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1 AN ACT relating to young children's learning and
2 development.
3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
4 represented in the General Assembly:
5 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
6 Illinois Early Learning Council Act.
7 Section 5. Illinois Early Learning Council. The Illinois
8 Early Learning Council is hereby created to coordinate
9 existing programs and services for children from birth to 5
10 years of age in order to better meet the early learning needs
11 of children and their families. The goal of the Council is to
12 fulfill the vision of a statewide, high-quality, accessible,
13 and comprehensive early learning system to benefit all young
14 children whose parents choose it. The Council shall guide
15 collaborative efforts to improve and expand upon existing
16 early childhood programs and services. This work shall
17 include making use of existing reports, research, and
18 planning efforts.
19 Section 10. Membership. The Illinois Early Learning
20 Council shall include representation from both public and
21 private organizations, and its membership shall reflect
22 regional, racial, and cultural diversity to ensure
23 representation of the needs of all Illinois children. One
24 member shall be appointed by the President of the Senate, one
25 member appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate, one
26 member appointed by the Speaker of the House of
27 Representatives, one member appointed by the Minority Leader
28 of the House of Representatives, and other members appointed
29 by the Governor. The Governor's appointments shall include
30 without limitation the following:
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1 (1) A leader of stature from the Governor's office,
2 to serve as co-chairperson of the Council.
3 (2) The chief administrators of the following State
4 agencies: State Board of Education; Department of Human
5 Services; Department of Children and Family Services;
6 Department of Public Health; Department of Public Aid;
7 Board of Higher Education; and Illinois Community College
8 Board.
9 (3) Local government stakeholders and nongovernment
10 stakeholders with an interest in early childhood care and
11 education, including representation from the following
12 private-sector fields and constituencies: early childhood
13 education and development; child care; child advocacy;
14 parenting support; local community collaborations among
15 early care and education programs and services; maternal
16 and child health; children with special needs; business;
17 labor; and law enforcement. The Governor shall designate
18 one of the members who is a nongovernment stakeholder to
19 serve as co-chairperson.
20 In addition, the Governor shall request that the Region V
21 office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services'
22 Administration for Children and Families appoint a member to
23 the Council to represent federal children's programs and
24 services.
25 Members appointed by General Assembly members and members
26 appointed by the Governor who are local government or
27 nongovernment stakeholders shall serve 3-year terms, except
28 that of the initial appointments, half of these members, as
29 determined by lot, shall be appointed to 2-year terms so that
30 terms are staggered. Members shall serve on a voluntary,
31 unpaid basis.
32 Section 15. Accountability. The Illinois Early Learning
33 Council shall annually report to the Governor and General
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1 Assembly on the Council's progress towards its goals and
2 objectives.
3 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
4 becoming law.