Bill Text: IL HB3307 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Amends the Chicago School District Article of the School Code. Makes a technical change in a provision concerning the removal of a teacher or a principal.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-03-29 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB3307 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-HB3307-Introduced.html

---

101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2019 and 2020 HB3307 Introduced , by Rep. Justin Slaughter SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
105 ILCS 5/34-85 from Ch. 122, par. 34-85
Amends the Chicago School District Article of the School Code. Makes a technical change in a provision concerning the removal of a teacher or a principal.
LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
A BILL FOR
HB3307 LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
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
34-85 as follows:
(105 ILCS 5/34-85) (from Ch. 122, par. 34-85)
Sec. 34-85. Removal for cause; notice and hearing;
suspension.
(a) No teacher employed by the the board of education shall
(after serving the probationary period specified in Section
34-84) be removed except for cause. Teachers (who have
completed the probationary period specified in Section 34-84 of
this Code) shall be removed for cause in accordance with the
procedures set forth in this Section or, at the board's option,
the procedures set forth in Section 24-16.5 of this Code or
such other procedures established in an agreement entered into
between the board and the exclusive representative of the
district's teachers under Section 34-85c of this Code for
teachers (who have completed the probationary period specified
in Section 34-84 of this Code) assigned to schools identified
in that agreement. No principal employed by the board of
education shall be removed during the term of his or her
performance contract except for cause, which may include but is

HB3307 - 2 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
not limited to the principal's repeated failure to implement
the school improvement plan or to comply with the provisions of
the Uniform Performance Contract, including additional
criteria established by the Council for inclusion in the
performance contract pursuant to Section 34-2.3.
Before service of notice of charges on account of causes
that may be deemed to be remediable, the teacher or principal
must be given reasonable warning in writing, stating
specifically the causes that, if not removed, may result in
charges; however, no such written warning is required if the
causes have been the subject of a remediation plan pursuant to
Article 24A of this Code or if the board and the exclusive
representative of the district's teachers have entered into an
agreement pursuant to Section 34-85c of this Code, pursuant to
an alternative system of remediation. No written warning shall
be required for conduct on the part of a teacher or principal
that is cruel, immoral, negligent, or criminal or that in any
way causes psychological or physical harm or injury to a
student, as that conduct is deemed to be irremediable. No
written warning shall be required for a material breach of the
uniform principal performance contract, as that conduct is
deemed to be irremediable; provided that not less than 30 days
before the vote of the local school council to seek the
dismissal of a principal for a material breach of a uniform
principal performance contract, the local school council shall
specify the nature of the alleged breach in writing and provide

HB3307 - 3 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
a copy of it to the principal.
(1) To initiate dismissal proceedings against a
teacher or principal, the general superintendent must
first approve written charges and specifications against
the teacher or principal. A local school council may direct
the general superintendent to approve written charges
against its principal on behalf of the Council upon the
vote of 7 members of the Council. The general
superintendent must approve those charges within 45
calendar days or provide a written reason for not approving
those charges. A written notice of those charges, including
specifications, shall be served upon the teacher or
principal within 10 business days of the approval of the
charges. Any written notice sent on or after July 1, 2012
shall also inform the teacher or principal of the right to
request a hearing before a mutually selected hearing
officer, with the cost of the hearing officer split equally
between the teacher or principal and the board, or a
hearing before a qualified hearing officer chosen by the
general superintendent, with the cost of the hearing
officer paid by the board. If the teacher or principal
cannot be found upon diligent inquiry, such charges may be
served upon him by mailing a copy thereof in a sealed
envelope by prepaid certified mail, return receipt
requested, to the teacher's or principal's last known
address. A return receipt showing delivery to such address

