Public Act 096-0447
 		





HB0721 Enrolled
LRB096 08293 KTG 18401 b






    AN ACT concerning civil law.

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


 
    Section 5. The Illinois Human Rights Act is amended  by 
changing Sections 1-102 and 1-103 as follows:
 
    (775 ILCS 5/1-102)  (from Ch. 68, par. 1-102)

    Sec. 1-102. Declaration of Policy.  It is the public policy 
of this State:


    (A) Freedom from Unlawful Discrimination. To secure for all 
individuals
within Illinois the freedom from discrimination 
against any individual because
of his or her race, color, 
religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, order of 
protection status,
marital status, physical or mental 
disability, military
status, sexual orientation, or 
unfavorable
discharge from military service in connection with 
employment, real estate
transactions, access to financial 
credit, and the availability of public
accommodations.


    (B) Freedom from Sexual Harassment-Employment and Higher 
Education.
To prevent sexual harassment in employment and 
sexual harassment in
higher education.


    (C) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Citizenship 
Status-Employment.
To prevent discrimination based on 
citizenship status in employment.


    (D) Freedom from Discrimination Based on Familial 
Status-Real Estate
Transactions.  To prevent discrimination 
based on familial status in real
estate transactions.


    (E) Public Health, Welfare and Safety. To promote the 
public health,
welfare and safety by protecting the interest of 
all people in Illinois
in maintaining personal dignity, in 
realizing their full productive
capacities, and in furthering 
their interests, rights and privileges as
citizens of this 
State.


    (F) Implementation of Constitutional Guarantees. To secure 
and
guarantee the rights established by Sections 17, 18 and 19 
of Article I
of the Illinois Constitution of 1970.


    (G) Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action. To establish 
Equal
Opportunity and Affirmative Action as the policies of 
this State in all
of its decisions, programs and activities, 
and to assure that all State
departments, boards, commissions 
and instrumentalities rigorously take
affirmative action to 
provide equality of opportunity and eliminate the
effects of 
past discrimination in the internal affairs of State
government 
and in their relations with the public.


    (H) Unfounded Charges. To protect citizens of this State 
against
unfounded charges of unlawful discrimination, sexual 
harassment in
employment and sexual harassment in higher 
education, and discrimination
based on citizenship status in 
employment.


(Source: P.A. 95-668, eff. 10-10-07.)

 
    (775 ILCS 5/1-103)  (from Ch. 68, par. 1-103)
    Sec. 1-103. General Definitions.  When used in this Act, 
unless the
context requires otherwise, the term:


    (A) Age.  "Age" means the chronological age of a person who 
is at least
40 years old, except with regard to any practice 
described in Section
2-102, insofar as that practice concerns 
training or apprenticeship
programs. In the case of training or 
apprenticeship programs, for the
purposes of Section 2-102, 
"age" means the chronological age of a person
who is 18 but not 
yet 40 years old.


    (B) Aggrieved Party. "Aggrieved party" means a person who 
is alleged
or proved to have been injured by a civil rights 
violation or believes he
or she will be injured by a civil 
rights violation under Article 3 that is
about to occur.


    (C) Charge. "Charge" means an allegation filed with the 
Department
by an aggrieved party or initiated by the Department 
under its
authority.


    (D) Civil Rights Violation. "Civil rights violation" 
includes and
shall be limited to only those specific acts set 
forth in Sections
2-102, 2-103, 2-105, 3-102, 3-102.1, 3-103, 
3-104, 3-104.1, 3-105, 3-105.1, 4-102, 4-103,
5-102, 5A-102, 
6-101, and 6-102 of this Act.


    (E) Commission. "Commission" means the Human Rights 
Commission
created by this Act.


    (F) Complaint. "Complaint" means the formal pleading filed 
by
the Department with the Commission following an 
investigation and
finding of substantial evidence of a civil 
rights violation.


