Public Act 104-0338
 
HB3851 EnrolledLRB104 12283 LNS 22397 b

    AN ACT concerning education.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section 
27-23.7 as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/27-23.7)
    Sec. 27-23.7. Bullying prevention.
    (a) The General Assembly finds that a safe and civil 
school environment is necessary for students to learn and 
achieve and that bullying causes physical, psychological, and 
emotional harm to students and interferes with students' 
ability to learn and participate in school activities. The 
General Assembly further finds that bullying has been linked 
to other forms of antisocial behavior, such as vandalism, 
shoplifting, skipping and dropping out of school, fighting, 
using drugs and alcohol, sexual harassment, and sexual 
violence. Because of the negative outcomes associated with 
bullying in schools, the General Assembly finds that school 
districts, charter schools, and non-public, non-sectarian 
elementary and secondary schools should educate students, 
parents, and school district, charter school, or non-public, 
non-sectarian elementary or secondary school personnel about 
what behaviors constitute prohibited bullying.
    Bullying on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, 
religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, physical appearance, 
socioeconomic status, academic status, pregnancy, parenting 
status, homelessness, age, marital status, physical or mental 
disability, military status, sexual orientation, 
gender-related identity or expression, unfavorable discharge 
from military service, association with a person or group with 
one or more of the aforementioned actual or perceived 
characteristics, or any other distinguishing characteristic is 
prohibited in all school districts, charter schools, and 
non-public, non-sectarian elementary and secondary schools. No 
student shall be subjected to bullying:
        (1) during any school-sponsored education program or 
    activity;
        (2) while in school, on school property, on school 
    buses or other school vehicles, at designated school bus 
    stops waiting for the school bus, or at school-sponsored 
    or school-sanctioned events or activities;
        (3) through the transmission of information from a 
    school computer, a school computer network, or other 
    similar electronic school equipment; or 
        (4) through the transmission of information from a 
    computer that is accessed at a nonschool-related location, 
    activity, function, or program or from the use of 
    technology or an electronic device that is not owned, 
    leased, or used by a school district or school if the 
    bullying causes a substantial disruption to the 
    educational process or orderly operation of a school. This 
    item (4) applies only in cases in which a school 
    administrator or teacher receives a report that bullying 
    through this means has occurred and does not require a 
    district or school to staff or monitor any 
    nonschool-related activity, function, or program. 
    (a-5) Nothing in this Section is intended to infringe upon 
any right to exercise free expression or the free exercise of 
religion or religiously based views protected under the First 
Amendment to the United States Constitution or under Section 3 
of Article I of the Illinois Constitution. 
    (b) In this Section: 
    "Artificial intelligence" has the meaning given to that 
term in the Digital Voice and Likeness Protection Act.
    "Bullying" includes "cyber-bullying" and means any severe 
or pervasive physical or verbal act or conduct, including 
communications made in writing or electronically, directed 
toward a student or students that has or can be reasonably 
predicted to have the effect of one or more of the following:
        (1) placing the student or students in reasonable fear 
    of harm to the student's or students' person or property;
        (2) causing a substantially detrimental effect on the 
    student's or students' physical or mental health;
        (3) substantially interfering with the student's or 
    students' academic performance; or
        (4) substantially interfering with the student's or 
    students' ability to participate in or benefit from the 
    services, activities, or privileges provided by a school.
    Bullying, as defined in this subsection (b), may take 
various forms, including without limitation one or more of the 
following: harassment, threats, intimidation, stalking, 
physical violence, sexual harassment, sexual violence, posting 
or distributing sexually explicit images, theft, public 
humiliation, destruction of property, or retaliation for 
asserting or alleging an act of bullying. This list is meant to 
be illustrative and non-exhaustive.
    "Cyber-bullying" means bullying through the use of 
technology or any electronic communication, including without 
limitation any transfer of signs, signals, writing, images, 
sounds, data, or intelligence of any nature transmitted in 
whole or in part by a wire, radio, electromagnetic system, 
photoelectronic system, or photooptical system, including 
without limitation electronic mail, Internet communications, 
instant messages, or facsimile communications. 
