Rep. Theresa Mah

Creates the Vocational Academy Opportunity Act. Creates 2 vocational academies, one located in Cook County and the other in a downstate county, which shall be residential institutions. Provides that each academy shall be a State agency, funded by State appropriations, private contributions, and endowments. Provides that the academies shall be governed by a single Board of Trustees for the collective operation and oversight of the academies. Provides for the membership of the Board. Specifies the duties and powers of the Board. Provides that each academy shall be empowered to lease or purchase real and personal property on commercially reasonable terms for the use by the academy. Fiscal Note, House Floor Amendment No. 1 (State Board of Education) House Bill 27 (H-AM 1) would increase the Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) gap to adequacy. EBF provides funding to two existing laboratory schools. Based on the fiscal year 2019 EBF calculations, the Final Adequacy Target for the two existing non-residential laboratory schools, adjusted for regionalization, averaged nearly $10,700 per student. This fiscal note assumes that each new vocational academy would have an average student enrollment of 250 students per grade or 750 per school. Based on the FY19 EBF calculations mentioned above, the estimated state resources needed for the EBF formula would be $7.2 million for each vocational school to be funded at 90% adequacy for a total of $14.4 million. The bill does not provide a mechanism for the new school districts to receive a Base Funding Minimum from EBF for the new vocational schools. This bill would also impact EBF Tier funding amounts received by other school districts in the future as a result of reduced enrollment for a school district that has a pupil enroll in one of the new vocational academies. The bill also has an inconsistency with the definition Of "Average Student Enrollment" in Section 18-8.15 of the School Code. This estimate does not include construction costs nor the operational costs of housing students in a residential facility as the bill authorizes the school districts to use a cost recovery fee for these costs. The fiscal impact to the Illinois State Board of Education's operating budget cannot be determined at this time but there will be operational costs to comply with the provisions of House Bill 27 (H-AM 1). Fiscal Note, House Floor Amendment No. 2 (State Board of Education) House Bill 27 (H-AM 2) creates the Vocational Academy Opportunity Act and four public vocational academies which shall also be residential institutions. The bill provides that each academy shall be its own school district and funded as a laboratory school from the Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) formula The local capacity percentage for these new vocational academies in the EBF formula would be set at 10% in the absence of local tax resources. House Bill 27 (H-AM 2) would increase the EBF gap to adequacy. EBF provides funding to two existing laboratory schools. Based on the fiscal year 2019 EBF calculations, the Final Adequacy Target for the two existing non-residential laboratory schools, adjusted for regionalization, averaged nearly $I0,700 per student. This fiscal note assumes that each new vocational academy would have an average student enrollment of 250 students per grade or 750 per school. Based on the FY19. EBF calculations mentioned above, the estimated state resources needed for the EBF formula would be $7.2 million for each vocational school to be funded at 90% adequacy for a total of $28.8 million. The bill does not provide a mechanism for the new school districts to receive a Base Funding Minimum from EBF for the new vocational schools. This bill would also impact EBF Tier funding amounts received by other school districts in the future as a result of reduced enrollment for a school district that has a pupil enroll in one of the new vocational academies. The bill also has an inconsistency with the definition of "Average Student Enrollment" in Section 18-8.15 of the School Code. This estimate does not include construction costs nor the operational costs of housing students in a residential facility as the bill authorizes the school districts to use a cost recovery fee for these costs. The fiscal impact to the Illinois State Board of Education's operating budget cannot be determined at this time but there will be operational costs to comply with the provisions of House Bill 27 (H-AM 2).

Amends the Child Care Act of 1969. Provides that the owner of a day care center that receives State funds directly or through a grantee may not close the day care center unless the owner: gives at least 90 days' written notice of the proposed closure to the parent or guardian of each child attending the day care center; advises the parent or guardian of at least 2 meetings to elicit comment from parents or guardians on the proposed closure; attends the meetings or designates managerial personnel to attend the meetings. Provides that the owner or managerial personnel attending the meetings must be prepared to discuss alternatives to closure or delay of the closure to give parents or guardians additional time to secure alternative day care arrangements. Provides that failure to comply with those requirements is a violation of the Act for which the Department of Children and Family Services may impose any appropriate penalty or grant any appropriate remedy. Provides that the new provisions do not apply to closure by the Department because continued operation would jeopardize the health, safety, morals, or welfare of children. Effective immediately.

