Sen. Mattie Hunter

Filed: 4/6/2022

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 5488

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 5488 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing
5Sections 26-1, 26-2, and 26-2a as follows:
 
6    (105 ILCS 5/26-1)  (from Ch. 122, par. 26-1)
7    Sec. 26-1. Compulsory school age; exemptions. Whoever has
8custody or control of any child (i) between the ages of 7 and
917 years (unless the child has already graduated from high
10school) for school years before the 2014-2015 school year or
11(ii) between the ages of 6 (on or before September 1) and 17
12years (unless the child has already graduated from high
13school) beginning with the 2014-2015 school year shall cause
14such child to attend some public school in the district
15wherein the child resides the entire time it is in session
16during the regular school term, except as provided in Section

 

 

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110-19.1, and during a required summer school program
2established under Section 10-22.33B; provided, that the
3following children shall not be required to attend the public
4schools:
5        1. Any child attending a private or a parochial school
6    where children are taught the branches of education taught
7    to children of corresponding age and grade in the public
8    schools, and where the instruction of the child in the
9    branches of education is in the English language;
10        2. Any child who is physically or mentally unable to
11    attend school, such disability being certified to the
12    county or district truant officer by a competent physician
13    licensed in Illinois to practice medicine and surgery in
14    all its branches, a chiropractic physician licensed under
15    the Medical Practice Act of 1987, a licensed advanced
16    practice registered nurse, a licensed physician assistant,
17    or a Christian Science practitioner residing in this State
18    and listed in the Christian Science Journal; or who is
19    excused for temporary absence for cause by the principal
20    or teacher of the school which the child attends, with
21    absence for cause by illness being required to include the
22    mental or behavioral health of the child for up to 5 days
23    for which the child need not provide a medical note, in
24    which case the child shall be given the opportunity to
25    make up any school work missed during the mental or
26    behavioral health absence and, after the second mental

 

 

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1    health day used, may be referred to the appropriate school
2    support personnel; the exemptions in this paragraph (2) do
3    not apply to any female who is pregnant or the mother of
4    one or more children, except where a female is unable to
5    attend school due to a complication arising from her
6    pregnancy and the existence of such complication is
7    certified to the county or district truant officer by a
8    competent physician;
9        3. Any child necessarily and lawfully employed
10    according to the provisions of the law regulating child
11    labor may be excused from attendance at school by the
12    county superintendent of schools or the superintendent of
13    the public school which the child should be attending, on
14    certification of the facts by and the recommendation of
15    the school board of the public school district in which
16    the child resides. In districts having part-time
17    continuation schools, children so excused shall attend
18    such schools at least 8 hours each week;
19        4. Any child over 12 and under 14 years of age while in
20    attendance at confirmation classes;
21        5. Any child absent from a public school on a
22    particular day or days or at a particular time of day for
23    the reason that he is unable to attend classes or to
24    participate in any examination, study, or work
25    requirements on a particular day or days or at a
26    particular time of day because of religious reasons,

 

 

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1    including the observance of a religious holiday or
2    participation in religious instruction, or because the
3    tenets of his religion forbid secular activity on a
4    particular day or days or at a particular time of day. A
5    school board may require the parent or guardian of a child
6    who is to be excused from attending school because of
7    religious reasons to give notice, not exceeding 5 days, of
8    the child's absence to the school principal or other
9    school personnel. Any child excused from attending school
10    under this paragraph 5 shall not be required to submit a
11    written excuse for such absence after returning to school.
12    A district superintendent shall develop and distribute to
13    schools appropriate procedures regarding a student's
14    absence for religious reasons, how schools are notified of
15    a student's impending absence for religious reasons, and
16    the requirements of Section 26-2b of this Code;
17        6. Any child 16 years of age or older who (i) submits
18    to a school district evidence of necessary and lawful
19    employment pursuant to paragraph 3 of this Section and
20    (ii) is enrolled in a graduation incentives program
21    pursuant to Section 26-16 of this Code or an alternative
22    learning opportunities program established pursuant to
23    Article 13B of this Code;
24        7. A child in any of grades 6 through 12 absent from a
25    public school on a particular day or days or at a
26    particular time of day for the purpose of sounding "Taps"

