HB5038 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB093 19744 NHT 45485 b

93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2003 and 2004
HB5038

Introduced 2/5/2004, by Calvin L. Giles

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

20 ILCS 2605/2605-325	was 20 ILCS 2605/55a in part
105 ILCS 5/10-21.9	from Ch. 122, par. 10-21.9
105 ILCS 5/27A-5
105 ILCS 5/27A-8
105 ILCS 5/34-18.5	from Ch. 122, par. 34-18.5

Amends the School Code. Requires a criminal background investigation of charter school governing body members. Provides that a charter school is not exempt from a Section of the Code regarding the interest of board members in school contracts. Makes a change concerning when a school board must file the report granting or denying a charter school proposal with the State Board of Education. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement. Effective immediately.

CORRECTIONAL BUDGET AND IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

STATE MANDATES ACT MAY REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning schools.

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

Section 5. The Department of State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is amended by changing Section 2605-325 as follows:

(20 ILCS 2605/2605-325) (was 20 ILCS 2605/55a in part)

Sec. 2605-325. Conviction information for school board or regional superintendent. On request of a school board or regional superintendent of schools, to conduct an investigation inquiry pursuant to Section 10-21.9 or 34-18.5 of the School Code to ascertain whether an applicant for employment in a school district or a charter school governing body member has been convicted of committing or attempting to commit a any criminal or drug offense specified offenses enumerated in Section 10-21.9 or 34-18.5 of the School Code. The Department shall furnish the conviction information to the president of the school board of the school district that has requested the information or, if the information was requested by the regional superintendent, to that regional superintendent.

(Source: P.A. 90-18, eff. 7-1-97; 90-130, eff. 1-1-98; 90-372, eff. 7-1-98; 90-590, eff. 1-1-00; 90-655, eff. 7-30-98; 90-793, eff. 8-14-98; 91-239, eff. 1-1-00.)

Section 10. The School Code is amended by changing Sections 10-21.9, 27A-5, 27A-8, and 34-18.5 as follows:

(105 ILCS 5/10-21.9) (from Ch. 122, par. 10-21.9)

Sec. 10-21.9. Criminal background investigations.

(a) Certified After August 1, 1985, certified and noncertified applicants for employment with a school district and charter school governing body members, except school bus driver applicants, are required, as a condition of employment or membership on a charter school governing body, to authorize an investigation to determine if such persons 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 investigation shall be furnished by the person applicant to the school district, except that if the person 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 investigation 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 person's applicant's name, sex, race, date of birth and social security number to the Department of State Police on forms prescribed by the Department. The regional superintendent submitting the requisite information to the Department of State Police shall promptly notify the school districts in which the person applicant is seeking employment as a substitute or concurrent part-time teacher or concurrent educational support personnel employee that the investigation of the applicant has been requested. The Department of State Police shall conduct a search of the Illinois criminal history records database to ascertain if the person applicant being considered for employment has been convicted of committing or attempting to commit any of the enumerated criminal or drug offenses in subsection (c) or has been convicted of committing or attempting to commit, within 7 years of the application for employment with the school district or within 7 years of membership on the charter school governing body, 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. The Department shall charge the school district or the appropriate regional superintendent a fee for conducting such investigation, which fee shall be deposited in the State Police Services Fund and shall not exceed the cost of the investigation inquiry; and the person applicant shall not be charged a fee for such investigation by the school district or by the regional superintendent. The regional superintendent may seek reimbursement from the State Board of Education or the appropriate school district or districts for fees paid by the regional superintendent to the Department for the criminal background investigations required by this Section.

