Sen. Cristina Castro

Filed: 4/16/2024

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 466

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 466 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing
5Sections 27A-7.5 and 27A-9 as follows:
 
6    (105 ILCS 5/27A-7.5)
7    Sec. 27A-7.5. State Charter School Commission; abolition
8and transfer to State Board; fee.
9    (a) (Blank).
10    (a-5) (Blank).
11    (b) (Blank).
12    (c) (Blank).
13    (d) (Blank).
14    (e) (Blank).
15    (f) (Blank).
16    (g) (Blank).

 

 

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1    (g-5) (Blank).
2    (h) (Blank).
3    (i) (Blank).
4    (j) The State Board may charge a charter school that it
5authorizes a fee not to exceed 3% of the revenue provided to
6the school to be used exclusively for covering the cost of
7authorizing activities. Authorizing activities may include,
8but are not limited to: (i) soliciting, reviewing, and taking
9action on charter school proposals; (ii) hiring, training, and
10supervising staff engaged in authorizing activities; (iii)
11developing and conducting oversight, including regular
12monitoring, of authorized charter schools; (iv) reporting on
13best practices and performances of charter schools; (v)
14applying for, managing, and distributing grants and funds
15appropriated for charter schools and authorizing activities;
16(vi) training members of the State Board on their authorizing
17roles; and (vii) training other employees of the State Board
18on how to work with charter schools as their own local
19education agencies.
20    (k) On July 1, 2020, the State Charter School Commission
21or "Commission" (established by Public Act 97-152 as an
22independent State agency with statewide chartering
23jurisdiction and authority) is abolished and the terms of all
24members end. On that date, all of the powers, duties, assets,
25liabilities, contracts, property, records, and pending
26business of the Commission are transferred to the State Board.

 

 

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1For purposes of the Successor Agency Act and Section 9b of the
2State Finance Act, the State Board is declared to be the
3successor agency of the Commission. Beginning on July 1, 2020,
4references in statutes, rules, forms, and other documents to
5the Commission shall, in appropriate contexts, be deemed to
6refer to the State Board. Standards and procedures of the
7Commission in effect on July 1, 2020 shall be deemed standards
8and procedures of the State Board and shall remain in effect
9until amended or repealed by the State Board.
10    On July 1, 2020, any charter school authorized by the
11Commission prior to July 1, 2020 shall have its authorization
12transferred to the State Board, which shall then become the
13school's authorizer for all purposes under this Article. On
14July 1, 2020, all of the powers, duties, assets, liabilities,
15contracts, property, records, and pending business of the
16Commission as the school's authorizer must be transferred to
17the State Board. At the end of its charter term, a charter
18school may reapply to the local school board or boards for
19authorization. Any charter school authorized by the State
20Board with a charter term expiring on or after July 1, 2025
21must reapply to the local school board or boards for
22authorization in the manner set forth in subsection (a-5) of
23Section 27A-9 before seeking renewal of its charter by the
24State Board.
25    On July 1, 2020, all rules of the State Board applicable to
26matters falling within the responsibility of the Commission

 

 

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1shall be applicable to the actions of the State Board.
2    (l) In any appeal filed with the State Board under this
3Article, both the applicant and the authorizing school
4district of the charter school shall have the right to request
5a hearing before the State Board. If more than one entity
6requests a hearing, then the State Board may hold only one
7hearing, wherein the applicant and the school district shall
8have an equal opportunity to present their respective
9positions.
10(Source: P.A. 103-175, eff. 6-30-23.)
 
11    (105 ILCS 5/27A-9)
12    Sec. 27A-9. Term of charter; renewal.
13    (a) An initial charter shall be granted for a period of 5
14school years. A charter may be renewed in incremental periods
15not to exceed 10 school years. Authorizers shall ensure that
16every charter granted on or after January 1, 2017 includes
17standards and goals for academic, organizational, and
18financial performance. A charter must meet all standards and
19goals for academic, organizational, and financial performance
20set forth by the authorizer in order to be renewed for a term
21in excess of 5 years but not more than 10 years. If an
22authorizer fails to establish standards and goals, a charter
23shall not be renewed for a term in excess of 5 years. Nothing
24contained in this Section shall require an authorizer to grant
25a full 10-year renewal term to any particular charter school,

 

 

