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| Public Act 101-0441 | ||||
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AN ACT concerning criminal law.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | ||||
Re-Entering Citizens Civics Education Act. | ||||
Section 5. Definitions. In this Act: | ||||
"Committed person" means a person committed to the | ||||
Department. | ||||
"Commitment" means a judicially determined placement in | ||||
the custody of the Department of Corrections or the Department | ||||
of Juvenile Justice on the basis of conviction or delinquency. | ||||
"Correctional institution or facility" means a Department | ||||
of Corrections or Department of Juvenile Justice building or | ||||
part of a Department of Corrections or Department of Juvenile | ||||
Justice building where committed persons are detained in a | ||||
secure manner.
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"Department" includes the Department of Corrections and | ||||
the Department of Juvenile Justice, unless the text solely | ||||
specifies a particular Department. | ||||
"Detainee" means a committed person in the physical custody | ||||
of the Department of Corrections or the Department of Juvenile | ||||
Justice. | ||||
"Director" includes the Director of the Department of | ||||
Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice unless the | ||
text solely specifies a particular Director. | ||
"Discharge" means the end of a sentence or the final | ||
termination of a detainee's physical commitment to and | ||
confinement in the Department of Corrections or Department of | ||
Juvenile Justice. | ||
"Peer educator" means an incarcerated citizen who is | ||
specifically trained in voting rights education, who shall | ||
conduct voting and civics education workshops for detainees | ||
scheduled for discharge within 12 months. | ||
"Program" means the nonpartisan peer education and | ||
information instruction established by this Act. | ||
"Re-entering citizen" means any United States citizen who | ||
is: 17 years of age or older; in the physical custody of the | ||
Department of Corrections or Department of Juvenile Justice; | ||
and scheduled to be re-entering society within 12 months.
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Section 10. Purpose; program.
The Department of | ||
Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice shall | ||
provide a nonpartisan peer-led civics program throughout the | ||
correctional institutions of this State to teach civics to | ||
soon-to-be released citizens who will be re-entering society. | ||
The goal of the program is to promote the successful | ||
integration of re-entering citizens, promote democracy, and | ||
reduce rates of recidivism within this State. This program | ||
shall coincide with and enhance existing laws to ensure that | ||
re-entering citizens understand their civic responsibility and | ||
know how to secure or regain their right to vote as part of the | ||
exit process.
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Section 15. Curriculum and eligibility. The civics peer | ||
education program shall consist of a rigorous curriculum, and | ||
participants shall be instructed on subjects including, but not | ||
limited to, voting rights, governmental institutions, current | ||
affairs, and simulations of voter registration, election, and | ||
democratic processes. Each workshop shall consist of 3 sessions | ||
that are 90 minutes each and that do not need to be taken | ||
consecutively. The Department must offer re-entering citizens | ||
scheduled to be discharged within 12 months with the civics | ||
peer education program, and each re-entering citizen must | ||
enroll in the program one to 12 months prior to his or her | ||
expected date of release. This workshop must be included in the | ||
standard exit process. The Department should aim to include | ||
this
workshop in conjunction with other pre-release procedures | ||
and movements. Delays in a workshop being provided shall not | ||
cause delays in discharge. Detainees may not be prevented from | ||
attending workshops due to staffing shortages, lockdowns, or to | ||
conflicts with family or legal visits, court dates, medical | ||
appointments, commissary visits, recreational sessions, | ||
dining, work, class, or bathing schedules. In case of conflict | ||
or staffing shortages, re-entering citizens must be given full | ||
opportunity to attend a workshop at a later time. | ||
Section 20. Peer educator training. The civics peer | ||
education program shall be taught by peer educators who are | ||
citizens incarcerated in Department of Corrections and | ||
Department of Juvenile Justice facilities and specially | ||
trained by experienced peer educators and established | ||
nonpartisan civic organizations. Established nonpartisan civic
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organizations may be assisted by area political science or | ||
civics educators at colleges,
universities, and high schools | ||
and by nonpartisan organizations providing re-entry services. | ||
The nonpartisan civic organizations shall provide adequate | ||
training to peer educators on matters including, but not | ||
limited to, voting rights, governmental institutions, current | ||
affairs, and simulations of voter registration, election, and | ||
democratic processes, and shall provide periodic updates to | ||
program content and to peer educators. | ||
Section 25. Voter and civic education program; content. | ||
(a) Program content shall provide the following: | ||
(1) nonpartisan information on voting history | ||
procedures; | ||
(2) nonpartisan definitions of local, State, and | ||
federal governmental
institutions and offices; and | ||
(3) examples and simulations of registration and | ||
voting processes. | ||
(b) Established nonpartisan civic organizations shall | ||
provide periodic updates to program content and, if applicable, | ||
peer educators. Updates shall reflect major relevant changes to | ||
election laws and processes in Illinois. | ||
(c) Program content shall be delivered in the following | ||
manners: | ||
(1) verbally via peer educators; | ||
(2) broadcasts via Department of Corrections and | ||
Department of Juvenile Justice internal television | ||
channels; or | ||
(3) printed information packets. | ||
(d) Peer educators shall disseminate printed information | ||
for voting in the releasee's county, including, but not limited | ||
to, election authorities' addresses, all applicable Internet | ||
websites, and public contact information for all election | ||
authorities. This information shall be compiled into a civics | ||
handbook. The handbook shall also include key information | ||
condensed into a pocket information card. | ||
(e) This information shall also be compiled electronically | ||
and posted on Department of Corrections' website along with the | ||
Department of Corrections' Community Support Advisory Councils | ||
websites. | ||
(f) Department Directors shall ensure that the wardens or | ||
superintendents of all correctional institutions and | ||
facilities visibly post this information on all common areas of | ||
their respective institutions, and shall broadcast the same via | ||
in-house institutional information television channels. | ||
Directors shall ensure that updated information is distributed | ||
in a timely, visible, and accessible manner. | ||
(g) The Director of Corrections shall order, in a clearly | ||
visible area of each parole office within this State, the | ||
posting of a notice stipulating voter eligibility and that | ||
contains the current Internet website address and voter | ||
registration information provided by State Board of Elections | ||
regarding voting rights for citizens released from the custody | ||
of the Department. | ||
(h) All program content and materials shall be distributed | ||
annually to the Community Support Advisory Councils of the | ||
Department of Corrections for use in re-entry programs across | ||
this State.
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Section 30. Power of the Department. The Department of | ||
Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice shall adopt | ||
rules to carry out this Act within 6 months after the effective | ||
date of this Act. | ||
Section 35. Funding. The funding for the voting rights and | ||
registration peer education program shall be subject to | ||
appropriation by the General Assembly. The Department may use | ||
private or federal funding to administer the program, | ||
including, but not limited to, funds from the United States | ||
Department of Justice. | ||
Section 40. Voter and civic education program monitoring | ||
and enforcement.
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(a) The Director of Corrections and the Director of | ||
Juvenile Justice shall ensure that wardens or superintendents, | ||
program, educational, and security and movement staff permit | ||
these workshops to take place, and that re-entering citizens | ||
are escorted to workshops in a consistent and timely manner. | ||
(b) Compliance with this Act shall be monitored by a report | ||
published annually by the Department of Corrections and the | ||
Department of Juvenile Justice and containing data, including | ||
numbers of re-entering citizens who enrolled in the program, | ||
numbers of re-entering citizens who completed the program, and | ||
total numbers of individuals discharged. Data shall be | ||
disaggregated by institution, discharge, or residence address | ||
of citizen, and other factors.
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Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect on | ||
January 1, 2020.
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