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91_HB0230enr HB0230 Enrolled LRB9100464NTsb 1 AN ACT to amend the School Code by changing Sections 2 27A-4 and 27A-7. 3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 4 represented in the General Assembly: 5 Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing 6 Sections 27A-4 and 27A-7 as follows: 7 (105 ILCS 5/27A-4) 8 Sec. 27A-4. General Provisions. 9 (a) The General Assembly does not intend to alter or 10 amend the provisions of any court-ordered desegregation plan 11 in effect for any school district. A charter school shall be 12 subject to all federal and State laws and constitutional 13 provisions prohibiting discrimination on the basis of 14 disability, race, creed, color, gender, national origin, 15 religion, ancestry, marital status, or need for special 16 education services. 17 (b) The total number of charter schools operating under 18 this Article at any one time shall not exceed 45. Not more 19 thanthat15 charter schools shall operate at any one time in 20 any city having a population exceeding 500,000; not more than 21 15 charter schools shall operate at any one time in the 22 counties of DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Will, and that 23 portion of Cook County that is located outside a city having 24 a population exceeding 500,000, with not more than one 25 charter school that has been initiated by a board of 26 education, or by an intergovernmental agreement between or 27 among boards of education, operating at any one time in the 28 school district where the charter school is located; and not 29 more than 15 charter schools shall operate at any one time in 30 the remainder of the State, with not more than one charter 31 school that has been initiated by a board of education, or by HB0230 Enrolled -2- LRB9100464NTsb 1 an intergovernmental agreement between or among boards of 2 education, operating at any one time in the school district 3 where the charter school is located. 4 For purposes of implementing this Section, the State 5 Board shall assign a number to each charter submission it 6 receives under Section 27A-6 for its review and 7 certification, based on the chronological order in which the 8 submission is received by it. The State Board shall promptly 9 notify local school boards when the maximum numbers of 10 certified charter schools authorized to operate have been 11 reached. 12 (c) No charter shall be granted under this Article that 13 would convert any existing private, parochial, or non-public 14 school to a charter school. 15 (d) Enrollment in a charter school shall be open to any 16 pupil who resides within the geographic boundaries of the 17 area served by the local school board. However, no more than 18 50% of the number of resident pupils enrolled in any one 19 grade in a school district with only a single attendance 20 center covering that grade may be enrolled in a charter 21 school at one time. 22 (e) Nothing in this Article shall prevent 2 or more 23 local school boards from jointly issuing a charter to a 24 single shared charter school, provided that all of the 25 provisions of this Article are met as to those local school 26 boards. 27 (f) No local school board shall require any employee of 28 the school district to be employed in a charter school. 29 (g) No local school board shall require any pupil 30 residing within the geographic boundary of its district to 31 enroll in a charter school. 32 (h) If there are more eligible applicants for enrollment 33 in a charter school than there are spaces available, 34 successful applicants shall be selected by lottery. However, HB0230 Enrolled -3- LRB9100464NTsb 1 priority shall be given to siblings of pupils enrolled in the 2 charter school and to pupils who were enrolled in the charter 3 school the previous school year, unless expelled for cause. 4 Dual enrollment at both a charter school and a public school 5 or non-public school shall not be allowed. A pupil who is 6 suspended or expelled from a charter school shall be deemed 7 to be suspended or expelled from the public schools of the 8 school district in which the pupil resides. 9 (i) No charter school established under this Article may 10 be authorized to open prior to the school year beginning in 11 the fall of 1996. 12 (Source: P.A. 89-450, eff. 4-10-96; revised 2-24-98.) 13 (105 ILCS 5/27A-7) 14 Sec. 27A-7. Charter submission. 15 (a) A proposal to establish a charter school shall be 16 submitted to the State Board and the local school board in 17 the form of a proposed contract entered into between the 18 local school board and the governing body of a proposed 19 charter school. The charter school proposal as submitted to 20 the State Board shall include: 21 (1) The name of the proposed charter school, which 22 must include the words "Charter School". 23 (2) The age or grade range, areas of focus, minimum 24 and maximum numbers of pupils to be enrolled in the 25 charter school, and any other admission criteria that 26 would be legal if used by a school district. 