HB3307 - 4 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
within 20 calendar days after the date of the approval of
the charges shall constitute proof of service.
(2) No hearing upon the charges is required unless the
teacher or principal within 17 calendar days after
receiving notice requests in writing of the general
superintendent that a hearing be scheduled. Pending the
hearing of the charges, the general superintendent or his
or her designee may suspend the teacher or principal
charged without pay in accordance with rules prescribed by
the board, provided that if the teacher or principal
charged is not dismissed based on the charges, he or she
must be made whole for lost earnings, less setoffs for
mitigation.
(3) The board shall maintain a list of at least 9
qualified hearing officers who will conduct hearings on
charges and specifications. The list must be developed in
good faith consultation with the exclusive representative
of the board's teachers and professional associations that
represent the board's principals. The list may be revised
on July 1st of each year or earlier as needed. To be a
qualified hearing officer, the person must (i) be
accredited by a national arbitration organization and have
had a minimum of 5 years of experience as an arbitrator in
cases involving labor and employment relations matters
between employers and employees or their exclusive
bargaining representatives and (ii) beginning September 1,

HB3307 - 5 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
2012, have participated in training provided or approved by
the State Board of Education for teacher dismissal hearing
officers so that he or she is familiar with issues
generally involved in evaluative and non-evaluative
dismissals.
Within 5 business days after receiving the notice of
request for a hearing, the general superintendent and the
teacher or principal or their legal representatives shall
alternately strike one name from the list until only one
name remains. Unless waived by the teacher, the teacher or
principal shall have the right to proceed first with the
striking. If the teacher or principal fails to participate
in the striking process, the general superintendent shall
either select the hearing officer from the list developed
pursuant to this paragraph (3) or select another qualified
hearing officer from the master list maintained by the
State Board of Education pursuant to subsection (c) of
Section 24-12 of this Code.
(4) If the notice of dismissal was sent to the teacher
or principal before July 1, 2012, the fees and costs for
the hearing officer shall be paid by the State Board of
Education. If the notice of dismissal was sent to the
teacher or principal on or after July 1, 2012, the hearing
officer's fees and costs must be paid as follows in this
paragraph (4). The fees and permissible costs for the
hearing officer shall be determined by the State Board of

HB3307 - 6 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
Education. If the hearing officer is mutually selected by
the parties through alternate striking in accordance with
paragraph (3) of this subsection (a), then the board and
the teacher or their legal representative shall each pay
50% of the fees and costs and any supplemental allowance to
which they agree. If the hearing officer is selected by the
general superintendent without the participation of the
teacher or principal, then the board shall pay 100% of the
hearing officer fees and costs. The hearing officer shall
submit for payment a billing statement to the parties that
itemizes the charges and expenses and divides them in
accordance with this Section.
(5) The teacher or the principal charged is required to
answer the charges and specifications and aver affirmative
matters in his or her defense, and the time for doing so
must be set by the hearing officer. The State Board of
Education shall adopt rules so that each party has a fair
opportunity to present its case and to ensure that the
dismissal proceeding is concluded in an expeditious
manner. The rules shall address, without limitation, the
teacher or principal's answer and affirmative defenses to
the charges and specifications; a requirement that each
party make mandatory disclosures without request to the
other party and then update the disclosure no later than 10
calendar days prior to the commencement of the hearing,
including a list of the names and addresses of persons who

HB3307 - 7 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
may be called as witnesses at the hearing, a summary of the
facts or opinions each witness will testify to, and all
other documents and materials, including information
maintained electronically, relevant to its own as well as
the other party's case (the hearing officer may exclude
witnesses and exhibits not identified and shared, except
those offered in rebuttal for which the party could not
reasonably have anticipated prior to the hearing);
pre-hearing discovery and preparation, including provision
for written interrogatories and requests for production of
documents, provided that discovery depositions are
prohibited; the conduct of the hearing; the right of each
party to be represented by counsel, the offer of evidence
and witnesses and the cross-examination of witnesses; the
authority of the hearing officer to issue subpoenas and
subpoenas duces tecum, provided that the hearing officer
may limit the number of witnesses to be subpoenaed in
behalf of each party to no more than 7; the length of
post-hearing briefs; and the form, length, and content of
hearing officers' reports and recommendations to the
general superintendent.
The hearing officer shall commence the hearing within
75 calendar days and conclude the hearing within 120
calendar days after being selected by the parties as the
hearing officer, provided that these timelines may be
modified upon the showing of good cause or mutual agreement