(b) If the search of the Illinois criminal history records database indicates that the person applicant has been convicted of committing or attempting to commit any of the enumerated criminal or drug offenses in subsection (c) or has been convicted of committing or attempting to commit, within 7 years before the application for employment with the school district or within 7 years before membership on the charter school governing body, any other felony under the laws of this State, the Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall furnish, pursuant to a fingerprint based background check, records of convictions, until expunged, to the president of the school board for the school district which requested the investigation, or to the regional superintendent who requested the investigation. 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 investigation was requested by the school district, the presidents of the appropriate school boards if the investigation 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 or allowing the member to be on the charter school governing body. A copy of the record of convictions obtained from the Department of State Police shall be provided to the person applicant for employment. If an investigation 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 investigation 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, 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. The school board of any school district located in the educational service region served by the regional superintendent who issues such a certificate to an applicant for employment as a substitute teacher in more than one such district may rely on the certificate issued by the regional superintendent to that applicant, or may initiate its own investigation of the applicant through the Department of State Police as provided in subsection (a). Any person who releases any confidential information concerning any criminal convictions of an applicant for employment or charter school governing body member 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 nor charter school knowingly have as a governing body member a person who has been convicted for committing attempted first degree murder or for committing or attempting to commit first degree murder or a Class X felony or any one or more of the following offenses: (i) those defined in Sections 11-6, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, 11-15.1, 11-16, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 11-19.1, 11-19.2, 11-20, 11-20.1, 11-21, 12-13, 12-14, 12-14.1, 12-15 and 12-16 of the "Criminal Code of 1961"; (ii) those defined in the "Cannabis Control Act" except those defined in Sections 4(a), 4(b) and 5(a) of that Act; (iii) those defined in the "Illinois Controlled Substances Act"; and (iv) any offense committed or attempted in any other state or against the laws of the United States, which if committed or attempted in this State, would have been punishable as one or more of the foregoing offenses. 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 nor charter school knowingly have as a governing body member a person for whom a criminal background investigation 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 appropriate regional superintendent of schools or the State Superintendent of Education shall initiate the certificate suspension and revocation proceedings authorized by law.

(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 background investigations 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 investigation prepared by each such employee and submitting the same to the Department of State Police. Any information concerning the record of conviction 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. 93-418, eff. 1-1-04.)

(105 ILCS 5/27A-5)

Sec. 27A-5. Charter school; legal entity; requirements.

(a) A charter school shall be a public, nonsectarian, nonreligious, non-home based, and non-profit school. A charter school shall be organized and operated as a nonprofit corporation or other discrete, legal, nonprofit entity authorized under the laws of the State of Illinois.

(b) A charter school may be established under this Article by creating a new school or by converting an existing public school or attendance center to charter school status.

Beginning on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly, in all new applications submitted to the State Board or a local school board to establish a charter school in a city having a population exceeding 500,000, operation of the charter school shall be limited to one campus. The changes made to this Section by this amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly do not apply to charter schools existing or approved on or before the effective date of this amendatory Act.

(c) A charter school shall be administered and governed by its board of directors or other governing body in the manner provided in its charter. The governing body of a charter school shall be subject to the Freedom of Information Act and the Open Meetings Act.

(d) A charter school shall comply with all applicable health and safety requirements applicable to public schools under the laws of the State of Illinois.

(e) Except as otherwise provided in the School Code, a charter school shall not charge tuition; provided that a charter school may charge reasonable fees for textbooks, instructional materials, and student activities.

(f) A charter school shall be responsible for the management and operation of its fiscal affairs including, but not limited to, the preparation of its budget. An audit of each charter school's finances shall be conducted annually by an outside, independent contractor retained by the charter school.

(g) A charter school shall comply with all provisions of this Article and its charter. A charter school is exempt from all other State laws and regulations in the School Code governing public schools and local school board policies, except the following:

(1) Sections 10-21.9 and 34-18.5 of the School Code regarding criminal background investigations of applicants for employment;

(2) Sections 24-24 and 34-84A of the School Code regarding discipline of students;

(3) The Local Governmental and Governmental Employees Tort Immunity Act;

(4) Section 108.75 of the General Not For Profit Corporation Act of 1986 regarding indemnification of officers, directors, employees, and agents;

(5) The Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act;

(6) The Illinois School Student Records Act; and

(7) Section 10-17a of the School Code regarding school report cards;and .

(8) Section 10-9 of the School Code regarding the interest of board members in school contracts, which shall apply to the interest of charter school governing body members in charter school contracts.

