HB4126 EngrossedLRB102 19189 HLH 27954 b

1    AN ACT concerning revenue.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Invest in Kids Act is amended by changing
5Section 40 as follows:
 
6    (35 ILCS 40/40)
7    (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2025)
8    Sec. 40. Scholarship granting organization
9responsibilities.
10    (a) Before granting a scholarship for an academic year,
11all scholarship granting organizations shall assess and
12document each student's eligibility for the academic year.
13    (b) A scholarship granting organization shall grant
14scholarships only to eligible students.
15    (c) A scholarship granting organization shall allow an
16eligible student to attend any qualified school of the
17student's choosing, subject to the availability of funds.
18    (d) In granting scholarships, beginning in the 2022-2023
19school year and for each school year thereafter, a scholarship
20granting organization shall give priority to eligible students
21who received a scholarship from a scholarship granting
22organization during the previous school year. Second priority
23shall be given to the following priority groups:

 

 

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1        (1) (blank); eligible students who received a
2    scholarship from a scholarship granting organization
3    during the previous school year;
4        (2) eligible students who are members of a household
5    whose previous year's total annual income does not exceed
6    185% of the federal poverty level;
7        (3) eligible students who reside within a focus
8    district; and
9        (4) eligible students who are siblings of students
10    currently receiving a scholarship.
11    (d-5) A scholarship granting organization shall begin
12granting scholarships no later than February 1 preceding the
13school year for which the scholarship is sought. Each The
14priority group groups identified in subsection (d) of this
15Section shall be eligible to receive scholarships on a
16first-come, first-served basis until the April 1 immediately
17preceding the school year for which the scholarship is sought
18starting with the first priority group identified in
19subsection (d) of this Section. Applications for scholarships
20for eligible students meeting the qualifications of one or
21more priority groups that are received before April 1 must be
22either approved or denied within 10 business days after
23receipt. Beginning April 1, all eligible students shall be
24eligible to receive scholarships without regard to the
25priority groups identified in subsection (d) of this Section.
26    (e) Except as provided in subsection (e-5) of this

 

 

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1Section, scholarships shall not exceed the lesser of: (i) the
2statewide average operational expense per student among public
3schools; or (ii) the necessary costs and fees for attendance
4at the qualified school; or (iii) the maximum scholarship
5amount set by the qualified school, if the qualified school
6chooses to set such an amount, which may not exceed the
7necessary costs and fees for attendance at the qualified
8school. The qualified school shall notify the scholarship
9granting organization of its necessary costs and fees as well
10as any maximum scholarship amount set by the school.
11Scholarships shall be prorated as follows:
12        (1) for eligible students whose household income is
13    less than 185% of the federal poverty level, the
14    scholarship shall be 100% of the amount determined
15    pursuant to this subsection (e) and subsection (e-5) of
16    this Section;
17        (2) for eligible students whose household income is
18    185% or more of the federal poverty level but less than
19    250% of the federal poverty level, the average of
20    scholarships shall be 75% of the amount determined
21    pursuant to this subsection (e) and subsection (e-5) of
22    this Section; and
23        (3) for eligible students whose household income is
24    250% or more of the federal poverty level, the average of
25    scholarships shall be 50% of the amount determined
26    pursuant to this subsection (e) and subsection (e-5) of

 

 

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1    this Section.
2    (e-5) The statewide average operational expense per
3student among public schools shall be multiplied by the
4following factors:
5        (1) for students determined eligible to receive
6    services under the federal Individuals with Disabilities
7    Education Act, 2;
8        (2) for students who are English learners, as defined
9    in subsection (d) of Section 14C-2 of the School Code,
10    1.2; and
11        (3) for students who are gifted and talented children,
12    as defined in Section 14A-20 of the School Code, 1.1.
13    (f) A scholarship granting organization shall distribute
14scholarship payments to the participating school where the
15student is enrolled.
16    (g) For the 2018-2019 school year through the 2021-2022
17school year, each scholarship granting organization shall
18expend no less than 75% of the qualified contributions
19received during the calendar year in which the qualified
20contributions were received. No more than 25% of the qualified
21contributions may be carried forward to the following calendar
22year.
23    (h) For the 2022-2023 school year, each scholarship
24granting organization shall expend all qualified contributions
25received during the calendar year in which the qualified
26contributions were received. No qualified contributions may be

 

 

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1carried forward to the following calendar year.
2    (i) A scholarship granting organization shall allow an
3eligible student to transfer a scholarship during a school
4year to any other participating school of the custodian's
5choice. Such scholarships shall be prorated.
6    (j) With the prior approval of the Department, a
7scholarship granting organization may transfer funds to
8another scholarship granting organization if additional funds
9are required to meet scholarship demands at the receiving
10scholarship granting organization. All transferred funds must
11be deposited by the receiving scholarship granting
12organization into its scholarship accounts. All transferred
13amounts received by any scholarship granting organization must
14be separately disclosed to the Department.
15    (k) If the approval of a scholarship granting organization
16is revoked as provided in Section 20 of this Act or the
17scholarship granting organization is dissolved, all remaining
18qualified contributions of the scholarship granting
19organization shall be transferred to another scholarship
20granting organization. All transferred funds must be deposited
21by the receiving scholarship granting organization into its
22scholarship accounts.
23    (l) Scholarship granting organizations shall make
24reasonable efforts to advertise the availability of
25scholarships to eligible students.
26(Source: P.A. 100-465, eff. 8-31-17.)
 

 

 

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1    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
2becoming law.