Bill Text: IL SB3241 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Amends the Re-Entering Citizens Civics Education Act. Expands the program to persons committed to a Department of Juvenile Justice facility. Provides that the workshop held at the Department of Juvenile Justice shall consist of 270 minutes of instruction. Provides that the civil education program in the Department of Juvenile Justice shall be taught by 2 co-facilitators. Provides that one of the co-facilitators shall be a member of an established nonpartisan civil organization and the other a committed person at the Department of Juvenile Justice who is specifically trained in voting rights education and who has been trained by an established nonpartisan civil organization. Effective January 1, 2021.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)

Status: (Failed) 2021-01-13 - Session Sine Die [SB3241 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-SB3241-Introduced.html


101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
SB3241

Introduced 2/10/2020, by Sen. Robert Peters

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
730 ILCS 200/5
730 ILCS 200/10
730 ILCS 200/15
730 ILCS 200/20
730 ILCS 200/21 new
730 ILCS 200/25
730 ILCS 200/30
730 ILCS 200/35

Amends the Re-Entering Citizens Civics Education Act. Expands the program to persons committed to a Department of Juvenile Justice facility. Provides that the workshop held at the Department of Juvenile Justice shall consist of 270 minutes of instruction. Provides that the civil education program in the Department of Juvenile Justice shall be taught by 2 co-facilitators. Provides that one of the co-facilitators shall be a member of an established nonpartisan civil organization and the other a committed person at the Department of Juvenile Justice who is specifically trained in voting rights education and who has been trained by an established nonpartisan civil organization. Effective January 1, 2021.
LRB101 20314 RLC 69858 b

A BILL FOR

SB3241LRB101 20314 RLC 69858 b
1 AN ACT concerning criminal law.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The Re-Entering Citizens Civics Education Act is
5amended by changing Sections 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, and 35 and
6by adding Section 21 as follows:
7 (730 ILCS 200/5)
8 Sec. 5. Definitions. In this Act:
9 "Co-facilitators" means a committed person at the
10Department of Juvenile Justice who is specifically trained in
11voting rights education, who shall assist in conducting voting
12and civics education workshops for committed persons at the
13Department of Juvenile Justice who are scheduled for discharge
14within 12 months.
15 "Committed person" means a person committed and confined to
16and in the physical custody of the Department of Corrections or
17the Department of Juvenile Justice.
18 "Commitment" means a judicially determined placement in
19the physical custody of the Department of Corrections or the
20Department of Juvenile Justice on the basis of conviction or
21delinquency.
22 "Correctional institution or facility" means a Department
23of Corrections or Department of Juvenile Justice building or

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1part of a Department of Corrections or Department of Juvenile
2Justice building where committed persons are detained in a
3secure manner.
4 "Department" includes the Department of Corrections and
5the Department of Juvenile Justice, unless the text solely
6specifies a particular Department.
7 "Detainee" means a committed person in the physical custody
8of the Department of Corrections or the Department of Juvenile
9Justice.
10 "Director" includes the Director of the Department of
11Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice unless the
12text solely specifies a particular Director.
13 "Discharge" means the end of a sentence or the final
14termination of a committed person's detainee's physical
15commitment to and confinement in the Department of Corrections.
16Discharge means the end of a sentence or the final termination
17of a committed person's physical commitment to and confinement
18in the or Department of Juvenile Justice.
19 "Peer educator" means an incarcerated citizen at the
20Department of Corrections who is specifically trained in voting
21rights education, who shall conduct voting and civics education
22workshops for committed persons at the Department of
23Corrections who are detainees scheduled for discharge within 12
24months.
25 "Program" means the nonpartisan peer education and
26information instruction established by this Act.

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1 "Re-entering citizen" means any United States citizen who
2is: 17 years of age or older; in the physical custody of the
3Department of Corrections or Department of Juvenile Justice;
4and scheduled to be re-entering society within 12 months.
5(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
6 (730 ILCS 200/10)
7 Sec. 10. Purpose; program. The Department of Corrections
8and the Department of Juvenile Justice shall provide a
9nonpartisan peer-led civics program throughout the
10correctional institutions of this State to teach civics to
11soon-to-be released citizens who will be re-entering society.
12The goal of the program is to promote the successful
13integration of re-entering citizens, promote democracy, and
14reduce rates of recidivism within this State. For young people
15in particular, the study of civics helps people acquire and
16learn to use the skills, knowledge, and attitudes that will
17prepare them to be engaged citizens throughout their lives.
18This program shall coincide with and enhance existing laws to
19ensure that re-entering citizens understand their civic
20responsibility and know how to secure or, if applicable, regain
21their right to vote as part of the exit process.
22(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
23 (730 ILCS 200/15)
24 Sec. 15. Curriculum and eligibility. The civics peer