(h) A charter school may negotiate and contract with a school district, the governing body of a State college or university or public community college, or any other public or for-profit or nonprofit private entity for: (i) the use of a school building and grounds or any other real property or facilities that the charter school desires to use or convert for use as a charter school site, (ii) the operation and maintenance thereof, and (iii) the provision of any service, activity, or undertaking that the charter school is required to perform in order to carry out the terms of its charter. However, a charter school that is established on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly and that operates in a city having a population exceeding 500,000 may not contract with a for-profit entity to manage or operate the school during the period that commences on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly and concludes at the end of the 2004-2005 school year. Except as provided in subsection (i) of this Section, a school district may charge a charter school reasonable rent for the use of the district's buildings, grounds, and facilities. Any services for which a charter school contracts with a school district shall be provided by the district at cost. Any services for which a charter school contracts with a local school board or with the governing body of a State college or university or public community college shall be provided by the public entity at cost.

(i) In no event shall a charter school that is established by converting an existing school or attendance center to charter school status be required to pay rent for space that is deemed available, as negotiated and provided in the charter agreement, in school district facilities. However, all other costs for the operation and maintenance of school district facilities that are used by the charter school shall be subject to negotiation between the charter school and the local school board and shall be set forth in the charter.

(j) A charter school may limit student enrollment by age or grade level.

(Source: P.A. 93-3, eff. 4-16-03.)

(105 ILCS 5/27A-8)

Sec. 27A-8. Evaluation of charter proposals.

(a) This Section does not apply to a charter school established by referendum under Section 27A-6.5. In evaluating any charter school proposal submitted to it, the local school board shall give preference to proposals that:

(1) demonstrate a high level of local pupil, parental, community, business, and school personnel support;

(2) set rigorous levels of expected pupil achievement and demonstrate feasible plans for attaining those levels of achievement; and

(3) are designed to enroll and serve a substantial proportion of at-risk children; provided that nothing in the Charter Schools Law shall be construed as intended to limit the establishment of charter schools to those that serve a substantial portion of at-risk children or to in any manner restrict, limit, or discourage the establishment of charter schools that enroll and serve other pupil populations under a nonexclusive, nondiscriminatory admissions policy.

(b) In the case of a proposal to establish a charter school by converting an existing public school or attendance center to charter school status, evidence that the proposed formation of the charter school has received majority support from certified teachers and from parents and guardians in the school or attendance center affected by the proposed charter, and, if applicable, from a local school council, shall be demonstrated by a petition in support of the charter school signed by certified teachers and a petition in support of the charter school signed by parents and guardians and, if applicable, by a vote of the local school council held at a public meeting. In the case of all other proposals to establish a charter school, evidence of sufficient support to fill the number of pupil seats set forth in the proposal may be demonstrated by a petition in support of the charter school signed by parents and guardians of students eligible to attend the charter school. In all cases, the individuals, organizations, or entities who initiate the proposal to establish a charter school may elect, in lieu of including any petition referred to in this subsection as a part of the proposal submitted to the local school board, to demonstrate that the charter school has received the support referred to in this subsection by other evidence and information presented at the public meeting that the local school board is required to convene under this Section.

(c) Within 45 days of receipt of a charter school proposal, the local school board shall convene a public meeting to obtain information to assist the board in its decision to grant or deny the charter school proposal.

(d) Notice of the public meeting required by this Section shall be published in a community newspaper published in the school district in which the proposed charter is located and, if there is no such newspaper, then in a newspaper published in the county and having circulation in the school district. The notices shall be published not more than 10 days nor less than 5 days before the meeting and shall state that information regarding a charter school proposal will be heard at the meeting. Copies of the notice shall also be posted at appropriate locations in the school or attendance center proposed to be established as a charter school, the public schools in the school district, and the local school board office.

(e) Within 30 days of the public meeting, the local school board shall vote, in a public meeting, to either grant or deny the charter school proposal.

(f) Within 7 days of the public meeting required under subsection (e), the local school board shall file a report with the State Board granting or denying the proposal. A report that at a minimum contains the charter school proposal and the charter agreement must be filed by the local school board with the State Board on or before March 1 in order for the charter school to open for the upcoming school year. Within 30 14 days of receipt of the local school board's report, the State Board shall determine whether the approved charter proposal is consistent with the provisions of this Article and, if the approved proposal complies, certify the proposal pursuant to Section 27A-6.

(Source: P.A. 90-548, eff. 1-1-98; 91-407, eff. 8-3-99.)

(105 ILCS 5/34-18.5) (from Ch. 122, par. 34-18.5)

Sec. 34-18.5. Criminal background investigations.

