103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB1375

 

Introduced 1/31/2023, by Rep. Curtis J. Tarver, II

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
105 ILCS 5/27-12.1  from Ch. 122, par. 27-12.1
105 ILCS 5/27-22  from Ch. 122, par. 27-22

    Amends the Courses of Study Article of the School Code. Instead of requiring consumer education to be taught and studied, provides that beginning with pupils entering the 9th grade in the 2024-2025 school year, pupils in the public schools in grade 11 or 12 shall be taught and be required to complete a stand-alone, one-semester or equivalent course covering personal finance, which shall include, but is not limited to, instruction covering behavioral economics; banking and bill payment; investing; types of credit; managing credit; including credit scores; paying for college; insurance; taxes; budgeting; consumer skills; retirement planning, including tax-advantaged retirement plans; home ownership and financing; and personal transportation, including car ownership and leasing. Provides that the State Board of Education shall devise or approve the personal finance education standards for the course. Provides that the school board shall oversee implementation of the personal finance course for each high school student prior to graduation. Specifies the oversight duties of the school board. In provisions regarding required high school courses, provides that the personal finance education course may be counted toward the fulfillment of other graduation requirements. Makes other changes.


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STATE MANDATES ACT MAY REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT
MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB1375LRB103 25672 RJT 52021 b

1    AN ACT concerning education.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Purpose. The General Assembly has determined
5that it is in the best interests of the State and the State's
6citizens that all high school students be required to take a
7one semester course in personal finance prior to graduation.
8Research has shown that such a course is significantly more
9effective if taught as a separate course in the 11th or 12th
10grade rather than embedded in another course or taught at an
11earlier time. Similarly, research has shown that before the
12course can be implemented, there must be time to develop
13curriculum and provide incentives for professional development
14for teachers of the course.
 
15    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
1627-12.1 and 27-22 as follows:
 
17    (105 ILCS 5/27-12.1)  (from Ch. 122, par. 27-12.1)
18    Sec. 27-12.1. Personal finance Consumer education.
19    (a) For pupils entering the 9th grade before the 2023-2024
20school year, pupils Pupils in the public schools in grades 9
21through 12 shall be taught and be required to study courses
22which include instruction in the area of consumer education,

 

 

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1including but not necessarily limited to (i) understanding the
2basic concepts of financial literacy, including consumer debt
3and installment purchasing (including credit scoring, managing
4credit debt, and completing a loan application), budgeting,
5savings and investing, banking (including balancing a
6checkbook, opening a deposit account, and the use of interest
7rates), understanding simple contracts, State and federal
8income taxes, personal insurance policies, the comparison of
9prices, higher education student loans, identity-theft
10security, and homeownership (including the basic process of
11obtaining a mortgage and the concepts of fixed and adjustable
12rate mortgages, subprime loans, and predatory lending), and
13(ii) understanding the roles of consumers interacting with
14agriculture, business, labor unions and government in
15formulating and achieving the goals of the mixed free
16enterprise system. The State Board of Education shall devise
17or approve the consumer education curriculum for grades 9
18through 12 and specify the minimum amount of instruction to be
19devoted thereto.
20    (a-5) Beginning with pupils entering the 9th grade in the
212024-2025 school year, pupils in the public schools in grade
2211 or 12 shall be taught and be required to complete a
23stand-alone, one-semester or equivalent course covering
24personal finance, which shall include, but is not limited to,
25instruction covering behavioral economics; banking and bill
26payment; investing; types of credit; managing credit,

 

 

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1including credit scores; paying for college; insurance; taxes;
2budgeting; consumer skills; retirement planning, including
3tax-advantaged retirement plans; home ownership and financing;
4and personal transportation, including car ownership and
5leasing. The State Board of Education shall devise or approve
6the personal finance education standards for the course. The
7State Board of Education may review and update these
8curriculum standards every 5 years. The State Board of
9Education may adopt or adapt national standards for personal
10finance education in implementing the curriculum standards.
11    The school board shall oversee implementation of the
12personal finance course for each high school student prior to
13graduation. This oversight shall include:
14        (1) identifying the certifications and credentials
15    needed by teachers of the personal finance course, such as
16    credentials in social studies, family and consumer
17    science, mathematics, career and technical education, or
18    other subject matters;
19        (2) preparing a list of curriculum providers that
20    delineates between core curriculum providers and
21    supplementary providers in coordination with the State
22    Board of Education; and
23        (3) preparing a list of professional development
24    providers that have the capability to support educators
25    with the implementation of the course and that have
26    delivered professional development to educators in the

