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| Public Act 102-0254
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| HB0041 Enrolled | LRB102 03862 CMG 13876 b |
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AN ACT concerning education.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Sections |
14-7.02 and 14-7.05 as follows:
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(105 ILCS 5/14-7.02) (from Ch. 122, par. 14-7.02)
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Sec. 14-7.02. Children attending private schools, public
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out-of-state schools, public school residential facilities or |
private
special education facilities. The General Assembly |
recognizes that non-public
schools or special education |
facilities provide an important service in the
educational |
system in Illinois.
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If because of his or her disability the special education
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program of a district is unable to meet the needs of a child |
and the
child attends a non-public school or special education |
facility, a
public out-of-state school or a special education |
facility owned and
operated by a county government unit that |
provides special educational
services required by the child |
and is in compliance with the appropriate
rules and |
regulations of the State Superintendent of Education, the
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school district in which the child is a resident shall pay the |
actual
cost of tuition for special education and related |
services provided
during the regular school term and during |
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the summer school term if the
child's educational needs so |
require, excluding room, board and
transportation costs |
charged the child by that non-public school or
special |
education facility, public out-of-state school or county |
special
education facility, or $4,500 per year, whichever is |
less, and shall
provide him any necessary transportation. |
"Nonpublic special
education facility" shall include a |
residential facility,
within or without the State of Illinois, |
which provides
special education and related services to meet |
the needs of the child by
utilizing private schools or public |
schools, whether located on the site
or off the site of the |
residential facility.
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Prior to the placement of a child in an out-of-state |
special education residential facility, the school district |
must refer to the child or the child's parent or guardian the |
option to place the child in a special education residential |
facility located within this State, if any, that provides |
treatment and services comparable to those provided by the |
out-of-state special education residential facility. The |
school district must review annually the placement of a child |
in an out-of-state special education residential facility. As |
a part of the review, the school district must refer to the |
child or the child's parent or guardian the option to place the |
child in a comparable special education residential facility |
located within this State, if any. |
The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules and |
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regulations
for determining when placement in a private |
special education facility
is appropriate. Such rules and |
regulations shall take into account
the various types of |
services needed by a child and the availability
of such |
services to the particular child in the public school.
In |
developing these rules and regulations the State Board of
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Education shall consult with the Advisory Council on
Education |
of Children with Disabilities and hold public
hearings to |
secure recommendations from parents, school personnel,
and |
others concerned about this matter.
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The State Board of Education shall also promulgate rules |
and
regulations for transportation to and from a residential |
school.
Transportation to and from home to a residential |
school more than once
each school term shall be subject to |
prior approval by the State
Superintendent in accordance with |
the rules and regulations of the State
Board.
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A school district making tuition payments pursuant to this
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Section is eligible for reimbursement from the State for the |
amount of
such payments actually made in excess of the |
district per capita tuition
charge for students not receiving |
special education services.
Such reimbursement shall be |
approved in accordance with Section 14-12.01
and each district |
shall file its claims, computed in accordance with rules
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prescribed by the State Board of Education, on forms |
prescribed by the
State Superintendent of Education. Data used |
as a basis of reimbursement
claims shall be for the preceding |
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regular school term and summer school
term. Each school |
district shall transmit its claims to the State Board of |
Education
on or before
August 15. The State Board of |
Education, before approving any such claims,
shall determine |
their accuracy and whether they are based upon services
and |
facilities provided under approved programs. Upon approval the |
State
Board shall cause vouchers to be prepared showing the |
amount due
for payment of reimbursement claims to school
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districts, for transmittal to the State Comptroller on
the |
30th day of September, December, and March, respectively, and |
the final
voucher, no later than June 20. If the
money |
appropriated by the General Assembly for such purpose for any |
year
is insufficient, it shall be apportioned on the basis of |
the claims approved.
