- How Do I Register A Business Name?
- How Can The State Help Me Secure Financing For My New/Small Business?
- How Do I Register To Pay Taxes?
- Does My Business Have To Pay Unemployment Insurance Taxes?
- Does My Business Need A Pollution Control Permit?
- What Is The Process For Doing Business With The State?
- How Do I Learn About Opportunities For Doing Business With The State?
- I Am Interested In Becoming A Nurse. Where Can I Get More Information About Obtaining A Nursing License?
- I am a sole proprietor. Do I have to buy workers' compensation insurance?
- How do I obtain workers' compensation insurance?
- How Do I Register A Business Name?
The process of registering a business name with the state will differ depending on the way you choose to structure your business.
For instance, if you will operate as a Sole Proprietor, the business name is registered with your county clerk. You can find an online listing of county clerks at the State Board of Elections website (http://www.elections.state.il.us/ElectionAuthorities/ElecAuthorityList.aspx).
If you choose to structure your business as a corporation, the name is established when you form the corporation and fill out the appropriate paperwork (Articles on Incorporation) with the Illinois Secretary of State’s Department of Business Services. There are also other forms of business organization – such as Limited Partnership, Limited Liability Partnership (LLP), and others – and the name registration process can vary with each one. The Secretary of State’s Office maintains an online database of business names (for corporations and LLPs only) that have already been registered with the state, so you can check to see if your name has already been taken (http://www.ilsos.gov/corporatellc/).
For more information on these various business structures, you can contact the Secretary of State’s Department of Business Services at 217-782-6961 or visit them on the web (http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/business_services/home.html). Another useful resource is the State of Illinois’ Step-By-Step Guide for Starting a Business: (http://www.business.illinois.gov/step_by_step_guides.cfm#t3).
- How Can The State Help Me Secure Financing For My New/Small Business?
Loan programs typically do not provide direct loans to businesses, but rather provide guarantees to help small business owners secure financing from lenders who might not otherwise offer financing to small business projects.
The State of Illinois offers a number of loan programs, descriptions of which are available on the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity web site (http://www.illinoisbiz.biz/dceo/Bureaus/Business_Development/Loan+Programs/). The Illinois Finance Authority is another source of many state loan programs for small businesses (http://www.il-fa.com/products/ind_irb.html).
There are also a broad range loan programs available through the federal government Small Business Administration as well as other state agencies. Descriptions of these programs are also available on the web (Illinois Business Financing Matrix (PDF 162 KB)  ).
Almost all of these programs will require a sound business plan as a prerequisite. For help assembling a plan, or finding a financing option that is right for your business, you may want to contact a State of Illinois Small Business Development Center. To find a Small Business Development Center in your area, please visit the SBDC website (http://www.illinoisbiz.biz/dceo/Bureaus/Entrepreneurship+and+Small+Business/Small+Business+Development+Centers/).
- How Do I Register To Pay Taxes?
You must register with the Illinois Department of Revenue if you conduct business in Illinois, or with Illinois customers. This includes sole proprietors (individual or husband/wife), exempt organizations, or government agencies withholding for Illinois employees. The type of activities your business engages in will determine what taxes you are responsible for paying. For a list and brief description of the various taxes that the State of Illinois collects from businesses, please visit the Illinois Business Portal (http://www.business.illinois.gov/tax_info.cfm),
To Register
Register with IDOR before you make any sales or when you hire an employee. For those businesses that have sales or use tax liability in Illinois, you will receive a Certificate of Registration that must be displayed in a prominent location in the place of business to which it applies. To register your business and receive your Certificate of Registration and Illinois Business Tax number ( i.e., your "tax" number or IBT no.), you have these options:
Note: Certain tax types may have additional registration or bonding requirements. If additional information is required for your particular registration, the department will contact you.
It is recommended that you contact other federal and state agencies and your units of local government (county, municipal, mass transit districts, etc.) to learn if you must register your business with them.
For more information, please visit the Illinois Business Portal (http://www.business.illinois.gov/taxes.cfm) or contact the Illinois Department of Revenue Business Hotline: 217 524-4772.
