Public Act 096-1489
 
HB5863 Re-EnrolledLRB096 18304 NHT 33679 b


  
    AN ACT concerning education.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  


 
    Section 5. The School Code is amended  by changing Sections 
10-21.9 and 21-9 as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/10-21.9)  (from Ch. 122, par. 10-21.9)
    Sec. 10-21.9. Criminal history records checks and checks of 
the Statewide Sex Offender Database and Statewide Child 
Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database. 
    (a) Certified and noncertified applicants for employment 
with a school
district, except school bus driver applicants, 
are required as a condition
of employment to authorize a 
fingerprint-based criminal history records check to determine 
if such applicants have been convicted of any of
the enumerated 
criminal or drug offenses in subsection (c) of this Section or

have been convicted, within 7 years of the application for 
employment with
the
school district, of any other felony under 
the laws of this State or of any
offense committed or attempted 
in any other state or against the laws of
the United States 
that, if committed or attempted in this State, would
have been 
punishable as a felony under the laws of this State.
 
Authorization for
the check shall be furnished by the applicant 
to
the school district, except that if the applicant is a 
substitute teacher
seeking employment in more than one school 
district, a teacher seeking
concurrent part-time employment 
positions with more than one school
district (as a reading 
specialist, special education teacher or otherwise),
or an 
educational support personnel employee seeking employment 
positions
with more than one district, any such district may 
require the applicant to
furnish authorization for
the  check to 
the regional superintendent
of the educational service region 
in which are located the school districts
in which the 
applicant is seeking employment as a substitute or concurrent

part-time teacher or concurrent educational support personnel 
employee.
Upon receipt of this authorization, the school 
district or the appropriate
regional superintendent, as the 
case may be, shall submit the applicant's
name, sex, race, date 
of birth, social security number, fingerprint images, and other 
identifiers, as prescribed by the Department
of State Police, 
to the Department. The regional
superintendent submitting the 
requisite information to the Department of
State Police shall 
promptly notify the school districts in which the
applicant is 
seeking employment as a substitute or concurrent part-time

teacher or concurrent educational support personnel employee 
that
the
check of the applicant has been requested. The 
Department of State Police and the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation shall furnish, pursuant to a fingerprint-based 
criminal history records check, records of convictions, until 
expunged, to the president of the school board for the school 
district that requested the check, or to the regional 
superintendent who requested the check.
 The
Department shall 
charge
the school district
or the appropriate regional 
superintendent a fee for
conducting
 such check, which fee shall 
be deposited in the State
Police Services Fund and shall not 
exceed the cost of
the inquiry; and the
applicant shall not be 
charged a fee for
such check by the school
district or by the 
regional superintendent, except that those applicants seeking 
employment as a substitute teacher with a school district may 
be charged a fee not to exceed the cost of the inquiry.  Subject 
to appropriations for these purposes, the State Superintendent 
of Education shall reimburse school districts and regional 
superintendents for fees paid to obtain criminal history 
records checks under this Section.
    (a-5) The school district or regional superintendent shall 
further perform a check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database, 
as authorized by the Sex Offender Community Notification Law, 
for each applicant.

    (a-6) The school district or regional superintendent shall 
further perform a check of the Statewide Child Murderer and 
Violent Offender Against Youth Database, as authorized by the 
Child Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Community 
Notification Law, for each applicant.

    (b)
  Any information
concerning the record of convictions 
obtained by the president of the
school board or the regional 
superintendent shall be confidential and may
only be 
transmitted to the superintendent of the school district or his

designee, the appropriate regional superintendent if
the check 
was
requested by the school district, the presidents of the 
appropriate school
boards if
the check was requested from the 
Department of State
Police by the regional superintendent, the 
State Superintendent of
Education, the State Teacher 
Certification Board or any other person
necessary to the 
decision of hiring the applicant for employment.  A copy
of the 
record of convictions obtained from the Department of State 
Police
shall be provided to the applicant for employment. Upon 
the check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database, the school 
district or regional superintendent shall notify an applicant 
as to whether or not the applicant has been identified in the 
Database as a sex offender. If a check of
an applicant for 
employment as a substitute or concurrent part-time teacher
or 
concurrent educational support personnel employee in more than 
one
school district was requested by the regional 
superintendent, and the
Department of State Police upon a check 
ascertains that the applicant
has not been convicted of any of 
the enumerated criminal or drug offenses
in subsection (c)
or 
has not been convicted, within 7 years of the
application for