HB3307 - 8 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
of the parties. Good cause for the purposes of this
paragraph (5) shall mean the illness or otherwise
unavoidable emergency of the teacher, district
representative, their legal representatives, the hearing
officer, or an essential witness as indicated in each
party's pre-hearing submission. In a dismissal hearing,
the hearing officer shall consider and give weight to all
of the teacher's evaluations written pursuant to Article
24A that are relevant to the issues in the hearing. The
teacher or principal has the privilege of being present at
the hearing with counsel and of cross-examining witnesses
and may offer evidence and witnesses and present defenses
to the charges. Each party shall have no more than 3 days
to present its case, unless extended by the hearing officer
to enable a party to present adequate evidence and
testimony, including due to the other party's
cross-examination of the party's witnesses, for good cause
or by mutual agreement of the parties. The State Board of
Education shall define in rules the meaning of "day" for
such purposes. All testimony at the hearing shall be taken
under oath administered by the hearing officer. The hearing
officer shall cause a record of the proceedings to be kept
and shall employ a competent reporter to take stenographic
or stenotype notes of all the testimony. The costs of the
reporter's attendance and services at the hearing shall be
paid by the party or parties who are paying the fees and

HB3307 - 9 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
costs of the hearing officer. Either party desiring a
transcript of the hearing shall pay for the cost thereof.
At the close of the hearing, the hearing officer shall
direct the parties to submit post-hearing briefs no later
than 21 calendar days after receipt of the transcript.
Either or both parties may waive submission of briefs.
(6) The hearing officer shall within 30 calendar days
from the conclusion of the hearing report to the general
superintendent findings of fact and a recommendation as to
whether or not the teacher or principal shall be dismissed
and shall give a copy of the report to both the teacher or
principal and the general superintendent. The State Board
of Education shall provide by rule the form of the hearing
officer's report and recommendation.
(7) The board, within 45 days of receipt of the hearing
officer's findings of fact and recommendation, shall make a
decision as to whether the teacher or principal shall be
dismissed from its employ. The failure of the board to
strictly adhere to the timeliness contained herein shall
not render it without jurisdiction to dismiss the teacher
or principal. In the event that the board declines to
dismiss the teacher or principal after review of a hearing
officer's recommendation, the board shall set the amount of
back pay and benefits to award the teacher or principal,
which shall include offsets for interim earnings and
failure to mitigate losses. The board shall establish

HB3307 - 10 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
procedures for the teacher's or principal's submission of
evidence to it regarding lost earnings, lost benefits,
mitigation, and offsets. The decision of the board is final
unless reviewed in accordance with paragraph (8) of this
subsection (a).
(8) The teacher may seek judicial review of the board's
decision in accordance with the Administrative Review Law,
which is specifically incorporated in this Section, except
that the review must be initiated in the Illinois Appellate
Court for the First District. In the event judicial review
is instituted, any costs of preparing and filing the record
of proceedings shall be paid by the party instituting the
review. In the event the appellate court reverses a board
decision to dismiss a teacher or principal and directs the
board to pay the teacher or the principal back pay and
benefits, the appellate court shall remand the matter to
the board to issue an administrative decision as to the
amount of back pay and benefits, which shall include a
calculation of the lost earnings, lost benefits,
mitigation, and offsets based on evidence submitted to the
board in accordance with procedures established by the
board.
(b) Nothing in this Section affects the validity of removal
for cause hearings commenced prior to June 13, 2011 (the
effective date of Public Act 97-8).
The changes made by Public Act 97-8 shall apply to

HB3307 - 11 - LRB101 11137 AXK 56366 b
dismissals instituted on or after September 1, 2011 or the
effective date of Public Act 97-8, whichever is later. Any
dismissal instituted prior to the effective date of these
changes must be carried out in accordance with the requirements
of this Section prior to amendment by Public Act 97-8.
(Source: P.A. 99-78, eff. 7-20-15.)