More references regarding nonpublic education in Illinois.

ISBE documents support the right of homeschooling in Illinois:

• Parents may determine what type of home-schooling curriculum is best for their students,
• what materials to use, how much homework to assign,
• how homework is to be assessed, and
• what records of the student’s accomplishments should be kept.

• Home-schooling in Illinois is considered to be a form of private education
• What subjects must be covered in my home school?

• Language arts;
• Mathematics;
• Biological and physical sciences;
• Social sciences;
• Fine arts; and
• Physical development and health.

•  In Illinois, registration of home-schooled students is not required, but you may choose to submit a form.

ISBE

POLICY AND GUIDELINES for Registration and Recognition of  Nonpublic Elementary and Secondary Schools
http://www.isbe.net/quality/acc/policy.htm
http://www.isbe.net/quality/nonpublic/Policies and Guidelines.htm
This document includes the ISBE policies:

• "Each citizen of the state of Illinois has a right to an opportunity to obtain and education sufficient for the development of the individual's capabilities. This fundamental goal of education is set forth in the Illinois State Constitution, Article 10, Section 1."*
• "The primary obligation for the education of the child belongs to the parents. The state derives its right to provide education to the extent that the state acts for the parents."
• Formal education in our society is generally carried out within the framework of a school. It remains the parents' right and obligation to select for the education of the child either a public or nonpublic school.
• Registration as a public school is voluntary.

This site contains the Policies and Guidelines, the Application , the benefits of registration, safety rules and other statements.
The application is geared mainly for multifamily schools.

ISBE list of School Code references to nonpublic schools:

I have not gone over ISBE's list to be sure if every reference does apply to nonpublic schools.  Most of the statutes apply to "school boards," whose definition does not seem to apply to nonpublic schools, but I am looking for the reason why these sections were included in the document of code sections which purportedly apply to nonpublic schools.  Remember that courts have held that the Compulsory Attendance law requires that the nonpublic education must be equivalent to that offered by the public school, so one may infer that some required subjects must also be covered by nonpublic schools. Don't rely too much on their list--for example, the last reference, #36, regarding tort immunity for nonprofit schools, has been held to be mostly invalid by courts.

(105 ILCS 5/1-3)    Sec. 1-3. Definitions.
    "School board" means the governing body of any district  created  or
operating  under  authority  of  this  Act,  including  board  of school
directors and board of education. When the context so indicates it  also
means  the  governing  body  of  any non-high school district and of any
special charter district, including board of school inspectors.

http://www.isbe.net/quality/acc/codenp.htm

Vaccines

A compilation of these laws is at ILVaccineLaw.html
In 2002, the State conducted hearings to discuss a proposed change to section 26-1 which would have required that the proof of vaccination be delivered to the local public school rather than the school in which the child was enrolled.  This amendment was proposed only and is not a law.

ISBE Memo on special education for private schools:

21. Is home schooling considered a private school?
Yes. Home schooling or instruction that meets the requirements of Article 26 of the School
Code (105 ILCS 5/26-1 et seq.) for compulsory attendance purposes constitutes a private school
under Illinois law. As the School Code and IDEA require that private school students are
entitled to special education services, a student attending a home-based school would also be
eligible in the same manner as other private school students. Therefore, all of the procedures and
requirements regarding parentally placed private school children with disabilities apply to those
children who are home-schooled. Appropriate representatives of a home-schooled child would
be the child's parent(s).
(For additional information on this topic, see OSEP question #44.)
http://www.isbe.state.il.us/spec-ed/PDF/ParentPlacementPrivate.pdf

State and Federal regulations and caselaw regarding Special Education

New: Illinois Education Tax Credit information

Feb 2009. Education Expense Credit General Rules and Requirements for Home Schools

Specifically, qualified education expenses for home schooled children include the amount of

