SB0170eng 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SB0170 Engrossed LRB097 04012 JDS 44051 b

AN ACT concerning government.

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

Section 5. The Disabled Persons Rehabilitation Act is amended by changing Sections 10 and 13 as follows:

(20 ILCS 2405/10) (from Ch. 23, par. 3441)

Sec. 10. Residential schools; visual and hearing handicaps.

(a) The Department of Human Services shall operate residential schools for the education of children with visual and hearing handicaps who are unable to take advantage of the regular educational facilities provided in the community, and shall provide in connection therewith such academic, vocational, and related services as may be required. Children shall be eligible for admission to these schools only after proper diagnosis and evaluation, in accordance with procedures prescribed by the Department.

(a-5) The Superintendent of the Illinois School for the Deaf shall be the chief executive officer of, and shall be responsible for the day to day operations of, the School, and shall obtain educational and professional employees who are certified by the Illinois State Board of Education or licensed by the appropriate agency or entity to which licensing authority has been delegated, as well as all other employees of the School, subject to the provisions of the Personnel Code and any applicable collective bargaining agreement. The Superintendent shall be appointed by the Governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. In the case of a vacancy in the office of Superintendent during the recess of the Senate, the Governor shall make a temporary appointment until the next meeting of the Senate, when the Governor shall nominate some person to fill the office, and any person so nominated who is confirmed by the Senate shall hold office during the remainder of the term and until his or her successor is appointed and qualified. The Superintendent shall hold office for a term of 4 years from the third Monday in January of each odd numbered year and until the officer's successor is appointed and qualified. The Superintendent shall devote his or her full time to the duties of the office, shall not serve in any other capacity during his or her term of office, and shall receive such compensation as the Governor shall determine. The Superintendent shall have an administrative certificate with a superintendent endorsement as provided for under Section 21-7.1 of the School Code, and shall have degrees in both educational administration and deaf education, together with at least 20 years of experience in either deaf education, the administration of deaf education, or a combination of the 2.

(a-10) The Superintendent of the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired shall be the chief executive officer of, and shall be responsible for the day to day operations of, the School, and shall obtain educational and professional employees who are certified by the Illinois State Board of Education or licensed by the appropriate agency or entity to which licensing authority has been delegated, as well as all other employees of the School, subject to the provisions of the Personnel Code and any applicable collective bargaining agreement. The Superintendent shall be appointed by the Governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. In the case of a vacancy in the office of Superintendent during the recess of the Senate, the Governor shall make a temporary appointment until the next meeting of the Senate, when the Governor shall nominate some person to fill the office, and any person so nominated who is confirmed by the Senate shall hold office during the remainder of the term and until his or her successor is appointed and qualified. The Superintendent shall hold office for a term of 4 years from the third Monday in January of each odd numbered year and until the officer's successor is appointed and qualified. The Superintendent shall devote his or her full time to the duties of the office, shall not serve in any other capacity during his or her term of office, and shall receive such compensation as the Governor shall determine. The Superintendent shall have an administrative certificate with a superintendent endorsement as provided for under Section 21-7.1 of the School Code, and shall have degrees in both educational administration and blind or visually impaired education, together with at least 20 years of experience in either blind or visually impaired education, the administration of blind or visually impaired education, or a combination of the 2.

(b) In administering the Illinois School for the Deaf, the Department shall adopt an admission policy which permits day or residential enrollment, when resources are sufficient, of children with hearing handicaps who are able to take advantage of the regular educational facilities provided in the community and thus unqualified for admission under subsection (a). In doing so, the Department shall establish an annual deadline by which shall be completed the enrollment of children qualified under subsection (a) for admission to the Illinois School for the Deaf. After the deadline, the Illinois School for the Deaf may enroll other children with hearing handicaps at the request of their parents or guardians if the Department determines there are sufficient resources to meet their needs as well as the needs of children enrolled before the deadline and children qualified under subsection (a) who may be enrolled after the deadline on an emergency basis. The Department shall adopt any rules and regulations necessary for the implementation of this subsection.

(c) In administering the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired, the Department shall adopt an admission policy that permits day or residential enrollment, when resources are sufficient, of children with visual handicaps who are able to take advantage of the regular educational facilities provided in the community and thus unqualified for admission under subsection (a). In doing so, the Department shall establish an annual deadline by which the enrollment of children qualified under subsection (a) for admission to the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired shall be completed. After the deadline, the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired may enroll other children with visual handicaps at the request of their parents or guardians if the Department determines there are sufficient resources to meet their needs as well as the needs of children enrolled before the deadline and children qualified under subsection (a) who may be enrolled after the deadline on an emergency basis. The Department shall adopt any rules and regulations necessary for the implementation of this subsection.

(Source: P.A. 89-264, eff. 8-10-95; 89-507, eff. 7-1-97.)

(20 ILCS 2405/13) (from Ch. 23, par. 3444)

Sec. 13. The Department shall have all powers reasonable and necessary for the administration of institutions for persons with one or more disabilities under subsection (f) of Section 3 of this Act, including, but not limited to, the authority to do the following:

(a) Appoint and remove the superintendents of the institutions operated by the Department, except for those superintendents whose appointment and removal is provided for under Section 10 of this Act; obtain all other employees subject to the provisions of the Personnel Code, except for educational and professional employees of the Illinois School for the Deaf and the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired who are certified by the Illinois State Board of Education or licensed by the appropriate agency or entity to which licensing authority has been delegated, and all other employees of the Schools who are obtained by the superintendents as provided under Section 10 of this Act, subject to the provisions of the Personnel Code and any applicable collective bargaining agreement; and conduct staff training programs for the development and improvement of services.

