Distributed via Email: March 14, 2008

HOUSE APPROVES BILL FOR CONSTRUCTION FUNDS

The Illinois House of Representatives this week approved a bill that would appropriate $150 million for school construction grants for those 24 school districts that have been waiting for their promised payment since 2003. The districts have all been entitled to funding through the Illinois School Construction Grant Program administered by the Capital Development Board (CDB) and the Illinois State Board of Education. HB 4130 (Dugan, D-Bradley) was approved on the House floor by a vote of 108-0. The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration.

MORE BUDGET HEARINGS NEXT WEEK

As was reported in the last Alliance Legislative Report, House Speaker Michael Madigan has scheduled hearings across the State to take testimony from citizens regarding the crafting of the Fiscal Year 2009 State budget. Next week meetings will be held in Schaumburg, East Peoria, Champaign, Aurora, Crystal Lake, Cicero, and Joliet. For more information on times and locations of the meetings, or to register to participate by providing testimony at one of the hearings, please contact Deanna Sullivan (dsullivan@iasb.com) or Susan Hilton (shilton@iasb.com).

LEGISLATIVE SESSION SCHEDULE

Thursday (March 13) was the deadline for bills to be considered by a committee in the bill’s house of origin. Those bills that were not approved this week have missed their deadline and are considered "dead". However, the leadership of the House and Senate has the authority to extend the committee deadline for individual bills in their respective chambers. At this time, no education bills have had their deadlines extended. Also remember that provisions contained in "dead bills" could also be amended onto other bills that are moving through the process.

The deadline to have a House bill considered on the floor of the House of Representatives is April 18. The deadline to have a Senate bill considered on the floor of the Senate is April 17. Both the House and Senate will take the next two weeks off and will return to Springfield on Tuesday, April 1.

BILL ACTION THIS WEEK

HB 628 (Black, R-Danville) appropriates $15,000,000 from the General Revenue Fund to the Capital Development Board for grants for architectural and engineering studies and construction of a cooperative high school in Vermilion County involving Jamaica High School, Oakwood High School, and Catlin High School. The bill was approved by the House Public Safety Appropriations Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 1054 (Verschoore, D-Rock Island), an Alliance initiative, contains technical "clean-up" language to facilitate distribution of county sales tax revenues provided under PA 95-0675. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 1867 (Hernandez, D-Cicero), as amended, provides that for a TIF, "redevelopment project costs" include reimbursements to school districts and community college districts for costs related to certain capital facilities projects. It also provides that, by accepting this reimbursement, the school district waives the right to directly or indirectly set aside, modify, or contest in any manner the establishment of the redevelopment project area or projects. The bill was approved by the House Revenue Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4229 (Sacia, R-Freeport) provides that whenever the term "registered mail" is used in the School Code, it shall be deemed to authorize the use of either registered mail or certified mail, return receipt requested. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4252 (Brady, R-Bloomington) provides that if an employee of a school district has made a report to DCFS under the Mandated Reporters Act involving the conduct of a current or former employee of the school district, and a request is made by another school district to provide information concerning the job performance or qualifications of the current or former employee because he or she is an applicant for employment, the superintendent of the school district to which the request is being made must disclose to the requesting school district the fact that a report had been made. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4266 (Mathias, R-Arlington Heights) requires the ISBE to reimburse school districts for interest not earned on general State aid allocations beginning in August 2007 due to the delay in implementing the Fiscal Year 2008 State budget. The bill, supported by the Alliance, was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4268 (Davis, M., D-Chicago) provides that if a student has been expelled from an attendance center, the school district must permit the student to transfer to another attendance center within the district for the remainder of the expulsion. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, failed to receive approval from the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and will not advance.

HB 4437 (Flowers, D-Chicago), as amended, creates a 3-year pilot program in Chicago Public

Schools only that includes an electrocardiogram (EKG) as part of the health exam required for students who participate in an interscholastic athletic program. The bill was approved as amended by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor.

