NITA-VETERAN CONTRACT GOAL

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104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
SB4008

Introduced 2/6/2026, by Sen. Ram Villivalam

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

30 ILCS 574/40-10
70 ILCS 3615/2.39.5 new

Amends the Regional Transportation Authority Act. Requires the
Northern Illinois Transit Authority to establish a goal to award not less
than 3% of the total dollar amount of all contracts with the Northern
Illinois Transit Authority, the Chicago Transit Authority, the Suburban
Bus Division, and the Commuter Rail Division to qualified service-disabled
veteran-owned small businesses and qualified veteran-owned small
businesses. Provides that, by each March 1, the Board shall report to the
Governor and General Assembly (1) the total number of qualified
veteran-owned small businesses that submitted bids for contracts with the
Authority and the total number of qualified service-disabled veteran-owned
small businesses in the immediately preceding fiscal year; (2) the total
number of qualified veteran-owned small businesses, and qualified
service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, that entered into
contracts with the Authority in the immediately preceding fiscal year; (3)
a year-by-year comparison of awarded contracts to certified veteran-owned
small businesses and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses; and
(4) any other information that the Board deems necessary to assist
veteran-owned small businesses and service-disabled veteran-owned small
businesses to become certified with the State. Provides that, each year,
the Board shall review the progress of the Authority and the Service Boards
in meeting the goal, with input from statewide veterans' service
organizations and from the business community, including businesses owned
by qualified veterans, and shall make recommendations to the General
Assembly regarding continuation, increases, or decreases of the percentage
goal. Provides that the Board shall suspend any person who commits a
violation of specified offenses under the Criminal Code of 2012 from
bidding on, or participating as a contractor, subcontractor, or supplier
in, any Authority contract or project for a period of not less than 3
years, and, if the person is certified as a service-disabled veteran-owned
small business or a veteran-owned small business, then the Commission
shall revoke the business's certification for a period of not less than 3
years. Makes conforming changes in the Commission on Equity and Inclusion
Act.
LRB104 19775 RTM 33225 b

A BILL FOR

SB4008
LRB104 19775 RTM 33225 b
1

AN ACT concerning local government.

2

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3
represented in the General Assembly:

4

Section 5.
The Commission on Equity and Inclusion Act is
5
amended by changing Section 40-10 as follows:

6

(30 ILCS 574/40-10)
7

Sec. 40-10.
Powers and duties.
In addition to the other
8
powers and duties which may be prescribed in this Act or
9
elsewhere, the Commission shall have the following powers and
10
duties:
11

(1) The Commission shall have a role in all State and
12

university procurement by facilitating and streamlining
13

communications between the Business Enterprise Council for
14

Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities, the
15

purchasing entities, the Chief Procurement Officers, and
16

others.
17

(2) The Commission may create a scoring evaluation for
18

State agency directors, public university presidents and
19

chancellors, and public community college presidents. The
20

scoring shall be based on the following 3 principles: (i)
21

increasing capacity; (ii) growing revenue; and (iii)
22

enhancing credentials. These principles should be the
23

foundation of the agency compliance plan required under

SB4008
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LRB104 19775 RTM 33225 b
1

Section 6 of the Business Enterprise for Minorities,
2

Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act.
3

(3) The Commission shall exercise the authority and
4

duties provided to it under Section 5-7 of the Illinois
5

Procurement Code.
6

(4) The Commission shall shall exercise the authority
7

and duties provided to it under Section 2.39.5 of the
8

Northern Illinois Transit Authority.

9

(4) The Commission, working with State agencies, shall
10

provide support for diversity in State hiring.
11

(5) The Commission shall supervise the implementation
12

and effectiveness of supplier diversity training of the
13

State procurement workforce.
14

(6) Each January, and as otherwise frequently as may
15

be deemed necessary and appropriate by the Commission, the
16

Commission shall propose and submit to the Governor and
17

the General Assembly legislative changes to increase
18

inclusion and diversity in State government.
19

(7) The Commission shall have oversight over the
20

following entities:
21

(A) the Illinois African-American Family
22

Commission;
23

(B) the Illinois Latino Family Commission;
24

(C) the Asian American Family Commission;
25

(D) the Illinois Muslim American Advisory Council;
26

(E) the Illinois African-American Fair Contracting

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Commission created under Executive Order 2018-07; and
2