 

 

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1    at a military honors funeral held in this State for a
2    deceased veteran. In order to be excused under this
3    paragraph 7, the student shall notify the school's
4    administration at least 2 days prior to the date of the
5    absence and shall provide the school's administration with
6    the date, time, and location of the military honors
7    funeral. The school's administration may waive this 2-day
8    notification requirement if the student did not receive at
9    least 2 days advance notice, but the student shall notify
10    the school's administration as soon as possible of the
11    absence. A student whose absence is excused under this
12    paragraph 7 shall be counted as if the student attended
13    school for purposes of calculating the average daily
14    attendance of students in the school district. A student
15    whose absence is excused under this paragraph 7 must be
16    allowed a reasonable time to make up school work missed
17    during the absence. If the student satisfactorily
18    completes the school work, the day of absence shall be
19    counted as a day of compulsory attendance and he or she may
20    not be penalized for that absence; and
21        8. Any child absent from a public school on a
22    particular day or days or at a particular time of day for
23    the reason that his or her parent or legal guardian is an
24    active duty member of the uniformed services and has been
25    called to duty for, is on leave from, or has immediately
26    returned from deployment to a combat zone or

 

 

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1    combat-support postings. Such a student shall be granted 5
2    days of excused absences in any school year and, at the
3    discretion of the school board, additional excused
4    absences to visit the student's parent or legal guardian
5    relative to such leave or deployment of the parent or
6    legal guardian. In the case of excused absences pursuant
7    to this paragraph 8, the student and parent or legal
8    guardian shall be responsible for obtaining assignments
9    from the student's teacher prior to any period of excused
10    absence and for ensuring that such assignments are
11    completed by the student prior to his or her return to
12    school from such period of excused absence.
13    Any child from a public middle school or high school,
14subject to guidelines established by the State Board of
15Education, shall be permitted by a school board one school
16day-long excused absence per school year for the child who is
17absent from school to engage in a civic event. The school board
18may require that the student provide reasonable advance notice
19of the intended absence to the appropriate school
20administrator and require that the student provide
21documentation of participation in a civic event to the
22appropriate school administrator.
23(Source: P.A. 102-266, eff. 1-1-22; 102-321, eff. 1-1-22;
24102-406, eff. 8-19-21; revised 9-28-21.)
 
25    (105 ILCS 5/26-2)  (from Ch. 122, par. 26-2)

 

 

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1    Sec. 26-2. Enrolled pupils not of compulsory school age.
2    (a) Any For school years before the 2014-2015 school year,
3any person having custody or control of a child who is below
4the age of 7 years or is 17 years of age or above and who is
5enrolled in any of grades kindergarten through 12 in the
6public school shall cause him to attend the public school in
7the district wherein he resides when it is in session during
8the regular school term, unless he is excused under paragraph
92, 3, 4, 5, or 6 of Section 26-1. Beginning with the 2014-2015
10school year, any person having custody or control of a child
11who is below the age of 6 years or is 17 years of age or above
12and who is enrolled in any of grades kindergarten through 12 in
13the public school shall cause the child to attend the public
14school in the district wherein he or she resides when it is in
15session during the regular school term, unless the child is
16excused under paragraph 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 of Section 26-1 of
17this Code.
18    (b) A school district shall deny reenrollment in its
19secondary schools to any child 19 years of age or above who has
20dropped out of school and who could not, because of age and
21lack of credits, attend classes during the normal school year
22and graduate before his or her twenty-first birthday. A
23district may, however, enroll the child in a graduation
24incentives program under Section 26-16 of this Code or an
25alternative learning opportunities program established under
26Article 13B. No child shall be denied reenrollment for the

 

 

