list shall include the final | 4 | | grades of the candidates without reference to priority of the | 5 | | time of examination and subject to claim for preference credit. | 6 | | Commissions may conduct additional examinations, including | 7 | | without limitation a polygraph test, after a final eligibility | 8 | | register is established and before it expires with the | 9 | | candidates ranked by total score without regard to date of | 10 | | examination. No more than 60 days after each examination, an | 11 | | initial eligibility list shall be posted by the commission | 12 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 13 | | priority of time of examination and subject to claim for | 14 | | preference credit. | 15 | | (h) Preferences. The following are preferences: | 16 | | (1) Veteran preference. Persons who were engaged in the | 17 | | military service of the United States for a period of at | 18 | | least one year of active duty and who were honorably | 19 | | discharged therefrom, or who are now or have been members | 20 | | on inactive or reserve duty in such military or naval | 21 | | service, shall be preferred for appointment to and | 22 | | employment with the fire department of an affected | 23 | | department. | 24 | | (2) Fire cadet preference. Persons who have | 25 | | successfully completed 2 years of study in fire techniques | 26 | | or cadet training within a cadet program established under |
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| 1 | | the rules of the Joint Labor and Management Committee | 2 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 3 | | Promotion Act, may be preferred for appointment to and | 4 | | employment with the fire department. | 5 | | (3) Educational preference. Persons who have | 6 | | successfully obtained an associate's degree in the field of | 7 | | fire service or emergency medical services, or a bachelor's | 8 | | degree from an accredited college or university may be | 9 | | preferred for appointment to and employment with the fire | 10 | | department. | 11 | | (4) Paramedic preference. Persons who have obtained | 12 | | certification as an Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic | 13 | | (EMT-P) shall be preferred for appointment to and | 14 | | employment with the fire department of an affected | 15 | | department providing emergency medical services. | 16 | | (5) Experience preference. All persons employed by a | 17 | | municipality who have been paid-on-call or part-time | 18 | | certified Firefighter II, State of Illinois or nationally | 19 | | licensed EMT-B or EMT-I, or any combination of those | 20 | | capacities shall be awarded 0.5 point for each year of | 21 | | successful service in one or more of those capacities, up | 22 | | to a maximum of 5 points. Certified Firefighter III and | 23 | | State of Illinois or nationally licensed paramedics shall | 24 | | be awarded one point per year up to a maximum of 5 points. | 25 | | Applicants from outside the municipality who were employed | 26 | | as full-time firefighters or firefighter-paramedics by a |
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| 1 | | fire protection district or another municipality for at | 2 | | least 2 years shall be awarded 5 experience preference | 3 | | points. These additional points presuppose a rating scale | 4 | | totaling 100 points available for the eligibility list. If | 5 | | more or fewer points are used in the rating scale for the | 6 | | eligibility list, the points awarded under this subsection | 7 | | shall be increased or decreased by a factor equal to the | 8 | | total possible points available for the examination | 9 | | divided by 100. | 10 | | (6) Residency preference. Applicants whose principal | 11 | | residence is located within the fire department's | 12 | | jurisdiction shall be preferred for appointment to and | 13 | | employment with the fire department. | 14 | | Upon request by the commission, the governing body of | 15 | | the municipality or in the case of applicants from outside | 16 | | the municipality the governing body of any fire protection | 17 | | district or any other municipality shall certify to the | 18 | | commission, within 10 days after the request, the number of | 19 | | years of successful paid-on-call, part-time, or full-time | 20 | | service of any person. A candidate may not receive the full | 21 | | amount of preference points under this subsection if the | 22 | | amount of points awarded would place the candidate before a | 23 | | veteran on the eligibility list. If more than one candidate | 24 | | receiving experience preference points is prevented from | 25 | | receiving all of their points due to not being allowed to | 26 | | pass a veteran, the candidates shall be placed on the list |
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| 1 | | below the veteran in rank order based on the totals | 2 | | received if all points under this subsection were to be | 3 | | awarded. Any remaining ties on the list shall be determined | 4 | | by lot. | 5 | | (7) Additional preferences. Up to 5 additional | 6 | | preference points may be awarded for unique categories | 7 | | based on an applicant's experience or background as | 8 | | identified by the commission. | 9 | | (8) Scoring of preferences. The commission shall give | 10 | | preference for original appointment
to persons designated | 11 | | in item (1)
by adding to the final grade that they receive | 12 | | 5 points
for the recognized preference achieved. The | 13 | | commission shall determine the number of preference points | 14 | | for each category except (1). The number of preference | 15 | | points for each category shall range from 0 to 5. In | 16 | | determining the number of preference points, the | 17 | | commission shall prescribe that if a candidate earns the | 18 | | maximum number of preference points in all categories, that | 19 | | number may not be less than 10 nor more than 30. The | 20 | | commission shall give preference for original appointment | 21 | | to persons designated in items (2) through (7) by adding | 22 | | the requisite number of points to the final grade for each | 23 | | recognized preference achieved. The numerical result thus | 24 | | attained shall be applied by the commission in determining | 25 | | the final eligibility list and appointment from the | 26 | | eligibility list. The local appointing authority may |
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| 1 | | prescribe the total number of preference points awarded | 2 | | under this Section, but the total number of preference | 3 | | points shall not be less than 10 points or more than 30 | 4 | | points. | 5 | | No person entitled to any preference shall be required to | 6 | | claim the credit before any examination held under the | 7 | | provisions of this Section, but the preference shall be given | 8 | | after the posting or publication of the initial eligibility | 9 | | list or register at the request of a person entitled to a | 10 | | credit before any certification or appointments are made from | 11 | | the eligibility register, upon the furnishing of verifiable | 12 | | evidence and proof of qualifying preference credit. Candidates | 13 | | who are eligible for preference credit shall make a claim in | 14 | | writing within 10 days after the posting of the initial | 15 | | eligibility list, or the claim shall be deemed waived. Final | 16 | | eligibility registers shall be established after the awarding | 17 | | of verified preference points. All employment shall be subject | 18 | | to the commission's initial hire background review including, | 19 | | but not limited to, criminal history, employment history, moral | 20 | | character, oral examination, and medical and psychological | 21 | | examinations, all on a pass-fail basis. The medical and | 22 | | psychological examinations must be conducted last, and may only | 23 | | be performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 24 | | extended. | 25 | | Any person placed on an eligibility list who exceeds the | 26 | | age requirement before being appointed to a fire department |
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| 1 | | shall remain eligible for appointment until the list is | 2 | | abolished, or his or her name has been on the list for a period | 3 | | of 2 years. No person who has attained the age of 35 years | 4 | | shall be inducted into a fire department, except as otherwise | 5 | | provided in this Section. | 6 | | The commission shall strike off the names of candidates for | 7 | | original appointment after the names have been on the list for | 8 | | more than 2 years. | 9 | | (i) Moral character. No person shall be appointed to a fire | 10 | | department unless he or she is a person of good character; not | 11 | | a habitual drunkard, a gambler, or a person who has been | 12 | | convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude. | 13 | | However, no person shall be disqualified from appointment to | 14 | | the fire department because of the person's record of | 15 | | misdemeanor convictions except those under Sections 11-6, | 16 | | 11-7, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 12-2, 12-6, | 17 | | 12-15, 14-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1, | 18 | | 31-4, 31-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, 32-3, 32-4, 32-8, and subsections | 19 | | 1, 6, and 8 of Section 24-1 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or | 20 | | arrest for any cause without conviction thereon. Any such | 21 | | person who is in the department may be removed on charges | 22 | | brought for violating this subsection and after a trial as | 23 | | hereinafter provided. | 24 | | A classifiable set of the fingerprints of every person who | 25 | | is offered employment as a certificated member of an affected | 26 | | fire department whether with or without compensation, shall be |
