SB 71 Illinois Senate · 104th Regular Session

IEMA-SCHOOL SAFETY

Summary

Amends the Illinois Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act. Provides that Local Emergency Planning Committees and the State Emergency Response Commission shall partner with schools and school districts regarding safety threats posed by storage and transport of hazardous substances near schools. Provides requirements for a comprehensive emergency response plan to go into effect. Details duties of the State Emergency Response Commission, working in consultation with Local Emergency Planning Committees and schools, with respect to planning and preparedness. Provides for rulemaking by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security. Directs the Illinois Emergency Response Commission and Local Emergency Response Committees to create a timeline for compliance with the requirements of the amendatory Act not to exceed 2 years. Defines terms.

Issues: ✓ Education

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Apr 2025

Committee Review

May 2025

Senate Passage

May 2025

House Passage

May 2025

Signed into Law

Aug 2025

Introduced Apr 9, 2025 Signed Aug 15, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Engrossed → Enrolled · 2 edits · Aug 15, 2025

MINOR

The bill transitioned from its Engrossed version to the final Enrolled version, incorporating minor text formatting adjustments and a specific word change in the definition of evacuation scenarios. The most notable substantive change is the removal of the word 'persons' from the list of suspicious items during school safety drills, narrowing the focus to physical objects. Additionally, a page header was updated to reflect the bill's final status.

Scope change

The scope of the bill remains focused on school safety, but the specific criteria for 'suspicious items' during drills was slightly narrowed by removing the inclusion of 'persons'.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'School safety drill' was modified to remove the phrase 'or persons' from the list of suspicious items that may trigger an evacuation, changing the scope to focus only on suspicious items.

TECHNICAL

Minor text formatting changes were made throughout the document, including the removal of the 'Engrossed' label and the addition of the 'Enrolled' label to indicate the bill's final state.

Introduced → Engrossed · 6 edits · May 31, 2025

MODERATE

The bill was amended to rename the legislation from the 'Illinois Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act' to the 'School Safety Drill Act,' shifting its primary focus from general hazardous substance planning to mandatory safety drills for schools. The changes include updating the bill's title and section numbers, redefining key terms like 'school' and 'hazardous substance' to better fit educational contexts, and replacing specific compliance timelines with a list of required drill types (e.g., evacuation, bus evacuation, law enforcement, and severe weather).

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from a broad requirement for Local Emergency Planning Committees to create a compliance timeline for hazardous substance threats to a specific mandate for all schools to conduct various types of safety drills. The applicability was refined to explicitly cover public and private facilities offering education to students under 21.

DEFINITION

Renamed the Act from the 'Illinois Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act' to the 'School Safety Drill Act' to reflect its new primary focus on school safety exercises.

Updated the definition of 'hazardous substance' to explicitly include radioactive materials, hydrocarbons, petroleum, gasoline, and crude oil alongside existing definitions.

REQUIREMENT

Added a specific requirement for 'bus evacuation drills' to prepare students and staff for situations where conditions outside a bus are safer than inside.

Replaced the previous requirement for Local Emergency Planning Committees to create a compliance timeline with a mandate for schools to institute specific types of drills, including law enforcement and severe weather scenarios.

TIMELINE

Removed the provision requiring Local Emergency Planning Committees to create a timeline for compliance with hazardous substance threat requirements within 2 years.

ELIGIBILITY

Refined the definition of 'school' to explicitly include private non-profit schools that meet specific civil rights and attendance requirements.

