105 ILCS 105/10a

(105 ILCS 105/10a) (from Ch. 122, par. 1410a)

Sec. 10a. Licensing. No inspector, management planner, project designer, project manager, air sampling professional, asbestos abatement contractor, worker or project supervisor may be employed as a response action contractor unless that individual or entity is licensed by the Department. Those individuals and entities wishing to be licensed shall make application on forms prescribed and furnished by the Department. A license shall expire annually according to a schedule determined by the Department. Applications for renewal of licenses shall be filed with the Department at least 30 days before the expiration date. When a licensure examination is required, the application for licensure shall be submitted to the Department at least 30 days prior to the date of the scheduled examination. The Department shall evaluate each application based on its minimum standards for licensure, promulgated as rules, and render a decision. Such standards may include a requirement for the successful completion of a course of training approved by the Department. If the Department denies the application, the applicant may appeal such decision pursuant to the provisions of the Administrative Review Law.

The Department, upon notification by the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission or the Department of Insurance, shall refuse the issuance or renewal of a license to, or suspend or revoke the license of, any individual, corporation, partnership, or other business entity that has been found by the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission or the Department of Insurance to have failed:

(a) to secure workers' compensation obligations in the manner required by subsections (a) and (b) of Section 4 of the Workers' Compensation Act;

(b) to pay in full a fine or penalty imposed by the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission or the Department of Insurance due to a failure to secure workers' compensation obligations in the manner required by subsections (a) and (b) of Section 4 of the Workers' Compensation Act; or

(c) to fulfill all obligations assumed pursuant to any settlement reached with the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission or the Department of Insurance due to a failure to secure workers' compensation obligations in the manner required by subsections (a) and (b) of Section 4 of the Workers' Compensation Act.

A complaint filed with the Department by the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission or the Department of Insurance that includes a certification, signed by its Director or Chairman, or the Director or Chairman's designee, attesting to a finding of the failure to secure workers' compensation obligations in the manner required by subsections (a) and (b) of Section 4 of the Workers' Compensation Act or the failure to pay any fines or penalties or to discharge any obligation under a settlement relating to the failure to secure workers' compensation obligations in the manner required by subsections (a) and (b) of Section 4 of the Workers' Compensation Act is prima facie evidence of the licensee's or applicant's failure to comply with subsections (a) and (b) of Section 4 of the Workers' Compensation Act. Upon receipt of that certification, the Department shall, without a hearing, immediately suspend all licenses held by the licensee or the processing of any application from the applicant. Enforcement of the Department's order shall be stayed for 60 days. The Department shall provide notice of the suspension to the licensee by mailing a copy of the Department's order to the licensee's or applicant's address of record or emailing a copy of the order to the licensee's or applicant's email address of record. The notice shall advise the licensee or applicant that the suspension shall be effective 60 days after the issuance of the order unless the Department receives, from the licensee or applicant, a request for a hearing before the Department to dispute the matters contained in the order.

Upon receiving notice from the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission or the Department of Insurance that the violation has been corrected or otherwise resolved, the Department shall vacate the order suspending a licensee's license or the processing of an applicant's application.

No license shall be suspended or revoked until after the licensee is afforded any due process protection guaranteed by statute or rule adopted by the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission or the Department of Insurance.

(Source: P.A. 103-26, eff. 1-1-24; 103-605, eff. 7-1-24.)