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| 1 | | furnished to the Illinois Department of State Police and to the | 2 | | Federal Bureau of Investigation by the commission. | 3 | | Whenever a commission is authorized or required by law to | 4 | | consider some aspect of criminal history record information for | 5 | | the purpose of carrying out its statutory powers and | 6 | | responsibilities, then, upon request and payment of fees in | 7 | | conformance with the requirements of Section 2605-400 of the | 8 | | State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, | 9 | | the Department of State Police is authorized to furnish, | 10 | | pursuant to positive identification, the information contained | 11 | | in State files as is necessary to fulfill the request. | 12 | | (j) Temporary appointments. In order to prevent a stoppage | 13 | | of public business, to meet extraordinary exigencies, or to | 14 | | prevent material impairment of the fire department, the | 15 | | commission may make temporary appointments, to remain in force | 16 | | only until regular appointments are made under the provisions | 17 | | of this Division, but never to exceed 60 days. No temporary | 18 | | appointment of any one person shall be made more than twice in | 19 | | any calendar year. | 20 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 21 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 22 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 23 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 24 | | charges for official misconduct. | 25 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 26 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the |
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| 1 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 2 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 3 | | disciplinary actions. | 4 | | (65 ILCS 5/10-2.1-6.4 new) | 5 | | Sec. 10-2.1-6.4. Alternative procedure; original | 6 | | appointment; full-time firefighter. | 7 | | (a) Authority. The Joint Labor and Management Committee | 8 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 9 | | Promotion Act, may establish a community outreach program to | 10 | | market the profession of firefighter and firefighter-paramedic | 11 | | so as to ensure the pool of applicants recruited is of broad | 12 | | diversity and the highest quality. | 13 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 14 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 15 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 16 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 17 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 18 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 19 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 20 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 21 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 22 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 23 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 24 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 25 | | (b) Eligibility. Persons eligible for placement on the |
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| 1 | | master register of eligibles shall consist of the following: | 2 | | Persons who have participated in and received a passing | 3 | | total score on the mental aptitude, physical ability, and | 4 | | preference components of a regionally administered test | 5 | | based on the standards described in this Section. The | 6 | | standards for administering these tests and the minimum | 7 | | passing score required for placement on this list shall be | 8 | | as is set forth in this Section. | 9 | | Qualified candidates shall be listed on the master | 10 | | register of eligibles in highest to lowest rank order based | 11 | | upon their test scores without regard to their date of | 12 | | examination. Candidates listed on the master register of | 13 | | eligibles shall be eligible for appointment for 2 years | 14 | | after the date of the certification of their final score on | 15 | | the register without regard to the date of their | 16 | | examination. After 2 years, the candidate's name shall be | 17 | | struck from the list. | 18 | | Any person currently employed as a full-time member of | 19 | | a fire department or any person who has experienced a | 20 | | non–voluntary (and non-disciplinary) separation from the | 21 | | active workforce due to a reduction in the number of | 22 | | departmental officers, who was appointed pursuant to | 23 | | Division 1 of Article 10 of the Illinois Municipal Code, | 24 | | Division 2.1 of Article 10 of the Illinois Municipal Code, | 25 | | or the Fire Protection District Act, and who during the | 26 | | previous 24 months participated in and received a passing |
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| 1 | | score on the physical ability and mental aptitude | 2 | | components of the test may request that his or her name be | 3 | | added to the master register. Any eligible person may be | 4 | | offered employment by a local commission under the same | 5 | | procedures as provided by this Section except that the | 6 | | apprenticeship period may be waived and the applicant may | 7 | | be immediately issued a certificate of original | 8 | | appointment by the local commission. | 9 | | (c) Qualifications for placement on register of eligibles. | 10 | | The purpose for establishing a master register of eligibles | 11 | | shall be to identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the | 12 | | mental aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties | 13 | | required of members of the fire department in order to provide | 14 | | the highest quality of service to the public. To this end, all | 15 | | applicants for original appointment to an affected fire | 16 | | department through examination conducted by the Joint Labor and | 17 | | Management Committee (JLMC) shall be subject to examination and | 18 | | testing which shall be public, competitive, and open to all | 19 | | applicants. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 20 | | administered by certified assessors. All qualifying and | 21 | | disqualifying factors applicable to examination processes for | 22 | | local commissions in this amendatory Act of the 97th General | 23 | | Assembly shall be applicable to persons participating in Joint | 24 | | Labor and Management Committee examinations unless | 25 | | specifically provided otherwise in this Section. | 26 | | Notice of the time, place, general scope, and fee of every |
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| 1 | | JLMC examination shall be given by the JLMC or designated | 2 | | testing agency, as applicable, by a publication at least 30 | 3 | | days preceding the examination, in one or more newspapers | 4 | | published in the region, or if no newspaper is published | 5 | | therein, then in one or more newspapers with a general | 6 | | circulation within the region. The JLMC may publish the notice | 7 | | on the JLMC's Internet website. Additional notice of the | 8 | | examination may be given as the JLMC shall prescribe. | 9 | | (d) Examination and testing components for placement on | 10 | | register of eligibles. The examination and qualifying | 11 | | standards for placement on the master register of eligibles and | 12 | | employment shall be based on the following components: mental | 13 | | aptitude, physical ability, preferences, moral character, and | 14 | | health. The mental aptitude, physical ability, and preference | 15 | | components shall determine an applicant's qualification for | 16 | | and placement on the master register of eligibles. The | 17 | | consideration of an applicant's general moral character and | 18 | | health shall be administered on a pass-fail basis after a | 19 | | conditional offer of employment is made by a local commission. | 20 | | (e) Mental aptitude. Examination of an applicant's mental | 21 | | aptitude shall be based upon written examination and an | 22 | | applicant's prior experience demonstrating an aptitude for and | 23 | | commitment to service as a member of a fire department. Written | 24 | | examinations shall be practical in character and relate to | 25 | | those matters that fairly test the capacity of the persons | 26 | | examined to discharge the duties performed by members of a fire |
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| 1 | | department. Written examinations shall be administered in a | 2 | | manner that ensures the security and accuracy of the scores | 3 | | achieved. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 4 | | administered by certified assessors. No person who does not | 5 | | possess a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 6 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. Local | 7 | | commissions may establish educational, emergency medical | 8 | | service licensure, and other pre-requisites for hire within | 9 | | their jurisdiction. | 10 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 11 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 12 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 13 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 14 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 15 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 16 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 17 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 18 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 19 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 20 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 21 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 22 | | each applicant's physical abilities in each of the following | 23 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 24 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 25 | | functions of a firefighter's job description): | 26 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions |
