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Public Act 102-0374
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| SB2116 Enrolled | LRB102 11674 KMF 17008 b |
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AN ACT concerning criminal law.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Re-Entering Citizens Civics Education Act |
is amended by changing Sections 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, and 35 |
and by adding Section 21 as follows:
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(730 ILCS 200/5)
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Sec. 5. Definitions. In this Act: |
"Co-facilitators" means a committed person at the |
Department of Juvenile Justice who is specifically trained in |
voting rights education, who shall assist in conducting voting |
and civics education workshops for committed persons at the |
Department of Juvenile Justice who are scheduled for discharge |
within 12 months. |
"Committed person" means a person committed and confined |
to and in the physical custody of the Department of |
Corrections or the Department of Juvenile Justice. |
"Commitment" means a judicially determined placement in |
the physical custody of the Department of Corrections or the |
Department of Juvenile Justice on the basis of conviction or |
delinquency. |
"Correctional institution or facility" means a Department |
of Corrections or Department of Juvenile Justice building or |
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part of a Department of Corrections or Department of Juvenile |
Justice building where committed persons are detained in a |
secure manner.
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"Department" includes the Department of Corrections and |
the Department of Juvenile Justice, unless the text solely |
specifies a particular Department. |
"Detainee" means a committed person in the physical |
custody of the Department of Corrections or the Department of |
Juvenile Justice. |
"Director" includes the Directors Director of the |
Department of Corrections and the Department of Juvenile |
Justice unless the text solely specifies a particular |
Director. |
"Discharge" means the end of a sentence or the final |
termination of a committed person's detainee's physical |
commitment to and confinement in the Department of |
Corrections. Discharge means the end of a sentence or the |
final termination of a committed person's physical commitment |
to and confinement in the or Department of Juvenile Justice. |
"Peer educator" means an incarcerated citizen at the |
Department of Corrections who is specifically trained in |
voting rights education, who shall conduct voting and civics |
education workshops for committed persons at the Department of |
Corrections who are detainees scheduled for discharge within |
12 months. |
"Program" means the nonpartisan peer education and |
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information instruction established by this Act. |
"Re-entering citizen" means any United States citizen who |
is: 17 years of age or older; in the physical custody of the |
Department of Corrections or Department of Juvenile Justice; |
and scheduled to be re-entering society within 12 months.
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(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20; revised 8-19-20.)
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(730 ILCS 200/10)
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Sec. 10. Purpose; program.
The Department of Corrections |
and the Department of Juvenile Justice shall provide a |
nonpartisan peer-led civics program throughout the |
correctional institutions of this State to teach civics to |
soon-to-be released citizens who will be re-entering society. |
The goal of the program is to promote the successful |
integration of re-entering citizens, promote democracy, and |
reduce rates of recidivism within this State. For young people |
in particular, the study of civics helps people acquire and |
learn to use the skills, knowledge, and attitudes that will |
prepare them to be engaged citizens throughout their lives. |
This program shall coincide with and enhance existing laws to |
ensure that re-entering citizens understand their civic |
responsibility and know how to secure or, if applicable, |
regain their right to vote as part of the exit process.
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(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
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(730 ILCS 200/15)
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Sec. 15. Curriculum and eligibility. The civics peer |
education program shall consist of a rigorous curriculum, and |
participants shall be instructed on subjects including, but |
not limited to, voting rights, governmental institutions, |
current affairs, and simulations of voter registration, |
election, and democratic processes. Each workshop held at the |
Department of Corrections shall consist of 3 sessions that are |
90 minutes each and that do not need to be taken consecutively. |
The workshops held at the Department of Juvenile Justice shall |
consist of 270 minutes of instruction. The Department of |
Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice The |
Department must offer re-entering citizens scheduled to be |
discharged within 12 months with the civics peer education |
program, and each re-entering citizen must enroll in the |
program one to 12 months prior to his or her expected date of |
release. This workshop must be included in the standard exit |
process. The Department of Corrections and the Department of |
Juvenile Justice The Department should aim to include this
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workshop in conjunction with other pre-release procedures and |
movements. Delays in a workshop being provided shall not cause |
delays in discharge. Committed persons Detainees may not be |
prevented from attending workshops due to staffing shortages, |
lockdowns, or to conflicts with family or legal visits, court |
dates, medical appointments, commissary visits, recreational |
sessions, dining, work, class, or bathing schedules. In case |
of conflict or staffing shortages, re-entering citizens must |
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be given full opportunity to attend a workshop at a later time.
