SB2913 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB104 17855 LNS 31289 b

104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
SB2913

Introduced 1/27/2026, by Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

105 ILCS 5/24A-4

from Ch. 122, par. 24A-4

Amends the Evaluation of Certified Employees Article of the School Code. Provides that, beginning July 1, 2026, if a school district and its teachers cannot reach agreement over the decision on whether to incorporate the use of data and indicators on student growth as a factor in rating teaching performance into a teacher evaluation plan and there is no collective bargaining agreement that includes or incorporates by reference the teacher evaluation plan, then the student growth component shall be removed from the teacher evaluation plan. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

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 Section 24A-4 as follows:

(105 ILCS 5/24A-4) (from Ch. 122, par. 24A-4)

Sec. 24A-4. Development of evaluation plan.

(a) As used in this and the succeeding Sections, "teacher" means any and all school district employees regularly required to be certified under laws relating to the certification of teachers. Each school district shall develop, in cooperation with its teachers or, where applicable, the exclusive bargaining representatives of its teachers, an evaluation plan for all teachers.

(b) Until July 1, 2025, each school district shall, in good faith cooperation with its teachers or, where applicable, the exclusive bargaining representatives of its teachers, incorporate the use of data and indicators on student growth as a significant factor in rating teaching performance, into its evaluation plan for all teachers, both those teachers in contractual continued service and those teachers not in contractual continued service. The plan shall at least meet the standards and requirements for student growth and teacher evaluation established under Section 24A-7, and specifically describe how student growth data and indicators will be used as part of the evaluation process, how this information will relate to evaluation standards, the assessments or other indicators of student performance that will be used in measuring student growth and the weight that each will have, the methodology that will be used to measure student growth, and the criteria other than student growth that will be used in evaluating the teacher and the weight that each will have.

(b-5) Beginning July 1, 2025, each school district may, in good faith cooperation with its teachers or, where applicable, with the exclusive bargaining representatives of its teachers, incorporate the use of data and indicators on student growth as a factor in rating teaching performance, into its evaluation plan for all teachers in contractual continued service and teachers not in contractual continued service. The plan shall at least meet the standards and requirements for teacher evaluations established under Section 24A-7.

To incorporate the use of data and indicators of student growth as a factor in rating teacher performance into the evaluation plan, the district shall use a joint committee composed of equal representation selected by the district and its teachers or, where applicable, the exclusive bargaining representative of its teachers.

Beginning July 1, 2026, if the parties cannot reach agreement over the decision on whether to incorporate a student growth component into the teacher evaluation plan and there is no collective bargaining agreement that includes or incorporates by reference the teacher evaluation plan, then the student growth component shall be removed from the teacher evaluation plan.

Nothing in this subsection (b) shall make decisions on the use of data and indicators on student growth as a significant factor in rating teaching performance mandatory subjects of bargaining under the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act that are not currently mandatory subjects of bargaining under the Act.

The provisions of the Open Meetings Act shall not apply to meetings of a joint committee formed under this subsection (b-5) (b).

(c) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in subsection (b-5) (b) of this Section, if the joint committee referred to in that subsection does not reach agreement on the plan within 90 calendar days after the committee's first meeting, a school district having 500,000 or more inhabitants shall not be required to implement any aspect of the model evaluation plan and may implement its last best proposal.

(d) The joint committee referred to in subsections (b-5) (b) and (c) of this Section shall meet no less than one time annually to assess and review the effectiveness of the district's evaluation plan for the purposes of continuous improvement of instruction and evaluation practices.

(Source: P.A. 104-20, eff. 7-1-25.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.