Public Act 102-0406
 
HB0169 EnrolledLRB102 02692 CMG 12695 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 Sections
26-1 and 26-2b as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/26-1)  (from Ch. 122, par. 26-1)
    Sec. 26-1. Compulsory school age; exemptions. Whoever has
custody or control of any child (i) between the ages of 7 and
17 years (unless the child has already graduated from high
school) for school years before the 2014-2015 school year or
(ii) between the ages of 6 (on or before September 1) and 17
years (unless the child has already graduated from high
school) beginning with the 2014-2015 school year shall cause
such child to attend some public school in the district
wherein the child resides the entire time it is in session
during the regular school term, except as provided in Section
10-19.1, and during a required summer school program
established under Section 10-22.33B; provided, that the
following children shall not be required to attend the public
schools:
        1. Any child attending a private or a parochial school
    where children are taught the branches of education taught
    to children of corresponding age and grade in the public
    schools, and where the instruction of the child in the
    branches of education is in the English language;
        2. Any child who is physically or mentally unable to
    attend school, such disability being certified to the
    county or district truant officer by a competent physician
    licensed in Illinois to practice medicine and surgery in
    all its branches, a chiropractic physician licensed under
    the Medical Practice Act of 1987, a licensed advanced
    practice registered nurse, a licensed physician assistant,
    or a Christian Science practitioner residing in this State
    and listed in the Christian Science Journal; or who is
    excused for temporary absence for cause by the principal
    or teacher of the school which the child attends; the
    exemptions in this paragraph (2) do not apply to any
    female who is pregnant or the mother of one or more
    children, except where a female is unable to attend school
    due to a complication arising from her pregnancy and the
    existence of such complication is certified to the county
    or district truant officer by a competent physician;
        3. Any child necessarily and lawfully employed
    according to the provisions of the law regulating child
    labor may be excused from attendance at school by the
    county superintendent of schools or the superintendent of
    the public school which the child should be attending, on
    certification of the facts by and the recommendation of
    the school board of the public school district in which
    the child resides. In districts having part-time
    continuation schools, children so excused shall attend
    such schools at least 8 hours each week;
        4. Any child over 12 and under 14 years of age while in
    attendance at confirmation classes;
        5. Any child absent from a public school on a
    particular day or days or at a particular time of day for
    the reason that he is unable to attend classes or to
    participate in any examination, study, or work
    requirements on a particular day or days or at a
    particular time of day because of religious reasons,
    including the observance of a religious holiday or
    participation in religious instruction, or , because the
    tenets of his religion forbid secular activity on a
    particular day or days or at a particular time of day. Each
    school board shall prescribe rules and regulations
    relative to absences for religious holidays including, but
    not limited to, a list of religious holidays on which it
    shall be mandatory to excuse a child; but nothing in this
    paragraph 5 shall be construed to limit the right of any
    school board, at its discretion, to excuse an absence on
    any other day by reason of the observance of a religious
    holiday. A school board may require the parent or guardian
    of a child who is to be excused from attending school
    because of religious reasons due to the observance of a
    religious holiday to give notice, not exceeding 5 days, of
    the child's absence to the school principal or other
    school personnel. Any child excused from attending school
    under this paragraph 5 shall not be required to submit a
    written excuse for such absence after returning to school.
    A district superintendent shall develop and distribute to
    schools appropriate procedures regarding a student's
    absence for religious reasons, how schools are notified of
    a student's impending absence for religious reasons, and
    the requirements of Section 26-2b of this Code;
        6. Any child 16 years of age or older who (i) submits
    to a school district evidence of necessary and lawful
    employment pursuant to paragraph 3 of this Section and
    (ii) is enrolled in a graduation incentives program
    pursuant to Section 26-16 of this Code or an alternative
    learning opportunities program established pursuant to
    Article 13B of this Code;
        7. A child in any of grades 6 through 12 absent from a
    public school on a particular day or days or at a
    particular time of day for the purpose of sounding "Taps"
    at a military honors funeral held in this State for a
    deceased veteran. In order to be excused under this
    paragraph 7, the student shall notify the school's
    administration at least 2 days prior to the date of the
    absence and shall provide the school's administration with
    the date, time, and location of the military honors
    funeral. The school's administration may waive this 2-day
    notification requirement if the student did not receive at
    least 2 days advance notice, but the student shall notify
    the school's administration as soon as possible of the
    absence. A student whose absence is excused under this
    paragraph 7 shall be counted as if the student attended
    school for purposes of calculating the average daily
    attendance of students in the school district. A student
    whose absence is excused under this paragraph 7 must be
    allowed a reasonable time to make up school work missed
    during the absence. If the student satisfactorily
    completes the school work, the day of absence shall be
    counted as a day of compulsory attendance and he or she may
    not be penalized for that absence; and
        8. Any child absent from a public school on a
    particular day or days or at a particular time of day for
    the reason that his or her parent or legal guardian is an
    active duty member of the uniformed services and has been
    called to duty for, is on leave from, or has immediately
    returned from deployment to a combat zone or
    combat-support postings. Such a student shall be granted 5
    days of excused absences in any school year and, at the
    discretion of the school board, additional excused
    absences to visit the student's parent or legal guardian
    relative to such leave or deployment of the parent or
    legal guardian. In the case of excused absences pursuant
    to this paragraph 8, the student and parent or legal
    guardian shall be responsible for obtaining assignments
    from the student's teacher prior to any period of excused
    absence and for ensuring that such assignments are
    completed by the student prior to his or her return to
    school from such period of excused absence.
(Source: P.A. 99-173, eff. 7-29-15; 99-804, eff. 1-1-17;
100-185, eff. 8-18-17; 100-513, eff. 1-1-18; 100-863, eff.
8-14-18.)
 
    (105 ILCS 5/26-2b)  (from Ch. 122, par. 26-2b)
    Sec. 26-2b. Any child enrolled in a public school who is
unable, because of the observance of a religious holiday, to
attend classes on a particular day or days or at a particular
time of day shall be excused from any examination or any study
or work assignments on such particular day or days or at such
particular time of day. It shall be the responsibility of the
teachers and of the administrative officials of each public
school to make available to each child who is absent from
school because of the observance of a religious holiday an
equivalent opportunity to make up any examination, study or
work requirements which he has missed because of such absence
on any particular day or days or at any particular time of day.
No special fees of any kind shall be charged to the child for
making available to such child such equivalent opportunity. No
adverse or prejudicial effects shall result to any child
because of his availing himself of the provisions of this
Section.
    The provisions of this Section shall apply only if the
rules and regulations of the school board promulgated pursuant
to paragraph 5 of Section 26-1 have been complied with.
(Source: P.A. 84-212.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.

Effective Date: 8/19/2021