Rep. André Thapedi

Filed: 4/21/2016

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 5918

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 5918, AS AMENDED, by
3replacing everything after the enacting clause with the
4following:
 
5    "Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Sections
627A-9 and 27A-11.5 as follows:
 
7    (105 ILCS 5/27A-9)
8    Sec. 27A-9. Term of charter; renewal.
9    (a) For charters granted before the effective date of this
10amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly, a A charter may be
11granted for a period not less than 5 and not more than 10
12school years. For charters granted on or after the effective
13date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly, a
14charter shall be granted for a period of 5 school years. For
15charters renewed before the effective date of this amendatory
16Act of the 99th General Assembly, a A charter may be renewed in

 

 

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1incremental periods not to exceed 5 school years. For charters
2renewed on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act
3of the 99th General Assembly, a charter may be renewed in
4incremental periods not to exceed 10 school years; however, the
5Commission may renew a charter only in incremental periods not
6to exceed 5 years. Authorizers shall ensure that every charter
7granted on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act
8of the 99th General Assembly includes standards and goals for
9academic, organizational, and financial performance. A charter
10must meet all standards and goals for academic, organizational,
11and financial performance set forth by the authorizer in order
12to be renewed for a term in excess of 5 years but not more than
1310 years. If an authorizer fails to establish standards and
14goals, a charter shall not be renewed for a term in excess of 5
15years. Nothing contained in this Section shall require an
16authorizer to grant a full 10-year renewal term to any
17particular charter school, but an authorizer may award a full
1810-year renewal term to charter schools that have a
19demonstrated track record of improving student performance.
20    (b) A charter school renewal proposal submitted to the
21local school board or the Commission, as the chartering entity,
22shall contain:
23        (1) A report on the progress of the charter school in
24    achieving the goals, objectives, pupil performance
25    standards, content standards, and other terms of the
26    initial approved charter proposal; and

 

 

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1        (2) A financial statement that discloses the costs of
2    administration, instruction, and other spending categories
3    for the charter school that is understandable to the
4    general public and that will allow comparison of those
5    costs to other schools or other comparable organizations,
6    in a format required by the State Board.
7    (c) A charter may be revoked or not renewed if the local
8school board or the Commission, as the chartering entity,
9clearly demonstrates that the charter school did any of the
10following, or otherwise failed to comply with the requirements
11of this law:
12        (1) Committed a material violation of any of the
13    conditions, standards, or procedures set forth in the
14    charter.
15        (2) Failed to meet or make reasonable progress toward
16    achievement of the content standards or pupil performance
17    standards identified in the charter.
18        (3) Failed to meet generally accepted standards of
19    fiscal management.
20        (4) Violated any provision of law from which the
21    charter school was not exempted.
22    In the case of revocation, the local school board or the
23Commission, as the chartering entity, shall notify the charter
24school in writing of the reason why the charter is subject to
25revocation. The charter school shall submit a written plan to
26the local school board or the Commission, whichever is

 

 

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1applicable, to rectify the problem. The plan shall include a
2timeline for implementation, which shall not exceed 2 years or
3the date of the charter's expiration, whichever is earlier. If
4the local school board or the Commission, as the chartering
5entity, finds that the charter school has failed to implement
6the plan of remediation and adhere to the timeline, then the
7chartering entity shall revoke the charter. Except in
8situations of an emergency where the health, safety, or
9education of the charter school's students is at risk, the
10revocation shall take place at the end of a school year.
11Nothing in this amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly
12shall be construed to prohibit an implementation timetable that
13is less than 2 years in duration.
14    (d) (Blank).
15    (e) Notice of a local school board's decision to deny,
16revoke or not to renew a charter shall be provided to the
17Commission and the State Board. The Commission may reverse a
18local board's decision if the Commission finds that the charter
19school or charter school proposal (i) is in compliance with
20this Article, and (ii) is in the best interests of the students
21it is designed to serve. The Commission may condition the
22granting of an appeal on the acceptance by the charter school
23of funding in an amount less than that requested in the
24proposal submitted to the local school board. Final decisions
25of the Commission shall be subject to judicial review under the
26Administrative Review Law.

 

 

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1    (f) Notwithstanding other provisions of this Article, if
2the Commission on appeal reverses a local board's decision or
3if a charter school is approved by referendum, the Commission
4shall act as the authorized chartering entity for the charter
5school. The Commission shall approve the charter and shall
6perform all functions under this Article otherwise performed by
7the local school board. The State Board shall determine whether
8the charter proposal approved by the Commission is consistent
9with the provisions of this Article and, if the approved
10proposal complies, certify the proposal pursuant to this
11Article. The State Board shall report the aggregate number of
12charter school pupils resident in a school district to that
13district and shall notify the district of the amount of funding
14to be paid by the State Board to the charter school enrolling
15such students. The Commission shall require the charter school
16to maintain accurate records of daily attendance that shall be
17deemed sufficient to file claims under Section 18-8.05
18notwithstanding any other requirements of that Section
19regarding hours of instruction and teacher certification. The
20State Board shall withhold from funds otherwise due the
21district the funds authorized by this Article to be paid to the
22charter school and shall pay such amounts to the charter
23school.
24    (g) For charter schools authorized by the Commission, the
25Commission shall quarterly certify to the State Board the
26student enrollment for each of its charter schools.

