Amends the State Finance Act, if and only if House bill 3860 and House bill 315 of the 95th General Assembly become law. Provides that, through June 30, 2008, the Governor may direct the State Comptroller and the State Treasure to transfer moneys from certain special funds into the General Revenue Fund, subject to certain restrictions. Effective immediately.
Amends the Public Community College Act. Provides that the Board of Trustees of Community College District No. 512 may create a pilot baccalaureate program under which the district may establish and offer bachelor’s degrees in 2 fields of study if certain conditions are met, including requiring (i) that the degree programs not compete with any nearby public university, (ii) that the district identify and document unmet workforce needs, (iii) that the degree programs not require any additional funding from local taxes or the State, (iv) that the Illinois Community College board and the Board of Higher Education approve the offering of the degree programs, and (v) that the pilot program expire four years after the initial offering of the degree programs, unless otherwise extended by law. Effective immediately.
Deals with copyright infringement provisions. The recording industry was trying to implement some restrictions on how we do business on campus. Wally Czerniak came down and testified at a committee and provided some excellent data to the General Assembly. That bill was held in Rules, which means there is no action on it this year. There were other bills introduced regarding veteran’s grants for textbooks, textbook transparency, some issues that the students have concerns about. But there were legislative concerns about the cost and how those provisions would be implemented, so those bills remained n the Rules Committee as well.
Amends the Higher education Student Assistance Act. With respect to the Illinois Veteran Grant program, provides that assistance (which is an entitlement that a public university or community college must honor) must include reimbursement for 50% of the costs of textbooks required to be purchased for courses taken at the university or community college. Effective immediately.
Amends the Illinois Procurement code. Specifies that the 10-year limit on the duration of State contracts and leases is inclusive of proposed renewals.
Amends the Data Security on State Computers Act. Provides that the definition of “Agency” does not include public universities or their governing boards. Requires the governing board of each public university in this State to implement and administer the provisions of the Act with respect to State-owned electronic data processing equipment utilized by the university. Provides that the governing board shall implement a policy to mandate that all hard drives of surplus electronic data processing equipment be cleared of all data and software before being prepared for sale, donation, or transfer by following certain requirements. For purposes of the Act and any other State directive requiring the clearing of data and software from State-owned electronic data processing equipment prior to sale, donation, or transfer by a public university, provides that the governing board of the university shall have and maintain responsibility for the implementation and administration of the requirements fore clearing State-owned electronic data processing equipment utilized by the university. Effective immediately.
Creates the Transparency in College Textbook Publishing Practices Act. Provides that when contracting or being contracted by prospective clients, each publisher of college textbooks shall disclose, at that time and in writing, to the faculty member or, if applicable, the other adopting entity in charge of selecting textbooks for courses taught at a public institution of higher education (1) the price at which the publisher would make the textbook or supplemental materials available to the bookstore on the campus of or otherwise associated with the institution; (2) the copyright dates of past editions of the textbook or supplemental materials for the previous 10 years, if any; (3) the substantial content changes made between the current edition of the textbook or supplemental materials and the previous edition, if any; and (4) the existence and price of alternative formats of the textbook or supplemental materials. Provides that publishers of college textbooks are required to offer all bundled textbooks for sale as individual unbundled textbooks and supplemental materials. Provides that when a faculty member or , if applicable, other adopting entity in charge of selecting textbooks for courses taught at an institution directs a publisher to compile a custom textbook, the publisher shall provide, in writing before the faculty member or entity adopts the custom textbook, the price at which the publisher would make the custom textbook available to the bookstore on the campus of or otherwise associated with the institution. Contains a provision concerning institutional autonomy and academic freedom. Provides that the Attorney General or a State’s Attorney may bring a civil action to enforce the act.
Appropriates $7,730,000 from the Build Illinois Bond Fund at Northern Illinois University for all costs associated with the renovation and remodeling of Cole Hall’s auditoria, lobby, and façade. Effective July 1, 2008.
