HB3322 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB101 11049 AXK 56253 b

101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
HB3322

Introduced , by Rep. Charles Meier

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

105 ILCS 5/10-21.9

from Ch. 122, par. 10-21.9

Amends the School Code. With regard to criminal history records checks and checks of the Statewide Sex Offender Database and Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database, provides that if a substitute teacher who (i) is a retired educator with a Professional Educator License, (ii) has been issued a certificate concerning those checks by a regional superintendent of schools, and (iii) is seeking employment in another educational service region presents the certificate to the regional superintendent of that other educational service region, then the regional superintendent of that other educational service region shall issue its own certificate to the substitute teacher without requiring the substitute teacher to have another criminal history records check or check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database or Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database performed as a condition of employment as a substitute teacher with a school district in that other educational service region. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning education.

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

Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section 10-21.9 as follows:

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

Sec. 10-21.9. Criminal history records checks and checks of the Statewide Sex Offender Database and Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database.

(a) Certified and noncertified applicants for employment with a school district, except school bus driver applicants, are required as a condition of employment to authorize a fingerprint-based criminal history records check to determine if such 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 check shall be furnished by the applicant to the school district, except that if the 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 check 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 applicant's name, sex, race, date of birth, social security number, fingerprint images, and other identifiers, as prescribed by the Department of State Police, to the Department. The regional superintendent submitting the requisite information to the Department of State Police shall promptly notify the school districts in which the applicant is seeking employment as a substitute or concurrent part-time teacher or concurrent educational support personnel employee that the check of the applicant has been requested. The Department of State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall furnish, pursuant to a fingerprint-based criminal history records check, records of convictions, forever and hereinafter, until expunged, to the president of the school board for the school district that requested the check, or to the regional superintendent who requested the check. The Department shall charge the school district or the appropriate regional superintendent a fee for conducting such check, which fee shall be deposited in the State Police Services Fund and shall not exceed the cost of the inquiry; and the applicant shall not be charged a fee for such check by the school district or by the regional superintendent, except that those applicants seeking employment as a substitute teacher with a school district may be charged a fee not to exceed the cost of the inquiry. Subject to appropriations for these purposes, the State Superintendent of Education shall reimburse school districts and regional superintendents for fees paid to obtain criminal history records checks under this Section.

(a-5) The school district or regional superintendent shall further perform a check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database, as authorized by the Sex Offender Community Notification Law, for each applicant.

(a-6) The school district or regional superintendent shall further perform a check of the Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database, as authorized by the Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Community Notification Law, for each applicant.

(b) 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 check was requested by the school district, the presidents of the appropriate school boards if the check was requested from the Department of State Police by the regional superintendent, the State Superintendent of Education, the State Teacher Certification Board, any other person necessary to the decision of hiring the applicant for employment, or for clarification purposes the Department of State Police or Statewide Sex Offender Database, or both. A copy of the record of convictions obtained from the Department of State Police shall be provided to the applicant for employment. Upon the check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database, the school district or regional superintendent shall notify an applicant as to whether or not the applicant has been identified in the Database as a sex offender. If a check 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 a check ascertains that the applicant has not been convicted of any of the enumerated criminal or drug offenses in subsection (c) of this Section 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 and if the regional superintendent upon a check ascertains that the applicant has not been identified in the Sex Offender Database as a sex offender, 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) of this Section 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 evidencing that as of the date that the regional superintendent conducted a check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database, the applicant has not been identified in the Database as a sex offender. The school board of any school district may rely on the certificate issued by any regional superintendent to that substitute teacher, concurrent part-time teacher, or concurrent educational support personnel employee or may initiate its own criminal history records check of the applicant through the Department of State Police and its own check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database as provided in subsection (a). Any unauthorized release of confidential information may be a violation of Section 7 of the Criminal Identification Act.

(b-5) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, if a substitute teacher who (i) is a retired educator with a Professional Educator License, (ii) has been issued a certificate by a regional superintendent of schools under subsection (b), and (iii) is seeking employment in another educational service region presents the certificate to the regional superintendent of that other educational service region, then the regional superintendent of that other educational service region shall issue its own certificate to the substitute teacher without requiring the substitute teacher to have another criminal history records check or check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database or Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database performed under this Section as a condition of employment as a substitute teacher with a school district in that other educational service region.

