Bill Text: IL HB4715 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Enrolled

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Bill Title: Amends the Registered Interior Designers Act. Defines terms. Provides that nothing in the Act shall be construed as preventing or restricting persons from engaging in professional services limited to the design of kitchen and bath spaces or the specification of products for kitchen and bath areas in noncommercial settings. Provides that every registered interior designer shall have a reproducible seal. Provides that the registered interior designer shall affix the signature, current date, date of registration expiration, and seal to the first sheet of any bound set or loose sheets of interior technical submissions. Provides that all interior technical submissions intended for use in the State shall be prepared and administered in accordance with standards of reasonable professional skill and diligence. Provides that prior to registration, the applicant shall provide substantial evidence to the Board of Registered Interior Design Professionals that the applicant has completed the education and work experience requirements to sit for the Council for Interior Design Qualification examination, has successfully passed the Council for Interior Design Qualification examination, and has maintained an active Council for Interior Design Qualification certification. Provides that each applicant for renewal or reinstatement of registration shall complete continuing education as set forth by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation by rule. Makes changes in provisions concerning causes for disciplinary actions. Provides that the Department may refuse to issue, renew, or restore or may revoke, suspend, place on probation, reprimand or take other disciplinary action as the Department may deem proper, including fines not to exceed $10,000 (instead of $5,000) for each violation. Makes other changes.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 19-0)

Status: (Passed) 2022-06-10 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 102-1066 [HB4715 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2021-HB4715-Enrolled.html

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AN ACT concerning regulation.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Registered Interior Designers Act is
amended by changing Sections 3, 4, 8, and 13 and by adding
Sections 4.1 and 4.2 as follows:
(225 ILCS 310/3) (from Ch. 111, par. 8203)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2027)
Sec. 3. Definitions. As used in this Act:
"Accredited institution" means an institution accredited
by the Council for Interior Design Accreditation,
accreditation body recognized by the United States Department
of Education, or a curriculum or transcript approved by the
Board per a registration applicant's application.
"Address of record" means the designated address recorded
by the Department in the applicant's application file or the
registrant's registration file as maintained by the
Department's licensure maintenance unit.
"Board" means the Board of Registered Interior Design
Professionals established under Section 6 of this Act.
"Department" means the Department of Financial and
Professional Regulation.
"Email address of record" means the designated email

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address recorded by the Department in the applicant's
application file or the registrant's registration file as
maintained by the Department's licensure maintenance unit.
"Interior technical submissions" means the designs,
drawings, and specifications that establish the scope of the
interior design to be constructed, the standard of quality for
materials, workmanship, equipment, and construction systems,
and the studies and other technical reports and calculations
prepared in the course of the practice of registered interior
design.
"Practice of registered interior design" means the design
of interior spaces as a part of an interior alteration or
interior construction project in conformity with public
health, safety, and welfare requirements, including the
preparation of documents relating to building code
descriptions, project egress plans that require no increase
capacity of exits in the space affected, space planning,
finish materials, furnishings, fixtures, equipment, and the
preparation of documents and interior technical submissions
relating to interior construction. "Practice of registered
interior design" does not include:
(1) The practice of structural engineering as defined
in the Structural Engineering Practice Act of 1989, the
practice of professional engineering as defined in the
Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989, or the
practice of land surveying as defined in the Professional

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Land Surveyor Act of 1989.
(2) Services that constitute the practice of
architecture as defined in the Illinois Architecture
Practice Act of 1989, except as provided in this Act.
(3) Altering or affecting the structural system of a
building, including changing the building's live or dead
load on the structural system.
(4) Changes to the building envelope, including
exterior walls, exterior wall coverings, exterior wall
openings, exterior windows and doors, architectural trim,
balconies and similar projections, bay and oriel windows,
roof assemblies and rooftop structures, and glass and
glazing for exterior use in both vertical and sloped
applications in buildings and structures.
(5) Altering or affecting the mechanical, plumbing,
heating, air conditioning, ventilation, electrical,
vertical transportation, fire sprinkler, or fire alarm
systems.
(6) Changes beyond the exit access component of a
means of egress system.
(7) Construction that materially affects life safety
systems pertaining to fire safety or the fire protection
of structural elements, or alterations to smoke evacuation
and compartmentalization systems or to fire-rated vertical
shafts in multistory structures.
(8) Changes of use to an occupancy of greater hazard

