Bill Text: IL HB5525 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act. Provides that State policy is that access to housing is a fundamental human right in preventing discrimination based on familial status or source of income in real estate transactions. Defines "source of income". Provides that this definition prohibits a person engaged in a real estate transaction from requiring a credit check before approving another person in the process of renting real property or requiring a move-in fee in lieu of a security deposit or in addition to a security deposit.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-04-05 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB5525 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB5525-Introduced.html

103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB5525

Introduced , by Rep. Lilian Jiménez

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
775 ILCS 5/1-102 from Ch. 68, par. 1-102
775 ILCS 5/1-103 from Ch. 68, par. 1-103

Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act. Provides that State policy is that access to housing is a fundamental human right in preventing discrimination based on familial status or source of income in real estate transactions. Defines "source of income". Provides that this definition prohibits a person engaged in a real estate transaction from requiring a credit check before approving another person in the process of renting real property or requiring a move-in fee in lieu of a security deposit or in addition to a security deposit.
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A BILL FOR

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1 AN ACT concerning civil law.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The Illinois Human Rights Act is amended by
5changing Sections 1-102 and 1-103 as follows:
6 (775 ILCS 5/1-102) (from Ch. 68, par. 1-102)
7 (Text of Section before amendment by P.A. 103-472)
8 Sec. 1-102. Declaration of policy. It is the public
9policy of this State:
10 (A) Freedom from Unlawful Discrimination. To secure for
11all individuals within Illinois the freedom from
12discrimination against any individual because of his or her
13race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age,
14order of protection status, marital status, physical or mental
15disability, military status, sexual orientation, pregnancy, or
16unfavorable discharge from military service in connection with
17employment, real estate transactions, access to financial
18credit, and the availability of public accommodations.
19 (B) Freedom from Sexual Harassment-Employment and
20Elementary, Secondary, and Higher Education. To prevent sexual
21harassment in employment and sexual harassment in elementary,
22secondary, and higher education.
23 (C) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Citizenship

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1Status-Employment. To prevent discrimination based on
2citizenship status in employment.
3 (C-5) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Work
4Authorization Status-Employment. To prevent discrimination
5based on the specific status or term of status that
6accompanies a legal work authorization.
7 (D) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Familial Status
8or Source of Income-Real Estate Transactions. To prevent
9discrimination based on familial status or source of income in
10real estate transactions.
11 (E) Public Health, Welfare and Safety. To promote the
12public health, welfare and safety by protecting the interest
13of all people in Illinois in maintaining personal dignity, in
14realizing their full productive capacities, and in furthering
15their interests, rights and privileges as citizens of this
16State.
17 (F) Implementation of Constitutional Guarantees. To secure
18and guarantee the rights established by Sections 17, 18 and 19
19of Article I of the Illinois Constitution of 1970.
20 (G) Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action. To establish
21Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action as the policies of
22this State in all of its decisions, programs and activities,
23and to assure that all State departments, boards, commissions
24and instrumentalities rigorously take affirmative action to
25provide equality of opportunity and eliminate the effects of
26past discrimination in the internal affairs of State

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1government and in their relations with the public.
2 (H) Unfounded Charges. To protect citizens of this State
3against unfounded charges of unlawful discrimination, sexual
4harassment in employment and sexual harassment in elementary,
5secondary, and higher education, and discrimination based on
6citizenship status or work authorization status in employment.
7(Source: P.A. 102-233, eff. 8-2-21; 102-896, eff. 1-1-23.)
8 (Text of Section after amendment by P.A. 103-472)
9 Sec. 1-102. Declaration of policy. It is the public
10policy of this State:
11 (A) Freedom from Unlawful Discrimination. To secure for
12all individuals within Illinois the freedom from
13discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national
14origin, ancestry, age, order of protection status, marital
15status, physical or mental disability, military status, sexual
16orientation, pregnancy, or unfavorable discharge from military
17service in connection with employment, real estate
18transactions, access to financial credit, and the availability
19of public accommodations, including in elementary, secondary,
20and higher education.
21 (B) Freedom from Sexual Harassment-Employment and
22Elementary, Secondary, and Higher Education. To prevent sexual
23harassment in employment and sexual harassment in elementary,
24secondary, and higher education.
25 (C) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Citizenship

