Sen. Cristina Castro
Filed: 4/16/2024
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1 | AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 466 | ||||||
2 | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 466 by replacing | ||||||
3 | everything after the enacting clause with the following: | ||||||
4 | "Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing | ||||||
5 | Sections 27A-7.5 and 27A-9 as follows: | ||||||
6 | (105 ILCS 5/27A-7.5) | ||||||
7 | Sec. 27A-7.5. State Charter School Commission; abolition | ||||||
8 | and transfer to State Board; fee. | ||||||
9 | (a) (Blank). | ||||||
10 | (a-5) (Blank). | ||||||
11 | (b) (Blank). | ||||||
12 | (c) (Blank). | ||||||
13 | (d) (Blank). | ||||||
14 | (e) (Blank). | ||||||
15 | (f) (Blank). | ||||||
16 | (g) (Blank). |
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1 | (g-5) (Blank). | ||||||
2 | (h) (Blank). | ||||||
3 | (i) (Blank). | ||||||
4 | (j) The State Board may charge a charter school that it | ||||||
5 | authorizes a fee not to exceed 3% of the revenue provided to | ||||||
6 | the school to be used exclusively for covering the cost of | ||||||
7 | authorizing activities. Authorizing activities may include, | ||||||
8 | but are not limited to: (i) soliciting, reviewing, and taking | ||||||
9 | action on charter school proposals; (ii) hiring, training, and | ||||||
10 | supervising staff engaged in authorizing activities; (iii) | ||||||
11 | developing and conducting oversight, including regular | ||||||
12 | monitoring, of authorized charter schools; (iv) reporting on | ||||||
13 | best practices and performances of charter schools; (v) | ||||||
14 | applying for, managing, and distributing grants and funds | ||||||
15 | appropriated for charter schools and authorizing activities; | ||||||
16 | (vi) training members of the State Board on their authorizing | ||||||
17 | roles; and (vii) training other employees of the State Board | ||||||
18 | on how to work with charter schools as their own local | ||||||
19 | education agencies. | ||||||
20 | (k) On July 1, 2020, the State Charter School Commission | ||||||
21 | or "Commission" (established by Public Act 97-152 as an | ||||||
22 | independent State agency with statewide chartering | ||||||
23 | jurisdiction and authority) is abolished and the terms of all | ||||||
24 | members end. On that date, all of the powers, duties, assets, | ||||||
25 | liabilities, contracts, property, records, and pending | ||||||
26 | business of the Commission are transferred to the State Board. |
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1 | For purposes of the Successor Agency Act and Section 9b of the | ||||||
2 | State Finance Act, the State Board is declared to be the | ||||||
3 | successor agency of the Commission. Beginning on July 1, 2020, | ||||||
4 | references in statutes, rules, forms, and other documents to | ||||||
5 | the Commission shall, in appropriate contexts, be deemed to | ||||||
6 | refer to the State Board. Standards and procedures of the | ||||||
7 | Commission in effect on July 1, 2020 shall be deemed standards | ||||||
8 | and procedures of the State Board and shall remain in effect | ||||||
9 | until amended or repealed by the State Board. | ||||||
10 | On July 1, 2020, any charter school authorized by the | ||||||
11 | Commission prior to July 1, 2020 shall have its authorization | ||||||
12 | transferred to the State Board, which shall then become the | ||||||
13 | school's authorizer for all purposes under this Article. On | ||||||
14 | July 1, 2020, all of the powers, duties, assets, liabilities, | ||||||
15 | contracts, property, records, and pending business of the | ||||||
16 | Commission as the school's authorizer must be transferred to | ||||||
17 | the State Board. At the end of its charter term, a charter | ||||||
18 | school may reapply to the local school board or boards for | ||||||
19 | authorization. Any charter school authorized by the State | ||||||
20 | Board with a charter term expiring on or after July 1, 2025 | ||||||
21 | must reapply to the local school board or boards for | ||||||
22 | authorization in the manner set forth in subsection (a-5) of | ||||||
23 | Section 27A-9 before seeking renewal of its charter by the | ||||||
24 | State Board. | ||||||
25 | On July 1, 2020, all rules of the State Board applicable to | ||||||
26 | matters falling within the responsibility of the Commission |
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1 | shall be applicable to the actions of the State Board. | ||||||
2 | (l) In any appeal filed with the State Board under this | ||||||
3 | Article, both the applicant and the authorizing school | ||||||
4 | district of the charter school shall have the right to request | ||||||
5 | a hearing before the State Board. If more than one entity | ||||||
6 | requests a hearing, then the State Board may hold only one | ||||||
7 | hearing, wherein the applicant and the school district shall | ||||||
8 | have an equal opportunity to present their respective | ||||||
9 | positions. | ||||||
10 | (Source: P.A. 103-175, eff. 6-30-23.) | ||||||
11 | (105 ILCS 5/27A-9) | ||||||
