Bill Text: IL SB0769 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Engrossed
Bill Title: Amends the Home Repair Fraud Act. Provides that a person commits home repair fraud when he or she knowingly promises performance which the person knows will not be completed at any time during the performance of the service.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2022-06-15 - Chief Sponsor Changed to Sen. Don Harmon [SB0769 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2021-SB0769-Engrossed.html
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1 | AN ACT concerning criminal law.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | ||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Home Repair Fraud Act is amended by | ||||||
5 | changing Section 3 as follows:
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6 | (815 ILCS 515/3) (from Ch. 121 1/2, par. 1603)
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7 | Sec. 3. Home Repair Fraud.
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8 | (a) A person commits the offense of home repair fraud when | ||||||
9 | he knowingly
enters into an agreement or contract, written or | ||||||
10 | oral, with a person for
home repair, and he knowingly:
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11 | (1) Misrepresents a material fact relating to the | ||||||
12 | terms of the contract
or agreement or the preexisting or | ||||||
13 | existing condition of any portion of the
property | ||||||
14 | involved, or creates or confirms another's impression | ||||||
15 | which is
false and which he does not believe to be true, or | ||||||
16 | promises performance
which he does not intend to perform | ||||||
17 | or knows will not be performed; or
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18 | (2) uses or employs any deception, false pretense or | ||||||
19 | false promises in
order to induce, encourage or solicit | ||||||
20 | such person to enter into any
contract or agreement; or
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21 | (3) enters into an unconscionable agreement or | ||||||
22 | contract requiring
payment to the contractor of at least | ||||||
23 | $4,000. A contract is unconscionable
within the meaning of |
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1 | this Act when an unreasonable difference exists
between | ||||||
2 | the value of the services, materials and work to be | ||||||
3 | performed and
the amount charged for those services, | ||||||
4 | materials and work. For purposes of
this Section, prima | ||||||
5 | facie evidence shall exist that the contract or
agreement | ||||||
6 | is unconscionable if the total payment called for by the | ||||||
7 | contract
or agreement is in excess of four times the fair | ||||||
8 | market value for those
services, materials and work; or
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9 | (4) fails to comply with the provisions of "An Act in | ||||||
10 | relation to
the use of an assumed name in the conduct or | ||||||
11 | transaction of business in
this State", approved July 17, | ||||||
12 | 1941, as amended, and misrepresents or
conceals either his | ||||||
13 | real name, the name of his business, or his business
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14 | address.
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15 | (b) A person commits the offense of home repair fraud when | ||||||
16 | he knowingly:
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17 | (1) damages the property of a person with the intent | ||||||
18 | to enter
into an agreement or contract for home repair; or
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19 | (2) misrepresents himself or another to be an employee | ||||||
20 | or agent of any
unit of the federal, State or municipal | ||||||
21 | government or any other
governmental unit, or an employee | ||||||
22 | or agent of any public utility, with the
intent to cause a | ||||||
23 | person to enter into, with himself or another, any
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24 | contract or agreement for home repair ; or .
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25 | (3) promises performance which the person knows will | ||||||
26 | not be completed at any time during the performance of the |
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1 | service. | ||||||
2 | (c) For purposes of subsection (a), paragraph (1), it | ||||||
3 | shall be a
rebuttable presumption of intent or knowledge that | ||||||
4 | a person promises
performance which he does not intend to | ||||||
5 | perform and knows will not be
performed when, after no | ||||||
6 | performance or no substantial performance of a
contract or | ||||||
7 | agreement for home repair, he fails or refuses to return
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8 | payments made by the victim and he:
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9 | (1) fails to acknowledge or respond to a written | ||||||
10 | demand for commencement
or completion of home repair | ||||||
11 | within 10 days after such demand is mailed or
presented to | ||||||
12 | him by the victim or by the victim's legal representative | ||||||
13 | or
by a law enforcement or consumer agency acting on | ||||||
14 | behalf of the victim; or
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15 | (2) fails to notify the victim in writing of a change | ||||||
16 | of business name
or address prior to the completion of the | ||||||
17 | home repair; or
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18 | (3) makes false statements or representations to the | ||||||
19 | victim to excuse
his non-performance or non-substantial | ||||||
20 | performance; or
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21 | (4) uses deception to obtain the victim's consent to | ||||||
22 | modification of the
terms of the original contract or | ||||||
23 | agreement; or
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24 | (5) fails to employ qualified personnel necessary to | ||||||
25 | perform
the home repair; or
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26 | (6) fails to order or purchase the basic materials |
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1 | required for
performance of the home repair; or
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2 | (7) fails to comply with municipal, county, State or | ||||||
3 | federal
regulations or codes relating to the performance | ||||||
4 | of home repair.
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5 | Intent and knowledge shall be determined by an evaluation | ||||||
6 | of all
circumstances surrounding a transaction and the | ||||||
7 | determination shall not be
limited to the time of contract or | ||||||
8 | agreement.
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9 | Substantial performance shall not include work performed | ||||||
10 | in a manner
of little or no value or work that fails to comply | ||||||
11 | with the appropriate
municipal, county, State or federal | ||||||
12 | regulations or codes.
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13 | (Source: P.A. 87-820.)
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