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1above reasons unless the school district first offers the
2child due process as required in cases of expulsion under
3Section 10-22.6. If a child is denied reenrollment after being
4provided with due process, the school district must provide
5counseling to that child and must direct that child to
6alternative educational programs, including adult education
7programs, that lead to graduation or receipt of a high school
8equivalency certificate.
9    (c) A school or school district may deny enrollment to a
10student 17 years of age or older for one semester for failure
11to meet minimum attendance standards if all of the following
12conditions are met:
13        (1) The student was absent without valid cause for 20%
14    or more of the attendance days in the semester immediately
15    prior to the current semester.
16        (2) The student and the student's parent or guardian
17    are given written notice warning that the student is
18    subject to denial from enrollment for one semester unless
19    the student is absent without valid cause less than 20% of
20    the attendance days in the current semester.
21        (3) The student's parent or guardian is provided with
22    the right to appeal the notice, as determined by the State
23    Board of Education in accordance with due process.
24        (4) The student is provided with attendance
25    remediation services, including without limitation
26    assessment, counseling, and support services.

 

 

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1        (5) The student is absent without valid cause for 20%
2    or more of the attendance days in the current semester.
3    A school or school district may not deny enrollment to a
4student (or reenrollment to a dropout) who is at least 17 years
5of age or older but below 19 years for more than one
6consecutive semester for failure to meet attendance standards.
7    (d) No child may be denied reenrollment under this Section
8in violation of the federal Individuals with Disabilities
9Education Act or the Americans with Disabilities Act.
10    (e) In this subsection (e), "reenrolled student" means a
11dropout who has reenrolled full-time in a public school. Each
12school district shall identify, track, and report on the
13educational progress and outcomes of reenrolled students as a
14subset of the district's required reporting on all
15enrollments. A reenrolled student who again drops out must not
16be counted again against a district's dropout rate performance
17measure. The State Board of Education shall set performance
18standards for programs serving reenrolled students.
19    (f) The State Board of Education shall adopt any rules
20necessary to implement the changes to this Section made by
21Public Act 93-803.
22(Source: P.A. 100-825, eff. 8-13-18.)
 
23    (105 ILCS 5/26-2a)  (from Ch. 122, par. 26-2a)
24    (Text of Section before amendment by P.A. 102-466)
25    Sec. 26-2a. A "truant" is defined as a child who is subject

 

 

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1to compulsory school attendance and who is absent without
2valid cause, as defined under this Section, from such
3attendance for more than 1% but less than 5% of the past 180
4school days.
5    "Valid cause" for absence shall be illness, including the
6mental or behavioral health of the student, observance of a
7religious holiday, death in the immediate family, attendance
8at a civic event, or family emergency and shall include such
9other situations beyond the control of the student, as
10determined by the board of education in each district, or such
11other circumstances which cause reasonable concern to the
12parent for the mental, emotional, or physical health or safety
13of the student.
14    "Chronic or habitual truant" shall be defined as a child
15who is subject to compulsory school attendance and who is
16absent without valid cause from such attendance for 5% or more
17of the previous 180 regular attendance days.
18    "Civic event" means an event sponsored by a non-profit
19organization or governmental entity that is open to the
20public. "Civic event" includes, but is not limited to, an
21artistic or cultural performance or educational gathering that
22supports the mission of the sponsoring non-profit
23organization. The State Board of Education may adopt rules to
24further define "civic event".
25    "Truant minor" is defined as a chronic truant to whom
26supportive services, including prevention, diagnostic,

 

 

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1intervention and remedial services, alternative programs and
2other school and community resources have been provided and
3have failed to result in the cessation of chronic truancy, or
4have been offered and refused.
5    A "dropout" is defined as any child enrolled in grades 9
6through 12 whose name has been removed from the district
7enrollment roster for any reason other than the student's
8death, extended illness, removal for medical non-compliance,
9expulsion, aging out, graduation, or completion of a program
10of studies and who has not transferred to another public or
11private school and is not known to be home-schooled by his or
12her parents or guardians or continuing school in another
13country.
14    "Religion" for the purposes of this Article, includes all
15aspects of religious observance and practice, as well as
16belief.
17(Source: P.A. 101-81, eff. 7-12-19; 102-266, eff. 1-1-22;
18102-321, eff. 1-1-22.)
 
