Illinois Sen. Turner’s school service animal training bill passes House and Senate

Passed bill authored by State Sen. Doris Turner aims to expand in-service school training to cover proper handling of service animals and related student accommodations, according to the Illinois General Assembly.

In the House, 72 Democrats and seven Republicans voted in favor of the bill, while 25 Republicans opposed it.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, 38 Democrats and 11 Republicans voted in favor of the bill, while five Republicans voted against it.

Turner introduced the bill in the Illinois Senate on Jan. 13, 2026 during the 104th session.

The legislation, known as SB2761, was passed on May 21, 2026 during the general assembly session 104.

According to the Illinois General Assembly site, the legislature summarized the bill’s official text as follows: “Amends the School Code. In provisions concerning in-service training programs for teachers, administrators, and school support personnel, provides that the training regarding health conditions of students shall include the proper handling of service animals in the school setting and the instruction on the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, as it pertains to the school environment, shall include the proper handling of service animals, the rights of students who use service animals, and appropriate interactions with service animals.”

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill amends the School Code’s in-service training requirements to add specific instruction on service animals. It requires that training on student health conditions include the proper handling of service animals in schools. It also expands required training on protections and accommodations for students under the Americans with Disabilities Act to cover the proper handling of service animals, the rights of students who use them, and appropriate interactions with the animals, consistent with federal and state law.

The bill was sponsored by Rep. Amy Briel (Democrat-76th District) and Sen. Rachel Ventura (Democrat-43rd District).

Bills in Illinois follow a multi-step legislative process, beginning with introduction in either the House or Senate, followed by committee review, floor debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching the governor for approval or veto. The General Assembly operates on a biennial schedule, and while typically thousands of bills are introduced each session, only a fraction successfully pass through the process to become law.

You can read more about bills and other measures here.

Turner, a Democrat, was elected to the Illinois State Senate in 2021 to represent the state’s 48th Senate District, replacing previous state senator Andy Manar.