Public Act 0160 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB1189 Enrolled LRB104 07452 SPS 17493 b

Public Act 104-0160

AN ACT concerning employment.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Prevailing Wage Act is amended by changing Sections 2 and 11 as follows:

(820 ILCS 130/2)

Sec. 2. This Act applies to the wages of laborers, mechanics and other workers employed in any public works, as hereinafter defined, by any public body and to anyone under contracts for public works. This includes any maintenance, repair, assembly, or disassembly work performed on equipment whether owned, leased, or rented.

As used in this Act, unless the context indicates otherwise:

"Public works" means all fixed works constructed or demolished by any public body, or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds. "Public works" as defined herein includes all projects financed in whole or in part with bonds, grants, loans, or other funds made available by or through the State or any of its political subdivisions, including but not limited to: bonds issued under the Industrial Project Revenue Bond Act (Article 11, Division 74 of the Illinois Municipal Code), the Industrial Building Revenue Bond Act, the Illinois Finance Authority Act, the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority Act, or the Build Illinois Bond Act; loans or other funds made available pursuant to the Build Illinois Act; loans or other funds made available pursuant to the Riverfront Development Fund under Section 10-15 of the River Edge Redevelopment Zone Act; or funds from the Fund for Illinois' Future under Section 6z-47 of the State Finance Act, funds for school construction under Section 5 of the General Obligation Bond Act, funds authorized under Section 3 of the School Construction Bond Act, funds for school infrastructure under Section 6z-45 of the State Finance Act, and funds for transportation purposes under Section 4 of the General Obligation Bond Act. "Public works" also includes all federal construction projects administered or controlled by a public body if the prevailing rate of wages is equal to or greater than the prevailing wage determination by the United States Secretary of Labor for the same locality for the same type of construction used to classify the federal construction project. "Public works" also includes (i) all projects financed in whole or in part with funds from the Environmental Protection Agency under the Illinois Renewable Fuels Development Program Act for which there is no project labor agreement; (ii) all work performed pursuant to a public private agreement under the Public Private Agreements for the Illiana Expressway Act or the Public-Private Agreements for the South Suburban Airport Act; (iii) all projects undertaken under a public-private agreement under the Public-Private Partnerships for Transportation Act or the Department of Natural Resources World Shooting and Recreational Complex Act; and (iv) all transportation facilities undertaken under a design-build contract or a Construction Manager/General Contractor contract under the Innovations for Transportation Infrastructure Act. "Public works" also includes all projects at leased facility property used for airport purposes under Section 35 of the Local Government Facility Lease Act. "Public works" also includes the construction of a new wind power facility by a business designated as a High Impact Business under Section 5.5(a)(3)(E) and the construction of a new utility-scale solar power facility by a business designated as a High Impact Business under Section 5.5(a)(3)(E-5) of the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act. "Public works" also includes electric vehicle charging station projects financed pursuant to the Electric Vehicle Act and renewable energy projects required to pay the prevailing wage pursuant to the Illinois Power Agency Act. "Public works" also includes power washing projects by a public body or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds in which steam or pressurized water, with or without added abrasives or chemicals, is used to remove paint or other coatings, oils or grease, corrosion, or debris from a surface or to prepare a surface for a coating. "Public works" does not include work done directly by any public utility company, whether or not done under public supervision or direction, or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds. "Public works" also includes construction projects performed by a third party contracted by any public utility, as described in subsection (a) of Section 2.1, in public rights-of-way, as defined in Section 21-201 of the Public Utilities Act, whether or not done under public supervision or direction, or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds. "Public works" also includes construction projects that exceed 15 aggregate miles of new fiber optic cable, performed by a third party contracted by any public utility, as described in subsection (b) of Section 2.1, in public rights-of-way, as defined in Section 21-201 of the Public Utilities Act, whether or not done under public supervision or direction, or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds. "Public works" also includes any corrective action performed pursuant to Title XVI of the Environmental Protection Act for which payment from the Underground Storage Tank Fund is requested. "Public works" also includes all construction projects involving fixtures or permanent attachments affixed to light poles that are owned by a public body, including street light poles, traffic light poles, and other lighting fixtures, whether or not done under public supervision or direction, or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds, unless the project is performed by employees employed directly by the public body. "Public works" also includes work performed subject to the Mechanical Insulation Energy and Safety Assessment Act. "Public works" also includes the removal, hauling, and transportation of biosolids, lime sludge, and lime residue from a water treatment plant or facility and the disposal of biosolids, lime sludge, and lime residue removed from a water treatment plant or facility at a landfill. "Public works" does not include projects undertaken by the owner at an owner-occupied single-family residence or at an owner-occupied unit of a multi-family residence. "Public works" does not include work performed for soil and water conservation purposes on agricultural lands, whether or not done under public supervision or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds, done directly by an owner or person who has legal control of those lands.