12 | Sec. 27A-9. Term of charter; renewal. | ||||||
13 | (a) An initial charter shall be granted for a period of 5 | ||||||
14 | school years. A charter may be renewed in incremental periods | ||||||
15 | not to exceed 10 school years. Authorizers shall ensure that | ||||||
16 | every charter granted on or after January 1, 2017 includes | ||||||
17 | standards and goals for academic, organizational, and | ||||||
18 | financial performance. A charter must meet all standards and | ||||||
19 | goals for academic, organizational, and financial performance | ||||||
20 | set forth by the authorizer in order to be renewed for a term | ||||||
21 | in excess of 5 years but not more than 10 years. If an | ||||||
22 | authorizer fails to establish standards and goals, a charter | ||||||
23 | shall not be renewed for a term in excess of 5 years. Nothing | ||||||
24 | contained in this Section shall require an authorizer to grant | ||||||
25 | a full 10-year renewal term to any particular charter school, |
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1 | but an authorizer may award a full 10-year renewal term to | ||||||
2 | charter schools that have a demonstrated track record of | ||||||
3 | improving student performance. | ||||||
4 | (a-5) Any charter school authorized by the State Board | ||||||
5 | with a charter term expiring on or after July 1, 2025 must | ||||||
6 | reapply to the local school board or boards for authorization | ||||||
7 | before seeking renewal of its charter by the State Board. The | ||||||
8 | process for reapplication shall be as follows: | ||||||
9 | (1) The charter school must submit a reapplication | ||||||
10 | proposal to the local school board or boards by no later | ||||||
11 | than January 1 of the year prior to the year in which its | ||||||
12 | charter with the State Board is expiring. If a local | ||||||
13 | school board has failed to adopt an application for | ||||||
14 | authorization pursuant to this subsection (a-5), the | ||||||
15 | charter school shall submit the information set forth in | ||||||
16 | subsection (b) and any other information it seeks to have | ||||||
17 | the local school board consider. | ||||||
18 | (2) Within 45 days after receipt of a reapplication | ||||||
19 | proposal under this subsection (a-5), the local school | ||||||
20 | board shall convene a public meeting to obtain information | ||||||
21 | to assist the local school board in its decision to grant | ||||||
22 | or deny the reapplication proposal. If 45 days pass | ||||||
23 | without the local school board holding a public meeting, | ||||||
24 | then the charter school may proceed with application for | ||||||
25 | renewal to the State Board. | ||||||
26 | (3) Notice of the public meeting required by this |
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1 | subsection (a-5) shall be published in a community | ||||||
2 | newspaper published in the school district or, if there is | ||||||
3 | no such newspaper, then in a newspaper published in the | ||||||
4 | county and having circulation in the school district. The | ||||||
5 | notices shall be published not more than 10 days nor less | ||||||
6 | than 5 days before the meeting and shall state that | ||||||
7 | information regarding a charter school reapplication | ||||||
8 | proposal will be heard at the meeting. Copies of the | ||||||
9 | notice shall also be posted at appropriate locations in | ||||||
10 | the charter school, the public schools in the school | ||||||
11 | district, and the local school board office. | ||||||
12 | (4) Within 30 days after the public meeting, the local | ||||||
13 | school board shall vote, in a public meeting, to either | ||||||
14 | grant or deny the reapplication proposal. If the local | ||||||
15 | school board has not voted in a public meeting within 30 | ||||||
16 | days after the public meeting, then the charter school may | ||||||
17 | proceed with application for renewal to the State Board. | ||||||
18 | (5) Within 7 days after the public meeting required | ||||||
19 | under paragraph (4) of this subsection (a-5), the local | ||||||
20 | school board shall file with the State Board a report | ||||||
21 | granting or denying the reapplication proposal that | ||||||
22 | contains all material terms for authorization offered by | ||||||
23 | the local school board, including, but not limited to, the | ||||||
24 | term length, which must be equal to the length of an | ||||||
25 | initial charter term as set forth in subsection (a), the | ||||||
26 | funding to be paid by the local school board to the charter |
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1 | school, and the maximum number of pupils to be enrolled in | ||||||
2 | the charter school. If the local school board has approved | ||||||
3 | the reapplication proposal, within 30 days after receipt | ||||||
4 | of the local school board's report, the State Board shall | ||||||
5 | determine whether the terms of authorization offered by | ||||||
6 | the local school board are consistent with the provisions | ||||||
7 | of this Article and, if the terms are consistent, shall | ||||||
