Full Text of SB0457 94th General Assembly
SB0457sam001 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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Sen. Carol Ronen
Filed: 3/14/2005
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| AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 457
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| AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 457 by replacing | 3 |
| everything after the enacting clause with the following:
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| "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 |
| Age-appropriate Sex Education Grant Program Act. | 6 |
| Section 5. Legislative intent. The General Assembly finds | 7 |
| and declares that Illinois' teen birth rate, numbering over | 8 |
| 18,000 per year, ranks among the highest in the nation. | 9 |
| Further, the United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate | 10 |
| of all developed countries. Current research documents the fact | 11 |
| that those individuals who receive early, comprehensive, | 12 |
| age-appropriate, and scientifically accurate education in the | 13 |
| health and other benefits derived from sexual abstinence, | 14 |
| family planning, and birth control are more likely to delay | 15 |
| sexual activity and engage in such activity later and with a | 16 |
| higher degree of responsibility and safety. Comprehensive sex | 17 |
| education programs, which complement parental involvement and | 18 |
| respect the diversity and values of our State, provide our | 19 |
| youth at risk with the foundation to make responsibly informed | 20 |
| choices. The earlier these programs are commenced on an | 21 |
| age-appropriate basis, the more responsibly our youth will make | 22 |
| decisions about sexual activity. | 23 |
| The General Assembly further finds and declares that | 24 |
| current statistics demonstrate that occurrences of sexually |
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| transmitted diseases among adolescents have shown an increase | 2 |
| over the past several years. Concurrently, adolescents are the | 3 |
| fastest growing population of new HIV/AIDS cases. These | 4 |
| increases place greater demand on the State's health care | 5 |
| delivery system and require that we take immediate action and | 6 |
| embark on a dedicated mission to provide targeted at-risk | 7 |
| adolescents with a more concentrated sex education program with | 8 |
| a significant parental component, designed to inform and | 9 |
| instruct them on abstinence, protection, and pregnancy | 10 |
| prevention. Nearly half of all new sexually transmitted disease | 11 |
| cases occurred among Americans aged 15 to 24. In Illinois, | 12 |
| one-third of all Chlamydia cases and over one quarter of all | 13 |
| Gonorrhea cases occur in teens ages 15 to 19. By age 24, at | 14 |
| least one in 3 sexually active persons are estimated to have | 15 |
| had a sexually transmitted disease. | 16 |
| It is the intent of the legislature that the | 17 |
| age-appropriate sex education grant program established in | 18 |
| this Act provide adolescents with the information, assistance, | 19 |
| skills, and support to enable them to make responsible | 20 |
| decisions, including abstaining from sexual intercourse, and, | 21 |
| for those who do become sexually active, the effective use of | 22 |
| contraceptives and barrier methods.
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| Section 10. Definitions. For the purposes of this Act, the | 24 |
| following terms shall have the following meanings: | 25 |
| "Eligible applicant" means any of the following: | 26 |
| (1) A public school district. | 27 |
| (2) A community based organization that may be a | 28 |
| for-profit corporation or entity or not-for-profit | 29 |
| corporation or organization. | 30 |
| (3) A religious corporation, church, or other | 31 |
| religious entity, provided that, either directly or | 32 |
| indirectly, the promotion or teaching of religious tenets | 33 |
| is not a component of a sex education program. |
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| (4) A consortium or partnership formed by a public | 2 |
| school district and one or more community based | 3 |
| organizations that qualify for the award of an | 4 |
| age-appropriate sex education grant by the Illinois | 5 |
| Department of Human Services under this Act. | 6 |
| "Grant program plan" means the plan submitted to the | 7 |
| Department by an eligible applicant under Section 15 of this | 8 |
| Act. | 9 |
| "State income standard" means the most recent federal | 10 |
| income official poverty line as defined annually and revised by | 11 |
| the federal Office of Management and Budget adjusted for family | 12 |
| size. | 13 |
| "Age-appropriate sex education grant program" means a | 14 |
| comprehensive age-appropriate sex education program conducted | 15 |
| by an eligible applicant under Section 15 of this Act. | 16 |
| "Medically accurate" means verified or supported by | 17 |
| research conducted in compliance with scientific methods, | 18 |
| published in peer-reviewed journals, when appropriate, and | 19 |
| recognized as accurate and objective by professional | 20 |
| organizations and agencies with expertise in the relevant | 21 |
| field, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. | 22 |
| "Department" means the Department of Human Services. | 23 |
| Section 15. Establishment of age-appropriate sex education | 24 |
| grant program; components of instruction; general standards. | 25 |
| (a) There is established within the Illinois Department of | 26 |
| Human Services an age-appropriate sex education grant program | 27 |
| subject to appropriation. The purpose of the program shall be | 28 |
| to provide grants to eligible applicants to support | 29 |
| age-appropriate sex education programs for young people that | 30 |
| provide them with components of instruction set forth in | 31 |
| subsection (b). | 32 |
| (b) The age-appropriate sex education programs approved | 33 |
