ALLIANCE LEGISLATIVE REPORT (100-10)
COMMITTEES CONTINUE TO MEET
The bulk of the action of the General Assembly this week took place in committees. Hundreds of the over 6,000 bills introduced were slated to be heard in the 87 committees established for that purpose. Both the House of Representatives and the Senate are working towards voting bills out of committee to be taken up in floor action by each respective chamber. Committee work will be the focus of the House and the Senate until they reach committee deadlines: March 17th for the Senate and March 31st for the House.
No action was taken on a budget this week, however there were contentious discussions in Senate committees as the Senate Democrats called department and agency directors to the Capitol to testify on what cuts they would propose to their agencies to help balance the budget. As the week went on, it became clear that agency heads would not be offering up any budget cuts even though
Governor Bruce Rauner has repeatedly made that request. These discussions did not move the State of Illinois closer to adopting a budget, but a political message was surely sent.
BILL ACTION FROM THIS WEEK
The following bills were approved by a committee and were sent to the chamber floor for further consideration:
HB 213 (Ford, D-Chicago) as amended, provides that any moneys transferred from the State Lottery fund to the Common School Fund shall be supplemental to any other money due to be transferred.
HB 1772 (Parkhurst, R-Kankakee) requires that fingerprinting equipment and software meet specifications required by the Department of State Police.
HB 2442 (Bennett, R-Pontiac) requires that student assessments for application or admissions to colleges administered by the State Board of Education (ISBE) be given on a school day during regular attendance hours.
HB 2977 (Welch, D-Westchester) requires schools to include a unit of instruction for writing cursive.
HB 2462 (Moeller, D-Elgin) prohibits employers from screening job applicants based on wage and salary history and prohibits an employer from seeking the salary and benefits of a job applicant from any current or former employer.
HB 2540 (Willis, D-Addison) provides an appeals process through intermediate service centers for a school district that loses a petition to withdraw from its special education joint agreement program through a vote of the remaining member districts.
HB 2585 (DeLuca, D-Chicago Heights) provides that if there is no newspaper which is published in the unit of local government or school district, notice may also be published in newspaper published in an adjacent county to the unit or school district.
HB 2612 (Pritchard, R-Hinkley) provides greater flexibility and efficiency in the detachment and dissolution of school districts, including creation of a local hearing panel and a process for petitioning for boundary changes.
HB 2721 (Conroy, D-Villa Park) requires school district policies to provide coverage for treatment of pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiactric syndrome including intravenous immunoglobulin therapy.
HB 2740 (Welch), beginning January 1, 2018, requires the community college board to establish alternative methods of credentialing for issuance of high school equivalency certification, based on high school credit, post-secondary credit, foreign diplomas, and completion of a competency-based program.
HB 2749 (Guzzardi, D-Chicago), under the minimum wage law, provides that overtime requirements do not apply to an employee as an executive, administrator, or professional but compensated at a salary greater than $47,476 per year (rather than an amount specified by a federal regulation).
HB 2794 (Ford) requires school boards to notify 11th & 12th grade students of dual enrollment and dual credit opportunities at public community colleges for qualified students.
HB 2802 (Mah, D-Chicago) requires employers of over 20 employees to offer a transportation benefit program: either a federal program allowing employees to exclude from taxable wages the employees commuting costs or a program where the employer provides a transit pass or reimburses the employee for parking payments.
HB 2861 (Arroyo, D-Chicago) makes it unlawful for any person to sell, offer for sale or deliver an energy drink to a person under 18 years.
HB 2957 (Fine, D-Glenview) requires school district policies to include synchronization of prescription drug refills on at least one occasion per insured, per year.
HB 2966 (Andrade, D-Chicago), under the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF), changes references to "salary" to "reported earnings" regarding additional contributions from the local government and makes the change retroactive to January 1, 2012.
HB 3006 (Riley, D-Hazel Crest), under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), requires school districts (and other local governments) with an operating budget over $1 Million and a website maintained by a full-time staff to post the following information including a hyperlink on the homepage to the following: a mechanism for the public to electronically communicate with elected official of the school district; meeting notices, agendas & minutes; annual budget; copy of the current tax levy; copy of conduct ordinances; building permit and zoning variance procedures; hyperlink to the ISBE website; brief statement of the district's annual budget, statement of affairs and annual report on all contracts over $25,000; copy of the most recent annual statement of receipts and disbursements; hyperlink to the lobbyist information search section of the Secretary of State's website; policies and rules governing the award of all bids and contracts for purchase over $25,000; and hyperlinks to other pertinent state statutes.
HB 3070 (Martwick, D-Chicago), under IMRF, requires participants to notify and provide payment for purchase of certain types of service credit prior to termination of employment.
HB 3260 (Harris, D. R-Arlington Heights) requires school districts to adopt a policy regarding placement of students of the same grade, from the same family on a case-by-case basis and that the school shall involve teachers and parents in the determination.
