Public Act 93-0053

SB381 Enrolled                       LRB093 05990 NHT 06091 b

    AN ACT concerning education.

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

    Section  5.   The  School  Code  is  amended  by changing
Section 1D-1 and adding Section 2-3.51a as follows:

    (105 ILCS 5/1D-1)
    Sec. 1D-1.  Block grant funding.
    (a)  For  fiscal  year  1996   and   each   fiscal   year
thereafter,  the  State  Board  of Education shall award to a
school  district  having  a  population   exceeding   500,000
inhabitants   a   general   education   block  grant  and  an
educational services block grant, determined as  provided  in
this  Section,  in  lieu  of  distributing  to  the  district
separate   State   funding  for  the  programs  described  in
subsections (b) and (c).  The  provisions  of  this  Section,
however,  do not apply to any federal funds that the district
is entitled to receive.  In accordance with  Section  2-3.32,
all  block  grants are subject to an audit.  Therefore, block
grant receipts and block grant expenditures shall be recorded
to the appropriate fund code for the designated block grant.
    (b)  The general education block grant shall include  the
following programs: REI Initiative, Summer Bridges, Preschool
At  Risk, K-6 Comprehensive Arts, School Improvement Support,
Urban  Education,  Scientific   Literacy,   Substance   Abuse
Prevention,  Second  Language  Planning,  Staff  Development,
Outcomes   and  Assessment,  K-6  Reading  Improvement,  7-12
Continued Reading Improvement, Truants'  Optional  Education,
Hispanic  Programs,  Agriculture Education, Gifted Education,
Parental Education, Prevention Initiative, Report Cards,  and
Criminal   Background  Investigations.   Notwithstanding  any
other provision of law, all amounts paid  under  the  general
education  block  grant from State appropriations to a school
district in a city  having  a  population  exceeding  500,000
inhabitants  shall  be appropriated and expended by the board
of that district for any of  the  programs  included  in  the
block grant or any of the board's lawful purposes.
    (c)  The  educational  services block grant shall include
the following programs:  Bilingual,  Regular  and  Vocational
Transportation,  State  Lunch  and  Free  Breakfast  Program,
Special  Education (Personnel, Extraordinary, Transportation,
Orphanage,  Private  Tuition),  Summer  School,   Educational
Service   Centers,   and   Administrator's   Academy.    This
subsection   (c)   does  not  relieve  the  district  of  its
obligation to provide the services required under  a  program
that is included within the educational services block grant.
It  is  the intention of the General Assembly in enacting the
provisions of this subsection (c) to relieve the district  of
the   administrative   burdens  that  impede  efficiency  and
accompany  single-program  funding.   The  General   Assembly
encourages  the  board  to pursue mandate waivers pursuant to
Section 2-3.25g.
    (d)  For  fiscal  year  1996   and   each   fiscal   year
thereafter,  the  amount of the district's block grants shall
be determined as follows: (i) with respect  to  each  program
that  is included within each block grant, the district shall
receive an amount equal to the same percentage of the current
fiscal year  appropriation  made  for  that  program  as  the
percentage of the appropriation received by the district from
the 1995 fiscal year appropriation made for that program, and
(ii)  the  total  amount  that  is due the district under the
block grant shall be the aggregate of the  amounts  that  the
district  is  entitled  to  receive  for the fiscal year with
respect to each program that is  included  within  the  block
grant  that  the  State  Board  of  Education shall award the
district under this Section for that  fiscal  year.   In  the
case  of  the  Summer  Bridges  program,  the  amount  of the
district's block grant shall be equal to 44% of the amount of
the current fiscal year appropriation made for that program.
    (e)  The district is not required to file any application
or other claim in order to receive the block grants to  which
it  is  entitled  under  this  Section.  The  State  Board of
Education shall make payments to the district of amounts  due
under the district's block grants on a schedule determined by
the State Board of Education.
    (f)  A  school  district  to  which  this Section applies
shall report to the State Board of Education on  its  use  of
the  block  grants in such form and detail as the State Board
of Education may specify.
    (g)  This paragraph provides for the treatment  of  block
grants  under  Article  1C  for  purposes  of calculating the
amount of block grants for a  district  under  this  Section.
Those  block  grants  under Article 1C are, for this purpose,
treated as included in the amount of  appropriation  for  the
various  programs  set  forth  in  paragraph  (b) above.  The
appropriation in each current  fiscal  year  for  each  block
grant under Article 1C shall be treated for these purposes as
appropriations  for  the  individual program included in that
block grant.  The proportion of each block grant so allocated
to each such program included in it shall be  the  proportion
which   the   appropriation  for  that  program  was  of  all
appropriations for such purposes now in that block grant,  in
fiscal 1995.
    Payments  to  the school district under this Section with
respect  to  each  program  for  which  payments  to   school
districts generally, as of the date of this amendatory Act of
the 92nd General Assembly, are on a reimbursement basis shall
continue to be made to the district on a reimbursement basis,
pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  Code governing those
programs.
    (h)  Notwithstanding any  other  provision  of  law,  any
school  district  receiving  a block grant under this Section
may classify all or a portion of the funds that  it  receives
in  a  particular fiscal year from any block grant authorized
under this Code or from general State aid pursuant to Section
18-8.05 of this Code (other than supplemental  general  State
aid) as funds received in connection with any funding program
for  which  it is entitled to receive funds from the State in
that fiscal year (including, without limitation, any  funding
program  referred  to  in  subsection  (c)  of this Section),
regardless of the source  or  timing  of  the  receipt.   The
district  may  not  classify  more funds as funds received in
connection with the funding  program  than  the  district  is
entitled  to  receive  in  that fiscal year for that program.
Any classification by a district must be made by a resolution
of its board of education.  The resolution must identify  the
amount  of  any  block  grant  or  general  State  aid  to be
classified under this subsection (h)  and  must  specify  the
funding  program  to  which  the  funds  are to be treated as
received  in  connection  therewith.   This   resolution   is
controlling  as  to  the  classification  of funds referenced
therein.  A certified copy of the resolution must be sent  to
the  State  Superintendent of Education. The resolution shall
still take effect even though a copy of  the  resolution  has
not  been  sent to the State Superintendent of Education in a
timely manner.  No classification under this  subsection  (h)
by  a  district  shall  affect  the total amount or timing of
money the district is entitled to receive  under  this  Code.
No  classification  under  this  subsection (h) by a district
shall in any way relieve the  district  from  or  affect  any
requirements  that  otherwise would apply with respect to the
block grant  as  provided  in  this  Section,  including  any
accounting  of  funds  by  source,  reporting expenditures by
original  source  and  purpose,  reporting  requirements,  or
requirements of provision of services.
(Source: P.A. 91-711,  eff.  7-1-00;  92-568,  eff.  6-26-02;
92-651, eff. 7-11-02.)