• tuition paid for a student who was in the equivalent of kindergarten through twelfth grade. This includes fees paid for the child to satisfy physical education class requirements at a private facility such as a health club.
• fees for the purchase of student’s workbooks or teacher’s grade books that are significantly used up during the activities of the class. These expenses qualify even if they were paid to an out-of-state company.
• book rental fees paid for the rental of books that were required as part of the student’s education program.
• curriculum rental fees paid for the rental of educational items such as lectures or class lessons on DVD or tape.
• lab fees paid for the use of supplies, equipment, materials, or instruments that were required as part of a lab course in the student’s education program.
Lab courses include those courses, for which the student will receive credit toward graduation, that provide an environment
for organized activity involving observation, experimentation, or practice, i.e., science, music, art, or language.

Note: Any purchased equipment, materials, or instruments that are signifi cantly used up by the assignments and activities of
the lab are considered qualified lab fees.

• shipping charges paid to receive a qualified item.
• sales or use taxes paid when purchasing a qualified item.

Illinois Department of Revenue Regulations

Home schools qualify for tuition tax credit.

3) “School”, for purposes of the education expense credit, means any public or
nonpublic elementary or secondary school in Illinois that is in compliance with
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and attendance at which satisfies the
requirements of Section 26-1 of the School Code [105 ILCS 5/26-1], except that
nothing shall be construed to require a child to attend any particular public or
nonpublic school in order to qualify for the education expense credit (IITA
Section 201(m)). Schools that are not required to be in compliance with the Title
VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 but attendance at which meets the compulsory
education requirements of Section 26-1 of the School Code are included within
the meaning of “school” for purposes of the education expense credit. Private
schools providing educational instruction in the home, attendance at which
meets the compulsory education requirements of Section 26-1 of the School
Code, are included within the meaning of “school” for purposes of the education
expense credit.

4) “Qualified education expenses” shall mean amounts incurred on behalf of a
qualifying pupil in excess of $250 for tuition, book fees, and lab fees at the school
in which the qualifying pupil is enrolled during the regular school year (IITA
Section 201(m)). Amounts incurred for tuition, book fees and lab fees by a family
that is the custodian of more than one qualifying pupil may aggregate all tuition,
book fees and lab fees incurred by the family in arriving at qualified education
expenses eligible for the credit.

A) Tuition is the amount paid to a school as a condition of enrollment for a
quarter, semester or year term in a kindergarten through twelfth grade
education program of the school. Enrollment in an education program
shall mean admission to the full and regular schedule of classroom
instruction of the school during the designated period. Tuition also
includes amounts paid as a condition of enrollment on behalf of a school
to cover costs of implementing and administering an education program.
B) Book fees are amounts paid for the use of books that are essential to a
qualifying pupil’s participation in the education program of the school. A
book is essential when the school or an instructor of the school requires
its use by the qualifying pupil in order to participate in and complete a
course of the education program.
C) Lab fees are amounts paid for the use of supplies, equipment, materials
or instruments that are essential to a qualifying pupil’s participation in a
lab course of the school’s education program. Supplies, equipment,
materials or instruments are essential when the school or an instructor of
the school requires their use by the qualifying pupil in order to participate
in and complete a lab course of the education program. Lab courses
include those courses that, in addition to classroom instruction by a
teacher, provide an environment of organized activity involving
observation, experimentation or practice in a course of study. Such
courses of study include those courses with a scientific, musical, artistic,
technical or language skill content. Lab fees may be in the nature of a
rental fee for supplies, equipment, materials or instruments that are used
in the lab course. Fees incurred for the purchase of supplies, equipment,
materials or instruments used in a lab course and which are substantially
consumed by the assignments and activities of the lab are also
considered qualifying lab fees.
Any amount paid for the purchase of items that would be considered qualified
education expenses but for the fact that the items are not substantially consumed
during the school year and will remain the tangible personal property of a qualifying
pupil or a custodian at the conclusion of the school year shall not be considered
qualified education expenses. For purposes of this Section, an item is substantially
consumed when, during the school year, the item is used to such an extent that its fair
market value has been reduced to a de minimis amount.