8 | approve the transfer of authorization of the charter | ||||||
9 | school to the local school board at the expiration of the | ||||||
10 | charter term. | ||||||
11 | (6) If the State Board recommends that the terms of | ||||||
12 | authorization be modified for consistency with this | ||||||
13 | Article, the modifications must be consented to by both | ||||||
14 | the governing body of the charter school and the local | ||||||
15 | school board and resubmitted to the State Board for | ||||||
16 | consideration. If the resubmitted terms of authorization | ||||||
17 | are not consistent with this Article, the State Board may | ||||||
18 | refuse to transfer authorization of the charter school to | ||||||
19 | the local school board and the charter school may proceed | ||||||
20 | with application for renewal to the State Board. | ||||||
21 | (7) If the local school board denies the reapplication | ||||||
22 | proposal, the charter school may proceed with application | ||||||
23 | for renewal to the State Board. | ||||||
24 | A charter school that has been authorized by a local | ||||||
25 | school board or boards pursuant to this subsection (a-5) shall | ||||||
26 | retain all rights to appeal to the State Board under |
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1 | subsection (e) following a decision by the local school board | ||||||
2 | to revoke or not renew the school's charter. | ||||||
3 | The State Board may adopt such rules as may be necessary to | ||||||
4 | implement this subsection (a-5). | ||||||
5 | (b) A charter school renewal proposal submitted to the | ||||||
6 | local school board or the State Board, as the chartering | ||||||
7 | entity, shall contain: | ||||||
8 | (1) a report on the progress of the charter school in | ||||||
9 | achieving the goals, objectives, pupil performance | ||||||
10 | standards, content standards, and other terms of the | ||||||
11 | initial approved charter proposal; and | ||||||
12 | (2) a financial statement that discloses the costs of | ||||||
13 | administration, instruction, and other spending categories | ||||||
14 | for the charter school that is understandable to the | ||||||
15 | general public and that will allow comparison of those | ||||||
16 | costs to other schools or other comparable organizations, | ||||||
17 | in a format required by the State Board. | ||||||
18 | (c) A charter may be revoked or not renewed if the local | ||||||
19 | school board or the State Board, as the chartering entity, | ||||||
20 | clearly demonstrates that the charter school did any of the | ||||||
21 | following, or otherwise failed to comply with the requirements | ||||||
22 | of this law: | ||||||
23 | (1) Committed a material violation of any of the | ||||||
24 | conditions, standards, or procedures set forth in the | ||||||
25 | charter. | ||||||
26 | (2) Failed to meet or make reasonable progress toward |
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1 | achievement of the content standards or pupil performance | ||||||
2 | standards identified in the charter. | ||||||
3 | (3) Failed to meet generally accepted standards of | ||||||
4 | fiscal management. | ||||||
5 | (4) Violated any provision of law from which the | ||||||
6 | charter school was not exempted. | ||||||
7 | In the case of revocation, the local school board or the | ||||||
8 | State Board, as the chartering entity, shall notify the | ||||||
9 | charter school in writing of the reason why the charter is | ||||||
10 | subject to revocation. The charter school shall submit a | ||||||
11 | written plan to the local school board or the State Board, | ||||||
12 | whichever is applicable, to rectify the problem. The plan | ||||||
13 | shall include a timeline for implementation, which shall not | ||||||
14 | exceed 2 years or the date of the charter's expiration, | ||||||
15 | whichever is earlier. If the local school board or the State | ||||||
16 | Board, as the chartering entity, finds that the charter school | ||||||
17 | has failed to implement the plan of remediation and adhere to | ||||||
18 | the timeline, then the chartering entity shall revoke the | ||||||
19 | charter. Except in situations of an emergency where the | ||||||
20 | health, safety, or education of the charter school's students | ||||||
21 | is at risk, the revocation shall take place at the end of a | ||||||
22 | school year. Nothing in this Section shall be construed to | ||||||
23 | prohibit an implementation timetable that is less than 2 years | ||||||
24 | in duration. No local school board may arbitrarily or | ||||||
25 | capriciously revoke or not renew a charter. Except for | ||||||
26 | extenuating circumstances outlined in this Section, if a local |
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1 | school board revokes or does not renew a charter, it must | ||||||
2 | ensure that all students currently enrolled in the charter | ||||||
3 | school are placed in schools that are higher performing than | ||||||
4 | that charter school, as defined in the State's federal Every | ||||||
5 | Student Succeeds Act accountability plan. In determining | ||||||
