HB2205 EnrolledLRB101 07683 AXK 52731 b

1    AN ACT concerning education.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
534-230 as follows:
 
6    (105 ILCS 5/34-230)
7    Sec. 34-230. School action public meetings and hearings.
8    (a) By October 1 of each year, the chief executive officer
9shall prepare and publish guidelines for school actions. The
10guidelines shall outline the academic and non-academic
11criteria for a school action. These guidelines shall be created
12with the involvement of local school councils, parents,
13educators, and community organizations. These guidelines, and
14each subsequent revision, shall be subject to a public comment
15period of at least 21 days before their approval.
16    (b) The chief executive officer shall announce all proposed
17school actions to be taken at the close of the current academic
18year consistent with the guidelines by December 1 of each year.
19    (c) On or before December 1 of each year, the chief
20executive officer shall publish notice of the proposed school
21actions.
22        (1) Notice of the proposal for a school action shall
23    include a written statement of the basis for the school

 

 

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1    action, an explanation of how the school action meets the
2    criteria set forth in the guidelines, and a draft School
3    Transition Plan identifying the items required in Section
4    34-225 of this Code for all schools affected by the school
5    action. The notice shall state the date, time, and place of
6    the hearing or meeting. For a school closure only, 8 months
7    after notice is given, the chief executive officer must
8    publish on the district's website a full financial report
9    on the closure that includes an analysis of the closure's
10    costs and benefits to the district.
11        (2) The chief executive officer or his or her designee
12    shall provide notice to the principal, staff, local school
13    council, and parents or guardians of any school that is
14    subject to the proposed school action.
15        (3) The chief executive officer shall provide written
16    notice of any proposed school action to the State Senator,
17    State Representative, and alderman for the school or
18    schools that are subject to the proposed school action.
19        (4) The chief executive officer shall publish notice of
20    proposed school actions on the district's Internet
21    website.
22        (5) The chief executive officer shall provide notice of
23    proposed school actions at least 30 calendar days in
24    advance of a public hearing or meeting. The notice shall
25    state the date, time, and place of the hearing or meeting.
26    No Board decision regarding a proposed school action may

 

 

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1    take place less than 60 days after the announcement of the
2    proposed school action.
3    (d) The chief executive officer shall publish a brief
4summary of the proposed school actions and the date, time, and
5place of the hearings or meetings in a newspaper of general
6circulation.
7    (e) The chief executive officer shall designate at least 3
8opportunities to elicit public comment at a hearing or meeting
9on a proposed school action and shall do the following:
10        (1) Convene at least one public hearing at the
11    centrally located office of the Board.
12        (2) Convene at least 2 additional public hearings or
13    meetings at a location convenient to the school community
14    subject to the proposed school action.
15    (f) Public hearings shall be conducted by a qualified
16independent hearing officer chosen from a list of independent
17hearing officers. The general counsel shall compile and publish
18a list of independent hearing officers by November 1 of each
19school year. The independent hearing officer shall have the
20following qualifications:
21        (1) he or she must be a licensed attorney eligible to
22    practice law in Illinois;
23        (2) he or she must not be an employee of the Board; and
24        (3) he or she must not have represented the Board, its
25    employees or any labor organization representing its
26    employees, any local school council, or any charter or

 

 

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1    contract school in any capacity within the last year.
2    The independent hearing officer shall issue a written
3report that summarizes the hearing and determines whether the
4chief executive officer complied with the requirements of this
5Section and the guidelines.
6    The chief executive officer shall publish the report on the
7district's Internet website within 5 calendar days after
8receiving the report and at least 15 days prior to any Board
9action being taken.
10    (g) Public meetings shall be conducted by a representative
11of the chief executive officer. A summary of the public meeting
12shall be published on the district's Internet website within 5
13calendar days after the meeting.
14    (h) If the chief executive officer proposes a school action
15without following the mandates set forth in this Section, the
16proposed school action shall not be approved by the Board
17during the school year in which the school action was proposed.
18(Source: P.A. 97-473, eff. 1-1-12; 97-474, eff. 8-22-11;
1997-813, eff. 7-13-12; 97-1133, eff. 11-30-12.)
 
20    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
21becoming law.