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1education program shall consist of a rigorous curriculum, and
2participants shall be instructed on subjects including, but not
3limited to, voting rights, governmental institutions, current
4affairs, and simulations of voter registration, election, and
5democratic processes. Each workshop held at the Department of
6Corrections shall consist of 3 sessions that are 90 minutes
7each and that do not need to be taken consecutively. The
8workshops held at the Department of Juvenile Justice shall
9consist of 270 minutes of instruction. The Department of
10Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice The
11Department must offer re-entering citizens scheduled to be
12discharged within 12 months with the civics peer education
13program, and each re-entering citizen must enroll in the
14program one to 12 months prior to his or her expected date of
15release. This workshop must be included in the standard exit
16process. The Department of Corrections and the Department of
17Juvenile Justice The Department should aim to include this
18workshop in conjunction with other pre-release procedures and
19movements. Delays in a workshop being provided shall not cause
20delays in discharge. Committed persons Detainees may not be
21prevented from attending workshops due to staffing shortages,
22lockdowns, or to conflicts with family or legal visits, court
23dates, medical appointments, commissary visits, recreational
24sessions, dining, work, class, or bathing schedules. In case of
25conflict or staffing shortages, re-entering citizens must be
26given full opportunity to attend a workshop at a later time.

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1(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
2 (730 ILCS 200/20)
3 Sec. 20. Peer educator training. The civics peer education
4program shall be taught by peer educators who are citizens
5incarcerated in Department of Corrections and Department of
6Juvenile Justice facilities and specially trained by
7experienced peer educators and established nonpartisan civic
8organizations. Established nonpartisan civic organizations may
9be assisted by area political science or civics educators at
10colleges, universities, and high schools and by nonpartisan
11organizations providing re-entry services. The nonpartisan
12civic organizations shall provide adequate training to peer
13educators on matters including, but not limited to, voting
14rights, governmental institutions, current affairs, and
15simulations of voter registration, election, and democratic
16processes, and shall provide periodic updates to program
17content and to peer educators.
18(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
19 (730 ILCS 200/21 new)
20 Sec. 21. Co-facilitator training. The civics education
21program in the Department of Juvenile Justice shall be taught
22using 2 co-facilitators. One of the co-facilitators shall be a
23member of an established nonpartisan civic organization and the
24other co-facilitator shall be a committed person at the

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1Department of Juvenile Justice who is specifically trained in
2voting rights education and who has been trained by an
3established nonpartisan civic organization. The organization
4providing training may be assisted by area political science or
5civics educators at colleges, universities, and high schools
6and by nonpartisan organizations providing re-entry services.
7The nonpartisan civic organizations shall provide adequate
8training to both co-facilitators on the civics and voting
9rights curriculum.
10 (730 ILCS 200/25)
11 Sec. 25. Voter and civic education program; content.
12 (a) Program content shall provide the following:
13 (1) nonpartisan information on voting history
14 procedures;
15 (2) nonpartisan definitions of local, State, and
16 federal governmental institutions and offices; and
17 (3) examples and simulations of registration and
18 voting processes, and access to voter registration and
19 voting processes for those individuals who are eligible to
20 vote.
21 (b) Established nonpartisan civic organizations shall
22provide periodic updates to program content and, if applicable,
23peer educators and co-facilitators. Updates shall reflect
24major relevant changes to election laws and processes in
25Illinois.

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1 (c) Program content shall be delivered in the following
2manners:
3 (1) verbally via peer educators and co-facilitators;
4 (2) broadcasts via Department of Corrections and
5 Department of Juvenile Justice internal television
6 channels; or
7 (3) printed information packets.
8 (d) Peer educators and co-facilitators shall disseminate
9printed information for voting in the releasee's county,
10including, but not limited to, election authorities'
11addresses, all applicable Internet websites, and public
12contact information for all election authorities. This
13information shall be compiled into a civics handbook. The
14handbook shall also include key information condensed into a
15pocket information card.
16 (e) This information shall also be compiled electronically
17and posted on Department of Corrections' and Department of
18Juvenile Justice's website along with the Department of
19Corrections' Community Support Advisory Councils websites.
20 (f) Department Directors shall ensure that the wardens or
21superintendents of all correctional institutions and
22facilities visibly post this information on all common areas of
23their respective institutions, and shall broadcast the same via
24in-house institutional information television channels.
25Directors shall ensure that updated information is distributed
26in a timely, visible, and accessible manner.

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1 (g) The Director of Corrections shall order, in a clearly
2visible area of each parole office within this State, the
3posting of a notice stipulating voter eligibility and that
4contains the current Internet website address and voter
5registration information provided by State Board of Elections
6regarding voting rights for citizens released from the physical
7custody of the Department of Corrections and the Department of
8Juvenile Justice.
9 (h) All program content and materials shall be distributed
10annually to the Community Support Advisory Councils of the
11Department of Corrections for use in re-entry programs across
12this State.
13(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
14 (730 ILCS 200/30)
15 Sec. 30. Power of the Departments Department. The
16Department of Corrections and the Department of Juvenile
17Justice shall adopt rules to carry out this Act within 6 months
18after the effective date of this Act.
19(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
20 (730 ILCS 200/35)
21 Sec. 35. Funding. The funding for the voting rights and
22registration peer education program shall be subject to
23appropriation by the General Assembly. The Department of
24Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice may use

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1private or federal funding to administer the program,
2including, but not limited to, funds from the United States
3Department of Justice.
4(Source: P.A. 101-441, eff. 1-1-20.)
5 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
61, 2021.
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