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as determined by the International Building Code.
(9) Changes to the construction classification of the
building or structure according to the International
Building Code.
"The profession of interior design", within the meaning
and intent of this Act, refers to persons qualified by
education, experience, and examination, who administer
contracts for fabrication, procurement, or installation in the
implementation of designs, drawings, and specifications for
any interior design project and offer or furnish professional
services, such as consultations, studies, drawings, and
specifications in connection with the location of lighting
fixtures, lamps and specifications of ceiling finishes as
shown in reflected ceiling plans, space planning, furnishings,
or the fabrication of non-loadbearing structural elements
within and surrounding interior spaces of buildings but
specifically excluding mechanical and electrical systems,
except for specifications of fixtures and their location
within interior spaces.
"Public member" means a person who is not a registered an
interior designer, educator in the field, architect,
structural engineer, or professional engineer. For purposes of
board membership, any person with a significant financial
interest in the design or construction service or profession
is not a public member.
"Registered interior designer" means a person who has

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received registration under Section 8 of this Act. A person
represents himself or herself to be a "registered interior
designer" within the meaning of this Act if he or she holds
himself or herself out to the public by any title
incorporating the words "registered interior designer" or any
title that includes the words "registered interior design".
"Responsible control" means the amount of control over
detailed professional knowledge of the content of interior
technical submissions during the preparation as is ordinarily
exercised by registered interior designers applying the
required professional standard of care. Merely reviewing or
reviewing and correcting an interior technical submission or
any portion thereof prepared by those not in the regular
employment of the office where the registered interior
designer is a resident without control over the content of
such work throughout its preparation does not constitute
responsible control.
"Secretary" means the Secretary of Financial and
Professional Regulation.
(Source: P.A. 102-20, eff. 1-1-22.)
(225 ILCS 310/4) (from Ch. 111, par. 8204)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2027)
Sec. 4. Title; application of Act.
(a) No individual shall, without a valid registration as a
registered an interior designer issued by the Department, in

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any manner hold himself or herself out to the public as a
registered interior designer or attach the title "registered
interior designer" or any other name or designation which
would in any way imply that he or she is able to use the title
"registered interior designer" as defined in this Act.
(a-5) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as preventing
or restricting the services offered or advertised by an
interior designer who is registered under this Act.
(b) Nothing in this Act shall prevent the employment, by a
registered interior designer association, partnership, or a
corporation furnishing interior design services for
remuneration, of persons not registered as interior designers
to perform services in various capacities as needed, provided
that the persons do not represent themselves as, or use the
title of, "registered interior designer".
(c) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit the
activities and use of the title "interior designer" on the
part of a person not registered under this Act who is a
graduate of an interior design program and a full-time
employee of a duly chartered institution of higher education
insofar as such person engages in public speaking, with or
without remuneration, provided that such person does not
represent himself or herself to be a registered interior
designer or use the title "registered interior designer".
(d) Nothing contained in this Act shall restrict any
person not registered under this Act from carrying out any of

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the activities listed in the definition of "the profession of
interior design" in Section 3 if such person does not
represent himself or herself or his or her services in any
manner prohibited by this Act.
(e) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as preventing
or restricting the practice, services, or activities of any
person licensed in this State under any other law from
engaging in the profession or occupation for which he or she is
licensed.
(f) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as preventing
or restricting the practice, services, or activities of
engineers licensed under the Professional Engineering Practice
Act of 1989 or the Structural Engineering Practice Act of
1989; architects licensed pursuant to the Illinois
Architectural Practice Act of 1989; any interior decorator or
individual offering interior decorating services including,
but not limited to, the selection of surface materials, window
treatments, wall coverings, furniture, accessories, paint,
floor coverings, and lighting fixtures; or builders, home
furnishings salespersons, and similar purveyors of goods and
services relating to homemaking.
(g) Nothing in this Act or any other Act shall prevent a
licensed architect from practicing interior design services.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as requiring the
services of a registered interior designer for the interior
designing of a single family residence.