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No child shall be placed in a special education program |
pursuant to
this Section if the tuition cost for special |
education and related
services increases more than 10 percent |
over the tuition cost for the
previous school year or exceeds |
$4,500 per year unless such costs have
been approved by the |
Illinois Purchased Care Review Board. The
Illinois Purchased |
Care Review Board shall consist of the following
persons, or |
their designees: the Directors of Children and Family
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Services, Public Health,
Public Aid, and the
Governor's Office |
of Management and Budget; the
Secretary of Human Services; the |
State Superintendent of Education; and such
other persons as |
the
Governor may designate. The Review Board shall also |
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consist of one non-voting member who is an administrator of a
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private, nonpublic, special education school. The Review Board |
shall establish rules and
regulations for its determination of |
allowable costs and payments made by
local school districts |
for special education, room and board, and other related
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services provided by non-public schools or special education |
facilities and
shall establish uniform standards and criteria |
which it shall follow. The Review Board shall approve the |
usual and customary rate or rates of a special education |
program that (i) is offered by an out-of-state, non-public |
provider of integrated autism specific educational and autism |
specific residential services, (ii) offers 2 or more levels of |
residential care, including at least one locked facility, and |
(iii) serves 12 or fewer Illinois students. |
In determining rates based on allowable costs, the Review |
Board shall consider any wage increases awarded by the General |
Assembly to front line personnel defined as direct support |
persons, aides, front-line supervisors, qualified intellectual |
disabilities professionals, nurses, and non-administrative |
support staff working in service settings in community-based |
settings within the State and adjust customary rates or rates |
of a special education program to be equitable to the wage |
increase awarded to similar staff positions in a community |
residential setting. Any wage increase awarded by the General |
Assembly to front line personnel defined as direct support |
persons, aides, front-line supervisors, qualified intellectual |
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disabilities professionals, nurses, and non-administrative |
support staff working in community-based settings within the |
State, including the $0.75 per hour increase contained in |
Public Act 100-23 and the $0.50 per hour increase included in |
Public Act 100-23, shall also be a basis for any facility |
covered by this Section to appeal its rate before the Review |
Board under the process defined in Title 89, Part 900, Section |
340 of the Illinois Administrative Code. Illinois |
Administrative Code Title 89, Part 900, Section 342 shall be |
updated to recognize wage increases awarded to community-based |
settings to be a basis for appeal. However, any wage increase |
that is captured upon appeal from a previous year shall not be |
counted by the Review Board as revenue for the purpose of |
calculating a facility's future rate. |
Any definition used by the Review Board in administrative |
rule or policy to define "related organizations" shall include |
any and all exceptions contained in federal law or regulation |
as it pertains to the federal definition of "related |
organizations".
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The Review Board shall establish uniform definitions and |
criteria for
accounting separately by special education, room |
and board and other
related services costs. The Board shall |
also establish guidelines for
the coordination of services and |
financial assistance provided by all
State agencies to assure |
that no otherwise qualified child with a disability
receiving |
services under Article 14 shall be excluded from participation
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in, be denied the benefits of or be subjected to |
discrimination under
any program or activity provided by any |
State agency.
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The Review Board shall review the costs for special |
education and
related services provided by non-public schools |
or special education
facilities and shall approve or |
disapprove such facilities in accordance
with the rules and |
regulations established by it with respect to
allowable costs.
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The State Board of Education shall provide administrative |
and staff support
for the Review Board as deemed reasonable by |
the State Superintendent of
Education. This support shall not |
include travel expenses or other
compensation for any Review |
Board member other than the State Superintendent of
Education.
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The Review Board shall seek the advice of the Advisory |
Council on
Education of Children with Disabilities on the |
rules and
regulations to be
promulgated by it relative to |
providing special education services.
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If a child has been placed in a program in which the actual |
per pupil costs
of tuition for special education and related |
services based on program
enrollment, excluding room, board |
and transportation costs, exceed $4,500 and
such costs have |
been approved by the Review Board, the district shall pay such
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total costs which exceed $4,500. A district making such |
tuition payments in
excess of $4,500 pursuant to this Section |
shall be responsible for an amount in
excess of $4,500 equal to |
the district per capita
tuition charge and shall be eligible |
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for reimbursement from the State for
the amount of such |
payments actually made in excess of the districts per capita
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tuition charge for students not receiving special education |
services.