employment with the
school district, of any other felony under 
the laws of this State or of any
offense committed or attempted 
in any other state or against the laws of
the United States 
that, if committed or attempted in this State, would
have been 
punishable as a felony under the laws of this State
and so 
notifies the regional
superintendent and if the regional 
superintendent upon a check ascertains that the applicant has 
not been identified in the Sex Offender Database as a sex 
offender, then the
regional superintendent shall issue to the 
applicant a certificate
evidencing that as of the date 
specified by the Department of State Police
the applicant has 
not been convicted of any of the enumerated criminal or
drug 
offenses in subsection (c)
or has not been
convicted, within 7 
years of the application for employment with the
school 
district, of any other felony under the laws of this State or 
of any
offense committed or attempted in any other state or 
against the laws of
the United States that, if committed or 
attempted in this State, would
have been punishable as a felony 
under the laws of this State and evidencing that as of the date 
that the regional superintendent conducted a check of the 
Statewide Sex Offender Database, the applicant has not been 
identified in the Database as a sex offender.  The school
board 
of
any
school district
may rely on the
certificate issued by 
any regional superintendent to that substitute teacher, 
concurrent part-time teacher, or concurrent educational 
support personnel employee or may
initiate its own criminal 
history records check of the applicant through the Department 
of
State Police and its own check of the Statewide Sex Offender 
Database as provided in subsection (a). Any person who releases 
any
confidential information concerning any criminal 
convictions of an
applicant for employment shall be guilty of a 
Class A misdemeanor, unless
the release of such information is 
authorized by this Section.
    (c) No school board shall knowingly employ a person who has 
been
convicted of any offense that would subject him or her to 
certification suspension or revocation pursuant to Section 
21-23a of this Code.
Further, no school board shall knowingly 
employ a person who has been found
to be the perpetrator of 
sexual or physical abuse of any minor under 18 years
of age 
pursuant to proceedings under Article II of the Juvenile Court 
Act of
1987.
    (d) No school board shall knowingly employ a person for 
whom a criminal
history records check and a Statewide Sex 
Offender Database check has not been initiated.
    (e) Upon receipt of the record of a conviction of or a 
finding of child
abuse by a holder of any
certificate issued 
pursuant to Article 21 or Section 34-8.1 or 34-83 of the
School 
Code, the
State Superintendent of Education may initiate 
certificate suspension
and revocation proceedings as 
authorized by law.
    (e-5)  The superintendent of the employing school board 
shall, in writing, notify the State Superintendent of Education 
and the applicable regional superintendent of schools of any 
certificate holder whom he or she has reasonable cause to 
believe has committed an intentional act of abuse or neglect 
with the result of making a child an abused child or a 
neglected child, as defined in Section 3 of the Abused and 
Neglected Child Reporting Act, and that act resulted in the 
certificate holder's dismissal or resignation from the school 
district.  This notification must be submitted within 30 days 
after the dismissal or resignation.  The certificate holder must 
also be contemporaneously sent a copy of the notice by the 
superintendent.  All correspondence, documentation, and other 
information so received by the regional superintendent of 
schools, the State Superintendent of Education, the State Board 
of Education, or the State Teacher Certification Board under 
this subsection (e-5) is confidential and must not be disclosed 
to third parties, except (i) as necessary for the State 
Superintendent of Education or his or her designee to 
investigate and prosecute pursuant to Article 21 of this Code, 
(ii) pursuant to a court order, (iii) for disclosure to the 
certificate holder or his or her representative, or (iv) as 
otherwise provided in this Article and provided that any such 
information admitted into evidence in a hearing is exempt from 
this confidentiality and non-disclosure requirement.  Except 
for an act of willful or wanton misconduct, any superintendent 
who provides notification as required in this subsection (e-5) 
shall have immunity from any liability, whether civil or 
criminal or that otherwise might result by reason of such 
action. 
    (f) After January 1, 1990 the provisions of this Section 
shall apply
to all employees of persons or firms holding 
contracts with any school
district including, but not limited 
to, food service workers, school bus
drivers and other 
transportation employees, who have direct, daily contact
with 
the pupils of any school in such district. For purposes of 
criminal
history records checks and checks of the Statewide Sex 
Offender Database on employees of persons or firms holding

contracts with more than one school district and assigned to 
more than one
school district, the regional superintendent of 
the educational service
region in which the contracting school 
districts are located may, at the
request of any such school 
district, be responsible for receiving the
authorization for
a 
criminal history records check prepared by each such employee 
and
submitting the same to the Department of State Police and 
for conducting a check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database 
for each employee.  Any information
concerning the record of 
conviction and identification as a sex offender of any such 
employee obtained by the
regional superintendent shall be 
promptly reported to the president of the
appropriate school 
board or school boards.
(Source: P.A. 95-331, eff. 8-21-07; 96-431, eff. 8-13-09.)
 



    (105 ILCS 5/21-9)  (from Ch. 122, par. 21-9)



    Sec. 21-9. Substitute certificates and substitute 
teaching. 

