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The Illinois State Board of Education made a few significant revisions to its proposed regulations regarding isolated time-out, time-out and physical restraint (the “Proposed Rules”),  in response to 310 letters of public comments. The Proposed Rules are not yet effective, but will be submitted for a Second Hearing and publication in the Illinois Register after…

In December 2019, the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the United States Department of Education issued joint guidance on the application of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act(FERPA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996(HIPAA) to student health records.  The newly issued guidance updates the departments’ most…

The Illinois State Board of Education has issued Guidance and Frequently Asked Questions on the Emergency Regulations for the Use of Time out and Physical Restraint, dated December, 2019, responding to questions about the Emergency Rules (effective November 20, 2019 and amended with regard to prone and supine restraint on December 4, 2019). Some highlights…

On December 20, 2019, Governor Pritzker signed Senate Bill 1784 into law – creating Public Act 101-0620. Among other effects, the Public Act amends the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act and Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act to include provisions impacting union members’ dues deduction authorizations. The Act, which took effect immediately, is the Illinois legislature’s…

On December 6, 2019, the Governor signed into law Public Act 101-0598 (SB 460) which modifies the new requirement in Public Act 101-0515 that schools provide all written materials that will be discussed by the IEP team at Eligibility and IEP meetings to parents three school days before the meeting.  This provision delays the three…

Reacting to concerns about the ability to maintain student safety without the ability to use prone restraint, the Illinois State Board of Education has issued an amendment to the emergency regulations to provide for the emergency use of prone restraint. According to the Emergency Amendment, prone restraint may be used if all of the following…

Effective November 20, 2019, the Illinois State Board of Education issued emergency regulations, 23 IAC 1.285, regarding requirements for the use of time out and physical restraint. ISBE also issued a Physical Restraint and Time Out Form to be completed after each instance of time out or physical restraint and submitted to the parent and…

            On August 23, 2019, Governor Pritzker signed Public Act 101-0531 which takes effect immediately.  As further described in this briefing, the Public Act changes several areas of the School Code.  Most notably, the Public Act significantly changes the procedure for investigating sexual abuse allegations made against a school district’s staff members, vendors, or volunteers. …

On August 23, 2019, the Governor signed into law HB 3586, which requires districts to provide additional disclosure and notification to parents of students who are or may be eligible for special education services into law. The Public Act is effective immediately. The Act requires that the school district provide certain documents to parents before…