Public Act 102-0570
 
SB0815 EnrolledLRB102 04603 CMG 14622 b

    AN ACT concerning education.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
Commission on Equitable Public University Funding Act.
 
    Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly finds all of the
following:
        (1) Historical and continued systemic racism has
    created significant disparities in college access,
    affordability, and completion for Black, Latinx, and other
    underrepresented and historically underserved students in
    this State.
        (2) Improvements in postsecondary access, completion,
    and success rates are required in order to meet State
    goals for equity in attainment and will require further
    investments in the higher education system to support
    historically underrepresented and underserved groups,
    including Black, Latinx, and low-income students in
    particular.
        (3) This State's approach to funding education has
    contributed to racial and socioeconomic inequities in
    access to resources and educational outcomes.
        (4) Great strides have been made in this State in
    addressing inequity in funding the kindergarten through
    grade 12 public school system, including the adoption of
    an evidence-based funding formula, which has resulted in
    new funds being targeted to the highest-need districts.
        (5) Adequate, equitable, and stable investment in
    higher education is the key to ensuring that every
    institution of higher education can provide adequate
    academic, financial, and social-emotional support and
    services that improve persistence and completion.
        (6) In this State, higher education appropriations
    have effectively been cut in half since fiscal year 2002.
    Institutions of higher education serving higher
    percentages of Black students are more reliant on State
    funds and have been disproportionately harmed by this
    disinvestment in higher education.
        (7) As a result of historic underfunding and level
    cuts to institutions of higher education, this State's
    public universities have needed to increase tuition to
    make up the funding shortfalls.
        (8) Combined with the high cost of college and
    insufficient State financial aid, racial income and wealth
    disparities caused by structural racism contribute to the
    accumulation of student debt and make college enrollment
    and persistence more challenging for Black and Latinx
    students.
        (9) Despite similar numbers of Black high school
    graduates, about 25,000 fewer Black students enrolled in
    institutions of higher education in this State in 2018
    compared to 2008.
        (10) State appropriations make it possible for
    colleges to provide essential academic services,
    social-emotional support and services, and institutional
    aid to students to improve student persistence and
    completion.
        (11) This State must strategically invest in higher
    education to address wide disparities in degree
    completion. Public community colleges currently graduate
    Black and Latinx students at a rate of 14% and 26% within 3
    years, respectively, compared to 38% of white students. At
    public universities, Black and Latinx students currently
    graduate at a rate of 34% and 49%, respectively, compared
    to 66% of white students, within 6 years.
        (12) This State has a moral obligation and economic
    interest in dismantling and reforming structures that
    create or exacerbate racial and socioeconomic inequities
    in higher education.
        (13) This State benefits from a public higher
    education system that receives adequate and stable
    resources for student success and that strategically uses
    those resources to maximize the potential of each public
    institution of higher education and to maximize the
    benefits to this State, including, but not limited to,
    improved college access and attainment and higher median
    wages for all residents, reduced income inequalities,
    improved economic output and innovation, increased access
    and engagement in world-class research opportunities, and
    improved college enrollment, persistence, and completion
    of underrepresented and historically underserved students,
    including Black and Latinx students and students from
    low-income families.
 
    Section 10. Commission on Equitable Public University
Funding; purpose.
    (a) There is created the Commission on Equitable Public
University Funding.
    (b) The purpose of the Commission is to, at a minimum,
recommend specific data-driven criteria and approaches to the
General Assembly to adequately, equitably, and stably fund
public universities in this State and to evaluate the existing
funding methods used for public universities.
 
