Legislative Update: Winter 2022

Jessica Newbold Hoselton | jnewbold@boldnewstrat.com

The General Election on November 8 is quickly approaching. Every member of the Illinois General Assembly will appear on the ballot this fall to maintain their positions in the Illinois Senate and House of Representatives. Many candidates are facing fierce opposition and legislative turnover is expected. The 103rd General Assembly will be inaugurated on January 11, 2023.

IMSCA has identified the following legislative priorities and issues we’ll fight on behalf of our members during the 2023 legislative session:

Retainage is still withheld at an unreasonably high rate of 10% for most Illinois local government construction projects. To ease this financial burden, IMSCA will seek an amendment to the Public Construction Bond Act to provide a 5% cap on the amount of retainage that may be withheld by a local government entity. IMSCA’s proposal will be sponsored by Assistant Majority Leader Linda Holmes.

This spring, the Illinois General Assembly appropriated $2.7 billion of Illinois’ remaining American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds toward paying down the nearly $4 billion Unemployment Trust Fund deficit, which left a remaining deficit balance of nearly $2 billion. Negotiators on behalf of organized labor and the business community announced in April that they had reached an agreement to delay employer tax increases and worker benefit reductions but were at an impasse on agreeing how to address the remaining deficit. SB 157 (P.A. 102-0700) was approved by the Illinois General Assembly and serves as a “stop-gap” to delay triggers in state law that will increase employer taxes and reduce employee benefits until January 1, 2023. IMSCA anticipates this issue will be debated during the upcoming November legislative session.

IMSCA is also closely monitoring Comptroller Mendoza’s public support for repealing the Prompt Payment Act (PPA). During a recent budget hearing the Comptroller argued that the PPA didn’t serve as a deterrent during the budget impasse and the interest penalties accrued by the state didn’t force an agreement on a budget. Comptroller Mendoza added the PPA is harmful
to taxpayers who are ultimately on the hook for paying accrued interest owed to vendors, and for these reasons, the PPA should be repealed. While no legislation was introduced specifically seeking to repeal the PPA, IMSCA joined a coalition of opponents who contacted Comptroller Mendoza to express our opposition and disagreement with her position.

The International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150 recently floated draft legislation aimed at expanding prevailing wage beyond the public works project site. Should organized labor pursue this proposal in the coming months, IMSCA will maintain our opposition as we have in previous attempts.

IMSCA recently learned that legislation seeking to expand the use of Public Private Partnerships for public works projects may be pursued as early as the November legislative session. IMSCA maintains the position that Public Private Partnerships can be helpful as an additional funding mechanism for necessary infrastructure projects, but safeguards must be included in enabling legislation to protect our subcontractor members. IMSCA will advocate for the inclusion of safeguards.

As the upcoming fall and spring legislative sessions get underway, IMSCA encourages everyone to pay close attention to Calls to Action and ways you can help communicate our message on these important issues to members of the Illinois General Assembly.

If you have any questions regarding this information, call Jessica Newbold Hoselton at 217-523-4361 or email jnewbold@boldnewstrat.com.