Full Text of HB3662 98th General Assembly
HB3662enr 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning education.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section | 5 | | 29-5.2 as follows:
| 6 | | (105 ILCS 5/29-5.2) (from Ch. 122, par. 29-5.2)
| 7 | | Sec. 29-5.2. Reimbursement of transportation.
| 8 | | (a) Reimbursement. A
custodian of a qualifying pupil shall | 9 | | be entitled to reimbursement in
accordance with procedures | 10 | | established by the State Board of Education for
qualified | 11 | | transportation expenses paid by such custodian during the | 12 | | school
year.
| 13 | | (b) Definitions. As used in this Section:
| 14 | | (1) "Qualifying pupil" means an individual referred to in | 15 | | subsection
(c), as well as an individual who:
| 16 | | (A) is a resident of the State of Illinois; and
| 17 | | (B) is under the age of 21 at the close of the school year | 18 | | for which
reimbursement is sought; and
| 19 | | (C) during the school year for which reimbursement is | 20 | | sought was a
full-time pupil enrolled in a kindergarten through | 21 | | 12th grade educational
program at a school which was a distance | 22 | | of 1 1/2 miles or more from the
residence of such pupil; and
| 23 | | (D) did not live within 1 1/2 miles from the school in |
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| 1 | | which the pupil
was enrolled or have access to transportation | 2 | | provided entirely at public
expense to and from that school and | 3 | | a point within 1 1/2 miles of the
pupil's residence, measured | 4 | | in a manner consistent with Section 29-3.
| 5 | | (2) "Qualified transportation expenses" means costs | 6 | | reasonably incurred
by the custodian to transport, for the | 7 | | purposes of attending regularly
scheduled day-time classes, a | 8 | | qualifying pupil between such qualifying
pupil's residence and | 9 | | the school at which such qualifying pupil is
enrolled, as | 10 | | limited in subsection (e) of this Section, and shall include
| 11 | | automobile expenses at the standard mileage rate allowed by the | 12 | | United States
Internal Revenue Service as reimbursement for | 13 | | business transportation
expense, as well as payments to mass | 14 | | transit carriers, private carriers,
and contractual fees for | 15 | | transportation.
| 16 | | (3) "School" means a public or nonpublic elementary or | 17 | | secondary school
in Illinois, attendance at which satisfies the | 18 | | requirements of Section 26-1.
| 19 | | (4) One and one-half miles distance. For the purposes of | 20 | | this Section, 1
1/2 miles distance shall be measured in a | 21 | | manner consistent with Section 29-3.
| 22 | | (5) Custodian. The term "custodian" shall mean, with | 23 | | respect to a
qualifying pupil, an Illinois resident who is the | 24 | | parent, or parents,
or legal guardian of such qualifying pupil.
| 25 | | (c) An individual, resident of the State of Illinois, who | 26 | | is under
the age of 21 at the close of the
school year for which |
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| 1 | | reimbursement is sought and who, during that school
year, was a | 2 | | full time pupil enrolled in a kindergarten through 12th grade
| 3 | | educational program at a school which was within 1 1/2 miles of | 4 | | the pupil's
residence, measured in a manner consistent with | 5 | | Section 29-3, is a
"qualifying pupil" within the meaning of | 6 | | this Section if (i) such pupil attends public school in a | 7 | | school district organized under Article 34 of this Code and | 8 | | must walk or otherwise travel along a safe passage route, as | 9 | | designated by
the school board, to reach school or return home | 10 | | or
(ii) : (i) such pupil
did not have access to transportation | 11 | | provided entirely at public expense
to and from that school and | 12 | | the pupil's residence , and (ii) conditions were
such that | 13 | | walking would have constituted a serious hazard to the safety | 14 | | of
the pupil due to vehicular traffic. The determination of | 15 | | what constitutes
a serious safety hazard within the meaning of | 16 | | this subsection shall in each
case be made by the Department of | 17 | | Transportation in accordance with
guidelines which the | 18 | | Department, in consultation with the State
Superintendent of | 19 | | Education, shall promulgate. Each custodian intending to
file | 20 | | an application for reimbursement under subsection (d) for | 21 | | expenditures
incurred or to be incurred with respect to a pupil | 22 | | asserted to be a
qualified pupil as an individual referred to | 23 | | in this subsection shall first
file with the appropriate | 24 | | regional superintendent, on forms provided by the
State Board | 25 | | of Education, a request for a determination that a serious
| 26 | | safety hazard within the meaning of this subsection (c) exists |
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| 1 | | with respect
to such pupil. Custodians shall file such forms | 2 | | with the appropriate
regional superintendents not later than | 3 | | February 1 of the school year for
which reimbursement will be | 4 | | sought for transmittal by the regional
superintendents to the | 5 | | Department of Transportation not later than February
15; except | 6 | | that any custodian who previously received a determination
that | 7 | | a serious safety hazard exists need not resubmit such a request | 8 | | for 4
years but instead may certify on their application for | 9 | | reimbursement to the State
Board of Education referred to in | 10 | | subsection (d), that the conditions found
to be hazardous, as | 11 | | previously determined by the Department, remain
unchanged. The | 12 | | Department shall make its determination on all requests so
| 13 | | transmitted to it within 30 days, and shall thereupon forward | 14 | | notice of
each determination which it has made to the | 15 | | appropriate regional
superintendent for immediate transmittal | 16 | | to the custodian affected thereby.
