7.3 Illinois Special Education Rules and Governance (23 IL Admin Code 226)

Illinois Administrative Code Part 226 & State Governance

In addition to federal laws like IDEA and Section 504, special education practice in Illinois is governed by specific state statutes and administrative rules promulgated by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). The primary administrative regulation governing special education programs and services is Title 23 of the Illinois Administrative Code, Part 226 (23 IL Admin Code 226).

The Illinois 60-School-Day Evaluation Timeline

While federal IDEA regulations permit states to set their own evaluation timelines (defaulting to 60 calendar days), Illinois enforces a strict 60-school-day timeline under 23 IL Admin Code 226.110:

• Trigger Event: The evaluation timeline begins officially on the date the school district receives written informed parental consent for initial evaluation or reevaluation.
• Completion Mandate: The multidisciplinary evaluation must be completed, and the IEP team must convene to determine eligibility and craft an IEP, within 60 school days from consent.
• School Days vs. Calendar Days: A 'school day' is defined as any day when students are in attendance for instructional purposes. Weekends, official school holidays, winter breaks, and summer vacation days do not count toward the 60 school days.
• End-of-Year Exception Rule: If written parental consent is received with fewer than 60 school days remaining in the academic school year, the evaluation and eligibility determination must be completed prior to the first day of the subsequent school year.

Parental Notification Rights and the 3-School-Day Material Rule

Illinois law places exceptional emphasis on meaningful parental participation, establishing procedural notice and document-access rules that go beyond baseline federal requirements. Two separate deadlines run before every eligibility or annual review meeting, and the exam will test whether you can keep them apart.

10-Day Notice of Conference Rule

Under 23 Ill. Adm. Code 226.530(a), "notifying parents of the meeting early enough to ensure that they will have an opportunity to attend" (34 CFR 300.322(a)(1)) means the district must provide written notification no later than 10 days before the proposed meeting date. The Notice of Conference must state the purpose, date, time, and location of the meeting and who will attend. Parents may waive the 10-day notice in writing when they want an earlier meeting.

The 3-School-Day Written Material Rule

Illinois eliminated "surprise" IEP meetings with a document-delivery statute, 105 ILCS 5/14-8.02f(c) (mirrored at 23 Ill. Adm. Code 226.530(a)):

• No later than 3 school days before a meeting to determine eligibility or to review a student's IEP, the district must give the parent copies of all written material the IEP team will consider at that meeting. If the meeting is scheduled inside that 3-school-day window, the material must be provided as soon as possible with the parent's written consent.
• For an eligibility meeting the material must include all evaluations and collected data. For a student already eligible, it must include all draft IEP components the team will discuss.
• Parents choose the delivery method from the options offered, which must include regular mail and pickup at the school.
• "School days" means days students are in attendance for instructional purposes, so weekends, holidays, and breaks do not count. Note the mismatch students miss on the exam: the conference notice is counted in days, while the material deadline is counted in school days.

Prior Written Notice Is a Separate Requirement

Prior Written Notice under 34 CFR 300.503 must be given "a reasonable time before" the district proposes or refuses to initiate or change identification, evaluation, placement, or the provision of FAPE. It carries no fixed day count; it is defined by required content. Do not answer a PWN question with the 10-day conference figure.

Post-Meeting and Implementation Deadlines

• Written notice of the eligibility decision: within 10 school days after the eligibility meeting (23 Ill. Adm. Code 226.110).
• Initial IEP completion: within 30 calendar days of the determination of eligibility, still inside the 60-school-day outer limit.
• Service start: special education and related services must begin no later than 10 school attendance days after the district provides the parent notice of placement (105 ILCS 5/14-8.02).
• Non-implementation notice: if any IEP service has not started within 10 school days after the IEP meeting, the district must notify the parent within 3 school days of that non-compliance and explain how to request compensatory services (105 ILCS 5/14-8.02f(d-5); 23 Ill. Adm. Code 226.220(b)).

Annual Review and Triennial Reevaluations

• Annual Review: an IEP must be reviewed and revised at least once every 365 calendar days.
• Triennial Reevaluation: a reevaluation must occur at least once every 3 years, and not more than once a year unless the parent and district agree otherwise.

Secondary Transition Mandates: The Illinois Age 14½ Requirement

One of the most critical Illinois-specific special education regulations involves the timeline for initiating secondary transition planning in the IEP.

Federal IDEA (Age 16) vs. Illinois Mandate (Age 14½)

While federal IDEA Part B mandates that transition planning must begin in the IEP in effect when a student turns 16 years old, Illinois regulations under 23 IL Admin Code 226.230 establish a significantly earlier mandate: transition planning MUST begin no later than the IEP in effect when the student reaches 14½ years of age (or younger if determined appropriate by the IEP team).