(b) Provide supervision, housing accommodations, board or the payment of boarding costs, tuition, and treatment free of charge, except as otherwise specified in this Act, for residents of this State who are cared for in any institution, or for persons receiving services under any program under the jurisdiction of the Department. Residents of other states may be admitted upon payment of the costs of board, tuition, and treatment as determined by the Department; provided, that no resident of another state shall be received or retained to the exclusion of any resident of this State. The Department shall accept any donation for the board, tuition, and treatment of any person receiving service or care.

(c) Cooperate with the State Board of Education and the Department of Children and Family Services in a program to provide for the placement, supervision, and foster care of children with handicaps who must leave their home community in order to attend schools offering programs in special education.

(d) Assess and collect (i) student activity fees and (ii) charges to school districts for transportation of students required under the School Code and provided by the Department. The Department shall direct the expenditure of all money that has been or may be received by any officer of the several State institutions under the direction and supervision of the Department as profit on sales from commissary stores, student activity fees, or charges for student transportation. The money shall be deposited into a locally held fund and expended under the direction of the Department for the special comfort, pleasure, and amusement of residents and employees and the transportation of residents, provided that amounts expended for comfort, pleasure, and amusement of employees shall not exceed the amount of profits derived from sales made to employees by the commissaries, as determined by the Department.

Funds deposited with State institutions under the direction and supervision of the Department by or for residents of those State institutions shall be deposited into interest-bearing accounts, and money received as interest and income on those funds shall be deposited into a "needy student fund" to be held and administered by the institution. Money in the "needy student fund" shall be expended for the special comfort, pleasure, and amusement of the residents of the particular institution where the money is paid or received.

Any money belonging to residents separated by death, discharge, or unauthorized absence from institutions described under this Section, in custody of officers of the institutions, may, if unclaimed by the resident or the legal representatives of the resident for a period of 2 years, be expended at the direction of the Department for the purposes and in the manner specified in this subsection (d). Articles of personal property, with the exception of clothing left in the custody of those officers, shall, if unclaimed for the period of 2 years, be sold and the money disposed of in the same manner.

Clothing left at the institution by residents at the time of separation may be used as determined by the institution if unclaimed by the resident or legal representatives of the resident within 30 days after notification.

(e) Keep, for each institution under the jurisdiction of the Department, a register of the number of officers, employees, and residents present each day in the year, in a form that will permit a calculation of the average number present each month.

(f) (Blank).

(g) (Blank).

(h) (Blank).

(i) Accept and hold in behalf of the State, if for the public interest, a grant, gift, or legacy of money or property to the State of Illinois, to the Department, or to any institution or program of the Department made in trust for the maintenance or support of a resident of an institution of the Department, or for any other legitimate purpose connected with any such institution or program. The Department shall cause each gift, grant, or legacy to be kept as a distinct fund, and shall invest the gift, grant, or legacy in the manner provided by the laws of this State as those laws now exist or shall hereafter be enacted relating to securities in which the deposits in savings banks may be invested. The Department may, however, in its discretion, deposit in a proper trust company or savings bank, during the continuance of the trust, any fund so left in trust for the life of a person and shall adopt rules and regulations governing the deposit, transfer, or withdrawal of the fund. The Department shall, on the expiration of any trust as provided in any instrument creating the trust, dispose of the fund thereby created in the manner provided in the instrument. The Department shall include in its required reports a statement showing what funds are so held by it and the condition of the funds. Monies found on residents at the time of their admission, or accruing to them during their period of institutional care, and monies deposited with the superintendents by relatives, guardians, or friends of residents for the special comfort and pleasure of a resident, shall remain in the possession of the superintendents, who shall act as trustees for disbursement to, in behalf of, or for the benefit of the resident. All types of retirement and pension benefits from private and public sources may be paid directly to the superintendent of the institution where the person is a resident, for deposit to the resident's trust fund account.

(j) Appoint, subject to the Personnel Code, persons to be members of a police and security force. Members of the police and security force shall be peace officers and as such have all powers possessed by policemen in cities and sheriffs, including the power to make arrests on view or warrants of violations of State statutes or city or county ordinances. These powers may, however, be exercised only in counties of more than 500,000 population when required for the protection of Department properties, interests, and personnel, or specifically requested by appropriate State or local law enforcement officials. Members of the police and security force may not serve and execute civil processes.

(k) Maintain, and deposit receipts from the sale of tickets to athletic, musical, and other events, fees for participation in school sponsored tournaments and events, and revenue from student activities relating to charges for art and woodworking projects, charges for automobile repairs, and other revenue generated from student projects into, locally held accounts not to exceed $20,000 per account for the purposes of (i) providing immediate payment to officials, judges, and athletic referees for their services rendered and for other related expenses at school sponsored contests, tournaments, or events, (ii) providing payment for expenses related to student revenue producing activities such as art and woodworking projects, automotive repair work, and other student activities or projects that generate revenue and incur expenses, and (iii) providing students who are enrolled in an independent living program with cash so that they may fulfill course objectives by purchasing commodities and other required supplies.

(l) Advance moneys from its appropriations to be maintained in locally held accounts at the schools to establish (i) a "Student Compensation Account" to pay students for work performed under the student work program, and (ii) a "Student Activity Travel Account" to pay transportation, meals, and lodging costs of students, coaches, and activity sponsors while traveling off campus for sporting events, lessons, and other activities directly associated with the representation of the school. Funds in the "Student Compensation Account" shall not exceed $20,000, and funds in the "Student Activity Travel Account" shall not exceed $200,000.

(m) Promulgate rules of conduct applicable to the residents of institutions for persons with one or more disabilities. The rules shall include specific standards to be used by the Department to determine (i) whether financial restitution shall be required in the event of losses or damages resulting from a resident's action and (ii) the ability of the resident and the resident's parents to pay restitution.

(Source: P.A. 94-887, eff. 6-20-06.)

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