19    (Text of Section after amendment by P.A. 102-466)
20    Sec. 26-2a. A "truant" is defined as a child who is subject
21to compulsory school attendance and who is absent without
22valid cause, as defined under this Section, from such
23attendance for more than 1% but less than 5% of the past 180
24school days.
25    "Valid cause" for absence shall be illness, including the

 

 

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1mental or behavioral health of the student, attendance at a
2verified medical or therapeutic appointment, appointment with
3a victim services provider, observance of a religious holiday,
4death in the immediate family, attendance at a civic event, or
5family emergency and shall include such other situations
6beyond the control of the student, as determined by the board
7of education in each district, or such other circumstances
8which cause reasonable concern to the parent for the mental,
9emotional, or physical health or safety of the student. For
10purposes of a student who is an expectant parent, or parent, or
11victim of domestic or sexual violence, "valid cause" for
12absence includes (i) the fulfillment of a parenting
13responsibility, including, but not limited to, arranging and
14providing child care, caring for a sick child, attending
15prenatal or other medical appointments for the expectant
16student, and attending medical appointments for a child, and
17(ii) addressing circumstances resulting from domestic or
18sexual violence, including, but not limited to, experiencing
19domestic or sexual violence, recovering from physical or
20psychological injuries, seeking medical attention, seeking
21services from a domestic or sexual violence organization, as
22defined in Article 26A, seeking psychological or other
23counseling, participating in safety planning, temporarily or
24permanently relocating, seeking legal assistance or remedies,
25or taking any other action to increase the safety or health of
26the student or to protect the student from future domestic or

 

 

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1sexual violence. A school district may require a student to
2verify his or her claim of domestic or sexual violence under
3Section 26A-45 prior to the district approving a valid cause
4for an absence of 3 or more consecutive days that is related to
5domestic or sexual violence.
6    "Chronic or habitual truant" shall be defined as a child
7who is subject to compulsory school attendance and who is
8absent without valid cause from such attendance for 5% or more
9of the previous 180 regular attendance days.
10    "Civic event" means an event sponsored by a non-profit
11organization or governmental entity that is open to the
12public. "Civic event" includes, but is not limited to, an
13artistic or cultural performance or educational gathering that
14supports the mission of the sponsoring non-profit
15organization. The State Board of Education may adopt rules to
16further define "civic event".
17    "Truant minor" is defined as a chronic truant to whom
18supportive services, including prevention, diagnostic,
19intervention and remedial services, alternative programs and
20other school and community resources have been provided and
21have failed to result in the cessation of chronic truancy, or
22have been offered and refused.
23    A "dropout" is defined as any child enrolled in grades 9
24through 12 whose name has been removed from the district
25enrollment roster for any reason other than the student's
26death, extended illness, removal for medical non-compliance,

 

 

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1expulsion, aging out, graduation, or completion of a program
2of studies and who has not transferred to another public or
3private school and is not known to be home-schooled by his or
4her parents or guardians or continuing school in another
5country.
6    "Religion" for the purposes of this Article, includes all
7aspects of religious observance and practice, as well as
8belief.
9(Source: P.A. 101-81, eff. 7-12-19; 102-266, eff. 1-1-22;
10102-321, eff. 1-1-22; 102-466, eff. 7-1-25; revised 9-23-21.)
 
11    Section 95. No acceleration or delay. Where this Act makes
12changes in a statute that is represented in this Act by text
13that is not yet or no longer in effect (for example, a Section
14represented by multiple versions), the use of that text does
15not accelerate or delay the taking effect of (i) the changes
16made by this Act or (ii) provisions derived from any other
17Public Act.".