#FundTheFormula Communications

Between now and March 31, the Funding Illinois' Future Coalition will execute a campaign that urges members of the Illinois General Assembly to allocate at least $350M for Evidence-Based Funding in the FY21 Budget while also raising awareness that an investment of $650M over the next 15 years is what is needed to fully fund the formula for IL students.  IAASE has always worked with the Funding Illinois' Future Coalition and we are proud to once again do so now.

Our efforts will be focused on the House Representative and State Senator for your district and school community and members of the House and Senate Education Appropriations Committees.

KEY LEGISLATOR TWITTER HANDLES 

@HouseDemsil

@ILSenDems

@ILSenateGOP 

@ILHouseGOP 

@TagYourLegislator

You can find your legislator by clicking here.  In addition, find ALL legislator contact information and Twitter handles here.

There are LOTS of great resources including suggested social media posts in the Funding Illinois' Future toolkit.  It's available when you click here.

Federal Budget Update

Nearly three months after the start of Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, Congress and the White House have reached an agreement on spending bills and begun to move forward with approving the measures. The 12 spending bills have been broken into two packages, or “minibuses.” The deal honors the $49 billion in increased funding that was agreed to under a bipartisan budget deal signed into law in July. Education spending will get a $1.3 billion increase, reaching a total of $72.8 billion in discretionary funding for the U.S. Department of Education (ED).

All of the programs that CASE and CEC advocates on behalf of saw an increase. Details are as follows:

• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Grants to States Program (Part B) will receive a $400 million increase, for a total of $12.76 billion.
• IDEA Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities Program (Part C) will receive a $7 million increase, for a total of $477 million.
• IDEA Preschool Program (Part B Section 619) will receive a $3 million increase, for a total of $394 million.
• IDEA National Activities (Part D) will receive a $6.5 million increase, for a total of $250 million.
• National Center for Special Education Research, within the Institute for Education Sciences will receive a $500,000 increase, for a total of $56.5 million.
• Title I will receive a $450 million increase for a total of $16.3 billion in funding.
• Title II-A will receive an increase of $76 million for a total of $2.1 billion in funding.
• Title IV-A will receive an increase of $40 million for a total of $1.2 billion in funding.

Additionally, the bill includes language that instructs the ED and other agencies on matters pertaining to CASE and CEC’s policy priorities. A few examples are:

Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Program: Congress requests ED to use funds to “increase the number of grants that assist schools in the identification of, and provision of services to, gifted and talented students who may not be identified and served through traditional assessment methods, such as children with disabilities, English learners, children of color, and economically disadvantaged students.”

Special Education Teacher Shortages: Congress requests a report from the Government Accountability Office on “…factors contributing to school districts' challenges with teacher recruitment and retention.” The report is to also include a review and analysis of challenges with recruitment and retention of “special education teachers, paraprofessionals, and teacher aides; the extent to which licensure requirements are waived or modified to address shortages; and geographic and demographic characteristics of districts facing the greatest challenges or shortages, including rural and urban areas,” and to make recommendations on “potential Federal interventions to improve teacher recruitment and retention.”

Medicaid: Congress advises the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services to coordinate with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to provide technical assistance to reduce administrative barriers for providing health services in coordination with schools.

On Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives advanced the two minibuses. The Senate is expected to clear the spending measures and President Trump is expected to sign them into law before the current spending deal expires at midnight on December 20.

Congratulations to the field for its continued pressure on appropriators to increase spending for students with exceptionalities. Your ongoing advocacy is critical, and we thank you for your hard work.

Read the Labor-H bill here.
Read the Labor-H report here.

Veto Session Update

The Fall veto session for the Illinois General Assembly had a few big priorities for IAASE and we are pleased to report that much progress was made on our big legislative goals.  Here's the rundown:

Senate Bill 460

What it does:  Delays the implementation of certain portions of House Bill 3586/ Public Act 101-0515. 

Why we pushed it:  This was the biggest legislative priority for IAASE.  While we had been working on some big legislative fixes for the bill, we compromised with our partners and agreed to a delay of implementation on the paperwork component.  The rest of the bill (service logs, etc.) remains intact for now. 

