Legislative Action
As of January 2019, we live in a post-Rauner age in Springfield. That means that legislation that would typically have faced veto now stands a chance of actually becoming state law – including legislation to improve our rights as educators and improve learning conditions for our students and their families. Visit this page regularly for updates on our work in Springfield!
Legislative Updates
Restoring Our Bargaining Rights
HB 2275, a bill to restore CTU’s bargaining rights, passed the House Labor committee and moves to the full House for a vote, potentially as soon as next week. The bill’s chief sponsor is Rep. Melissa Conyears-Ervin (D-10). The bill’s counterpart in the Illinois Senate, SB 1732, is sponsored by Sen. Bill Cunningham (D-18).
This legislation would reverse a section of the 1995 Chicago School Reform Act that made it nigh impossible for CTU to negotiate class sizes, special education and clinician staffing, and third party outsourcing with the Chicago Public Schools. That law altered Section 4.5 of the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act to move those topics from “mandatory” bargaining (the Union can strike over it) to “permissive” (can be bargained, but not struck). This has resulted in: some of the largest class sizes in the state; woefully inadequate staffing of school nurses, school social workers and other clinicians, special education teachers, and teacher assistants; and the outsourcing of school operations to Aramark that resulted in filthy schools and dangerous learning conditions. These issues are mandatory subjects of bargaining in every other Illinois school district. This proposed legislation merely puts CPS on an equal playing field.
Call your State Representative and let him/her know you’re a CTU member – and that you would appreciate that person’s support in the House.
Addressing Substitute Teacher Shortage
The CTU is working to address the substitute teacher shortage through two bills – HB 2968, introduced by State Rep. Will Davis (30th District), and SB 1584, introduced by State Senator Omar Aquino (2nd District). The bills increase the number of days a retired teacher can substitute teach without a pension penalty by 20 percent, from 100 days to 120 days – allowing retirees to serve as substitute teachers for a full 24 weeks during the school year without forfeiting their pensions. If passed, the legislation will add a full month of eligible work opportunities to retired teachers. Both bills unanimously passed their respective committees this week: the House Personnel & Pensions Committee, chaired by State Rep. Robert Martwick (19th District), and the Senate Government Accountability & Pensions Committee, chaired by Aquino. Both bills now go to the floor of each chamber for a full vote.
A fall 2018 survey by IARSS – the Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools – found that only 3 percent of the state’s school superintendents indicated that they had ‘no problem’ lining up substitute teachers. CPS has chronic substitute shortages, despite the willingness of our retirees, who are some of the district’s most experienced veteran teachers, to undertake this work – because retirees risked their pensions by substituting at our schools for more than 100 days.
2019 General Session Legislative Agenda
Charter Schools
CTU is promoting a legislative package to improve financial accountability and increase parental involvement at charter schools. We’re also promoting a bill to cap charter schools at their current numbers, statewide.
Charter school financial accountability
HB 278 (Welch) / SB 197 (Collins) will prohibit for-profit charter management organizations from running charters in the future and will cap charter CEO pay. In addition, it will create a minimum requirement for spending on core school operations: instruction, instructional materials, building operations, transportation, and support services.
Charter school expansion cap
HB 279 (Guzzardi) establishes a cap on charter school expansion in financially distressed school districts such as CPS.
Charter school Local School Councils
HB 334 (Harper) / SB 188 (Villivalam) would create a mechanism for formal parental involvement in school governance by requiring an LSC at every charter school in Chicago.
Abolish the State Charter School Commission
HB 2100 (Welch) would abolish the state charter school commission that overrides the wishes of local school boards to approve or deny a charter school application.
Working conditions in all schools
End “Section 4.5” bargaining restrictions
HB 2275 (Conyears-Ervin) / SB 1732 (Cunningham) would reverse a section of the 1995 Chicago School Reform Act that made it nigh impossible for CTU to negotiate class sizes, special education and clinician staffing, and third party outsourcing with the Chicago Public Schools. That law altered Section 4.5 of the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act to move those topics from “mandatory” bargaining (the Union can strike over it) to “permissive” (can be bargained, but not struck). This has resulted in: some of the largest class sizes in the state; woefully inadequate staffing of school nurses, school social workers and other clinicians, special education teachers, and teacher assistants; and the outsourcing of school operations to Aramark that resulted in filthy schools and dangerous learning conditions. These issues are mandatory subjects of bargaining in every other Illinois school district. This proposed legislation merely puts CPS on an equal playing field.
Elected School Board
HB 2267 (Martwick) / SB 1587 (Aquino) establishes an elected school board for Chicago.
Teacher Evaluations
SB 1822 (Lightford) and SB 1213 (Lightford): These bills reduce the time, burden, and negative impact of teacher evaluations as carried out under the Performance Evaluation Reform Act (PERA) of 2010.
Revenue
HB1589 (Harper) / SB 1956 (Sims) create a new category of eligible expenditures for special education and trauma services in the state’s TIF law and require any TIF surplus in Chicago to be directed fully to CPS.
Substitute Teacher Shortage
SB 1584 (Aquino) / HB 3208 (Ortiz) raise the number of days a retired teacher may work without a pension penalty from 100 to 120.
