Bill Text: IL SB1686 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the School Code. Provides that a school board may award a contract to a bidder who is not the lowest responsible bidder if the school board has considered factors of social responsibility in its decision to award the contract to the bidder. Provides that factors of social responsibility include, but are not limited to, businesses owned by women, minorities, persons with disabilities, or veterans and bidders who have programs or relationships that benefit such businesses. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-12-22 - Chief Sponsor Changed to Sen. Don Harmon [SB1686 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2021-SB1686-Introduced.html

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102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2021 and 2022 SB1686 Introduced 2/26/2021, by Sen. Scott M. Bennett SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
105 ILCS 5/10-20.21
Amends the School Code. Provides that a school board may award a contract to a bidder who is not the lowest responsible bidder if the school board has considered factors of social responsibility in its decision to award the contract to the bidder. Provides that factors of social responsibility include, but are not limited to, businesses owned by women, minorities, persons with disabilities, or veterans and bidders who have programs or relationships that benefit such businesses. Effective immediately.
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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning education.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
10-20.21 as follows:
(105 ILCS 5/10-20.21)
Sec. 10-20.21. Contracts.
(a) To award all contracts for purchase of supplies and
materials or work involving an expenditure in excess of
$25,000 or a lower amount as required by board policy to the
lowest responsible bidder, considering conformity with
specifications, terms of delivery, quality and serviceability,
after due advertisement, except as otherwise provided under
subsection (a-5) or except the following: (i) contracts for
the services of individuals possessing a high degree of
professional skill where the ability or fitness of the
individual plays an important part; (ii) contracts for the
printing of finance committee reports and departmental
reports; (iii) contracts for the printing or engraving of
bonds, tax warrants and other evidences of indebtedness; (iv)
contracts for the purchase of perishable foods and perishable
beverages; (v) contracts for materials and work which have
been awarded to the lowest responsible bidder after due

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advertisement, but due to unforeseen revisions, not the fault
of the contractor for materials and work, must be revised
causing expenditures not in excess of 10% of the contract
price; (vi) contracts for the maintenance or servicing of, or
provision of repair parts for, equipment which are made with
the manufacturer or authorized service agent of that equipment
where the provision of parts, maintenance, or servicing can
best be performed by the manufacturer or authorized service
agent; (vii) purchases and contracts for the use, purchase,
delivery, movement, or installation of data processing
equipment, software, or services and telecommunications and
interconnect equipment, software, and services; (viii)
contracts for duplicating machines and supplies; (ix)
contracts for the purchase of fuel, including diesel,
gasoline, oil, aviation, natural gas, or propane, lubricants,
or other petroleum products; (x) purchases of equipment
previously owned by some entity other than the district
itself; (xi) contracts for repair, maintenance, remodeling,
renovation, or construction, or a single project involving an
expenditure not to exceed $50,000 and not involving a change
or increase in the size, type, or extent of an existing
facility; (xii) contracts for goods or services procured from
another governmental agency; (xiii) contracts for goods or
services which are economically procurable from only one
source, such as for the purchase of magazines, books,
periodicals, pamphlets and reports, and for utility services

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such as water, light, heat, telephone or telegraph; (xiv)
where funds are expended in an emergency and such emergency
expenditure is approved by 3/4 of the members of the board;
(xv) State master contracts authorized under Article 28A of
this Code; and (xvi) contracts providing for the
transportation of pupils, which contracts must be advertised
in the same manner as competitive bids and awarded by first
considering the bidder or bidders most able to provide safety
and comfort for the pupils, stability of service, and any
other factors set forth in the request for proposal regarding
quality of service, and then price. However, at no time shall a
cause of action lie against a school board for awarding a pupil
transportation contract per the standards set forth in this
subsection (a) unless the cause of action is based on
fraudulent conduct.
All competitive bids for contracts involving an
expenditure in excess of $25,000 or a lower amount as required
by board policy must be sealed by the bidder and must be opened
by a member or employee of the school board at a public bid
opening at which the contents of the bids must be announced.
Each bidder must receive at least 3 days' notice of the time
and place of the bid opening. For purposes of this Section due
advertisement includes, but is not limited to, at least one
public notice at least 10 days before the bid date in a
newspaper published in the district, or if no newspaper is
published in the district, in a newspaper of general