| under this grant program shall include the following components |
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| of instruction: | 2 |
| (1) Teaches that abstinence is the only sure way to | 3 |
| avoid pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases. | 4 |
| (2) Provides information about the health benefits, | 5 |
| side effects, and proper use of all contraceptives and | 6 |
| barrier methods as a means to prevent pregnancy, including | 7 |
| accurate information about effectiveness. | 8 |
| (3) Provides information about the health benefits, | 9 |
| side effects, and proper use of all contraceptives and | 10 |
| barrier methods as a means to reduce the risk of | 11 |
| contracting sexually transmitted diseases, HIV/AIDS, and | 12 |
| other diseases. | 13 |
| (4) Teaches skills to make responsible decisions about | 14 |
| sexuality, including how to avoid unwanted verbal, | 15 |
| physical, and sexual advances, and how not to make unwanted | 16 |
| verbal, physical, and sexual advances. | 17 |
| (5) Teaches how alcohol and drug use can affect | 18 |
| responsible decision making. | 19 |
| (6) Helps young people to gain knowledge about the | 20 |
| physical, biological, and hormonal changes of adolescence | 21 |
| and subsequent stages of human maturation. | 22 |
| (7) Assists young people in gaining knowledge about the | 23 |
| specific involvement and responsibility of both males and | 24 |
| females in sexual decision making. | 25 |
| (8) Encourages young people to practice healthy life | 26 |
| skills, including goal setting, decision making, | 27 |
| negotiation, communication, and stress management. | 28 |
| (9) Promotes self-esteem and positive interpersonal | 29 |
| skills focusing on relationship skills, including | 30 |
| platonic, romantic, intimate, and family relationships and | 31 |
| interaction. | 32 |
| The Department may determine certain components of | 33 |
| instruction to be optional in grades kindergarten through 5 for | 34 |
| age-appropriate or other practical reasons as specified in the |
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| application instructions made available by the Department for | 2 |
| the purposes of implementing this Act. | 3 |
| (c) Any eligible applicant may apply for and, upon approval | 4 |
| of the application by the Department, shall be awarded an | 5 |
| annual age-appropriate sex education grant if it demonstrates | 6 |
| in the grant program plan submitted to the Department that: | 7 |
| (1) The components of instruction shall adhere to the | 8 |
| following standards: | 9 |
| (A) Is age-appropriate. | 10 |
| (B) Is medically accurate. | 11 |
| (C) Does not teach or promote religion, provided | 12 |
| that this item shall not preclude discussion of moral, | 13 |
| ethical, or religious views related to sex or sexual | 14 |
| relationships. | 15 |
| (D) Stresses the value of abstinence while not | 16 |
| ignoring those adolescents who have had or who are | 17 |
| having sexual intercourse. | 18 |
| (E) Encourages family communication about | 19 |
| sexuality among parents, other adult household | 20 |
| members, and children. | 21 |
| (F) Develops the knowledge and skills necessary to | 22 |
| ensure and protect young people with respect to their | 23 |
| sexual and reproductive health. | 24 |
| (G) Develops healthy attitudes and values | 25 |
| concerning growth and development, body image, gender | 26 |
| roles, sexual orientation, and other subjects. | 27 |
| (2) The applicant is capable of providing young persons | 28 |
| with an effective sex education program that shall be | 29 |
| meaningful, shall substantially involve parents and other | 30 |
| adults as feasible and appropriate, and shall be conducted | 31 |
| in accordance with this Act and any rule under this Act. | 32 |
| (3) If the applicant is a community based organization, | 33 |
| religious corporation, church, or other religious entity, | 34 |
| it has a demonstrated record of conducting comprehensive |
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| sex education that conforms to the standards set forth in | 2 |
| paragraph (1) of this subsection, it will use instructional | 3 |
| strategies that are high quality and based on medically | 4 |
| accurate research, it is capable of providing an | 5 |
| age-appropriate sex education program to a broad based | 6 |
| segment of the youth population in the organization's | 7 |
| service area, and it will provide instruction consistent | 8 |
| with applicable federal, State, and local health, safety, | 9 |
| and civil rights laws. The Department may seek and shall | 10 |
| receive any pertinent information or request and receive | 11 |
| recommendations as to interactions or prior dealings the | 12 |
| community based organization, religious corporation, | 13 |
| church, or other religious entity has with any other State | 14 |
| or local governmental entity, including, but not limited | 15 |
| to, any public school district, in making the determination | 16 |
| required by this paragraph. | 17 |
| Section 20. Application for grants; age-appropriate sex | 18 |
| education grant program plan. | 19 |
| (a) The Department shall establish an application | 20 |
| procedure by which eligible applicants may apply for a grant | 21 |
| pursuant to this Act. The Department shall establish the manner | 22 |
| and method, including specified objective criteria consistent | 23 |
| with this Act, by which the Department shall determine the | 24 |
| eligibility of an applicant. Once an application is approved, | 25 |
| the Department shall not suspend a grant unless for good cause | 26 |
| shown. If an application is rejected by the Department, an | 27 |
| eligible applicant is not prohibited from resubmitting a new or | 28 |
| supplemental application with the Department for consideration | 29 |
| in future years. | 30 |
| (b) The eligible applicant shall submit with its | 31 |
| age-appropriate sex education grant application its grant | 32 |
| program plan to the Department, which shall include but not be | 33 |
| limited to: |