Where it stands:  The Senate passed the bill during the first week of veto session and the House passed it unanimously during the second week of veto session.  It now heads to the Governor's desk for signature. 

What's next:  Once the bill is signed (should be very soon), then the paperwork component of the bill (i.e. having to send paperwork home in advance) will no longer need to be done.  That portion is delayed until July 1, 2020.  Between now and then, IAASE will work with others to negotiate a fix for the remainder of this bill.

Read the bill online at this link.

Senate Bill 10

What it does:  Changes a component of the school code and allows paraprofessionals to be licensed after taking a test.

Why we pushed it:  This was a mistake that was made in a licensure cleanup bill that was pushed in the spring.  As a result, it put a strain on the number of teaching assistant's coming into the pipeline.

Where it stands:   The House and Senate approved the bill this week.  It now heads to the Governor's desk for signature. 

What's next:  Once the bill is signed (should be very soon), then paraprofessionals will be able to take a test and become licensed as a paraprofessional again.  

Read the bill online at this link.

House Bill 3897

What it does:  Changes the age at which students transition from their Transition programs.  It moves it from the day before their 22nd birthday to the end of the school year.

Why we opposed it:  At this point in a student's schooling career, school districts have done a thorough job of supporting the student into early adulthood and connecting that student with necessary services in the adult system.  Delaying this transition any more is not appropriate for students and presents significant costs to high schools.

Where it stands:   The House Human Services Committee did not take up the bill.

What's next:  The sponsor of the bill is expected to continue to push this legislation in the Spring session (beginning in January) and members will need to stay on top of this issue in order to be sure that students have appropriate transition services as they move into the adult system.  

Read the bill online at this link. 

Veto Session Information - Where We Stand As Of Friday, November 1, 2019

As we have noted in the past, things move very quickly in veto session.  We wanted to be sure to provide all of you with information about where we stand as of today since the first week of veto session is now complete.

A bit of a recap:
On Sunday afternoon, our team orchestrated a call between the leaders of several organizations to attempt to seek clarity and come to agreement on final language for the bill.  We are really proud of the people who were on this call for us and the collaboration that occurred on this call because it allowed us to understand some of the differences that existed between our organization and some groups who wanted to see other language in the bill.  While there was a deal reached during that meeting, there were some details that needed to be ironed out between some parties on Monday morning.

On Monday morning, as we sent the update message to all of you, negotiations around the bill continued.  Teams of people were discussing the issue in Louisville, KY (site of the CASE/NASDSE Conference), Springfield, IL (as the veto session began) and in several other satellites all throughout the state.  One thing became clear to all of us - we needed more time to address the challenges with this bill and come to agreement about how to move forward.

Given this, we agreed to make changes to the bill so that the bill becomes effective on July 1, 2020 (instead of being effective now).  The updated bill language is available as SB 460 (click here).  We strongly believe that this date will allow IAASE leadership to negotiate a bill with our colleagues in other groups that is agreeable to parent groups and that also is not a tremendous burden to special education professionals.  That also means that the current bill language is in effect (unless and until the legislature acts to change the date of implementation and the governor signs it).

SB 460 was sponsored in the Senate by Senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Joliet) and it was passed by the Senate Education Committee in the early part of the afternoon of Tuesday.  The full Senate then voted on the proposal and it was passed unanimously.

Where we stand now
The measure has now been sent to the House of Representatives where it will be carried by Rep. Fred Crespo (D-Hoffman Estates).  The first thing that will need to happen is that it will be assigned to a committee and the committee will hear it.  If it is passed by the committee then the full House will hear the bill and it must be passed by the full House.  If the full House passes the bill, then it is sent to the Governor for his signature or veto.

What we need from you
We strongly encourage all members and people who care passionately about this issue to begin contacting your State Representative to ask them to support this bill when it comes up for a vote.  Please click here to find the phone number for your State Representative. Then call them in their Springfield office and ask them to vote YES on SB 460.  Here is a sample script that you can use:

Hi there – my name is Dave Director. I live in Robert Representative’s district and I wanted to ask him to vote YES on SB 460. We need to make sure that the bill is passed when it comes to the floor for a vote during veto session.

