Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Provides that a group or individual policy of accident and health insurance or managed care plan that is amended, delivered, issued, or renewed on or after January 1, 2023 shall provide coverage for medically necessary breast reduction surgery. Makes conforming changes in the State Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971, the Counties Code, the Illinois Municipal Code, the School Code, the Health Maintenance Organization, the Limited Health Service Organization Act, and the Voluntary Health Services Plans Act. House Committee Amendment No. 1 Provides that a group or individual policy of accident and health insurance or a managed care plan that is amended, delivered, issued, or renewed on or after January 1, 2024 (rather than January 1, 2023) shall provide coverage for medically necessary breast reduction surgery. Makes grammatical changes.
Sponsored bills
Amends the School Code. Provides that a substitute teacher may teach up to 120 (instead of 90) school days for any one licensed teacher under contract in the same school year. Effective immediately. Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Provides that substitute teachers may teach up to 120 school days beginning with the 2021-2022 school year through the 2022-2023 school year.
Amends the Educator Licensure Article of the School Code. Requires the State Board of Education to issue a substitute teaching license to those individuals enrolled in a regionally accredited institution of higher education who have earned at least 60 credits and are enrolled in an Illinois-approved educator preparation program. House Floor Amendment No. 1 Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Amends the Educator Licensure Article of the School Code. Instead of requiring an applicant for a Substitute Teaching License to hold a bachelor's degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution of higher education, allows an applicant to be enrolled in an approved educator preparation program in this State and have earned at least 90 credit hours.
Amends the Illinois Pension Code. In the Downstate Teacher Article, provides that beginning July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022, to assist with addressing the substitute teacher shortage that has been exacerbated by the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic and public health emergency, an annuitant may accept employment as a teacher without impairing his or her retirement status if that employment is not within the school year during which service was terminated and does not exceed 140 paid days (rather than 120 paid days) or 700 paid hours (rather than 600 paid hours) in each school year, but not more than 100 paid days in the same classroom. In the Chicago Teacher Article, provides that the service retirement pension shall not be cancelled in the case of a service retirement pensioner who is re-employed as a teacher or administrator (rather than a teacher) on a temporary and non-annual basis or on an hourly basis, so long as the person (1) does not work as a teacher or administrator (rather than a teacher) for compensation on more than 120 days in a school year or (2) in the case of a person who retires with at least 5 years of service as a principal or administrator, does not work as a teacher or administrator for compensation on more than 140 days in a school year. Removes a limitation on the amount of gross compensation a service retirement pensioner may receive for such re-employment without having the service retirement pension cancelled. Effective immediately. House Floor Amendment No. 4 Deletes reference to: 40 ILCS 5/17-149 Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Amends the Downstate Teacher Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Provides that during the period between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022, an additional 20 paid days or 100 paid hours shall be added to a provision that authorizes an annuitant to accept employment for a certain number of paid days or paid hours as a teacher without impairing his or her retirement status. Effective immediately.
Amends the Educator Licensure Article of the School Code. Provides that a paraprofessional educator endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations may be issued to an applicant who is at least 18 years of age and will be using the Educator License with Stipulations exclusively for elementary education. Makes a corresponding change. Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Reinserts the contents of the bill, but allows a paraprofessional educator endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations to be issued to an applicant who is at least 18 years of age only until the individual reaches the age of 19 years and otherwise meets the criteria for a paraprofessional educator endorsement.
Amends the School Code. Provides that an individual holding a Short-Term Substitute Teaching License may teach up to 15 (instead of 5) consecutive days per licensed teacher who is under contract. Provides that a school district may hire an individual holding a Short-Term Substitute Teaching License for teacher absences lasting 6 or more days per licensed teacher who is under contract, if the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency. Effective immediately.
Amends the Educator Licensure Article of the School Code. Provides for the reinstatement of a lapsed Professional Educator License upon the payment by the applicant of a $50 penalty (rather than a $500 penalty). Effective immediately. House Floor Amendment No. 1 Provides that licensees who are retired and qualify for benefits from a State of Illinois retirement system shall be listed as retired (instead of shall notify the State Board of Education using the Educator Licensure Information System (ELIS)). Provides that if a licensee retires during a renewal cycle, the license status must be updated using ELIS indicating that the licensee wishes to maintain the license in retired status (instead of requiring the licensee to notify the State Board of Education using ELIS that the licensee wishes to maintain the license in retired status). Provides that an individual with a license in retired status shall not be required to complete professional development activities (rather than shall not be required to complete professional development activities or pay registration fees) until returning to a position that requires educator licensure. Provides that upon returning to work in a position that requires a Professional Educator License, the license status shall immediately be updated using ELIS (instead of the licensee shall immediately pay a registration fee). Provides that a retired teacher, even if returning to a position that requires educator licensure, shall not be required to pay registration fees.
Directs the Professional Review Panel and Illinois State Board of Education to conduct the rigorous analysis and financial modeling required to evaluate the potential value, impact, and financial implications of implementing the findings in the PRP Ad-Hoc Committee's report related to adjusting the Evidence-Based Funding formula's calculations in order to more accurately reflect the costs of supporting students exposed to trauma and living in concentrated poverty (Charge B) as well as to close racial equity gaps in opportunity and outcomes (Charges C and H) by November 30, 2022. Calls on the Professional Review Panel to complete the study and development of findings related to re-enrolling students who have dropped out of school by the extended deadline included within the PRP Ad-Hoc Committee report of December 31, 2022. Urges the Illinois State Board of Education to complete their revision of the district spending plans template and requirements and annually make all districts' spending plans publicly available on the Illinois State Board of Education's website starting with Fiscal Year 2023 by January 2023.
Urges the Performance Evaluation Advisory Council (PEAC) to initiate and complete a research study into the implementation of teacher evaluation in Illinois, gather feedback from stakeholders state-wide, review best practice from other states, and use that research to inform a set of policy recommendations that would address any identified challenges while preserving the core benefits of PERA's robust evaluation system with an interim report to the legislature by December 31, 2022 that includes a full timeline for report creation, including a plan for gathering stakeholder feedback, with a final report to be given to the legislature by December 31, 2023. Further urges the PEAC convene to initiate discussion on this charge by April 30, 2022. Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Deletes everything. Inserts new language that calls upon the Performance Evaluation Advisory Council (PEAC) to initiate and complete a research study performed by an educational research organization that is not a state agency to examine the implementation of teacher evaluation in Illinois, gather feedback from stakeholders state-wide, and review best practice from other states. Urges PEAC to use that research to inform a set of policy recommendations that would address any identified challenges while preserving the core benefits of PERA's robust evaluation system with an interim report urged to be delivered to the legislature by January 16, 2023 that includes a full timeline for report creation, including a plan for gathering stakeholder feedback, with a final report urged to be delivered to the legislature by June 30, 2024. Urges the Chair of the Illinois State Board of Education to work with the PEAC Chair. Urges PEAC convene to initiate discussion on this charge by April 30, 2022.
Declares June 12, 2022 as "Women's Veterans Day" to commemorate the day women were officially added as regular members of the United States military, to recognize the critical role of women in the military forces, and to commemorate the sacrifices and valor displayed by Illinois women veterans.