093_SB0368eng

 
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 1        AN ACT with regard to schools.

 2        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 3    represented in the General Assembly:

 4        Section 5.   The  School  Code  is  amended  by  changing
 5    Sections 11A-2 and 11A-8 as follows:

 6        (105 ILCS 5/11A-2) (from Ch. 122, par. 11A-2)
 7        Sec.  11A-2.   Organization  of community unit districts;
 8    territorial requirement.   (1)  Any  contiguous  and  compact
 9    territory   of   at   least  $12,000,000  equalized  assessed
10    valuation and having a population of not less than 4,000  and
11    not  more  than  500,000, no part of which is included within
12    any unit district, may be organized  into  a  community  unit
13    school   district  as  provided  in  this  Article;  (2)  the
14    territory of 2 or more entire unit school districts that  are
15    contiguous  to each other and the territory of which taken as
16    a whole is compact may be organized  into  a  community  unit
17    school  district  as  provided  in  this  Article; or (3) the
18    territory of one or more entire unit  school  districts  that
19    are  contiguous to each other plus any contiguous and compact
20    territory, no part of  which  is  included  within  any  unit
21    district,  and  the  territory  of  which taken as a whole is
22    compact  may  be  organized  into  a  community  unit  school
23    district as provided in this Article; however, a petition  or
24    petitions  may  be filed hereunder proposing to divide a unit
25    school district into 2 or more parts and proposing to include
26    all of such parts in 2 or more community unit districts.   As
27    used in this Section, a unit school district includes, but is
28    not limited to, a special charter unit school district.
29        The  territory of any high school district and all of the
30    elementary school districts included within that high  school
31    district  may  be  organized  into  a  community  unit school
 
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 1    district. A petition signed by at least  10%  of  the  voters
 2    residing  in  the  affected  school districts included in the
 3    proposal shall be filed with the regional  superintendent  of
 4    schools of the region in which the territory described in the
 5    petition  is  situated,  or  the petition may be filed by the
 6    school board of the high school district. The petition  shall
 7    (i)  request  the  submission of the proposition at a regular
 8    scheduled election for the purpose of voting for  or  against
 9    the  creation  of  a  community  unit  school  district; (ii)
10    describe the territory comprising the proposed district;  and
11    (iii)  set  forth  the  maximum  tax  rates  for educational,
12    operations and maintenance, pupil  transportation,  and  fire
13    prevention  and  safety  purposes  that the proposed district
14    will be authorized to levy.
15        The regional superintendent shall not accept  for  filing
16    hereunder  any  petition which includes therein any territory
17    already included  as  part  of  the  territory  described  in
18    another  petition  filed  hereunder.   Hearings on a petition
19    filed hereunder shall not be commenced so long as any part of
20    the  territory  described  therein  shall  include  territory
21    described, whether by  amendment  or  otherwise,  in  another
22    petition  filed hereunder.  A petition may be filed hereunder
23    which contains  less  than  the  required  minimum  equalized
24    assessed  valuation  or population requirements provided that
25    such a  petition  shall  not  be  approved  by  the  regional
26    superintendent   and   State   Superintendent  unless  it  is
27    determined:  (1)  that  there  is  a  compelling  reason  for
28    granting the petition; (2) that the territory involved cannot
29    currently  be organized as part of a petition which meets the
30    minimum requirements; (3) that the granting of  the  petition
31    will  not  interfere  with the ultimate reorganization of the
32    territory into a school  district  which  meets  the  minimum
33    requirements; (4) that the granting of the petition is in the
34    best  educational  interests  of the pupils affected; and (5)
 
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 1    that the granting of the petition is  financially  beneficial
 2    to the affected school districts.
 3    (Source: P.A. 88-555, eff. 7-27-94.)

 4        (105 ILCS 5/11A-8) (from Ch. 122, par. 11A-8)
 5        Sec. 11A-8.  Passage requirements.
 6        (a)  Except  as  otherwise provided by Section 11A-7, the
 7    proposition to create a community unit school district  shall
 8    be  submitted  only  to  the  voters  of  the territory which
 9    comprises the proposed community unit school district, and if
10    a majority of the voters  in  each  of  the  affected  school
11    districts  voting  at  such  election  vote  in  favor of the
12    establishment of such community  unit  school  district,  the
13    proposition shall be deemed to have passed.  Unless the board
14    of  education  of  a  new  community  unit school district is
15    elected  at  the  same  election  at  which  the  proposition
16    establishing that district is  deemed  to  have  passed,  the
17    regional superintendent of schools shall order an election to
18    be held on the next regularly scheduled election date for the
19    purpose  of  electing a board of education for that district.
20    In either event, the board of education  elected  for  a  new
21    community  unit  school  district  created under this Article
22    shall consist of 7 members who shall have the terms  and  the
23    powers  and  duties of school boards as defined in Article 10
24    of this Act.  Nomination papers filed under this Section  are
25    not  valid  unless the candidate named therein files with the
26    regional superintendent  a  receipt  from  the  county  clerk
27    showing  that the candidate has filed a statement of economic
28    interests as required by  the  Illinois  Governmental  Ethics
29    Act.   Such  statement  shall  be  so filed either previously
30    during the calendar year in which his nomination papers  were
31    filed  or  within  the  period  for  the filing of nomination
32    papers in accordance with  the  general  election  law.   The
33    regional  superintendent  shall  perform  the election duties
 