"Construction" means all work on public works involving laborers, workers or mechanics. This includes any maintenance, repair, assembly, or disassembly work performed on equipment whether owned, leased, or rented.

"Locality" means the county where the physical work upon public works is performed, except (1) that if there is not available in the county a sufficient number of competent skilled laborers, workers and mechanics to construct the public works efficiently and properly, "locality" includes any other county nearest the one in which the work or construction is to be performed and from which such persons may be obtained in sufficient numbers to perform the work and (2) that, with respect to contracts for highway work with the Department of Transportation of this State, "locality" may at the discretion of the Secretary of the Department of Transportation be construed to include two or more adjacent counties from which workers may be accessible for work on such construction.

"Public body" means the State or any officer, board or commission of the State or any political subdivision or department thereof, or any institution supported in whole or in part by public funds, and includes every county, city, town, village, township, school district, irrigation, utility, reclamation improvement or other district and every other political subdivision, district or municipality of the state whether such political subdivision, municipality or district operates under a special charter or not.

"Labor organization" means an organization that is the exclusive representative of an employer's employees recognized or certified pursuant to the National Labor Relations Act.

The terms "general prevailing rate of hourly wages", "general prevailing rate of wages" or "prevailing rate of wages" when used in this Act mean the hourly cash wages plus annualized fringe benefits for training and apprenticeship programs approved by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training, health and welfare, insurance, vacations and pensions paid generally, in the locality in which the work is being performed, to employees engaged in work of a similar character on public works.

(Source: P.A. 102-9, eff. 1-1-22; 102-444, eff. 8-20-21; 102-673, eff. 11-30-21; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 102-1094, eff. 6-15-22; 103-8, eff. 6-7-23; 103-327, eff. 1-1-24; 103-346, eff. 1-1-24; 103-359, eff. 7-28-23; 103-447, eff. 8-4-23; 103-605, eff. 7-1-24.)

(820 ILCS 130/11) (from Ch. 48, par. 39s-11)

Sec. 11. No public works project shall be instituted unless the provisions of this Act have been complied with. The provisions of this Act shall not be applicable to federal Federal construction projects that which require a prevailing wage determination by the United States Secretary of Labor, except as described in Section 2. The Illinois Department of Labor represented by the Attorney General is empowered to sue for injunctive relief against the awarding of any contract or the continuation of work under any contract for public works at a time when the prevailing wage prerequisites have not been met. Any contract for public works awarded at a time when the prevailing wage prerequisites had not been met shall be void as against public policy and the contractor is prohibited from recovering any damages for the voiding of the contract or pursuant to the terms of the contract. The contractor is limited to a claim for amounts actually paid for labor and materials supplied to the public body. Where objections to a determination of the prevailing rate of wages or a court action relative thereto is pending, the public body shall not continue work on the project unless sufficient funds are available to pay increased wages if such are finally determined or unless the Department of Labor certifies such determination of the prevailing rate of wages as correct.

Any laborer, worker or mechanic employed by the contractor or by any sub-contractor under him who is paid for his services in a sum less than the prevailing rates for work done under such contract, shall have a right of action for whatever difference there may be between the amount so paid, and the rates provided by the contract together with costs and such reasonable attorney's fees as shall be allowed by the court. Such contractor or subcontractor shall also be liable to the Department of Labor for 20% of such underpayments and shall be additionally liable to the laborer, worker or mechanic for punitive damages in the amount of 2% of the amount of any such penalty to the State for underpayments for each month following the date of payment during which such underpayments remain unpaid. Where a second or subsequent action to recover underpayments is brought against a contractor or subcontractor and the contractor or subcontractor is found liable for underpayments to any laborer, worker, or mechanic, the contractor or subcontractor shall also be liable to the Department of Labor for 50% of the underpayments payable as a result of the second or subsequent action, and shall be additionally liable for 5% of the amount of any such penalty to the State for underpayments for each month following the date of payment during which the underpayments remain unpaid. The Department shall also have a right of action on behalf of any individual who has a right of action under this Section. An action brought to recover same shall be deemed to be a suit for wages, and any and all judgments entered therein shall have the same force and effect as other judgments for wages. The action shall be brought within 5 years from the date of the failure to pay the wages or compensation. At the request of any laborer, workman or mechanic employed by the contractor or by any subcontractor under him who is paid less than the prevailing wage rate required by this Act, the Department of Labor may take an assignment of such wage claim in trust for the assigning laborer, workman or mechanic and may bring any legal action necessary to collect such claim, and the contractor or subcontractor shall be required to pay the costs incurred in collecting such claim.

(Source: P.A. 103-48, eff. 1-1-24.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1, 2025.

Effective Date: 8/14/2025