DFPR-LICENSURE FEE WAIVER

104th Regular Session Introduced by Chapin Rose

SB 1839 requires DFPR to waive or refund license-application fees if a license isn’t processed within 30 days, affecting applicants and DFPR operations (effective Sept 1, 2025).

Referred to Assignments

Summary — SB 1839 (DFPR — Licensure Fee Waiver)

Status and timeline
- Bill number: SB 1839
- Sponsor: Sen. Chapin Rose
- Introduced: February–March 2025 (filed 2/06/2025; received by Secretary of Senate 3/03/2025)
- Legislative actions: Passed both chambers, enrolled, sent to and signed by the Governor on 2025-06-20.
- Effective date: September 1, 2025.

Purpose
- To require the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (DFPR), through its Division of Professional Regulation, to waive or refund application fees when the agency does not process a license application within 30 days of receipt.

Key provision (statutory text added)
- Adds Section 2105-406 to the Department of Professional Regulation Law (20 ILCS 2105).
- If DFPR does not process an application for a license within 30 days after receiving it, DFPR must either:
- waive the applicant’s application fee (if not yet paid), or
- refund the application fee (if already paid).

Who is affected
- Primary: Individuals and entities applying for professional licenses administered by DFPR’s Division of Professional Regulation (e.g., professions regulated by DFPR boards and programs).
- Secondary: DFPR’s operations and budget (potential increased administrative workload and fee revenue impact), regulated licensing boards, and potentially Illinois taxpayers if refunds reduce net fee revenue.

Practical effects and considerations
- Incentivizes faster application processing by tying timeliness to fee waiver/refund.
- The statutory text is concise and mandatory; it does not define key terms (for example, what constitutes “process” or how “receipt” is determined) and includes no listed exceptions (such as incomplete applications, applicant delays, or required background checks).
- Implementation may require DFPR administrative guidance or rulemaking to define procedures (e.g., start date for the 30‑day clock, verification of delays, refund procedures).
- Potential fiscal impact: increased refunds or waived fees could reduce DFPR revenue unless operational improvements reduce processing times. Exact fiscal effects would depend on volumes and causes of delays.

Bottom line
- SB 1839 creates a concrete, 30‑day timeliness requirement for processing DFPR license applications and makes fee waiver/refund mandatory when the agency misses that deadline, effective September 1, 2025. The measure simplifies applicant remedies but leaves operational definitions and exceptions unspecified.