(a) Certified After August 1, 1985, certified and noncertified applicants for employment with the school district and charter school governing body members are required, as a condition of employment or membership on a charter school governing body, to authorize an investigation to determine if such persons 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 investigation shall be furnished by the person applicant to the school district, except that if the person applicant is a substitute teacher seeking employment in more than one school district, or 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 investigation 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 person's applicant's name, sex, race, date of birth and social security number to the Department of State Police on forms prescribed by the Department. The regional superintendent submitting the requisite information to the Department of State Police shall promptly notify the school districts in which the person applicant is seeking employment as a substitute or concurrent part-time teacher or concurrent educational support personnel employee that the investigation of the applicant has been requested. The Department of State Police shall conduct a search of the Illinois Criminal history record information database to ascertain if the person applicant being considered for employment has been convicted of committing or attempting to commit any of the enumerated criminal or drug offenses in subsection (c) or has been convicted of committing or attempting to commit, within 7 years of the application for employment with the school district or within 7 years of membership on the charter school governing body, any other felony under the laws of this State or 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. The Department shall charge the school district or the appropriate regional superintendent a fee for conducting such investigation, which fee shall be deposited in the State Police Services Fund and shall not exceed the cost of the investigation inquiry; and the person applicant shall not be charged a fee for such investigation by the school district or by the regional superintendent. The regional superintendent may seek reimbursement from the State Board of Education or the appropriate school district or districts for fees paid by the regional superintendent to the Department for the criminal background investigations required by this Section.

(b) If the search of the Illinois criminal history records database indicates that the person applicant has been convicted of committing or attempting to commit any of the enumerated criminal or drug offenses in subsection (c) or has been convicted of committing or attempting to commit, within 7 years of the application for employment with the school district or within 7 years before membership on the charter school governing body, any other felony under the laws of this State, the Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall furnish, pursuant to a fingerprint based background check, records of convictions, until expunged, to the president of the board of education for the school district which requested the investigation, or to the regional superintendent who requested the investigation. Any information concerning the record of convictions obtained by the president of the board of education or the regional superintendent shall be confidential and may only be transmitted to the general superintendent of the school district or his designee, the appropriate regional superintendent if the investigation was requested by the board of education for the school district, the presidents of the appropriate board of education or school boards if the investigation 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 or allowing a member to be on the charter school governing body. A copy of the record of convictions obtained from the Department of State Police shall be provided to the person applicant for employment. If an investigation 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 investigation 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, 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. The school board of any school district located in the educational service region served by the regional superintendent who issues such a certificate to an applicant for employment as a substitute or concurrent part-time teacher or concurrent educational support personnel employee in more than one such district may rely on the certificate issued by the regional superintendent to that applicant, or may initiate its own investigation of the applicant through the Department of State Police as provided in subsection (a). Any person who releases any confidential information concerning any criminal convictions of an applicant for employment or charter school governing body member shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, unless the release of such information is authorized by this Section.

(c) The board of education shall not knowingly employ nor charter school knowingly have as a governing body member a person who has been convicted for committing attempted first degree murder or for committing or attempting to commit first degree murder or a Class X felony or any one or more of the following offenses: (i) those defined in Sections 11-6, 11-9, 11-14, 11-15, 11-15.1, 11-16, 11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 11-19.1, 11-19.2, 11-20, 11-20.1, 11-21, 12-13, 12-14, 12-14.1, 12-15 and 12-16 of the Criminal Code of 1961; (ii) those defined in the Cannabis Control Act, except those defined in Sections 4(a), 4(b) and 5(a) of that Act; (iii) those defined in the Illinois Controlled Substances Act; and (iv) any offense committed or attempted in any other state or against the laws of the United States, which if committed or attempted in this State, would have been punishable as one or more of the foregoing offenses. Further, the board of education shall not 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) The board of education shall not knowingly employ nor charter school knowingly have as a governing body member a person for whom a criminal background investigation 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 board of education or the State Superintendent of Education shall initiate the certificate suspension and revocation proceedings authorized by law.

(f) After March 19, 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 background investigations 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 investigation prepared by each such employee and submitting the same to the Department of State Police. Any information concerning the record of conviction 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. 93-418, eff. 1-1-04.)

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