Bill Text: IL HB0836 | 2009-2010 | 96th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Children with Disabilities Article of the School Code. Provides that the determination of eligibility for special education shall be made and the Individualized Education Program meeting shall be completed within 60 calendar (instead of school) days from the date of written parental consent.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2011-01-11 - Session Sine Die [HB0836 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2009-HB0836-Introduced.html

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96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2009 and 2010 HB0836 Introduced 2/9/2009, by Rep. Elizabeth Coulson SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
105 ILCS 5/14-8.02 from Ch. 122, par. 14-8.02
Amends the Children with Disabilities Article of the School Code. Provides that the determination of eligibility for special education shall be made and the Individualized Education Program meeting shall be completed within 60 calendar (instead of school) days from the date of written parental consent.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning education.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
14-8.02 as follows:
(105 ILCS 5/14-8.02) (from Ch. 122, par. 14-8.02)
Sec. 14-8.02. Identification, Evaluation and Placement of
Children.
(a) The State Board of Education shall make rules under
which local school boards shall determine the eligibility of
children to receive special education. Such rules shall ensure
that a free appropriate public education be available to all
children with disabilities as defined in Section 14-1.02. The
State Board of Education shall require local school districts
to administer non-discriminatory procedures or tests to
limited English proficiency students coming from homes in which
a language other than English is used to determine their
eligibility to receive special education. The placement of low
English proficiency students in special education programs and
facilities shall be made in accordance with the test results
reflecting the student's linguistic, cultural and special
education needs. For purposes of determining the eligibility of
children the State Board of Education shall include in the

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rules definitions of "case study", "staff conference",
"individualized educational program", and "qualified
specialist" appropriate to each category of children with
disabilities as defined in this Article. For purposes of
determining the eligibility of children from homes in which a
language other than English is used, the State Board of
Education shall include in the rules definitions for "qualified
bilingual specialists" and "linguistically and culturally
appropriate individualized educational programs". For purposes
of this Section, as well as Sections 14-8.02a, 14-8.02b, and
14-8.02c of this Code, "parent" means a parent as defined in
the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20
U.S.C. 1401(23)).
(b) No child shall be eligible for special education
facilities except with a carefully completed case study fully
reviewed by professional personnel in a multidisciplinary
staff conference and only upon the recommendation of qualified
specialists or a qualified bilingual specialist, if available.
At the conclusion of the multidisciplinary staff conference,
the parent of the child shall be given a copy of the
multidisciplinary conference summary report and
recommendations, which includes options considered, and be
informed of their right to obtain an independent educational
evaluation if they disagree with the evaluation findings
conducted or obtained by the school district. If the school
district's evaluation is shown to be inappropriate, the school

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district shall reimburse the parent for the cost of the
independent evaluation. The State Board of Education shall,
with advice from the State Advisory Council on Education of
Children with Disabilities on the inclusion of specific
independent educational evaluators, prepare a list of
suggested independent educational evaluators. The State Board
of Education shall include on the list clinical psychologists
licensed pursuant to the Clinical Psychologist Licensing Act.
Such psychologists shall not be paid fees in excess of the
amount that would be received by a school psychologist for
performing the same services. The State Board of Education
shall supply school districts with such list and make the list
available to parents at their request. School districts shall
make the list available to parents at the time they are
informed of their right to obtain an independent educational
evaluation. However, the school district may initiate an
impartial due process hearing under this Section within 5 days
of any written parent request for an independent educational
evaluation to show that its evaluation is appropriate. If the
final decision is that the evaluation is appropriate, the
parent still has a right to an independent educational
evaluation, but not at public expense. An independent
educational evaluation at public expense must be completed
within 30 days of a parent written request unless the school
district initiates an impartial due process hearing or the
parent or school district offers reasonable grounds to show

