Illinois Higher Education Disciplinary Advocate Bill
Summary
The Illinois House of Representatives has introduced HB4726, a bill that would amend the Public Higher Education Act. If passed, the bill would require public institutions of higher education to permit students involved in disciplinary proceedings to have an advocate of their choosing or one provided by the institution. The bill also mandates that students be informed of this right in any written notice initiating a proceeding.
What changed
Illinois House Bill 4726, introduced in the 104th General Assembly, proposes significant changes to disciplinary proceedings within public higher education institutions. The bill mandates that students facing disciplinary action have the right to be assisted by an advocate. This advocate can be chosen by the student or provided by the institution upon request. Institutions must also provide clear notice of this right and make reasonable efforts to ensure students have access to an advocate if they do not have one. The advocate must receive training on the institution's procedures and can, with student consent, receive communications and participate supportively in meetings and hearings.
Compliance officers at Illinois public universities must monitor the progress of HB4726. If enacted, institutions will need to update their disciplinary procedures, notification processes, and advocate training programs. This will likely involve establishing a system for providing advocates and ensuring their training meets the bill's requirements. The Board of Higher Education is empowered to adopt necessary rules, which will further define implementation details. While the bill is currently in draft stage, its passage would create new procedural rights for students and obligations for institutions.
What to do next
- Monitor the progress of Illinois HB4726 through the legislative process.
- Review and update institutional disciplinary procedures to include student advocate rights if the bill is enacted.
- Develop training materials for student advocates and ensure compliance with notification requirements.
Source document (simplified)
IL HB4726 | 2025-2026 | 104th General Assembly
Illinois House Bill 4726
IL State Legislature page for HB4726
- Summary
- Sponsors
- Texts
- Votes
- Research
- Comments
- Track
Status
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: Introduced on January 30 2026 - 25% progression
Action: 2026-03-27 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee
Pending: House Rules Committee
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [HTML]
Summary
Amends the Public Higher Education Act. Provides that a public institution of higher education shall permit a student who is subject to a disciplinary proceeding to be assisted by an advocate of the student's choosing or, upon request, by an advocate provided by the public institution of higher education. Requires any written notice initiating a disciplinary proceeding to include a clear and conspicuous statement informing the student of the student's right to be assisted by an advocate. Provides that if a student does not have an advocate, the public institution of higher education shall make a reasonable effort to provide the student with access to an advocate. Provides that an advocate participating in a disciplinary proceeding shall receive training on the public institution of higher education's disciplinary procedures. Allows an advocate, with the consent of the student, to receive communications regarding the status of the disciplinary proceeding concurrently with the student and participate in meetings or hearings related to the disciplinary proceeding in a supportive capacity. Sets forth limitations. Allows the Board of Higher Education to adopt any rules necessary to implement the provisions.
Tracking Information Register now for our free OneVote public service or GAITS Pro trial account and you can begin tracking this and other legislation, all driven by the real-time data of the LegiScan API. Providing tools allowing you to research pending legislation, stay informed with email alerts, content feeds, and share dynamic reports. Use our new PolitiCorps to join with friends and collegaues to monitor & discuss bills through the process.
Monitor Legislation or view this same bill number from multiple sessions or take advantage of our national legislative search.
Title
HIGHER ED-DISCIPLINE ADVOCATE
Sponsors
| Rep. Gregg Johnson [D] |
History
| Date | Chamber | Action |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-27 | House | Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee |
| 2026-03-12 | House | Assigned to Higher Education Committee |
| 2026-02-06 | House | Referred to Rules Committee |
| 2026-02-06 | House | First Reading |
| 2026-01-30 | House | Filed with the Clerk by Rep. Gregg Johnson |
Code Citations
| Chapter | Article | Section | Citation Type | Statute Text |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 110 | 167 | 12 | New Code | See Bill Text |
Illinois State Sources
| Type | Source |
| --- | --- |
| Summary | https://www.ilga.gov/Legislation/BillStatus?DocNum=4726&GAID=18&DocTypeID=HB&SessionID=114&GA=104 |
| Text | https://www.ilga.gov/Legislation/BillStatus/FullText?LegDocId=207169&DocName=10400HB4726&DocNum=4726&DocTypeID=HB&LegID=165823&GAID=18&SessionID=114&SpecSess=&Session= |
LegiScan Search
State: Select area of search. Bill Number: Find an exact bill number. Full Text Search: Search bill text and data. [help ] Reset
LegiScan Info
- 2026 Schedules
- Price List
- Weekly Datasets
- Search Help
- Voter Registration
LegiScan Trends
ME LD1804 An Act Concerning Funding and Oversight of Transportation Matters KS HB2433 Clarifying county authority over the transfer or appropriation of water... LA SR35 Commends Sheriff Jason Ard and the Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office for... GA SR1049 Senate Study Committee on Acquiring and Management of Lake Lanier; cre... TN HJR1179 A RESOLUTION to honor and recognize Jeana Marks, 2026 Valedictorian of... WI AB659 Tuition and fee remission or grants for certain veterans and their dependents... OK HB4454 Medical marijuana; providing certain restrictions on edible products; effective... CA SCR111 Certified public accountants: 125th anniversary. FL H0281 Use of Artificial Intelligence in Psychological, Clinical, Counseling,... VA HB145 Fantasy contests; regulation and taxation, civil penalty, repeals fantasy...
Related changes
Source
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get Government & Legislation alerts
Weekly digest. AI-summarized, no noise.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when LegiScan Illinois publishes new changes.