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1		SENATE RESOLUTION
2		WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate recognize that
3		the State Board of Education's decision to implement the Common
4		Core State Standards was not authorized by the General
5		Assembly; and
6		WHEREAS, In 2010, Illinois became one of 45 states to opt
7		into the Common Core State Standards Initiative by accepting
8		federal funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
9		of 2009 and through the Race to the Top initiative of the
10		federal government; and
11		WHEREAS, Over the next few years, the Common Core State
12		Standards, which are largely untested in the United States,
13		will substantively change the educational standards for
14		students in Illinois, thus affecting every teacher and student
15		in the State; and
16		WHEREAS, There are many unknown and significant costs
17		associated with the Common Core State Standards and the
18		Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and
19		Careers; and
20		WHEREAS, The only substantive cost analysis of the
21		implementation of the Common Core State Standards was conducted

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1		by the Pioneer Institute, a non-partisan, privately funded
2		research organization, which estimates the financial impact
3		for Illinois to be close to $773 million over 7 years; and
4		WHEREAS, There are many school districts who lack the
5		technology, infrastructure, and funding to create an
6		environment for the online-standards testing required by the
7		Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers
8		or the new textbooks that will be needed to teach to the Common
9		Core State Standards; and
10		WHEREAS, The State Board of Education has not secured
11		funding for schools that will need curricular, technological,
12		and infrastructure upgrades; and
13		WHEREAS, The most recent data shows that over 60% of school
14		districts are operating with a deficit, the prospect of a
15		pension cost-shift, and other expensive unfunded mandates by
16		the State; and
17		WHEREAS, It is inconceivable to require districts to incur
18		costs to upgrade schools in their respective districts because
19		the State Board of Education unilaterally made the decision to
20		move to the Common Core State Standards, without counsel from
21		school districts, without a strong statewide informational
22		campaign about the Common Core State Standards, and without

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1		performing a cost analysis for school districts and the State;
2		and
3		WHEREAS, Indiana, Oklahoma, and South Carolina have opted
4		out of the Common Core State Standards and more than a dozen
5		states are considering legislation to repeal involvement in
6		Common Core; 7 Governors have also issued executive orders to
7		reexamine, change, or delay implementation or use of Common
8		Core; therefore, be it
9		RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL
10		ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the State
11		Superintendent of Education and the State Board of Education to
12		opt out of the Common Core State Standards until a
13		Board-authorized and conducted study shows the costs
14		associated with the Common Core State Standards and the
15		Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and
16		Careers; and be it further
17		RESOLVED, That the State Board of Education and General
18		Assembly create a viable plan to provide funding to school
19		districts that need improvements and modernizations to comply
20		with the new Common Core State Standards and the Partnership
21		for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers; and be it
22		further

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1		RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
2		delivered to the State Superintendent of Education and the
3		State Board of Education.