Distributed via Email: May 28, 2015
SENATE COMMITTEES ACT ON GOVERNOR'S BILLS
The Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday defeated Governor Bruce Rauner's Workers' Compensation Act reform bill along partisan lines. All Democrats on the committee voted "no" while all Republicans voted "yes". SB 994 ( Radogno-R-LaGrange) was the first item on the governor's "Turnaround Agenda" to receive a legislative vote.
In the Senate Executive Committee today (Thursday), the governor's proposed "Local Government Taxpayer Protection Act" was defeated, again, along party lines. SB 1046 (Radogno) would freeze property tax extensions for all units of local government permanently and provide relief to local units of government through reducing the scope of what must be collectively bargained and exemption from the Prevailing Wage Law. A full synopsis of the bill is available here .
An amendment to SB 884 (Radogno) contains the governor's proposed changes regarding tort law under the Illinois Civil Procedures Code. Like the others, this measure was defeated on a partisan basis in the Judiciary Committee.
BUDGET BILLS MOVING IN BOTH CHAMBERS
Democrat leadership in both the House of Representatives and Senate have been approving appropriations bills that reflect their version of a Fiscal Year 2016 state budget. Several budget bills were approved by the House of Representatives Tuesday and more were approved by the Senate Wednesday and Thursday. But even supporters of the proposed Democrat budget package acknowledge that it would spend $3 billion more than will be available with current expected revenues. Republicans in both chambers have not supported any of the budget bills approved thus far.
As part of the mix in the House Democrat FY 2016 appropriations package, there is a push to increase K-12 education spending by $240 million more than FY 2015. The amount appropriated for General State Aid (GSA) under this scenario would result in a 92% proration. Senate Democrats are also looking to increase K-12 education funding.
BILL ACTION THIS WEEK
The following bills have been approved and will be sent to the Governor for his consideration:
HB 163 (Flowers, D-Chicago), with regard to recognition standards for student performance and school improvement, prohibits ISBE from having separate performance standards for students based on race or ethnicity.
HB 806 (Golar, D-Chicago) allows a student enrolled in grade 7 or 8 to enroll in a course offered by the high school but taken where the student attends school, provided that the teacher holds a professional educator license endorsed for the grade level and content area of the course.
HB 3123 (Pritchard, R-Sycamore) provides that school counseling services may include actively supporting students in need of special education services by implementing the academic, personal or social, and college or career development services or interventions as required by a school professional per a student's individualized educational program; participating in or contributing to a student's individualized educational program; or completing a social development history.
HB 3428 (Sente, D-Lincolnshire) provides that a student who takes a College Board Advanced Placement examination and receives a score of three or higher is entitled to receive postsecondary level course credit at a public institution of higher education.
This legislative report was written and edited by the lobbyists of the Illinois Association of School Boards to provide information to the members of the organizations that comprise the Statewide School Management Alliance.
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Bill Text/Status: Illinois General Assembly www.ilga.gov
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