Public Act 097-0625
 
SB0170 Re-EnrolledLRB097 04012 JDS 44051 b


  
    AN ACT concerning government.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  
 
    Section 5. The Disabled Persons Rehabilitation Act is 
amended  by changing Sections 10 and 13 as follows:
 



    (20 ILCS 2405/10)  (from Ch. 23, par. 3441)



    Sec. 10. Residential schools; visual and hearing 
handicaps. 

    (a) The Department of Human Services shall operate

residential schools for the education of children with visual 
and hearing
handicaps who are unable to take advantage of the 
regular educational
facilities provided in the community, and 
shall provide in connection
therewith such academic, 
vocational, and related services as may be
required. Children 
shall be eligible for admission to these schools only
after 
proper diagnosis and evaluation, in accordance with procedures

prescribed by the Department.

    (a-5) The Superintendent of the Illinois School for the 
Deaf shall be the chief executive officer of, and shall be 
responsible for the day to day operations of, the School, and 
shall obtain educational and professional employees who are 
certified by the Illinois State Board of Education or licensed 
by the appropriate agency or entity to which licensing 
authority has been delegated, as well as all other employees of 
the School, subject to the provisions of the Personnel Code and 
any applicable collective bargaining agreement.  The 
Superintendent shall be appointed by the Governor, by and with 
the advice and consent of the Senate. In the case of a vacancy 
in the office of Superintendent during the recess of the 
Senate, the Governor shall make a temporary appointment until 
the next meeting of the Senate, when the Governor shall 
nominate some person to fill the office, and any person so 
nominated who is confirmed by the Senate shall hold office 
during the remainder of the term and until his or her successor 
is appointed and qualified.  The Superintendent shall hold 
office (i) for a term expiring on June 30 of 2015, and every 4 
years thereafter and (ii) until the Superintendent's successor 
is appointed and qualified.  The Superintendent shall devote his 
or her full time to the duties of the office, shall not serve 
in any other capacity during his or her term of office, and 
shall receive such compensation as the Governor shall 
determine.  The Superintendent shall have an administrative 
certificate with a superintendent endorsement as provided for 
under Section 21-7.1 of the School Code, and shall have degrees 
in both educational administration and deaf education, 
together with at least 15 years of experience in either deaf 
education, the administration of deaf education, or a 
combination of the 2.
    (a-10) The Superintendent of the Illinois School for the 
Visually Impaired shall be the chief executive officer of, and 
shall be responsible for the day to day operations of, the 
School, and shall obtain educational and professional 
employees who are certified by the Illinois State Board of 
Education or licensed by the appropriate agency or entity to 
which licensing authority has been delegated,  as well as all 
other employees of the School, subject to the provisions of the 
Personnel Code and any applicable collective bargaining 
agreement. The Superintendent shall be appointed by the 
Governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. In 
the case of a vacancy in the office of Superintendent during 
the recess of the Senate, the Governor shall make a temporary 
appointment until the next meeting of the Senate, when the 
Governor shall nominate some person to fill the office, and any 
person so nominated who is confirmed by the Senate shall hold 
office during the remainder of the term and until his or her 
successor is appointed and qualified.  The Superintendent shall 
hold office (i) for a term expiring on June 30 of 2015, and 
every 4 years thereafter and (ii) until the Superintendent's 
successor is appointed and qualified.  The Superintendent shall 
devote his or her full time to the duties of the office, shall 
not serve in any other capacity during his or her term of 
office, and shall receive such compensation as the Governor 
shall determine.  The Superintendent shall have an 
administrative certificate with a superintendent endorsement 
as provided for under Section 21-7.1 of the School Code, and 
shall have degrees in both educational administration and blind 
or visually impaired education, together with at least 15 years 
of experience in either blind or visually impaired education, 
the administration of blind or visually impaired education, or 
a combination of the 2. 
    (b) In administering the Illinois School for the Deaf, the 
Department
shall adopt an admission policy which permits day or 
residential
enrollment, when resources are sufficient, of 
children with hearing
handicaps who are able to take advantage 
of the regular educational
facilities provided in the community 
and thus unqualified for admission
under subsection (a).  In 
doing so, the Department shall establish an
annual deadline by 
which shall be completed the enrollment of children
qualified 
under subsection (a) for admission to the Illinois School for 
the
Deaf.  After the deadline, the Illinois School for the Deaf 
may enroll
other children with hearing handicaps at the request 
of their parents or
guardians if the Department determines 
there are sufficient resources to
meet their needs as well as 
the needs of children enrolled before the
deadline and children 
qualified under subsection (a) who may be enrolled
after the 
deadline on an emergency basis.  The Department shall adopt any

rules and regulations necessary for the implementation of this 
subsection.