The determination of the | 17 | | Department relative to what constitutes a serious
safety hazard | 18 | | within the meaning of subsection (c) with respect to any
pupil | 19 | | shall be deemed an "administrative decision" as defined in | 20 | | Section
3-101 of the Administrative Review Law; and the | 21 | | Administrative Review Law
and all amendments and modifications | 22 | | thereof and rules adopted pursuant
thereto shall apply to and | 23 | | govern all proceedings instituted for the
judicial review of | 24 | | final administrative decisions of the Department of
| 25 | | Transportation under this subsection.
| 26 | | (d) Request for reimbursement. A custodian, including a
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| 1 | | custodian for a pupil asserted to be a qualified pupil as an | 2 | | individual
referred to in subsection (c), who applies in | 3 | | accordance
with procedures established by the State Board of | 4 | | Education shall be
reimbursed in accordance with the dollar | 5 | | limits set out in this Section.
Such procedures shall require | 6 | | application no later than June 30 of each
year, documentation | 7 | | as to eligibility, and adequate evidence of
expenditures; | 8 | | except that for reimbursement sought pursuant to subsection
(c) | 9 | | for the 1985-1986 school year, such procedures shall require
| 10 | | application within 21 days after the determination of the | 11 | | Department of
Transportation with respect to that school year | 12 | | is transmitted by the
regional superintendent to the affected | 13 | | custodian. In the absence of
contemporaneous records, an | 14 | | affidavit by
the custodian may be accepted as evidence of an | 15 | | expenditure. If the amount
appropriated for such reimbursement | 16 | | for any year is less than the amount
due each custodian, it | 17 | | shall be apportioned on the basis of the requests
approved. | 18 | | Regional Superintendents shall be reimbursed for such costs of
| 19 | | administering the program, including costs incurred in | 20 | | administering the
provisions of subsection (c), as the State | 21 | | Board of Education determines are
reasonable and necessary.
| 22 | | (e) Dollar limit on amount of reimbursement. Reimbursement | 23 | | to custodians
for transportation expenses incurred during the | 24 | | 1985-1986 school year,
payable in fiscal year 1987, shall be | 25 | | equal to the lesser of (1) the actual
qualified transportation | 26 | | expenses, or (2) $50 per pupil. Reimbursement to
custodians for |
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| 1 | | transportation expenses incurred during the 1986-1987 school
| 2 | | year, payable in fiscal year 1988, shall be equal to the lesser | 3 | | of (1) the
actual qualified transportation expenses, or (2) | 4 | | $100 per pupil. For
reimbursements of qualified transportation | 5 | | expenses incurred in 1987-1988
and thereafter, the amount of | 6 | | reimbursement shall not exceed the prior
year's State | 7 | | reimbursement per pupil for transporting pupils as required by
| 8 | | Section 29-3 and other provisions of this Article.
| 9 | | (f) Rules and regulations. The State Board of Education
| 10 | | shall adopt rules to implement this Section.
| 11 | | (g) The provisions of this amendatory Act of 1986 shall | 12 | | apply according to
their terms to the entire 1985-1986 school | 13 | | year, including any portion of
that school year which elapses | 14 | | prior to the effective date of this
amendatory Act, and to each | 15 | | subsequent school year.
| 16 | | (h) The chief administrative officer of each school shall | 17 | | notify
custodians of qualifying pupils that reimbursements are | 18 | | available.
Notification shall occur by the first Monday in | 19 | | November of the school year
for which reimbursement is | 20 | | available.
| 21 | | (Source: P.A. 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)
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