"Cyber-bullying" includes the creation of a webpage or weblog 
in which the creator assumes the identity of another person or 
the knowing impersonation of another person as the author of 
posted content or messages if the creation or impersonation 
creates any of the effects enumerated in the definition of 
bullying in this Section. "Cyber-bullying" also includes the 
distribution by electronic means of a communication to more 
than one person or the posting of material on an electronic 
medium that may be accessed by one or more persons if the 
distribution or posting creates any of the effects enumerated 
in the definition of bullying in this Section. Beginning with 
the 2026-2027 school year, "cyber-bullying" also includes the 
posting or distribution of an unauthorized digital replica by 
electronic means if the posting or distribution creates any of 
the effects enumerated in the definition of "bullying" in this 
Section. 
    "Digital replica" has the meaning given to that term in 
the Digital Voice and Likeness Protection Act.
    "Policy on bullying" means a bullying prevention policy 
that meets the following criteria:
        (1) Includes the bullying definition provided in this 
    Section.
        (2) Includes a statement that bullying is contrary to 
    State law and the policy of the school district, charter 
    school, or non-public, non-sectarian elementary or 
    secondary school and is consistent with subsection (a-5) 
    of this Section.
        (3) Includes procedures for promptly reporting 
    bullying, including, but not limited to, identifying and 
    providing the school e-mail address (if applicable) and 
    school telephone number for the staff person or persons 
    responsible for receiving such reports and a procedure for 
    anonymous reporting; however, this shall not be construed 
    to permit formal disciplinary action solely on the basis 
    of an anonymous report.
        (4) Consistent with federal and State laws and rules 
    governing student privacy rights, includes procedures for 
    informing parents or guardians of all students involved in 
    the alleged incident of bullying within 24 hours after the 
    school's administration is made aware of the students' 
    involvement in the incident and discussing, as 
    appropriate, the availability of social work services, 
    counseling, school psychological services, other 
    interventions, and restorative measures. The school shall 
    make diligent efforts to notify a parent or legal 
    guardian, utilizing all contact information the school has 
    available or that can be reasonably obtained by the school 
    within the 24-hour period. 
        (5) Contains procedures for promptly investigating and 
    addressing reports of bullying, including the following:
            (A) Making all reasonable efforts to complete the 
        investigation within 10 school days after the date the 
        report of the incident of bullying was received and 
        taking into consideration additional relevant 
        information received during the course of the 
        investigation about the reported incident of bullying.
            (B) Involving appropriate school support personnel 
        and other staff persons with knowledge, experience, 
        and training on bullying prevention, as deemed 
        appropriate, in the investigation process.
            (C) Notifying the principal or school 
        administrator or his or her designee of the report of 
        the incident of bullying as soon as possible after the 
        report is received.
            (D) Consistent with federal and State laws and 
        rules governing student privacy rights, providing 
        parents and guardians of the students who are parties 
        to the investigation information about the 
        investigation and an opportunity to meet with the 
        principal or school administrator or his or her 
        designee to discuss the investigation, the findings of 
        the investigation, and the actions taken to address 
        the reported incident of bullying.
        (6) Includes the interventions that can be taken to 
    address bullying, which may include, but are not limited 
    to, school social work services, restorative measures, 
    social-emotional skill building, counseling, school 
    psychological services, and community-based services.
        (7) Includes a statement prohibiting reprisal or 
    retaliation against any person who reports an act of 
    bullying and the consequences and appropriate remedial 
    actions for a person who engages in reprisal or 
    retaliation.
        (8) Includes consequences and appropriate remedial 
    actions for a person found to have falsely accused another 
    of bullying as a means of retaliation or as a means of 
    bullying.
        (9) Is based on the engagement of a range of school 
    stakeholders, including students and parents or guardians.
