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| Public Act 099-0204 | ||||
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AN ACT concerning regulation.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Regulatory Sunset Act is amended by changing | ||||
Section 4.26 and by adding Section 4.36 as follows: | ||||
(5 ILCS 80/4.26)
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Sec. 4.26. Acts repealed on January 1, 2016. The following | ||||
Acts are repealed on January 1, 2016: | ||||
The Illinois Athletic Trainers Practice Act.
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The Illinois Roofing Industry Licensing Act.
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The Illinois Dental Practice Act.
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The Collection Agency Act.
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The Barber, Cosmetology, Esthetics, Hair Braiding, and | ||||
Nail Technology Act of 1985.
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The Respiratory Care Practice Act.
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The Hearing Instrument Consumer Protection Act.
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The Illinois Physical Therapy Act.
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The Professional Geologist Licensing Act. | ||||
(Source: P.A. 95-331, eff. 8-21-07; 95-876, eff. 8-21-08; | ||||
96-1246, eff. 1-1-11.) | ||||
(5 ILCS 80/4.36 new) | ||||
Sec. 4.36. Act repealed on January 1, 2026. The following | ||||
Act is repealed on January 1, 2026: | ||
The Hearing Instrument Consumer Protection Act. | ||
Section 10. The Hearing Instrument Consumer Protection Act | ||
is amended by changing Sections 5, 8, 15, and 17 as follows:
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(225 ILCS 50/5) (from Ch. 111, par. 7405)
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(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2016)
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Sec. 5. License required. No person shall engage in the
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selling, practice of testing, fitting, selecting, | ||
recommending, adapting,
dispensing, or servicing hearing | ||
instruments or display a sign, advertise, or
represent oneself | ||
as a person who practices the fitting or selling of hearing
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instruments unless such person holds a current license issued | ||
by the Department
as provided in this Act. Such person shall be | ||
known as a licensed hearing
instrument dispenser. Individuals | ||
licensed pursuant to the provisions of
Section 8 of this Act | ||
shall be deemed qualified to provide tests of human
hearing and | ||
hearing instrument evaluations for the purpose of dispensing a
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hearing instrument for which any State agency may contract. The | ||
license shall
be conspicuously displayed in the place of | ||
business. Duplicate licenses shall
be issued by the Department | ||
to licensees operating more than one office upon
the additional | ||
payment set forth in this Act. No hearing instrument | ||
manufacturer may distribute, sell, or otherwise provide | ||
hearing instruments to any unlicensed hearing care | ||
professional for the purpose of selling hearing instruments to | ||
the consumer.
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Except for violations of the provisions of this Act, or the | ||
rules
promulgated under it, nothing in this Act shall prohibit | ||
a corporation,
partnership, trust, association, or other | ||
entity from engaging in the
business of testing, fitting, | ||
servicing, selecting, dispensing, selling, or
offering for | ||
sale hearing instruments at retail without a license, provided | ||
it
employs only licensed individuals in the direct testing, | ||
fitting, servicing,
selecting, offering for sale, or | ||
dispensing of such products. Each such
corporation, | ||
partnership, trust, association, or other entity shall file | ||
with
the Department, prior to doing business in this State and | ||
by July 1 of each
calendar year thereafter, on forms prescribed | ||
by the Department, a list of all
licensed hearing instrument | ||
dispensers employed by it and a statement attesting
that it | ||
complies with this Act and the rules promulgated under it and | ||
the
regulations of the Federal Food and Drug Administration and | ||
the Federal Trade
Commission insofar as they are applicable.
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(Source: P.A. 89-72, eff. 12-31-95; 90-655, eff. 7-30-98.)
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(225 ILCS 50/8) (from Ch. 111, par. 7408)
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(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2016)
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Sec. 8. Applicant qualifications; examination.
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(a) In order to protect persons who are deaf or hard of | ||
hearing, the Department
shall authorize or shall conduct an | ||
appropriate examination, which may be the International | ||
Hearing Society's licensure examination, for persons
who | ||
dispense, test, select, recommend, fit, or service hearing
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instruments. The frequency of holding these examinations shall
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be determined by the Department by rule. Those
who successfully | ||
pass such an examination shall be issued a license
as a hearing | ||
instrument dispenser, which shall be effective for
a 2-year | ||
period.
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(b) Applicants shall be:
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(1) at least 18 years of age;
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(2) of good moral character;
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(3) the holder of an associate's degree or the | ||
equivalent;
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(4) free of contagious or infectious disease; and
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(5) a citizen or person who has the status as a legal | ||
alien.
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Felony convictions of the applicant and findings against | ||
the applicant
involving matters set forth in Sections 17 and 18 | ||
shall be considered in
determining moral character, but such a | ||
conviction or finding shall not make an
applicant ineligible to | ||
register for examination.
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(c) Prior to engaging in the practice of fitting, | ||
dispensing, or servicing
hearing instruments, an applicant
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shall demonstrate, by means of written
and practical | ||
examinations, that such person is qualified to
practice the | ||
testing, selecting, recommending, fitting, selling, or
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servicing of hearing instruments as defined in this
Act. An | ||
applicant must obtain a license within 12
months after passing | ||
either the written or practical examination, whichever is | ||
passed first, or must take and
pass those examinations again in | ||
order to be eligible to receive a license.