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| (1) The manner in which parents and other adults will | 2 |
| be included in the program. | 3 |
| (2) An outline for the curriculum to be covered in the | 4 |
| eligible applicant's program, including the instructional | 5 |
| materials, books, videos, or other instructional tools to | 6 |
| be used and the training that will be provided to teachers, | 7 |
| personnel, and volunteers who will conduct the program. The | 8 |
| curriculum shall include, but need not be limited to, a | 9 |
| comprehensive block of instruction that stresses the | 10 |
| components of instruction of an age-appropriate sex | 11 |
| education grant program as established in Section 15. | 12 |
| (3) Any special, unusual, or innovative services, | 13 |
| programs, or education methods to be used. | 14 |
| (4) The number and types of teachers or personnel to be | 15 |
| employed, or volunteers to be used, together with their | 16 |
| professional or academic credentials. | 17 |
| (5) The geographic area in which the proposed program | 18 |
| will be offered and a description of the categories and age | 19 |
| groupings of at-risk adolescents included in the program, | 20 |
| along with an estimate of the number of adolescents the | 21 |
| applicant estimates will participate in the program. | 22 |
| (6) A demonstration that the proposed program is | 23 |
| adequate in terms of course length and in terms of both | 24 |
| short-term and long-range goals. | 25 |
| (7) The program is appropriate within the overall goals | 26 |
| of school health. | 27 |
| (8) The need for the program in the proposed area to be | 28 |
| served. In determining the need the Department shall | 29 |
| specifically consider the following factors and give | 30 |
| special attention to programs servicing areas that have a | 31 |
| higher than average incidence in one or more of the | 32 |
| following life experiences: | 33 |
| (A) The number of reported adolescent pregnancies | 34 |
| by persons residing in the area over the previous 10 |
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| years and the number of adolescent parents, including | 2 |
| when feasible the number of single parents, who | 3 |
| currently reside in the area. | 4 |
| (B) The number of reported occurrences of sexually | 5 |
| transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS among residents of | 6 |
| the area to be served, with particular emphasis on | 7 |
| HIV/AIDS. | 8 |
| (C) The number of persons residing in the area to | 9 |
| be served whose annual personal income is less than | 10 |
| 150% of the established State income standard and any | 11 |
| other generally available statistical data that | 12 |
| indicate that the area to be served is economically or | 13 |
| otherwise disadvantaged. | 14 |
| (D) The high school drop out rate in the area. | 15 |
| (E) Any other generally available statistical data | 16 |
| that indicate that the area to be served is in need of | 17 |
| an age-appropriate sex education program. | 18 |
| (F) The success realized by an eligible applicant | 19 |
| in reducing unintended pregnancies and cases of | 20 |
| sexually transmitted diseases, as well as reducing | 21 |
| risky behavior, in programs previously or currently | 22 |
| conducted. | 23 |
| (G) Any other information as the Department may | 24 |
| request. | 25 |
| (c) In considering applications submitted by eligible | 26 |
| applicants, the Department shall give special attention and | 27 |
| priority to applications submitted by an eligible applicant | 28 |
| that is a public school district working in consortium or | 29 |
| partnership with one or more community based organizations, | 30 |
| especially when the community based organization or | 31 |
| organizations have a demonstrated record of success in the | 32 |
| conduct of sex education programs of a similar nature to the | 33 |
| sex education program provided for in this Act. |
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| Section 25. Annual reports by grant recipients. | 2 |
| (a) Every eligible applicant that has been awarded a grant | 3 |
| under this Act shall file an annual report with the Department, | 4 |
| in a form and with the data as the Department prescribes, | 5 |
| detailing the expenditure of grant funds, together with an | 6 |
| analysis of the age-appropriate sex education grant program it | 7 |
| conducted, and a summary of its success or failures in altering | 8 |
| attitudes and the acquisition of knowledge regarding the merits | 9 |
| of sexual abstinence and methods of preventing unintended | 10 |
| pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, and HIV/AIDS. | 11 |
| (b) The Department shall, on or before February 1 in each | 12 |
| year, submit a report on the program to the Governor and the | 13 |
| General Assembly containing its findings and recommendations. | 14 |
| Section 30. Grants for curriculum development and | 15 |
| innovative programming. The Department may award grants to | 16 |
| eligible applicants for the development of age appropriate, | 17 |
| comprehensive sex education curriculum and innovative | 18 |
| programming. The curriculum and programming developed under | 19 |
| these grants must include the components outlined in Section | 20 |
| 15. | 21 |
| Section 35. Notification to potential applicants. The | 22 |
| Department shall at least 90 days prior to the application | 23 |
| deadline send to every public school district and to every | 24 |
| requesting community based organization a copy of this Act and | 25 |
| general information relating to the age-appropriate sex | 26 |
| education grant program and the grant application process. | 27 |
| Section 40. Rules. The Department shall promulgate rules as | 28 |
| shall be reasonably necessary to implement and administer the | 29 |
| provisions of this Act.
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| Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
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| becoming law.".
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