Sen. Christopher Belt

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Provides that a taxpayer who may claim a qualifying student as a dependent is allowed a credit of up to $2,000 for qualified tuition and fee expenses paid by the taxpayer. Provides that the term qualifying student means a person who (i) is a resident of the State, (ii) is under the age of 24 at the close of the school year for which a credit is sought, and (iii) during the school year for which a credit is sought, is a full-time student enrolled in a program at a qualifying college or university. Effective immediately.

Amends the School Code. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the School Code's construction.

Amends the School Code. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the School Code's construction.

Amends the Department of Public Health Powers and Duties Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. If the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency, requires the Department of Public Health to establish metrics for school districts and public institutions of higher education to use during the public health emergency in determining if the district or institution may safely conduct in-person instruction or if the district or institution must implement remote learning or blended remote learning to keep students and staff safe. Provides that the metrics shall be enforced by the Department, in cooperation with the State Board of Education and the Board of Higher Education. Requires the Department, the State Board of Education, and the Board of Higher Education to follow all guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States Department of Health and Human Services as it pertains to schools and institutions of higher education during the public health emergency. Provides that the Department shall be responsible for providing rapid COVID-19 testing in public schools and public institutions of higher education. Amends the School Code and the Board of Higher Education Act. Requires school districts and public institutions of higher education to grant paid sick leave to their employees if they contract the illness for which the public health emergency was declared. Effective immediately. House Committee Amendment No. 1 Deletes reference to: 110 ILCS 205/9.40 new Adds reference to: 105 ILCS 5/10-20.75 new 105 ILCS 5/34-18.68 new 110 ILCS 205/9.41 new Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Reinserts the contents of the introduced bill with the following changes. Provides that the Department of Public Health shall establish metrics and develop recommended guidelines (rather than establish metrics) for school districts and public institutions of higher education to use during the public health emergency. Removes the enforcement provisions and other provisions concerning the State Board of Education and the Board of Higher Education. Provides that the rapid COVID-19 testing shall be paid for from federal relief funds. Provides that an employee shall receive paid sick leave only if the employee (i) has used the full amount of paid sick leave already allotted to the employee and (ii) the employee provides medical documentation that the employee has contracted the illness for which the disaster was declared. Further amends the School Code. Provides that during the public health emergency, a school board and the exclusive bargaining representative of the district's teachers, if any, shall negotiate the procedures and protocols that shall be implemented to safely conduct in-person instruction. Provides that the procedures and protocols agreed to by the board and the exclusive bargaining representative shall become part of the district's plan to reopen schools safely and the State Board of Education and the Department of Public Health shall enforce the terms of the plan. Provides that if the school board and the exclusive bargaining representative cannot agree on the procedures and protocols that shall be implemented to safely conduct in-person instruction, the school board shall follow the recommended guidelines developed by the Department of Public Health. Makes other changes. Effective immediately. House Floor Amendment No. 2 Deletes reference to: 105 ILCS 5/10-20.75 new 105 ILCS 5/24-6 105 ILCS 5/34-18.67 new 105 ILCS 5/34-18.68 new 110 ILCS 205/9.41 new Adds reference to: 105 ILCS 5/22-92 new Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Amends the Department of Public Health Powers and Duties Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Provides that the Department shall establish requirements by rule for providing in-person instruction at nonpublic schools and public schools that include, but are not limited to, personal protective equipment, cleaning and hygiene, social distancing, occupancy limits, symptom screening, onsite isolation protocols, and shall provide those requirements to nonpublic schools and public schools with the assistance of the Illinois State Board of Education. Provides that upon receipt of a complaint that a school cannot or is not complying with the Department's rules, the Department or local public health department shall investigate the complaint. Provides that if upon investigation, a school is found to be in violation of the rules, the Department has the authority to take the appropriate action necessary to promote the health or protect the safety of students, staff, and the public, including, but not limited to, closure of a classroom, gym, library, lunch room, or any other school space until such time that the Department determines that the violation or violations have been remedied. Makes other changes. Amends the School Code. Provides that in order to provide in-person instruction, nonpublic schools and public schools must follow the requirements for providing in-person instruction adopted by the Department by rule. Effective immediately. Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Deletes reference to: 20 ILCS 2310/2310-705 new 105 ILCS 5/22-92 new Adds reference to: 5 ILCS 100/5-45 from Ch. 127, par. 1005-45 105 ILCS 5/2-3.25 from Ch. 122, par. 2-3.25 105 ILCS 5/2-3.25o 105 ILCS 5/10-20 from Ch. 122, par. 10-20 105 ILCS 5/10-30 105 ILCS 5/21B-5 105 ILCS 5/34-18.66 Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Amends the School Code. In provisions concerning standards for schools, provides that the State Board of Education may issue, refuse to issue, or revoke recognition (rather than may issue, refuse to issue, or revoke certificates of recognition) for schools. Provides that the State Board of Education may revoke recognition for schools that fail to comply with public health requirements issued by the Illinois Department of Public Health when a public health emergency is declared by the Governor. Amends provisions concerning the registration and recognition of nonpublic schools by requiring a nonpublic school to comply with public health requirements issued by the Illinois Department of Public Health during a public health emergency. Prohibits a school board from passing any resolution that is in contravention of any requirement established by the Illinois Department of Public Health during a public health emergency. Makes similar changes to provisions concerning the licensure powers of the State Board of Education. In provisions concerning the Chicago school district, public schools, and nonpublic schools, requires a school to comply with all public health requirements issued by the Illinois Department of Public Health during a declared public health emergency. Requires schools to investigate complaints of noncompliance with the public health requirements; sets forth complaint procedures. Provides that the State Superintendent of Education may require a school to operate fully remotely if the public health requirements are not followed. Sets forth penalty provisions. Provides for rulemaking by the State Board of Education. Makes a corresponding change in the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act.