- Does My Business Have To Pay Unemployment Insurance Taxes?
If you employ workers in Illinois, the answer is most likely yes. For calendar year 2005, employers are liable for state UI taxes on the first $10,500 in wages paid to each of their employees in that year. These taxes are known as "contributions" and are not included in your Illinois Department of Revenue tax registration.
To establish an Unemployment Insurance account with the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES), employers must submit a completed UI-1 form (PDF 265 KB) or a UI-1 DOM (PDF 50 KB) form for domestic / household workers. The forms and payment should be mailed to IDES, PO Box 19300, Springfield IL 62794-9300.
Because of varying criteria for establishing employers’ unemployment insurance (UI) tax liability, please call the IDES employer hotline at 800-247-4984 or 312-793-4880 to make sure you need to be paying UI taxes and to better understand what your contributions will be. IDES also maintains a helpful website (http://www.ides.state.il.us/employer/pubs/fastfax3.asp).
- Does My Business Need A Pollution Control Permit?
There are three general types of pollution control permits your business may need: Air Pollution Control Permits, Land Pollution Control Permits, or Water Pollution Control Permits.
Air Pollution Control Permits : If your business has an “emission source” or operates “air pollution control equipment” you will most likely need an air pollution control permit. An emission source is defined as any equipment or facility of a type capable of emitting specified air contaminants to the atmosphere. Air pollution control equipment is defined as any equipment or facility of a type intended to eliminate, prevent, reduce or control the emission of specified air contaminants to the atmosphere.
Because the list of specified air contaminants is so large, it is likely that if your business emits any kind of smoke, gas, chemical, etc. into the air, you may need an air pollution control permit. For more information on permitting requirements and the permitting process, please visit the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency website (http://www.epa.state.il.us/small-business/pollution-control-permit/apc-permit.html) or call the Illinois Small Business Environmental Assistance Center: (800) 252-3998 .
Land Pollution Control Permits : A permit from the Bureau of Land is generally required to manage waste. If you do not treat, store or dispose of some kind of waste, you may not need a land permit. Waste is anything that is being discarded or can no longer be used for its original purpose. Something may be a waste if it no longer has a dollar value or if it is used carelessly, spilled, burned, buried or poured down the drain.
The need for a permit is dependent upon the type of waste, what you do with a waste and location of the activities. There are a variety of waste activities that are regulated to control contamination by wastes. Because some regulated activities require a permit, you need to understand what these activities are to determine if your business needs a land pollution control permit.
If your company or business activities make waste, you are a waste generator. Waste generation is a regulated activity but does not need a permit unless you conduct one of the activities described below. These are the activities that may trigger the need for a permit:
Waste storage - If you store waste on your property, you must comply with all the storage requirements in the regulations. Several different sets of regulations may apply to this activity depending on who generates the waste, the classification of the waste and how long the waste is stored at your facility.
Waste treatment - Any activity that changes the waste is regulated as waste treatment. Treatment includes, among other things, mixing the waste with other wastes or materials, burning, grinding or separating the waste.
Waste transportation - is also regulated. If you transport the waste on a public road, you must comply with transporter rules.
Waste disposal - is the most highly regulated waste management activity. Disposal includes, among other things, dumping waste on the ground, storing it in piles on the ground, in a landfill, or in lagoons and storing waste indefinitely, even when it is held in tanks, buildings or containers.
If you conduct one of these activities, please consult the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Website (http://www.epa.state.il.us/small-business/pollution-control-permit/lpc-permit.html) or call the Illinois Small Business Environmental Assistance Center: (800) 252-3998 .
Water Pollution Control Permits : There are two types of wastewater discharges controlled by state permits – process water discharges and storm water discharges. A permit may be required at one business for either type of wastewater discharge, or for both. You should determine whether you need a permit either for process wastewater or for storm water. You are required to obtain these permits prior to any discharge.
Wastewater is defined as almost any discharge of water that is generated from any process industry, manufacturing, trade, or business. The definition also includes any solid, liquid or gaseous waste; and all other substances whose discharge would cause water pollution. If your business does not have a wastewater discharge as described above, you are not required to obtain a permit .