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If a child has been placed in an approved individual |
program and the
tuition costs including room and board costs |
have been approved by the
Review Board, then such room and |
board costs shall be paid by the
appropriate State agency |
subject to the provisions of Section 14-8.01 of
this Act. Room |
and board costs not provided by a State agency other
than the |
State Board of Education shall be provided by the State Board
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of Education on a current basis. In no event, however, shall |
the
State's liability for funding of these tuition costs begin |
until after
the legal obligations of third party payors have |
been subtracted from
such costs. If the money appropriated by |
the General Assembly for such
purpose for any year is |
insufficient, it shall be apportioned on the
basis of the |
claims approved. Each district shall submit estimated claims |
to the State
Superintendent of Education. Upon approval of |
such claims, the State
Superintendent of Education shall |
direct the State Comptroller to make payments
on a monthly |
basis. The frequency for submitting estimated
claims and the |
method of determining payment shall be prescribed in rules
and |
regulations adopted by the State Board of Education. Such |
current state
reimbursement shall be reduced by an amount |
equal to the proceeds which
the child or child's parents are |
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eligible to receive under any public or
private insurance or |
assistance program. Nothing in this Section shall
be construed |
as relieving an insurer or similar third party from an
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otherwise valid obligation to provide or to pay for services |
provided to
a child with a disability.
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If it otherwise qualifies, a school district is eligible |
for the
transportation reimbursement under Section 14-13.01 |
and for the
reimbursement of tuition payments under this |
Section whether the
non-public school or special education |
facility, public out-of-state
school or county special |
education facility, attended by a child who
resides in that |
district and requires special educational services, is
within |
or outside of the State of Illinois. However, a district is not
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eligible to claim transportation reimbursement under this |
Section unless
the district certifies to the State |
Superintendent of Education that the
district is unable to |
provide special educational services required by
the child for |
the current school year.
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Nothing in this Section authorizes the reimbursement of a |
school
district for the amount paid for tuition of a child |
attending a
non-public school or special education facility, |
public out-of-state
school or county special education |
facility unless the school district
certifies to the State |
Superintendent of Education that the special
education program |
of that district is unable to meet the needs of that child
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because of his disability and the State Superintendent of |
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Education finds
that the school district is in substantial |
compliance with Section 14-4.01. However, if a child is |
unilaterally placed by a State agency or any court in a |
non-public school or special education facility, public |
out-of-state school, or county special education facility, a |
school district shall not be required to certify to the State |
Superintendent of Education, for the purpose of tuition |
reimbursement, that the special education program of that |
district is unable to meet the needs of a child because of his |
or her disability.
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Any educational or related services provided, pursuant to |
this
Section in a non-public school or special education |
facility or a
special education facility owned and operated by |
a county government
unit shall be at no cost to the parent or |
guardian of the child.
However, current law and practices |
relative to contributions by parents
or guardians for costs |
other than educational or related services are
not affected by |
this amendatory Act of 1978.
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Reimbursement for children attending public school |
residential facilities
shall be made in accordance with the |
provisions of this Section.
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Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any school |
district
receiving a payment under this Section or under |
Section 14-7.02b, 14-13.01, or
29-5 of this Code may classify |
all or a portion of the funds that
it receives in a particular |
fiscal year or from general State aid pursuant
to Section |
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18-8.05 of this Code
as funds received in connection with any |
funding program for which
it is entitled to receive funds from |
the State in that fiscal year (including,
without limitation, |
any funding program referenced in this Section),
regardless of |
the source or timing of the receipt. The district may not
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classify more funds as funds received in connection with the |
funding
program than the district is entitled to receive in |
that fiscal year for that
program. Any
classification by a |
district must be made by a resolution of its board of
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education. The resolution must identify the amount of any |
payments or
general State aid to be classified under this |
paragraph and must specify
the funding program to which the |
funds are to be treated as received in
connection therewith. |
This resolution is controlling as to the
classification of |
funds referenced therein. A certified copy of the
resolution |
must be sent to the State Superintendent of Education.