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| 1 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 2 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 3 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 4 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 5 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested are to be | 6 | | based on industry standards developed by the JLMC by rule. | 7 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 8 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 9 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 10 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 11 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 12 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 13 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 14 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 15 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. The examination | 16 | | components shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 17 | | position on the master register of eligibles shall be | 18 | | determined by the person's score on the written examination, | 19 | | the person successfully passing the physical ability | 20 | | component, and the addition of any applicable preference | 21 | | points. | 22 | | Applicants who have achieved at least the mean score of all | 23 | | applicants participating in the written examination at the same | 24 | | time, and who successfully pass the physical ability | 25 | | examination shall be placed on the initial eligibility | 26 | | register. For placement on the final eligibility register, the |
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| 1 | | passing score shall be determined by (i) calculating the mean | 2 | | score for all applicants participating in the written test; and | 3 | | (ii) adding 20% to the mean score. Applicants whose total | 4 | | scores, including any applicable preference points, are above | 5 | | the mean score plus 20%, shall be placed on the master register | 6 | | of eligibles by the JLMC. | 7 | | These persons shall take rank upon the register as | 8 | | candidates in the order of their relative excellence based on | 9 | | the highest to the lowest total points scored on the mental | 10 | | aptitude and physical ability components, plus any applicable | 11 | | preference points requested and verified by the JLMC, or | 12 | | approved testing agency. | 13 | | No more than 60 days after each examination, a revised | 14 | | master register of eligibles shall be posted by the JLMC | 15 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 16 | | priority of time of examination. | 17 | | (h) Preferences. The board shall give military, education, | 18 | | and experience preference points to those who qualify for | 19 | | placement on the master register of eligibles, on the same | 20 | | basis as provided for examinations administered by a local | 21 | | commission. | 22 | | No person entitled to preference or credit shall be | 23 | | required to claim the credit before any examination held under | 24 | | the provisions of this Section. The preference shall be given | 25 | | after the posting or publication of the applicant's initial | 26 | | score at the request of the person before finalizing the scores |
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| 1 | | from all applicants taking part in a JLMC examination. | 2 | | Candidates who are eligible for preference credit shall make a | 3 | | claim in writing within 10 days after the posting of the | 4 | | initial scores from any JLMC test or the claim shall be deemed | 5 | | waived. Once preference points are awarded, the candidates | 6 | | shall be certified to the master register in accordance with | 7 | | their final score including preference points. | 8 | | (i) Firefighter apprentice and firefighter-paramedic | 9 | | apprentice. The employment of an applicant to an apprentice | 10 | | position (including a currently employed full-time member of a | 11 | | fire department whose apprenticeship may be reduced or waived) | 12 | | shall be subject to the applicant passing the moral character | 13 | | standards and health examinations of the local commission. In | 14 | | addition, a local commission may require as a condition of | 15 | | employment that the applicant demonstrate current physical | 16 | | ability by either passing the local commission's approved | 17 | | physical ability examination, or by presenting proof of | 18 | | participating in and receiving a passing score on the physical | 19 | | ability component of a JLMC test within a period of up to 12 | 20 | | months before the date of the conditional offer of employment. | 21 | | Applicants shall be subject to the local commission's initial | 22 | | hire background review including criminal history, employment | 23 | | history, moral character, oral examination, and medical | 24 | | examinations which may include polygraph, psychological, and | 25 | | drug screening components, all on a pass-fail basis. The | 26 | | medical examinations must be conducted last, and may only be |
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| 1 | | performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 2 | | extended. | 3 | | (j) Selection from list. Any municipality or fire | 4 | | protection district that is a party to an intergovernmental | 5 | | agreement under the terms of which persons have been tested for | 6 | | placement on the master register of eligibles shall be entitled | 7 | | to offer employment to any person on the list irrespective of | 8 | | their ranking on the list. The offer of employment shall be to | 9 | | the position of firefighter apprentice or | 10 | | firefighter-paramedic apprentice. | 11 | | Applicants passing these tests may be employed as a | 12 | | firefighter apprentice or a firefighter-paramedic apprentice | 13 | | who shall serve an apprenticeship period of 12 months or less | 14 | | according to the terms and conditions of employment as the | 15 | | employing municipality or district offers, or as provided for | 16 | | under the terms of any collective bargaining agreement then in | 17 | | effect. The apprenticeship period is separate from the | 18 | | probationary period. | 19 | | Service during the apprenticeship period shall be on a | 20 | | probationary basis. During the apprenticeship period, the | 21 | | apprentice's training and performance shall be monitored and | 22 | | evaluated by a Joint Apprenticeship Committee. | 23 | | The Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall consist of 4 | 24 | | members who shall be regular members of the fire department | 25 | | with at least 10 years of full-time work experience as a | 26 | | firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. The fire chief and the |
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| 1 | | president of the exclusive bargaining representative | 2 | | recognized by the employer shall each appoint 2 members to the | 3 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee. In the absence of an exclusive | 4 | | collective bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 5 | | the remaining 2 members who shall be from the ranks of company | 6 | | officer and firefighter with at least 10 years of work | 7 | | experience as a firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. In the | 8 | | absence of a sufficient number of qualified firefighters, the | 9 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee members shall have the amount of | 10 | | experience and the type of qualifications as is reasonable | 11 | | given the circumstances of the fire department. In the absence | 12 | | of a full-time member in a rank between chief and the highest | 13 | | rank in a bargaining unit, the Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 14 | | shall be reduced to 2 members, one to be appointed by the chief | 15 | | and one by the union president, if any. If there is no | 16 | | exclusive bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 17 | | the second member of the Joint Apprenticeship Committee from | 18 | | among qualified members in the ranks of company officer and | 19 | | below. Before the conclusion of the apprenticeship period, the | 20 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall meet to consider the | 21 | | apprentice's progress and performance and vote to retain the | 22 | | apprentice as a member of the fire department or to terminate | 23 | | the apprenticeship. If 3 of the 4 members of the Joint | 24 | | Apprenticeship Committee affirmatively vote to retain the | 25 | | apprentice (if a 2 member Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 26 | | exists, then both members must affirmatively vote to retain the |
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| 1 | | apprentice), the local commission shall issue the apprentice a | 2 | | certificate of original appointment to the fire department. | 3 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 4 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 5 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 6 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 7 | | charges for official misconduct. | 8 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 9 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 10 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 11 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 12 | | disciplinary actions. | 13 | | (l) Applicability. This Section does not apply to a | 14 | | municipality with more than 1,000,000 inhabitants. | 15 | | Section 10. The Fire Protection District Act is amended by | 16 | | changing Section 16.04a and by adding Sections 16.06b and | 17 | | 16.06c as follows:
| 18 | | (70 ILCS 705/16.04a) (from Ch. 127 1/2, par. 37.04a)
| 19 | | Sec. 16.04a.
The board of fire commissioners shall appoint | 20 | | all
officers and members of the fire departments of the | 21 | | district, except the
Chief of the fire department. The board of | 22 | | trustees shall appoint the Chief
of the fire department, who | 23 | | shall serve at the pleasure of the board, and may
enter into a | 24 | | multi-year contract not exceeding 3 years with the Chief.