HB 4442 (Flowers), as amended, provides that if a student must be transferred from one attendance center to another within a school district because the attendance center the student is currently attending exceeds its attendance capacity, then the attendance center the student is to be transferred to must not be on the academic watch list unless the student’s parent or guardian prefers the student be transferred there. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4537 (Flider, D-Mt. Zion), as amended, provides that the ISBE promote an annual campaign about disability history and awareness and requires school districts to provide instruction on the same that may be included in courses the school district chooses. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4582 (Lyons, D-Chicago) prevents the IHSA from allowing exclusive coverage of  any sporting events, overturning the current policy requiring the media to sign a waiver stating that it will not re-sell photographs for a profit. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, was approved by the House Executive Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4642 (Jakobsson, D-Champaign), as amended, requires the State Advisory Council on the Education of Children with Disabilities and the Advisory Council on the Education of Gifted and Talented Children to research and discuss best practices for addressing the needs of "twice-exceptional" children. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4771 (Winters, R-Rockford) provides that a school district may verify, no more than every other month, a student's verification of eligibility for the school breakfast program, the school lunch program, the free breakfast program, the free lunch program, or the summer food service program. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4788 (Harris, D-Chicago), as amended, increases the maximum income limitation on the Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption from $55,000 to $60,000 and changes the definition of household income to the combined income of the members of the household. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, was approved by the House Revenue Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4900 (Acevedo, D-Chicago) provides that, in the case of a contract involving the transportation of children with disabilities, the contract must be procured in a manner substantially equivalent to specified procedures under the Illinois Procurement Code. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 4913 (Golar, D-Chicago), as amended, provides that if a charter school commits a material violation of any of the conditions, standards, or procedures set forth in the charter, failed to meet generally accepted standards of fiscal management, or violated any provision of law from which the charter school was not exempted, then the ISBE shall notify the charter school of the reason why the charter is subject to revocation or non-renewal. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5038 (Colvin, D-Chicago) with respect to the Early Childhood Education Block Grant, provides that not less than 11% (instead of exactly 11%) of the grant shall be used to fund programs for children ages 0-3. The bill provides that this percentage shall increase to at least 20% by Fiscal Year 2014. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5077 (Smith, D-Canton) as amended, provides that the number of teachers who hold a Master Certificate must be included on a school district's school report card. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor.

HB 5142 (Flider), as amended, for out-of-state members of the Teacher Retirement System who experienced a leave of absence due to pregnancy, allows establishment of credit for that break in service. The bill was approved by the House Personnel & Pensions Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5188 (Pihos, R-Glen Ellyn), as amended, concerning confidential communications in the Illinois School Student Records Act, defines "psychotherapist" as a person who is a school social worker, school psychologist, or school counselor, as those terms are defined in the School Code. The bill was approved by the House Civil Law Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5323 (Bradley, J., D-Marion) amends the Prevailing Wage Act to provide that the Act applies to the demolition of public works. The bill was approved by the House Labor Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5325 (Smith), an Alliance initiative, authorizes the ISBE to administer a Continued Reading Improvement Grant Program and provides funds for the program to be made available to school districts with students in any of grades 7 through 12 who are reading significantly below grade level. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5399 (Verschoore), as amended, allows for specific area school board member representation in cases where school districts consolidate. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5536 (Brauer, R-Springfield) amends provisions of the Illinois Vehicle Code requiring each school bus to display at the rear of the bus a sign indicating the telephone number of the owner of the school bus. It changes the sign verbiage to: "TO COMMENT ON MY DRIVING, CALL (area code and telephone number of school bus owner)". The bill was approved by the House Transportation Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration. An Alliance amendment is being prepared for this bill.

HB 5578 (Mautino, D-Spring Valley), initiated by the Alliance on behalf of the Illinois Council of School Attorneys, provides that a party seeking to subpoena a public school employee to testify during school hours must obtain a court order and must pay a fee to the school district to pay the substitute teacher or other temporary staff employed during the witness's absence. The bill was approved by the House Civil Law Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5621 (Brauer) provides that the ISBE shall reimburse the costs of providing an international baccalaureate course to a school that provides such a course and shall reimburse diploma costs for each student who graduates through the International Baccalaureate Organization's Diploma Program. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5669 (Meyer, R-Naperville) requires school boards to make available on the school district's website a detailed annual expenditure report for each school building listing the dollar amount expended, by category, and the percentage each expenditure by category represents of the school building's total budget. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor.

HB 5732 (Smith), an Alliance initiative, disallows the regional superintendent from imposing an unfunded mandate on a school district with a compliance review audit unless statutory authority exists for such finding. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5914 (Rose, R-Charleston) changes the way members of the ISBE are selected. It would require a board of 7 members elected on a nonpartisan basis, within geographic regions, at the general election (now, the Board consists of 9 members appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate). The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 5970 (Smith) provides that "master principal designation program" shall also be known as the Illinois Distinguished Principal Leadership Institute. The bill was approved by the House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

HB 6302 (Joyce, D-Worth) requires the Cook County Assessor to reassess every residential property in Cook County, for the areas outside the 2008 general assessment year, on or before October 1, 2008. The bill was approved by the House Revenue Committee and was sent to the House floor.

SB 1874 (Forby, D-Benton) makes a supplemental appropriation of $21 million from the General Revenue Fund to the ISBE to be used exclusively for school districts' costs for extraordinary special education services. The bill, supported by the Alliance, was approved by the House Appropriations – Elementary and Secondary Education Committee and was sent to the House floor for consideration.

