102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB3288

 

Introduced 2/19/2021, by Rep. Anna Moeller

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
20 ILCS 505/5g new

    Amends the Children and Family Services Act. Provides that beginning in State Fiscal Year 2023, and for every State fiscal year thereafter, the Department of Children and Family Services shall implement the reimbursement methodology outlined in a specified provision of the Illinois Administrative Code when calculating and determining the payment reimbursements for community-based agencies that contract with the Department to provide specified services, including, but not limited to: (i) residential services; (ii) specialized, adolescent, treatment, or other non-traditional or Home-of-Relative foster care services; (iii) intact family services; and (iv) teen parenting services. Provides that the payment reimbursement calculated and determined, as provided in the amendatory Act, shall be subject to appropriation. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
2    WHEREAS, The Department of Children and Family Services'
3stated mission is to protect children who are reported to be
4abused or neglected and to increase their families' capacity
5to safely care for them; provide for the well-being of
6children in their care; provide appropriate, permanent
7families as quickly as possible for those children who cannot
8safely return home; support early intervention and child abuse
9prevention activities and work in partnerships with
10communities to fulfill this mission; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Community-based agencies provide care and
12services for more than 80% of children involved with the child
13welfare system on behalf of the State of Illinois, which has a
14moral, legal, and financial responsibility to provide them
15with the best possible care; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Community-based agencies serve populations of
17children, youth, and families of color which are
18disproportionately represented in the child welfare system;
19and
 
20    WHEREAS, The Department of Children and Family Services
21contracts with community-based agencies to provide services
22for, but not limited to, children and youth in foster care,
23intact families, and congregate care settings, at an

 

 

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1established fixed reimbursement methodology which should
2include all costs associated with the delivery of those
3services; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Providers of residential services,
5non-traditional or Home-of-Relative foster care services,
6intact family services, and teen parenting services are
7crucial in supporting children and families, especially those
8who face greater challenges due to structural racism,
9pervasive poverty, and trauma exposure; and
 
10    WHEREAS, If such providers and their programs are
11inadequately reimbursed, it can lead to the most vulnerable
12children and families in society being left without connection
13to necessary services; and
 
14    WHEREAS, The community-based agencies that provide these
15vital services continually face rising operational and
16personnel expenditures such as competitive employee wages,
17increasing insurance premiums, employee benefits, occupancy,
18utilities, and training and travel expenditures, yet the
19reimbursements provided to the community-based agencies are
20not adjusted for these costs-of-doing-business expenses; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Community-based agencies employ a diverse
22workforce, a significant proportion of which identify as Black

 

 

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1and Latinx; and
 
2    WHEREAS, It is the obligation of the General Assembly to
3promote the health, safety, and well-being of children, youth,
4and families in the care of the Department of Children and
5Family Services; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Investing in community-based agencies will help
7the General Assembly meet its obligation and improve outcomes
8for all families to reach their full potential and to ensure a
9stronger and more equitable future for the children, youth,
10and families in the care of the Department of Children and
11Family Services; and
 
12    WHEREAS, It is imperative that the General Assembly
13establish a standardized annual process that includes
14adjustments for the cost of doing business, as measured by the
15Consumer Price Index, and for evaluating and setting the
16reimbursement for required child welfare services to ensure
17sufficient resources to obtain the appropriate outcomes for
18children, youth, and families involved in the Illinois child
19welfare system; therefore
 
 
20    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
21represented in the General Assembly:
 

 

 

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1    Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended
2by adding Section 5g as follows:
 
3    (20 ILCS 505/5g new)
4    Sec. 5g. Payment for reimbursable services.
5    (a) As used in this Section, "consumer price index" means
6the index published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the
7United States Department of Labor that measures the consumer
8price index of all items less medical care in Midwest urban
9areas, for all urban consumers, not seasonally adjusted.
10    (b) Beginning in State Fiscal Year 2023, and for every
11State fiscal year thereafter, the Department shall implement
12the reimbursement methodology outlined in 89 Ill. Adm. Code
13356.50(f) when calculating and determining the payment
14reimbursements for community-based agencies that contract with
15the Department to provide any of the services enumerated in 89
16Ill. Adm. Code 356.50(f) and in paragraph (1) of this
17subsection. Payment reimbursements calculated and determined
18as provided in this Section shall include an amount equal to
19any increase in the general inflation as determined by the
20consumer price index. The contractual and grant services under
21this Section to which the reimbursement methodology shall
22apply include the following:
23        (1) Residential services, including child care
24    institution, group home care, independent living services,

 

 

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1    and transitional living services.
2        (2) Specialized, adolescent, treatment, or other
3    non-traditional or Home-of-Relative foster care.
4        (3) Traditional or Home-of-Relative foster care.
5        (4) Intact Family Services.
6        (5) Teen Parenting Services.
7    (c) The payment reimbursements calculated and determined
8as provided in this Section shall be subject to appropriation.
 
9    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
10becoming law.