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92nd General Assembly

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Public Act 92-0334

HB0638 Enrolled                                LRB9204683JMmb

    AN ACT concerning the Department of Children  and  Family
Services.

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

    Section 5.  The  Children  and  Family  Services  Act  is
amended  by  changing  Sections  7,  7.3, and 35.6 and adding
Section 5d as follows:

    (20 ILCS 505/5d new)
    Sec. 5d.  Advocacy Office for Children and Families.  The
Department of Children and Family  Services  shall  establish
and  maintain  an  Advocacy  Office for Children and Families
that shall, in addition  to  other  duties  assigned  by  the
Director, receive and respond to complaints that may be filed
by  children,  parents, caretakers, and relatives of children
receiving child  welfare  services  from  the  Department  of
Children  and  Family Services or its agents.  The Department
shall  promulgate  policies  and   procedures   for   filing,
processing, investigating, and resolving the complaints.  The
Department  shall  make  a final report to the complainant of
its findings.  If  a  final  report  is  not  completed,  the
Department  shall  report  on  its disposition every 30 days.
The Advocacy  Office  shall  include  a  statewide  toll-free
telephone  number  that may be used to file complaints, or to
obtain  information  about  the  delivery  of  child  welfare
services by the Department or  its  agents.   This  telephone
number  shall  be  included  in  all  appropriate notices and
handbooks   regarding   services   available   through    the
Department.

    (20 ILCS 505/7) (from Ch. 23, par. 5007)
    Sec. 7.  Placement of children; considerations.
    (a)  In  placing any child under this Act, the Department
shall place such child, as far as possible, in the  care  and
custody  of some individual holding the same religious belief
as the parents of the child, or with some child care facility
which is operated by persons of like religious faith  as  the
parents of such child.
    (b)  In  placing  a  child under this Act, the Department
may place a child with  a  relative  if  the  Department  has
reason   to  believe  that  the  relative  will  be  able  to
adequately provide for the child's safety  and  welfare.  The
Department  may  not  place a child with a relative, with the
exception of certain circumstances which  may  be  waived  as
defined by the Department in rules, if the results of a check
of  the Law Enforcement Agency Data System (LEADS) identifies
a prior criminal conviction of  the  relative  or  any  adult
member  of  the relative's household for any of the following
offenses under the Criminal Code of 1961:
         (1)  murder;
         (1.1)  solicitation of murder;
         (1.2)  solicitation of murder for hire;
         (1.3)  intentional homicide of an unborn child;
         (1.4)  voluntary manslaughter of an unborn child;
         (1.5)  involuntary manslaughter;
         (1.6)  reckless homicide;
         (1.7)  concealment of a homicidal death;
         (1.8)  involuntary manslaughter of an unborn child;
         (1.9)  reckless homicide of an unborn child;
         (1.10)  drug-induced homicide;
         (2)  a sex offense under Article 11, except offenses
    described in Sections 11-7, 11-8, 11-12, and 11-13;
         (3)  kidnapping;
         (3.1)  aggravated unlawful restraint;
         (3.2)  forcible detention;
         (3.3)  aiding and abetting child abduction;
         (4)  aggravated kidnapping;
         (5)  child abduction;
         (6)  aggravated battery of a child;
         (7)  criminal sexual assault;
         (8)  aggravated criminal sexual assault;
         (8.1)  predatory criminal sexual assault of a child;
         (9)  criminal sexual abuse;
         (10)  aggravated sexual abuse;
         (11)  heinous battery;
         (12)  aggravated battery with a firearm;
         (13)  tampering with food, drugs, or cosmetics;
         (14)  drug-induced infliction of great bodily harm;
         (15)  aggravated stalking;
         (16)  home invasion;
         (17)  vehicular invasion;
         (18)  criminal transmission of HIV;
         (19)  criminal neglect of  an  elderly  or  disabled
    person;
         (20)  child abandonment;
         (21)  endangering the life or health of a child;
         (22)  ritual mutilation;
         (23)  ritualized abuse of a child;
         (24)  an  offense in any other state the elements of
    which are similar and bear a substantial relationship  to
    any of the foregoing offenses.
For  the purpose of this subsection, "relative" shall include
any person, 21 years of age or over, other than  the  parent,
who  (i)  is  currently  related  to  the child in any of the
following ways by blood or  adoption:  grandparent,  sibling,
great-grandparent,  uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, first cousin,
great-uncle, or great-aunt; or (ii) is the spouse of  such  a
relative;  or  (iii) is the child's step-father, step-mother,
or  adult  step-brother  or  step-sister;   "relative"   also
includes  a  person related in any of the foregoing ways to a
sibling of a child, even though the person is not related  to
the child, when the child and its sibling are placed together
with  that  person.   A  relative with whom a child is placed
pursuant to this subsection may,  but  is  not  required  to,
apply  for  licensure as a foster family home pursuant to the
Child Care Act of 1969; provided, however, that as of July 1,
1995, foster care payments shall be  made  only  to  licensed
foster  family  homes  pursuant  to the terms of Section 5 of
this Act.
    (c)  In placing a child under this  Act,  the  Department
shall  ensure  that  the  child's  health,  safety,  and best
interests are met in making a family foster  care  placement.
The  Department  shall  consider  the individual needs of the
child and the capacity of the prospective foster or  adoptive
parents  to meet the needs of the child. When a child must be
placed outside his or her  home  and  cannot  be  immediately
returned  to his or her parents or guardian, a comprehensive,
individualized assessment shall be performed of that child at
which time the needs of the child shall be determined.   Only
if  race,  color,  or  national  origin  is  identified  as a
legitimate factor in advancing  the  child's  best  interests
shall  it  be  considered.   Race,  color, or national origin
shall not be  routinely  considered  in  making  a  placement
decision.   The Department shall make special efforts for the
diligent  recruitment  of  potential  foster   and   adoptive
families  that reflect the ethnic and racial diversity of the
children for whom  foster  and  adoptive  homes  are  needed.
"Special  efforts"  shall include contacting and working with
community organizations and religious organizations  and  may
include contracting with those organizations, utilizing local
media  and  other  local  resources,  and conducting outreach
activities.
    (c-1)  At the time of  placement,  the  Department  shall
consider  concurrent  planning,  as  described  in subsection
(l-1) of Section 5, so  that  permanency  may  occur  at  the
earliest  opportunity.  Consideration should be given so that
if reunification fails or is delayed, the placement  made  is
the  best  available  placement to provide permanency for the
child.
    (d)  The Department may accept gifts, grants,  offers  of
services,  and  other  contributions to use in making special
recruitment efforts.
    (e)  The Department in placing children  in  adoptive  or
foster care homes may not, in any policy or practice relating
to  the  placement  of  children for adoption or foster care,
discriminate against any child  or  prospective  adoptive  or
foster parent on the basis of race.
(Source:  P.A.  89-21,  eff.  7-1-95;  89-422;  89-428,  eff.
12-13-95;  89-462,  eff. 5-29-96; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96; 90-27,
eff. 1-1-98; 90-28, eff. 1-1-98; 90-608, eff. 6-30-98.)

