Rep. Randy Frese

Creates the Illinois Veterans' Home in Quincy Foundation Act. Authorizes the Secretary of State to create the Illinois Veterans' Home in Quincy Foundation. Provides further requirements concerning the establishment of the Foundation. Provides for officers of the Foundation. Provides that funds collected by the Foundation shall be used for private partnership projects that will support renovations to the Illinois Veterans Home in Quincy campus, Dudley House, and domiciliary buildings. Provides further requirements concerning Foundation funds. Provides for the adoption of rules. Provides purpose provisions.

Amends the School Code. Allows a school district to utilize a remote learning day instead of an emergency day provided for in the school calendar. Provides that the number of remote learning days used in a school year may not exceed the number of emergency days provided for in the school calendar and the district superintendent must approve a remote learning plan for the district before the district may utilize a remote learning day. Sets forth what the plan must address, the term of approval, and how the plan must be posted. Sets forth district requirements. Allows statutory and regulatory curricular mandates and offerings to be administered via remote learning, allows for electronic communication for instruction and interaction between educators and students, and provides for rulemaking. Makes related changes. Effective July 1, 2021. Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Deletes reference to: 105 ILCS 5/34-18.67 new Adds reference to: 105 ILCS 5/34-18.66a new Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Reinserts the contents of the bill with the following changes. Requires a school district to pay to its employees who provide educational support services to the district their daily, regular rate of pay and benefits rendered for any remote learning day if the remote learning day precludes them from performing their regularly scheduled duties and they would have reported for work but for the remote learning day. Requires a school district to make full payment that would have otherwise been paid to its contractors who provide educational support services to the district of their daily, regular rate of pay and benefits rendered for any remote learning day if the remote learning day precludes them from performing their regularly scheduled duties and they would have reported for work but for the remote learning day. Provides that the employees who provide the support services covered by such contracts shall be paid their daily bid package rates and benefits as defined by their local operating agreements or collective bargaining agreements. Provides for an exception to paying employees and contractors of a school district who provide educational support services for a remote learning day if the day is rescheduled and the employees or contractors will be paid their daily, regular rate of pay and benefits on the rescheduled day when services are rendered. Changes the effective date from July 1, 2021 to July 1, 2022. Senate Committee Amendment No. 2 Provides that a remote learning day may also be utilized because a school was selected to be a polling place.

Amends the Illinois Power Agency Act. In provisions concerning the renewable portfolio standards, specifies the goals for procurement of renewable energy credits and cost-effective renewable energy resources that shall be included in the long-term renewable resources procurement plan and makes other changes concerning these procurements and provides for the calculation of the cost of equity for the purposes of recovering all reasonable and prudently incurred costs of energy efficiency measures from retail customers. Provides that savings of fuels other than electricity achieved by measures that educate about, incentivize, encourage, or otherwise support the use of electricity to power vehicles shall count towards the applicable annual incremental goal and shall not be included in determining certain limits. Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that an electric utility that serves less than 3,000,000 retail customers but more than 500,000 customers in this State may plan for, construct, install, control, own, manage, or operate photovoltaic electricity production facilities and any energy storage facilities that are planned for, constructed, installed, controlled, owned, managed, or operated in connection with photovoltaic electricity production facilities without obtaining a certificate of public convenience and necessity subject to specified terms and conditions. Provides that a public utility that provided electric service to at least 1,000,000 retail customers in Illinois and gas service to at least 500,000 retail customers in Illinois may elect to recover its natural gas delivery services costs through a performance-based rate. Provides that, beginning in 2022, without obtaining any approvals from the Commission or any other agency, regardless of whether any such approval would otherwise be required, a participating utility that is a combination utility shall pay $1,000,000 per year for 10 years to the energy low-income and support program. Adds provisions authorizing certain utilities to plan for, construct, install, control, own, manage, or operate electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Amends the Prevailing Wage Act to include specified facilities financed in whole or in part with renewable energy resources in the definition of "public works". Makes other changes. Effective immediately.

Creates the Rebuild Illinois Mental Health Workforce Act. Provides that the purpose of the Act is to preserve and expand access to Medicaid community mental health care in Illinois to prevent unnecessary hospitalizations and avoid the criminalization of mental health conditions. Establishes add-on payments for the following community mental health services to be paid beginning with State Fiscal Year 2023 and continuing for each State fiscal year thereafter: individual therapy services; community support-individual services; case management services; and assertive community treatment services. Requires monthly directed payments to community mental health providers of community support team services or assertive community treatment services. Provides that such directed payments shall be based on the number of Medicaid users, as defined, who receive services from the provider in the base year. Provides that the add-on payments established under the Act shall apply to Medicaid services provided by a contracted managed care organization or entity and services paid for directly by the Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Provides that no base Medicaid rate or Medicaid rate add-on payment or any other payment for the provision of Medicaid community mental health services in place on July 1, 2021 shall be diminished or changed to make the reimbursement changes required under the Act. Requires the Department to apply for federal approval to implement the Act. Provides that implementation of the add-on payments is conditioned on the receipt of federal financial participation for such payments. Effective immediately.

Amends the Vital Records Act. Provides that "certifying health care professional" includes a physician assistant. Defines "physician assistant". Provides that in the absence of a certifying health care professional or with his or her approval, a medical certification may be completed and signed by a physician assistant.

Amends the Wildlife Code. Provides that resident and nonresident landowners shall complete a landowner permit application and submit proof of eligible land ownership to the Department of Natural Resources once every 5 years.

Declares the month of October 2021 as Hindu Heritage Month in the State of Illinois.

Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Reduces the trailer flat weight tax for maximum loads of 3,000 pounds and less from $118 to $18. Effective immediately.

Amends the School Code. Provides that a school board may allow the motto "In God We Trust" to be displayed in a conspicuous location inside or outside each school building.

Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Provides that no person may possess a vehicle security circumvention device if he or she has previously been convicted of specified felonies under the Code. Provides that only a mechanic, a licensed new or used vehicle dealer, a licensed locksmith, a repossession agent, or a State or local law enforcement officer may possess a vehicle security circumvention device. Provides that any seller of a vehicle security circumvention device shall: (1) conduct a criminal background check on a buyer before completing the sale; and (2) confirm that the buyer may lawfully possess a vehicle security circumvention device before completing the sale. Provides criminal penalties. House Floor Amendment No. 1 Replaces everything after the enacting clause with the provisions of the introduced bill, and makes the following changes: allows employees of facilities subject to the Automotive Repair Act and Automotive Collision Repair Act (instead of mechanics) to possess a vehicle security circumvention device; specifies that language prohibiting the possession or sale of vehicle security circumvention devices by or to persons convicted of certain felonies applies only with respect to convictions within the previous 5 years.