 

 

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1    (h) For charter schools authorized by the Commission, the
2State Board shall pay directly to a charter school any federal
3or State aid attributable to a student with a disability
4attending the school.
5(Source: P.A. 97-152, eff. 7-20-11; 98-739, eff. 7-16-14.)
 
6    (105 ILCS 5/27A-11.5)
7    Sec. 27A-11.5. State financing. The State Board of
8Education shall make the following funds available to school
9districts and charter schools:
10        (1) From a separate appropriation made to the State
11    Board for purposes of this subdivision (1), the State Board
12    shall make transition impact aid available to school
13    districts that approve a new charter school or that have
14    funds withheld by the State Board to fund a new charter
15    school that is chartered by the Commission. The amount of
16    the aid shall equal 90% of the per capita funding paid to
17    the charter school during the first year of its initial
18    charter term, 65% of the per capita funding paid to the
19    charter school during the second year of its initial term,
20    and 35% of the per capita funding paid to the charter
21    school during the third year of its initial term. This
22    transition impact aid shall be paid to the local school
23    board in equal quarterly installments, with the payment of
24    the installment for the first quarter being made by August
25    1st immediately preceding the first, second, and third

 

 

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1    years of the initial term. The district shall file an
2    application for this aid with the State Board in a format
3    designated by the State Board. If the appropriation is
4    insufficient in any year to pay all approved claims, the
5    impact aid shall be prorated. However, for fiscal year
6    2004, the State Board of Education shall pay approved
7    claims only for charter schools with a valid charter
8    granted prior to June 1, 2003. If any funds remain after
9    these claims have been paid, then the State Board of
10    Education may pay all other approved claims on a pro rata
11    basis. Transition impact aid shall be paid beginning in the
12    1999-2000 school year for charter schools that are in the
13    first, second, or third year of their initial term.
14    Transition impact aid shall not be paid for any charter
15    school that is proposed and created by one or more boards
16    of education, as authorized under the provisions of Public
17    Act 91-405.
18        (2) From a separate appropriation made for the purpose
19    of this subdivision (2), the State Board shall make grants
20    to charter schools to pay their start-up costs of acquiring
21    educational materials and supplies, textbooks, electronic
22    textbooks and the technological equipment necessary to
23    gain access to and use electronic textbooks, furniture, and
24    other equipment or materials needed during their initial
25    term. The State Board shall annually establish the time and
26    manner of application for these grants, which shall not

 

 

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1    exceed $250 per student enrolled in the charter school.
2        (3) The Charter Schools Revolving Loan Fund is created
3    as a special fund in the State treasury. Federal funds,
4    such other funds as may be made available for costs
5    associated with the establishment of charter schools in
6    Illinois, and amounts repaid by charter schools that have
7    received a loan from the Charter Schools Revolving Loan
8    Fund shall be deposited into the Charter Schools Revolving
9    Loan Fund, and the moneys in the Charter Schools Revolving
10    Loan Fund shall be appropriated to the State Board and used
11    to provide interest-free loans to charter schools. These
12    funds shall be used to pay start-up costs of acquiring
13    educational materials and supplies, textbooks, electronic
14    textbooks and the technological equipment necessary to
15    gain access to and use electronic textbooks, furniture, and
16    other equipment or materials needed in the initial term of
17    the charter school and for acquiring and remodeling a
18    suitable physical plant, within the initial term of the
19    charter school. Loans shall be limited to one loan per
20    charter school and shall not exceed $750 $250 per student
21    enrolled in the charter school. A loan shall be repaid by
22    the end of the initial term of the charter school. The
23    State Board may deduct amounts necessary to repay the loan
24    from funds due to the charter school or may require that
25    the local school board that authorized the charter school
26    deduct such amounts from funds due the charter school and

 

 

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1    remit these amounts to the State Board, provided that the
2    local school board shall not be responsible for repayment
3    of the loan. The State Board may use up to 3% of the
4    appropriation to contract with a non-profit entity to
5    administer the loan program.
6        (4) A charter school may apply for and receive, subject
7    to the same restrictions applicable to school districts,
8    any grant administered by the State Board that is available
9    for school districts.
10(Source: P.A. 98-739, eff. 7-16-14.)".