Amends the School Code. Beginning with the 2017-2018 school year, allows public schools to include in their curriculum, for students in grades 3 through 12, a course in the history and literature of the Old Testament era and a course in the history and literature of the New Testament era. Provides that the purpose of such courses shall be to teach and study the Old and New Testaments and to familiarize students with the contents of the Old and New Testaments, the history recorded by the Old and New Testaments, the literary style and structure of the Old and New Testaments, the customs and cultures of the peoples and societies recorded in the Old and New Testaments, and the influence of the Old and New Testaments upon law, history, government, literature, art, music, customs, morals, values, and culture. Requires the State Board of Education to adopt a curriculum for each course. Sets forth provisions concerning course requirements, personnel, and monitoring. Effective immediately.
Sponsored bills
Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Creates an income tax checkoff to allow taxpayers to make contributions to Special Olympics Illinois and Special Children's Charities. Effective immediately.
Creates the Family Leave Insurance Program Act. Requires the Department of Labor to establish and administer a Family Leave Insurance Program that provides family leave insurance benefits to eligible employees who take unpaid family leave to care for a newborn child, a newly adopted or newly placed foster child, or a family member with a serious health condition. Sets forth eligibility requirements for benefits under the Act including that the employee must (i) establish that he or she has been employed for at least 680 hours in employment during the employee's qualifying year and (ii) document that he or she has provided the employer with written notice of the employee's intention to take family leave. Defines "employer" to mean (a) any person, partnership, corporation, association, or other business entity that employs 50 or more employees for each working day during each of 20 or more calendar workweeks in the year in which the leave is to be taken or in the year immediately preceding the year in which the leave is to be taken; and (b) the State of Illinois and any other unit of local government. Contains provisions concerning disqualification from benefits; premium payments; the amount and duration of benefits; the recovery of erroneous payments; hearings; defaulted premium payments; elective coverage; employment protection; coordination of family leave; defined terms; and other matters. Amends the State Finance Act. Creates the Family Leave Insurance Account Fund.
Amends the Hospital Licensing Act and the University of Illinois Hospital Act. Provides that if a hospital, including the University of Illinois Hospital, makes electronic personal health records available to its patients, then the hospital shall provide information about the availability of those electronic personal health records to every patient prior to the patient's discharge and shall conspicuously post information about the availability of those electronic personal health records. Effective immediately.
Resolves that the House of Representatives does not support reductions in Medicaid coverage or benefits.
Creates the Task Force on Mental Health Diagnosis within Illinois Law to (1) thoroughly survey the Illinois Compiled Statutes and Illinois Administrative Code to identify all instances in which laws and government functions depend upon purported understanding of mental illness or disorder, mental capacity, mental health, behavior or psychology, which may have been recently discredited or found to be incorrect or seriously called into question; (2) forward initial recommendations of urgent legislative actions which may be needed to avoid gross injustice or waste of public resources to the General Assembly as soon as possible; and (3) produce a final report summarizing the task force's findings and detailing recommended statutory or constitutional strategies to recognize best practices and highlight any areas of major disagreement within the profession. Provides that the task force shall submit a final report by December 31, 2016.
Amends the Minimum Wage Law. Increases the minimum wage to $15 per hour on October 1, 2015. Effective immediately.
Amends the School Code. Provides that the Chicago Board of Education shall require that schools provide daily recess for all students in kindergarten through grade 8. Provides that a recess must be at least 10 minutes in length. Provides that if the principal determines that the weather is inclement, the principal shall direct that a recess be held indoors. Requires the principal to ensure that students are given the opportunity to engage in physical exercise during each recess. Provides that the time required for recesses is included in the minimum number of hours necessary to constitute a full day of attendance under the State aid formula provisions.
Creates the Peace Officer and Private Security Contractor Chokehold Prohibition Act. Provides that a peace officer, private security contractor, or registered employee of a private security contractor agency may not apply a chokehold in the performance of his or her duties, unless faced with a situation in which the use of deadly force is justified under the Justifiable Use of Force; Exoneration Article of the Criminal Code of 2012. Provides that a peace officer who applies a chokehold in violation of the Act shall be discharged from his or her employment with the law enforcement agency that employed the peace officer. Provides that the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation shall revoke the license of a private security contractor who applies a chokehold in violation of the Act. Provides that the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation shall revoke the permanent employee registration card of a registered employee of a private security contractor agency who applies a chokehold in violation of the Act. Provides that any person injured, or the next of kin of a person killed, by a peace officer, private security contractor, or registered employee of a private security contractor agency from applying a chokehold in violation of the Act shall be entitled to: (1) all actual damages against the peace officer, private security contractor, or registered employee of a private security contractor agency for applying a chokehold in violation of the Act or his or her employer, or both; and (2) any punitive damages which may be awarded by the court or by a jury. Provides that the action must be brought within 2 years after the discovery of the injury or death resulting from a violation of the Act. Defines "chokehold". Amends the Private Detective, Private Alarm, Private Security, Fingerprint Vendor, and Locksmith Act of 2004 to make conforming changes. Effective immediately.
Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Allows a driver operating a motor vehicle transporting children to secure 2 children in one seat belt when there are more children of the appropriate age in the vehicle than available seat belts. Amends the Child Passenger Protection Act. Allows a person transporting children in a motor vehicle to secure 2 children in one seat belt when there are more children of the appropriate age in the vehicle than available seat belts.