A few final thoughts:

• You can share this post with others (teachers are definitely heavily impacted and should be aware of this. General education administrators should be making calls as well).
• Please be sure to contact your own State Representative (not the bill sponsors).
• If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to a member of the IAASE Leadership Team.
• THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to the hundreds of people who have called, tweeted, texted, asked questions, or just given a smile of support during this process.  We really appreciate everything that you have done during this process.
• A special thanks to a few people who have been doing more than their fair share of the work - Melissa Taylor, Jami Hodge, Shannon Miller Bellini, Judy Hackett, and Teri Engler.

UPDATED X1 ACTION NEEDED: Calls & Action Needed

UPDATED (10/26/2019)

The legislative process in Springfield moves very quickly.  We've worked with our coalition partners to align the language in the bill with the original intent of the law.  IAASE strongly believes in a collaborative IEP process where every parent/guardian is fully included in a process that is user friendly.  We also recognize that our teams are overloaded with significant caseloads and the issues that come along with managing paperwork.  With this in mind, our legislative team is working with others to make changes to the bill to bring as many coalition partners on board as possible.  This is the first of (what could be) several changes.  This change will:

Require school districts to keep service logs for all related service providers.

Rationale:  Many of our state's most impacted children receive related services.  To the extent that parents/guardians are not able to identify and receive information about the services their children have or have not received, IAASE believes this needs to be addressed.  While aligning the service log requirement to the Medicaid data collection rules was easier for us, it might have created a challenge for parents/guardians.  That was never our intent.

Given the speed at which we needed to move this legislation, we also have a NEW bill number:  SB 460.  It will be published on ilga.gov later.

At this point, we need your support in making two calls:

Please contact your State Senator!
This bill will originate in the Illinois State Senate and will be heard in committee this week and will likely be voted on by the full Senate shortly thereafter. Please click here to find the phone number for your State Senator. Then call them in their Springfield office and ask them to vote YES on SB 460. A sample script:

Hi there – my name is Dave Director. I live in Suzy Senator’s district and I wanted to ask her to vote YES on SB 460. We need to make sure that the bill is passed when it comes to the floor for a vote next week during veto session.

Please contact your State Representative!
If we are able to get this bill through the Senate, then it will move to the House of Representatives.  We need to make sure that we begin contacting our State Representatives as soon as possible so that they understand how our members feel about this issue.

Please click here to find the phone number for your State Representative. Then call them in their Springfield office and ask them to vote YES on SB 460.

A few final thoughts:

• Once this bill is posted on the Illinois General Assembly website, we will update this post.
• You can share this post with others (teachers are definitely heavily impacted and should be aware of this.  General education administrators should be making calls as well).
• Please be sure to contact your own State Senator (not the bill sponsors). 
• If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to a member of the IAASE Leadership Team.

ACTION NEEDED: Oppose HB 3897

Almost as quickly as we have been working to undo the damage that has been done by HB 3586, we have been hit with another disaster of a bill. HB 3897 will allow students to stay in Transition programs after their 22nd Birthday if their 22nd birthday occurs during the school year. This could mean that a student stays in our Transition programs for up to a year longer than they do now.

NOW WE NEED YOUR HELP! Please click here and complete that information. Mark that you OPPOSE HB 3897. Under Part IV, Mark Record of Appearance only. This bill will be heard in the House Human Services Committee next week and we need your assistance to stop it.

That Pesky RTI and Special Education Bill

UPDATED (08/26/2019)
On Friday, August 23, 2019, Governor Pritzker took action to sign this bill into law.  HB 3586 is now a Public Act.  IAASE will work with Senator Koehler and Representative Crespo to make sure that the necessary fixes are implemented during the veto session in the Fall so that the detrimental impact of this legislation are minimized.  Further, IAASE is working with ISBE Leadership to develop interim guidance for school districts on this topic.