If your business does produce wastewater, please consult the Illinois Environmental Protection website for additional information (http://www.epa.state.il.us/small-business/pollution-control-permit/wpc-permit.html) or call the Illinois Small Business Environmental Assistance Center: (800) 252-3998 .
- What Is The Process For Doing Business With The State?
To qualify to do business with the state, a business (vendor) must complete a number of important steps. First, the vendor must submit a completed Bidder’s Application form (PDF 13 KB) and an Illinois Department of Human Rights Form (DOC 148 KB)  .
Once these forms have been submitted and the state notifies the vendor that all forms have been received, the vendor may submit bids for contracts with various state agencies. A listing of current contracts and bid specifications for each contract is available through various state government procurement bulletins: (http://www.purchase.state.il.us/ipb/registration.nsf/RegMainFrameset?OpenFrameset).
After a vendor submits a sealed bid, he/she must wait until all bids have been collected (usually dictated by a deadline) and will be notified if his/her bid is judged to be the most beneficial to the contracting agency.
For a more detailed description of this process, please visit the Sell 2 Illinois website (http://sell2.illinois.gov/).
- How Do I Learn About Opportunities For Doing Business With The State?
The best way to learn about business opportunities with the State of Illinois is through the Illinois Procurement Bulletin. The Bulletin is an online database of most of the goods and services contracts that are posted by the state’s executive agencies (those managed by the Office of the Governor). If you choose, you may also sign up to receive automated e-mail updates from the Bulletin as contract opportunities become available. To register for the Bulletin, please visit the Department of Central Management Services website (http://www.purchase.state.il.us/ipb/registration.nsf/RegMainFrameset?OpenFrameset). For more information on doing business with other branches of state government, please visit the following websites:
Department of Transportation (Roads, Railroads, Airports, etc) (http://www.dot.state.il.us/dobuisns.html)
Capital Development Board (Building Construction) (http://www.cdb.state.il.us/procurement.shtml)
Illinois Board of Higher Education (Goods and Services Purchased by Public Universities) (http://www.procure.stateuniv.state.il.us/doing_business_with_universities.htm)
Judicial Branch Procurement Opportunities (Goods and Services Purchased by State Courts) (http://www.state.il.us/court/Procurement/default.asp)
- I Am Interested In Becoming A Nurse. Where Can I Get More Information About Obtaining A Nursing License?
The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (DFPR) is responsible for licensing nurses in Illinois. The Department maintains a website with information on state nursing law, licensing procedures, necessary forms, and online service tools. The licensing procedure varies depending on what type of nurse you want to become. Please see the DFPR nursing website (http://www.idfpr.com/DPR/WHO/nurs.asp) for more information.
- I am a sole proprietor. Do I have to buy workers' compensation insurance?
The short answer is no, but the full answer is a bit longer.
Section 1(b)3 of the Illinois Workers' Compensation Act provides that soleproprietors and business partners may elect to come under the Act or theymay choose not to.
There is a twist, though, in Section 3. It provides that employees who engage in extra hazardous occupations must be covered under the law--but then subsections 3(17) and 3(20) allow sole proprietors, corporate officers, business partners, and members of limited liability companies to opt out.
In summary, if you are a sole proprietor and...
...you want to come under the Act, you must purchase insurance for yourself to be covered for a work-related injury or illness.
...you don't want to be covered, and you DO NOT have a workers' compensation insurance policy, you do not need to do anything.
...you don't want to be covered, and you DO have a workers' compensation insurance policy (for any employees you may have), you may want to tell your insurer, in writing, of your desire to opt out.
- How do I obtain workers' compensation insurance?
In Illinois, workers' compensation insurance is sold in the private sector. You may contact a licensed insurance agent, perhaps one who specializes in business owners' insurance. If you cannot find an insurer to write you a policy, you may sign up or have your agent enroll you in the assigned risk plan, administered by the National Council of Compensation Insurance (800-622-4123)(ask for the Illinois assigned risk plan).
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