Lynn Swearingen (c) copyright 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Okay – Maybe the Nibbly Imperceptible Bills (NIBs) is a great idea. Here is our first suggested entry:

SB 0136

Synopsis As Introduced
Amends the School Code. Requires the parents or legal guardians of children attending non-public schools, a defined term, or private or parochial schools to annually register their children with the State Board of Education, in conformance with procedures prescribed by the State Board of Education.

At first parents of Illinois School Children were a bit concerned, but Senator Maloney has cleared up his proposed registration requirements – he only wants the Homeschoolers:

In an interview with “Illinois Review,” Maloney stated that SB 136 is aimed specifically at homeschoolers as a means of keeping tabs on them.

“What we want to know is where the homeschoolers are. It’s as simple as that,” Maloney told the online publication.

In fact, this legislation was designed originally to force all non-government schooled children to annually register, but that is apparently wasn’t the in the program notes for bill author Senator Maloney:

In the “Illinois Review” interview, Maloney stated that he plans to change the language of the bill to specifically target homeschoolers.

According to the Legislative Schedule, this proposed Bill is scheduled to be heard before the Education Committee Feb 15, 2011 10:45AM Room 212.

A little birdy tells me there will be a meeting beforehand that individuals can attend to find out the who, what, where, when and possibly why of this little NIB.  I will refer you to the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) site with official data for confirmation.

ICHE is holding a rally in the auditorium of the Howlett Building, 501 South 2nd Street, Springfield Illinois before the hearing.

Who is ICHE one might ask? The Illinois Christian Home Educators and the Homeschool Freedom Summit referenced above is their answer to SB 136. There is even a march scheduled to the Hearing after the meeting (don’t attend the march if you want to carry a sign or do something political however).

Just in case Illinois Residents would like to pull out their flashlights and shine a bit of light in this dingy little corner of Regulatory Rigmarole (before being required to register little Frankie for school while getting Fido’s rabies approval for the year)  – we bring you this NIB.

Introducing State Senator: Maloney

Current Committee: Education

Tomorrow: Wanna sell your gold in Washington State? There’s a NIB for that.