State of Illinois
92nd General Assembly
Legislation

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92_HB0066

 
                                               LRB9200988SMdv

 1        AN  ACT  to amend the Children and Family Services Act by
 2    changing Section 5.15.

 3        Be it enacted by the People of  the  State  of  Illinois,
 4    represented in the General Assembly:

 5        Section  5.   The  Children  and  Family  Services Act is
 6    amended by changing Section 5.15 as follows:

 7        (20 ILCS 505/5.15)
 8        Sec. 5.15.  Daycare; Department of Human Services.
 9        (a)  For the  purpose  of  ensuring  effective  statewide
10    planning,  development,  and utilization of resources for the
11    day care of children, operated under  various  auspices,  the
12    Department  of Human Services is designated to coordinate all
13    day care activities for  children  of  the  State  and  shall
14    develop  or  continue,  and  shall update every year, a State
15    comprehensive day-care plan for submission  to  the  Governor
16    that identifies high-priority areas and groups, relating them
17    to  available  resources  and  identifying the most effective
18    approaches to the use of  existing  day  care  services.  The
19    State  comprehensive day-care plan shall be made available to
20    the General Assembly following the  Governor's  approval   of
21    the plan.
22        The  plan  shall  include  methods and procedures for the
23    development of additional day care resources for children  to
24    meet  the  goal of reducing short-run and long-run dependency
25    and to provide necessary enrichment and  stimulation  to  the
26    education  of  young children.  Recommendations shall be made
27    for State policy on optimum use of private and public, local,
28    State and federal resources, including  an  estimate  of  the
29    resources needed for the licensing and regulation of day care
30    facilities.
31        A  written  report shall be submitted to the Governor and
 
                            -2-                LRB9200988SMdv
 1    the General Assembly annually on April 15. The  report  shall
 2    include  an  evaluation  of  developments  over the preceding
 3    fiscal  year,  including  cost-benefit  analyses  of  various
 4    arrangements.  Beginning with the report in 1990 submitted by
 5    the  Department's  predecessor  agency  and  every  2   years
 6    thereafter, the report shall also include the following:
 7             (1)  An assessment of the child care services, needs
 8        and  available  resources  throughout  the  State  and an
 9        assessment  of  the  adequacy  of  existing  child   care
10        services,   including,   but  not  limited  to,  services
11        assisted under this  Act  and  under  any  other  program
12        administered by other State agencies.
13             (2)  A  survey  of  day care facilities to determine
14        the number of qualified caregivers, as defined  by  rule,
15        attracted   to   vacant   positions   and   any  problems
16        encountered by facilities  in  attracting  and  retaining
17        capable   caregivers.   The   report   shall  include  an
18        assessment, based on the survey, of any working condition
19        improvements required to attract capable caregivers.
20             (3)  The  average  wages  and  salaries  and  fringe
21        benefit packages paid to caregivers throughout the State,
22        computed on a regional basis. The report shall include  a
23        determination  by the Department of the adequacy of those
24        wages  and  salaries  and  fringe  benefit  packages   in
25        assuring the provision of quality child care.
26             (4)  The  qualifications  of new caregivers hired at
27        licensed day care facilities during the  previous  2-year
28        period.
29             (5)  Recommendations  for increasing caregiver wages
30        and salaries to ensure quality care for children.
31             (6)  Evaluation of  the  fee  structure  and  income
32        eligibility for child care subsidized by the State.
33        The  requirement  for  reporting  to the General Assembly
34    shall be satisfied by filing copies of the  report  with  the
 
                            -3-                LRB9200988SMdv
 1    Speaker,  the  Minority Leader, and the Clerk of the House of
 2    Representatives, the President, the Minority Leader, and  the
 3    Secretary  of  the Senate, and the Legislative Research Unit,
 4    as  required  by  Section  3.1  of   the   General   Assembly
 5    Organization  Act, and filing such additional copies with the
 6    State Government Report Distribution Center for  the  General
 7    Assembly  as  is required under paragraph (t) of Section 7 of
 8    the State Library Act.
 9        (b)  The Department of  Human  Services  shall  establish
10    policies  and  procedures  for  developing  and  implementing
11    interagency  agreements  with  other  agencies  of  the State
12    providing child  care  services  or  reimbursement  for  such
13    services.  The  plans shall be annually reviewed and modified
14    for the purpose of addressing  issues  of  applicability  and
15    service system barriers.
16        (c)  In   cooperation  with  other  State  agencies,  the
17    Department of Human Services shall  develop and implement, or
18    shall continue, a resource and referral system for the  State
19    of  Illinois either within the Department or by contract with
20    local or regional agencies.  Funding  for  implementation  of
21    this system may be provided through Department appropriations
22    or  other inter-agency funding arrangements. The resource and
23    referral  system  shall  provide  at  least   the   following
24    services:
25             (1)  Assembling  and  maintaining a data base on the
26        supply of child care services.
27             (2)  Providing   information   and   referrals   for
28        parents.
29             (3)  Coordinating the development of new child  care
30        resources.
31             (4)  Providing  technical assistance and training to
32        child care service providers.
33             (5)  Recording and analyzing the  demand  for  child
34        care services.
 