    (G) Complainant. "Complainant" means a person including 
the
Department who files a charge of civil rights violation 
with the Department or
the Commission.


    (H) Department. "Department" means the Department of Human 
Rights
created by this Act.


    (I) Disability. "Disability" means a determinable physical 
or mental
characteristic of a person, including, but not 
limited to, a determinable
physical characteristic which 
necessitates the person's use of a guide,
hearing or support 
dog, the history of such characteristic, or the
perception of 
such characteristic by the person complained against, which
may 
result from disease, injury, congenital condition of birth or

functional disorder and which characteristic:


        (1) For purposes of Article 2 is unrelated to the 
    person's ability
to perform the duties of a particular job 
    or position and, pursuant to
Section 2-104 of this Act, a 
    person's illegal use of drugs or alcohol is not a

    disability;


        (2) For purposes of Article 3, is unrelated to the 
    person's ability
to acquire, rent or maintain a housing 
    accommodation;


        (3) For purposes of Article 4, is unrelated to a 
    person's ability to
repay;


        (4) For purposes of Article 5, is unrelated to a 
    person's ability to
utilize and benefit from a place of 
    public accommodation.


    (J) Marital Status. "Marital status" means the legal status 
of being
married, single, separated, divorced or widowed.


    (J-1) Military Status.  "Military status" means a person's 
status on
active duty in or status as a veteran of the armed 
forces of the United States, status as a current member or 
veteran of any
reserve component of the armed forces of the 
United States, including the United
States Army Reserve, United 
States Marine Corps Reserve, United States Navy
Reserve, United 
States Air Force Reserve, and United States Coast Guard

Reserve, or status as a current member or veteran of the 
Illinois Army National Guard or Illinois Air National
Guard.


    (K) National Origin. "National origin" means the place in 
which a
person or one of his or her ancestors was born.


    (K-5) "Order of protection status" means a person's status 
as being a person protected  under an order of protection issued 
pursuant to the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986 or an 
order of protection issued by a court of another state. 
    (L) Person. "Person" includes one or more individuals, 
partnerships,
associations or organizations, labor 
organizations, labor unions, joint
apprenticeship committees, 
or union labor associations, corporations, the
State of 
Illinois and its instrumentalities, political subdivisions, 
units
of local government, legal representatives, trustees in 
bankruptcy
or receivers.


    (M) Public Contract. "Public contract" includes every 
contract to which the
State, any of its political subdivisions 
or any municipal corporation is a
party.


    (N) Religion. "Religion" includes all aspects of religious 
observance
and practice, as well as belief, except that with 
respect to employers, for
the purposes of Article 2, "religion" 
has the meaning ascribed to it in
paragraph (F) of Section 
2-101.


    (O) Sex. "Sex" means the status of being male or female.


    (O-1) Sexual orientation.  "Sexual orientation" means 
actual or
perceived heterosexuality, homosexuality, 
bisexuality, or gender-related identity,
whether or not 
traditionally associated with the person's designated sex at

birth. "Sexual orientation" does not include a physical or 
sexual attraction to a minor by an adult.

    (P) Unfavorable Military Discharge. "Unfavorable military 
discharge"
includes discharges from the Armed Forces of the 
United States, their
Reserve components or any National Guard 
or Naval Militia which are
classified as RE-3 or the equivalent 
thereof, but does not include those
characterized as RE-4 or 
"Dishonorable".


    (Q) Unlawful Discrimination. "Unlawful discrimination" 
means discrimination
against a person because of his or her 
race, color, religion, national origin,
ancestry, age, sex, 
marital status, order of protection status, disability, 
military status, sexual
orientation,
or unfavorable
discharge 
from military service as those terms are defined in this 
Section.


(Source: P.A. 94-803, eff. 5-26-06; 95-392, eff. 8-23-07; 
95-668, eff. 10-10-07; 95-876, eff. 8-21-08; revised 
10-28-08.)

 

    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January 
1, 2010.