Public Act 099-0845
 
SB0232 EnrolledLRB099 03157 NHT 23165 b



    AN ACT concerning education.

 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:



 
    Section 5. The Public Community College Act is amended  by 
changing Section 2-16.02 as follows:
 



    (110 ILCS 805/2-16.02)  (from Ch. 122, par. 102-16.02)



    Sec. 2-16.02. Grants. Any community college district that 
maintains a
community college recognized by the State Board 
shall receive, when eligible,
grants enumerated in this 
Section.  Funded semester credit hours or other
measures or both 
as specified by the State Board shall be used to distribute

grants to community colleges.  Funded semester credit hours 
shall be defined,
for purposes of this Section, as the greater 
of
(1) the number of semester credit hours, or equivalent, in 
all funded
instructional categories of  students who have been 
certified as being in
attendance at midterm during the 
respective terms of the base fiscal year or
(2) the average of 
semester credit hours, or equivalent, in all funded

instructional categories of students who have been certified as 
being in
attendance at midterm during the respective terms of 
the base fiscal year and
the 2 prior fiscal years.  For purposes 
of this Section, "base fiscal year"
means the fiscal year 2 
years prior to the fiscal year for which the grants are

appropriated.  Such students shall have been residents of 
Illinois and shall
have been enrolled in courses that are part 
of instructional program categories
approved by the State Board 
and that are applicable toward an associate degree
or 
certificate.
Courses that are eligible for reimbursement are 
those courses for which
the district pays 50% or more of the 
program costs from unrestricted
revenue sources, with the 
exception of courses offered by contract with
the Department of 
Corrections in correctional institutions. For the
purposes of 
this Section, "unrestricted revenue sources" means those

revenues in which the provider of the revenue imposes no 
financial
limitations upon the district as it relates to the 
expenditure of the funds.  Except for Fiscal Year 2012, base 
operating grants shall be paid based on rates per funded

semester credit hour or equivalent calculated by the State 
Board for funded
instructional categories using cost of 
instruction, enrollment, inflation, and
other relevant 
factors. For Fiscal Year 2012, the allocations for base 
operating grants to community college districts shall be the 
same as they were in Fiscal Year 2011, reduced or increased 
proportionately according to the appropriation for base 
operating grants for Fiscal Year 2012.

    Equalization grants shall be calculated by the State Board 
by determining a
local revenue factor for each district by:  (A) 
adding (1)
each district's Corporate Personal Property 
Replacement Fund
allocations from the base
fiscal year or the 
average of the base fiscal year and prior year, whichever is

less, divided by the applicable statewide average tax rate to 
(2) the
district's most recently audited
year's equalized 
assessed valuation or the average of the most recently audited

year and prior year, whichever is less, (B) then dividing by 
the district's
audited full-time equivalent resident students 
for the base fiscal year or the
average for the base  fiscal 
year and the 2 prior fiscal years, whichever is
greater, and 
(C) then multiplying by the applicable statewide average tax

rate.  The State Board
shall calculate a statewide weighted 
average threshold by applying
the same methodology to the 
totals of all districts' Corporate Personal
Property Tax 
Replacement Fund allocations, equalized assessed valuations, 
and
audited full-time equivalent district resident students 
and multiplying by the
applicable statewide average tax rate.  
The difference between the statewide
weighted average 
threshold and the local revenue
factor, multiplied by the 
number of full-time equivalent resident students,
shall 
determine the amount of equalization funding that each district 
is
eligible to receive.  A percentage factor, as determined by 
the State Board,
may be applied to the statewide threshold as a 
method for allocating
equalization funding.  A minimum 
equalization grant of an amount per district
as determined by 
the State Board shall be established for any community college

district which qualifies for an equalization grant based upon 
the preceding
criteria, but becomes ineligible for 
equalization funding, or would have
received a grant of less 
than the minimum equalization grant, due to threshold

prorations applied to reduce equalization funding.
As of July 
1, 2013, a community college district eligible to receive an 
equalization grant based upon the preceding criteria  must 
maintain a
minimum required combined in-district tuition and 
universal fee rate per
semester credit hour equal to 70% of the 
State-average combined rate, as
determined by the State Board, 
or the total revenue received by the community college district 
from combined in-district tuition and universal fees must be at 
least 30% of the total revenue received by the community 
college district, as determined by the State Board, for 
equalization funding. As of July 1,
2004, a community college 
district must maintain a minimum required
operating tax rate 
equal to at least 95% of its maximum authorized tax
rate to 
qualify for equalization funding. This 95% minimum tax rate

requirement shall be based upon the maximum operating tax rate 
as
limited by the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law.

    The State Board shall distribute such other grants as may 
be
authorized or appropriated by the General Assembly.

    Each community college district entitled to State grants 
under this
Section must submit a report of its enrollment to 
the State Board not later
than 30 days following the end of 
each semester, quarter, or term in a
format prescribed by the 
State Board.  These semester credit hours, or
equivalent, shall 
be certified by each district on forms provided by the
State 
Board.  Each district's certified semester credit hours, or 
equivalent,
are subject to audit pursuant to Section 3-22.1.

    The State Board shall certify, prepare, and submit monthly 
vouchers to the State Comptroller
 setting
forth an amount equal 
to one-twelfth of the grants approved by the State Board for 
base
operating grants and equalization grants.  The State Board 
shall prepare and
submit to the State Comptroller vouchers for 
payments of other grants as
appropriated by the General 
Assembly.  If the amount appropriated for grants
is different 
from the amount provided for such grants under this Act, the

grants shall be proportionately reduced or increased 
accordingly.

    For the purposes of this Section, "resident student" means 
a student in a
community college district who maintains 
residency in that district or
meets other residency definitions 
established by the State Board, and who
was enrolled either in 
one of the approved instructional program categories
in that 
district, or in another community college district to which the

resident's district is paying tuition under Section 6-2 or with 
which the
resident's district has entered into a cooperative 
agreement in lieu of such
tuition. Students shall be classified 
as residents of the community college district without meeting 
the 30-day residency requirement of the district if they are 
currently residing in the district and are youth (i) who are 
currently under the legal guardianship of the Illinois 
Department of Children and Family Services or have recently 
been emancipated from the Department and (ii) who had 
previously met the 30-day residency requirement of the district 
but who had a placement change into a new community college 
district. The student, a caseworker or other personnel of the 
Department, or the student's attorney or guardian ad litem 
appointed under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 shall provide 
the district with proof of current in-district residency. 

    For the purposes of this Section, a "full-time equivalent" 
student is
equal to 30 semester credit hours.

    The Illinois Community College Board Contracts and Grants 
Fund is hereby
created in the State Treasury.  Items of income 
to this fund shall include
any grants, awards, endowments, or 
like proceeds, and where appropriate,
other funds made 
available through contracts with governmental, public, and

private agencies or persons.  The General Assembly shall from 
time to time
make appropriations payable from such fund for the 
support, improvement,
and expenses of the State Board and 
Illinois community college
districts.

(Source: P.A. 97-72, eff. 7-1-11; 97-1160, eff. 2-1-13; 98-46, 
eff. 6-28-13; 98-756, eff. 7-16-14.)