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1but an authorizer may award a full 10-year renewal term to
2charter schools that have a demonstrated track record of
3improving student performance.
4     (a-5) Any charter school authorized by the State Board
5with a charter term expiring on or after July 1, 2025 must
6reapply to the local school board or boards for authorization
7before seeking renewal of its charter by the State Board. The
8process for reapplication shall be as follows:
9        (1) The charter school must submit a reapplication
10    proposal to the local school board or boards by no later
11    than January 1 of the year prior to the year in which its
12    charter with the State Board is expiring. If a local
13    school board has failed to adopt an application for
14    authorization pursuant to this subsection (a-5), the
15    charter school shall submit the information set forth in
16    subsection (b) and any other information it seeks to have
17    the local school board consider.
18        (2) Within 45 days after receipt of a reapplication
19    proposal under this subsection (a-5), the local school
20    board shall convene a public meeting to obtain information
21    to assist the local school board in its decision to grant
22    or deny the reapplication proposal. If 45 days pass
23    without the local school board holding a public meeting,
24    then the charter school may proceed with application for
25    renewal to the State Board.
26        (3) Notice of the public meeting required by this

 

 

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1    subsection (a-5) shall be published in a community
2    newspaper published in the school district or, if there is
3    no such newspaper, then in a newspaper published in the
4    county and having circulation in the school district. The
5    notices shall be published not more than 10 days nor less
6    than 5 days before the meeting and shall state that
7    information regarding a charter school reapplication
8    proposal will be heard at the meeting. Copies of the
9    notice shall also be posted at appropriate locations in
10    the charter school, the public schools in the school
11    district, and the local school board office.
12        (4) Within 30 days after the public meeting, the local
13    school board shall vote, in a public meeting, to either
14    grant or deny the reapplication proposal. If the local
15    school board has not voted in a public meeting within 30
16    days after the public meeting, then the charter school may
17    proceed with application for renewal to the State Board.
18        (5) Within 7 days after the public meeting required
19    under paragraph (4) of this subsection (a-5), the local
20    school board shall file with the State Board a report
21    granting or denying the reapplication proposal that
22    contains all material terms for authorization offered by
23    the local school board, including, but not limited to, the
24    term length, which must be equal to the length of an
25    initial charter term as set forth in subsection (a), the
26    funding to be paid by the local school board to the charter

 

 

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1    school, and the maximum number of pupils to be enrolled in
2    the charter school. If the local school board has approved
3    the reapplication proposal, within 30 days after receipt
4    of the local school board's report, the State Board shall
5    determine whether the terms of authorization offered by
6    the local school board are consistent with the provisions
7    of this Article and, if the terms are consistent, shall
8    approve the transfer of authorization of the charter
9    school to the local school board at the expiration of the
10    charter term.
11        (6) If the State Board recommends that the terms of
12    authorization be modified for consistency with this
13    Article, the modifications must be consented to by both
14    the governing body of the charter school and the local
15    school board and resubmitted to the State Board for
16    consideration. If the resubmitted terms of authorization
17    are not consistent with this Article, the State Board may
18    refuse to transfer authorization of the charter school to
19    the local school board and the charter school may proceed
20    with application for renewal to the State Board.
21        (7) If the local school board denies the reapplication
22    proposal, the charter school may proceed with application
23    for renewal to the State Board.
24    A charter school that has been authorized by a local
25school board or boards pursuant to this subsection (a-5) shall
26retain all rights to appeal to the State Board under

 

 

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1subsection (e) following a decision by the local school board
2to revoke or not renew the school's charter.
3    The State Board may adopt such rules as may be necessary to
4implement this subsection (a-5).
5    (b) A charter school renewal proposal submitted to the
6local school board or the State Board, as the chartering
7entity, shall contain:
8        (1) a report on the progress of the charter school in
9    achieving the goals, objectives, pupil performance
10    standards, content standards, and other terms of the
11    initial approved charter proposal; and
12        (2) a financial statement that discloses the costs of
13    administration, instruction, and other spending categories
14    for the charter school that is understandable to the
15    general public and that will allow comparison of those
16    costs to other schools or other comparable organizations,
17    in a format required by the State Board.
18    (c) A charter may be revoked or not renewed if the local
19school board or the State Board, as the chartering entity,
20clearly demonstrates that the charter school did any of the
21following, or otherwise failed to comply with the requirements
22of this law:
23        (1) Committed a material violation of any of the
24    conditions, standards, or procedures set forth in the
25    charter.
26        (2) Failed to meet or make reasonable progress toward

 

 