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(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
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(730 ILCS 200/20)
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Sec. 20. Peer educator training. The civics peer |
education program shall be taught by peer educators who are |
citizens incarcerated in Department of Corrections and |
Department of Juvenile Justice facilities and specially |
trained by experienced peer educators and established |
nonpartisan civic organizations. Established nonpartisan civic
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organizations may be assisted by area political science or |
civics educators at colleges,
universities, and high schools |
and by nonpartisan organizations providing re-entry services. |
The nonpartisan civic organizations shall provide adequate |
training to peer educators on matters including, but not |
limited to, voting rights, governmental institutions, current |
affairs, and simulations of voter registration, election, and |
democratic processes, and shall provide periodic updates to |
program content and to peer educators.
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(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
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(730 ILCS 200/21 new) |
Sec. 21. Co-facilitator training. The civics education |
program in the Department of Juvenile Justice shall be taught |
using 2 co-facilitators. One of the co-facilitators shall be a |
member of an established nonpartisan civic organization and |
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the other co-facilitator shall be a committed person at the |
Department of Juvenile Justice who is specifically trained in |
voting rights education and who has been trained by an |
established nonpartisan civic organization. The organization |
providing training may be assisted by area political science |
or civics educators at colleges, universities, and high |
schools and by nonpartisan organizations providing re-entry |
services. The nonpartisan civic organizations shall provide |
adequate training to both co-facilitators on the civics and |
voting rights curriculum.
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(730 ILCS 200/25)
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Sec. 25. Voter and civic education program; content. |
(a) Program content shall provide the following: |
(1) nonpartisan information on voting history |
procedures; |
(2) nonpartisan definitions of local, State, and |
federal governmental
institutions and offices; and |
(3) examples and simulations of registration and |
voting processes, and access to voter registration and |
voting processes for those individuals who are eligible to |
vote. |
(b) Established nonpartisan civic organizations shall |
provide periodic updates to program content and, if |
applicable, peer educators and co-facilitators. Updates shall |
reflect major relevant changes to election laws and processes |
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in Illinois. |
(c) Program content shall be delivered in the following |
manners: |
(1) verbally via peer educators and co-facilitators; |
(2) broadcasts via Department of Corrections and |
Department of Juvenile Justice internal television |
channels; or |
(3) printed information packets. |
(d) Peer educators and co-facilitators shall disseminate |
printed information for voting in the releasee's county, |
including, but not limited to, election authorities' |
addresses, all applicable Internet websites, and public |
contact information for all election authorities. This |
information shall be compiled into a civics handbook. The |
handbook shall also include key information condensed into a |
pocket information card. |
(e) This information shall also be compiled electronically |
and posted on Department of Corrections' and Department of |
Juvenile Justice's website along with the Department of |
Corrections' Community Support Advisory Councils websites. |
(f) Department Directors shall ensure that the wardens or |
superintendents of all correctional institutions and |
facilities visibly post this information on all common areas |
of their respective institutions, and shall broadcast the same |
via in-house institutional information television channels. |
Directors shall ensure that updated information is distributed |
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in a timely, visible, and accessible manner. |
(g) The Director of Corrections shall order, in a clearly |
visible area of each parole office within this State, the |
posting of a notice stipulating voter eligibility and that |
contains the current Internet website address and voter |
registration information provided by State Board of Elections |
regarding voting rights for citizens released from the |
physical custody of the Department of Corrections and the |
Department of Juvenile Justice. |
(h) All program content and materials shall be distributed |
annually to the Community Support Advisory Councils of the |
Department of Corrections for use in re-entry programs across |
this State.
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(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
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(730 ILCS 200/30)
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Sec. 30. Power of the Departments Department. The |
Department of Corrections and the Department of Juvenile |
Justice shall adopt rules to carry out this Act within 6 months |
after the effective date of this Act.
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(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
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(730 ILCS 200/35)
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Sec. 35. Funding. The funding for the voting rights and |
registration peer education program shall be subject to |
appropriation by the General Assembly. The Department of |