093_SB0381sam001
LRB093 05990 NHT 12470 a
1 AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 381
2 AMENDMENT NO. . Amend Senate Bill 381 by replacing
3 everything after the enacting clause with the following:
4 "Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing
5 Section 1D-1 and adding Section 2-3.51a as follows:
6 (105 ILCS 5/1D-1)
7 Sec. 1D-1. Block grant funding.
8 (a) For fiscal year 1996 and each fiscal year
9 thereafter, the State Board of Education shall award to a
10 school district having a population exceeding 500,000
11 inhabitants a general education block grant and an
12 educational services block grant, determined as provided in
13 this Section, in lieu of distributing to the district
14 separate State funding for the programs described in
15 subsections (b) and (c). The provisions of this Section,
16 however, do not apply to any federal funds that the district
17 is entitled to receive. In accordance with Section 2-3.32,
18 all block grants are subject to an audit. Therefore, block
19 grant receipts and block grant expenditures shall be recorded
20 to the appropriate fund code for the designated block grant.
21 (b) The general education block grant shall include the
22 following programs: REI Initiative, Summer Bridges, Preschool
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1 At Risk, K-6 Comprehensive Arts, School Improvement Support,
2 Urban Education, Scientific Literacy, Substance Abuse
3 Prevention, Second Language Planning, Staff Development,
4 Outcomes and Assessment, K-6 Reading Improvement, 7-12
5 Continued Reading Improvement, Truants' Optional Education,
6 Hispanic Programs, Agriculture Education, Gifted Education,
7 Parental Education, Prevention Initiative, Report Cards, and
8 Criminal Background Investigations. Notwithstanding any
9 other provision of law, all amounts paid under the general
10 education block grant from State appropriations to a school
11 district in a city having a population exceeding 500,000
12 inhabitants shall be appropriated and expended by the board
13 of that district for any of the programs included in the
14 block grant or any of the board's lawful purposes.
15 (c) The educational services block grant shall include
16 the following programs: Bilingual, Regular and Vocational
17 Transportation, State Lunch and Free Breakfast Program,
18 Special Education (Personnel, Extraordinary, Transportation,
19 Orphanage, Private Tuition), Summer School, Educational
20 Service Centers, and Administrator's Academy. This
21 subsection (c) does not relieve the district of its
22 obligation to provide the services required under a program
23 that is included within the educational services block grant.
24 It is the intention of the General Assembly in enacting the
25 provisions of this subsection (c) to relieve the district of
26 the administrative burdens that impede efficiency and
27 accompany single-program funding. The General Assembly
28 encourages the board to pursue mandate waivers pursuant to
29 Section 2-3.25g.
30 (d) For fiscal year 1996 and each fiscal year
31 thereafter, the amount of the district's block grants shall
32 be determined as follows: (i) with respect to each program
33 that is included within each block grant, the district shall
34 receive an amount equal to the same percentage of the current
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1 fiscal year appropriation made for that program as the
2 percentage of the appropriation received by the district from
3 the 1995 fiscal year appropriation made for that program, and
4 (ii) the total amount that is due the district under the
5 block grant shall be the aggregate of the amounts that the
6 district is entitled to receive for the fiscal year with
7 respect to each program that is included within the block
8 grant that the State Board of Education shall award the
9 district under this Section for that fiscal year. In the
10 case of the Summer Bridges program, the amount of the
11 district's block grant shall be equal to 44% of the amount of
12 the current fiscal year appropriation made for that program.
13 (e) The district is not required to file any application
14 or other claim in order to receive the block grants to which
15 it is entitled under this Section. The State Board of
16 Education shall make payments to the district of amounts due
17 under the district's block grants on a schedule determined by
18 the State Board of Education.
19 (f) A school district to which this Section applies
20 shall report to the State Board of Education on its use of
21 the block grants in such form and detail as the State Board
22 of Education may specify.
23 (g) This paragraph provides for the treatment of block
24 grants under Article 1C for purposes of calculating the
25 amount of block grants for a district under this Section.
26 Those block grants under Article 1C are, for this purpose,
27 treated as included in the amount of appropriation for the
28 various programs set forth in paragraph (b) above. The
29 appropriation in each current fiscal year for each block
30 grant under Article 1C shall be treated for these purposes as
31 appropriations for the individual program included in that
32 block grant. The proportion of each block grant so allocated
33 to each such program included in it shall be the proportion
34 which the appropriation for that program was of all
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1 appropriations for such purposes now in that block grant, in
2 fiscal 1995.
3 Payments to the school district under this Section with
4 respect to each program for which payments to school
5 districts generally, as of the date of this amendatory Act of
6 the 92nd General Assembly, are on a reimbursement basis shall
7 continue to be made to the district on a reimbursement basis,
8 pursuant to the provisions of this Code governing those
9 programs.
