Sen. Meg Loughran Cappel

Amends the Public Community College Act. Provides for the election (rather than appointment) of the board of trustees of the City Colleges of Chicago beginning with the 2027 consolidated election. Provides that the City of Chicago shall be subdivided into 20 trustee districts by the General Assembly for seats on the board of trustees, in addition to one at-large trustee. Makes related changes. Effective immediately.

Creates the Insurance Rate Transparency Law as an Article of the Illinois Insurance Code. Provides that, beginning January 1, 2026, each insurer offering automobile and homeowners insurance policies in Illinois shall maintain a publicly accessible website displaying a summary of the annual percentage increase or decrease in premium rates for homeowners insurance policies and automobile insurance policies. Requires the website to display the rate-change data for the previous 5 years, updated annually by no later than January 31 of each year, and specified other data. Sets forth provisions concerning the format of the renewal notice; enforcement of the requirements by the Department of Insurance; penalties; and rulemaking. Effective immediately.

Urges the Illinois State Board of Education to initiate and complete a research study to examine the application and use of the Danielson Framework for Teaching, including ways to confront ideological barriers to socially just teacher performance evaluation. Urges the Illinois State Board of Education to deliver this report to the legislature by June 30, 2026.

Amends the School Safety Drill Act. Requires any entity that receives crisis response mapping data to provide copies of the data to appropriate local, county, State, and federal first responders for use in response to emergencies. Requires the State Board of Education to provide crisis response mapping data to eligible entities in the order in which such entities apply for it and until any appropriations made for the purposes of this Section are exhausted. Makes other changes.

Declares February 7, 2025 as Wear Red Day in the State of Illinois. Urges all residents of Illinois to raise awareness about cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in women, and to show their support for women and the fight against heart disease by wearing the color red to commemorate this day.

Amends the School Boards Article of the School Code. Requires each member of a board of education, on the date of his or her election to the board, to be the age of 22 (rather than 18) years or over.

Amends the Child Care Act of 1969. In provisions concerning criminal background investigations, provides that a child care facility may authorize the Department of Children and Family Services or a third-party vendor to complete the investigation. Provides that an applicant is determined to have completed the criminal background investigation when he or she has completed and submitted authorization for the performance of a criminal background investigation by either the Department or a third party contracted to perform the criminal background investigation. Makes conforming changes.

Maddy summaryThis Senate resolution congratulates St. Mary Immaculate Parish School in Plainfield on its 70th anniversary and wishes the school continued success. The document acknowledges the school's history, including its founding in 1955, its role in community service after a 1990 tornado, and its current celebration of National Catholic Schools Week. It formally recognizes the institution's commitment to spiritual life and education while honoring the memories of those who served it.

Amends the Illinois Pension Code. Makes changes to Tier 2 benefits, including changing the amount of the automatic annual increase to 3% of the originally granted retirement annuity or 3% of the retirement annuity then being paid for the General Assembly and Judges Articles, changing the limit on the amount of salary for annuity purposes to the Social Security wage base, changing the calculation of final average salary to the Tier 1 calculation for persons who are active members on or after January 1, 2025, and changing the retirement age. Establishes an accelerated pension benefit payment option for the General Assembly, Chicago Teachers, and Judges Articles of the Code. Provides that, with regard to persons subject to the Tier 2 provisions, a security employee of the Department of Human Services, a security employee of the Department of Corrections or the Department of Juvenile Justice, an investigator for the Department of the Lottery, or a State highway worker is entitled to an annuity calculated under the alternative retirement annuity provisions of the State Employee Article of the Code. Authorizes the conversion of service to eligible creditable service. Provides that the Retirement Systems Reciprocal Act (Article 20 of the Code) is adopted and made a part of the Downstate Police, Downstate Firefighter, Chicago Police, and Chicago Firefighter Articles. Authorizes SLEP status under the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund for a person who is a county correctional officer or probation officer and for a person who participates in IMRF and qualifies as a firefighter under the Public Safety Employee Benefits Act. In the Downstate Firefighter Article, includes a de facto firefighter in the definition of "firefighter". Defines "de facto firefighter". Provides that the monthly pension of a firefighter who is receiving a disability pension shall be increased at the rate of 3% of the original monthly pension. Makes changes to the minimum retirement annuity payable to a firefighter with 20 or more years of creditable service, the minimum disability pension, and the minimum surviving spouse's pension. Makes other changes. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement by the State. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Provides that the amendatory Act may be referred to as the Strengthening Mental Health and Substance Use Parity Act. 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, 2025, or any third-party administrator administering the behavioral health benefits for the insurer, shall cover all out-of-network medically necessary mental health and substance use benefits and services (inpatient and outpatient) as if they were in-network for purposes of cost sharing for the insured. Provides that the insured has the right to select the provider or facility of their choice and the modality, whether the care is provided via in-person visit or telehealth, for medically necessary care. Sets forth minimum reimbursement rates for certain behavioral health benefits. Sets forth provisions concerning responsibility for compliance with parity requirements; coverage and payment for multiple covered mental health and substance use services, mental health or substance use services provided under the supervision of a licensed mental health or substance treatment provider, and 60-minute individual psychotherapy; timely credentialing of mental health and substance use providers; Department of Insurance enforcement and rulemaking; civil penalties; and other matters. Amends the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act to authorize emergency rulemaking. Effective immediately.