Ill. Admin. Code tit. 44 § 1600.5020
If the Procurement Officer finds a conflict of interest under Section 50-13 of the Code with the vendor selected for award or contract negotiations, the Procurement Officer, if other than the CPO, shall forward to the CPO the name of the vendor and a description of the proposed contract and of the potential conflict, and shall state why an exemption should be granted. The CPO shall submit the files to the Board of Ethics for its determination and with the approval of the CPO, the Board of Ethics may exempt named individuals from the prohibitions of Section 50-13 of the Code when, in its judgment, the public interest in having the individual in the service of the State outweighs the public policy evidenced in that Section [30 ILCS 500/50-20] .
Ill. Admin. Code tit. 44, § 1600.5020