101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
HB3322

 

Introduced , by Rep. Charles Meier

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
105 ILCS 5/10-21.9  from Ch. 122, par. 10-21.9

    Amends the School Code. With regard to criminal history records checks and checks of the Statewide Sex Offender Database and Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database, provides that if a substitute teacher who (i) is a retired educator with a Professional Educator License, (ii) has been issued a certificate concerning those checks by a regional superintendent of schools, and (iii) is seeking employment in another educational service region presents the certificate to the regional superintendent of that other educational service region, then the regional superintendent of that other educational service region shall issue its own certificate to the substitute teacher without requiring the substitute teacher to have another criminal history records check or check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database or Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth Database performed as a condition of employment as a substitute teacher with a school district in that other educational service region. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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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
510-21.9 as follows:
 
6    (105 ILCS 5/10-21.9)  (from Ch. 122, par. 10-21.9)
7    Sec. 10-21.9. Criminal history records checks and checks of
8the Statewide Sex Offender Database and Statewide Murderer and
9Violent Offender Against Youth Database.
10    (a) Certified and noncertified applicants for employment
11with a school district, except school bus driver applicants,
12are required as a condition of employment to authorize a
13fingerprint-based criminal history records check to determine
14if such applicants have been convicted of any of the enumerated
15criminal or drug offenses in subsection (c) of this Section or
16have been convicted, within 7 years of the application for
17employment with the school district, of any other felony under
18the laws of this State or of any offense committed or attempted
19in any other state or against the laws of the United States
20that, if committed or attempted in this State, would have been
21punishable as a felony under the laws of this State.
22Authorization for the check shall be furnished by the applicant
23to the school district, except that if the applicant is a

 

 

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1substitute teacher seeking employment in more than one school
2district, a teacher seeking concurrent part-time employment
3positions with more than one school district (as a reading
4specialist, special education teacher or otherwise), or an
5educational support personnel employee seeking employment
6positions with more than one district, any such district may
7require the applicant to furnish authorization for the check to
8the regional superintendent of the educational service region
9in which are located the school districts in which the
10applicant is seeking employment as a substitute or concurrent
11part-time teacher or concurrent educational support personnel
12employee. Upon receipt of this authorization, the school
13district or the appropriate regional superintendent, as the
14case may be, shall submit the applicant's name, sex, race, date
15of birth, social security number, fingerprint images, and other
16identifiers, as prescribed by the Department of State Police,
17to the Department. The regional superintendent submitting the
18requisite information to the Department of State Police shall
19promptly notify the school districts in which the applicant is
20seeking employment as a substitute or concurrent part-time
21teacher or concurrent educational support personnel employee
22that the check of the applicant has been requested. The
23Department of State Police and the Federal Bureau of
24Investigation shall furnish, pursuant to a fingerprint-based
25criminal history records check, records of convictions,
26forever and hereinafter, until expunged, to the president of

 

 

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1the school board for the school district that requested the
2check, or to the regional superintendent who requested the
3check. The Department shall charge the school district or the
4appropriate regional superintendent a fee for conducting such
5check, which fee shall be deposited in the State Police
6Services Fund and shall not exceed the cost of the inquiry; and
7the applicant shall not be charged a fee for such check by the
8school district or by the regional superintendent, except that
9those applicants seeking employment as a substitute teacher
10with a school district may be charged a fee not to exceed the
11cost of the inquiry. Subject to appropriations for these
12purposes, the State Superintendent of Education shall
13reimburse school districts and regional superintendents for
14fees paid to obtain criminal history records checks under this
15Section.
16    (a-5) The school district or regional superintendent shall
17further perform a check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database,
18as authorized by the Sex Offender Community Notification Law,
19for each applicant.
20    (a-6) The school district or regional superintendent shall
21further perform a check of the Statewide Murderer and Violent
22Offender Against Youth Database, as authorized by the Murderer
23and Violent Offender Against Youth Community Notification Law,
24for each applicant.
25    (b) Any information concerning the record of convictions
26obtained by the president of the school board or the regional

 

 