    (20 ILCS 505/7.3)
    Sec. 7.3.  Placement plan.  The Department shall  develop
and  implement a written plan for placing children.  The plan
shall include at least the following features:
         (1)  A plan for  recruiting  minority  adoptive  and
    foster  families.   The plan shall include strategies for
    using existing resources in minority communities, use  of
    minority   outreach   staff  whenever  possible,  use  of
    minority foster homes  for  placements  after  birth  and
    before adoption, and other techniques as appropriate.
         (2)  A   plan   for  training  adoptive  and  foster
    families of minority children.
         (3)  A plan for employing social workers in adoption
    and foster care.  The plan shall include  staffing  goals
    and objectives.
         (4)  A  plan  for  ensuring that adoption and foster
    care workers attend training offered or approved  by  the
    Department  regarding  the  State's  goal  of encouraging
    cultural  diversity  and  the  needs  of  special   needs
    children.
         (5)  A  plan  that  includes policies and procedures
    for  determining  for  each  child  requiring   placement
    outside of his or her home, and who cannot be immediately
    returned to his or her parents or guardian, the placement
    needs  of  that  child.   In  the  rare  instance when an
    individualized  assessment  identifies,  documents,   and
    substantiates  that  race, color, or national origin is a
    factor  that  needs  to  be  considered  in  advancing  a
    particular child's best interests, it shall be considered
    in making a placement.
(Source:  P.A. 89-422.)

    (20 ILCS 505/35.6)
    Sec.  35.6.    State-wide   Foster   parent   state-wide,
toll-free telephone number.
    (a)  There  shall  be  a  State-wide, toll-free telephone
number for any person foster parents, whether or not mandated
by law, to report to the Inspector General of the Department,
suspected misconduct, malfeasance, misfeasance, or violations
of  rules,  procedures,  or  laws  by  Department  employees,
service providers, or contractors that is detrimental to  the
best  interest  of  children  receiving  care,  services,  or
training  from  or  who  were  committed to the Department as
allowed under  Section  5  of  this  Act.   Immediately  upon
receipt  of  a  telephone  call  regarding suspected abuse or
neglect of children, the Inspector General  shall  refer  the
call  to  the Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline or to the State
Police  as  mandated  by  the  Abused  and  Neglected   Child
Reporting  Act  and  Section  35.5  of  this Act.  A mandated
reporter shall not be relieved of his or her duty  to  report
incidents  to the Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline referred to
in  this  subsection.   The  Inspector  General  shall   also
establish  rules  and  procedures  for  evaluating reports of
suspected  misconduct  and  violation  of   rules   and   for
conducting an investigation of such reports.
    (b)  The  Inspector  General  shall  prepare and maintain
written records from the reporting source that shall  contain
the following information to the extent known at the time the
report  is made: (1) the names and addresses of the child and
the person responsible  for  the  child's  welfare;  (2)  the
nature  of  the  misconduct  and  the  detriment cause to the
child's best interest;  (3)  the  names  of  the  persons  or
agencies   responsible   for  the  alleged  misconduct.   Any
investigation conducted by the Inspector General pursuant  to
such  information  shall  not duplicate and shall be separate
from the investigation mandated by the Abused  and  Neglected
Child  Reporting  Act.   However,  the  Inspector General may
include the results of such investigation in reports compiled
under this Section.  At the request of the  reporting  agent,
the   Inspector  General  shall  keep  the  identity  of  the
reporting agent strictly confidential from the  operation  of
the  Department,  until the Inspector General shall determine
what recommendations shall be made with regard to  discipline
or  sanction of the Department employee, service provider, or
contractor, with the exception of suspected  child  abuse  or
neglect which shall be handled consistent with the Abused and
Neglected  Child  Reporting Act and Section 35.5 of this Act.
The Department shall take whatever  steps  are  necessary  to
assure that a person making a report in good faith under this
Section  is  not  adversely  affected  solely on the basis of
having made such report.
(Source: P.A. 88-7; 88-491.)

    Section 99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect  upon
becoming law.
    Passed in the General Assembly May 15, 2001.
    Approved August 10, 2001.

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