Required Transition Components in the Illinois IEP

1. Age-Appropriate Transition Assessments: Formal and informal assessments evaluating vocational interests, aptitudes, independent living skills, and post-secondary goals.
2. Measurable Post-Secondary Goals: Explicit, measurable goals in three required domains:
   • Post-Secondary Education / Training (e.g., community college, vocational trade school, university).
   • Employment (e.g., competitive integrated employment, supported employment).
   • Independent Living Skills (where appropriate, covering housing, transportation, financial self-sufficiency).
3. Transition Services & Course of Study: A multi-year academic program of study (e.g., career technical courses, life skills instruction, AP classes) aligned with post-secondary aspirations.
4. Interagency Links & Adult Services: Formal referral and linkage to state adult service agencies, including:
   • Illinois Division of Rehabilitation Services (DRS): Providing vocational rehabilitation, job placement, and workplace accommodations.
   • Prioritization of Urgency of Need for Services (PUNS) Database: Statewide database registration through local Independent Service Coordination (ISC) agencies for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities seeking state-funded adult home/community supports.
5. Transfer of Parental Rights Notice: Beginning at age 17, the IEP must include a documented statement that the student and parents have been informed of the transfer of parental rights under IDEA that will occur when the student reaches the age of majority (18 years old in Illinois).

Facilities, Class Size, Age Ranges, and Restraint Regulations

Illinois administrative rules regulate classroom structure and student-safety interventions in far more detail than federal law does. Two different sections govern grouping, and candidates routinely cite the wrong one.

Age Ranges Live in 23 Ill. Adm. Code 226.720

Section 226.720 (Facilities and Classes) sets the grouping limits:

• The age range of students within a special education grouping shall not exceed four years at the elementary level and six years at the secondary level.
• Early childhood classes and services shall serve only children from three through five years of age.
• Special education classes and services must be delivered in age-appropriate settings, and facilities must be comparable to those provided to students in the general education environment.

Class Size Lives in 23 Ill. Adm. Code 226.730

Section 226.730 sets teacher-to-student maxima by how much of the day students receive special education services. The base ratios are one qualified teacher for each:

Two related rules complete the picture:

• The 70/30 general education composition rule. When an IEP calls for services in a general education classroom, the student must be served in a class in which at least 70 percent of students do not have IEPs, that uses the general curriculum, and that is taught by an instructor licensed for general education (226.730(a); 105 ILCS 5/14-2).
• Needs override the maxima. Class size must be further restricted at the local level whenever the students' need for individualized instruction and services requires it. Districts that cannot meet 226.720 or 226.730 must file a deviation with ISBE before operating the classroom.

District Work Load Plans (23 Ill. Adm. Code 226.735)

Section 226.735 (Work Load for Special Educators) requires districts to develop and implement a work load plan that accounts for direct instruction, consultation, evaluation and testing, travel between buildings, and administrative duties, so that caseloads do not silently expand beyond what a special educator can deliver.

Restraint, Time Out, and Isolated Time Out: 23 Ill. Adm. Code 1.285

The substantive restraint rule is not in Part 226. It is 23 Ill. Adm. Code 1.285 (Requirements for the Use of Isolated Time Out, Time Out, and Physical Restraint), implementing 105 ILCS 5/10-20.33 and 34-18.20 and rewritten after Public Act 102-339. The current version took effect May 29, 2024.

When these interventions may be used at all. Only when the student's behavior presents an imminent danger of serious physical harm to the student or others, and less restrictive and intrusive measures have been tried and proven ineffective, and there is no known medical contraindication, and the staff applying the intervention have completed the required training. They may never be used as discipline, punishment, staff convenience, retaliation, a substitute for appropriate educational or behavioral support, a routine safety matter, or to prevent property damage absent imminent danger of serious physical harm. A verbal threat or profanity alone is not imminent danger.

Absolute and conditional prohibitions.

• Prone (face-down) physical restraint is prohibited.
• Supine (face-up) physical restraint is prohibited unless every listed condition is met, including a medical/psychological contraindication review, a genuine emergency, a separate trained staff member assigned only to monitor the student for distress, and a hard cap of 30 minutes absent administrator authorization.
• Mechanical and chemical restraints are prohibited (with narrow exceptions for medically required positioning, prescribed medication regimens, assistive technology, and transportation safety).
• Restraint may not impair breathing or communication, and must end immediately if the student says they cannot breathe or shows respiratory distress. Staff must halt the hold at least every five minutes.
• Time-out and isolated-time-out enclosures may never be locked or blocked; the supervising adult must remain within two feet of an isolated time out enclosure and must be able to see, hear, and communicate with the student. Cameras may not substitute for that adult.
• The student must be released as soon as the imminent danger ends, and a trained adult must reassess at least every 15 minutes.

Reporting and review deadlines (memorize these — they were rewritten and older prep material is wrong).

Reduction is the statutory goal. Districts that use these interventions must create an oversight team, adopt a plan for reducing and eventually eliminating time out and physical restraint, make it available to parents, and report progress to ISBE annually for three years.