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1    achievement of the content standards or pupil performance
2    standards identified in the charter.
3        (3) Failed to meet generally accepted standards of
4    fiscal management.
5        (4) Violated any provision of law from which the
6    charter school was not exempted.
7    In the case of revocation, the local school board or the
8State Board, as the chartering entity, shall notify the
9charter school in writing of the reason why the charter is
10subject to revocation. The charter school shall submit a
11written plan to the local school board or the State Board,
12whichever is applicable, to rectify the problem. The plan
13shall include a timeline for implementation, which shall not
14exceed 2 years or the date of the charter's expiration,
15whichever is earlier. If the local school board or the State
16Board, as the chartering entity, finds that the charter school
17has failed to implement the plan of remediation and adhere to
18the timeline, then the chartering entity shall revoke the
19charter. Except in situations of an emergency where the
20health, safety, or education of the charter school's students
21is at risk, the revocation shall take place at the end of a
22school year. Nothing in this Section shall be construed to
23prohibit an implementation timetable that is less than 2 years
24in duration. No local school board may arbitrarily or
25capriciously revoke or not renew a charter. Except for
26extenuating circumstances outlined in this Section, if a local

 

 

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1school board revokes or does not renew a charter, it must
2ensure that all students currently enrolled in the charter
3school are placed in schools that are higher performing than
4that charter school, as defined in the State's federal Every
5Student Succeeds Act accountability plan. In determining
6whether extenuating circumstances exist, a local school board
7must detail, by clear and convincing evidence, that factors
8unrelated to the charter school's accountability designation
9outweigh the charter school's academic performance.
10    (d) (Blank).
11    (e) Notice of a local school board's decision to deny,
12revoke, or not renew a charter shall be provided to the State
13Board.
14    The State Board may reverse a local board's decision to
15revoke or not renew a charter if the State Board finds that the
16charter school or charter school proposal (i) is in compliance
17with this Article and (ii) is in the best interests of the
18students it is designed to serve. The State Board may
19condition the granting of an appeal on the acceptance by the
20charter school of funding in an amount less than that
21requested in the proposal submitted to the local school board.
22The State Board must appoint and utilize a hearing officer for
23any appeals conducted under this subsection. Final decisions
24of the State Board are subject to judicial review under the
25Administrative Review Law.
26    (f) Notwithstanding other provisions of this Article, if

 

 

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1the State Board on appeal reverses a local board's decision or
2if a charter school is approved by referendum, the State Board
3shall act as the authorized chartering entity for the charter
4school and shall perform all functions under this Article
5otherwise performed by the local school board. The State Board
6shall report the aggregate number of charter school pupils
7resident in a school district to that district and shall
8notify the district of the amount of funding to be paid by the
9State Board to the charter school enrolling such students. The
10charter school shall maintain accurate records of daily
11attendance and student enrollment and shall enter data on the
12students served, their characteristics, their particular
13needs, the programs in which they participate, and their
14academic achievement into the statewide student information
15system established by the State Board. The State Board shall
16withhold from funds otherwise due the district the funds
17authorized by this Article to be paid to the charter school and
18shall pay such amounts to the charter school in quarterly
19installments, calculated as follows:
20        (1) The amount of the first quarterly payment shall be
21    based on the projected number of students who will be
22    enrolled in the charter school in the upcoming school
23    year, multiplied by one-fourth of the resident district's
24    per capita tuition amount. Each charter school shall
25    submit its projected enrollment by no later than August 1
26    of each year on a form provided by the State Board for this

 

 

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1    purpose.
2        (2) The amount of the second quarterly payment shall
3    be calculated such that the aggregate amount of the first
4    and second quarterly installments is equal to the number
5    of students reported as enrolled at the charter school on
6    October 1 in the State Board's student information system,
7    multiplied by one-half of the resident district's per
8    capita tuition amount.
9        (3) The amount of the third quarterly payment shall be
10    based on the number of students enrolled in the charter
11    school on January 1, multiplied by one-fourth of the
12    resident district's per capita tuition amount. Each
13    charter school shall submit its January 1 enrollment by no
14    later than January 5 of each year on a form provided by the
15    State Board for this purpose.
16        (4) The amount of the fourth quarterly payment shall
17    be calculated such that the aggregate amount of the third
18    and fourth installments is equal to the number of students
19    reported as enrolled at the charter school on March 1 in
20    the State Board's student information system, multiplied
21    by one-half of the resident district's per capita tuition
22    amount.
23    (g) (Blank).
24    (h) The State Board shall pay directly to a charter school
25it authorizes any federal or State funding attributable to a
26student with a disability attending the school.

 

 

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1(Source: P.A. 103-175, eff. 6-30-23.)
 
2    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
3becoming law.".