27 (3) A description of and address for the physical 28 plant in which the charter school will be located; 29 provided that nothing in the Article shall be deemed to 30 justify delaying or withholding favorable action on or 31 approval of a charter school proposal because the 32 building or buildings in which the charter school is to 33 be located have not been acquired or rented at the time a HB0230 Enrolled -4- LRB9100464NTsb 1 charter school proposal is submitted or approved or a 2 charter school contract is entered into or submitted for 3 certification or certified, so long as the proposal or 4 submission identifies and names at least 2 sites that are 5 potentially available as a charter school facility by the 6 time the charter school is to open. 7 (4) The mission statement of the charter school, 8 which must be consistent with the General Assembly's 9 declared purposes; provided that nothing in this Article 10 shall be construed to require that, in order to receive 11 favorable consideration and approval, a charter school 12 proposal demonstrate unequivocally that the charter 13 school will be able to meet each of those declared 14 purposes, it being the intention of the Charter Schools 15 Law that those purposes be recognized as goals that 16 charter schools must aspire to attain. 17 (5) The goals, objectives, and pupil performance 18 standards to be achieved by the charter school. 19 (6) In the case of a proposal to establish a 20 charter school by converting an existing public school or 21 attendance center to charter school status, evidence that 22 the proposed formation of the charter school has received 23 the approval of certified teachers, parents and 24 guardians, and, if applicable, a local school council as 25 provided in subsection (b) of Section 27A-8. 26 (7) A description of the charter school's 27 educational program, pupil performance standards, 28 curriculum, school year, school days, and hours of 29 operation. 30 (8) A description of the charter school's plan for 31 evaluating pupil performance, the types of assessments 32 that will be used to measure pupil progress towards 33 achievement of the school's pupil performance standards, 34 the timeline for achievement of those standards, and the HB0230 Enrolled -5- LRB9100464NTsb 1 procedures for taking corrective action in the event that 2 pupil performance at the charter school falls below those 3 standards. 4 (9) Evidence that the terms of the charter as 5 proposed are economically sound for both the charter 6 school and the school district, a proposed budget for the 7 term of the charter, a description of the manner in which 8 an annual audit of the financial and administrative 9 operations of the charter school, including any services 10 provided by the school district, are to be conducted, and 11 a plan for the displacement of pupils, teachers, and 12 other employees who will not attend or be employed in the 13 charter school. 14 (10) A description of the governance and operation 15 of the charter school, including the nature and extent of 16 parental, professional educator, and community 17 involvement in the governance and operation of the 18 charter school. 19 (11) An explanation of the relationship that will 20 exist between the charter school and its employees, 21 including evidence that the terms and conditions of 22 employment have been addressed with affected employees 23 and their recognized representative, if any. However, a 24 bargaining unit of charter school employees shall be 25 separate and distinct from any bargaining units formed 26 from employees of a school district in which the charter 27 school is located. 28 (12) An agreement between the parties regarding 29 their respective legal liability and applicable insurance 30 coverage. 31 (13) A description of how the charter school plans 32 to meet the transportation needs of its pupils, and a 33 plan for addressing the transportation needs of 34 low-income and at-risk pupils. HB0230 Enrolled -6- LRB9100464NTsb 1 (14) The proposed effective date and term of the 2 charter; provided that the first day of the first 3 academic year and the first day of the fiscal year shall 4 be no earlier than August 15 and no later than September 5 15 of a calendar year. 6 (15) Any other information reasonably required by 7 the State Board of Education. 8 (b) A proposal to establish a charter school may be 9 initiated by individuals or organizations that will have 10 majority representation on the board of directors or other 11 governing body of the corporation or other discrete legal 12 entity that is to be established to operate the proposed 13 charter school, by a board of education or an 14 intergovernmental agreement between or among boards of 15 education, or by the board of directors or other governing 16 body of a discrete legal entity already existing or 17 established to operate the proposed charter school. The 18 individuals or organizations referred to in this subsection 19 may be school teachers, school administrators, local school 20 councils, colleges or universities or their faculty members, 21 public community colleges or their instructors or other 22 representatives, corporations, or other entities or their 23 representatives. The proposal shall be submitted to the 24 local school board for consideration and, if appropriate, for 25 development of a proposed contract to be submitted to the 26 State Board for certification under Section 27A-6. 27 (c) The local school board may not without the consent 28 of the governing body of the charter school condition its 29 approval of a charter school proposal on acceptance of an 30 agreement to operate under State laws and regulations and 31 local school board policies from which the charter school is 32 otherwise exempted under this Article. 33 (Source: P.A. 89-450, eff. 4-10-96; 90-548, eff. 1-1-98.) HB0230 Enrolled -7- LRB9100464NTsb 1 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 2 becoming law.