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that such 30 day time period should be extended. If the due
process hearing decision indicates that the parent is entitled
to an independent educational evaluation, it must be completed
within 30 days of the decision unless the parent or the school
district offers reasonable grounds to show that such 30 day
period should be extended. If a parent disagrees with the
summary report or recommendations of the multidisciplinary
conference or the findings of any educational evaluation which
results therefrom, the school district shall not proceed with a
placement based upon such evaluation and the child shall remain
in his or her regular classroom setting. No child shall be
eligible for admission to a special class for the educable
mentally disabled or for the trainable mentally disabled except
with a psychological evaluation and recommendation by a school
psychologist. Consent shall be obtained from the parent of a
child before any evaluation is conducted. If consent is not
given by the parent or if the parent disagrees with the
findings of the evaluation, then the school district may
initiate an impartial due process hearing under this Section.
The school district may evaluate the child if that is the
decision resulting from the impartial due process hearing and
the decision is not appealed or if the decision is affirmed on
appeal. The determination of eligibility shall be made and the
IEP meeting shall be completed within 60 calendar school days
from the date of written parental consent. In those instances
when written parental consent is obtained with fewer than 60

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pupil attendance days left in the school year, the eligibility
determination shall be made and the IEP meeting shall be
completed prior to the first day of the following school year.
After a child has been determined to be eligible for a special
education class, such child must be placed in the appropriate
program pursuant to the individualized educational program by
or no later than the beginning of the next school semester. The
appropriate program pursuant to the individualized educational
program of students whose native tongue is a language other
than English shall reflect the special education, cultural and
linguistic needs. No later than September 1, 1993, the State
Board of Education shall establish standards for the
development, implementation and monitoring of appropriate
bilingual special individualized educational programs. The
State Board of Education shall further incorporate appropriate
monitoring procedures to verify implementation of these
standards. The district shall indicate to the parent and the
State Board of Education the nature of the services the child
will receive for the regular school term while waiting
placement in the appropriate special education class.
If the child is deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or visually
impaired and he or she might be eligible to receive services
from the Illinois School for the Deaf or the Illinois School
for the Visually Impaired, the school district shall notify the
parents, in writing, of the existence of these schools and the
services they provide and shall make a reasonable effort to

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inform the parents of the existence of other, local schools
that provide similar services and the services that these other
schools provide. This notification shall include without
limitation information on school services, school admissions
criteria, and school contact information.
In the development of the individualized education program
for a student who has a disability on the autism spectrum
(which includes autistic disorder, Asperger's disorder,
pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified,
childhood disintegrative disorder, and Rett Syndrome, as
defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV, 2000)), the IEP team shall
consider all of the following factors:
(1) The verbal and nonverbal communication needs of the
child.
(2) The need to develop social interaction skills and
proficiencies.
(3) The needs resulting from the child's unusual
responses to sensory experiences.
(4) The needs resulting from resistance to
environmental change or change in daily routines.
(5) The needs resulting from engagement in repetitive
activities and stereotyped movements.
(6) The need for any positive behavioral
interventions, strategies, and supports to address any
behavioral difficulties resulting from autism spectrum

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disorder.
(7) Other needs resulting from the child's disability
that impact progress in the general curriculum, including
social and emotional development.
Public Act 95-257 does not create any new entitlement to a
service, program, or benefit, but must not affect any
entitlement to a service, program, or benefit created by any
other law.
If the student may be eligible to participate in the
Home-Based Support Services Program for Mentally Disabled
Adults authorized under the Developmental Disability and
Mental Disability Services Act upon becoming an adult, the
student's individualized education program shall include plans
for (i) determining the student's eligibility for those
home-based services, (ii) enrolling the student in the program
of home-based services, and (iii) developing a plan for the
student's most effective use of the home-based services after
the student becomes an adult and no longer receives special
educational services under this Article. The plans developed
under this paragraph shall include specific actions to be taken
by specified individuals, agencies, or officials.
(c) In the development of the individualized education
program for a student who is functionally blind, it shall be
presumed that proficiency in Braille reading and writing is
essential for the student's satisfactory educational progress.
For purposes of this subsection, the State Board of Education