(F) the Business Enterprise Council for
3

Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities.
4

(7.5) The Commission shall have oversight over the
5

collection of supplier diversity reports by State agencies
6

to the extent that those agencies are required to collect
7

supplier diversity reports. This oversight shall include
8

publishing, on the Commission's website, a copy of each
9

such supplier diversity report submitted to a State agency
10

and may include conducting an annual hearing with each
11

State agency to discuss ongoing compliance with supplier
12

diversity reporting requirements. The Commission is not
13

responsible for ensuring compliance by the filers of
14

supplier diversity reports to their respective agencies.
15

The agencies subject to oversight by the Commission and
16

the relevant voluntary supplier diversity reports include
17

the following:
18

(A) the Health Facilities and Services Review
19

Board for hospitals;
20

(B) the Department of Commerce and Economic
21

Opportunity for tax credit recipients under the
22

Economic Development for a Growing Economy Tax Credit
23

Act;
24

(C) the Illinois Commerce Commission for utilities
25

and railroads;
26

(D) the Illinois Gaming Board for casinos; and

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LRB104 19775 RTM 33225 b
1

(E) the Illinois Racing Board for race tracks.
2

(7.6) The Commission may hold public workshops focused
3

on specific industries and reports to collaboratively
4

connect diverse enterprises with entities that manage
5

supplier diversity programs. These workshops may be
6

modeled after Illinois Commerce Commission hearings for
7

utilities and railroads that include a collaborative
8

discussion of filed supplier diversity reports.
9

(8) The Commission shall adopt any rules necessary for
10

the implementation and administration of the requirements
11

of this Act.
12

(9) The Commission shall exercise the authority and
13

duties provided to it under Section 45-57 of the Illinois
14

Procurement Code.
15

(10) The Commission is responsible for completing
16

studies as required by Section 35-15 of the Illinois
17

Community Reinvestment Act.
18
(Source: P.A. 103-865, eff. 1-1-25; 103-959, eff. 1-1-25;
19
103-961, eff. 7-1-25; 104-417, eff. 8-15-25.)

20

Section 10.
The Regional Transportation Authority Act is
21
amended by adding Section 2.39.5 as follows:

22

(70 ILCS 3615/2.39.5 new)
23

Sec. 2.39.5.
Veterans set-aside program.
24

(a) As used in this Section:

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1

"Armed forces of the United States" means the United
2
States Army, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, Marine Corps, Coast
3
Guard, or service in active duty as defined under 38 U.S.C.
4
Section 101. Service in the Merchant Marine that constitutes
5
active duty under Section 401 of federal Public Law 95-202
6
shall also be considered service in the armed forces for
7
purposes of this Section.
8

"Authority contract" means any contract or subcontract
9
with the Authority or one of the Service Boards.
10

"Certification" means a determination made by the Illinois
11
Department of Veterans Affairs and the Commission on Equity
12
and Inclusion that a business entity is a qualified
13
service-disabled veteran-owned small business or a qualified
14
veteran-owned small business for whatever purpose. A qualified
15
service-disabled veteran-owned small business or a qualified
16
veteran-owned small business owned and controlled by women,
17
minorities, or persons with disabilities, as those terms are
18
defined in Section 2 of the Business Enterprise for
19
Minorities, Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act, may also
20
select and designate whether that business is to be certified
21
as a "women-owned business", "minority-owned business", or
22
"business owned by a person with a disability", as defined in
23
Section 2 of the Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women,
24
and Persons with Disabilities Act.
25

"Control" means the exclusive, ultimate, majority, or sole
26
control of the business, including but not limited to capital

SB4008
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1
investment and all other financial matters, property,
2
acquisitions, contract negotiations, legal matters,
3
officer-director-employee selection and comprehensive hiring,
4
operation responsibilities, cost-control matters, income and
5
dividend matters, financial transactions, and rights of other
6
shareholders or joint partners. Control shall be real,
7
substantial, and continuing, not pro forma. Control shall
8
include the power to direct or cause the direction of the
9
management and policies of the business and to make the
10
day-to-day as well as major decisions in matters of policy,
11
management, and operations. Control shall be exemplified by
12
possessing the requisite knowledge and expertise to run the
13
particular business, and control shall not include simple
14
majority or absentee ownership.
15