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| 1 | | If a member of the department is appointed Chief of the | 2 | | fire department
prior to being eligible to retire on pension he | 3 | | shall be considered as on
furlough from the rank he held | 4 | | immediately prior to his appointment as
Chief. If he resigns as | 5 | | Chief or is discharged as Chief prior to attaining
eligibility | 6 | | to retire on pension, he shall revert to and be established in
| 7 | | such prior rank, and thereafter be entitled to all the benefits | 8 | | and
emoluments of such prior rank, without regard as to whether | 9 | | a vacancy then
exists in such rank. In such instances, the | 10 | | Chief shall be deemed to have
continued to accrue seniority in | 11 | | the department during his period of
service as Chief, or time | 12 | | in grade in his former rank to which he shall
revert during his | 13 | | period of service as Chief, except solely for purposes of
any | 14 | | layoff as provided in Section 16.13b hereafter.
| 15 | | All appointments to each department other than that of the | 16 | | lowest rank,
however, shall be from the rank next below that to | 17 | | which the appointment is
made, except that the Chief of the | 18 | | fire department may be appointed from
among members of the fire | 19 | | department, regardless of rank.
| 20 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 21 | | shall be vested
in the board of fire commissioners and all | 22 | | certificates of appointments
issued to any officer or member of | 23 | | the fire department shall be signed by
the chairman and | 24 | | secretary respectively of the board of fire commissioners
upon | 25 | | appointment of such officer or member of the fire department by | 26 | | action
of the board of fire commissioners.
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| 1 | | To the extent that this Section or any other Section in | 2 | | this Act conflicts with Section 16.06b or 16.06c, then Section | 3 | | 16.06b or 16.06c shall control. | 4 | | (Source: P.A. 91-948, eff. 1-1-02.)
| 5 | | (70 ILCS 705/16.06b new) | 6 | | Sec. 16.06b. Original appointments; full-time fire | 7 | | department. | 8 | | (a) Applicability. Unless a commission elects to follow the | 9 | | provisions of Section 16.06c, this Section shall apply to all | 10 | | original appointments to an affected full-time fire | 11 | | department. Existing registers of eligibles shall continue to | 12 | | be valid until their expiration dates, or up to a maximum of 2 | 13 | | years after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the | 14 | | 97th General Assembly. | 15 | | Notwithstanding any statute, ordinance, rule, or other law | 16 | | to the contrary, all original appointments to an affected | 17 | | department to which this Section applies shall be administered | 18 | | in a no less stringent manner than the manner provided for in | 19 | | this Section. Provisions of the Illinois Municipal Code, Fire | 20 | | Protection District Act, fire district ordinances, and rules | 21 | | adopted pursuant to such authority and other laws relating to | 22 | | initial hiring of firefighters in affected departments shall | 23 | | continue to apply to the extent they are compatible with this | 24 | | Section, but in the event of a conflict between this Section | 25 | | and any other law, this Section shall control. |
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| 1 | | A fire protection district that is operating under a court | 2 | | order or consent decree regarding original appointments to a | 3 | | full-time fire department before the effective date of this | 4 | | amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly is exempt from the | 5 | | requirements of this Section for the duration of the court | 6 | | order or consent decree. | 7 | | (b) Original appointments. All original appointments made | 8 | | to an affected fire department shall be made from a register of | 9 | | eligibles established in accordance with the processes | 10 | | required by this Section. Only persons who meet or exceed the | 11 | | performance standards required by the Section shall be placed | 12 | | on a register of eligibles for original appointment to an | 13 | | affected fire department. | 14 | | Whenever an appointing authority authorizes action to hire | 15 | | a person to perform the duties of a firefighter or to hire a | 16 | | firefighter-paramedic to fill a position that is a new position | 17 | | or vacancy due to resignation, discharge, promotion, death, the | 18 | | granting of a disability or retirement pension, or any other | 19 | | cause, the appointing authority shall appoint to that position | 20 | | the person with the highest ranking on the final eligibility | 21 | | list. If the appointing authority has reason to conclude that | 22 | | the highest ranked person fails to meet the minimum standards | 23 | | for the position or if the appointing authority believes an | 24 | | alternate candidate would better serve the needs of the | 25 | | department, then the appointing authority has the right to pass | 26 | | over the highest ranked person and appoint either: (i) any |
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| 1 | | person who has a ranking in the top 5% of the register of | 2 | | eligibles or (ii) any person who is among the top 5 highest | 3 | | ranked persons on the list of eligibles if the number of people | 4 | | who have a ranking in the top 5% of the register of eligibles | 5 | | is less than 5 people. | 6 | | Any candidate may pass on an appointment once without | 7 | | losing his or her position on the register of eligibles. Any | 8 | | candidate who passes a second time may be removed from the list | 9 | | by the appointing authority provided that such action shall not | 10 | | prejudice a person's opportunities to participate in future | 11 | | examinations, including an examination held during the time a | 12 | | candidate is already on the fire district's register of | 13 | | eligibles. | 14 | | The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment | 15 | | shall be vested in the board of fire commissioners, or board of | 16 | | trustees serving in the capacity of a board of fire | 17 | | commissioners. All certificates of appointment issued to any | 18 | | officer or member of an affected department shall be signed by | 19 | | the chairperson and secretary, respectively, of the commission | 20 | | upon appointment of such officer or member to the affected | 21 | | department by action of the commission. Each person who accepts | 22 | | a certificate of appointment and successfully completes his or | 23 | | her probationary period shall be enrolled as a firefighter and | 24 | | as a regular member of the fire department. | 25 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 26 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date |
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| 1 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 2 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 3 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 4 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 5 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 6 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 7 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 8 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 9 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 10 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 11 | | (c) Qualification for placement on register of eligibles. | 12 | | The purpose of establishing a register of eligibles is to | 13 | | identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the mental | 14 | | aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties required of | 15 | | members of the fire department in order to provide the highest | 16 | | quality of service to the public. To this end, all applicants | 17 | | for original appointment to an affected fire department shall | 18 | | be subject to examination and testing which shall be public, | 19 | | competitive, and open to all applicants unless the district | 20 | | shall by ordinance limit applicants to residents of the | 21 | | district, county or counties in which the district is located, | 22 | | State, or nation. Districts may establish educational, | 23 | | emergency medical service licensure, and other pre-requisites | 24 | | for participation in an examination or for hire as a | 25 | | firefighter. Any fire protection district may charge a fee to | 26 | | cover the costs of the application process. |
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| 1 | | Residency requirements in effect at the time an individual | 2 | | enters the fire service of a district cannot be made more | 3 | | restrictive for that individual during his or her period of | 4 | | service for that district, or be made a condition of promotion, | 5 | | except for the rank or position of fire chief and for no more | 6 | | than 2 positions that rank immediately below that of the chief | 7 | | rank which are appointed positions pursuant to the Fire | 8 | | Department Promotion Act. | 9 | | No person who is 35 years of age or older shall be eligible | 10 | | to take an examination for a position as a firefighter unless | 11 | | the person has had previous employment status as a firefighter | 12 | | in the regularly constituted fire department of the district, | 13 | | except as provided in this Section. The age limitation does not | 14 | | apply to: | 15 | | (1) any person previously employed as a full-time | 16 | | firefighter in a regularly constituted fire department of | 17 | | (i) any municipality or fire protection district located in | 18 | | Illinois, (ii) a fire protection district whose | 19 | | obligations were assumed by a municipality under Section 21 | 20 | | of the Fire Protection District Act, or (iii) a | 21 | | municipality whose obligations were taken over by a fire | 22 | | protection district, or | 23 | | (2) any person who has served a fire district as a | 24 | | regularly enrolled volunteer, paid-on-call, or part-time | 25 | | firefighter for the 5 years immediately preceding the time | 26 | | that the district begins to use full-time firefighters to |
