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Public Act 91-0711
HB4587 Enrolled LRB9112942REdv
AN ACT in relation to State government.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
FY2001 Budget Implementation Act relating to education.
Section 3. The State Finance Act is amended by changing
Section 6z-45 as follows:
(30 ILCS 105/6z-45)
Sec. 6z-45. The School Infrastructure Fund.
(a) The School Infrastructure Fund is created as a
special fund in the State Treasury.
In addition to any other deposits authorized by law,
beginning January 1, 2000, on the first day of each month, or
as soon thereafter as may be practical, the State Treasurer
and State Comptroller shall transfer the sum of $5,000,000
from the General Revenue Fund to the School Infrastructure
Fund.
(b) Subject to the transfer provisions set forth below,
money in the School Infrastructure Fund shall, if and when
the State of Illinois incurs any bonded indebtedness for the
construction of school improvements under the School
Construction Law, be set aside and used for the purpose of
paying and discharging annually the principal and interest on
that bonded indebtedness then due and payable, and for no
other purpose.
In addition to other transfers to the General Obligation
Bond Retirement and Interest Fund made pursuant to Section 15
of the General Obligation Bond Act, upon each delivery of
bonds issued for construction of school improvements under
the School Construction Law, the State Comptroller shall
compute and certify to the State Treasurer the total amount
of principal of, interest on, and premium, if any, on such
bonds during the then current and each succeeding fiscal
year.
On or before the last day of each month, the State
Treasurer and State Comptroller shall transfer from the
School Infrastructure Fund to the General Obligation Bond
Retirement and Interest Fund an amount sufficient to pay the
aggregate of the principal of, interest on, and premium, if
any, on the bonds payable on their next payment date, divided
by the number of monthly transfers occurring between the last
previous payment date (or the delivery date if no payment
date has yet occurred) and the next succeeding payment date.
(c) The surplus, if any, in the School Infrastructure
Fund after the payment of principal and interest on that
bonded indebtedness then annually due shall, subject to
appropriation, be used as follows:
First - to make 3 payments to the School Technology
Revolving Loan Fund as follows:
Transfer of $30,000,000 in fiscal year 1999;
Transfer of $20,000,000 in fiscal year 2000; and
Transfer of $10,000,000 in fiscal year 2001.
Second - to pay the expenses of the State Board of
Education and the Capital Development Board in administering
programs under the School Construction Law, the total
expenses not to exceed $1,200,000 $1,000,000 in any fiscal
year.
Third - to pay any amounts due for grants for school
construction projects and debt service under the School
Construction Law.
Fourth - to pay any amounts due for grants for school
maintenance projects under the School Construction Law.
(Source: P.A. 90-548, eff. 1-1-98; 90-587, eff. 7-1-98;
91-38, eff. 6-15-99.)
Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing
Sections 1D-1 and 2-3.51.5 as follows:
(105 ILCS 5/1D-1)
Sec. 1D-1. Block grant funding.
(a) For fiscal year 1996 and each fiscal year
thereafter, the State Board of Education shall award to a
school district having a population exceeding 500,000
inhabitants a general education block grant and an
educational services block grant, determined as provided in
this Section, in lieu of distributing to the district
separate State funding for the programs described in
subsections (b) and (c). The provisions of this Section,
however, do not apply to any federal funds that the district
is entitled to receive. In accordance with Section 2-3.32,
all block grants are subject to an audit. Therefore, block
grant receipts and block grant expenditures shall be recorded
to the appropriate fund code for the designated block grant.
(b) The general education block grant shall include the
following programs: REI Initiative, Summer Bridges, Preschool
At Risk, K-6 Comprehensive Arts, School Improvement Support,
Urban Education, Scientific Literacy, Substance Abuse
Prevention, Second Language Planning, Staff Development,
Outcomes and Assessment, K-6 Reading Improvement, Truants'
Optional Education, Hispanic Programs, Agriculture Education,
Gifted Education, Parental Education, Prevention Initiative,
Report Cards, and Criminal Background Investigations.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all amounts paid
under the general education block grant from State
appropriations to a school district in a city having a
population exceeding 500,000 inhabitants shall be
appropriated and expended by the board of that district for
any of the programs included in the block grant or any of the
board's lawful purposes.
(c) The educational services block grant shall include
the following programs: Bilingual, Regular and Vocational
Transportation, State Lunch and Free Breakfast Program,
Special Education (Personnel, Extraordinary, Transportation,
Orphanage, Private Tuition), Summer School, Educational
Service Centers, and Administrator's Academy. This
subsection (c) does not relieve the district of its
obligation to provide the services required under a program
that is included within the educational services block grant.
It is the intention of the General Assembly in enacting the
provisions of this subsection (c) to relieve the district of
the administrative burdens that impede efficiency and
accompany single-program funding. The General Assembly
encourages the board to pursue mandate waivers pursuant to
Section 2-3.25g.
(d) For fiscal year 1996 and each fiscal year
thereafter, the amount of the district's block grants shall
be determined as follows: (i) with respect to each program
that is included within each block grant, the district shall
receive an amount equal to the same percentage of the current
fiscal year appropriation made for that program as the
percentage of the appropriation received by the district from
the 1995 fiscal year appropriation made for that program, and
(ii) the total amount that is due the district under the
block grant shall be the aggregate of the amounts that the
district is entitled to receive for the fiscal year with
respect to each program that is included within the block
grant that the State Board of Education shall award the
district under this Section for that fiscal year. In the
case of the Summer Bridges program, the amount of the
district's block grant shall be equal to 44% of the amount of
the current fiscal year appropriation made for that program.