    (a) A
substitute teacher's certificate
may
be issued for 
teaching in all grades of the
common schools.  Such certificate

may be issued upon
request of the  regional superintendent of

schools of any  region in which the teacher is to
teach.  A 
substitute teacher's certificate is valid for teaching in the

public schools of
any county.  Such certificate may be issued to 
persons who either (a) hold
a certificate
valid for teaching in 
the common schools as shown on the face of the
certificate,
(b) 
hold a bachelor of arts degree from an institution of higher 
learning
accredited by the North Central Association or other 
comparable regional
accrediting association or have been 
graduated from a recognized institution
of higher learning with 
a bachelor's degree, or (c) have had 2 years of
teaching 
experience and meet such other
rules and regulations as may be 
adopted by the State
Board of Education in consultation with 
the State Teacher Certification
Board.  Such certificate shall 
expire on June 30 in the fourth year from date
of issue.
 
Substitute teacher's certificates are not subject to 
endorsement as
described in Section 21-1b of this Code.

    (b) A teacher holding a substitute teacher's certificate 
may teach only in
the
place of a certified teacher who is under 
contract with the employing board and
may teach only when no 
appropriate fully certified teacher is available to
teach in a

substitute capacity.  A teacher holding an early childhood 
certificate, an
elementary certificate, a high school 
certificate, or a special
certificate may also substitute teach 
in grades K-12 but only in the place of a
certified teacher who 
is under contract with the employing board.  A
substitute 
teacher may teach only for a period not to exceed
90 paid 
school days or 450 paid school hours in any one school district 
in any
one
school term.
However,
a teacher holding an early 
childhood, elementary, high school, or special
certificate may 
substitute teach for a period not to exceed 120 paid
school 
days or 600 paid school hours in any one school district in any

one school term.
Where such teaching is partly on a daily and 
partly on an hourly
basis,
a school day shall be considered as 
5 hours.
The teaching limitations imposed by this subsection

upon teachers holding substitute certificates shall
not apply 
in any school district operating under Article 34.

    (c) In order to substitute teach in the public schools, a 
person holding a valid substitute teacher's certificate or a 
person holding a valid early childhood certificate, a valid 
elementary certificate, a valid high school certificate, or a 
valid special certificate shall register as a substitute 
teacher with the regional superintendent of schools in each 
educational service region where the person will be employed.  A 
person who registers as a substitute teacher with the regional 
superintendent of schools is responsible for (1) the payment of 
fees to register the certificate for its period of validity, 
(2) authorization of a criminal history records  check and 
checks of the Statewide Sex Offender Database and Statewide 
Child Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database, as 
provided in Section 10-21.9 of this Code, (3) payment of the 
cost of the criminal history records  check and checks of the 
Statewide Sex Offender Database and Statewide Child Murderer 
and Violent Offender Against Youth Database, and (4) providing 
evidence of physical fitness and freedom from communicable 
disease, including tuberculosis, which may consist of a 
physical examination and a tuberculin skin test as required by 
Section 24-5 of this Code.
    The regional superintendent of schools shall maintain a 
file for each registered substitute teacher in the educational 
service region that includes a copy of the person's 
certificate, the results from the criminal history records  
check and checks of the Statewide Sex Offender Database and 
Statewide Child Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth 
Database, a copy of the physical examination, and a copy of the 
tuberculin skin test.  The regional superintendent of schools 
shall issue a signed and sealed certificate of authorization to 
the substitute teacher that verifies that the substitute 
teacher has completed the registration process and criminal 
history records  check and checks of the Statewide Sex Offender 
Database and Statewide Child Murderer and Violent Offender 
Against Youth Database and has a physical examination and 
negative tuberculin test on file with the regional 
superintendent of schools and is thereby approved to substitute 
teach in the public schools of the educational service region.  
This certificate must be presented to all prospective employing 
school districts in the educational service region, who shall 
photocopy the certificate and keep a copy of the certificate 
with employment records for the substitute teacher.
    Persons wishing to substitute teach in more than one 
educational service region shall register as a substitute 
teacher with the appropriate regional superintendent of 
schools. The registration process shall include all items 
listed in the first paragraph of this subsection (b), with the 
exception of the authorization of a criminal history records  
check and checks of the Statewide Sex Offender Database and 
Statewide Child Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth 
Database and the accompanying payment of associated fees. If 
the substitute teacher has been issued a signed and sealed 
certificate of authorization from another regional 
superintendent of schools, the registering entity may 
photocopy the certificate for its files and verify the 
substitute teacher's registration status.
(Source: P.A. 92-184, eff. 7-27-01; 93-679, eff. 6-30-04.)


 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect on 
January 1, 2011.