The |
resolution shall still take effect even though a copy of the |
resolution has
not been sent to the State
Superintendent of |
Education in a timely manner.
No
classification under this |
paragraph by a district shall affect the total amount
or |
timing of money the district is entitled to receive under this |
Code.
No classification under this paragraph by a district |
shall
in any way relieve the district from or affect any
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requirements that otherwise would apply with respect to
that |
funding program, including any
accounting of funds by source, |
reporting expenditures by
original source and purpose,
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reporting requirements,
or requirements of providing services.
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(Source: P.A. 100-587, eff. 6-4-18; 101-10, eff. 6-5-19.)
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(105 ILCS 5/14-7.05)
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Sec. 14-7.05. Placement in residential facility; payment |
of educational costs. For any student with a disability in a |
residential facility placement made or paid for by an Illinois |
public State agency or made by any court in this State, the |
school district of residence as determined pursuant to this |
Article is responsible for the costs of educating the child |
and shall be reimbursed for those costs in accordance with |
this Code. Subject to this Section and relevant State |
appropriation, the resident district's financial |
responsibility and reimbursement must be calculated in |
accordance with the provisions of Section 14-7.02 of this |
Code. In those instances in which a district receives a block |
grant pursuant to Article 1D of this Code, the district's |
financial responsibility is limited to the actual educational |
costs of the placement, which must be paid by the district from |
its block grant appropriation. Resident district financial |
responsibility and reimbursement applies for both residential |
facilities that are approved by the State Board of Education |
and non-approved facilities, subject to the requirements of |
this Section. The Illinois placing agency or court remains |
responsible for funding the residential portion of the |
placement and for notifying the resident district prior to the |
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placement, except in emergency situations. The residential |
facility in which the student is placed shall notify the |
resident district of the student's enrollment as soon as |
practicable after the placement. Failure of the placing agency |
or court to notify the resident district prior to the |
placement does not absolve the resident district of financial |
responsibility for the educational costs of the placement; |
however, the resident district shall not become financially |
responsible unless and until it receives written notice of the |
placement by either the placing agency, court, or residential |
facility. The placing agency or parent shall request an |
individualized education program (IEP) meeting from the |
resident district if the placement would entail additional |
educational services beyond the student's current IEP. The |
district of residence shall retain control of the IEP process, |
and any changes to the IEP must be done in compliance with the |
federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. |
Prior to the placement of a child in an out-of-state |
special education residential facility, the placing agency or |
court must refer to the child or the child's parent or guardian |
the option to place the child in a special education |
residential facility located within this State, if any, that |
provides treatment and services comparable to those provided |
by the out-of-state special education residential facility. |
The placing agency or court must review annually the placement |
of a child in an out-of-state special education residential |
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facility. As a part of the review, the placing agency or court |
must refer to the child or the child's parent or guardian the |
option to place the child in a comparable special education |
residential facility located within this State, if any. |
Payments shall be made by the resident district to the |
entity providing the educational services, whether the entity |
is the residential facility or the school district wherein the |
facility is located, no less than once per quarter unless |
otherwise agreed to in writing by the parties. |
A residential facility providing educational services |
within the facility, but not approved by the State Board of |
Education, is required to demonstrate proof to the State Board |
of (i) appropriate certification of teachers for the student |
population, (ii) age-appropriate curriculum, (iii) enrollment |
and attendance data, and (iv) the ability to implement the |
child's IEP. A school district is under no obligation to pay |
such a residential facility unless and until such proof is |
provided to the State Board's satisfaction. |
When a dispute arises over the determination of the |
district of residence under this Section, any person or |
entity, including without limitation a school district or |
residential facility, may make a written request for a |
residency decision to the State Superintendent of Education, |
who, upon review of materials submitted and any other items of |
information he or she may request for submission, shall issue |
his or her decision in writing. The decision of the State |
