Will Estrada, senior counsel for the Homeschool Legal Defense Association, says the state once known as a “bastion of freedom” for homeschool education is on a path to making history in the other direction.
HB 2827, “The Illinois Homeschool Act,” passed from committee on an 8-4 party line vote in late March and now awaits a vote before the full Illinois House.
It has not yet passed in the Senate but Democrats have a majority there. Illinois also has a Democrat governor, J.B. Pritzker.
The bill would declare homeschool students in violation of state truancy code if they fail to annually file a Homeschool Declaration Form with state government.
Truancy is a Class C misdemeanor in Illinois, punishable by a $500 fine and 30 days in prison.
Critics say the bill would be a step backward from a landmark decision by the Illinois state supreme court in 1950, the people vs. Levison, in which homeschool was established as a legal right.
“Families from neighboring states would move to Illinois” for the right to homeschool their children, Estrada told show host Jenna Ellis. “So, HB 2827 would undo 75 years of home education freedom in Illinois.”
The proposal is far more stringent for homeschooling families than requirements in many other states, red or blue.
Texas and New Jersey have minimal regulations, and some states require only basic notification or no notification at all.
California is more moderate, requiring annual assessments or standardized testing, but the Illinois proposal is deeper and more personal.
Homeschool Declaration Forms – required by no other state -- would effectively enroll their children in the nearest public school -- despite not attending. Parents would be required to provide children's names, birthdates, grade levels and home addresses.
Parents would also submit an “education portfolio” of the student’s work with writing samples, workbooks and more.
Warning where that can go, Estrada said a truancy charge is a Class C misdemeanor and a criminal conviction. From there a family could receive a visit from Child Protective Services.
"We could even see children removed from homes and placed in temporary foster care, all for simply not filing a piece of paperwork,” Estrada said. “Illinois would go from actually one of the most free states for homeschool to the worst state because of this criminal penalty if you don't file it.”
The Illinois effort comes as President Donald Trump has instructed Education Secretary Linda McMahon to begin steps to facilitate the closing of her department and a number of states have discussed expanding school choice options.
Claims made out of context
Rep. Terra Costa Howard, a Democrat from a Chicago suburb, is the bill’s sponsor. She says she was motivated in part by a Pro Publica report that said the state’s lax homeschool regulations were leading to cases of child abuse.
“We need to know that children exist,” Costa Howard, vice chair of the Illinois House’s child welfare committee, told Capitol News Illinois.
“The legislation is more urgent because the number of homeschooled children has grown since the pandemic began," she said. “Illinois has zero regulations regarding homeschooling. We are not the norm at all.”
That "zero regulations" is a stretch considering Illinois is labeled a "low regulation" state by the HSLDA which puts Illinois in the same category as neighboring states Iowa, Indiana, and Missouri.
According to HSLDA, the Illinois Department of Education requires a homeschooling family to learn language arts; math; biology and physical sciences; social sciences; fine arts; and physical health.
So the state lawmaker's claim of no regulations is not true, Estrada says, and she is also wrong to claim homeschooled children are more at risk of abuse and neglect.
"That’s the furthest from the truth," he said. "Peer-reviewed studies have shown that homeschooling is very safe for children. Homeschoolers are at less risk of abuse and neglect."
A Massachusetts-based think tank, the Coalition for Responsible Home Education, is a key driver behind HB 2827, Estrada said.
“They are a pro-authoritarian, anti-parental rights organization, dedicated to rolling back homeschool freedom,” he warned.
A search of the group's website by AFN shows most of its members, including a co-founder and a board chairman, were homeschooled as children. The group's executive director and its co-founder both go by "they" pronouns in their bios. The board chair, attorney Carmen Longoria-Green, has represented atheist group Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
The group has been involved in homeschool legislation in other states and last year released a model bill, a legislative template designed to influence legislation in a certain way.
CRHE’s “Make Homeschool Safe Act” would require annual notifications and evaluations, a full schedule of immunizations, and penalties if a parent is investigated -- but not convicted -- of abuse.
“They were behind a bill which would eliminate one of two ways that families homeschool in Virginia, the religious exemption option. Thankfully, that bill failed in February on a bipartisan vote," Estrada said.
An alarming trend
The Illinois Homeschool Act is part of a nationwide trend of increased oversight for homeschool families, Estrada said.
Proposals such as this could be a gateway to government intrusion in the lives of families who opt out of public education.
“Who knows what the other peripheral consequences may be, whether there could be pretextual, you know, kind of welfare checks. If you notify the state and basically flag yourself, that could give rise to some of these other factors,” Estrada said.
