Rep. Kelly Cassidy

Amends the School Code. In a provision concerning twice-exceptional children, changes references from "children" to "students" and defines "twice-exceptional student". Provides that in the development of an individualized education program (IEP) or federal Section 504 plan for a twice-exceptional student, if the student's ability or achievement indicates that the student would benefit from advanced academic programs, then those abilities or achievement levels shall be recognized and addressed in the student's IEP or Section 504 plan and be reflected in the individualized services, goals, accommodations, and objectives for the student, while continuing to provide appropriate services and support for the student's disabilities in all educational settings. Sets forth what the services, goals, objectives, accommodations, and best practices for identifying and addressing the educational and related needs of a twice-exceptional student may include. Effective immediately.

Amends the Environmental Protection Act. Provides that, beginning January 1, 2027, upon receipt of certain air pollution control construction permit applications, the Environmental Protection Agency shall evaluate (i) whether the applicable source falls within an area of environmental justice concern and, if so, notify specified persons; (ii) whether emissions can be reduced or limited; (iii) whether additional air quality modeling is needed; and (iv) whether specified permit enhancements are needed. Requires the Agency's permitting decisions to be informed by the applicant's history of violations of environmental laws and other factors. Allows the Agency to adopt rules. Amends the Environmental Justice Act. Establishes the Office of Environmental Justice within the Environmental Protection Agency to coordinate the integration of environmental justice into Agency programs and for other purposes. Requires the Director of the Environmental Protection Agency to appoint an Environmental Justice Officer to administer the Office of Environmental Justice. Effective immediately.

Amends the Community Emergency Services and Support Act. Replaces all references to the Division of Mental Health of the Department of Human Services with the Department of Human Services throughout the Act. Provides that 9-1-1 public safety answering points shall screen specific types of law enforcement calls and follow approved protocols and processes under the Act to identify callers experiencing behavioral health crises and to refer them for a behavioral health response. Provides that 9-1-1 public safety answering points shall open and follow the emergency medical dispatch protocols established under the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Systems Act at the start of all emergency calls to ensure the protocols are used and applied consistently and uniformly to ensure that information related to behavioral health emergency calls is available for data collection and can be used to determine which calls should be referred for a behavioral health response. Provides that, among other things, each Regional Advisory Committee or subregional committee must (1) review regional and subregional crisis response system capacities and resources to inform planning and implementation and to foster collaboration across all sectors of the system and (2) determine the need for and make a plan to support local communities to develop and use other resources to create additional mobile mental health relief provider services to expand the capacity to provide more immediate service coverage. Amends the Emergency Telephone System Act. Provides that, beginning July 1, 2027, all public safety answering points shall use the protocols established under the Community Emergency Services and Support Act to identify behavioral and mental health-related emergencies that do not require a law enforcement response. Amends the Illinois State Police Law. Amends the Illinois Police Training Act. Provides that Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training programs shall include, among other things, community response options including, the community response options under the Community Emergency Services and Support Act. Makes other changes.

Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Requires every insurer to provide in each group or individual policy, contract, or certificate of insurance issued or renewed for persons who are residents of the State, coverage for screening by low-dose mammography for all patients 30 (instead of 35) years of age or older for the presence of occult breast cancer within the provisions of the policy, contract, or certificate. Requires coverage for a baseline mammogram for patients 30 to 34 (instead of 35 to 39) years of age and an annual mammogram for patients 35 (instead of 40) years of age or older. Effective January 1, 2027.

Amends the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963. Provides that a petitioner may not be denied a protective order because the petitioner or the respondent is a minor or solely upon the basis that the respondent or petitioner is incarcerated in a penal institution at the time of the issuance of the order. Amends the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986. Provides that a petition for an order of protection may be filed by: (i) a crime victim who was abused by an family or household member before the incarceration of the offender in a penal institution, and the offender is incarcerated in a penal institution at the time of the filing of the petition; or (ii) any person who has previously suffered abuse by a family or household member convicted of domestic battery, aggravated domestic battery, aggravated battery; any other offense that would constitute domestic violence; or a violent crime as defined in the Rights of Crime Victims and Witnesses Act committed against another person. Effective immediately.

Amends the Department of Professional Regulation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Provides that a licensee shall not receive continuing education credit toward the renewal of a professional license for any continuing education course, program, seminar, instruction, webinar, or other educational activity that promotes, instructs, or provides guidance on the performance of prohibited services, treatments, practices, or procedures. Provides that a determination of whether continuing education credit is permitted under the amendatory Act shall occur only in the course of a continuing education audit or license renewal audit conducted by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. Provides that approval by the Department of a continuing education provider or continuing education course does not supersede the provisions of the amendatory Act. Provides that nothing in the amendatory Act shall be construed to require the Department to proactively review, pre-approve, evaluate, monitor, or otherwise assess continuing education content restrictions under the amendatory Act outside of an audit process. Effective January 1, 2027.

Amends the Department of Professional Regulation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. In provisions concerning implicit bias awareness training, provides that, on and after January 1, 2027, a course covering the topics of perimenopause and menopause may count toward the requirement that a health care professional who has continuing education requirements complete at least a one-hour course in training on implicit bias awareness per renewal period. Defines "menopause" and "perimenopause". Effective January 1, 2027.

Amends the Job Opportunities for Qualified Applicants Act. Provides that, unless driving is an essential job function or is related to a legitimate business purpose for a position, an employer or employment agency shall not: (1) refuse to hire, segregate, or act with respect to recruitment, hiring, promotion, renewal of employment, selection for training or apprenticeship, discharge, discipline, tenure or terms, or privileges or conditions of employment on the basis of an applicant or employee not possessing a driver's license; or (2) include a statement in a posting for a job opening for the position that an applicant must have a valid driver's license. Defines "driver's license". Effective January 1, 2027.

Amends the Equitable Restrooms Act. Provides that the owner or operator of each State-owned building and the owner or operator of each public building (rather than only the owner or operator of each State-owned building) shall (1) ensure that one or more of the public restrooms is designated as an adult changing station, with certain requirements, (2) maintain, repair, and replace each adult changing table as necessary, (3) clean each adult changing station with the same frequency as the other public restrooms, and (4) provide sufficient floor space to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Provides that the owner or operator of each State-owned building and the owner or operator of each public building (rather than only the owner or operator of each State-owned building) shall ensure that the entrance to each restroom has conspicuous signage and that the central directory for the building, if it exists, indicates the location. Provides that any public building or State-owned building that is constructed on or after January 1, 2029, and any public building or State-owned building with an estimated renovation cost of at least $10,000 that requires the issuance of a building permit for the renovation and that is renovated on or after January 1, 2031, must contain and provide access to not less than one powered, height adjustable, adult changing table, installed per the manufacturer's recommendations, in a single occupancy restroom that is universal to gender and available to the public. Adds and changes definitions.

Amends the Unified Code of Corrections. Provides that information published annually on the Department of Corrections website about hospice and palliative care in its institutions and facilities during the prior fiscal year shall include the cost of the Department's end-of-life care for committed persons who died of natural causes and were not in hospice or palliative care programs.