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shall determine the criteria for a student to be classified as
functionally blind. Students who are not currently identified
as functionally blind who are also entitled to Braille
instruction include: (i) those whose vision loss is so severe
that they are unable to read and write at a level comparable to
their peers solely through the use of vision, and (ii) those
who show evidence of progressive vision loss that may result in
functional blindness. Each student who is functionally blind
shall be entitled to Braille reading and writing instruction
that is sufficient to enable the student to communicate with
the same level of proficiency as other students of comparable
ability. Instruction should be provided to the extent that the
student is physically and cognitively able to use Braille.
Braille instruction may be used in combination with other
special education services appropriate to the student's
educational needs. The assessment of each student who is
functionally blind for the purpose of developing the student's
individualized education program shall include documentation
of the student's strengths and weaknesses in Braille skills.
Each person assisting in the development of the individualized
education program for a student who is functionally blind shall
receive information describing the benefits of Braille
instruction. The individualized education program for each
student who is functionally blind shall specify the appropriate
learning medium or media based on the assessment report.
(d) To the maximum extent appropriate, the placement shall

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provide the child with the opportunity to be educated with
children who are not disabled; provided that children with
disabilities who are recommended to be placed into regular
education classrooms are provided with supplementary services
to assist the children with disabilities to benefit from the
regular classroom instruction and are included on the teacher's
regular education class register. Subject to the limitation of
the preceding sentence, placement in special classes, separate
schools or other removal of the disabled child from the regular
educational environment shall occur only when the nature of the
severity of the disability is such that education in the
regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services
cannot be achieved satisfactorily. The placement of limited
English proficiency students with disabilities shall be in
non-restrictive environments which provide for integration
with non-disabled peers in bilingual classrooms. Annually,
each January, school districts shall report data on students
from non-English speaking backgrounds receiving special
education and related services in public and private facilities
as prescribed in Section 2-3.30. If there is a disagreement
between parties involved regarding the special education
placement of any child, either in-state or out-of-state, the
placement is subject to impartial due process procedures
described in Article 10 of the Rules and Regulations to Govern
the Administration and Operation of Special Education.
(e) No child who comes from a home in which a language

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other than English is the principal language used may be
assigned to any class or program under this Article until he
has been given, in the principal language used by the child and
used in his home, tests reasonably related to his cultural
environment. All testing and evaluation materials and
procedures utilized for evaluation and placement shall not be
linguistically, racially or culturally discriminatory.
(f) Nothing in this Article shall be construed to require
any child to undergo any physical examination or medical
treatment whose parents object thereto on the grounds that such
examination or treatment conflicts with his religious beliefs.
(g) School boards or their designee shall provide to the
parents of a child prior written notice of any decision (a)
proposing to initiate or change, or (b) refusing to initiate or
change, the identification, evaluation, or educational
placement of the child or the provision of a free appropriate
public education to their child, and the reasons therefor. Such
written notification shall also inform the parent of the
opportunity to present complaints with respect to any matter
relating to the educational placement of the student, or the
provision of a free appropriate public education and to have an
impartial due process hearing on the complaint. The notice
shall inform the parents in the parents' native language,
unless it is clearly not feasible to do so, of their rights and
all procedures available pursuant to this Act and the federal
Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of

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2004 (Public Law 108-446); it shall be the responsibility of
the State Superintendent to develop uniform notices setting
forth the procedures available under this Act and the federal
Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of
2004 (Public Law 108-446) to be used by all school boards. The
notice shall also inform the parents of the availability upon
request of a list of free or low-cost legal and other relevant
services available locally to assist parents in initiating an
impartial due process hearing. Any parent who is deaf, or does
not normally communicate using spoken English, who
participates in a meeting with a representative of a local
educational agency for the purposes of developing an
individualized educational program shall be entitled to the
services of an interpreter.
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(Source: P.A. 94-376, eff. 7-29-05; 94-1100, eff. 2-2-07;
95-257, eff. 1-1-08; 95-876, eff. 8-21-08.)