Illinois school mapping rule

Does Illinois require schools to keep floor plans?

Yes, by state rule, for districts outside Chicago. Under an Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) rule, each local school board must keep up-to-date safety reference plans for its facilities, and each set must include a site plan and schematic floor plans (simple drawings of each floor's layout). The plans must cover all facilities the district owns or uses for any school purpose. The rule applies to public school districts under Article 10 of the School Code and the charter schools they authorize. Chicago (districts governed by Article 34) and the charter schools located there are subject to only one other section of that rule, so the safety reference plan duty does not reach them.

What must the plans look like?

Safety reference plans must be drawn to scale, on a medium suitable for reproduction and revision. They serve partly as an aid in developing emergency exit plans.

Who gets the plans?

Each facility must have two complete sets: one kept by the board of education in a safe place, and one kept on site. Whenever the plans are completed or updated, they must be submitted to the regional superintendent for review and approval. Those distribution provisions send the plans to the board, the site and the regional superintendent; they set no duty to give copies to first responders. Under a joint ISBE and State Fire Marshal rule, the annual review of each school's emergency plan must cover information such as area maps, site plans and safety reference plans. When updating a building's emergency and crisis response plans, a district may consider making them available to first responders, administrators and teachers through apps on phones, tablets and laptops. This is allowed, not required.

How often must the plans be updated?

The plans must be updated to reflect additions, alterations and other changes that affect a facility's arrangement, use or capacity. Updated plans go back to the regional superintendent for review and approval.

Is there a state mapping grant?

Yes, and applying is optional. Subject to appropriation, public school entities may apply to ISBE for a grant to obtain crisis response mapping data (digital maps of a school for emergency responders) and give copies to local, county, state and federal first responders. Eligible applicants begin with public school districts, charter schools, and special education cooperatives or districts. Subject to appropriation, ISBE shall give grants to approved applicants to cover the cost of obtaining the mapping data. A grant application must cover every school under the applicant, including a district's authorized charter schools. ISBE may adopt rules for the grant program. The grant section was created by P.A. 103-8, the FY 2024 Budget Implementation Act, effective June 7, 2023. P.A. 103-6 appropriated $16,000,000 in federal funds to ISBE for crisis response mapping data grants. P.A. 103-589 appropriated $2,000,000 in General Revenue Funds to ISBE for the same grants.

What must grant-funded mapping data include?

The mapping data must be stored and provided in an electronic or digital format. To qualify, it must work with the security software the school already uses, without law enforcement or the district buying more software. It must be printable. It must be checked for accuracy by an on-site walk-through of the building and grounds. It must be oriented to true north. It must be overlaid on current aerial imagery or building plans. It must carry labels for rooms, hallways, exterior door and stairwell numbers, and the locations of hazards, critical utilities, key boxes, AEDs (defibrillators) and trauma kits. It must be overlaid with gridded x/y coordinates. Subject to appropriation, the data may be reviewed each year and updated as needed.

Is school mapping data confidential?

Mapping data obtained through the grant section is confidential and exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.

What other maps does Illinois law mention?

Districts must make sure maps showing all school exits are prominently displayed in every classroom. That classroom exit-map provision comes from P.A. 104-198, effective January 1, 2026. By March 1, 2027, the Illinois State Police must write rules for a mobile panic alert system to qualify as an Alyssa's Alert. Those rules may consider how well a panic system works with crisis response mapping or other situational awareness tools.

Are there pending bills?

SB1946 would require any entity that receives crisis response mapping data to give copies to local, county, state and federal first responders. It would also have ISBE provide mapping data in the order entities apply, until the money appropriated runs out. Its last recorded action was referral to the Senate Assignments committee.