July 29, 2011

To the Honorable Members of the Illinois Senate,

97^th General Assembly:

In accordance with Section 9(e) of the Illinois Constitution of 1970, I hereby return Senate Bill 1744 with a specific recommendation for change.

I commend the sponsors of this bill on their efforts to increase the amount of quality education children in Illinois  receive by requiring the first and last days of school to be no less than five clock hours.         

However, after hearing from many interested parties regarding this legislation, it is necessary for me to return this bill with recommended changes.  With the school year set to begin shortly, the calendar for the 2011-2012 school year has already been set.  While I am supportive of the goal and intentions of this legislation, requiring schools to upset the established calendar at this late date will impose hardship on students, teachers, and parents. Accordingly, a change to the effective date of this bill will afford school districts in the state the proper time to set their school calendars and allow this legislation to fully benefit the children of the state of Illinois. 

Therefore, pursuant to Article IV, Section 9(e) of the Illinois Constitution of 1970, I hereby return Senate Bill 1744, entitled “AN ACT concerning education.”, with the following specific recommendation for change:

on page 41, by replacing lines 23 and 24  with the following: 

 “Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1, 2012.”.

With this change, Senate Bill 1744 will have my approval.  I respectfully request your concurrence.

Sincerely,

PAT QUINN

Governor