HB4612eng 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB4612 Engrossed LRB095 15585 RLC 44876 b

AN ACT concerning State employment.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the State Employment Application Act.

Section 5. Definition. In this Act:

"Application for State employment" means a written or electronic form submitted by an applicant who is seeking employment with a State agency.

"Crime of violence" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 1-10 of the Alcoholism and Other Drug Abuse and Dependency Act.

"State agency" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 1-7 of the Illinois State Auditing Act.

Section 10. State employment application; required question. Subject to the exception set out in Section 15 of this Act, an application for State employment may not contain any question as to whether the applicant was convicted of or placed on supervision for a non-violent criminal offense but must contain a question as to whether the applicant for State employment has ever been convicted of a crime of violence that is classified as a felony.

Section 15. Criminal background checks permitted. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prohibit a State agency from conducting a criminal background check of an applicant for State employment.

Section 20. Application of federal or State law. If a federal or State law disqualifies a person convicted of certain offenses from holding a position, an application for that position may inquire as to whether the applicant has been convicted of a disqualifying offense. If an applicant is applying for a position of peace officer as defined in Section 2-13 of the Criminal Code of 1961, an application for that position may inquire as to whether the applicant has been convicted of a disqualifying offense.

Section 25. Refusal to hire for conviction of a criminal offense. Nothing in this Act prohibits a decision to refuse to hire on the basis that the applicant has been convicted of a criminal offense.

Section 30. No rule making authority. Notwithstanding any other rulemaking authority that may exist, neither the Governor nor any agency or agency head under the jurisdiction of the Governor has any authority to make or promulgate rules to implement or enforce the provisions of this Act. If, however, the Governor believes that rules are necessary to implement or enforce the provisions of this Act, the Governor may suggest rules to the General Assembly by filing them with the Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate and by requesting that the General Assembly authorize such rulemaking by law, enact those suggested rules into law, or take any other appropriate action in the General Assembly's discretion. Nothing contained in this Act shall be interpreted to grant rulemaking authority under any other Illinois statute where such authority is not otherwise explicitly given. For the purposes of this Section, "rules" is given the meaning contained in Section 1-70 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act, and "agency" and "agency head" are given the meanings contained in Sections 1-20 and 1-25 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act to the extent that such definitions apply to agencies or agency heads under the jurisdiction of the Governor.

Section 90. The Personnel Code is amended by changing Section 8b.7 as follows:

(20 ILCS 415/8b.7) (from Ch. 127, par. 63b108b.7)

Sec. 8b.7. Veteran preference. For the granting of appropriate preference in entrance examinations to qualified persons who have been members of the armed forces of the United States or to qualified persons who, while citizens of the United States, were members of the armed forces of allies of the United States in time of hostilities with a foreign country, and to certain other persons as set forth in this Section.

(a) As used in this Section:

(1) "Time of hostilities with a foreign country" means any period of time in the past, present, or future during which a declaration of war by the United States Congress has been or is in effect or during which an emergency condition has been or is in effect that is recognized by the issuance of a Presidential proclamation or a Presidential executive order and in which the armed forces expeditionary medal or other campaign service medals are awarded according to Presidential executive order.

(2) "Armed forces of the United States" means the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. Service in the Merchant Marine that constitutes active duty under Section 401 of federal Public Law 95-202 shall also be considered service in the Armed Forces of the United States for purposes of this Section.

(b) The preference granted under this Section shall be in the form of points added to the final grades of the persons if they otherwise qualify and are entitled to appear on the list of those eligible for appointments.

(c) A veteran is qualified for a preference of 12 10 points if the veteran currently holds proof of a service connected disability from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or an allied country or if the veteran is a recipient of the Purple Heart.

(d) A veteran who has served during a time of hostilities with a foreign country is qualified for a preference of 7 5 points if the veteran served under one or more of the following conditions:

(1) The veteran served a total of at least 6 months, or

(2) The veteran served for the duration of hostilities regardless of the length of engagement, or

(3) The veteran was discharged on the basis of hardship, or

(4) The veteran was released from active duty because of a service connected disability and was discharged under honorable conditions.

(e) A person not eligible for a preference under subsection (c) or (d) is qualified for a preference of 5 3 points if the person has served in the armed forces of the United States, the Illinois National Guard, or any reserve component of the armed forces of the United States if the person: (1) served for at least 6 months and has been discharged under honorable conditions or (2) has been discharged on the ground of hardship or (3) was released from active duty because of a service connected disability. An active member of the National Guard or a reserve component of the armed forces of the United States is eligible for the preference if the member meets the service requirements of this subsection (e).

(f) The rank order of persons entitled to a preference on eligible lists shall be determined on the basis of their augmented ratings. When the Director establishes eligible lists on the basis of category ratings such as "superior", "excellent", "well-qualified", and "qualified", the veteran eligibles in each such category shall be preferred for appointment before the non-veteran eligibles in the same category.

(g) Employees in positions covered by jurisdiction B who, while in good standing, leave to engage in military service during a period of hostility, shall be given credit for seniority purposes for time served in the armed forces.

(h) A surviving unremarried spouse of a veteran who suffered a service connected death or the spouse of a veteran who suffered a service connected disability that prevents the veteran from qualifying for civil service employment shall be entitled to the same preference to which the veteran would have been entitled under this Section.

(i) A preference shall also be given to the following individuals: 10 points for one parent of an unmarried veteran who suffered a service connected death or a service connected disability that prevents the veteran from qualifying for civil service employment. The first parent to receive a civil service appointment shall be the parent entitled to the preference.

(j) The Department of Central Management Services shall adopt rules and implement procedures to verify that any person seeking a preference under this Section is entitled to the preference. A person seeking a preference under this Section shall provide documentation or execute any consents or other documents required by the Department of Central Management Services or any other State department or agency to enable the department or agency to verify that the person is entitled to the preference.

(k) If an applicant claims to be a veteran, the Department of Central Management Services must verify that status before granting a veteran preference by requiring a certified copy of the applicant's most recent DD214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) or other evidence of the applicant's most recent honorable discharge from the Armed Forces of the United States that is determined to be acceptable by the Department of Central Management Services.

(l) Notwithstanding any other rulemaking authority that may exist, neither the Governor nor any agency or agency head under the jurisdiction of the Governor has any authority to make or promulgate rules to implement or enforce the provisions of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly. If, however, the Governor believes that rules are necessary to implement or enforce the provisions of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly, the Governor may suggest rules to the General Assembly by filing them with the Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate and by requesting that the General Assembly authorize such rulemaking by law, enact those suggested rules into law, or take any other appropriate action in the General Assembly's discretion. Nothing contained in this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly shall be interpreted to grant rulemaking authority under any other Illinois statute where such authority is not otherwise explicitly given. For the purposes of this Section, "rules" is given the meaning contained in Section 1-70 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act, and "agency" and "agency head" are given the meanings contained in Sections 1-20 and 1-25 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act to the extent that such definitions apply to agencies or agency heads under the jurisdiction of the Governor.

(Source: P.A. 90-655, eff. 7-30-98; 91-481, eff. 1-1-00.)