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circulation in the area of the district. State master
contracts and certified education purchasing contracts, as
defined in Article 28A of this Code, are not subject to the
requirements of this paragraph.
Under this Section, the acceptance of bids sealed by a
bidder and the opening of these bids at a public bid opening
may be permitted by an electronic process for communicating,
accepting, and opening competitive bids. An electronic bidding
process must provide for, but is not limited to, the following
safeguards:
(1) On the date and time certain of a bid opening, the
primary person conducting the competitive, sealed,
electronic bid process shall log onto a specified database
using a unique username and password previously assigned
to the bidder to allow access to the bidder's specific bid
project number.
(2) The specified electronic database must be on a
network that (i) is in a secure environment behind a
firewall; (ii) has specific encryption tools; (iii)
maintains specific intrusion detection systems; (iv) has
redundant systems architecture with data storage back-up,
whether by compact disc or tape; and (v) maintains a
disaster recovery plan.
It is the legislative intent of Public Act 96-841 to maintain
the integrity of the sealed bidding process provided for in
this Section, to further limit any possibility of bid-rigging,

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to reduce administrative costs to school districts, and to
effect efficiencies in communications with bidders.
(a-5) Notwithstanding subsection (a), a school board may
award a contract under this Section to a bidder who is not the
lowest responsible bidder if the school board has considered
factors of social responsibility in the school board's
decision to award the contract to the bidder. Factors of
social responsibility include, but are not limited to,
businesses owned by women, minorities, persons with
disabilities, or veterans and bidders who have programs or
relationships that benefit such businesses.
(b) To require, as a condition of any contract for goods
and services, that persons bidding for and awarded a contract
and all affiliates of the person collect and remit Illinois
Use Tax on all sales of tangible personal property into the
State of Illinois in accordance with the provisions of the
Illinois Use Tax Act regardless of whether the person or
affiliate is a "retailer maintaining a place of business
within this State" as defined in Section 2 of the Use Tax Act.
For purposes of this Section, the term "affiliate" means any
entity that (1) directly, indirectly, or constructively
controls another entity, (2) is directly, indirectly, or
constructively controlled by another entity, or (3) is subject
to the control of a common entity. For purposes of this
subsection (b), an entity controls another entity if it owns,
directly or individually, more than 10% of the voting

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securities of that entity. As used in this subsection (b), the
term "voting security" means a security that (1) confers upon
the holder the right to vote for the election of members of the
board of directors or similar governing body of the business
or (2) is convertible into, or entitles the holder to receive
upon its exercise, a security that confers such a right to
vote. A general partnership interest is a voting security.
To require that bids and contracts include a certification
by the bidder or contractor that the bidder or contractor is
not barred from bidding for or entering into a contract under
this Section and that the bidder or contractor acknowledges
that the school board may declare the contract void if the
certification completed pursuant to this subsection (b) is
false.
(b-5) To require all contracts and agreements that pertain
to goods and services and that are intended to generate
additional revenue and other remunerations for the school
district in excess of $1,000, including without limitation
vending machine contracts, sports and other attire, class
rings, and photographic services, to be approved by the school
board. The school board shall file as an attachment to its
annual budget a report, in a form as determined by the State
Board of Education, indicating for the prior year the name of
the vendor, the product or service provided, and the actual
net revenue and non-monetary remuneration from each of the
contracts or agreements. In addition, the report shall

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indicate for what purpose the revenue was used and how and to
whom the non-monetary remuneration was distributed.
(b-10) To prohibit any contract to purchase food with a
bidder or offeror if the bidder's or offeror's contract terms
prohibit the school from donating food to food banks,
including, but not limited to, homeless shelters, food
pantries, and soup kitchens.
(c) If the State education purchasing entity creates a
master contract as defined in Article 28A of this Code, then
the State education purchasing entity shall notify school
districts of the existence of the master contract.
(d) In purchasing supplies, materials, equipment, or
services that are not subject to subsection (c) of this
Section, before a school district solicits bids or awards a
contract, the district may review and consider as a bid under
subsection (a) of this Section certified education purchasing
contracts that are already available through the State
education purchasing entity.
(Source: P.A. 101-570, eff. 8-23-19; 101-632, eff. 6-5-20.)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.