Sec. 34-21.6. Waiver of fees and fines.

475 words·~2 min read·/il/chapter-105/act-5/34-21-6·

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

(a)The board shall waive all fees and any fines for the loss of school property assessed by the district on children whose parents are unable to afford them, including but not limited to:

(1)children living in households that meet the free lunch or breakfast eligibility

guidelines established by the federal government pursuant to Section 1758 of the federal Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758; 7 CFR 245 et seq.) and students whose parents are veterans or active duty military personnel with income at or below 200% of the federal poverty level, subject to verification as set forth in subsection

(b)of this Section; and

(2)homeless children and youths as defined in Section 11434a of the federal

McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a).

Notice of waiver availability shall be given to parents or guardians with every bill for fees or fines. The board shall develop written policies and procedures implementing this Section in accordance with regulations promulgated by the State Board of Education.

(b)If the board participates in a federally funded, school-based child nutrition program and uses a student's application for, eligibility for, or participation in the federally funded, school-based child nutrition program (42 U.S.C. 1758; 7 245 et seq.) as the basis for waiving fees assessed by the district, then the board must follow the verification requirements of the federally funded, school-based child nutrition program (42 U.S.C. 1758; 7 CFR 245.6a).

If the board establishes a process for the determination of eligibility for waiver of all fees assessed by the district that is completely independent of the criteria listed in subsection (b), the board may provide for waiver verification no more often than once every academic year. Information obtained during the independent waiver verification process indicating that the student does not meet free lunch or breakfast eligibility guidelines may be used to deny the waiver of the student's fees or fines for the loss of school property, provided that any information obtained through this independent process for determining or verifying eligibility for fee waivers shall not be used to determine or verify eligibility for any federally funded, school-based child nutrition program.

This subsection shall not preclude children from obtaining waivers at any point during the academic year.

(c)The board may not discriminate against, punish, or penalize a student in any way because of an unpaid balance on the student's school account or because the student's parents or guardians are unable to pay any required fees or fines for the loss of school property. This prohibition includes, but is not limited to, the lowering of grades, exclusion from any curricular or extracurricular program of the school district, or withholding of student records, grades, transcripts, or diplomas. Any person who violates this subsection

(c)is guilty of a petty offense.