SB 1959 (Clayborne, D- E. St. Louis) changes how a supplemental benefit payment is calculated for members of the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF). The amount of the supplemental benefit payment to each eligible person shall be 75% of the monthly retirement or surviving spouse annuity payable to that person in June preceding the July1 supplemental benefit payment date and adds the percentage of earnings of the participating employees of all participating municipalities and participating instrumentalities necessary to provide that year's supplemental benefit payment to the list of considerations in determining the municipal contribution rate. This will increase the payment a school district must make to the IMRF. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, was approved by the Senate Pension and Investments Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 1960 (Clayborne) changes the minimum number of years of service an IMRF employee must work to be eligible for a retirement annuity from 8 to 5. This will increase the payment a school district must make to the IMRF. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, was approved by the Senate Pension and Investments Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2013 (Garrett, D-Lake Forest) changes the definition of those school district employees that are eligible for State personnel reimbursement for special education, and provides for a specified increase in the reimbursement from the 2008-2009 school year through the 2013-2014 school year. The bill was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor.

SB 2071 (Koehler, D-Pekin) makes changes concerning a school district's authority to replace a school building or build additions to replace portions of a building. With respect to one of the exceptions to a school district's debt limitation, allows additional indebtedness by the execution of a lease with a public building commission. The bill was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2072 (Pankau, R-Roselle) adds disabled persons to those who can receive the senior assessment freeze and changes the title to reflect this addition. The bill was approved by the Senate Revenue Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2084 (Silverstein, D-Chicago) requires that, beginning July 1, 2009, each new school bus shall be equipped with seat safety belts for each passenger and provides that the ISBE shall adopt rules to ensure that school districts require all passengers on those buses to wear seat safety belts. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, was held in the Senate Education Committee and will not advance.

SB 2091 (Haine, D-Alton) is an ISBE initiative regarding teacher misconduct. It addresses: a State's Attorney's duty to notify the State Superintendent of Education upon the conviction of a teacher of certain offenses or felony convictions; suspension or revocation of teaching certificates for misconduct; the State Superintendent’s authority to initiate the suspension of up to 5 calendar years or revocation of any certificate for specified reasons; a superintendent’s duty to notify authorities if there are claims against a teacher for abusing or neglecting a child; cooperating in an investigation of alleged misconduct, confidentiality and non-disclosure of information, and the attendance of witnesses and the production of certain documents. The bill was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2170 (Murphy, R-Palatine) provides that teachers (not just school authorities) may inspect and search places and areas owned or controlled by the school, as well as personal effects left in those places and areas by students, without notice to or the consent of the student and without a search warrant. The bill was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor. An Alliance amendment will be added to the bill.

SB 2182 (Cullerton, D-Chicago) requires a driver of a school bus to open the service door and driver's window before crossing a railroad track or tracks. The bill was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2256 (Cullerton) would change provisions in the public accommodations article of the Human Rights Act regarding non-sectarian educational institutions by narrowing the jurisdictional limits enacted last year concerning "classroom activity". The bill was approved by the Senate Executive Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2293 (Maloney, D-Chicago) requires that certain contracts involving an expenditure in excess of $25,000 or a lower amount as required by school board policy (rather than $10,000) be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder. The bill, supported by the Alliance, was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2296 (Clayborne) extends the provision to provide for an appropriation of $13 million on a continuing annual basis from the General Revenue Fund to the State Comptroller for deposit into the Teacher Health Insurance Security Fund. The bill, supported by the Alliance, was approved by the Senate Insurance Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2379 (Demuzio, D-Carlinville) makes changes concerning a petition for withdrawal of a school district from a special education joint agreement, including requiring the hearing on the petition to be in accordance with ISBE rules and changing how the vote on approval of the petition is determined. The bill was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor.

SB 2481 (Lightford, D-Chicago) is an ISBE initiative that eliminates the statute allowing for out-of-state testing waivers. Additionally, the proposal would make a corresponding change to allow provisional certificates to be valid for two years, including testing deficiencies. The bill was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2482 (Lightford) is an ISBE initiative to remove obsolete and duplicative language from the Illinois School Code. The bill was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2512 (Link, D-Vernon Hills) requires school districts to provide in the school curriculum a 2 hour unit of instruction in grades 3-12 on internet safety to be taught at least once each school year. The bill, opposed by the Alliance, was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

SB 2182 (Cullerton) requires a driver of a school bus to open the service door and driver's window before crossing a railroad track or tracks. The bill was approved by the Senate Education Committee and was sent to the Senate floor for consideration.

General Assembly Bill Text/Status

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