HB 3326 (Ives, R-Wheaton), under the Open Meetings Act (OMA), requires public bodies to permit the public the opportunity to address public officials with comments or questions, subject to reasonable constraints and further requires the public body to provide the answers to the questions posed at the meeting within 45 days. Violation of this provision results in a $2500 - $5000 fine and attorney's fees against the public body for each violation.
HB 3378 (Lang, D-Skokie), regarding a school board member's interest in district contracts, reconciles the definitions in the School Code with those in the Local Government Act.
HB 3385 (Ives), under FOIA, requires each public body to designate one or more public officials or employees of the public body to act as Freedom of Information officer or officers.
HB 3626 (Andersson, R-Geneva), under OMA, disallows a public body from limiting the number of times a person may address the public body within a given number of days.
HB 3684 (Burke, K. D-Oak Lawn) changes the certification requirements for food handling certified food service sanitation managers and food service sanitation manager instructors beginning January 1, 2018.
HB 3745 (Conyears-Ervin, D-Chicago) requires schools to post, in English and Spanish, information regarding local community after-school programs at each campus in a high-traffic public area widely used by students.
SB 195 (Stadelman, D-Rockford) changes the Teachers' Retirement System (TRS) federal funds rate from the unfunded liability rate to the normal cost rate for school staff paid with federal program dollars.
SB 981 (Biss, D-Skokie) prohibits employers from screening job applicants based on wage and salary history and prohibits an employer from seeking the salary and benefits of a job applicant from any current or former employer.
SB 1428 (Rezin, R-Peru), beginning January 1, 2018, requires the community college board to establish alternative methods of credentialing for issuance of high school equivalency certification, based on high school credit, post-secondary credit, foreign diplomas, and completion of a competency-based program.
SB 1722 (Munoz, D-Chicago) enhances penalties for delivering or manufacturing cannabis, controlled substances, methamphetamine within 500 feet of a school (instead of 1,000 feet).
SB 2028 (Cullerton, T. D-Villa Park) allows schools to be relieved of the alternative plating and registration requirements when using a school bus for school related activities.
SB 2059 (Rose, R-Champaign) provides that when an elementary school district is dissolved, each individual parcel of property of the district must be annexed by the school district closest geographically to that parcel.
BILLS SCHEDULED FOR COMMITTEE NEXT WEEK
The following is a selection of bills of interest that are scheduled to be considered in committees next week. For a full listing of next week's Senate committees, click here. For House committees, click here.
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITEE
Tuesday, March 14, 1:00 p.m., Room 212, State Capitol
SB 445 (Koehler, D-Peoria) would codify the assessment requirements in the federal Every Student Succeeds Act into State law.
SB 1290 (Rezin) extends the bond debt limit for Waltham Community Consolidated School District.
SB 1299 (Connelly, R-Naperville) allows the holder of a master's degree in public administration, who completes an additional six semester hours of internship in school business management and passes the applicable State test to be eligible for a chief school business official endorsement.
SB 1482 (Rose) provides that ISBE may, by rule establish limits on the duration and extent of agreements for the transport of a homeless child to the school district of origin after the homeless child begins living in another school district.
SB 1885 (McConnaughay, R-West Dundee)
provides that there shall be no place of detention or criminal processing established or maintained on the grounds of any school.
SENATE PUBLIC HEALTH COMMITTEE
Tuesday, March 14, 1:00 p.m., Room 400, State Capitol
SB 1846 (Hunter) requires the Department of Public Health to include asthma in the standard school health exam and requires DPH to collect and maintain data.
SB 2038 (Rose) allows epinephrine to be administered with a glass vial, auto-injector, ampule, or pre-filled syringe.
SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE
Tuesday, March 14th 2:00 p.m., Room 409, State Capitol
SB 2047 (Weaver, R-Peoria) provides that in an investigation in which the alleged perpetrator of abuse or neglect is a school employee and the recommendation is to determine the report to be indicated the employee's due process rights shall include the right to a copy of the investigation summary; the right to review the specific allegations which gave rise to the investigation; and the right to an administrator's teleconference.
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
Tuesday, March 14th 2:30 p.m. Room 400, State Capitol
SB 1796 (Hastings, D-Frankfort) creates the Students Online Personal Protection Act. Contains various provisions to safe guard student data.
SB 2018 (Cullerton, T.) requires the school board of a school district to enter into a written contract with a contractor any time the school board shares or provides access to student information, student records, or student-generated content with that contractor.
HOUSE CITIES AND VILLAGES COMMITTEE
Tuesday, March 14th 3:30 p.m. in C-1, Stratton Office Building
HB 2681 (Sente, D-Vernon Hills) provides that a political subdivision may waive the public hearing, evaluation procedure, and selection procedure for the selection of architectural, engineering, or land surveying services in an emergency situation for a project that is expected to cost less than $50,000.
HOUSE JUDICIARY-CRIMINAL COMMITTEE
Tuesday, March 14th 3:30 p.m., Room 118, State Capitol
HB 244 (Flowers, D-Chicago) provides that the increased penalties for possession of cannabis on school property do not apply to students.