Appropriates $6,000,000 from the General Revenue Fund to the Department on Aging for services provided under the Family Caregiver Act. Effective immediately.

Amends the Criminal Identification Act. Provides that no fee shall be required if the records sought to be expunged or sealed were arrests resulting in release without charging or arrests or charges not initiated by arrest resulting in acquittal, dismissal, or conviction when the conviction was reversed or vacated, except for the expungement or sealing of certain records of minor traffic violations. Eliminates the county fee waiver pilot program that was only applicable in counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants that was set to expire on January 1, 2021.

Amends the Firefighters' Pension Investment Fund Article of the Illinois Pension Code. Provides that the candidate receiving the highest number of votes who is from a fire protection district shall be elected if the candidate or candidates who are mayors, presidents, chief executive officers, chief financial officers, or other officers, executives, or department heads of municipalities or fire protection districts receiving the highest number of votes would result in there being no trustee who is from a fire protection district. Effective immediately.

Amends the School Code. Provides that if an employing board determines to dismiss a teacher during the probationary period (instead of in the last year of a specified probationary period), the employing board must provide a written notice for dismissal with specific reasons for dismissal. Provides that any full-time teacher who does not receive written notice from the employing board at least 45 days before the end of any school term and whose performance does not require dismissal (instead of whose performance does not require dismissal after the fourth probationary year) shall be re-employed for the following school term. Effective immediately.

Amends the Messages Tax Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the short title. Senate Floor Amendment No. 1 Deletes reference to: 35 ILCS 610/15 from Ch. 120, par. 467.15 Adds reference to: 35 ILCS 5/225 Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Increases the maximum amount of the credit for instructional materials and supplies from $250 for taxable years beginning prior to January 1, 2023 to $300 for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2023. Effective immediately.

Amends the Nurse Agency Licensing Act. Prohibits nurse agencies from entering into covenants not to compete with nurses and certified nurse aides who are employed by the agencies. Provides that a supplemental healthcare staffing agency must not bill nor receive payments from a licensed health care facility at a rate higher than 130% of the sum of total compensation plus associated payroll taxes for applicable employee classifications. Provides that the maximum charge must include all charges for administrative fees, contract fees, or other special charges in addition to compensation for the temporary nursing pool personnel supplied to a health care facility. Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that is shall be a matter of State policy that the Department of Healthcare and Family Services shall set nursing facility rates, by rule, utilizing an evidence-based methodology that rewards appropriate staffing, quality-of-life improvements for nursing facility residents, and the reduction of racial inequities and health disparities for nursing facility residents enrolled in Medicaid. Contains provisions concerning the Patient Driven Payment Model for nursing services reimbursements; utilization of the Staff Time and Resource Intensity Verification study; the statewide base rate for certain dates of service; the establishment of a variable per diem add-on for nursing facilities with specified staffing levels; directed payments to improve the quality of care delivered by nursing facilities; occupied bed tax amounts beginning January 1, 2022, emergency rules; and other matters. Schedules for repeal on July 1, 2024 the Nursing Home License Fee Article of the Code. Amends the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. Permits the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to adopt emergency rules to implement certain changes made by the amendatory Act.