Other interpretations of the Credit:

"For the purpose of the education expense credit, any public or nonpublic elementary or secondary school in Illinois that satisfies the requirement of Section 26-1 of the School Code and, if required, is in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 qualifies as an Illinois school. Private schools providing educational instruction in the home that satisfy the requirements of Section 26-1 of the School Code also qualify as Illinois schools."

  (m)  Education expense credit.   Beginning  with  tax  years  ending
after  December 31, 1999, a taxpayer who is the custodian of one or more
qualifying pupils shall be allowed a credit against the tax  imposed  by
subsections (a) and (b) of this Section for qualified education expenses
incurred  on behalf of the qualifying pupils.  The credit shall be equal
to 25% of qualified education expenses, but in no event  may  the  total
credit  under  this subsection claimed by a family that is the custodian
of qualifying pupils exceed $500.  In no event shall a credit under this
subsection reduce the taxpayer's liability under this Act to  less  than
zero.   This  subsection is exempt from the provisions of Section 250 of
this Act.
    For purposes of this subsection:
    "Qualifying pupils" means individuals who (i) are residents  of  the
State  of  Illinois,  (ii)  are  under the age of 21 at the close of the
school year for which a credit is sought, and (iii)  during  the  school
year  for  which  a credit is sought were full-time pupils enrolled in a
kindergarten through twelfth grade education program at any  school,  as
defined in this subsection.
    "Qualified education expense" means the amount incurred on behalf of
a  qualifying  pupil  in  excess of $250 for tuition, book fees, and lab
fees at the school in which the pupil is  enrolled  during  the  regular
school year.
    "School"  means  any  public  or  nonpublic  elementary or secondary
school in Illinois that is in compliance with  Title  VI  of  the  Civil
Rights Act of 1964 and attendance at which satisfies the requirements of
Section  26-1 of the School Code, except that nothing shall be construed
to require a child to attend any particular public or  nonpublic  school
to qualify for the credit under this Section.
    "Custodian"  means,  with  respect to qualifying pupils, an Illinois
resident who is a parent, the parents, a legal guardian,  or  the  legal
guardians of the qualifying pupils.

The Education Tax Credit is Constitutional

"All parents of public or private school students who incur at least $250 of qualified education expenses are eligible to claim the Credit against their income tax liability. To the extent that certain parents do not benefit from the Credit, it is because they incur lower costs in educating their children than do parents who meet the statute's requirements. By creating the Credit, the legislature has recognized that parents who send their children to private schools often do so at considerable expense to themselves and that they provide a benefit to the State treasury by relieving the State and local taxpayers of the expense of educating their children. It is an appropriate legislative goal to assist those schools in remaining financially viable. Thus, we conclude that the Credit does not contravene section 2 of article IX of the Illinois Constitution. "

 We conclude that the above cases support the constitutionality of the Credit. We note that plaintiffs challenged the constitutionality of the statute on its face. The effect of the statute as applied is unknown at this time. Therefore, we reject, as did the Supreme Court in Mueller, 463 U.S. at 401, 77 L. Ed. 2d at 732, 103 S. Ct. at 3070, plaintiffs' attempt to use statistical evidence to show that the primary benefit of the Credit will inure to parents who send their children to sectarian schools.

Case could boost funding for private schools

By Warren Richey | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

WASHINGTON - Tuesday the US Supreme Court takes up a case that could provide the most significant boost to those supporting public funding for parochial schools since the high court's school-voucher decision two years ago.

The central issue in Hibbs v. Winn isn't the constitutionality of a tax-credit system in Arizona that helps fund parochial school tuition.

Rather, the issue is more technical: whether the federal courts can review determinations already made by state judges about whether such tax-credit systems violate the separation of church and state.

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