Public Act 097-0953
 
HB4665 EnrolledLRB097 19079 JLS 64318 b


  
    AN ACT concerning residential construction.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  


 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Radon 
Resistant Construction Act.
 
    Section 5. Findings. Radon is a radioactive element that is 
part of the radioactive decay chain of naturally occurring 
uranium in soil. Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer 
among non-smokers and the number one risk in homes according to 
the Harvard School of Public Health, Center for Risk Analysis.  
The 2008-2009 Annual Report from the President's Cancer Panel 
stated: "Comparative risk assessments by the Environmental 
Protection Agency and its Science Advisory Board have 
consistently ranked radon among the top 4 environmental risks 
to the public.".  The World Health Organization's Handbook on 
Radon Key Messages include: "There is no known threshold 
concentration below which radon exposure presents no risk.  The 
majority of radon-induced lung cancers are caused by low and 
moderate radon concentrations rather than by high radon 
concentrations, because in general less people are exposed to 
high indoor radon concentrations.".  The Surgeon General of the 
United States urged Americans to test their homes to find out 
how much radon they might be breathing.  The United States 
Environmental Protection Agency estimates that more than 
20,000 Americans die of radon-related lung cancer each year.
 
    Section 10. Primary responsibility with Illinois Emergency 
Management Agency.  
    (a) The Illinois Emergency Management Agency shall have 
primary responsibility for coordination, oversight, and 
implementation of all State functions in matters concerning the 
presence, effects, measurement, and mitigation of risks of 
radon and radon progeny in dwellings and other buildings. The 
Department of Natural Resources, the Environmental Protection 
Agency, the Department of Public Health, and other State 
agencies shall consult and cooperate with the Agency as 
requested and as necessary to fulfill the purposes of this Act.
    (b) The Agency shall promulgate rules necessary for the 
administration and implementation of this Act.
 
    Section 15. Definitions.  As used in this Act, unless the 
context requires otherwise:
    "Active mitigation system", also known as "active soil 
depressurization" or "ASD", means a family of radon mitigation 
systems involving mechanically driven soil depressurization, 
including sub-slab depressurization (SSD), drain tile 
depressurization (DTD), block wall depressurization (BWD), and 
sub-membrane depressurization (SMD).
    "Agency" means the Illinois Emergency Management Agency.

    "New residential construction" means any original 
construction of a single-family home or a dwelling containing 2 
or fewer apartments, condominiums, or town houses.

    "Passive new construction pipe" means a pipe installed in 
new construction that relies solely on the convective flow of 
air upward for soil gas depressurization and may consist of 
multiple pipes routed through conditioned space from below the 
foundation  to above the roof.

    "Radon" means a gaseous radioactive decay product of 
uranium or thorium.

    "Radon contractor" means a person licensed in accordance 
with the Radon Industry Licensing Act to perform radon or radon 
progeny mitigation or to perform measurements of radon or radon 
progeny in an indoor atmosphere.

    "Radon resistant construction" means the installation of 
passive new construction pipe  during new residential 
construction.

    "Residential building code" means an ordinance, 
resolution, or law that establishes standards  applicable to new 
residential construction.

    "Residential building contractor" means any individual, 
corporation, or partnership that constructs new residential 
construction.

    "Task Force on Radon-Resistant Building Codes" means the 
Task Force on Radon-Resistant Building Codes as authorized by 
the Radon Industry Licensing Act.

 
    Section 20. Adoption of passive  radon resistant 
construction. All new residential construction in this State 
shall include passive radon resistant construction.
 
    Section 25. Installation of active mitigation systems. The 
installation of an active mitigation system shall only be 
performed by a radon contractor. The installation of radon 
resistant  construction may be performed by a residential 
building contractor or his or her  subcontractors or  a radon 
contractor during new residential construction.  Only a radon 
contractor may install a radon vent fan or upgrade a passive 
new construction pipe  to an active mitigation system.
 
    Section 30. Local administration and enforcement.  A local  
governmental unit that has adopted any ordinance, resolution, 
or law  regulating radon resistant construction may provide for 
its administration and enforcement.
 
    Section 35. Local standards. Governmental units may adopt, 
pursuant to local ordinance, regulations at least as stringent 
as the rules  promulgated by the Agency or may, by ordinance or 
resolution, adopt the rules promulgated by the Agency for radon 
resistant construction and the fixtures, materials, and design 
and installation methods of radon resistant construction 
systems. The rules  promulgated by the Agency may be 
incorporated in the ordinance or resolution by reference.
 
    Section 97. The Radon Industry Licensing Act is amended  by 
changing Section 28 as follows:
 
    (420 ILCS 44/28)

    Sec. 28. Task Force on  Radon-Resistant Building Codes. 
    (a) The Radon-Resistant Building Codes Task Force is 
created. The Task Force consists of the following members:
        (1) the Director, ex officio, or his or her 
    representative, who is the chair of the Task Force; 
        (2) a representative, designated by the Director, of a 
    home builders' association in Illinois;
        (3) a representative, designated by the Director, of a 
    home inspectors' association in Illinois;
        (4) a representative, designated by the Director, of an 
    international building code organization;
        (5) a representative, designated by the Director, of an 
    Illinois realtors' organization;
        (6) two representatives, designated by the Director, 
    of  respiratory disease organizations, each from a 
    different organization;
        (7) a representative, designated by the Director, of a   
    cancer research and prevention organization;
        (8) a representative, designated by the Director, of a 
    municipal organization in Illinois;
        (9) one person appointed by the Speaker of the House of 
    Representatives;
        (10) one person appointed by the Minority Leader of the 
    House of Representatives;
        (11) one person appointed by the President of the 
    Senate; and
        (12) one person appointed by the Minority Leader of the 
    Senate.
    (b) The Task Force shall meet at the call of the chair. 
Members shall serve without compensation, but may be reimbursed 
for their reasonable expenses from moneys appropriated for that 
purpose. The Agency shall provide staff and support for the 
operation of the Task Force.
    (c) The Task Force shall make recommendations to the 
Governor and , the Agency, the Environmental Protection Agency, 
and the Pollution Control Board concerning the adoption of 
rules for building codes and, by January 1, 2013, for radon 
resistant construction in new residential construction. 

(Source: P.A. 96-195, eff. 8-10-09.)
 

    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect June 1, 
2013, except that this Section and Section 97 take effect upon 
becoming law.