SB3619 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB103 36889 SPS 67001 b

103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB3619

Introduced 2/9/2024, by Sen. Ram Villivalam

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the School District Impact Note Act. Requires the State Board of Education to prepare a School District Impact Note for every bill or amendment to a bill that direct appropriation, regulates, imposes a mandate upon, or otherwise affects the provision of public education. Specifies the contents of the note and the circumstances under which the note is to be prepared. Clarifies that the preparation of the note does not preclude any State officials or employees from participating in legislative hearings concerning the bill. Provides that the subject matter of bills submitted to the State Board of Education shall be kept in strict confidence, and no information relating to the bill or its anticipated impact on education in the State shall be divulged, before the bill's introduction in the General Assembly, by any State official or employee of the State Board, except to the bill's sponsor or his or her designee. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning 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 School District Impact Note Act.

Section 5. Purpose. The purpose of this Act is to ensure that the General Assembly reviews a note with information about the potential effects on school districts, administrators, and other school personnel before considering each bill that imposes a mandate on public education.

Section 10. Applicability. Every bill, except those bills making a direct appropriation, that regulates, imposes a mandate upon, or otherwise affects the provision of public education, including, but not limited to, impacts on school district administrators, personnel, services, or operations, shall have prepared for it by the State Board of Education, within 15 calendar days of its filing in the General Assembly, a School District Impact Note.

Section 15. Preparation of the School District Impact Note.

(a) Upon the introduction of a bill that regulates, imposes a mandate, or otherwise effects the provision of public education, including amendatory changes to the School Code, the Clerk of the House of Representatives or the Secretary of the Senate shall deliver a copy of the bill, with the request for a School District Impact Note, to the State Board of Education. The State Board of Education shall prepare the School District Impact Note and submit it to the sponsor of the bill, as well as either the Chair of the Rules Committee in the House of Representatives or the Chair of the Committee on Assignments in the Senate, as applicable, within 15 calendar days of receiving the request. If the State Board of Education requires additional time for the preparation of the School District Impact Note due to the complexity of the measure, the State Board may inform the sponsor of the bill of the need for an extension of time to prepare the note and the sponsor may approve the extension, not to extend beyond 15 calendar days following the date of the State Board's request for the extension. The bill shall not be assigned to a substantive committee until the School District Impact Note has been received.

(b) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules describing the procedures to be used to carry out the requirements of this Section. The rules adopted by the State Board of Education shall establish, at a minimum:

(1) methods for obtaining and summarizing feedback from school districts that vary in enrollment, educational service region, funding tier, and student demographics; and

(2) a standard list of the types of impact and information that will be considered in preparing each School District Impact Note.

(c) The rules adopted under subsection (b) may establish methods for soliciting and summarizing feedback from organizations representing school boards, school district administrators, and school district personnel.

Section 20. Contents and procedure. The School District Impact Note shall be factual, brief, and concise and reflect a compilation and analysis of information concerning the potential effects of a bill or an amendment to a bill on school districts. The effects considered shall include economic impact, impact on time spent by administrators and other school personnel on compliance with the bill, the overall long-range effects of the bill, and a summary of the feedback obtained from school districts and organizations involved in the provision of public education.

Section 25. Comment or opinion; technical or mechanical defects. No comment or opinion shall be included in the School District Impact Note with regarding the merits of the measure for which the School District Impact Note is prepared, but technical or mechanical defects may be noted.

Section 30. Waiver. The requirement to obtain a School District Impact Note under Sections 10 or 40 may be waived by the majority of those present and voting in the chamber of which the sponsor is a member.

Section 35. Appearance of State officials and employees. The fact that a School District Impact Note is prepared for any bill does not preclude or restrict the appearance before any committee of the General Assembly of any State officials or employees who desires to be heard in support of or in opposition to the bill.

Section 40. Amendment of bills requiring a School District Impact Note. If a committee of the General Assembly reports a bill with an amendment that will substantially affect the information contained in a School District Impact Note required by Section 10 or this Section, and whenever any bill is amended on the floor of either chamber in a manner that substantially affects the information contained in a School District Impact Note required by Section 10 or this Section, the State Board of Education shall prepare and submit a new or revised School District Impact Note to the sponsor of the bill, as well as either the Chair of the Rules Committee in the House of Representatives or the Chair of the Committee on Assignments in the Senate, as applicable, in relation to the amendment or the amended bill within 7 calendar days after receiving the request. The bill shall be held on second reading until the School District Impact Note is received by the Clerk of the House of Representatives or the Secretary of the Senate.

Section 45. Confidentiality. The subject matter of bills submitted to the State Board of Education for preparation of School District Impact Notes shall be kept in strict confidence by the State Board of Education, and no information relating to the bill or its impact on education in this State be divulged by any official or employee of the State Board of Education prior to its introduction in the General Assembly, except to the bill's sponsor or his or her designee.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.