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1superintendent shall be confidential and may only be
2transmitted to the superintendent of the school district or his
3designee, the appropriate regional superintendent if the check
4was requested by the school district, the presidents of the
5appropriate school boards if the check was requested from the
6Department of State Police by the regional superintendent, the
7State Superintendent of Education, the State Teacher
8Certification Board, any other person necessary to the decision
9of hiring the applicant for employment, or for clarification
10purposes the Department of State Police or Statewide Sex
11Offender Database, or both. A copy of the record of convictions
12obtained from the Department of State Police shall be provided
13to the applicant for employment. Upon the check of the
14Statewide Sex Offender Database, the school district or
15regional superintendent shall notify an applicant as to whether
16or not the applicant has been identified in the Database as a
17sex offender. If a check of an applicant for employment as a
18substitute or concurrent part-time teacher or concurrent
19educational support personnel employee in more than one school
20district was requested by the regional superintendent, and the
21Department of State Police upon a check ascertains that the
22applicant has not been convicted of any of the enumerated
23criminal or drug offenses in subsection (c) of this Section or
24has not been convicted, within 7 years of the application for
25employment with the school district, of any other felony under
26the laws of this State or of any offense committed or attempted

 

 

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1in any other state or against the laws of the United States
2that, if committed or attempted in this State, would have been
3punishable as a felony under the laws of this State and so
4notifies the regional superintendent and if the regional
5superintendent upon a check ascertains that the applicant has
6not been identified in the Sex Offender Database as a sex
7offender, then the regional superintendent shall issue to the
8applicant a certificate evidencing that as of the date
9specified by the Department of State Police the applicant has
10not been convicted of any of the enumerated criminal or drug
11offenses in subsection (c) of this Section or has not been
12convicted, within 7 years of the application for employment
13with the school district, of any other felony under the laws of
14this State or of any offense committed or attempted in any
15other state or against the laws of the United States that, if
16committed or attempted in this State, would have been
17punishable as a felony under the laws of this State and
18evidencing that as of the date that the regional superintendent
19conducted a check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database, the
20applicant has not been identified in the Database as a sex
21offender. The school board of any school district may rely on
22the certificate issued by any regional superintendent to that
23substitute teacher, concurrent part-time teacher, or
24concurrent educational support personnel employee or may
25initiate its own criminal history records check of the
26applicant through the Department of State Police and its own

 

 

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1check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database as provided in
2subsection (a). Any unauthorized release of confidential
3information may be a violation of Section 7 of the Criminal
4Identification Act.
5    (b-5) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section,
6if a substitute teacher who (i) is a retired educator with a
7Professional Educator License, (ii) has been issued a
8certificate by a regional superintendent of schools under
9subsection (b), and (iii) is seeking employment in another
10educational service region presents the certificate to the
11regional superintendent of that other educational service
12region, then the regional superintendent of that other
13educational service region shall issue its own certificate to
14the substitute teacher without requiring the substitute
15teacher to have another criminal history records check or check
16of the Statewide Sex Offender Database or Statewide Murderer
17and Violent Offender Against Youth Database performed under
18this Section as a condition of employment as a substitute
19teacher with a school district in that other educational
20service region.
21    (c) No school board shall knowingly employ a person who has
22been convicted of any offense that would subject him or her to
23license suspension or revocation pursuant to Section 21B-80 of
24this Code. Further, no school board shall knowingly employ a
25person who has been found to be the perpetrator of sexual or
26physical abuse of any minor under 18 years of age pursuant to

 

 

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1proceedings under Article II of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
2    (d) No school board shall knowingly employ a person for
3whom a criminal history records check and a Statewide Sex
4Offender Database check has not been initiated.
5    (e) Upon receipt of the record of a conviction of or a
6finding of child abuse by a holder of any certificate issued
7pursuant to Article 21 or Section 34-8.1 or 34-83 of the School
8Code, the State Superintendent of Education may initiate
9certificate suspension and revocation proceedings as
10authorized by law.
11    (e-5) The superintendent of the employing school board
12shall, in writing, notify the State Superintendent of Education
13and the applicable regional superintendent of schools of any
14certificate holder whom he or she has reasonable cause to
15believe has committed an intentional act of abuse or neglect
16with the result of making a child an abused child or a
17neglected child, as defined in Section 3 of the Abused and
18Neglected Child Reporting Act, and that act resulted in the
19certificate holder's dismissal or resignation from the school
20district. This notification must be submitted within 30 days
21after the dismissal or resignation. The certificate holder must
22also be contemporaneously sent a copy of the notice by the
23superintendent. All correspondence, documentation, and other
24information so received by the regional superintendent of
25schools, the State Superintendent of Education, the State Board
26of Education, or the State Teacher Certification Board under