 

 

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1    State within the past 12 months.
2The school board shall develop implementation guidelines and
3timelines to assist schools in implementing this course.
4    (b) (Blank).
5    (c) The Financial Literacy Fund is created as a special
6fund in the State treasury. State funds and private
7contributions for the promotion of financial literacy shall be
8deposited into the Financial Literacy Fund. All money in the
9Financial Literacy Fund shall be used, subject to
10appropriation, by the State Board of Education to award grants
11to school districts for the following:
12        (1) Defraying the costs of financial literacy training
13    for teachers.
14        (2) Rewarding a school or teacher who wins or achieves
15    results at a certain level of success in a financial
16    literacy competition.
17        (3) Rewarding a student who wins or achieves results
18    at a certain level of success in a financial literacy
19    competition.
20        (4) Funding activities, including books, games, field
21    trips, computers, and other activities, related to
22    financial literacy education.
23    In awarding grants, every effort must be made to ensure
24that all geographic areas of the State are represented.
25    (d) A school board may establish a special fund in which to
26receive public funds and private contributions for the

 

 

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1promotion of financial literacy. Money in the fund shall be
2used for the following:
3        (1) Defraying the costs of financial literacy training
4    for teachers.
5        (2) Rewarding a school or teacher who wins or achieves
6    results at a certain level of success in a financial
7    literacy competition.
8        (3) Rewarding a student who wins or achieves results
9    at a certain level of success in a financial literacy
10    competition.
11        (4) Funding activities, including books, games, field
12    trips, computers, and other activities, related to
13    financial literacy education.
14    (e) The State Board of Education, upon the next
15comprehensive review of the Illinois Learning Standards, is
16urged to include the instruction listed in subsection (a-5),
17basic principles of personal insurance policies, and
18understanding simple contracts.
19(Source: P.A. 99-284, eff. 8-5-15.)
 
20    (105 ILCS 5/27-22)  (from Ch. 122, par. 27-22)
21    Sec. 27-22. Required high school courses.
22    (a) (Blank).
23    (b) (Blank).
24    (c) (Blank).
25    (d) (Blank).

 

 

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1    (e) Through the 2023-2024 school year, as a prerequisite
2to receiving a high school diploma, each pupil entering the
39th grade must, in addition to other course requirements,
4successfully complete all of the following courses:
5        (1) Four years of language arts.
6        (2) Two years of writing intensive courses, one of
7    which must be English and the other of which may be English
8    or any other subject. When applicable, writing-intensive
9    courses may be counted towards the fulfillment of other
10    graduation requirements.
11        (3) Three years of mathematics, one of which must be
12    Algebra I, one of which must include geometry content, and
13    one of which may be an Advanced Placement computer science
14    course. A mathematics course that includes geometry
15    content may be offered as an integrated, applied,
16    interdisciplinary, or career and technical education
17    course that prepares a student for a career readiness
18    path.
19        (3.5) For pupils entering the 9th grade in the
20    2022-2023 school year and 2023-2024 school year, one year
21    of a course that includes intensive instruction in
22    computer literacy, which may be English, social studies,
23    or any other subject and which may be counted toward the
24    fulfillment of other graduation requirements.
25        (4) Two years of science.
26        (5) Two years of social studies, of which at least one

 

 

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1    year must be history of the United States or a combination
2    of history of the United States and American government
3    and, beginning with pupils entering the 9th grade in the
4    2016-2017 school year and each school year thereafter, at
5    least one semester must be civics, which shall help young
6    people acquire and learn to use the skills, knowledge, and
7    attitudes that will prepare them to be competent and
8    responsible citizens throughout their lives. Civics course
9    content shall focus on government institutions, the
10    discussion of current and controversial issues, service
11    learning, and simulations of the democratic process.
12    School districts may utilize private funding available for
13    the purposes of offering civics education. Beginning with
14    pupils entering the 9th grade in the 2021-2022 school
15    year, one semester, or part of one semester, may include a
16    financial literacy course.
17        (6) One year chosen from (A) music, (B) art, (C)
18    foreign language, which shall be deemed to include
19    American Sign Language, (D) vocational education, or (E)
20    forensic speech (speech and debate). A forensic speech
21    course used to satisfy the course requirement under
22    subdivision (1) may not be used to satisfy the course
23    requirement under this subdivision (6).
24    (e-5) Beginning with the 2024-2025 school year, as a
25prerequisite to receiving a high school diploma, each pupil
26entering the 9th grade must, in addition to other course

 

 