    (c) In administering the Illinois School for the Visually 
Impaired, the
Department shall adopt an admission policy that 
permits day or residential
enrollment, when resources are 
sufficient, of children with visual
handicaps who are able to 
take advantage of the regular educational
facilities provided 
in the community and thus unqualified for admission
under 
subsection (a).  In doing so, the Department shall establish an

annual deadline by which the enrollment of children qualified 
under subsection
(a) for admission to the Illinois School for 
the Visually Impaired shall be
completed.  After the deadline, 
the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired
may enroll other 
children with visual handicaps at the request of their parents

or guardians if the Department determines there are sufficient 
resources to
meet their needs as well as the needs of children 
enrolled before the deadline
and children qualified under 
subsection (a) who may be enrolled after the
deadline on an 
emergency basis.  The Department shall adopt any rules and

regulations necessary for the implementation of this 
subsection.

(Source: P.A. 89-264, eff. 8-10-95; 89-507, eff. 7-1-97.)

 
    (20 ILCS 2405/13)  (from Ch. 23, par. 3444)

    Sec. 13. The Department shall have all powers reasonable 
and necessary
for the administration of institutions for 
persons with one or more
disabilities under subsection (f) of 
Section 3 of this Act, including, but
not limited to, the 
authority to do the following:


    (a) Appoint and remove the superintendents of the

institutions operated by the Department, except for those 
superintendents whose appointment and removal is provided for 
under Section 10 of this Act; obtain all other employees

subject to the provisions of the Personnel Code, except for 
educational and professional employees of the Illinois School 
for the Deaf and the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired 
who are certified by the Illinois State Board of Education or 
licensed by the appropriate agency or entity to which licensing 
authority has been delegated, and all other employees of the 
Schools who are obtained by the superintendents as provided 
under Section 10 of this Act, subject to the provisions of the 
Personnel Code and any applicable collective bargaining 
agreement; and conduct
staff training programs for the 
development and improvement of services.


    (b) Provide supervision, housing accommodations, board or 
the
payment of boarding costs, tuition, and treatment free of 
charge, except
as otherwise specified in this Act, for 
residents of this State who are
cared for in any institution, 
or for persons receiving services under
any program under the 
jurisdiction of the Department. Residents of other
states may 
be admitted upon payment of the costs of board, tuition, and

treatment as determined by the Department; provided, that no 
resident of
another state shall be received or retained to the 
exclusion of any
resident of this State. The Department shall 
accept any donation for the
board, tuition, and treatment of 
any person receiving service or care.


    (c) Cooperate with the State Board of Education and the 
Department of
Children and Family Services in a program to 
provide for the placement,
supervision, and foster care of 
children with handicaps who must leave their
home community in 
order to attend schools offering programs in special
education.


    (d) Assess and collect (i) student activity fees and (ii) 
charges to
school districts for transportation of students 
required under the School Code
and provided by the Department.  
The Department shall direct the expenditure of
all money that 
has been or may be received by any officer of the several State

institutions under the direction and supervision of the 
Department as profit on
sales from commissary stores, student 
activity fees, or charges for student
transportation.  The money 
shall be deposited into a locally held fund and
expended under 
the direction of the Department for the special comfort,

pleasure, and amusement of residents and employees and the 
transportation of
residents, provided that amounts expended 
for comfort, pleasure, and amusement
of employees shall not 
exceed the amount of profits derived from sales made to

employees by the commissaries, as determined by the Department.


    Funds deposited with State institutions under the 
direction and supervision
of the Department by or for residents 
of those State institutions shall be
deposited into 
interest-bearing accounts, and money received as interest and

income on those funds shall be deposited into a "needy student 
fund" to be held
and administered by the institution.  Money in 
the "needy student
fund" shall be expended for the special 
comfort, pleasure, and amusement of the
residents of the 
particular institution where the money is paid or received.


    Any money belonging to residents separated by death, 
discharge, or
unauthorized absence from institutions described 
under this Section, in
custody of officers of the institutions, 
may, if unclaimed by the resident or
the legal representatives 
of the resident for a period of 2 years, be expended
at the 
direction of the Department for the purposes and in the manner

specified in this subsection (d). Articles of personal 
property, with the
exception of clothing left in the custody of 
those officers, shall, if
unclaimed for the period of 2 years, 
be sold and the money disposed of in the
same manner.


    Clothing left at the institution by residents at the time 
of
separation may be used as determined by the institution if 
unclaimed by
the resident or legal representatives of the 
resident within 30
days after notification.


    (e) Keep, for each institution under the jurisdiction of 
the
Department, a register of the number of officers, 
employees, and
residents present each day in the year, in a 
form that will
permit a calculation of the average number 
present each month.


