Public Act 099-0592
 
HB0119 EnrolledLRB099 03606 NHT 23614 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 
14-6.01 and  by adding Section  34-18.49 as follows:
 



    (105 ILCS 5/14-6.01)  (from Ch. 122, par. 14-6.01)



    Sec. 14-6.01. Powers and duties of school boards. School 
boards of
one or more school districts establishing and 
maintaining any of the
educational facilities described in this 
Article shall, in connection
therewith, exercise similar 
powers and duties as are prescribed by law
for the 
establishment, maintenance and management of other recognized

educational facilities. Such school boards shall include only 
eligible
children in the program and shall comply with all the 
requirements of
this Article and all rules and regulations 
established by the State
Board of Education.  Such school boards 
shall accept in part-time
attendance children with 
disabilities of the types
described in Sections
14-1.02 through 
14-1.07 who are enrolled in nonpublic schools.  A
request for 
part-time attendance must be submitted by a parent or
guardian 
of the disabled child and may be made
only to those public

schools located in the district where the child attending the 
nonpublic
school resides; however, nothing in this Section 
shall be construed as
prohibiting an agreement between the 
district where the child resides
and another public school 
district to provide special educational
services if such an 
arrangement is deemed more convenient and
economical. Special 
education and related services must be provided in accordance 
with the student's IEP no later than 10 school attendance days 
after notice is provided to the parents pursuant to Section 
300.503 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations and 
implementing rules adopted by the State Board of Education.  
Transportation for students in part time attendance shall be

provided only if required in the child's individualized 
educational program
on the basis of the child's disabling 
condition or as the
special education
program location may 
require.

    A school board shall publish a public notice in its 
newsletter of
general circulation or in the newsletter of 
another governmental entity of
general circulation in the 
district or if neither is available in the
district, then in a 
newspaper of general circulation in the district, the
right of 
all children with disabilities to a free
appropriate public 
education
as provided under this Code. Such notice shall 
identify the location and
phone number of the office or agent 
of the school district to whom
inquiries should be directed 
regarding the identification, assessment and
placement of such 
children.

    School boards shall immediately provide upon request by any 
person
written materials and other information that indicates 
the specific
policies, procedures, rules and regulations 
regarding the identification,
evaluation or educational 
placement of children with
disabilities under Section
14-8.02 
of the School Code.  Such information shall include information

regarding all rights and entitlements of such children under 
this Code, and
of the opportunity to present complaints with 
respect to any matter
relating to educational placement of the 
student, or the provision of a
free appropriate public 
education and to have an impartial due process
hearing on the 
complaint.  The notice shall inform the parents or guardian
in 
the parents' or guardian's native language, unless it is 
clearly not
feasible to do so, of their rights and all 
procedures available pursuant to
this Act and federal Public 
Law 94-142; it shall be the responsibility of
the State 
Superintendent to develop uniform notices setting forth the

procedures available under this Act and federal Public Law 
94-142, as
amended, to be used by all school boards.  The notice 
shall also inform the
parents or guardian of the availability 
upon request of a list of free or
low-cost legal and other 
relevant services available locally to assist
parents or 
guardians in exercising rights or entitlements under this Code.

    Any parent or guardian who is deaf, or does not normally 
communicate
using spoken English, who participates in a meeting 
with a representative
of a local educational agency for the 
purposes of developing an
individualized educational program 
shall be entitled to the services of
an interpreter.

    No disabled student or, in a school district organized 
under Article 34 of this Code, child with a learning disability 
may be denied promotion,
graduation or a general
diploma on the 
basis of failing a minimal competency test when such failure

can be directly related to the disabling
condition of the 
student.  For the
purpose of this Act, "minimal competency 
testing" is defined as tests which
are constructed to measure 
the acquisition of skills to or beyond a certain
defined 
standard.

    Effective July 1, 1966, high school districts are 
financially
responsible for the education of pupils with 
disabilities who
are residents in their
districts when such 
pupils have reached age 15 but may admit
children with 
disabilities into special educational facilities without

regard to graduation
from the eighth grade after such pupils 
have reached the age of 14 1/2 years.
Upon a disabled pupil's 
attaining the age of 14 1/2 years,
it shall be
the duty of the 
elementary school district in which the pupil resides to
notify 
the high school district in which the pupil resides of the 
pupil's
current eligibility for special education services, of 
the pupil's current
program, and of all evaluation data upon 
which the current program is
based.  After an examination of 
that information the high school district
may accept the 
current placement and all subsequent timelines shall be

governed by the current individualized educational program; or 
the high
school district may elect to conduct its own 
evaluation and
multidisciplinary staff conference and 
formulate its own individualized
educational program, in which 
case the procedures and timelines contained
in Section 14-8.02 
shall apply.

(Source: P.A. 98-219, eff. 8-9-13.)

 
    (105 ILCS 5/34-18.49 new)
    Sec. 34-18.49. Committee on the retention of students.
    (a)  The board may create a committee on the retention of 
students.  The committee shall consist of the general 
superintendent of schools or his or her designee, a district 
administrator who directs student instruction and curriculum, 
a principal from a school of the district, and a teacher from a 
school of the district.
    (b)  Prior to retention in a grade, a school may submit, by 
a date as set by the committee on the retention of students, 
the names of all students determined by the school to not 
qualify for promotion to the next higher grade and the reason 
for that determination.  The committee shall review the school's 
decision to retain with respect to each student and shall make 
a final decision regarding whether or not to retain a 
particular student.  The committee shall take into 
consideration the relevant data and evidence gathered during 
the Response to Intervention process. The committee may vote to 
overturn a retention decision if the committee determines that 
the student should be promoted after examining the student's 
access to remedial assistance, performance, attendance, and 
participation and the resources and facilities provided by the 
school district or due to the student having an undiagnosed 
learning disability.
 
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.