    (105 ILCS 5/2-3.51a new)
    Sec.  2-3.51a.  Continued Reading Improvement Block Grant
Program.  To improve the reading and study skills of children
from seventh through twelfth grade in school districts.   The
State  Board  of  Education  is  authorized  to  administer a
Continued Reading Improvement Block Grant Program.   As  used
in  this  Section,  "school  district" includes those schools
designated as laboratory schools.
    (a)  Funds for the Continued  Reading  Improvement  Block
Grant Program shall be distributed to school districts on the
following  basis: 70% of moneys shall be awarded on the prior
year's best 3 months average daily attendance and  30%  shall
be  distributed  on  the number of economically disadvantaged
(E.C.I.A. Chapter I) pupils in the  district,  provided  that
the  State Board may distribute an amount not to exceed 2% of
the moneys appropriated for the Continued Reading Improvement
Block Grant Program for  the  purpose  of  providing  teacher
training and re-training in the teaching of reading.  Program
funds   shall   be  distributed  to  school  districts  in  2
semi-annual installments, one payment on or before October 30
and one payment prior to April 30 of each  year.   The  State
Board  shall adopt any rules necessary for the implementation
of this program.
    (b)  Continued Reading Improvement  Block  Grant  Program
funds  shall  be  used  by  school districts in the following
manner to support students in grades 7  through  12  who  are
reading significantly below grade level:
         (1)  to  continue  direct  reading  instruction  for
    grades  7  through  12,  focusing  on  the application of
    reading skills for understanding informational text;
         (2)  to focus on and to commit time and resources to
    the reading of rich literature;
         (3)  to conduct intense  vocabulary,  spelling,  and
    related    writing    programs    that   promote   better
    understanding of language and words;
         (4)  to provide professional  development  based  on
    scientifically  based  research  and  best  practices and
    delivered by providers approved by  the  State  Board  of
    Education; and
         (5)  to   increase   the   availability  of  reading
    specialists and teacher aides trained  in  research-based
    reading intervention or improvement practices or both.
    (c)  Continued  Reading  Improvement  Block Grant Program
funds  shall  be  made  available  to  each  eligible  school
district submitting an approved application developed by  the
State  Board,  beginning  with  the  2003-2004  school  year.
Applications  shall  include  a proposed assessment method or
methods for measuring student reading  skills.  Such  methods
may  include  the reading portion of State tests.  At the end
of each school year  the  district  shall  report  assessment
results  to  the  State  Board.   Districts not demonstrating
performance progress  using  an  approved  assessment  method
shall  not be eligible for funding in the third or subsequent
years until such progress is established.
    (d)  The   State   Superintendent   of   Education,    in
cooperation  with  the  school districts participating in the
program, shall annually  report  to  the  leadership  of  the
General  Assembly  on  the  results  of the Continued Reading
Improvement Block Grant Program and the progress  being  made
on  improving  the  reading  skills  of  students in grades 7
through 12.
    (e)  Grants under the Continued Reading Improvement Block
Grant  Program  shall  be  awarded  provided  there   is   an
appropriation  for  the  program, and funding levels for each
district shall be prorated according to  the  amount  of  the
appropriation.   Funding  for  the  program established under
Section 2-3.51 of this Code shall not be reduced in order  to
fund the Continued Reading Improvement Block Grant Program.

    Section  99.   Effective  date.  This Act takes effect on
July 1, 2003.