"Qualified service-disabled veteran" means a veteran who
16
has been found to have 10% or more service-connected
17
disability by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs
18
or the United States Department of Defense.
19

"Qualified service-disabled veteran-owned small business"
20
means a small business (i) that is at least 51% owned by one or
21
more qualified service-disabled veterans living in Illinois
22
or, in the case of a corporation, at least 51% of the stock of
23
which is owned by one or more qualified service-disabled
24
veterans living in Illinois; (ii) that has its home office in
25
Illinois; and (iii) for which items (i) and (ii) are factually
26
verified annually by the Commission on Equity and Inclusion.

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1

"Qualified veteran-owned small business" means a small
2
business (i) that is at least 51% owned by one or more
3
qualified veterans living in Illinois or, in the case of a
4
corporation, at least 51% of the stock of which is owned by one
5
or more qualified veterans living in Illinois; (ii) that has
6
its home office in Illinois; and (iii) for which items (i) and
7
(ii) are factually verified annually by the Commission on
8
Equity and Inclusion.
9

"Service-connected disability" means a disability incurred
10
in the line of duty in the active military, naval, or air
11
service as described in 38 U.S.C. 101(16).
12

"Small business" means a business that has annual gross
13
sales of less than $150,000,000 as evidenced by the federal
14
income tax return of the business. A firm with gross sales in
15
excess of this cap may apply to the Commission on Equity and
16
Inclusion for certification for a particular contract if the
17
firm can demonstrate that the contract would have significant
18
impact on qualified service-disabled veteran-owned small
19
businesses or qualified veteran-owned small businesses as
20
suppliers or subcontractors or in employment of veterans or
21
service-disabled veterans.
22

"Time of hostilities with a foreign country" means any
23
period of time in the past, present, or future during which a
24
declaration of war by the United States Congress has been or is
25
in effect or during which an emergency condition has been or is
26
in effect that is recognized by the issuance of a Presidential

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1
proclamation or a Presidential executive order and in which
2
the armed forces expeditionary medal or other campaign service
3
medals are awarded according to Presidential executive order.
4

"Veteran" means a person who (i) has been a member of the
5
armed forces of the United States or, while a citizen of the
6
United States, was a member of the armed forces of allies of
7
the United States in time of hostilities with a foreign
8
country and (ii) has served under one or more of the following
9
conditions: (a) the veteran served a total of at least 6
10
months; (b) the veteran served for the duration of hostilities
11
regardless of the length of the engagement; (c) the veteran
12
was discharged on the basis of hardship; or (d) the veteran was
13
released from active duty because of a service connected
14
disability and was discharged under honorable conditions.
15

(b) The Authority shall establish a goal to award not less
16
than 3% of the total dollar amount of all Authority contracts
17
to qualified service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses
18
and qualified veteran-owned small businesses. That portion of
19
a contract under which the contractor subcontracts with a
20
qualified service-disabled veteran-owned small business or a
21
qualified veteran-owned small business may be counted toward
22
the goal of this subsection. The Authority shall, by
23
ordinance, adopt requirements to implement compliance with
24
this subsection.
25

(c) By each March 1, the Board shall report to the Governor
26
and General Assembly:

SB4008
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LRB104 19775 RTM 33225 b
1

(1) the total number of qualified veteran-owned small
2

businesses that submitted bids for contracts with the
3

Authority and the total number of qualified
4

service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses in the
5

immediately preceding fiscal year;
6

(2) the total number of qualified veteran-owned small
7

businesses, and qualified service-disabled veteran-owned
8

small businesses, that entered into contracts with the
9

Authority in the immediately preceding fiscal year;
10

(3) a year-by-year comparison of awarded contracts to
11

certified veteran-owned small businesses and
12

service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses; and
13

(4) any other information that the Board deems
14

necessary to assist veteran-owned small businesses and
15

service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses to become
16

certified with the State.
17

(d) Each year, the Board shall review the progress of the
18
Authority and the Service Boards in meeting the goal described
19
in subsection (b), with input from statewide veterans' service
20
organizations and from the business community, including
21
businesses owned by qualified veterans, and shall make
22
recommendations to the General Assembly regarding
23
continuation, increases, or decreases of the percentage goal.
24
The recommendations shall be based upon the number of
25
businesses that are owned by qualified veterans and on the
26
continued need to encourage and promote businesses owned by