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| 1 | | provide all or part of its fire protection service. | 2 | | No person who is under 21 years of age shall be eligible | 3 | | for employment as a firefighter. | 4 | | No applicant shall be examined concerning his or her | 5 | | political or religious opinions or affiliations. The | 6 | | examinations shall be conducted by the commissioners of the | 7 | | district or their designees and agents. | 8 | | No district shall require that any firefighter appointed to | 9 | | the lowest rank serve a probationary employment period of | 10 | | longer than one year of actual active employment, which may | 11 | | exclude periods of training, or injury or illness leaves, | 12 | | including duty related leave, in excess of 30 calendar days. | 13 | | Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section, the | 14 | | probationary employment period limitation may be extended for a | 15 | | firefighter who is required, as a condition of employment, to | 16 | | be a certified paramedic, during which time the sole reason | 17 | | that a firefighter may be discharged without a hearing is for | 18 | | failing to meet the requirements for paramedic certification. | 19 | | In the event that any applicant who has been found eligible | 20 | | for appointment and whose name has been placed upon the final | 21 | | eligibility register provided for in this Section has not been | 22 | | appointed to a firefighter position within one year after the | 23 | | date of his or her physical ability examination, the commission | 24 | | may cause a second examination to be made of that applicant's | 25 | | physical ability prior to his or her appointment. If, after the | 26 | | second examination, the physical ability of the applicant shall |
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| 1 | | be found to be less than the minimum standard fixed by the | 2 | | rules of the commission, the applicant shall not be appointed. | 3 | | The applicant's name may be retained upon the register of | 4 | | candidates eligible for appointment and when next reached for | 5 | | certification and appointment that applicant may be again | 6 | | examined as provided in this Section, and if the physical | 7 | | ability of that applicant is found to be less than the minimum | 8 | | standard fixed by the rules of the commission, the applicant | 9 | | shall not be appointed, and the name of the applicant shall be | 10 | | removed from the register. | 11 | | (d) Notice, examination, and testing components. Notice of | 12 | | the time, place, general scope, merit criteria for any | 13 | | subjective component, and fee of every examination shall be | 14 | | given by the commission, by a publication at least 2 weeks | 15 | | preceding the examination: (i) in one or more newspapers | 16 | | published in the district, or if no newspaper is published | 17 | | therein, then in one or more newspapers with a general | 18 | | circulation within the district, or (ii) on the fire protection | 19 | | district's Internet website. Additional notice of the | 20 | | examination may be given as the commission shall prescribe. | 21 | | The examination and qualifying standards for employment of | 22 | | firefighters shall be based on: mental aptitude, physical | 23 | | ability, preferences, moral character, and health. The mental | 24 | | aptitude, physical ability, and preference components shall | 25 | | determine an applicant's qualification for and placement on the | 26 | | final register of eligibles. The examination may also include a |
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| 1 | | subjective component based on merit criteria as determined by | 2 | | the commission. Scores from the examination must be made | 3 | | available to the public. | 4 | | (e) Mental aptitude. No person who does not possess at | 5 | | least a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 6 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. | 7 | | Examination of an applicant's mental aptitude shall be based | 8 | | upon a written examination. The examination shall be practical | 9 | | in character and relate to those matters that fairly test the | 10 | | capacity of the persons examined to discharge the duties | 11 | | performed by members of a fire department. Written examinations | 12 | | shall be administered in a manner that ensures the security and | 13 | | accuracy of the scores achieved. | 14 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 15 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 16 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 17 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 18 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 19 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 20 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 21 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 22 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 23 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 24 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 25 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 26 | | each applicant's physical abilities in the following |
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| 1 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 2 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 3 | | functions of the firefighter's job description): | 4 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 5 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 6 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 7 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 8 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in | 9 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested may be based | 10 | | on standards developed, or approved, by the local | 11 | | appointing authority. | 12 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 13 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 14 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 15 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 16 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 17 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 18 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 19 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 20 | | Physical ability examinations administered under this | 21 | | Section shall be conducted with a reasonable number of proctors | 22 | | and monitors, open to the public, and subject to reasonable | 23 | | regulations of the commission. | 24 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. Appointing | 25 | | authorities may create a preliminary eligibility register. A | 26 | | person shall be placed on the list based upon his or her |
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| 1 | | passage of the written examination or the passage of the | 2 | | written examination and the physical ability component. | 3 | | Passage of the written examination means a score that is at or | 4 | | above the mean score for all applicants participating in the | 5 | | written test. The appointing authority may conduct the physical | 6 | | ability component and any subjective components subsequent to | 7 | | the posting of the preliminary eligibility register. | 8 | | The examination components for an initial eligibility | 9 | | register shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 10 | | position on the list shall be determined by the following: (i)
| 11 | | the person's score on the written examination, (ii) the person
| 12 | | successfully passing the physical ability component, and (iii) | 13 | | the
person's results on any subjective component as described | 14 | | in
subsection (d). | 15 | | In order to qualify for placement on the final eligibility | 16 | | register, an applicant's total score, before any applicable | 17 | | preference points are applied, shall be at or above the mean | 18 | | score plus 10%. The local appointing authority may prescribe | 19 | | the score to qualify for placement on the final eligibility | 20 | | register, but the score shall not be less than the mean score | 21 | | plus 10%. | 22 | | The commission shall prepare and keep a register of persons | 23 | | whose total score is not less than the minimum fixed by this | 24 | | Section and who have passed the physical ability examination. | 25 | | These persons shall take rank upon the register as candidates | 26 | | in the order of their relative excellence based on the highest |