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1Status-Employment. To prevent discrimination based on
2citizenship status in employment.
3 (C-5) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Work
4Authorization Status-Employment. To prevent discrimination
5based on the specific status or term of status that
6accompanies a legal work authorization.
7 (D) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Familial Status
8or Source of Income-Real Estate Transactions. To prevent
9discrimination based on familial status or source of income in
10real estate transactions because access to housing is a
11fundamental human right.
12 (E) Public Health, Welfare and Safety. To promote the
13public health, welfare and safety by protecting the interest
14of all people in Illinois in maintaining personal dignity, in
15realizing their full productive capacities, and in furthering
16their interests, rights and privileges as citizens of this
17State.
18 (F) Implementation of Constitutional Guarantees. To secure
19and guarantee the rights established by Sections 17, 18 and 19
20of Article I of the Illinois Constitution of 1970.
21 (G) Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action. To establish
22Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action as the policies of
23this State in all of its decisions, programs and activities,
24and to assure that all State departments, boards, commissions
25and instrumentalities rigorously take affirmative action to
26provide equality of opportunity and eliminate the effects of

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1past discrimination in the internal affairs of State
2government and in their relations with the public.
3 (H) Unfounded Charges. To protect citizens of this State
4against unfounded charges of prohibited discrimination in
5employment, real estate transactions, financial credit, and
6public accommodations, including in elementary, secondary, and
7higher education.
8(Source: P.A. 102-233, eff. 8-2-21; 102-896, eff. 1-1-23;
9103-472, eff. 8-1-24.)
10 (775 ILCS 5/1-103) (from Ch. 68, par. 1-103)
11 Sec. 1-103. General definitions. When used in this Act,
12unless the context requires otherwise, the term:
13 (A) Age. "Age" means the chronological age of a person who
14is at least 40 years old, except with regard to any practice
15described in Section 2-102, insofar as that practice concerns
16training or apprenticeship programs. In the case of training
17or apprenticeship programs, for the purposes of Section 2-102,
18"age" means the chronological age of a person who is 18 but not
19yet 40 years old.
20 (B) Aggrieved party. "Aggrieved party" means a person who
21is alleged or proved to have been injured by a civil rights
22violation or believes he or she will be injured by a civil
23rights violation under Article 3 that is about to occur.
24 (B-5) Arrest record. "Arrest record" means:
25 (1) an arrest not leading to a conviction;

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1 (2) a juvenile record; or
2 (3) criminal history record information ordered
3 expunged, sealed, or impounded under Section 5.2 of the
4 Criminal Identification Act.
5 (C) Charge. "Charge" means an allegation filed with the
6Department by an aggrieved party or initiated by the
7Department under its authority.
8 (D) Civil rights violation. "Civil rights violation"
9includes and shall be limited to only those specific acts set
10forth in Sections 2-102, 2-103, 2-105, 3-102, 3-102.1, 3-103,
113-102.10, 3-104.1, 3-105, 3-105.1, 4-102, 4-103, 5-102,
125A-102, 6-101, 6-101.5, and 6-102 of this Act.
13 (E) Commission. "Commission" means the Human Rights
14Commission created by this Act.
15 (F) Complaint. "Complaint" means the formal pleading filed
16by the Department with the Commission following an
17investigation and finding of substantial evidence of a civil
18rights violation.
19 (G) Complainant. "Complainant" means a person including
20the Department who files a charge of civil rights violation
21with the Department or the Commission.
22 (G-5) Conviction record. "Conviction record" means
23information indicating that a person has been convicted of a
24felony, misdemeanor or other criminal offense, placed on
25probation, fined, imprisoned, or paroled pursuant to any law
26enforcement or military authority.