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1requirements, successfully complete all of the following
2courses:
3        (1) Four years of language arts.
4        (2) Two years of writing intensive courses, one of
5    which must be English and the other of which may be English
6    or any other subject. If applicable, writing-intensive
7    courses may be counted toward the fulfillment of other
8    graduation requirements.
9        (3) Three years of mathematics, one of which must be
10    Algebra I, one of which must include geometry content, and
11    one of which may be an Advanced Placement computer science
12    course. A mathematics course that includes geometry
13    content may be offered as an integrated, applied,
14    interdisciplinary, or career and technical education
15    course that prepares a student for a career readiness
16    path.
17        (3.5) One year of a course that includes intensive
18    instruction in computer literacy, which may be English,
19    social studies, or any other subject and which may be
20    counted toward the fulfillment of other graduation
21    requirements.
22        (4) Two years of laboratory science.
23        (5) Two years of social studies, of which at least one
24    year must be history of the United States or a combination
25    of history of the United States and American government
26    and at least one semester must be civics, which shall help

 

 

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1    young people acquire and learn to use the skills,
2    knowledge, and attitudes that will prepare them to be
3    competent and responsible citizens throughout their lives.
4    Civics course content shall focus on government
5    institutions, the discussion of current and controversial
6    issues, service learning, and simulations of the
7    democratic process. School districts may utilize private
8    funding available for the purposes of offering civics
9    education. One semester, or part of one semester, may
10    include a financial literacy course.
11        (5.5) One semester or the equivalent of a stand-alone
12    course on personal finance education to be taken in grade
13    11 or 12, which may be counted toward the fulfillment of
14    other graduation requirements as determined by the school
15    board.
16        (6) One year chosen from (A) music, (B) art, (C)
17    foreign language, which shall be deemed to include
18    American Sign Language, (D) vocational education, or (E)
19    forensic speech (speech and debate). A forensic speech
20    course used to satisfy the course requirement under
21    subdivision (1) may not be used to satisfy the course
22    requirement under this subdivision (6).
23    (e-10) Beginning with the 2028-2029 school year, as a
24prerequisite to receiving a high school diploma, each pupil
25entering the 9th grade must, in addition to other course
26requirements, successfully complete 2 years of foreign

 

 

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1language courses, which may include American Sign Language. A
2pupil may choose a third year of foreign language to satisfy
3the requirement under subdivision paragraph (6) of subsection
4(e-5).
5    (f) The State Board of Education shall develop and inform
6school districts of standards for writing-intensive
7coursework.
8    (f-5) If a school district offers an Advanced Placement
9computer science course to high school students, then the
10school board must designate that course as equivalent to a
11high school mathematics course and must denote on the
12student's transcript that the Advanced Placement computer
13science course qualifies as a mathematics-based, quantitative
14course for students in accordance with subdivision (3) of
15subsection (e) of this Section.
16    (g) Public Act 83-1082 This amendatory Act of 1983 does
17not apply to pupils entering the 9th grade in 1983-1984 school
18year and prior school years or to students with disabilities
19whose course of study is determined by an individualized
20education program.
21    Public Act 94-676 This amendatory Act of the 94th General
22Assembly does not apply to pupils entering the 9th grade in the
232004-2005 school year or a prior school year or to students
24with disabilities whose course of study is determined by an
25individualized education program.
26    Subdivision (3.5) of subsection (e) does not apply to

 

 

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1pupils entering the 9th grade in the 2021-2022 school year or a
2prior school year or to students with disabilities whose
3course of study is determined by an individualized education
4program.
5    Subsection (e-5) does not apply to pupils entering the 9th
6grade in the 2023-2024 school year or a prior school year or to
7students with disabilities whose course of study is determined
8by an individualized education program. Subsection (e-10) does
9not apply to pupils entering the 9th grade in the 2027-2028
10school year or a prior school year or to students with
11disabilities whose course of study is determined by an
12individualized education program.
13    (h) The provisions of this Section are subject to the
14provisions of Section 27-22.05 of this Code and the
15Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness Act.
16    (i) The State Board of Education may adopt rules to modify
17the requirements of this Section for any students enrolled in
18grades 9 through 12 if the Governor has declared a disaster due
19to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the
20Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act.
21(Source: P.A. 101-464, eff. 1-1-20; 101-643, eff. 6-18-20;
22101-654, Article 50, Section 50-5, eff. 3-8-21; 101-654,
23Article 60, Section 60-5, eff. 3-8-21; 102-366, eff. 8-13-21;
24102-551, eff. 1-1-22; 102-864, eff. 5-13-22; revised 9-2-22.)