SENATE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE
Tuesday, March 14, 4:00 p.m., Room 212, State Capitol
SB 1431 (Sandoval, D-Cicero) disallows any school district or school bus company from operating a school bus manufactured after the effective date of the bill without 3-point seat belts or roof hatch. Also provides that nothing in the provision shall make a school district or company liable for a passenger's failure to properly adjust or fasten the restraint system.
SJR 17 (Harris III, D-Harvey) creates the Task Force on Modes of School Transportation for Elementary and Secondary Education that shall review current State and Federal laws regarding the use of various modes of transportation for students and make recommendations to the ISBE, Governor and General Assembly by December 15, 2017.
HOUSE EDUCATION: LICENSING, ADMINISTRATION & OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE
Tuesday, March 15, 8:00 a.m., Room 115, State Capitol
HB 3786 (Hernandez, D-Cicero) for CPS requires that Local School Councils administer charter schools. Requires that 7th or 8th grade students be appointed to LSC's for junior high attendance centers. Requires CPS to provide $2500 to each LSC for training. Creates an LSC Certification Commission to provide LSC training.
HOUSE ELEMENTARY & SECONDARY EDUCATION: SCHOOL CURRICULUM & POLICIES COMMITTEE
Wednesday, March 15, 10:00 a.m., Room D-1, Stratton Office Building
HB 2714 (Welch) requires every school district to provide a college math competency recognition at graduation to any student who meets certain requirements. Additionally assessments must provide opportunities for students to relearn lost skills with an individualized study plan. Requires schools to allow students receiving a "C" grade or better to allow enrollment in dual credit math courses.
SENATE LABOR COMMITTEE
Wednesday, March 15, 10:30 a.m., Room 212, State Capitol
SB 1721 (Biss) entitles employees up to 12 weeks of family leave within any 24-month period for the purpose child birth, adoption or serious health condition of a family member.
SB 1738 (Lightford, D-Maywood) increases the minimum wage in annual increments until it is $15 per hour in 2021.
SB 1856 (Bivins, R-Dixon), regarding the prevailing wage, allows public bodies to satisfy the notice requirement by posting on its website the hyperlink to the DOL website.
SENATE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Wednesday, March 15, 1:30 p.m., Room 212, State Capitol
SB 1236 (McCann, R-Jacksonville) provides that no public building or other public asset owned or leased by the State or by any political subdivision of the State shall be named in honor of any elected official unless they're retired from public office for 10 years or are deceased for at least 5 years.
SB 1263 (Connelly) under OMA, requires public bodies to permit the public the opportunity to address public officials with comments or questions, subject to reasonable constraints and further requires the public body to provide the answers to the questions posed at the meeting within 45 days.
SB 1582 (Connelly) under FOIA, requires each public body to designate one or more public officials or employees of the public body to act as Freedom of Information officer or officers.
SB 1831 (Hastings) under FOIA, allows an official, employee or agent of a public body to file suit against a requester (except the news media) if a request submitted under FOIA is based upon the entity's ability to speak freely, associate freely or otherwise participate in government. Court shall award damages of $5000 for each offending request in addition to attorney's fees.
SB 2064 (Righter, R- Mattoon) provides that all units of local government, by a majority vote of the governing body, exempt themselves from specified mandates that are unfunded if it is determined that it is not economically feasible to comply. The public body must hold a public hearing, publish notice of the hearing and notify the Governor and General Assembly and applicable agency of discharge of the mandate within 10 days of passage.
SB 2089 (Harmon, D-Oak Park) allows tax-exempt organizations to establish political action committees for the purposes of receiving contributions and making expenditures to support or oppose candidates or questions of public policy.
SJRCA 1 (Harmon) allows for graduated income tax.
SJRCA 10 (Althoff, R-McHenry) requires the State to reimburse units of local government for increased expenses resulting from activities mandated by the General Assembly or State executive action. Makes unfunded mandates unenforceable unless passed by 3/4ths vote.
HOUSE STATE GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE
Wednesday, March 15, 2:00 p.m., Room 122B, State Capitol
HB 3660 (Severin, R-Marion) requires a school board to publish a notice that the district's annual statement of affairs is available on the State Board of Education's Internet website and in the district's main administrative office, instead of requiring a summary of the statement of affairs to be published.
HB 3829 (Crespo) clarifies that meetings formed under the education reform bill of 2011 (SB 7) are excluded from the Open Meetings Act as are any negotiating team strategy sessions on collective bargaining.
SENATE REVENUE COMMITTEE
Wednesday, March 15, 3:00 p.m., Room 212, State Capitol
SB 1245 (Althoff) provides that taxing districts shall be notified by the plaintiff when a change in assessed value of $100,000 is sought and shall have the right to intervene.
SB 1385 (Weaver) provides that abatement for urban decay properties applies to newly remodeled as well as newly constructed dwellings.
SB 1765 (Weaver) applies the erroneous homestead exemption violators act to all counties, now only applies to Cook County.