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(h) Nothing in this Act shall authorize registered
interior designers to perform services, including life safety
services that they are prohibited from performing, or any
practice: (i) that is restricted in the Professional
Engineering Practice Act of 1989, the Professional Land
Surveyor Act of 1989, of the Structural Engineering Practice
Act of 1989; (ii) that is restricted in the Illinois
Architecture Practice Act of 1989, except as provided in this
Act; or (iii) that they are not authorized to perform under the
Environmental Barriers Act, except as provided in this Act.
Nothing in this Act shall authorize registered interior
designers to perform services, including life safety services
that they are prohibited from performing, or any practice (i)
that is restricted in the Illinois Architecture Practice Act
of 1989, the Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989, or
the Structural Engineering Practice Act of 1989, or (ii) that
they are not authorized to perform under the Environmental
Barriers Act.
(i) Nothing in this Act shall authorize registered
interior designers to advertise services that they are
prohibited to perform, including architecture or engineering
services, nor to use the title "architect" in any form.
(j) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as preventing
or restricting persons from engaging in professional services
limited to the design of kitchen and bath spaces or the
specification of products for kitchen and bath areas in

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noncommercial settings.
(Source: P.A. 102-20, eff. 1-1-22.)
(225 ILCS 310/4.1 new)
Sec. 4.1. Seal. Every registered interior designer shall
have a reproducible seal, or facsimile, the impression of
which shall contain the name of the registered interior
designer, the registrations number, and the words "Registered
Interior Designer, State of Illinois". The registered interior
designer shall affix the signature, current date, date of
registration expiration, and seal to the first sheet of any
bound set or loose sheets of interior technical submissions
used as contract documents between parties to the contract or
prepared for the review and approval of any governmental or
public authority having jurisdiction by that registered
interior designer or under that registered interior designer's
responsible control. The sheet of interior technical
submissions in which the seal is affixed shall indicate those
documents or parts thereof for which the seal shall apply. The
seal and dates may be electronically affixed. The registrant
may provide, at the registrant's sole discretion, an original
signature in the registrant's handwriting, a scanned copy of
the document bearing an original signature, or a signature
generated by a computer. All interior technical submissions
issued by any corporation, partnership, or professional
service corporation shall contain the corporate or assumed

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business name in addition to any other seal requirements set
forth in this Act.
A registered interior designer under this Act shall not
sign and seal interior technical submissions that were not
prepared by or under the responsible control of the registered
interior designer, except that:
(1) the registered interior designer may sign and seal
those portions of the interior technical submission that
were prepared by or under the responsible control of a
person who holds a registration under this Act, and who
has signed and sealed the documents, if the registered
interior designer has reviewed in whole or in part such
portions and has either coordinated their preparation or
integrated them into the work;
(2) the registered interior designer may sign and seal
portions of the professional work that are not required by
this Act to be prepared by or under the responsible
control of a registered interior designer if the
registered interior designer has reviewed and adopted in
whole or in part such portions and has integrated them
into the work. The work associated with the combination of
services in connection with the design and construction of
buildings shall be provided by a licensed architect. If
engineering, structural engineering, or licensed land
surveying services are required in association with an
interior nonstructural project being performed by a

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registered interior designer, the documents that have
already been properly sealed by a licensed professional
engineer, licensed structural engineer, or licensed land
surveyor may be compiled by a registered interior
designer. Each design professional shall seal the
respective documents and shall not seal a document that
was not prepared under the design professional's
responsible charge. For all other projects, engineering,
structural engineering, or land surveying services shall
be procured separate from the registered interior
designer;
(3) a partner or corporate officer of a professional
design firm registered in this State who has professional
knowledge of the content of the interior technical
submissions and intends to be responsible for the adequacy
of the interior technical submissions may sign and seal
interior technical submissions that are prepared by or
under the responsible control of a registered interior
designer who is registered in this State and who is in the
regular employment of the professional design firm.
The registered interior designer exercising responsible
control under which the interior technical submissions or
portions of the interior technical submission were prepared
shall be identified on the interior technical submissions or
portions of the interior technical submissions by name and
Illinois registration number.