        (10) Is posted on the school district's, charter 
    school's, or non-public, non-sectarian elementary or 
    secondary school's existing, publicly accessible Internet 
    website, is included in the student handbook, and, where 
    applicable, posted where other policies, rules, and 
    standards of conduct are currently posted in the school 
    and provided periodically throughout the school year to 
    students and faculty, and is distributed annually to 
    parents, guardians, students, and school personnel, 
    including new employees when hired.
        (11) As part of the process of reviewing and 
    re-evaluating the policy under subsection (d) of this 
    Section, contains a policy evaluation process to assess 
    the outcomes and effectiveness of the policy that 
    includes, but is not limited to, factors such as the 
    frequency of victimization; student, staff, and family 
    observations of safety at a school; identification of 
    areas of a school where bullying occurs; the types of 
    bullying utilized; and bystander intervention or 
    participation. The school district, charter school, or 
    non-public, non-sectarian elementary or secondary school 
    may use relevant data and information it already collects 
    for other purposes in the policy evaluation. The 
    information developed as a result of the policy evaluation 
    must be made available on the Internet website of the 
    school district, charter school, or non-public, 
    non-sectarian elementary or secondary school. If an 
    Internet website is not available, the information must be 
    provided to school administrators, school board members, 
    school personnel, parents, guardians, and students.
        (12) Is consistent with the policies of the school 
    board, charter school, or non-public, non-sectarian 
    elementary or secondary school.
        (13) Requires all individual instances of bullying, as 
    well as all threats, suggestions, or instances of 
    self-harm determined to be the result of bullying, to be 
    reported to the parents or legal guardians of those 
    involved under the guidelines provided in paragraph (4) of 
    this definition. 
    "Restorative measures" means a continuum of school-based 
alternatives to exclusionary discipline, such as suspensions 
and expulsions, that: (i) are adapted to the particular needs 
of the school and community, (ii) contribute to maintaining 
school safety, (iii) protect the integrity of a positive and 
productive learning climate, (iv) teach students the personal 
and interpersonal skills they will need to be successful in 
school and society, (v) serve to build and restore 
relationships among students, families, schools, and 
communities, (vi) reduce the likelihood of future disruption 
by balancing accountability with an understanding of students' 
behavioral health needs in order to keep students in school, 
and (vii) increase student accountability if the incident of 
bullying is based on religion, race, ethnicity, or any other 
category that is identified in the Illinois Human Rights Act. 
    "School personnel" means persons employed by, on contract 
with, or who volunteer in a school district, charter school, 
or non-public, non-sectarian elementary or secondary school, 
including without limitation school and school district 
administrators, teachers, school social workers, school 
counselors, school psychologists, school nurses, cafeteria 
workers, custodians, bus drivers, school resource officers, 
and security guards. 
    "Unauthorized digital replica" means the use of a digital 
replica of an individual without the consent of the depicted 
individual. 
    (c) (Blank). 
    (d) Each school district, charter school, and non-public, 
non-sectarian elementary or secondary school shall create, 
maintain, and implement a policy on bullying, which policy 
must be filed with the State Board of Education. The policy on 
bullying shall be based on the State Board of Education's 
template for a model bullying prevention policy under 
subsection (h) and shall include the criteria set forth in the 
definition of "policy on bullying". The policy or implementing 
procedure shall include a process to investigate whether a 
reported act of bullying is within the permissible scope of 
the district's or school's jurisdiction and shall require that 
the district or school provide the victim with information 
regarding services that are available within the district and 
community, such as counseling, support services, and other 
programs. School personnel available for help with a bully or 
to make a report about bullying shall be made known to parents 
or legal guardians, students, and school personnel. Every 2 
years, each school district, charter school, and non-public, 
non-sectarian elementary or secondary school shall conduct a 
review and re-evaluation of its policy and make any necessary 
and appropriate revisions. No later than September 30 of the 
subject year, the policy must be filed with the State Board of 
Education after being updated. The State Board of Education 
shall monitor and provide technical support for the 
implementation of policies created under this subsection (d). 