(c) No school board shall knowingly employ a person who has been convicted of any offense that would subject him or her to license suspension or revocation pursuant to Section 21B-80 of this Code. 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 a person for whom a criminal history records check and a Statewide Sex Offender Database check 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 State Superintendent of Education may initiate certificate suspension and revocation proceedings as authorized by law.

(e-5) The superintendent of the employing school board shall, in writing, notify the State Superintendent of Education and the applicable regional superintendent of schools of any certificate holder whom he or she has reasonable cause to believe has committed an intentional act of abuse or neglect with the result of making a child an abused child or a neglected child, as defined in Section 3 of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, and that act resulted in the certificate holder's dismissal or resignation from the school district. This notification must be submitted within 30 days after the dismissal or resignation. The certificate holder must also be contemporaneously sent a copy of the notice by the superintendent. All correspondence, documentation, and other information so received by the regional superintendent of schools, the State Superintendent of Education, the State Board of Education, or the State Teacher Certification Board under this subsection (e-5) is confidential and must not be disclosed to third parties, except (i) as necessary for the State Superintendent of Education or his or her designee to investigate and prosecute pursuant to Article 21 of this Code, (ii) pursuant to a court order, (iii) for disclosure to the certificate holder or his or her representative, or (iv) as otherwise provided in this Article and provided that any such information admitted into evidence in a hearing is exempt from this confidentiality and non-disclosure requirement. Except for an act of willful or wanton misconduct, any superintendent who provides notification as required in this subsection (e-5) shall have immunity from any liability, whether civil or criminal or that otherwise might result by reason of such action.

(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 history records checks and checks of the Statewide Sex Offender Database 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 a criminal history records check prepared by each such employee and submitting the same to the Department of State Police and for conducting a check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database for each employee. Any information concerning the record of conviction and identification as a sex offender of any such employee obtained by the regional superintendent shall be promptly reported to the president of the appropriate school board or school boards.

(f-5) Upon request of a school or school district, any information obtained by a school district pursuant to subsection (f) of this Section within the last year must be made available to the requesting school or school district.

(g) Prior to the commencement of any student teaching experience or required internship (which is referred to as student teaching in this Section) in the public schools, a student teacher is required to authorize a fingerprint-based criminal history records check. Authorization for and payment of the costs of the check must be furnished by the student teacher to the school district where the student teaching is to be completed. Upon receipt of this authorization and payment, the school district shall submit the student teacher's name, sex, race, date of birth, social security number, fingerprint images, and other identifiers, as prescribed by the Department of State Police, to the Department of State Police. The Department of State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall furnish, pursuant to a fingerprint-based criminal history records check, records of convictions, forever and hereinafter, until expunged, to the president of the school board for the school district that requested the check. The Department shall charge the school district a fee for conducting the check, which fee must not exceed the cost of the inquiry and must be deposited into the State Police Services Fund. The school district shall further perform a check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database, as authorized by the Sex Offender Community Notification Law, and of the Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database, as authorized by the Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Registration Act, for each student teacher. No school board may knowingly allow a person to student teach for whom a criminal history records check, a Statewide Sex Offender Database check, and a Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database check have not been completed and reviewed by the district.

A copy of the record of convictions obtained from the Department of State Police must be provided to the student teacher. Any information concerning the record of convictions obtained by the president of the school board is confidential and may only be transmitted to the superintendent of the school district or his or her designee, the State Superintendent of Education, the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board, or, for clarification purposes, the Department of State Police or the Statewide Sex Offender Database or Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database. Any unauthorized release of confidential information may be a violation of Section 7 of the Criminal Identification Act.

No school board may knowingly allow a person to student teach who has been convicted of any offense that would subject him or her to license suspension or revocation pursuant to Section 21B-80 of this Code or who has been found to be the perpetrator of sexual or physical abuse of a minor under 18 years of age pursuant to proceedings under Article II of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.

(h) (Blank).

(Source: P.A. 99-21, eff. 1-1-16; 99-667, eff. 7-29-16.)

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