(225 ILCS 340/19) (from Ch. 111, par. 6619)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2030)
Sec. 19. Professional design firm registration; conditions.
(a) Nothing in this Act prohibits the formation, under the provisions of the
Professional Service Corporation Act, of a corporation to practice
structural engineering.
Any business, including, but not limited to, a Professional Service Corporation, that
includes within its stated purposes, practices, or holds itself out as
available to practice, structural engineering, shall be registered with
the Department pursuant to the provisions of this Section.
Any sole proprietorship not owned and operated by an Illinois licensed
design professional licensed under this Act shall be prohibited from
offering structural engineering services to the public. "Illinois licensed
design professional" means a person who holds an active license as a structural
engineer under this Act, as an architect under the Illinois
Architecture Practice Act of 1989, or as a professional engineer under the
Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989.
Any sole proprietorship owned and operated by a structural engineer with an
active license issued under this Act and conducting or transacting such
business under an assumed name in accordance with the provisions of the Assumed
Business Name Act shall comply with the registration requirements of a
professional design firm.
Any sole proprietorship owned
and operated by a structural engineer with an active license issued under this
Act and conducting or transacting such business under the real name of the
sole proprietor is exempt from the registration requirements of a
professional design
firm.
Any partnership which includes within its purpose, practices, or
holds itself out as available to practice structural engineering,
shall register with the Department pursuant to the provisions set forth
in this Section.
(b) Any professional design firm seeking to be registered under the
provisions of this Section shall not be registered unless at least one managing agent in
charge of structural engineering activities in this State is designated by the
professional design firm. A designated managing agent must at all times maintain a valid,
active license to practice structural engineering in Illinois.
No individual whose license to practice structural engineering in this
State is currently in a suspended, inactive, or revoked status shall act as a managing
agent for a professional design firm.
(c) No business shall practice or hold itself out as available to practice
structural engineering until it is registered with the Department.
(d) Any business seeking to be registered under this Section shall apply for
a certificate of registration on a form provided by the Department and shall
provide such information as requested by the Department, which shall include
but shall not be limited to:
(1) the name and license number of the person |
It shall be the responsibility of the professional design firm to provide
the Department notice, in writing, of any changes in the information
requested on the application.
(e) In the event a managing agent is terminated or terminates his or her status
as managing agent of the professional design firm, such managing agent and the professional design firm shall notify the Department of this fact in writing, by regular
mail or email, within 10 business days of such termination.
Thereafter, the professional design firm, if it has so informed the
Department, shall have 30 days in which to notify the Department
of the name and registration number of a newly designated managing agent. If a
corporation, the corporation shall also submit a certified copy of a resolution
by the board of directors designating the new managing agent. If a limited
liability company, the company shall also submit a certified copy of either its
articles of organization or operating agreement designating the new managing
agent. The Department may, upon good cause shown, extend the original 30-day
period.
If the professional design firm fails to notify the Department in writing, by regular mail or by email,
within the specified time, the registration shall be
terminated without prior hearing. Notification of termination shall be sent to the address of record by regular mail or by email. If the professional
design firm continues to operate and offer structural engineering services
after the termination, the Department may seek prosecution under Sections 20 and 20.5 of this Act for the unlicensed practice of structural engineering.
(f) No professional design firm shall be relieved of responsibility for the
conduct or acts of its agents, employees, members, managers, or officers by
reason of its compliance with this Section, nor shall any individual practicing
structural engineering be relieved of the responsibility for professional
services performed by reason of the individual's employment or relationship
with a professional design firm registered under this Section.
(g) Disciplinary action against a professional design firm registered
under this Section shall be administered in the same manner and on the same
grounds as disciplinary action against a licensed structural engineer.
All disciplinary action taken or pending against a business before the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1993 shall be
continued or remain in effect without the Department filing separate actions.
It is unlawful for any person to practice, or to attempt to practice,
structural engineering, without being licensed under this Act. It is unlawful
for any business not subject to the sole proprietorship exemption to offer or
provide structural engineering services without active registration issued by
the Department as a professional design firm or professional service
corporation.
(Source: P.A. 101-312, eff. 8-9-19.)
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