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 1    assigned by law to the secretary of a school board  for  such
 2    election,  and  shall  certify  the  officers  and candidates
 3    therefor pursuant to the general election law.
 4        (b)  Except as otherwise provided in subsection (c),  for
 5    school  districts  formed  before  January  1,  1975,  if the
 6    territory of such district is greater  than  2  congressional
 7    townships  or  72  square  miles,  then not more than 3 board
 8    members may be selected from any one congressional  township,
 9    but  congressional  townships  of  less  than 100 inhabitants
10    shall not be considered for the  purpose  of  such  mandatory
11    board representation, and in any such community unit district
12    where at least 75% but not more than 90% of the population is
13    in  one  congressional  township  4  board  members  shall be
14    selected therefrom and 3 board members shall be selected from
15    the rest of the district, but  in  any  such  community  unit
16    district  where  more  than  90%  of the population is in one
17    congressional township all board members may be selected from
18    one  or  more  congressional  townships;  and  whenever   the
19    territory of any community unit district shall consist of not
20    more  than  2 congressional townships or 72 square miles, but
21    shall consist of more than one congressional township, or  36
22    square  miles,  outside  of the corporate limits of any city,
23    village or incorporated town within the school district,  not
24    more  than  5  board members shall be selected from any city,
25    village or incorporated town in such school district.
26        (c)  The provisions of subsection (b) for mandatory board
27    representation shall no longer  apply  to  a  community  unit
28    school  district  formed  prior  to  January 1, 1975, and the
29    members of the board of education shall be elected  at  large
30    from  within  that school district and without restriction by
31    area  of  residence  within  the  district  if  both  of  the
32    following conditions are met with respect to that district:
33             (1)  A proposition for the election of board members
34        at large and without restriction  by  area  of  residence
 
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 1        within  the  district  rather than in accordance with the
 2        provisions  of  subsection  (b)   for   mandatory   board
 3        representation  is  submitted  to  the  school district's
 4        voters at a regular school election  or  at  the  general
 5        election as provided in this subsection (c).
 6             (2)  A  majority  of those voting at the election in
 7        each congressional township comprising the  territory  of
 8        the school district, including any congressional township
 9        of  less  than  100  inhabitants,  vote  in  favor of the
10        proposition.
11        The board of education of  the  school  district  may  by
12    resolution  order  submitted  or,  upon  the  petition of the
13    lesser of 2,500 or 5% of  the  school  district's  registered
14    voters, shall order submitted to the school district's voters
15    at  a  regular school election or at the general election the
16    proposition for the election of board members  at  large  and
17    without  restriction by area of residence within the district
18    rather than in accordance with the provisions  of  subsection
19    (b)  for  mandatory board representation; and the proposition
20    shall thereupon be certified by  the  board's  secretary  for
21    submission.  If a majority of those voting at the election in
22    each  congressional  township comprising the territory of the
23    school district, including any congressional township of less
24    than 100 inhabitants, vote in favor of the proposition:   (i)
25    the  proposition  to elect board members at large and without
26    restriction by area of residence within the district shall be
27    deemed to have passed, (ii) new members of the board shall be
28    elected at large and without restriction by area of residence
29    within the district at the next regular school election,  and
30    (iii)  the  terms of office of the board members incumbent at
31    the time the proposition is adopted shall expire when the new
32    board  members  that  are  elected  at  large   and   without
33    restriction  by  area  of  residence within the district have
34    organized in accordance with Section 10-16.  In  a  community
 
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 1    unit  school district that formerly elected its members under
 2    subsection (b) to successive terms not exceeding 4 years, the
 3    members elected at large and without restriction by  area  of
 4    residence  within the district shall be elected for a term of
 5    4 years,  and  in  a  community  unit  school  district  that
 6    formerly   elected   its  members  under  subsection  (b)  to
 7    successive terms not exceeding 6 years, the  members  elected
 8    at  large and without restriction by area of residence within
 9    the district  shall  be  elected  for  a  term  of  6  years;
10    provided,  that  in  each case the terms of the board members
11    initially elected at large and without restriction by area of
12    residence within the district as provided in this  subsection
13    shall  be  staggered  and  determined  in accordance with the
14    provisions of Sections 10-10 and 10-16.
15    (Source: P.A. 89-129, eff. 7-14-95.)

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