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1 | AN ACT regarding schools.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | |||||||||||||||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing
Section | |||||||||||||||||||
5 | 2-3.25g as follows:
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6 | (105 ILCS 5/2-3.25g) (from Ch. 122, par. 2-3.25g)
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7 | Sec. 2-3.25g. Waiver or modification of mandates within the | |||||||||||||||||||
8 | School
Code and administrative rules and regulations. | |||||||||||||||||||
9 | Notwithstanding any other
provisions of this School Code or any | |||||||||||||||||||
10 | other law of this State to the
contrary, school districts may | |||||||||||||||||||
11 | petition the State Board of Education for the
waiver or | |||||||||||||||||||
12 | modification of the mandates of this School Code or of the
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13 | administrative rules and regulations promulgated by the State | |||||||||||||||||||
14 | Board of
Education. Waivers or modifications of administrative | |||||||||||||||||||
15 | rules and regulations
and modifications of mandates of this | |||||||||||||||||||
16 | School Code may be requested when a
school district | |||||||||||||||||||
17 | demonstrates that it can address the intent of the rule or
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18 | mandate in a more effective, efficient, or economical manner or | |||||||||||||||||||
19 | when necessary
to stimulate innovation or improve student | |||||||||||||||||||
20 | performance. Waivers of
mandates of
the School Code may be | |||||||||||||||||||
21 | requested when the waivers are necessary to stimulate
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22 | innovation or improve student performance. Waivers may not be | |||||||||||||||||||
23 | requested
from laws, rules, and regulations pertaining to | |||||||||||||||||||
24 | student health and safety, special education, teacher
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25 | certification, or teacher tenure and seniority or from | |||||||||||||||||||
26 | compliance with the No
Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Public | |||||||||||||||||||
27 | Law 107-110).
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28 | School districts, as a matter of inherent managerial | |||||||||||||||||||
29 | policy, and any
Independent Authority established under | |||||||||||||||||||
30 | Section 2-3.25f may submit an
application for a waiver or | |||||||||||||||||||
31 | modification authorized under this Section. Each
application | |||||||||||||||||||
32 | must include a written request by the school district or
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1 | Independent Authority and must demonstrate that the intent of | ||||||
2 | the mandate can
be addressed in a more effective, efficient, or | ||||||
3 | economical manner
or be based
upon a specific plan for improved | ||||||
4 | student performance and school improvement.
Any district | ||||||
5 | requesting a waiver or modification for the reason that intent
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6 | of the mandate can be addressed in a more economical manner | ||||||
7 | shall include in
the application a fiscal analysis showing | ||||||
8 | current expenditures on the mandate
and projected savings | ||||||
9 | resulting from the waiver
or modification. Applications
and | ||||||
10 | plans developed by school districts must be approved by each | ||||||
11 | board of
education following a public hearing on the | ||||||
12 | application and plan and the
opportunity for the board to hear | ||||||
13 | testimony from educators directly involved in
its | ||||||
14 | implementation, parents, and students.
Such public hearing | ||||||
15 | shall be held on a day other than the day on which a
regular | ||||||
16 | meeting of the board is held. The
public hearing must be | ||||||
17 | preceded
by at least one published notice occurring at least 7 | ||||||
18 | days prior to the hearing
in a newspaper of general circulation | ||||||
19 | within the school district that sets
forth the time, date, | ||||||
20 | place, and general subject matter of the hearing. The
school | ||||||
21 | district must notify in writing the affected exclusive | ||||||
22 | collective
bargaining agent and those State legislators | ||||||
23 | representing the district
holding the public hearing of the | ||||||
24 | district's intent to seek approval of a
waiver or
modification | ||||||
25 | and of the hearing to be held to take testimony from educators.
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26 | The affected exclusive collective bargaining agents shall be | ||||||
27 | notified of such
public hearing at least 7 days prior to the | ||||||
28 | date of the hearing and shall be
allowed to attend
such public | ||||||
29 | hearing. The district shall attest to compliance with all of
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30 | the notification and procedural requirements set forth in this | ||||||
31 | Section.