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Any registered interior designer who signs and seals
interior technical submissions not prepared by that registered
interior designer but prepared under that registered interior
designer's responsible control by persons not regularly
employed in the office where the registered interior designer
is a resident shall maintain and make available to the Board
upon request for at least 5 years following such signing and
sealing, adequate and complete records demonstrating the
nature and extent of the registered interior designer's
control over, and detailed professional knowledge of the
interior technical submissions throughout their preparation.
(225 ILCS 310/4.2 new)
Sec. 4.2. Interior technical submissions.
(a) All interior technical submissions intended for use in
this State shall be prepared and administered in accordance
with standards of reasonable professional skill and diligence.
Care shall be taken to reflect the requirements of State law
and, where applicable, county and municipal ordinances in the
submissions. In recognition that registered interior designers
are registered for the protection of the public health,
safety, and welfare, submissions shall be of such quality and
scope, and be so administered, as to conform to professional
standards.
(b) No officer, board, commission, or other public entity
who receives interior technical submissions shall accept for

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filing or approval any interior technical submissions related
to services requiring the involvement of a registered interior
designer that do not bear the seal and signature of a
registered interior designer.
(c) It is unlawful to affix a seal to interior technical
submissions if it masks the true identify of the person who
actually exercised responsible control of the preparation of
such work. A registered interior designer who seals and signs
interior technical submissions is not responsible for damage
caused by subsequent changes to, or uses of, those interior
technical submissions where the subsequent changes or uses,
including changes to uses made by State or local agencies, are
not authorized or approved in writing by the registered
interior designer who originally sealed and signed the
interior technical submissions.
(225 ILCS 310/8) (from Ch. 111, par. 8208)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2027)
Sec. 8. Requirements for registration.
(a) Each applicant for registration shall apply to the
Department in writing on a form provided by the Department.
Except as otherwise provided in this Act, each applicant shall
take and pass the examination approved by the Department.
Prior to registration, the applicant shall provide substantial
evidence to the Board that the applicant has completed the
education and work experience requirements to sit for the

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NCIDQ examination administered by the Council for Interior
Design Qualification, has successfully passed the NCIDQ exam,
has maintained an active NCIDQ certification, and:
(1) is a graduate of a 5-year interior design or
architecture program from an accredited institution and
has completed at least 2 years of full-time diversified
interior design experience;
(2) is a graduate of a 4-year interior design or
architecture program from an accredited institution and
has completed at least 2 years of full-time diversified
interior design experience;
(3) has completed at least 3 years of interior design
or architecture curriculum from an accredited institution
and has completed 3 years of full-time diversified
interior design experience; or
(4) is a graduate of a 2-year interior design or
architecture program from an accredited institution and
has completed 4 years of full-time diversified interior
design experience.
(b) In addition to providing evidence of meeting the
requirements of subsection (a), each applicant for
registration as a registered interior designer shall provide
substantial evidence that he or she has successfully completed
the examination administered by the National Council for
Interior Design Qualification Qualifications.
Examinations for applicants under this Act may be held at

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the direction of the Department from time to time but not less
than once each year. The scope and form of the examination
shall conform to the National Council for Interior Design
Qualification examination for interior designers.
(b-5) Each applicant for registration shall pay to the
Department the required registration fee, which is not
refundable, at the time of filing his or her application.
(b-10) Each applicant for renewal or reinstatement of
registration under this Act shall have completed continuing
education as set forth by the Department by rule. The
Department shall consider the recommendations of the Board in
establishing requirements for continuing education
requirements but shall be no less than 10 hours of continuing
education in the areas of health, safety, and welfare every 2
years.
(c) An individual may apply for original registration
prior to passing the examination. He or she shall have 2 years
after the date of filing an application to pass the
examination. If evidence and documentation of passing the
examination are received by the Department later than 2 years
after the individual's filing, the application shall be denied
and the fee forfeited. The applicant may reapply at any time,
but shall meet the requirements in effect at the time of
reapplication.
(d) Upon payment of the required fee, which shall be
determined by rule, an applicant who is an architect licensed

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under the laws of this State may, without examination, be
granted registration as a registered interior designer by the
Department provided the applicant submits proof of an active
architectural license in Illinois.
(Source: P.A. 100-920, eff. 8-17-18; 101-81, eff. 7-12-19.)
(225 ILCS 310/13) (from Ch. 111, par. 8213)
(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2027)
Sec. 13. Refusal, revocation or suspension of
registration. The Department may refuse to issue, renew, or
restore or may revoke, suspend, place on probation, reprimand
or take other disciplinary action as the Department may deem
proper, including fines not to exceed $10,000 $5,000 for each
violation, with regard to any registration for any one or
combination of the following causes:
(a) Fraud in procuring the certificate of
registration.
(b) (Blank). Habitual intoxication or addiction to the
use of drugs.
(c) Making any misrepresentations or false promises,
directly or indirectly, to influence, persuade, or induce
patronage.
(d) Professional connection or association with, or
lending his or her name, to another for illegal use of the
title "registered interior designer", or professional
connection or association with any person, firm, or