Reinserts the contents of the bill as amended by Senate Amendment No. 1, with the following changes. Makes changes concerning the information that publishers must disclose to faculty members. Removes the language concerning faculty requirements; provides instead that any faculty member or entity in charge of selecting textbooks and supplemental materials for courses taught at an institution shall clearly identify to the on-campus college bookstore all textbooks and supplemental materials required and recommended for use for each course and the earliest edition of any required textbook that may be purchased by a student for that course in a manner consistent with the adoption process established by the on-campus college bookstore. Provides that nothing in the Act is intended to alter, impair, or revise supplemental materials that have been required or recommended for use for each course in a timely manner. Removes that language concerning bookstore requirements; provides instead that the on-campus and off-campus college bookstore, if any, must, with reasonable expediency after the information becomes available, disclose on a per course basis all textbooks and supplementary learning materials that are required for courses taught during each term. Makes changes concerning the requirements for institutions, including removing the requirement that an institution ensure the availability of information regarding hoe current editions of text books differ from previous editions. Effective immediately.
The maximum grant amount would not exceed $5,468 for Fiscal year 2009, and there are escalations in subsequent years. Though that bill passed both chambers, it was subject to appropriations, which means it remains pending like everything else until the legislature and the administration come up with sufficient funds.
Amends the Public Community College Act. Provides that the board of trustees of any community college district that encompasses, in whole or in part, 8 or more counties may provide or contract for residential housing for students and employees of the community college district, provided that local property tax revenue is not used. Makes a related change to the definition of “facilities”. Effective immediately.
Amends the Campus Security Act. Changes the short title of the Act to the Campus Security Enhancement Act of 2008. Requires each public university, public community college, and independent, not-for-profit or for-profit higher education institution located in this State to (1) develop a National Incident Management System-compliant, all-hazards, emergency response plan in partnership with the institutions county or major municipal emergency management official, report the plan to this official, and have training and exercises for the plan annually at a minimum: and (2) develop an inter-disciplinary and multi-jurisdictional campus violence prevention plan in partnership with the institution’s county or major municipal emergency management official, report the plan to this official, and have training and exercises for the plan annually at minimum. Requires county and major municipal emergency managers and Illinois Emergency Management Agency regional coordinators to assist in the planning and training process for the plans with all resources available to them and to provide the higher education institutions with appropriate standards and guidelines for the plans and for the training and exercises for these plans.
Amends various Acts relating to the governance of public universities in Illinois and amends the Public Community College Act. Allows the governing board of each public university and community college district to enter into a contract wit ha third party for non-instructional services currently performed by an employee or bargaining unit member or lay off those educational support personnel employees upon 90 days written notice. Adds conditions on the entering of such a contract. Notwithstanding these conditions, allows a board to enter into a contract, of no longer than 3 months in duration, with a third party for non0instructional services currently performed by an employee or bargaining unit member for the purpose of augmenting the current workforce in an emergency situation that threatens the safety or health of students or staff. Provides that the amendatory Act is not applicable to non-instructional services that on the effective date of the amendatory Act are performed by a third party. Effective immediately.
Amends the Fire Investigation Act. Provides that the fire chief, or a subordinate delegated by the fire chief, of any municipality or fire protection district that contains, in whole or in part, a university, college, or community college or that has a university, college, or community college within one mile of the boundaries of the municipality or fire protection district may inspect of any rental property within the corporate boundaries of a municipality to ensure compliance with the fire and life safety codes in force in the municipality or fire protection district. Provides that, if the municipality or fire protection district has not adopted a fire or life safety code, the code for Fire Prevention and Safety as modified and adopted by the Office of the State Fire Marshal shall be used.
Amended the Procurement Act and set a ten-year limit on contracts. The Speaker’s Office was concerned with the way Central Management Services was handling rollovers on state contracts. They put a blanket bill together which covered all contracts. All the universities had concerns that this impacted some of the things we do ourselves, which are separate from the way the State departments and other agencies operate. We may have to look at follow-up legislation if the Governor signs that bill.
Appropriates $7,730,000 from the Build Illinois Bond Fund to Northern Illinois University for costs associated with Cole Hall.
The source of information concerning these pieces of legislation came from the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees Legislation, Audit and External Affairs Committee November 13, 2008.