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32 | A request for a waiver or modification of administrative | ||||||
33 | rules and
regulations or for a modification of mandates | ||||||
34 | contained in this School Code
shall be submitted to the State | ||||||
35 | Board of Education within 15 days after
approval by the board | ||||||
36 | of education. The application as submitted to the
State Board |
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1 | of Education shall include a description of the public hearing.
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2 | Following receipt of the request, the
State Board shall have 45 | ||||||
3 | days to review the application and request. If the
State Board | ||||||
4 | fails to disapprove the application within that 45 day period, | ||||||
5 | the
waiver or modification shall be deemed granted. The State | ||||||
6 | Board
may disapprove
any request if it is not based upon sound | ||||||
7 | educational practices, endangers the
health or safety of | ||||||
8 | students or staff, compromises equal opportunities for
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9 | learning, or fails to demonstrate that the intent of the rule | ||||||
10 | or mandate can be
addressed in a more effective, efficient, or | ||||||
11 | economical manner or have improved
student performance as a | ||||||
12 | primary goal. Any request disapproved by the State
Board may be | ||||||
13 | appealed to the General Assembly by the requesting school | ||||||
14 | district
as outlined in this Section.
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15 | A request for a waiver from mandates contained in this | ||||||
16 | School Code shall be
submitted to the State Board within 15 | ||||||
17 | days after approval by the board of
education.
The application | ||||||
18 | as submitted to the State Board of Education
shall include a | ||||||
19 | description of the public hearing. The description shall
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20 | include, but need not be limited to, the means of notice, the | ||||||
21 | number of people
in attendance, the number of people who spoke | ||||||
22 | as proponents or opponents of the
waiver, a brief description | ||||||
23 | of their comments, and whether there were any
written | ||||||
24 | statements submitted.
The State Board shall review the | ||||||
25 | applications and requests for
completeness and shall compile | ||||||
26 | the requests in reports to be filed with the
General Assembly.
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27 | The State Board shall file
reports outlining the waivers
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28 | requested by school districts and appeals by school districts | ||||||
29 | of requests
disapproved by the State Board with the Senate and | ||||||
30 | the House of
Representatives before each May 1 and
October
1. | ||||||
31 | The General Assembly may disapprove the report of the State | ||||||
32 | Board in whole
or in part within 30 calendar days after each | ||||||
33 | house of the General Assembly
next
convenes after the report is | ||||||
34 | filed by adoption of a resolution by a record vote
of the | ||||||
35 | majority of members elected in each house. If the General | ||||||
36 | Assembly
fails to disapprove any waiver request or appealed |
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1 | request within such 30
day period, the waiver or modification | ||||||
2 | shall be deemed granted. Any resolution
adopted by the General | ||||||
3 | Assembly disapproving a report of the State Board in
whole or | ||||||
4 | in part shall be binding on the State Board.
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5 | An approved waiver or modification may remain in effect for | ||||||
6 | a period not to
exceed 5 school years and may be renewed upon | ||||||
7 | application by the
school
district. However, such waiver or | ||||||
8 | modification may be changed within that
5-year period by a | ||||||
9 | local school district board following the procedure as set
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10 | forth in this Section for the initial waiver or modification | ||||||
11 | request. If
neither the State Board of Education nor the | ||||||
12 | General Assembly disapproves, the
change is deemed granted.
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13 | On or before February 1, 1998, and each year thereafter, | ||||||
14 | the State Board of
Education shall submit a cumulative report | ||||||
15 | summarizing all types of waiver
mandates and modifications of | ||||||
16 | mandates granted by the State Board or the
General Assembly. | ||||||
17 | The report shall identify the topic of the waiver along with
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18 | the number and percentage of school districts for which the | ||||||
19 | waiver has been
granted. The report shall also include any | ||||||
20 | recommendations from the State
Board regarding the repeal or | ||||||
21 | modification of waived mandates.
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22 | (Source: P.A. 93-470, eff. 8-8-03; 93-557, eff. 8-20-03; | ||||||
23 | revised 9-11-03.)
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