6 | whether extenuating circumstances exist, a local school board | ||||||
7 | must detail, by clear and convincing evidence, that factors | ||||||
8 | unrelated to the charter school's accountability designation | ||||||
9 | outweigh the charter school's academic performance. | ||||||
10 | (d) (Blank). | ||||||
11 | (e) Notice of a local school board's decision to deny, | ||||||
12 | revoke, or not renew a charter shall be provided to the State | ||||||
13 | Board. | ||||||
14 | The State Board may reverse a local board's decision to | ||||||
15 | revoke or not renew a charter if the State Board finds that the | ||||||
16 | charter school or charter school proposal (i) is in compliance | ||||||
17 | with this Article and (ii) is in the best interests of the | ||||||
18 | students it is designed to serve. The State Board may | ||||||
19 | condition the granting of an appeal on the acceptance by the | ||||||
20 | charter school of funding in an amount less than that | ||||||
21 | requested in the proposal submitted to the local school board. | ||||||
22 | The State Board must appoint and utilize a hearing officer for | ||||||
23 | any appeals conducted under this subsection. Final decisions | ||||||
24 | of the State Board are subject to judicial review under the | ||||||
25 | Administrative Review Law. | ||||||
26 | (f) Notwithstanding other provisions of this Article, if |
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1 | the State Board on appeal reverses a local board's decision or | ||||||
2 | if a charter school is approved by referendum, the State Board | ||||||
3 | shall act as the authorized chartering entity for the charter | ||||||
4 | school and shall perform all functions under this Article | ||||||
5 | otherwise performed by the local school board. The State Board | ||||||
6 | shall report the aggregate number of charter school pupils | ||||||
7 | resident in a school district to that district and shall | ||||||
8 | notify the district of the amount of funding to be paid by the | ||||||
9 | State Board to the charter school enrolling such students. The | ||||||
10 | charter school shall maintain accurate records of daily | ||||||
11 | attendance and student enrollment and shall enter data on the | ||||||
12 | students served, their characteristics, their particular | ||||||
13 | needs, the programs in which they participate, and their | ||||||
14 | academic achievement into the statewide student information | ||||||
15 | system established by the State Board. The State Board shall | ||||||
16 | withhold from funds otherwise due the district the funds | ||||||
17 | authorized by this Article to be paid to the charter school and | ||||||
18 | shall pay such amounts to the charter school in quarterly | ||||||
19 | installments, calculated as follows: | ||||||
20 | (1) The amount of the first quarterly payment shall be | ||||||
21 | based on the projected number of students who will be | ||||||
22 | enrolled in the charter school in the upcoming school | ||||||
23 | year, multiplied by one-fourth of the resident district's | ||||||
24 | per capita tuition amount. Each charter school shall | ||||||
25 | submit its projected enrollment by no later than August 1 | ||||||
26 | of each year on a form provided by the State Board for this |
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1 | purpose. | ||||||
2 | (2) The amount of the second quarterly payment shall | ||||||
3 | be calculated such that the aggregate amount of the first | ||||||
4 | and second quarterly installments is equal to the number | ||||||
5 | of students reported as enrolled at the charter school on | ||||||
6 | October 1 in the State Board's student information system, | ||||||
7 | multiplied by one-half of the resident district's per | ||||||
8 | capita tuition amount. | ||||||
9 | (3) The amount of the third quarterly payment shall be | ||||||
10 | based on the number of students enrolled in the charter | ||||||
11 | school on January 1, multiplied by one-fourth of the | ||||||
12 | resident district's per capita tuition amount. Each | ||||||
13 | charter school shall submit its January 1 enrollment by no | ||||||
14 | later than January 5 of each year on a form provided by the | ||||||
15 | State Board for this purpose. | ||||||
16 | (4) The amount of the fourth quarterly payment shall | ||||||
17 | be calculated such that the aggregate amount of the third | ||||||
18 | and fourth installments is equal to the number of students | ||||||
19 | reported as enrolled at the charter school on March 1 in | ||||||
20 | the State Board's student information system, multiplied | ||||||
21 | by one-half of the resident district's per capita tuition | ||||||
22 | amount. | ||||||
23 | (g) (Blank). | ||||||
24 | (h) The State Board shall pay directly to a charter school | ||||||
25 | it authorizes any federal or State funding attributable to a | ||||||
26 | student with a disability attending the school. |
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1 | (Source: P.A. 103-175, eff. 6-30-23.) | ||||||
2 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
3 | becoming law.". |