SB4008
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LRB104 19775 RTM 33225 b
1
qualified veterans.
2

(e) To assist the Authority in reaching the goal described
3
in subsection (b), the Governor shall recommend to the General
4
Assembly changes in programs to assist businesses owned by
5
qualified veterans.
6

(f) The Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs and the
7
Commission on Equity and Inclusion shall work together to
8
devise a certification procedure to assure that businesses
9
taking advantage of this Section are legitimately classified
10
as qualified service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses
11
or qualified veteran-owned small businesses.
12

The Commission on Equity and Inclusion shall:
13

(1) compile and maintain a comprehensive list of
14

certified veteran-owned small businesses and
15

service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses;
16

(2) assist veteran-owned small businesses and
17

service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses in
18

complying with the procedures for bidding on Authority
19

contracts;
20

(3) provide training for the Authority and the Service
21

Boards regarding the goal setting process and compliance
22

with veteran-owned small business and service-disabled
23

veteran-owned small business goals; and
24

(4) implement and maintain an electronic portal on the
25

Commission on Equity and Inclusion's website for the
26

purpose of completing and submitting veteran-owned small

SB4008
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LRB104 19775 RTM 33225 b
1

business and service-disabled veteran-owned small business
2

certificates.
3

(g) A business shall be certified by the Commission on
4
Equity and Inclusion as a service-disabled veteran-owned small
5
business or a veteran-owned small business for purposes of
6
this Section if the Commission on Equity and Inclusion
7
determines that the business has been certified as a
8
service-disabled veteran-owned small business or a
9
veteran-owned small business by the Vets First Verification
10
Program of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs,
11
and the business has provided to the Commission on Equity and
12
Inclusion the following:
13

(1) documentation showing certification as a
14

service-disabled veteran-owned small business or a
15

veteran-owned small business by the Vets First
16

Verification Program of the United States Department of
17

Veterans Affairs;
18

(2) proof that the business has its home office in
19

Illinois; and
20

(3) proof that the qualified veterans or qualified
21

service-disabled veterans live in the State.
22

The policies of the Commission on Equity and Inclusion
23
regarding recognition of the Vets First Verification Program
24
of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs shall be
25
reviewed annually by the Commission on Equity and Inclusion,
26
and recognition of service-disabled veteran-owned small

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LRB104 19775 RTM 33225 b
1
businesses and veteran-owned small businesses certified by the
2
Vets First Verification Program of the United States
3
Department of Veterans Affairs may be discontinued by the
4
Commission on Equity and Inclusion by rule upon a finding that
5
the certification standards of the Vets First Verification
6
Program of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs do
7
not meet the certification requirements established by the
8
Commission on Equity and Inclusion.
9

(h) The Board shall suspend any person who commits a
10
violation of Section 17-10.3 or subsection (d) of Section
11
33E-6 of the Criminal Code of 2012 relating to this Section
12
from bidding on, or participating as a contractor,
13
subcontractor, or supplier in, any Authority contract or
14
project for a period of not less than 3 years, and, if the
15
person is certified as a service-disabled veteran-owned small
16
business or a veteran-owned small business, then the
17
Commission on Equity and Inclusion shall revoke the business's
18
certification for a period of not less than 3 years. An
19
additional or subsequent violation shall extend the periods of
20
suspension and revocation for a period of not less than 5
21
years. The suspension and revocation shall apply to the
22
principals of the business and any subsequent business formed
23
or financed by, or affiliated with, those principals.
24

(i) The Board shall report all alleged violations of
25
Section 17-10.3 or subsection (d) of Section 33E-6 of the
26
Criminal Code of 2012 relating to this Section to the Attorney

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LRB104 19775 RTM 33225 b
1
General, who shall determine whether to bring a civil action
2
against any person for the violation.
3

(j) The Board shall monitor the status of all reported
4
violations of Section 17-10.3 or subsection (d) of Section
5
33E-6 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012
6
relating to this Section.
7

(k) During the period of a person's suspension under
8
subsection (i), the Board shall not enter into any contract
9
with that person or with any contractor using the services of
10
that person as a subcontractor.

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