10 (h) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any
11 school district receiving a block grant under this Section
12 may classify all or a portion of the funds that it receives
13 in a particular fiscal year from any block grant authorized
14 under this Code or from general State aid pursuant to Section
15 18-8.05 of this Code (other than supplemental general State
16 aid) as funds received in connection with any funding program
17 for which it is entitled to receive funds from the State in
18 that fiscal year (including, without limitation, any funding
19 program referred to in subsection (c) of this Section),
20 regardless of the source or timing of the receipt. The
21 district may not classify more funds as funds received in
22 connection with the funding program than the district is
23 entitled to receive in that fiscal year for that program.
24 Any classification by a district must be made by a resolution
25 of its board of education. The resolution must identify the
26 amount of any block grant or general State aid to be
27 classified under this subsection (h) and must specify the
28 funding program to which the funds are to be treated as
29 received in connection therewith. This resolution is
30 controlling as to the classification of funds referenced
31 therein. A certified copy of the resolution must be sent to
32 the State Superintendent of Education. The resolution shall
33 still take effect even though a copy of the resolution has
34 not been sent to the State Superintendent of Education in a
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1 timely manner. No classification under this subsection (h)
2 by a district shall affect the total amount or timing of
3 money the district is entitled to receive under this Code.
4 No classification under this subsection (h) by a district
5 shall in any way relieve the district from or affect any
6 requirements that otherwise would apply with respect to the
7 block grant as provided in this Section, including any
8 accounting of funds by source, reporting expenditures by
9 original source and purpose, reporting requirements, or
10 requirements of provision of services.
11 (Source: P.A. 91-711, eff. 7-1-00; 92-568, eff. 6-26-02;
12 92-651, eff. 7-11-02.)
13 (105 ILCS 5/2-3.51a new)
14 Sec. 2-3.51a. Continued Reading Improvement Block Grant
15 Program. To improve the reading and study skills of children
16 from seventh through twelfth grade in school districts. The
17 State Board of Education is authorized to administer a
18 Continued Reading Improvement Block Grant Program. As used
19 in this Section, "school district" includes those schools
20 designated as laboratory schools.
21 (a) Funds for the Continued Reading Improvement Block
22 Grant Program shall be distributed to school districts on the
23 following basis: 70% of moneys shall be awarded on the prior
24 year's best 3 months average daily attendance and 30% shall
25 be distributed on the number of economically disadvantaged
26 (E.C.I.A. Chapter I) pupils in the district, provided that
27 the State Board may distribute an amount not to exceed 2% of
28 the moneys appropriated for the Continued Reading Improvement
29 Block Grant Program for the purpose of providing teacher
30 training and re-training in the teaching of reading. Program
31 funds shall be distributed to school districts in 2
32 semi-annual installments, one payment on or before October 30
33 and one payment prior to April 30 of each year. The State
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1 Board shall adopt any rules necessary for the implementation
2 of this program.
3 (b) Continued Reading Improvement Block Grant Program
4 funds shall be used by school districts in the following
5 manner to support students in grades 7 through 12 who are
6 reading significantly below grade level:
7 (1) to continue direct reading instruction for
8 grades 7 through 12, focusing on the application of
9 reading skills for understanding informational text;
10 (2) to focus on and to commit time and resources to
11 the reading of rich literature;
12 (3) to conduct intense vocabulary, spelling, and
13 related writing programs that promote better
14 understanding of language and words;
15 (4) to provide professional development based on
16 scientifically based research and best practices and
17 delivered by providers approved by the State Board of
18 Education; and
19 (5) to increase the availability of reading
20 specialists and teacher aides trained in research-based
21 reading intervention or improvement practices or both.
22 (c) Continued Reading Improvement Block Grant Program
23 funds shall be made available to each eligible school
24 district submitting an approved application developed by the
25 State Board, beginning with the 2003-2004 school year.
26 Applications shall include a proposed assessment method or
27 methods for measuring student reading skills. Such methods
28 may include the reading portion of State tests. At the end
29 of each school year the district shall report assessment
30 results to the State Board. Districts not demonstrating
31 performance progress using an approved assessment method
32 shall not be eligible for funding in the third or subsequent
33 years until such progress is established.
34 (d) The State Superintendent of Education, in
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1 cooperation with the school districts participating in the
2 program, shall annually report to the leadership of the
3 General Assembly on the results of the Continued Reading
4 Improvement Block Grant Program and the progress being made
5 on improving the reading skills of students in grades 7
6 through 12.
7 (e) Grants under the Continued Reading Improvement Block
8 Grant Program shall be awarded provided there is an
9 appropriation for the program, and funding levels for each
10 district shall be prorated according to the amount of the
11 appropriation. Funding for the program established under
12 Section 2-3.51 of this Code shall not be reduced in order to
13 fund the Continued Reading Improvement Block Grant Program.
14 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect on
15 July 1, 2003.".