________________________________________________________________________
During the spring legislative session, lots of bills get drafted and rewritten and passed. Some get moved to another house without action and others get amended so quickly that we have whiplash. In some situations, errors occur, but members have made promises to one group of people or another. With the clock expiring on the session, members agree to pass the bill and "fix it in veto session." This is the case with HB 3586 (Koehler / Crespo).

Here is what the bill was supposed to do:

1. For CPS Only, requires the District to post changes to its special education policies or procedures on its website. (Just a note that the district already does this).
2. For CPS Only, before any procedural manual can be adopted, it must allow for public comment and those public comments must be kept on record for two years (for other districts, when approving a manual like this, you need to have a board hearing, but the comment period is not as extensive).
3. For CPS Only, requires the District to give parents ten days notice about any data that needs to be collected for things to occur at the meeting (this is in specific response to the Public Inquiry issues where there were challenges with people coming to meetings and not being able to receive ESY services because there was not enough data to support this).
4. For CPS Only, requires the District to send home copies of all documents that will be reviewed at the meeting.
5. For CPS Only, requires the District to keep service logs for each provider and to make these service logs available at each IEP meeting and to notify parents about these logs at the beginning of each year.  And, if the services are not implemented consistent with the IEP, the District must notify the parents about the fact that they have not been implemented as soon as possible.
6. For CPS Only, requires the District to utilize RTI.

While the leadership of IAASE is always challenged by bills that impact ONLY the Chicago Public Schools, this one was especially challenging.  And that's because of the "drafting error" that occurred in the process of writing the bill.  That drafting error makes numbers 4, 5, and 6 applicable to EVERY SCHOOL DISTRICT in the state.  That means that the following will be true should Governor Pritzker decide to sign this into law:

1. ALL SCHOOL DISTRICTS will be required to send home copies of all documents that will be reviewed at the meeting.
2. ALL SCHOOL DISTRICTS will be required to keep service logs for each provider and to make these service logs available at each IEP meeting and to notify parents about these logs at the beginning of each year.  And, if the services are not implemented consistent with the IEP, the District must notify the parents about the fact that they have not been implemented as soon as possible.
3. ALL SCHOOL DISTRICTS will be required to utilize RTI.

Some of you might already do these things in your districts (as a matter of fact, all of us were required to submit an RTI plan to the state more than ten years ago).  But the other provisions in this bill are dangerous and worrisome to the say the least.

IAASE has been working with the sponsors of the bill (Koehler and Crespo) to make sure this is addressed in the Fall veto session if it is signed by Governor Pritzker.  Without any fixes, the bill will become effective on the day that the Governor signs it into law.  If that happens, we will work with the ISBE on temporary fixes (between the signing date and the Fall veto session) and send you all information about this as it becomes available.

On Paraprofessional Licensure - A Note from ISBE

Many of you know about the updated law regarding teacher licensure that removes some of the requirements related to the test of basic skills.  IAASE supported the bill when it was moving through the legislature as it removed an unnecessary burden on potential applicants into the teacher pipeline.  But, we hit a wrinkle when it was signed last week.  That wrinkle is that it also applies to paraprofessionals and that meant that a shortage of parapros throughout the state would be getting worse.  IAASE President, Kevin Rubenstein, received lots of calls from people all over the state who were concerned about this issue.  He worked with the team at ISBE and our governmental relations consultant (Shannon Miller Bellini) to figure out a way to address the issue.  We realize that this is not a perfect fix, but Dr. Carmen Ayala, Superintendent at ISBE addresses the issue in her weekly newsletter:

From ISBE Superintendent, Dr. Carmen Ayala 

As many of you know, last week Governor Pritzker signed PA 101-0220 into law. The new law eliminates the requirement that a licensure candidate pass a test of basic skills. This clears the path for any teacher candidate who had completed all other requirements to earn the Professional Educator License. ISBE has identified 246 individuals with currently pending license applications that will be updated. Those candidates will either receive a license or be able to move forward with other remaining requirements. 