Creates the Racial Impact Note Act. Provides that every bill which has or could have a disparate impact on racial and ethnic minorities, upon the request of any member, shall have prepared for it, before second reading in the house of introduction, a brief explanatory statement or note that shall include a reliable estimate of the anticipated impact on those racial and ethnic minorities likely to be impacted by the bill. Specifies the contents and provides for the preparation of each racial impact note. Amends the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act. Prohibits racial discrimination and harassment by State officers and employees. Provides that each State officer and employee shall annually complete a racial bias, discrimination, and harassment training program approved by the appropriate jurisdictional authority. Expands the jurisdiction of the Executive Ethics Commission to include allegations of racial discrimination and harassment by persons registered under the Lobbyist Registration Act. Provides that the personnel policies of units of local government shall prohibit racial discrimination and harassment. Defines "racial discrimination and harassment". Provides for rulemaking, including emergency rulemaking. Amends the Secretary of State Act. Provides the Secretary of State's Inspector General with jurisdiction to investigate complaints of racial discrimination and harassment by persons registered under the Lobbyist Registration Act. Amends the Lobbyist Registration Act. Prohibits racial discrimination and harassment by persons registered under the Lobbyist Registration Act. Provides that each registered lobbyist shall annually complete a racial bias, discrimination, and harassment training program approved by the Secretary of State. Defines "racial discrimination and harassment". Amends the Illinois Human Rights Act. Requires the Department of Human Rights to establish a racial discrimination and harassment hotline for the anonymous reporting of racial discrimination and harassment in both public and private places of employment, and to provide for reporting by both telephone and Internet. Amends the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act to provide for emergency rulemaking. Effective immediately.

Amends the evidence-based funding provisions of the School Code. Provides that funds received by the Chicago school district for low-income, English learner, and special education resources must be distributed to every school of the district in the appropriate amount specified under the Essential Elements component of the funding formula. Makes technical changes having a revisory function. Effective July 1, 2020.

Amends the Good Samaritan Act. Changes the definition of "free medical clinic". Provides that the immunity from civil damages applies to the free clinic entity itself. Provides that a free medical clinic may receive reimbursement from the Department of Public Aid only if any reimbursements are used to pay overhead expenses of operating the free medical clinic and may not be used to provide a fee or other compensation to any person licensed under the Medical Practice Act of 1987 or any other health care professional who receives an exemption. Provides that any health care professional who receives an exemption may not receive any fee or other compensation in connection with any services provided to, or any ownership interest in, the clinic. Contains applicability provisions.

Amends the Early Intervention Services System Act. Provides that, for State fiscal years 2020 through 2022, the Department of Human Services shall increase reimbursement rates for early intervention services and related services by 3% each State fiscal year; except that, for State fiscal years 2020 through 2022, the Department of Human Services shall increase reimbursement rates for developmental therapy services by 6% each State fiscal year. Effective immediately.

Amends the Employment Article of the Illinois Human Rights Act. Provides that "citizenship status" includes, among other things, the status of being a person who is authorized by the federal government to work in the United States. Provides that it is a civil rights violation for an employer, for purposes of complying with federal employment eligibility requirements, to refuse to honor work authorization based upon the specific status or term of status that accompanies the authorization to work. Effective immediately.

Creates the No Representation Without Population Act. Provides that the Department of Corrections shall collect and maintain an electronic record of the legal residence, outside of any correctional facility, and other demographic data for each person entering its custody after January 1, 2019. Provides for the minimum records that the Department shall maintain. Requires the Department to provide certain information to the Secretary of State after the decennial census. Requires the Secretary of State to request similar information from agencies that operate federal incarceration facilities. Requires the Secretary of State to prepare redistricting data to reflect the incarcerated persons at their residential address, rather than the address of the facility in which the person is incarcerated. Provides that for persons for whom a legal residence is unknown or not in the State, and for all persons reported in the census as residing in a federal correctional facility for whom a report was not provided, the Secretary of State to allocate the person to a State unit not tied to a specific determined geographic location, as other residents with unknown addresses are allocated. Requires the data collected to only be used as a basis for determining Legislative and Representative Districts. Prohibits the use of the data for the distribution of State or federal aid. Contains severability provisions. Effective immediately.

Creates the Local Accessory Dwelling Unit Act. Defines terms. Provides that a unit of local government may not prohibit the building or usage of accessory dwelling units in the unit of local government. Provides that a unit of local government may provide reasonable regulations relating to the size and location of accessory dwelling units similar to other accessory structures unless a regulation would have the effect of prohibiting accessory dwelling units. Limits home rule powers.

Creates the Right to Garden Act. Allows the State or a unit of local government to regulate gardens on residential property unless the statute or regulation has the practical effect of precluding gardens on residential property entirely. Defines the terms "garden" and "residential property". Limits home rule powers. Effective immediately.