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corporation holding itself out in any manner contrary to
this Act.
(e) Obtaining or seeking to obtain checks, money, or
any other items of value by false or fraudulent
representations.
(f) Use of the title under a name other than his or her
own.
(g) Improper, unprofessional, or dishonorable conduct
of a character likely to deceive, defraud, or harm the
public.
(h) Conviction in this or another state, or federal
court, of any crime which is a felony, if the Department
determines, after investigation, that such person has not
been sufficiently rehabilitated to warrant the public
trust.
(i) A violation of any provision of this Act or its
rules.
(j) Revocation by another state, the District of
Columbia, territory, or foreign nation of an interior
design or residential interior design license,
certification, or registration if at least one of the
grounds for that revocation is the same as or the
equivalent of one of the grounds for revocation set forth
in this Act.
(k) Mental incompetence as declared by a court of
competent jurisdiction.

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(l) Being named as a perpetrator in an indicated
report by the Department of Children and Family Services
pursuant to the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act,
and upon proof by clear and convincing evidence that the
registrant has caused a child to be an abused child or
neglected child as defined in the Abused and Neglected
Child Reporting Act.
(m) Aiding or assisting another person in violating
any provision of this Act or its rules.
(n) Failure to provide information in response to a
written request made by the Department within 30 days
after receipt of the written request.
(o) Physical illness, including, but not limited to,
deterioration through the aging process or loss of motor
skill that results in the inability to practice interior
design with reasonable judgment, skill, or safety.
(p) Using or attempting to use an expired, inactive,
suspended, or revoked registration or the certificate or
seal of another registrant or impersonating another
registrant.
(q) Signing, affixing, or allowing the registered
interior designer's seal to be affixed to any interior
technical submission not prepared by the registered
interior designer or under the registered interior
designer's responsible control.
(r) Negligence, incompetence, or misconduct in the

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practice of interior design.
(s) Habitual or excessive use or abuse of drugs
defined in law as controlled substances, alcohol,
narcotics, stimulants, or any other substances that
results in the inability to practice with reasonable
judgment, skill, or safety.
(t) Inability to practice the profession with
reasonable judgment, skill, or safety as a result of
physical illness, including, but not limited to,
deterioration through the aging process, loss of motor
skill, mental illness, or disability.
(u) The determination by a circuit court that a
licensee is subject to involuntary admission or judicial
admission, as provided in the Mental Health and
Developmental Disabilities Code, operates as an automatic
suspension. Such suspension will end only upon a finding
by a court that the licensee is no longer subject to
involuntary admission or judicial admission, the issuance
of an order so finding and discharging the patient, and
the recommendation of the Board to the Secretary that the
licensee be allowed to resume practice.
(v) Knowingly undertaking any activity or having any
financial or other interest, or accepting any compensation
or reward except from the registrant's clients, for
registered interior design services by the result of those
same services, any of which would reasonably appear to

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compromise the registrant's professional judgment in
serving the best interest of clients or the public.
The Department may refuse to issue or may suspend the
registration of any person who fails to file a return, or to
pay the tax, penalty, or interest showing in a filed return, or
to pay any final assessment of tax, penalty, or interest, as
required by any tax Act administered by the Illinois
Department of Revenue, until such time as the requirements of
any such tax Act are satisfied.
The entry of a decree by any circuit court establishing
that any person holding a certificate of registration under
this Act is a person subject to involuntary admission under
the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code shall
operate as a suspension of that registration. That person may
resume using the title "registered interior designer" only
upon a finding by the Board that he or she has been determined
to be no longer subject to involuntary admission by the court
and upon the Board's recommendation to the Director that he or
she be permitted to resume using the title "registered
interior designer".
(Source: P.A. 100-872, eff. 8-14-18; 100-920, eff. 8-17-18;
101-81, eff. 7-12-19.)