(e) The district is not required to file any application
or other claim in order to receive the block grants to which
it is entitled under this Section. The State Board of
Education shall make payments to the district of amounts due
under the district's block grants on a schedule determined by
the State Board of Education.
(f) A school district to which this Section applies
shall report to the State Board of Education on its use of
the block grants in such form and detail as the State Board
of Education may specify.
(g) This paragraph provides for the treatment of block
grants under Article 1C for purposes of calculating the
amount of block grants for a district under this Section.
Those block grants under Article IC are, for this purpose,
treated as included in the amount of appropriation for the
various programs set forth in paragraph (b) above. The
appropriation in each current fiscal year for each block
grant under Article 1C shall be treated for these purposes as
appropriations for the individual program included in that
block grant. The proportion of each block grant so allocated
to each such program included in it shall be the proportion
which the appropriation for that program was of all
appropriations for such purposes now in that block grant, in
fiscal 1995.
(Source: P.A. 89-15, eff. 5-30-95; 89-698, eff. 1-14-97;
90-566, eff. 1-2-98; 90-653, eff. 7-29-98.)
(105 ILCS 5/2-3.51.5)
Sec. 2-3.51.5. School Safety and Educational Improvement
Block Grant Program. To improve the level of education and
safety of students from kindergarten through grade 12 in
school districts. The State Board of Education is authorized
to fund a School Safety and Educational Improvement Block
Grant Program.
(1) The program shall provide funding for school safety,
textbooks and software, teacher training and curriculum
development, school improvements, and remediation programs
under subsection (a) of Section 2-3.64, school report cards
under Section 10-17a, and criminal background investigations
under Sections 10-21.9 and 34-18.5. A school district or
laboratory school as defined in Section 18-8 or 18-8.05 is
not required to file an application in order to receive the
categorical funding to which it is entitled under this
Section. Funds for the School Safety and Educational
Improvement Block Grant Program shall be distributed to
school districts and laboratory schools based on the prior
year's best 3 months average daily attendance. The State
Board of Education shall promulgate rules and regulations
necessary for the implementation of this program.
(2) Distribution of moneys to school districts shall be
made in 2 semi-annual installments, one payment on or before
October 30, and one payment prior to April 30, of each fiscal
year.
(3) Grants under the School Safety and Educational
Improvement Block Grant Program shall be awarded provided
there is an appropriation for the program, and funding levels
for each district shall be prorated according to the amount
of the appropriation.
(Source: P.A. 89-610, eff. 8-6-96; 90-548, eff. 1-1-98.)
Section 10. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act
is amended by adding Section 65.57 as follows:
(110 ILCS 947/65.57 new)
Sec. 65.57. Arthur F. Quern Information Technology Grant
Program.
(a) In order to strengthen the workforce in this State
by increasing the supply of skilled information technology
workers in this State, the Commission shall, each year and
subject to available appropriations, receive and consider
applications for grant assistance under this Section to
provide need-based grants for retraining in information
technology fields, to be named Arthur F. Quern Information
Technology Grants, to qualified students pursuing additional
certification or a degree in an information technology field
at a degree-granting institution. An applicant is eligible
for a grant under this Section if the Commission finds that
the applicant:
(1) is a United States citizen or a permanent
resident of the United States;
(2) is a resident of this State;
(3) has made a timely application to the Commission
for an information technology grant; and
(4) enrolls or is enrolled in an eligible program
of undergraduate information technology related study, as
determined by the Board of Higher Education, at a
qualified institution of higher learning in this State.
(b) Recipients shall be selected from among applicants
who qualify pursuant to subsection (a) of this Section based
on financial need, as determined by the Commission.
Preference may be given to individuals who have received a
baccalaureate degree and who seek information technology
training or certification. Preference may also be given to
previous recipients of assistance under this Section.
(c) A recipient must maintain satisfactory academic
progress, as determined by the institution of higher learning
at which he or she is enrolled.
(d) The Commission shall receive initial and subsequent
State appropriations for distribution to participating
institutions on behalf of information technology grant
recipients under this Section. The Commission shall also
receive appropriate annual State appropriations for program
administration under this Section.
(e) The Commission shall administer the information
technology grant program established by this Section and
shall make all necessary and proper rules not inconsistent
with this Section for the program's effective implementation.
(f) Each information technology grant is an award of up
to $2,500, payable to a qualified institution on behalf of
the award recipient and applicable towards tuition and fees
and other educational costs, as determined by the Commission.
A qualified student may be eligible to receive an information
technology grant for up to 2 years.
(g) The total amount of grant assistance awarded by the
Commission under this Section to an individual in any given
fiscal year, when added to other financial assistance awarded
to that individual for that year, shall not exceed the cost
of attendance at the institution of higher learning at which
the student is enrolled. If a recipient does not qualify for
the maximum $2,500 grant amount during the academic year, the
excess award amount shall not be carried forward to the award
amount for the following academic year for which the
recipient is eligible for a grant award under this Section.
(h) All applications for grant assistance to be awarded
under this Section shall be made to the Commission in a
format set forth by the Commission. The format of the
application and the information required to be set forth in
the application shall be determined by the Commission.
(i) Subject to a separate appropriation made for such
purposes, payment of a grant awarded under this Section shall
be determined by the Commission. All grant funds distributed
in accordance with this Section shall be paid to the
institution on behalf of the recipients.
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect on
July 1, 2000.
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