SB0032 EngrossedLRB100 04995 RJF 15005 b

1    AN ACT concerning government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Illinois TRUST Act.
 
6    Section 5. Definitions. In this Act:
7    "Certification form" means any law enforcement
8certification form or statement required by federal
9immigration law certifying that a person is a victim of
10qualifying criminal activity including, but not limited to, the
11information required by Section 1184(p) of Title 8 of the
12United States Code (including current United States
13Citizenship and Immigration Service Form I-918, Supplement B,
14or any successor form) for purposes of obtaining a U visa, or
15by Section 1184(o) of Title 8 of the United States Code
16(including current United States Citizenship and Immigration
17Service Form I-914, Supplement B, or any successor form) for
18purposes of obtaining a T visa.
19    "Certifying agency" means a State or local law enforcement
20agency, prosecutor, or other public authority that has
21responsibility for the detection, investigation, or
22prosecution of criminal activity, including an agency that has
23criminal investigative jurisdiction in its respective areas of

 

 

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1expertise. "Certifying agency" also includes the Department of
2Labor, the Department of Children and Family Services, the
3Department of Human Services, and the Illinois Workers'
4Compensation Commission. "Certifying agency" does not include
5any State court.
6    "Certifying official" means the head of a certifying agency
7as defined in this Section, or a person within the agency
8performing a supervisory role who is specifically designated by
9the head of the certifying agency to respond to requests for
10certification forms or a person within another certifying
11agency specifically designated by agreement between the heads
12of the agencies to respond to requests for certification forms.
13    "Qualifying criminal activity" means any activity,
14regardless of the stage of detection, investigation, or
15prosecution, designated in Section 1101(a)(15)(U)(iii) of
16Title 8 of the United States Code and any implementing federal
17regulations, and includes one or more of the following or any
18similar activity in violation of federal, State, or local
19criminal law: rape; torture; trafficking; incest; domestic
20violence; sexual assault; abusive sexual contact;
21prostitution; sexual exploitation; stalking; female genital
22mutilation; being held hostage; peonage; involuntary
23servitude; slave trade; kidnapping; abduction; unlawful
24criminal restraint; false imprisonment; blackmail; extortion;
25manslaughter; murder; felonious assault; witness tampering;
26obstruction of justice; perjury; fraud in foreign labor

 

 

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1contracting (as defined in Section 1351 of Title 18 of the
2United States Code); or attempt, conspiracy, or solicitation to
3commit any of the above-mentioned crimes; and any criminal
4activity that has an articulable similarity to any activity
5listed under this definition, but is not specifically listed
6under this definition. "Qualifying criminal activity" also
7means any qualifying criminal activity that occurs during the
8commission of non-qualifying criminal activity, regardless of
9whether or not criminal prosecution was sought for the
10qualifying criminal activity. Criminal activity may be
11considered qualifying criminal activity regardless of how much
12time has elapsed since its commission.
13    "Victim of qualifying criminal activity" means a person
14who:
15        (1)(A)(i) has reported qualifying criminal activity to
16    a law enforcement agency or certifying agency; or (ii) has
17    otherwise participated in the detection, investigation, or
18    prosecution of qualifying criminal activity; and
19        (B) has suffered direct and proximate harm as a result
20    of the commission of any qualifying criminal activity,
21    including, but not limited to: (i) an indirect victim
22    regardless of the direct victim's immigration or
23    citizenship status, who, in any case in which the direct
24    victim is deceased, incompetent, or incapacitated, is the
25    direct victim's spouse, the direct victim's child under 21
26    years of age, or if the direct victim is under 21 years of

 

 

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1    age, the direct victim's unmarried sibling under 18 years
2    of age or parent; or (ii) a bystander victim who suffers
3    direct physical or mental harm as a result of the
4    qualifying criminal activity, or
5        (2) was a victim of a severe form of trafficking in
6    persons as defined in Section 7102 of Title 22 of the
7    United States Code and Section 10-9 of the Criminal Code of
8    2012.
9    More than one victim may be identified and provided with a
10certification form depending upon the circumstances. For
11purposes of the definition of "victim of qualifying criminal
12activity", the term "incapacitated" means unable to interact
13with the law enforcement agency or certifying agency personnel
14as a result of a cognitive impairment or other physical
15limitation, because of physical restraint or disappearance, or
16because the victim was a minor at the time the crime was
17committed and reported.
 