Floor votes · Senate Apr 9, 2025 · House May 20, 2025

How they voted

53–0

Passed · 5 other

Total votes 58

Apr 9, 2025

D Democratic39

36 Yea 3

92% Yea

R Republican19

17 Yea 2

89% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Aug 15, 2025

Signed into law

Governor Approved

upper

May 31, 2025

Upper · Passed

Passed Both Houses

upper

May 31, 2025

Upper · Passed

House Committee Amendment No. 2 Senate Concurs 057-000-000

upper

May 27, 2025

Upper · Passed

House Committee Amendment No. 2 Motion To Concur Recommended Do Adopt Education; 013-000-000

upper

May 27, 2025

Committee

House Committee Amendment No. 2 Motion to Concur Assignments Referred to Education

upper

May 27, 2025

Committee

House Committee Amendment No. 2 Motion to Concur Referred to Assignments

upper

May 21, 2025

Introduced

Placed on Calendar Order of Concurrence House Amendment(s) 2 - May 22, 2025

upper

May 21, 2025

Introduced

Secretary's Desk - Concurrence House Amendment(s) 2

upper

May 20, 2025

Lower · Passed

Third Reading - Short Debate - Passed 111-000-000

lower

May 7, 2025

Amended

House Committee Amendment No. 1 Tabled

lower

May 7, 2025

Lower · Passed

Do Pass as Amended / Short Debate Education Policy Committee; 012-000-000

lower

May 7, 2025

Lower · Passed

House Committee Amendment No. 2 Adopted in Education Policy Committee; by Voice Vote

lower

May 6, 2025

Lower · Passed

House Committee Amendment No. 2 Rules Refers to Education Policy Committee

lower

May 6, 2025

Lower · Passed

House Committee Amendment No. 1 Rules Refers to Education Policy Committee

lower

May 2, 2025

Committee

House Committee Amendment No. 2 Referred to Rules Committee

lower

May 2, 2025

Introduced

House Committee Amendment No. 2 Filed with Clerk by Rep. Jeff Keicher

lower

May 2, 2025

Committee

House Committee Amendment No. 1 Referred to Rules Committee

lower

May 2, 2025

Introduced

House Committee Amendment No. 1 Filed with Clerk by Rep. Jeff Keicher

lower

Apr 17, 2025

Committee

Assigned to Education Policy Committee

lower

Apr 10, 2025

Committee

Referred to Rules Committee

lower

Apr 9, 2025

Introduced

Arrived in House

lower

Apr 9, 2025

Amended

Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Tabled Pursuant to Rule 5-4(a)

upper

Apr 9, 2025

Upper · Passed

Third Reading - Passed; 054-000-000

upper

Apr 3, 2025

Upper · Passed

Senate Floor Amendment No. 3 Adopted; Murphy

upper

Apr 3, 2025

Introduced

Senate Floor Amendment No. 3 Recommend Do Adopt Education; 011-000-000

upper

Apr 1, 2025

Introduced

Senate Floor Amendment No. 3 Assignments Refers to Education

upper

Mar 28, 2025

Committee

Senate Floor Amendment No. 3 Referred to Assignments

upper

Mar 28, 2025

Introduced

Senate Floor Amendment No. 3 Filed with Secretary by Sen. Laura M. Murphy

upper

Mar 19, 2025

Upper · Passed

Do Pass as Amended Education; 011-003-000

upper

Mar 18, 2025

Upper · Passed

Senate Committee Amendment No. 2 Adopted

upper

Mar 18, 2025

Upper · Passed

Senate Committee Amendment No. 2 Assignments Refers to Education

upper

Mar 14, 2025

Committee

Senate Committee Amendment No. 2 Referred to Assignments

upper

Mar 14, 2025

Introduced

Senate Committee Amendment No. 2 Filed with Secretary by Sen. Laura M. Murphy

upper

Mar 12, 2025

Upper · Passed

Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Assignments Refers to Education

upper

Mar 6, 2025

Committee

Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Referred to Assignments

upper

Mar 6, 2025

Introduced

Senate Committee Amendment No. 1 Filed with Secretary by Sen. Laura M. Murphy

upper

Jan 22, 2025

Committee

Assigned to Education

upper

Jan 13, 2025

Committee

Referred to Assignments

upper

2 primary · 16 co-sponsors