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SB 1519

SCH CD-REFER LAW ENFORCEMENT

104th Regular Session Introduced by Carol Ammons and 24 co-sponsors

The bill requires annual K–12 law enforcement referral reporting with demographic breakdowns to ISBE starting 2027–28, plus statewide analysis to curb fines and truancy referrals.

Public Act . . . . . . . . . 104-0430
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Bill Summary · SB 1519

SB 1519 — School Code: Student Referrals to Law Enforcement (Public Act 104-0430)

Status
- Public Act 104-0430 — Governor approved; effective August 20, 2025.
- Introduced February 21, 2025 (Sen. Karina Villa). Enrolled as amended; multiple committee and floor amendments adopted.

Purpose / Intent
- To increase statewide transparency about when K–12 students are referred to law enforcement (including citations, tickets, court referrals, and school-related arrests), to disaggregate that data to detect disparities, and to limit use of municipal tickets/fines connected to school discipline and truancy.

Key provisions
1. New law enforcement referral reporting (adds 105 ILCS 5/2-3.206)
- Beginning with the 2027–2028 school year, each school district must annually report to the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE):
- Number of K–12 students referred to law enforcement and number of referral instances.
- Data elements must be disaggregated by incident type (e.g., citation, ticket, court referral, arrest), race/ethnicity, sex, grade level/age, English learner status, and disability.
- ISBE (through the State Superintendent) must prepare a statewide report on student referrals to law enforcement and post it on ISBE’s website; first statewide report is due January 31, 2029 and annually thereafter.
- ISBE may adopt rules to implement reporting requirements.

  1. Parent-teacher advisory committee duties (amends 105 ILCS 5/10-20.14)

    • The parent‑teacher advisory committee, in cooperation with local law enforcement, must develop policy guidelines to establish and maintain a reciprocal reporting system between districts and local law enforcement about criminal and civil offenses committed by students.
    • The bill encourages memoranda of understanding (MOUs) that clarify law enforcement’s role in schools.
    • Requires collaboration on school bus safety procedures and guidance (with ISBE to draft guidance by specified dates in the bill text).

  2. Limits on monetary penalties and truancy referrals (amends other School Code sections)

    • Prohibits school personnel from issuing a monetary fine, fee, ticket, or citation for a municipal code violation.
    • Prohibits school personnel from referring a truant, chronic truant, or truant minor to a local public entity, school resource officer, or peace officer for the purpose of that entity/officer issuing a fine or fee as punishment for truancy.

Who is affected
- Public school districts and district-authorized/state-authorized charter schools (data collection and reporting duties).
- Illinois State Board of Education (data collection, reporting, and guidance).
- School personnel (limits on issuing municipal citations and on referrals intended to trigger fines for truancy).
- Local law enforcement and municipal authorities (reciprocal reporting expectations; possible reduction in municipal tickets issued from school-related incidents).
- Students — particularly students of color and students with disabilities (policy intends to surface and address disparities).

Procedural / timeline notes
- First district-level reporting obligation begins with the 2027–2028 school year.
- ISBE statewide report due January 31, 2029, and annually thereafter.
- Public Act took effect August 20, 2025.

Potential impacts
- Improves statewide visibility into how often and which students are referred to law enforcement, with demographic breakdowns to inform policy and enforcement practices.
- Limits use of municipal fines/citations as school discipline and blocks referrals made for the purpose of fining truant minors, potentially reducing financial penalties on students/families.
- Adds administrative reporting obligations for districts; encourages districts and law enforcement to adopt clear MOUs governing school-based policing and reporting.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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