Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of SR0094
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Full Text of SR0094  93rd General Assembly

SR0094 93rd General Assembly


093_SR0094

 
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 1                          SENATE RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS, The school children of  the  State  of  Illinois
 3    represent the future of this State; and

 4        WHEREAS,  The  single  greatest  influence  on the future
 5    success of Illinois is the quality of education  received  by
 6    the State's children; and

 7        WHEREAS, A stated goal of the State Board of Education is
 8    to provide advocacy and leadership for adequate and equitable
 9    funding of Illinois public schools; and

10        WHEREAS,  Under  the  federal No Child Left Behind Act of
11    2001, schools must show that all children are learning by the
12    year 2014 and all children must meet State learning standards
13    and achieve at high levels; and

14        WHEREAS, If the State does not comply with  the  mandates
15    imposed  by  the  No  Child Left Behind Act of 2001, then the
16    State may lose federal education funding; and

17        WHEREAS, The amount of per  pupil  spending  in  Illinois
18    varies  greatly and ranges from less than $4,000 to more than
19    $15,000; and

20        WHEREAS,  Property  tax  rates  levied  for   educational
21    purposes  in  Illinois  vary greatly, from less than 1.00% to
22    over 8.00% for schools; and

23        WHEREAS, Average school teacher salaries range from  less
24    than $24,000 to more than $83,000; and

25        WHEREAS,  Almost 80% of school districts are currently or
26    will in the near future be unable  to  balance  their  annual
27    budget  to  support  necessary programs and will be forced to
28    deficit spend; and

29        WHEREAS, Illinois ranks 34th  among  all  states  in  the
 
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 1    Union  in total State and local tax burden as a percentage of
 2    personal income; and

 3        WHEREAS, Illinois ranks 48th  among  all  states  in  the
 4    Union  in  the share of school funding provided by the State;
 5    and

 6        WHEREAS, Illinois ranks 49th  among  all  states  in  the
 7    Union  in  the  difference in revenue per student between the
 8    State's highest and lowest poverty districts; and

 9        WHEREAS,  Section  1  of  Article  X  of   the   Illinois
10    Constitution   states,   "The  State  shall  provide  for  an
11    efficient  system  of   high   quality   public   educational
12    institutions and services."; and

13        WHEREAS,   Section   1  of  Article  X  of  the  Illinois
14    Constitution further  states,  "The  State  has  the  primary
15    responsibility   for   financing   the   system   of   public
16    education."; and

17        WHEREAS,  Only  about  39% of funding in fiscal year 2002
18    for public schools came from the State; and

19        WHEREAS, The State and federal governments  have  created
20    education  standards  and  benchmarks  for  adequate academic
21    progress; and

22        WHEREAS, The decision by  the  First  District  Appellate
23    Court  of  Illinois  in  the  last  significant court case in
24    Illinois   regarding   education   funding,   Committee   for
25    Educational Rights v. Edgar, 267 Ill. App. 3d 18 (1994), held
26    that (i) Article X  of  the  Illinois  Constitution  did  not
27    require  equal  educational  benefits and opportunities among
28    school districts and (ii) it was not a violation of the equal
29    protection clause that students in poorer districts  did  not
30    receive  identical educational services to those in wealthier
31    districts; and
 
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 1        WHEREAS, According to this court decision, "the complaint
 2    [did]  not  allege  that  the  education   offered   in   the
 3    plaintiffs' school districts [fell] below [the State Board of
 4    Education's] minimum standards, or that the plaintiffs [were]
 5    being denied a minimally adequate education"; and

 6        WHEREAS,  The  Illinois  Education Funding Advisory Board
 7    was created by the General Assembly in 1997 and charged  with
 8    the  task  of  making recommendations to the General Assembly
 9    for foundation and supplemental  general  State  aid  funding
10    levels; and

11        WHEREAS,  The  Illinois  Education Funding Advisory Board
12    has recommended that the foundation level be set at $5,665 to
13    "assure adequate funding"; therefore, be it

14        RESOLVED, BY  THE  SENATE  OF  THE  NINETY-THIRD  GENERAL
15    ASSEMBLY  OF  THE  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS,  that we respectfully
16    request that the Attorney General of the  State  of  Illinois
17    provide an opinion interpreting Section 1 of Article X of the
18    Illinois Constitution; and be it further

19        RESOLVED,  That  the Attorney General include, as part of
20    this opinion, a determination as  to  whether  Section  1  of
21    Article  X of the Illinois Constitution requires the State to
22    develop a system of public school funding that provides every
23    public school student with access  to  a  minimally  adequate
24    education; and be it further

25        RESOLVED,  That  the Attorney General include, as part of
26    this opinion, a  determination  as  to  whether  or  not  the
27    current system of public school funding provides every public
28    school  student access to a minimally adequate education; and
29    be it further

30        RESOLVED, That we respectfully request that the  Attorney
31    General  submit  this opinion to the members of the Senate on
 
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 1    or before May 30, 2003; and be it further

 2        RESOLVED, That a suitable  copy  of  this  resolution  be
 3    delivered to the Attorney General of the State of Illinois.