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| 1 | | to the lowest total points scored on the mental aptitude, | 2 | | subjective component, and preference components of the test | 3 | | administered in accordance with this Section. No more than 60 | 4 | | days after each examination, an initial eligibility list shall | 5 | | be posted by the commission. The list shall include the final | 6 | | grades of the candidates without reference to priority of the | 7 | | time of examination and subject to claim for preference credit. | 8 | | Commissions may conduct additional examinations, including | 9 | | without limitation a polygraph test, after a final eligibility | 10 | | register is established and before it expires with the | 11 | | candidates ranked by total score without regard to date of | 12 | | examination. No more than 60 days after each examination, an | 13 | | initial eligibility list shall be posted by the commission | 14 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 15 | | priority of time of examination and subject to claim for | 16 | | preference credit. | 17 | | (h) Preferences. The following are preferences: | 18 | | (1) Veteran preference. Persons who were engaged in the | 19 | | military service of the United States for a period of at | 20 | | least one year of active duty and who were honorably | 21 | | discharged therefrom, or who are now or have been members | 22 | | on inactive or reserve duty in such military or naval | 23 | | service, shall be preferred for appointment to and | 24 | | employment with the fire department of an affected | 25 | | department. | 26 | | (2) Fire cadet preference. Persons who have |
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| 1 | | successfully completed 2 years of study in fire techniques | 2 | | or cadet training within a cadet program established under | 3 | | the rules of the Joint Labor and Management Committee | 4 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 5 | | Promotion Act, may be preferred for appointment to and | 6 | | employment with the fire department. | 7 | | (3) Educational preference. Persons who have | 8 | | successfully obtained an associate's degree in the field of | 9 | | fire service or emergency medical services, or a bachelor's | 10 | | degree from an accredited college or university may be | 11 | | preferred for appointment to and employment with the fire | 12 | | department. | 13 | | (4) Paramedic preference. Persons who have obtained | 14 | | certification as an Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic | 15 | | (EMT-P) may be preferred for appointment to and employment | 16 | | with the fire department of an affected department | 17 | | providing emergency medical services. | 18 | | (5) Experience preference. All persons employed by a | 19 | | district who have been paid-on-call or part-time certified | 20 | | Firefighter II, certified Firefighter III, State of | 21 | | Illinois or nationally licensed EMT-B or EMT-I, licensed | 22 | | paramedic, or any combination of those capacities may be | 23 | | awarded up to a maximum of 5 points. However, the applicant | 24 | | may not be awarded more than 0.5 points for each complete | 25 | | year of paid-on-call or part-time service. Applicants from | 26 | | outside the district who were employed as full-time |
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| 1 | | firefighters or firefighter-paramedics by a fire | 2 | | protection district or municipality for at least 2 years | 3 | | may be awarded up to 5 experience preference points. | 4 | | However, the applicant may not be awarded more than one | 5 | | point for each complete year of full-time service. | 6 | | (6) Residency preference. Applicants whose principal | 7 | | residence is located within the fire department's | 8 | | jurisdiction may be preferred for appointment to and | 9 | | employment with the fire department. | 10 | | Upon request by the commission, the governing body of | 11 | | the district or in the case of applicants from outside the | 12 | | district the governing body of any other fire protection | 13 | | district or any municipality shall certify to the | 14 | | commission, within 10 days after the request, the number of | 15 | | years of successful paid-on-call, part-time, or full-time | 16 | | service of any person. A candidate may not receive the full | 17 | | amount of preference points under this subsection if the | 18 | | amount of points awarded would place the candidate before a | 19 | | veteran on the eligibility list. If more than one candidate | 20 | | receiving experience preference points is prevented from | 21 | | receiving all of their points due to not being allowed to | 22 | | pass a veteran, the candidates shall be placed on the list | 23 | | below the veteran in rank order based on the totals | 24 | | received if all points under this subsection were to be | 25 | | awarded. Any remaining ties on the list shall be determined | 26 | | by lot. |
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| 1 | | (7) Additional preferences. Up to 5 additional | 2 | | preference points may be awarded for unique categories | 3 | | based on an applicant's experience or background as | 4 | | identified by the commission. | 5 | | (8) Scoring of preferences. The
commission shall give | 6 | | preference for original appointment
to persons designated | 7 | | in item (1)
by adding to the final grade that they receive | 8 | | 5 points
for the recognized preference achieved. The | 9 | | commission shall determine the number of preference points | 10 | | for each category except (1). The number of preference | 11 | | points for each category shall range from 0 to 5. In | 12 | | determining the number of preference points, the | 13 | | commission shall prescribe that if a candidate earns the | 14 | | maximum number of preference points in all categories, that | 15 | | number may not be less than 10 nor more than 30. The | 16 | | commission shall give preference for original appointment | 17 | | to persons designated in items (2) through (7) by adding | 18 | | the requisite number of points to the final grade for each | 19 | | recognized preference achieved. The numerical result thus | 20 | | attained shall be applied by the commission in determining | 21 | | the final eligibility list and appointment from the | 22 | | eligibility list. The local appointing authority may | 23 | | prescribe the total number of preference points awarded | 24 | | under this Section, but the total number of preference | 25 | | points shall not be less than 10 points or more than 30 | 26 | | points. |
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| 1 | | No person entitled to any preference shall be required to | 2 | | claim the credit before any examination held under the | 3 | | provisions of this Section, but the preference shall be given | 4 | | after the posting or publication of the initial eligibility | 5 | | list or register at the request of a person entitled to a | 6 | | credit before any certification or appointments are made from | 7 | | the eligibility register, upon the furnishing of verifiable | 8 | | evidence and proof of qualifying preference credit. Candidates | 9 | | who are eligible for preference credit shall make a claim in | 10 | | writing within 10 days after the posting of the initial | 11 | | eligibility list, or the claim shall be deemed waived. Final | 12 | | eligibility registers shall be established after the awarding | 13 | | of verified preference points. All employment shall be subject | 14 | | to the commission's initial hire background review including, | 15 | | but not limited to, criminal history, employment history, moral | 16 | | character, oral examination, and medical and psychological | 17 | | examinations, all on a pass-fail basis. The medical and | 18 | | psychological examinations must be conducted last, and may only | 19 | | be performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 20 | | extended. | 21 | | Any person placed on an eligibility list who exceeds the | 22 | | age requirement before being appointed to a fire department | 23 | | shall remain eligible for appointment until the list is | 24 | | abolished, or his or her name has been on the list for a period | 25 | | of 2 years. No person who has attained the age of 35 years | 26 | | shall be inducted into a fire department, except as otherwise |
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| 1 | | provided in this Section. | 2 | | The commission shall strike off the names of candidates for | 3 | | original appointment after the names have been on the list for | 4 | | more than 2 years. | 5 | | (i) Moral character. No person shall be appointed to a fire | 6 | | department unless he or she is a person of good character; not | 7 | | a habitual drunkard, a gambler, or a person who has been | 8 | | convicted of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude. | 9 | | However, no person shall be disqualified from appointment to | 10 | | the fire department because of the person's record of | 11 | | misdemeanor convictions except those under Sections 11-6, | 12 | | 11-7, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 12-2, 12-6, | 13 | | 12-15, 14-4, 16-1, 21.1-3, 24-3.1, 24-5, 25-1, 28-3, 31-1, | 14 | | 31-4, 31-6, 31-7, 32-1, 32-2, 32-3, 32-4, 32-8, and subsections | 15 | | 1, 6, and 8 of Section 24-1 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or | 16 | | arrest for any cause without conviction thereon. Any such | 17 | | person who is in the department may be removed on charges | 18 | | brought for violating this subsection and after a trial as | 19 | | hereinafter provided. | 20 | | A classifiable set of the fingerprints of every person who | 21 | | is offered employment as a certificated member of an affected | 22 | | fire department whether with or without compensation, shall be | 23 | | furnished to the Illinois Department of State Police and to the | 24 | | Federal Bureau of Investigation by the commission. | 25 | | Whenever a commission is authorized or required by law to | 26 | | consider some aspect of criminal history record information for |
