Will County Gazette

Meg Loughran Cappel introduced SB1231 in the Illinois Senate on Jan. 24, 2025, during the general assembly session 104, according to the Illinois General Assembly.

According to the Illinois General Assembly site, the legislature summarized the bill's official text as follows: "Amends the Children with Disabilities Article of the School Code. Allows the school district to initiate an impartial due process hearing within 14 (rather than 5) days of any written parent request for an independent educational evaluation to show that its evaluation is appropriate. Requires an independent educational evaluation at public expense to be completed within 60 school days (rather than 30 days) of a parent's written request unless the school district initiates an impartial due process hearing or the parent or school district offers reasonable grounds to show that such time period should be extended. Provides that if the due process hearing decision indicates that the parent is entitled to an independent educational evaluation, it must be completed within 60 school days (rather than 30 days) of the decision unless the parent or the school district offers reasonable grounds to show that such period should be extended."

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill amends the Illinois School Code concerning the identification, evaluation, and placement of children for special education. It requires the State Board of Education to establish rules ensuring a free appropriate public education for all children with disabilities, including administering non-discriminatory tests for English learners. It mandates multidisciplinary evaluations and the availability of an independent educational evaluation at public expense under certain conditions. The bill specifies the consideration of additional factors for students with autism and emphasizes Braille instruction for functionally blind students. It ensures educational integration with non-disabled peers where feasible and outlines notification requirements to parents regarding placement decisions. Additionally, it mandates reasonable access for parents, independent evaluators, and qualified professionals to educational settings. The bill outlines the consideration of emergency accommodations in individualized education programs or Section 504 plans.

Cappel graduated from Benedictine University with a BA.

Meg Loughran Cappel is currently serving in the Illinois State Senate, representing the state's 49th Senate District. She replaced previous state senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant in 2020.

Bills in Illinois follow a multi-step legislative process, beginning with introduction in either the House or Senate, followed by committee review, floor debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching the governor for approval or veto. The General Assembly operates on a biennial schedule, and while typically thousands of bills are introduced each session, only a fraction successfully pass through the process to become law.

You can read more about bills and other measures here.

Bill Number	Date Introduced	Short Description
SB1231	01/24/2025	Amends the Children with Disabilities Article of the School Code. Allows the school district to initiate an impartial due process hearing within 14 (rather than 5) days of any written parent request for an independent educational evaluation to show that its evaluation is appropriate. Requires an independent educational evaluation at public expense to be completed within 60 school days (rather than 30 days) of a parent's written request unless the school district initiates an impartial due process hearing or the parent or school district offers reasonable grounds to show that such time period should be extended. Provides that if the due process hearing decision indicates that the parent is entitled to an independent educational evaluation, it must be completed within 60 school days (rather than 30 days) of the decision unless the parent or the school district offers reasonable grounds to show that such period should be extended.