    (f) (Blank).


    (g) (Blank).


    (h) (Blank).


    (i) Accept and hold in behalf of the State, if for the 
public interest, a
grant, gift, or legacy of money or property 
to the State of Illinois, to the
Department, or to any 
institution or program of the Department made in trust
for the 
maintenance or support of a resident of an institution of the

Department, or for any other legitimate purpose connected with 
any such
institution or program. The Department shall cause 
each gift, grant, or legacy
to be kept as a distinct fund, and 
shall invest the gift, grant, or legacy in
the manner provided 
by the laws of this State as those laws now exist or shall

hereafter be enacted relating to securities in which the 
deposits in savings
banks may be invested. The Department may, 
however, in its discretion, deposit
in a proper trust company 
or savings bank, during the continuance of the trust,
any fund 
so left in trust for the life of a person and shall adopt rules

and regulations governing the deposit, transfer, or withdrawal 
of the
fund. The Department shall, on the expiration of any 
trust as provided in
any instrument creating the trust, dispose 
of the fund thereby
created in the manner provided in the 
instrument. The Department shall include
in its required 
reports a statement showing what funds are so held by it
and 
the condition of the funds.  Monies found on residents at
the 
time of their admission, or accruing to them during their 
period of
institutional care, and monies deposited with the 
superintendents by
relatives, guardians, or friends of 
residents for the special comfort
and pleasure of a resident, 
shall remain in the possession of the
superintendents, who 
shall act as trustees for disbursement to, in behalf
of, or for 
the benefit of the resident. All types of retirement and

pension benefits from private and public sources may be paid 
directly to
the superintendent of the institution where the 
person is a resident,
for deposit to the resident's trust fund 
account.


    (j) Appoint, subject to the Personnel Code, persons to be

members of a police and security force. Members of the police 
and
security force shall be peace officers and as such have all 
powers
possessed by policemen in cities and sheriffs, including 
the power to
make arrests on view or warrants of violations of 
State statutes or city
or county ordinances. These powers may, 
however, be exercised only in
counties of more than 500,000 
population when required for the
protection of Department 
properties, interests, and personnel, or
specifically 
requested by appropriate State or local law enforcement

officials. Members of the police and security force may not 
serve and
execute civil processes.


    (k) Maintain, and deposit receipts from the sale of tickets 
to
athletic, musical, and other events, fees for participation 
in school sponsored tournaments and events, and
revenue from 
student activities relating to charges for  art and woodworking 
projects,
charges for automobile repairs, and other revenue 
generated from student
projects

into, locally held accounts not 
to exceed
$20,000 per account for the purposes of (i) providing 
immediate payment to
officials, judges, and athletic referees 
for their services rendered and for
other related expenses at 
school
sponsored contests, tournaments, or events, (ii)

providing payment for expenses related to student revenue 
producing
activities such as art and woodworking projects, 
automotive repair work, and
other student activities or 
projects that generate revenue and incur expenses,
and (iii)

providing students who are enrolled in an
independent living 
program with cash so that they may fulfill course
objectives by 
purchasing commodities and other required supplies.


    (l) Advance moneys from its appropriations to be maintained 
in locally
held
accounts at the
schools to establish (i) a 
"Student Compensation Account" to pay students for
work 
performed under the student work program, and (ii) a "Student 
Activity Travel
Account" to pay transportation, meals, and 
lodging costs of students, coaches,
and activity sponsors while 
traveling off campus for sporting events, lessons,
and other 
activities directly associated with the representation of the 
school.  Funds in the "Student Compensation Account" shall not 
exceed $20,000, and funds in the "Student Activity Travel 
Account" shall not exceed $200,000.

    (l-5) Establish a locally held account (referred to as the 
Account) to hold, maintain and administer the 
Therkelsen/Hansen College Loan Fund (referred to as the Fund). 
All cash represented by the Fund shall be transferred from the 
State Treasury to the Account. The Department shall promulgate 
rules regarding the maintenance and use of the Fund and all 
interest earned thereon; the eligibility of potential 
borrowers from the Fund; and the awarding and repayment of 
loans from the Fund; and other rules as applicable regarding 
the Fund. The administration of the Fund and the promulgation 
of rules regarding the Fund shall be consistent with the will 
of Petrea Therkelsen, which establishes the Fund.

    (m) Promulgate rules of conduct applicable to the residents 
of
institutions for persons with one or more disabilities.  The 
rules
shall include specific standards to be used by the 
Department to
determine (i) whether financial restitution 
shall be required in the event
of losses or damages resulting 
from a resident's action and (ii)
the ability of the resident 
and the resident's parents to pay
restitution.



(Source: P.A. 94-887, eff. 6-20-06.)

 

    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.