    Section 15. Membership; administrative support;
compensation.
    (a) The membership of the Commission shall include, at a
minimum:
        (1) One member of the Senate appointed by the
    President of the Senate, who shall serve as
    co-chairperson.
        (2) One member of the House of Representatives
    appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives,
    who shall serve as co-chairperson.
        (3) The chairperson of the Board of Higher Education
    or a designee, who shall serve as co-chairperson.
        (4) One member appointed by the Governor, who shall
    serve as co-chairperson.
        (5) One member of the Senate appointed by the Minority
    Leader of the Senate.
        (6) One member of the House of Representatives
    appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of
    Representatives.
        (7) The chairperson of the Illinois Student Assistance
    Commission or a designee.
        (8) The chairperson of the Higher Education Committee
    of the House of Representatives or a designee.
        (9) The Minority Spokesperson of the Higher Education
    Committee of the House of Representatives or a designee.
        (10) The chairperson of the Higher Education Committee
    of the Senate or a designee.
        (11) The Minority Spokesperson of the Higher Education
    Committee of the Senate or a designee.
        (12) Twelve members representing the public
    universities in this State each appointed by the President
    of each public university.
        (13) One member representing a higher education
    advocacy organization focused on eliminating disparities
    in college completion in this State for low-income and
    first-generation college students and students of color
    appointed by the Board of Higher Education.
        (14) One member representing a statewide advocacy
    organization focused on improving educational and
    employment opportunities for women and adults appointed by
    the Board of Higher Education.
        (15) One member representing a statewide advocacy
    organization focused on developing an equitable
    birth-to-career educational system appointed by the Board
    of Higher Education.
        (16) One member representing a statewide organization
    that advocates for alternative education and bridge
    programs and the re-enrollment of students in this State
    appointed by the Board of Higher Education.
        (17) One member representing a fiscal policy research
    organization focused on the impact that State-level budget
    and tax policies have on equitable education funding
    solutions appointed by the Board of Higher Education.
        (18) Two members representing an organization that
    advocates on behalf of public university faculty members
    who are each employed by a different university appointed
    by the Board of Higher Education.
        (19) One health care expert from the public higher
    education arena appointed by the Board of Higher
    Education, in consultation with the presidents and
    chancellors of the public universities.
        (20) One member who has legal expertise in higher
    education funding and finance appointed by the Board of
    Higher Education.
        (21) One postsecondary student enrolled at a public
    university in this State appointed by the Board of Higher
    Education.
    (b) The Board of Higher Education shall recognize and
consider the representation of underrepresented and
historically underserved groups, including those who are
Black, Latinx, or from low-income families, and the racial and
geographical diversity of this State when making appointments
to the Commission.
    (c) The co-chairpersons may identify and invite experts to
speak to the Commission on issues, including, but not limited
to, higher education funding, finance, health care, and
research and development.
    (d) The Board of Higher Education shall provide
administrative support to the Commission, including any
related workgroups, and shall be responsible for administering
the Commission's operations and ensuring that the requirements
of this Act are met.
    (e) The members of the Commission shall serve without
compensation for their services as members of the Commission.
 
    Section 20. Meetings; reports.
    (a) The Commission shall meet at least once per quarter
beginning no later than October 15, 2021.
    (b) On or before July 1, 2023, the Commission shall
deliver to the General Assembly and publish on the Board of
Higher Education's Internet website or otherwise make publicly
available a report on the Commission's recommendations,
including specific criteria and funding approaches in
accordance with all applicable laws, to establish an
equity-based funding model for the allocation of State funds
to public universities. The recommendations included in the
report must be equity-centered and consider all of the
following areas:
        (1) Remediating inequities in funding that have led to
    disparities in access, affordability, and completion for
    underrepresented and historically underserved student
    groups, including students who are Black, Latinx, or from
    low-income families.
        (2) Ensuring that this State adequately, equitably,
    and stably funds public institutions of higher education
    in a manner that recognizes historical and current
    inequities impacting underrepresented minorities' higher
    education access and completion.
        (3) Providing incentives to all 4-year institutions of
    higher education in this State to enroll underrepresented
    and historically underserved student groups, including
    students who are Black, Latinx, or from low-income
    families, in proportion to the diversity of this State's
    population.
        (4) Allowing ongoing monitoring and continuous
    improvement of the public university funding models by
    requiring transparency and accountability in how State
    appropriations are expended and identifying a mechanism to
    study and review the implementation of any funding model
    developed and the long-term implications of this Act.
        (5) Creating guidelines for how funding is distributed
    during times of significant economic hardship, as defined
    by the Commission, so that public institutions of higher
    education are able to adequately, equitably, and stably
    serve students.
        (6) Ensuring that this State adequately and stably
    funds public institutions of higher education that serve
    underrepresented and historically underserved student
    groups, including students who are Black, Latinx, or from
    low-income families, and graduate and professional
    students, including doctors, dentists, pharmacists, and
    veterinarians.
        (7) Supporting the diverse individual mission of each
    public university, including its commitment to research
    and health care enterprises that serve and enhance the
    well-being of the residents of this State.
        (8) Fostering the economic activity and innovation
    generated by a university's activities, while recognizing
    the impact historic funding inequities may have had on the
    university's activities.
        (9) Taking into consideration the percentage of
    institutional aid provided from an institution's annual
    budget.
        (10) Taking into consideration the number of
    undergraduate students engaged in research at each
    university.
        (11) Supporting institutional efforts to recruit and
    retain world-class faculty and university leaders.
        (12) Ensuring stable and adequate funding for all
    institutions and that all universities are held harmless
    to their current funding level. The Commission may
    consider and report approaches to and the impact of a hold
    harmless funding provision for institutions of higher
    education as part of its final recommendations.
        (13) Taking into consideration the long-term
    implications and outcomes of the funding systems.
    The recommendations must fulfill the principles
established by the Board of Higher Education's Strategic Plan.
The recommendations may also be informed by the data-driven
findings and recommendations established by the Chicago State
University Equity Working Group and other groups researching
equity in higher education and higher education funding and be
aligned to this State's postsecondary attainment goal and
related equity targets.
 
    Section 25. Compliance. Notwithstanding any other law or
provision to the contrary, all public institutions of higher
education and State agencies regulating public institutions of
higher education shall furnish such data and information to
the Commission as the Commission deems necessary to fulfill
the requirements of this Act.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.

Effective Date: 8/23/2021