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| 1 | | the purpose of carrying out its statutory powers and | 2 | | responsibilities, then, upon request and payment of fees in | 3 | | conformance with the requirements of Section 2605-400 of the | 4 | | State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, | 5 | | the Department of State Police is authorized to furnish, | 6 | | pursuant to positive identification, the information contained | 7 | | in State files as is necessary to fulfill the request. | 8 | | (j) Temporary appointments. In order to prevent a stoppage | 9 | | of public business, to meet extraordinary exigencies, or to | 10 | | prevent material impairment of the fire department, the | 11 | | commission may make temporary appointments, to remain in force | 12 | | only until regular appointments are made under the provisions | 13 | | of this Section, but never to exceed 60 days. No temporary | 14 | | appointment of any one person shall be made more than twice in | 15 | | any calendar year. | 16 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 17 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise | 18 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 19 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 20 | | charges for official misconduct. | 21 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 22 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 23 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 24 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 25 | | disciplinary actions. |
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| 1 | | (70 ILCS 705/16.06c new) | 2 | | Sec. 16.06c. Alternative procedure; original appointment; | 3 | | full-time firefighter. | 4 | | (a) Authority. The Joint Labor and Management Committee | 5 | | (JLMC), as defined in Section 50 of the Fire Department | 6 | | Promotion Act, may establish a community outreach program to | 7 | | market the profession of firefighter and firefighter-paramedic | 8 | | so as to ensure the pool of applicants recruited is of broad | 9 | | diversity and the highest quality. | 10 | | For the purposes of this Section, "firefighter" means any | 11 | | person who has been prior to, on, or after the effective date | 12 | | of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly appointed | 13 | | to a fire department or fire protection district or employed by | 14 | | a State university and sworn or commissioned to perform | 15 | | firefighter duties or paramedic duties, or both, except that | 16 | | the following persons are not included: part-time | 17 | | firefighters; auxiliary, reserve, or voluntary firefighters, | 18 | | including paid-on-call firefighters; clerks and dispatchers or | 19 | | other civilian employees of a fire department or fire | 20 | | protection district who are not routinely expected to perform | 21 | | firefighter duties; and elected officials. | 22 | | (b) Eligibility. Persons eligible for placement on the | 23 | | master register of eligibles shall consist of the following: | 24 | | Persons who have participated in and received a passing | 25 | | total score on the mental aptitude, physical ability, and | 26 | | preference components of a regionally administered test |
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| 1 | | based on the standards described in this Section. The | 2 | | standards for administering these tests and the minimum | 3 | | passing score required for placement on this list shall be | 4 | | as is set forth in this Section. | 5 | | Qualified candidates shall be listed on the master | 6 | | register of eligibles in highest to lowest rank order based | 7 | | upon their test scores without regard to their date of | 8 | | examination. Candidates listed on the master register of | 9 | | eligibles shall be eligible for appointment for 2 years | 10 | | after the date of the certification of their final score on | 11 | | the register without regard to the date of their | 12 | | examination. After 2 years, the candidate's name shall be | 13 | | struck from the list. | 14 | | Any person currently employed as a full-time member of | 15 | | a fire department or any person who has experienced a | 16 | | non–voluntary (and non-disciplinary) separation from the | 17 | | active workforce due to a reduction in the number of | 18 | | departmental officers, who was appointed pursuant to | 19 | | Division 1 of Article 10 of the Illinois Municipal Code, | 20 | | Division 2.1 of Article 10 of the Illinois Municipal Code, | 21 | | or the Fire Protection District Act, and who during the | 22 | | previous 24 months participated in and received a passing | 23 | | score on the physical ability and mental aptitude | 24 | | components of the test may request that his or her name be | 25 | | added to the master register. Any eligible person may be | 26 | | offered employment by a local commission under the same |
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| 1 | | procedures as provided by this Section except that the | 2 | | apprenticeship period may be waived and the applicant may | 3 | | be immediately issued a certificate of original | 4 | | appointment by the local commission. | 5 | | (c) Qualifications for placement on register of eligibles. | 6 | | The purpose for establishing a master register of eligibles | 7 | | shall be to identify applicants who possess and demonstrate the | 8 | | mental aptitude and physical ability to perform the duties | 9 | | required of members of the fire department in order to provide | 10 | | the highest quality of service to the public. To this end, all | 11 | | applicants for original appointment to an affected fire | 12 | | department through examination conducted by the Joint Labor and | 13 | | Management Committee (JLMC) shall be subject to examination and | 14 | | testing which shall be public, competitive, and open to all | 15 | | applicants. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 16 | | administered by certified assessors. All qualifying and | 17 | | disqualifying factors applicable to examination processes for | 18 | | local commissions in this amendatory Act of the 97th General | 19 | | Assembly shall be applicable to persons participating in Joint | 20 | | Labor and Management Committee examinations unless | 21 | | specifically provided otherwise in this Section. | 22 | | Notice of the time, place, general scope, and fee of every | 23 | | JLMC examination shall be given by the JLMC or designated | 24 | | testing agency, as applicable, by a publication at least 30 | 25 | | days preceding the examination, in one or more newspapers | 26 | | published in the region, or if no newspaper is published |
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| 1 | | therein, then in one or more newspapers with a general | 2 | | circulation within the region. The JLMC may publish the notice | 3 | | on the JLMC's Internet website. Additional notice of the | 4 | | examination may be given as the JLMC shall prescribe. | 5 | | (d) Examination and testing components for placement on | 6 | | register of eligibles. The examination and qualifying | 7 | | standards for placement on the master register of eligibles and | 8 | | employment shall be based on the following components: mental | 9 | | aptitude, physical ability, preferences, moral character, and | 10 | | health. The mental aptitude, physical ability, and preference | 11 | | components shall determine an applicant's qualification for | 12 | | and placement on the master register of eligibles. The | 13 | | consideration of an applicant's general moral character and | 14 | | health shall be administered on a pass-fail basis after a | 15 | | conditional offer of employment is made by a local commission. | 16 | | (e) Mental aptitude. Examination of an applicant's mental | 17 | | aptitude shall be based upon written examination and an | 18 | | applicant's prior experience demonstrating an aptitude for and | 19 | | commitment to service as a member of a fire department. Written | 20 | | examinations shall be practical in character and relate to | 21 | | those matters that fairly test the capacity of the persons | 22 | | examined to discharge the duties performed by members of a fire | 23 | | department. Written examinations shall be administered in a | 24 | | manner that ensures the security and accuracy of the scores | 25 | | achieved. Any subjective component of the testing must be | 26 | | administered by certified assessors. No person who does not |
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| 1 | | possess a high school diploma or an equivalent high school | 2 | | education shall be placed on a register of eligibles. Local | 3 | | commissions may establish educational, emergency medical | 4 | | service licensure, and other pre-requisites for hire within | 5 | | their jurisdiction. | 6 | | (f) Physical ability. All candidates shall be required to | 7 | | undergo an examination of their physical ability to perform the | 8 | | essential functions included in the duties they may be called | 9 | | upon to perform as a member of a fire department. For the | 10 | | purposes of this Section, essential functions of the job are | 11 | | functions associated with duties that a firefighter may be | 12 | | called upon to perform in response to emergency calls. The | 13 | | frequency of the occurrence of those duties as part of the fire | 14 | | department's regular routine shall not be a controlling factor | 15 | | in the design of examination criteria or evolutions selected | 16 | | for testing. These physical examinations shall be open, | 17 | | competitive, and based on industry standards designed to test | 18 | | each applicant's physical abilities in each of the following | 19 | | dimensions (or a similar test designed to ensure that the | 20 | | successful candidates are able to perform the essential | 21 | | functions of a firefighter's job description): | 22 | | (1) Muscular strength to perform tasks and evolutions | 23 | | that may be required in the performance of duties including | 24 | | grip strength, leg strength, and arm strength. Tests shall | 25 | | be conducted under anaerobic as well as aerobic conditions | 26 | | to test both the candidate's speed and endurance in |
