State of Illinois
90th General Assembly
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90_HB0970

      750 ILCS 5/607            from Ch. 40, par. 607
          Amends the custody provisions of  the  Illinois  Marriage
      and Dissolution of Marriage Act.  Makes a stylistic change in
      provisions regarding visitation.
                                                     LRB9004817SMdv
                                               LRB9004817SMdv
 1        AN  ACT to amend the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of
 2    Marriage Act by changing Section 607.
 3        Be it enacted by the People of  the  State  of  Illinois,
 4    represented in the General Assembly:
 5        Section  5.   The  Illinois  Marriage  and Dissolution of
 6    Marriage Act is amended by changing Section 607 as follows:
 7        (750 ILCS 5/607) (from Ch. 40, par. 607)
 8        Sec.  607.   Visitation;   parents,   grandparents,   and
 9    siblings.
10        (a)  A  parent  not  granted  custody  of  the  child  is
11    entitled  to  reasonable  visitation  rights unless the court
12    finds,  after  a  hearing,  that  visitation  would  endanger
13    seriously the child's physical, mental,  moral  or  emotional
14    health.  If the custodian's street address is not identified,
15    pursuant  to Section 708, the court shall require the parties
16    to   identify   reasonable   alternative   arrangements   for
17    visitation by  a  non-custodial  parent,  including  but  not
18    limited  to visitation of the minor child at the residence of
19    another person or at a local public or private facility.
20        (b) (1)  The  court  may  grant   reasonable   visitation
21    privileges to a grandparent, great-grandparent, or sibling of
22    any   minor   child   upon  petition  to  the  court  by  the
23    grandparents  or  great-grandparents  or  on  behalf  of  the
24    sibling, with notice to the parties required to  be  notified
25    under  Section  601 of this Act, if the court determines that
26    it is in the best interests and welfare of the child, and may
27    issue  any  necessary  orders  to  enforce  such   visitation
28    privileges.   Except  as  provided  in  paragraph (2) of this
29    subsection (b), a petition for visitation privileges  may  be
30    filed  under  this  subsection  (b) whether or not a petition
31    pursuant  to  this  Act  has  been  previously  filed  or  is
                            -2-                LRB9004817SMdv
 1    currently  pending  if  one  or   more   of   the   following
 2    circumstances exist:
 3             (A)  the  parents  are not currently cohabiting on a
 4        permanent or an indefinite basis;
 5             (B)  one of the parents has  been  absent  from  the
 6        marital  abode for more than one month without the spouse
 7        knowing his or her whereabouts;
 8             (C)  one of the parents is deceased;
 9             (D)  one of the parents joins in the  petition  with
10        the grandparents, great-grandparents, or sibling; or
11             (E)  a sibling is in State custody.
12        (2)(A)  A petition for visitation privileges shall not be
13    filed  pursuant  to  this  subsection  (b)  by the parents or
14    grandparents of a putative father if  the  paternity  of  the
15    putative father has not been legally established.
16        (B)  A  petition  for  visitation  privileges  may not be
17    filed under this subsection (b)  if  the  child  who  is  the
18    subject  of the grandparents' or great-grandparents' petition
19    has been voluntarily surrendered by the  parent  or  parents,
20    except for a surrender to the Illinois Department of Children
21    and  Family  Services  or a foster care facility, or has been
22    previously adopted by an individual or  individuals  who  are
23    not  related to the biological parents of the child or is the
24    subject of a pending adoption petition by  an  individual  or
25    individuals  who are not related to the biological parents of
26    the child.
27        (3)  When one parent is deceased,  the  surviving  parent
28    shall  not  interfere  with  the  visitation  rights  of  the
29    grandparents.
30        (c)  The  court  may  modify an order granting or denying
31    visitation rights whenever modification would serve the  best
32    interest  of  the  child; but the court shall  not restrict a
33    parent's  visitation  rights  unless  it   finds   that   the
34    visitation  would  endanger  seriously  the child's physical,
                            -3-                LRB9004817SMdv
 1    mental, moral or emotional health.
 2        (d)  If any court has  entered  an  order  prohibiting  a
 3    non-custodial parent of a child from any contact with a child
 4    or  restricting  the  non-custodial parent's contact with the
 5    child, the following provisions shall apply:
 6             (1)  If  an  order   has   been   entered   granting
 7        visitation  privileges with the child to a grandparent or
 8        great-grandparent who is related to the child through the
 9        non-custodial parent, the visitation  privileges  of  the
10        grandparent or great-grandparent may be revoked if:
11                  (i)  a  court  has entered an order prohibiting
12             the non-custodial parent from any contact  with  the
13             child,  and  the grandparent or great-grandparent is
14             found to have used his or her visitation  privileges
15             to  facilitate  contact  between  the  child and the
16             non-custodial parent; or
17                  (ii)  a court has entered an order  restricting
18             the  non-custodial  parent's contact with the child,
19             and the grandparent or great-grandparent is found to
20             have  used  his  or  her  visitation  privileges  to
21             facilitate  contact  between  the  child   and   the
22             non-custodial  parent  in a manner that violates the
23             terms of the  order  restricting  the  non-custodial
24             parent's contact with the child.
25             Nothing in this subdivision (1) limits the authority
26        of  the  court  to  enforce  its  orders  in  any  manner
27        permitted by law.
28             (2)  Any  order  granting visitation privileges with
29        the child to a grandparent or  great-grandparent  who  is
30        related  to  the  child  through the non-custodial parent
31        shall contain the following provision:
32             "If the (grandparent or great-grandparent, whichever
33        is applicable) who has been granted visitation privileges
34        under  this  order  uses  the  visitation  privileges  to
                            -4-                LRB9004817SMdv
 1        facilitate contact between  the  child  and  the  child's
 2        non-custodial  parent,  the visitation privileges granted
 3        under this order shall be permanently revoked."
 4        (e)  No parent, not granted  custody  of  the  child,  or
 5    grandparent,  or  great-grandparent,  or sibling of any minor
 6    child, convicted of any offense involving an illegal sex  act
 7    perpetrated upon a victim less than 18 years of age including
 8    but  not  limited to offenses for violations of Article 12 of
 9    the Criminal Code of 1961, is entitled to  visitation  rights
10    while incarcerated or while on parole or mandatory supervised
11    release   for   that   offense,   and   upon  discharge  from
12    incarceration for a misdemeanor  offense  or  upon  discharge
13    from  parole  or  mandatory  supervised  release for a felony
14    offense,  visitation  shall  be  denied  until  said   person
15    successfully  completes  a  treatment program approved by the
16    court.
17    (Source: P.A. 88-23; 88-267; 88-670,  eff.  12-2-94;  89-488,
18    eff. 6-21-96.)

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