{"data":{"id":"us-il/730-ilcs-230-5","jurisdiction":"us-il","citation":"730 ILCS 230/5","heading":"Findings and purpose.","body":"(a) Findings. The General Assembly finds that:\n(1) Individuals with an intellectual disability or a developmental disability face systemic barriers to accessing educational programs, work assignments, and vocational programs in correctional settings.\n(2) Required standardized assessments, such as the Test of Adult Basic Education, do not adequately accommodate the unique cognitive and learning needs of individuals with an intellectual disability or a developmental disability.\n(3) Exclusion from such programs undermines rehabilitation efforts, increases recidivism rates, and violates equity and inclusion principles.\n(4) Tailored accommodations, including the Test of Adult Basic Education waiver, are essential for compliance with federal laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.\n(5) The requirement to meet the Test of Adult Basic Education standards unfairly denies individuals who are incarcerated and have an intellectual disability or a developmental disability the opportunity to earn program sentence credit, also referred to as \"good time served\", on the same terms as their peers, further exacerbating inequities in rehabilitation outcomes.\n(b) Purpose. The purpose of this Act is to mandate equitable access to work, educational, or vocational assignments for incarcerated individuals with an intellectual disability or a developmental disability by:\n(1) Establishing a waiver for the Test of Adult Basic Education requirement, its successor, or any similar examination used to measure academic achievement, to ensure that incarcerated individuals with an intellectual disability or developmental disability can qualify for participation in educational and vocational programs offering earned program sentence credit.\n(2) Ensuring that incarcerated individuals with an intellectual disability or a developmental disability have equal access to earned program sentence credit opportunities through participation in educational programs, work assignments, and vocational programs.\n(3) Participation in programs remains subject to facility availability, waitlists, security classification, release timing, and other operational placement criteria.","path":["CHAPTER 730 CORRECTIONS","Equitable Access to Education, Employment, and Training for Incarcerated Individuals with Disabilities Act."],"source_url":"https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ILCS/details?ActID=4699\u0026ChapterID=55\u0026ChapAct=FullText\u0026Print=True","current_through":"at least Public Act 104-790","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-15T04:46:43Z","sha256":"feaf8a3f80f38aa096e01a6721b23e0f8533504ceb5b204b1285a32a4eeaebd2","source_id":"us-il","stale":false,"prev":"us-il/730-ilcs-230-1","next":"us-il/730-ilcs-230-10"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}