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1 (H) Department. "Department" means the Department of Human
2Rights created by this Act.
3 (I) Disability.
4 (1) "Disability" means a determinable physical or mental
5characteristic of a person, including, but not limited to, a
6determinable physical characteristic which necessitates the
7person's use of a guide, hearing or support dog, the history of
8such characteristic, or the perception of such characteristic
9by the person complained against, which may result from
10disease, injury, congenital condition of birth or functional
11disorder and which characteristic:
12 (a) For purposes of Article 2, is unrelated to the
13 person's ability to perform the duties of a particular job
14 or position and, pursuant to Section 2-104 of this Act, a
15 person's illegal use of drugs or alcohol is not a
16 disability;
17 (b) For purposes of Article 3, is unrelated to the
18 person's ability to acquire, rent, or maintain a housing
19 accommodation;
20 (c) For purposes of Article 4, is unrelated to a
21 person's ability to repay;
22 (d) For purposes of Article 5, is unrelated to a
23 person's ability to utilize and benefit from a place of
24 public accommodation;
25 (e) For purposes of Article 5, also includes any
26 mental, psychological, or developmental disability,

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1 including autism spectrum disorders.
2 (2) Discrimination based on disability includes unlawful
3discrimination against an individual because of the
4individual's association with a person with a disability.
5 (J) Marital status. "Marital status" means the legal
6status of being married, single, separated, divorced, or
7widowed.
8 (J-1) Military status. "Military status" means a person's
9status on active duty in or status as a veteran of the armed
10forces of the United States, status as a current member or
11veteran of any reserve component of the armed forces of the
12United States, including the United States Army Reserve,
13United States Marine Corps Reserve, United States Navy
14Reserve, United States Air Force Reserve, and United States
15Coast Guard Reserve, or status as a current member or veteran
16of the Illinois Army National Guard or Illinois Air National
17Guard.
18 (K) National origin. "National origin" means the place in
19which a person or one of his or her ancestors was born.
20 (K-5) "Order of protection status" means a person's status
21as being a person protected under an order of protection
22issued pursuant to the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986,
23Article 112A of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963, the
24Stalking No Contact Order Act, or the Civil No Contact Order
25Act, or an order of protection issued by a court of another
26state.

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1 (L) Person. "Person" includes one or more individuals,
2partnerships, associations or organizations, labor
3organizations, labor unions, joint apprenticeship committees,
4or union labor associations, corporations, the State of
5Illinois and its instrumentalities, political subdivisions,
6units of local government, legal representatives, trustees in
7bankruptcy or receivers.
8 (L-5) Pregnancy. "Pregnancy" means pregnancy, childbirth,
9or medical or common conditions related to pregnancy or
10childbirth.
11 (M) Public contract. "Public contract" includes every
12contract to which the State, any of its political
13subdivisions, or any municipal corporation is a party.
14 (M-5) Race. "Race" includes traits associated with race,
15including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective
16hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists.
17 (N) Religion. "Religion" includes all aspects of religious
18observance and practice, as well as belief, except that with
19respect to employers, for the purposes of Article 2,
20"religion" has the meaning ascribed to it in paragraph (F) of
21Section 2-101.
22 (O) Sex. "Sex" means the status of being male or female.
23 (O-1) Sexual orientation. "Sexual orientation" means
24actual or perceived heterosexuality, homosexuality,
25bisexuality, or gender-related identity, whether or not
26traditionally associated with the person's designated sex at

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1birth. "Sexual orientation" does not include a physical or
2sexual attraction to a minor by an adult.
3 (O-5) Source of income. "Source of income" means the
4lawful manner by which an individual supports himself or
5herself and his or her dependents. This definition prohibits a
6person engaged in a real estate transaction from requiring a
7credit check before approving another person in the process of
8renting real property or requiring a move-in fee in lieu of a
9security deposit or in addition to a security deposit.
10 (P) Unfavorable military discharge. "Unfavorable military
11discharge" includes discharges from the Armed Forces of the
12United States, their Reserve components, or any National Guard
13or Naval Militia which are classified as RE-3 or the
14equivalent thereof, but does not include those characterized
15as RE-4 or "Dishonorable".
16 (Q) Unlawful discrimination. "Unlawful discrimination"
17means discrimination against a person because of his or her
18actual or perceived: race, color, religion, national origin,
19ancestry, age, sex, marital status, order of protection
20status, disability, military status, sexual orientation,
21pregnancy, or unfavorable discharge from military service as
22those terms are defined in this Section.
23(Source: P.A. 102-362, eff. 1-1-22; 102-419, eff. 1-1-22;
24102-558, eff. 8-20-21; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 102-896, eff.
251-1-23; 102-1102, eff. 1-1-23; 103-154, eff. 6-30-23.)

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