We understand there are concerns regarding the passing of this law and how it effects individuals applying for a paraprofessional endorsement. We are working with the sponsors of the legislation to author a trailer bill during the fall veto session to reinstate the option for those applying for a paraprofessional endorsement to do so using a test. In the interim, individuals who do not hold an associate degree or higher or a minimum of 60 semester hours of credit from a regionally accredited institution of higher education may proceed with taking the ETS-paraprofessional exam or ACT WorkKeys, with the understanding that ISBE cannot consider a passing score as a means to obtain the endorsement until subsequent legislation is enacted. This likely will not occur until November due to the timing of the fall veto session. 

The law does not affect endorsements and licenses that have already been issued. We have prepared a fact sheet with frequently asked questions to assist you and we will continue to keep you updated as we have more information.

Our IAASE Legislative Team will collaborate with the bill's sponsors to make sure that there is a fix for the Fall Veto Session. 

Senate Bill 209 Becomes Public Act 101-164

Big Changes to the Special Education Joint Agreement/ Cooperative Withdrawal Process

Many of you will remember the challenging situation we all were facing in the Spring of 2018 when the disagreement between one school district and their special education cooperative caused members of the Illinois legislature to take up the issue.  In short, one school district wanted to withdraw from the cooperative, but continue to use some of its services, the remainder of the districts in the cooperative did not want this to occur and so the legislature stepped in to help some constituents out.  While the measure was eventually vetoed and the parties worked their differences out, leaders at IAASE wanted to make sure that this sort of thing never happened again.  That's why we worked with Senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Plainfield) to write Senate Bill 209 Public Act 101-64 which was signed into law on July 26, 2019 by Governor Pritzker.

Senate Bill 209 accomplishes the following:

• Changes the process school districts must use when they wish to withdraw from their cooperatives/ joint agreements.
• Extends the period of time - to a minimum of 12 months - that a district must give notice when they are seeking to withdrawal from their joint agreement.
• Clarifies the components of a comprehensive plan to be consistent with IDEA regulations and to better protect the full spectrum of students with disabilities across the state including those with significant disabilities.
• Requires school districts to hold a public hearing prior to withdrawing from the cooperative where members of the public can give feedback on the comprehensive plan.
• Allows the Regional Boards of Education to make decisions based on the facts presented at the withdrawal hearing including whether the withdrawing district has "presented sufficient evidence that the district, standing alone, will provide a full continuum of services and support to all its students with disabilities in the foreseeable future."
• Makes the withdrawal process a one-way street.  Only after the Regional Office of Education (Intermediate Service Center in Cook County) approves the withdrawal can the pending withdrawal be heard by the Illinois State Advisory Council on Students with Disabilities (ISAC).

We consider this a big victory for students and schools.  Thank you very much to our legislative team headed by Melissa Taylor and Judy Hackett and aided by Shannon Miller Bellini for their hard work on this initiative.  This law is in effect now.

Take Action Now: IDEA Full Funding

When our team was in Washington, DC a few weeks back, one of the things we were talking with people about was IDEA Full Funding.  The video below was put together by Senator Bernie Sanders with the help of CASE President-Elect, Erin Maguire to talk about the need for a fully funded IDEA.

There are two bills that are currently working their way through the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate - HR 1878 and S. 866.  Illinois currently has the following Members of Congress signed on as co-sponsors of HR 1878:

• Rep. Robin Kelley
• Rep. Dan Lipinski
• Rep. Chuy Garcia
• Rep. Mike Quigley
• Rep. Sean Casten
• Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi
• Rep. Jan Schakowsky
• Rep. Brad Schneider
• Rep. Mike Bost
• Rep. Rodney Davis

And while we have asked for their support, the following Members of Congress have not yet signed on in support of the measure:

• Rep. Bobby Rush
• Rep. Danny Davis
• Rep. Bill Foster
• Rep. Lauren Underwood
• Rep. Adam Kinzinger
• Rep. John Shimkus
• Rep. Cheri Bustos
• Rep. Darin Lahood

We also have asked for the support for Senators Durbin and Duckworth on S. 866, but have not heard back about whether they support the bill.