In monitoring the implementation of the policies, the State 
Board of Education shall review each filed policy on bullying 
to ensure all policies meet the requirements set forth in this 
Section, including ensuring that each policy meets the 13 12 
criterion identified within the definition of "policy on 
bullying" set forth in this Section. 
    If a school district, charter school, or non-public, 
non-sectarian elementary or secondary school fails to file a 
policy on bullying by September 30 of the subject year, the 
State Board of Education shall provide a written request for 
filing to the school district, charter school, or non-public, 
non-sectarian elementary or secondary school. If a school 
district, charter school, or non-public, non-sectarian 
elementary or secondary school fails to file a policy on 
bullying within 14 days of receipt of the aforementioned 
written request, the State Board of Education shall publish 
notice of the non-compliance on the State Board of Education's 
website. 
    Each school district, charter school, and non-public, 
non-sectarian elementary or secondary school may provide 
evidence-based professional development and youth programming 
on bullying prevention that is consistent with the provisions 
of this Section. 
    (e) This Section shall not be interpreted to prevent a 
victim from seeking redress under any other available civil or 
criminal law. 
    (f) School districts, charter schools, and non-public, 
non-sectarian elementary and secondary schools shall collect, 
maintain, and submit to the State Board of Education 
non-identifiable data regarding verified allegations of 
bullying within the school district, charter school, or 
non-public, non-sectarian elementary or secondary school. 
School districts, charter schools, and non-public, 
non-sectarian elementary and secondary schools must submit 
such data in an annual report due to the State Board of 
Education no later than August 15 of each year starting with 
the 2024-2025 school year through the 2030-2031 school year. 
The State Board of Education shall adopt rules for the 
submission of data that includes, but is not limited to: (i) a 
record of each verified allegation of bullying and action 
taken; and (ii) whether the instance of bullying was based on 
actual or perceived characteristics identified in subsection 
(a) and, if so, lists the relevant characteristics. The rules 
for the submission of data shall be consistent with federal 
and State laws and rules governing student privacy rights, 
including, but not limited to, the federal Family Educational 
Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 and the Illinois School Student 
Records Act, which shall include, without limitation, a record 
of each complaint and action taken. The State Board of 
Education shall adopt rules regarding the notification of 
school districts, charter schools, and non-public, 
non-sectarian elementary and secondary schools that fail to 
comply with the requirements of this subsection. 
    (g) Upon the request of a parent or legal guardian of a 
child enrolled in a school district, charter school, or 
non-public, non-sectarian elementary or secondary school 
within this State, the State Board of Education must provide 
non-identifiable data on the number of bullying allegations 
and incidents in a given year in the school district, charter 
school, or non-public, non-sectarian elementary or secondary 
school to the requesting parent or legal guardian. The State 
Board of Education shall adopt rules regarding (i) the 
handling of such data, (ii) maintaining the privacy of the 
students and families involved, and (iii) best practices for 
sharing numerical data with parents and legal guardians. 
    (h) By January 1, 2024, the State Board of Education shall 
post on its Internet website a template for a model bullying 
prevention policy.
    (i) The Illinois Bullying and Cyberbullying Prevention 
Fund is created as a special fund in the State treasury. Any 
moneys appropriated to the Fund may be used, subject to 
appropriation, by the State Board of Education for the 
purposes of subsection (j). 
    (j) Subject to appropriation, the State Superintendent of 
Education may provide a grant to a school district, charter 
school, or non-public, non-sectarian elementary or secondary 
school to support its anti-bullying programming. Grants may be 
awarded from the Illinois Bullying and Cyberbullying 
Prevention Fund. School districts, charter schools, and 
non-public, non-sectarian elementary or secondary schools that 
are not in compliance with subsection (f) are not eligible to 
receive a grant from the Illinois Bullying and Cyberbullying 
Prevention Fund. 
(Source: P.A. 102-197, eff. 7-30-21; 102-241, eff. 8-3-21; 
102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 102-894, eff. 5-20-22; 103-47, eff. 
6-9-23.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1, 
2026.