HB0952: STATE GOVERNMENT-TECH

HB0952 Engrossed LRB104 04854 SPS 14881 b 1 AN ACT concerning State government. 2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 3 represented in the General Assembly: 4 Section 5. The Illinois Procurement Code is amended by 5 changing Section 45-45 as follows: 6 (30 ILCS 500/45-45) 7 Sec. 45-45. Small businesses. 8 (a) Set-asides. Each chief procurement officer has 9 authority to designate as small business set-asides a fair 10 proportion of construction, supply, and service contracts for 11 award to small businesses in Illinois. Advertisements for bids 12 or offers for those contracts shall specify designation as 13 small business set-asides. In awarding the contracts, only 14 bids or offers from qualified small businesses shall be 15 considered. 16 (b) Small business. "Small business" means a business that 17 is independently owned and operated and that is not dominant 18 in its field of operation. The chief procurement officer shall 19 establish a detailed definition by rule, using in addition to 20 the foregoing criteria other criteria, including the number of 21 employees and the dollar volume of business. When computing 22 the size status of a potential contractor, annual sales and 23 receipts of the potential contractor and all of its affiliates HB0952 Engrossed - 2 - LRB104 04854 SPS 14881 b 1 shall be included. The maximum number of employees and the 2 maximum dollar volume that a small business may have under the 3 rules promulgated by the chief procurement officer may vary 4 from industry to industry to the extent necessary to reflect 5 differing characteristics of those industries or objectives of 6 the applicable small business rules. Except for contracts, 7 goods, and services procured by the Department of 8 Transportation, the maximum number of employees and maximum 9 dollar volume shall be , subject to the following limitations: 10 (1) No wholesale business is a small business if its 11 annual sales for its most recently completed fiscal year 12 exceed $13,000,000. 13 (2) No retail business or business selling services is 14 a small business if its annual sales and receipts exceed 15 $8,000,000. 16 (3) No manufacturing business is a small business if 17 it employs more than 250 persons. 18 (4) No construction business is a small business if 19 its annual sales and receipts exceed $14,000,000. 20 (b-1) For contracts, goods, and services procured by the 21 Department of Transportation, no business shall be a small 22 business, regardless of type, if (i) its annual sales for its 23 most recently completed fiscal year exceed the small business 24 size standard for its specific industry, as established by the 25 U.S. Small Business Administration, or (ii) it employs more 26 individuals than the number set forth in the small business HB0952 Engrossed - 3 - LRB104 04854 SPS 14881 b 1 size standard for its specific industry, as established by the 2 U.S. Small Business Administration, whichever is applicable. 3 (c) Fair proportion. For the purpose of subsection (a), 4 for State agencies of the executive branch, a fair proportion 5 of construction contracts shall be no less than 25% nor more 6 than 40% of the annual total contracts for construction. 7 (d) Withdrawal of designation. A small business set-aside 8 designation may be withdrawn by the purchasing agency when 9 deemed in the best interests of the State. Upon withdrawal, 10 all bids or offers shall be rejected, and the bidders or 11 offerors shall be notified of the reason for rejection. The 12 contract shall then be awarded in accordance with this Code 13 without the designation of small business set-aside. Each 14 chief procurement officer shall make the annual report 15 available on his or her official website. Each chief 16 procurement officer shall also issue a press release in 17 conjunction with the small business annual report that 18 includes an executive summary of the annual report and a link 19 to the annual report on the chief procurement officer's 20 website. 21 (e) Small business specialist. Each chief procurement 22 officer shall designate one or more individuals to serve as 23 its small business specialist. The small business specialists 24 shall collectively work together to accomplish the following 25 duties: 26 (1) Compiling and maintaining a comprehensive list of HB0952 Engrossed - 4 - LRB104 04854 SPS 14881 b 1 potential small contractors. In this duty, he or she shall 2 cooperate with the Federal Small Business Administration 3 in locating potential sources for various products and 4 services. 5 (2) Assisting small businesses in complying with the 6 procedures for bidding on State contracts. 7 (3) Examining requests from State agencies for the 8 purchase of property or services to help determine which 9 invitations to bid are to be designated small business 10 set-asides. 11 (4) Making recommendations to the chief procurement 12 officer for the simplification of specifications and terms 13 in order to increase the opportunities for small business 14 participation. 15 (5) Assisting in investigations by purchasing agencies 16 to determine the responsibility of bidders or offerors on 17 small business set-asides. 18 (f) Small business annual report. Each small business 19 specialist designated under subsection (e) shall annually 20 before November 1 report in writing to the General Assembly 21 concerning the awarding of contracts to small businesses. The 22 report shall include the total value of awards made in the 23 preceding fiscal year under the designation of small business 24 set-aside. The report shall also include the total value of 25 awards made to businesses owned by minorities, women, and 26 persons with disabilities, as defined in the Business HB0952 Engrossed - 5 - LRB104 04854 SPS 14881 b 1 Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with 2 Disabilities Act, in the preceding fiscal year under the 3 designation of small business set-aside. 4 The requirement for reporting to the General Assembly 5 shall be satisfied by filing copies of the report as required 6 by Section 3.1 of the General Assembly Organization Act. 7 (Source: P.A. 103-570, eff. 1-1-24.)