 

 

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1this subsection (e-5) is confidential and must not be disclosed
2to third parties, except (i) as necessary for the State
3Superintendent of Education or his or her designee to
4investigate and prosecute pursuant to Article 21 of this Code,
5(ii) pursuant to a court order, (iii) for disclosure to the
6certificate holder or his or her representative, or (iv) as
7otherwise provided in this Article and provided that any such
8information admitted into evidence in a hearing is exempt from
9this confidentiality and non-disclosure requirement. Except
10for an act of willful or wanton misconduct, any superintendent
11who provides notification as required in this subsection (e-5)
12shall have immunity from any liability, whether civil or
13criminal or that otherwise might result by reason of such
14action.
15    (f) After January 1, 1990 the provisions of this Section
16shall apply to all employees of persons or firms holding
17contracts with any school district including, but not limited
18to, food service workers, school bus drivers and other
19transportation employees, who have direct, daily contact with
20the pupils of any school in such district. For purposes of
21criminal history records checks and checks of the Statewide Sex
22Offender Database on employees of persons or firms holding
23contracts with more than one school district and assigned to
24more than one school district, the regional superintendent of
25the educational service region in which the contracting school
26districts are located may, at the request of any such school

 

 

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1district, be responsible for receiving the authorization for a
2criminal history records check prepared by each such employee
3and submitting the same to the Department of State Police and
4for conducting a check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database
5for each employee. Any information concerning the record of
6conviction and identification as a sex offender of any such
7employee obtained by the regional superintendent shall be
8promptly reported to the president of the appropriate school
9board or school boards.
10    (f-5) Upon request of a school or school district, any
11information obtained by a school district pursuant to
12subsection (f) of this Section within the last year must be
13made available to the requesting school or school district.
14    (g) Prior to the commencement of any student teaching
15experience or required internship (which is referred to as
16student teaching in this Section) in the public schools, a
17student teacher is required to authorize a fingerprint-based
18criminal history records check. Authorization for and payment
19of the costs of the check must be furnished by the student
20teacher to the school district where the student teaching is to
21be completed. Upon receipt of this authorization and payment,
22the school district shall submit the student teacher's name,
23sex, race, date of birth, social security number, fingerprint
24images, and other identifiers, as prescribed by the Department
25of State Police, to the Department of State Police. The
26Department of State Police and the Federal Bureau of

 

 

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1Investigation shall furnish, pursuant to a fingerprint-based
2criminal history records check, records of convictions,
3forever and hereinafter, until expunged, to the president of
4the school board for the school district that requested the
5check. The Department shall charge the school district a fee
6for conducting the check, which fee must not exceed the cost of
7the inquiry and must be deposited into the State Police
8Services Fund. The school district shall further perform a
9check of the Statewide Sex Offender Database, as authorized by
10the Sex Offender Community Notification Law, and of the
11Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender Against Youth
12Database, as authorized by the Murderer and Violent Offender
13Against Youth Registration Act, for each student teacher. No
14school board may knowingly allow a person to student teach for
15whom a criminal history records check, a Statewide Sex Offender
16Database check, and a Statewide Murderer and Violent Offender
17Against Youth Database check have not been completed and
18reviewed by the district.
19    A copy of the record of convictions obtained from the
20Department of State Police must be provided to the student
21teacher. Any information concerning the record of convictions
22obtained by the president of the school board is confidential
23and may only be transmitted to the superintendent of the school
24district or his or her designee, the State Superintendent of
25Education, the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board,
26or, for clarification purposes, the Department of State Police

 

 

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1or the Statewide Sex Offender Database or Statewide Murderer
2and Violent Offender Against Youth Database. Any unauthorized
3release of confidential information may be a violation of
4Section 7 of the Criminal Identification Act.
5    No school board may knowingly allow a person to student
6teach who has been convicted of any offense that would subject
7him or her to license suspension or revocation pursuant to
8Section 21B-80 of this Code or who has been found to be the
9perpetrator of sexual or physical abuse of a minor under 18
10years of age pursuant to proceedings under Article II of the
11Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
12    (h) (Blank).
13(Source: P.A. 99-21, eff. 1-1-16; 99-667, eff. 7-29-16.)
 
14    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
15becoming law.