                            -4-                LRB9200988SMdv
 1        (d)  The  Department  of Human Services shall conduct day
 2    care planning activities with the following priorities:
 3             (1)  Development of  voluntary  day  care  resources
 4        wherever  possible,  with the provision for grants-in-aid
 5        only where demonstrated to be  useful  and  necessary  as
 6        incentives   or   supports.   By  January  1,  2002,  the
 7        Department shall design a plan to create more child  care
 8        slots  as well as goals and timetables to improve quality
 9        and accessibility of child care.
10             (2)  Emphasis on service to children  of  recipients
11        of   public  assistance  when  such  service  will  allow
12        training or employment of the parent toward achieving the
13        goal of independence.
14             (3)  Maximum  employment  of  recipients  of  public
15        assistance in  day  care  centers  and  day  care  homes,
16        operated  in  conjunction  with  short-term work training
17        programs.
18             (4)  Care of children from families  in  stress  and
19        crises  whose  members  potentially may become, or are in
20        danger of becoming, non-productive and dependent.
21             (5)  Expansion  of  family   day   care   facilities
22        wherever possible.
23             (6)  Location  of  centers in economically depressed
24        neighborhoods, preferably in multi-service  centers  with
25        cooperation  of  other  agencies.  The  Department  shall
26        coordinate  the  provision  of  grants  to  encourage the
27        creation and expansion of child care centers in high need
28        communities to be issued  by  the  State,  business,  and
29        local governments.
30             (7)  Use  of  existing  facilities free of charge or
31        for  reasonable  rental  whenever  possible  in  lieu  of
32        construction.
33             (8)  Development of strategies for assuring  a  more
34        complete  range  of day care options, including provision
 
                            -5-                LRB9200988SMdv
 1        of day care services in homes, in schools, or in centers,
 2        which will enable a  parent  or  parents  to  complete  a
 3        course  of education or obtain or maintain employment and
 4        the creation of more child care options for swing  shift,
 5        evening,  and  weekend workers and for working women with
 6        sick children.  The Department shall encourage  companies
 7        to  provide  child  care  in  their own offices or in the
 8        building in which the  corporation  is  located  so  that
 9        employees  of all the building's tenants can benefit from
10        the facility.
11             (9)  Development  of  strategies   for   subsidizing
12        students pursuing degrees in the child care field.
13             (10)  Continuation  and expansion of support service
14        programs  that  assist  teen  parents  to  continue   and
15        complete their education.
16        Emphasis  shall  be  given  to support services that will
17    help to ensure such parents' graduation from high school  and
18    to services for participants in the Project Chance program of
19    job training conducted by the Department.
20        (e)  The  Department  of  Human  Services  shall actively
21    stimulate the development of public and private resources  at
22    the  local  level. It shall also seek the fullest utilization
23    of federal funds directly  or  indirectly  available  to  the
24    Department.
25        Where  appropriate, existing non-governmental agencies or
26    associations shall be involved in planning by the Department.
27        (f)  To better accommodate the child care  needs  of  low
28    income   working   families,  especially  those  who  receive
29    Temporary Assistance for Needy Families  (TANF)  or  who  are
30    transitioning  from  TANF  to  work,  or  who  are at risk of
31    depending  on  TANF  in  the  absence  of  child  care,   the
32    Department   shall   complete  a  study  using  outcome-based
33    assessment measurements to analyze the various types of child
34    care needs, including but not limited to: child  care  homes;
 
                            -6-                LRB9200988SMdv
 1    child  care  facilities;  before  and  after school care; and
 2    evening and weekend care.  Based upon  the  findings  of  the
 3    study, the Department shall develop a plan by April 15, 1998,
 4    that  identifies the various types of child care needs within
 5    various geographic locations.  The plan  shall  include,  but
 6    not be limited to, the special needs of parents and guardians
 7    in  need of non-traditional child care services such as early
 8    mornings, evenings, and  weekends;  the  needs  of  very  low
 9    income  families  and  children  and how they might be better
10    served; and strategies to assist child care providers to meet
11    the needs and schedules of low income families.
12    (Source: P.A. 89-507,  eff.  7-1-97;  90-236,  eff.  7-28-97;
13    90-590, eff. 1-1-99.)

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