08/01/2019 - UPDATE:  We are thrilled to announce that Senator Duckworth has signed on as a co-sponsor of S. 866!

We need your assistance.  You can send a letter to your Member of Congress about this important issue by clicking here (link opens in a new window).  Imagine more money coming into local schools for special education.  That dream can become a reality.

IAASE Members Encouraged To Register for CASE/CEC Special Education Legislative Summit

Be an advocate | Registration Options | Hotel & Travel

2019 Special Education Legislative Summit The Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) and Council of Administrators of Special Education (CASE) invite you to the 2019 Special Education Legislative Summit, the premier advocacy event of the year for special educators and early interventionists. During this event, advocates from across the country gather to educate our nation’s policymakers about: Protecting and increasing IDEA funding for its intended purpose. Ensuring no policy restricts public education’s ability to deliver a free appropriate public education and early intervention services. Safeguarding the rights of children and youth with exceptionalities. You know what children and youth with exceptionalities and professionals need, so raise your voice and advocate with us during the 2019 Special Education Legislative Summit this July! Hurry to register at Early Bird rates! Be an advocate!

Council for Exceptional Children 2900 Crystal Drive, Suite 100 Arlington, VA 22202

Illinois Senate Bill 209 - Key Information

Last year, a school district and a special education cooperative in the Chicago area became embroiled in a challenging dispute.  At the heart of the issue was the fact that the school district was withdrawing from the cooperative and they wanted several of their students to continue attending the cooperative programs.  The challenge was that the cooperative did not have a non-member rate and so the students were not able to attend the program.  The parents of these students approached their legislators seeking a legislative fix.  While an initial bill would have allowed non-cooperative students to attend at the regular rate across the state, IAASE worked hard to narrow the provisions of the bill so that it only applied to one school district.  While negotiations on a non-legislative solution ensued, the legislature passed the bill allowing students from the school district to attend the cooperative.  While the two parties reached a solution and former Governor Rauner ultimately vetoed the bill, IAASE wishes to make sure that situations like this do not arise again.

Enter Senate Bill 209 sponsored by Senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Plainfield).  Senate Bill 209 would amend the School Code to make changes in the process school districts use when withdrawing from special education cooperatives/ joint agreements.  The bill addresses issues that came up in the Spring.  Specifically, the bill requires:

·       School districts to give at least 18 month’s notice to other cooperative members (rather than as specified in their joint articles of agreement).

o   Rationale:        Currently, the articles of joint agreement for some special education cooperatives do not specify a time frame.  Since there are financial implications for all member districts when a member district withdraws, it is important to be specific about the minimum notice requirements.

·       School districts to provide written notification to all parents of students with disabilities that they plan to withdraw from a special education cooperative and invite parents and other interested community members to a hearing to provide feedback on the plan.

o   Rationale:        Currently, parents could be caught in a situation where their child is receiving services from the special education cooperative and suddenly find out that the district will no longer be a member.  This legislation will force withdrawing districts to notify all parents of children with disabilities of the planned withdrawal and hold a public hearing to discuss parent concerns.  This increases transparency and accountability for taxpayers.

·       A comprehensive plan for special education services and outlines the specific components that must be present in order for a Regional Board of Education to deem a withdrawing district as fit for serving students with disabilities on their own.

o   Rationale:        There is not currently a place in the Illinois School Code that clearly outlines or articulates the components of a comprehensive plan.  Consolidating and placing everything into one place will allow for greater transparency and easier decisions by Regional Boards of Education.

·       School districts seeking to withdraw from a special education cooperative to provide a written plan for placing all of its special education students prior to withdrawing from the cooperative.

o   Rationale:        In the last year, a school district sought to withdraw from a cooperative and keep their students placed in the special education cooperative programs.  When the special education cooperative would not allow for this to occur, the parents of these students with disabilities sought intervention in the form of special legislation.  This section of the bill would prevent this from happening by requiring them to identify placements for all students without the use of the special education cooperative.

The bill is set to be heard in committee on Tuesday, February 19, 2019 and we ask members of IAASE to provide witness slips in support of this legislation by clicking here.