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| 1 | | performing tasks and evolutions. Tasks tested are to be | 2 | | based on industry standards developed by the JLMC by rule. | 3 | | (2) The ability to climb ladders, operate from heights, | 4 | | walk or crawl in the dark along narrow and uneven surfaces, | 5 | | and operate in proximity to hazardous environments. | 6 | | (3) The ability to carry out critical, time-sensitive, | 7 | | and complex problem solving during physical exertion in | 8 | | stressful and hazardous environments. The testing | 9 | | environment may be hot and dark with tightly enclosed | 10 | | spaces, flashing lights, sirens, and other distractions. | 11 | | (g) Scoring of examination components. The examination | 12 | | components shall be graded on a 100-point scale. A person's | 13 | | position on the master register of eligibles shall be | 14 | | determined by the person's score on the written examination, | 15 | | the person successfully passing the physical ability | 16 | | component, and the addition of any applicable preference | 17 | | points. | 18 | | Applicants who have achieved at least the mean score of all | 19 | | applicants participating in the written examination at the same | 20 | | time, and who successfully pass the physical ability | 21 | | examination shall be placed on the initial eligibility | 22 | | register. For placement on the final eligibility register, the | 23 | | passing score shall be determined by (i) calculating the mean | 24 | | score for all applicants participating in the written test; and | 25 | | (ii) adding 20% to the mean score. Applicants whose total | 26 | | scores, including any applicable preference points, are above |
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| 1 | | the mean score plus 20%, shall be placed on the master register | 2 | | of eligibles by the JLMC. | 3 | | These persons shall take rank upon the register as | 4 | | candidates in the order of their relative excellence based on | 5 | | the highest to the lowest total points scored on the mental | 6 | | aptitude and physical ability components, plus any applicable | 7 | | preference points requested and verified by the JLMC, or | 8 | | approved testing agency. | 9 | | No more than 60 days after each examination, a revised | 10 | | master register of eligibles shall be posted by the JLMC | 11 | | showing the final grades of the candidates without reference to | 12 | | priority of time of examination. | 13 | | (h) Preferences. The board shall give military, education, | 14 | | and experience preference points to those who qualify for | 15 | | placement on the master register of eligibles, on the same | 16 | | basis as provided for examinations administered by a local | 17 | | commission. | 18 | | No person entitled to preference or credit shall be | 19 | | required to claim the credit before any examination held under | 20 | | the provisions of this Section. The preference shall be given | 21 | | after the posting or publication of the applicant's initial | 22 | | score at the request of the person before finalizing the scores | 23 | | from all applicants taking part in a JLMC examination. | 24 | | Candidates who are eligible for preference credit shall make a | 25 | | claim in writing within 10 days after the posting of the | 26 | | initial scores from any JLMC test or the claim shall be deemed |
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| 1 | | waived. Once preference points are awarded, the candidates | 2 | | shall be certified to the master register in accordance with | 3 | | their final score including preference points. | 4 | | (i) Firefighter apprentice and firefighter-paramedic | 5 | | apprentice. The employment of an applicant to an apprentice | 6 | | position (including a currently employed full-time member of a | 7 | | fire department whose apprenticeship may be reduced or waived) | 8 | | shall be subject to the applicant passing the moral character | 9 | | standards and health examinations of the local commission. In | 10 | | addition, a local commission may require as a condition of | 11 | | employment that the applicant demonstrate current physical | 12 | | ability by either passing the local commission's approved | 13 | | physical ability examination, or by presenting proof of | 14 | | participating in and receiving a passing score on the physical | 15 | | ability component of a JLMC test within a period of up to 12 | 16 | | months before the date of the conditional offer of employment. | 17 | | Applicants shall be subject to the local commission's initial | 18 | | hire background review including criminal history, employment | 19 | | history, moral character, oral examination, and medical | 20 | | examinations which may include polygraph, psychological, and | 21 | | drug screening components, all on a pass-fail basis. The | 22 | | medical examinations must be conducted last, and may only be | 23 | | performed after a conditional offer of employment has been | 24 | | extended. | 25 | | (j) Selection from list. Any municipality or fire | 26 | | protection district that is a party to an intergovernmental |
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| 1 | | agreement under the terms of which persons have been tested for | 2 | | placement on the master register of eligibles shall be entitled | 3 | | to offer employment to any person on the list irrespective of | 4 | | their ranking on the list. The offer of employment shall be to | 5 | | the position of firefighter apprentice or | 6 | | firefighter-paramedic apprentice. | 7 | | Applicants passing these tests may be employed as a | 8 | | firefighter apprentice or a firefighter-paramedic apprentice | 9 | | who shall serve an apprenticeship period of 12 months or less | 10 | | according to the terms and conditions of employment as the | 11 | | employing municipality or district offers, or as provided for | 12 | | under the terms of any collective bargaining agreement then in | 13 | | effect. The apprenticeship period is separate from the | 14 | | probationary period. | 15 | | Service during the apprenticeship period shall be on a | 16 | | probationary basis. During the apprenticeship period, the | 17 | | apprentice's training and performance shall be monitored and | 18 | | evaluated by a Joint Apprenticeship Committee. | 19 | | The Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall consist of 4 | 20 | | members who shall be regular members of the fire department | 21 | | with at least 10 years of full-time work experience as a | 22 | | firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. The fire chief and the | 23 | | president of the exclusive bargaining representative | 24 | | recognized by the employer shall each appoint 2 members to the | 25 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee. In the absence of an exclusive | 26 | | collective bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint |
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| 1 | | the remaining 2 members who shall be from the ranks of company | 2 | | officer and firefighter with at least 10 years of work | 3 | | experience as a firefighter or firefighter-paramedic. In the | 4 | | absence of a sufficient number of qualified firefighters, the | 5 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee members shall have the amount of | 6 | | experience and the type of qualifications as is reasonable | 7 | | given the circumstances of the fire department. In the absence | 8 | | of a full-time member in a rank between chief and the highest | 9 | | rank in a bargaining unit, the Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 10 | | shall be reduced to 2 members, one to be appointed by the chief | 11 | | and one by the union president, if any. If there is no | 12 | | exclusive bargaining representative, the chief shall appoint | 13 | | the second member of the Joint Apprenticeship Committee from | 14 | | among qualified members in the ranks of company officer and | 15 | | below. Before the conclusion of the apprenticeship period, the | 16 | | Joint Apprenticeship Committee shall meet to consider the | 17 | | apprentice's progress and performance and vote to retain the | 18 | | apprentice as a member of the fire department or to terminate | 19 | | the apprenticeship. If 3 of the 4 members of the Joint | 20 | | Apprenticeship Committee affirmatively vote to retain the | 21 | | apprentice (if a 2 member Joint Apprenticeship Committee | 22 | | exists, then both members must affirmatively vote to retain the | 23 | | apprentice), the local commission shall issue the apprentice a | 24 | | certificate of original appointment to the fire department. | 25 | | (k) A person who knowingly divulges or receives test | 26 | | questions or answers before a written examination, or otherwise |
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| 1 | | knowingly violates or subverts any requirement of this Section, | 2 | | commits a violation of this Section and may be subject to | 3 | | charges for official misconduct. | 4 | | A person who is the knowing recipient of test information | 5 | | in advance of the examination shall be disqualified from the | 6 | | examination or discharged from the position to which he or she | 7 | | was appointed, as applicable, and otherwise subjected to | 8 | | disciplinary actions.
| 9 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 10 | | becoming law.
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