18    Section 10. Certifications for victims of qualifying
19criminal activity.
20    (a) Upon a receipt of a request from a victim of qualifying
21criminal activity, as defined in Section 5 of this Act, or the
22victim's representative for completion of a certification form
23by a certifying agency, the designated certifying official for
24the agency shall complete and issue the certification form,
25except that the certifying official may decline, by written

 

 

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1notice to the requesting victim or the victim's representative,
2to complete the certification form requested under this
3subsection only if, after a good faith inquiry, the agency
4cannot determine that the applicant is a victim of qualifying
5criminal activity as defined in Section 5 of this Act. The
6certifying official shall complete and issue the certification
7form within 90 business days of receiving the request, except:
8        (1) if the victim of qualifying criminal activity is in
9    federal immigration removal proceedings or detained, then
10    the certifying official shall complete the certification
11    form no later than 14 business days after the request is
12    received by the agency; and
13        (2) if the victim's children, parents, or siblings
14    would become ineligible for benefits under Sections
15    1184(p) and 1184(o) of Title 8 of the United States Code by
16    virtue of the victim's children having reached the age of
17    21 years, the victim having reached the age of 21 years, or
18    the victim's sibling having reached the age of 18 years
19    within 90 business days from the date that the certifying
20    agency receives the certification request, the certifying
21    official shall complete the certification form no later
22    than 14 business days after the request is received by the
23    agency, or if the loss of the benefit would occur less than
24    14 business days of receipt of the certification request,
25    the certifying official shall complete a certification
26    form within 5 business days.

 

 

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1    Requests for expedited completion of a certification form
2under paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection (a) shall be
3affirmatively raised by the victim or representative of the
4victim in writing by the victim or representative of the victim
5and shall establish that the victim is eligible for expedited
6review.
7    (b) A request for completion of a certification form under
8subsection (a) of this Section may be submitted by a
9representative of the victim, including, but not limited to, an
10attorney, accredited representative, or domestic violence
11service provider.
12    (c) Each certifying agency has independent legal authority
13to complete and issue a certification form. A certifying
14official from each certifying agency shall perform the
15following responsibilities:
16        (1) respond to requests for certifications as required
17    by this Section; and
18        (2) make information regarding the agency's procedures
19    for certification requests publicly available for victims
20    of qualifying criminal activity and their representatives.
21    (d) A certifying official shall complete and reissue a
22certification form within 90 business days of receiving a
23request to reissue. If the victim seeking recertification has a
24deadline to respond to a request for evidence from United
25States Citizenship and Immigration Services, the certifying
26official shall complete and issue the form no later than 14

 

 

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1business days after the request is received by the certifying
2official. Requests for expedited recertification shall be
3affirmatively raised by the victim or representative of the
4victim in writing by the victim or representative of the victim
5and shall establish that the victim is eligible for expedited
6review.
7    (e) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, a
8certifying official's completion of a certification form shall
9not be considered sufficient evidence that an applicant for a U
10or T visa has met all eligibility requirements for that visa
11and completion of a certification form by a certifying agency
12shall not be construed to guarantee that the victim will
13receive federal immigration relief. It is the exclusive
14responsibility of federal immigration officials to determine
15whether a person is eligible for a U or T visa. Completion of a
16certification form by a certifying official merely verifies
17factual information relevant to the immigration benefit
18sought, including information relevant for federal immigration
19officials to determine eligibility for a U or T visa. By
20completing a certification form, the certifying official
21attests that the information is true and correct to the best of
22the certifying official's knowledge. If, after completion of a
23certification form, the certifying official later determines
24the person was not the victim of qualifying criminal activity
25or the victim unreasonably refuses to assist in the
26investigation or prosecution of the qualifying criminal

 

 

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1activity of which he or she is a victim, then the certifying
2official may notify United States Citizenship and Immigration
3Services in writing.