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The Department shall, by rule, determine the conditions | ||
under which an
individual is examined.
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(d) Proof of having met the minimum requirements of | ||
continuing education
as determined by the Board shall be | ||
required of all license renewals.
Pursuant to rule, the | ||
continuing education requirements may, upon petition to
the | ||
Board,
be waived in whole or in part if the hearing instrument | ||
dispenser
can demonstrate
that he or she served in the Coast | ||
Guard or Armed Forces, had an extreme
hardship, or obtained his | ||
or her license by examination or
endorsement within
the | ||
preceding renewal period.
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(e) Persons applying for an initial
license
must | ||
demonstrate having earned, at a minimum, an associate degree or | ||
its equivalent from an
accredited institution of higher | ||
education that is recognized by the U.S. Department of | ||
Education or that meets the U.S. Department of Education | ||
equivalency as determined through a National Association of | ||
Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) member, and meet the | ||
other requirements of
this Section. In addition, the applicant | ||
must demonstrate the successful
completion of 12 semester hours | ||
or 18 quarter hours of academic undergraduate
course work in an | ||
accredited institution consisting of 3 semester hours of
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anatomy and physiology of the speech and hearing mechanism, 3 | ||
semester hours of
hearing science, 3 semester hours of | ||
introduction to audiology, and 3 semester
hours of aural | ||
rehabilitation, or the quarter hour equivalent. Persons
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licensed before January 1, 2003 who
have a valid license on | ||
that date may have their license renewed
without meeting the | ||
requirements of this subsection.
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(Source: P.A. 98-827, eff. 1-1-15.)
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(225 ILCS 50/15) (from Ch. 111, par. 7415)
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(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2016)
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Sec. 15. Fees.
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(a) The examination and licensure fees paid to the | ||
Department are not refundable and shall be set forth by | ||
administrative rule. The Department may require a fee for the | ||
administration of the examination in addition to examination | ||
and licensure fees.
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(b) The moneys received as fees and fines by the Department
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under this Act shall be deposited in the Hearing Instrument
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Dispenser Examining
and Disciplinary Fund, which is hereby | ||
created as a
special fund in the
State Treasury, and shall be | ||
used only for the administration and
enforcement of this Act,
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including: (1) costs directly related to licensing of persons | ||
under
this Act; and (2) by the Board in the exercise
of its | ||
powers and performance of its duties, and such use shall be | ||
made
by the Department with full consideration of all | ||
recommendations of the Board.
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All moneys deposited in the Fund shall be appropriated to | ||
the Department
for expenses of the Department and the Board in | ||
the administration and
enforcement of this Act.
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Moneys in the Fund may
be invested and reinvested, with all | ||
earnings deposited in the
Fund and used for the purposes set | ||
forth in this Act.
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Upon the completion of any audit of the Department as | ||
prescribed by the
Illinois State Auditing Act, which audit | ||
shall include an audit of the Fund,
the Department
shall make a | ||
copy of the audit open to inspection by any interested person,
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which copy shall be submitted to the Department by the Auditor | ||
General, in
addition to the copies of audit reports required to | ||
be submitted to other
State officers and agencies by Section | ||
3-14 of the Illinois State Auditing Act.
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(Source: P.A. 96-683, eff. 1-1-10.)
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(225 ILCS 50/17) (from Ch. 111, par. 7417)
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(Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2016)
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Sec. 17. Duties of the Board. The Board shall advise the | ||
Department in
all matters relating
to this Act and shall assist | ||
as requested by the Director.
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The Board shall respond to issues and problems relating to | ||
the improvement
of services to the deaf or hard of hearing and | ||
shall make such recommendations
as it considers advisable. It | ||
shall file an annual report with the Director
and shall meet at | ||
least twice a year.
The Board may meet at any time at the call | ||
of the chair.
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The Board shall recommend specialized education programs | ||
for persons wishing
to become licensed as hearing instrument | ||
dispensers and shall,
by rule, establish
minimum standards of | ||
continuing education required for license
renewal. No more than | ||
5 hours of continuing education credit per year,
however, can | ||
be obtained through programs sponsored by hearing instrument
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manufacturers. A minimum of 2 hours of continuing education | ||
credit per licensing period must be obtained in Illinois law | ||
and ethics. Continuing education offered by a college, | ||
university, or bar association, the International Hearing | ||
Society, the American Academy of Audiology, the American | ||
Speech-Language-Hearing Association, the Illinois | ||
Speech-Language-Hearing Association, the Illinois Academy of | ||
Audiology, or the Illinois Hearing Society regarding Illinois | ||
law and ethics shall be accepted toward satisfaction of the | ||
Illinois law and ethics continuing education requirement.
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The Board shall hear charges brought by any person against | ||
hearing instrument
dispensers and
shall recommend disciplinary | ||
action to the Director.
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Members of the Board are immune from liability in any | ||
action based upon a
licensing proceeding or other act performed | ||
in good faith as a member of the
Board.
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(Source: P.A. 98-827, eff. 1-1-15.)
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Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||
becoming law.
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