102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB4806

 

Introduced 1/27/2022, by Rep. Deanne M. Mazzochi

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
325 ILCS 5/3  from Ch. 23, par. 2053

    Amends the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. In the definition of "neglected child", provides that refusal by a child's parent or other person responsible for the child's welfare to get the child vaccinated against COVID-19 shall not be considered to be medical neglect. Provides that the Department of Children and Family Services is prohibited from removing a child from his or her parent or any other person responsible for the child's welfare on the basis of neglect because of the parent's or other responsible adult's refusal to get the child vaccinated against COVID-19 or make the child wear a face mask due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.


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A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning children.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act is
5amended by changing Section 3 as follows:
 
6    (325 ILCS 5/3)  (from Ch. 23, par. 2053)
7    Sec. 3. As used in this Act unless the context otherwise
8requires:
9    "Adult resident" means any person between 18 and 22 years
10of age who resides in any facility licensed by the Department
11under the Child Care Act of 1969. For purposes of this Act, the
12criteria set forth in the definitions of "abused child" and
13"neglected child" shall be used in determining whether an
14adult resident is abused or neglected.
15    "Agency" means a child care facility licensed under
16Section 2.05 or Section 2.06 of the Child Care Act of 1969 and
17includes a transitional living program that accepts children
18and adult residents for placement who are in the guardianship
19of the Department.
20    "Blatant disregard" means an incident where the real,
21significant, and imminent risk of harm would be so obvious to a
22reasonable parent or caretaker that it is unlikely that a
23reasonable parent or caretaker would have exposed the child to

 

 

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1the danger without exercising precautionary measures to
2protect the child from harm. With respect to a person working
3at an agency in his or her professional capacity with a child
4or adult resident, "blatant disregard" includes a failure by
5the person to perform job responsibilities intended to protect
6the child's or adult resident's health, physical well-being,
7or welfare, and, when viewed in light of the surrounding
8circumstances, evidence exists that would cause a reasonable
9person to believe that the child was neglected. With respect
10to an agency, "blatant disregard" includes a failure to
11implement practices that ensure the health, physical
12well-being, or welfare of the children and adult residents
13residing in the facility.
14    "Child" means any person under the age of 18 years, unless
15legally emancipated by reason of marriage or entry into a
16branch of the United States armed services.
17    "Department" means Department of Children and Family
18Services.
19    "Local law enforcement agency" means the police of a city,
20town, village or other incorporated area or the sheriff of an
21unincorporated area or any sworn officer of the Illinois
22Department of State Police.
23    "Abused child" means a child whose parent or immediate
24family member, or any person responsible for the child's
25welfare, or any individual residing in the same home as the
26child, or a paramour of the child's parent:

 

 

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1        (a) inflicts, causes to be inflicted, or allows to be
2    inflicted upon such child physical injury, by other than
3    accidental means, which causes death, disfigurement,
4    impairment of physical or emotional health, or loss or
5    impairment of any bodily function;
6        (b) creates a substantial risk of physical injury to
7    such child by other than accidental means which would be
8    likely to cause death, disfigurement, impairment of
9    physical or emotional health, or loss or impairment of any
10    bodily function;
11        (c) commits or allows to be committed any sex offense
12    against such child, as such sex offenses are defined in
13    the Criminal Code of 2012 or in the Wrongs to Children Act,
14    and extending those definitions of sex offenses to include
15    children under 18 years of age;
16        (d) commits or allows to be committed an act or acts of
17    torture upon such child;
18        (e) inflicts excessive corporal punishment or, in the
19    case of a person working for an agency who is prohibited
20    from using corporal punishment, inflicts corporal
21    punishment upon a child or adult resident with whom the
22    person is working in his or her professional capacity;
23        (f) commits or allows to be committed the offense of
24    female genital mutilation, as defined in Section 12-34 of
25    the Criminal Code of 2012, against the child;
26        (g) causes to be sold, transferred, distributed, or

 

 

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1    given to such child under 18 years of age, a controlled
2    substance as defined in Section 102 of the Illinois
3    Controlled Substances Act in violation of Article IV of
4    the Illinois Controlled Substances Act or in violation of
5    the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act,
6    except for controlled substances that are prescribed in
7    accordance with Article III of the Illinois Controlled
8    Substances Act and are dispensed to such child in a manner
9    that substantially complies with the prescription;
10        (h) commits or allows to be committed the offense of
11    involuntary servitude, involuntary sexual servitude of a
12    minor, or trafficking in persons as defined in Section
13    10-9 of the Criminal Code of 2012 against the child; or
14        (i) commits the offense of grooming, as defined in
15    Section 11-25 of the Criminal Code of 2012, against the
16    child.
17    A child shall not be considered abused for the sole reason
18that the child has been relinquished in accordance with the
19Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act.
20    "Neglected child" means any child who is not receiving the
21proper or necessary nourishment or medically indicated
22treatment including food or care not provided solely on the
23basis of the present or anticipated mental or physical
24impairment as determined by a physician acting alone or in
25consultation with other physicians or otherwise is not
26receiving the proper or necessary support or medical or other

 

 

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1remedial care recognized under State law as necessary for a
2child's well-being, or other care necessary for his or her
3well-being, including adequate food, clothing and shelter; or
4who is subjected to an environment which is injurious insofar
5as (i) the child's environment creates a likelihood of harm to
6the child's health, physical well-being, or welfare and (ii)
7the likely harm to the child is the result of a blatant
8disregard of parent, caretaker, person responsible for the
9child's welfare, or agency responsibilities; or who is
10abandoned by his or her parents or other person responsible
11for the child's welfare without a proper plan of care; or who
12has been provided with interim crisis intervention services
13under Section 3-5 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 and whose
14parent, guardian, or custodian refuses to permit the child to
15return home and no other living arrangement agreeable to the
16parent, guardian, or custodian can be made, and the parent,
17guardian, or custodian has not made any other appropriate
18living arrangement for the child; or who is a newborn infant
19whose blood, urine, or meconium contains any amount of a
20controlled substance as defined in subsection (f) of Section
21102 of the Illinois Controlled Substances Act or a metabolite
22thereof, with the exception of a controlled substance or
23metabolite thereof whose presence in the newborn infant is the
24result of medical treatment administered to the mother or the
25newborn infant. A child shall not be considered neglected for
26the sole reason that the child's parent or other person

 

 

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1responsible for his or her welfare has left the child in the
2care of an adult relative for any period of time. A child shall
3not be considered neglected for the sole reason that the child
4has been relinquished in accordance with the Abandoned Newborn
5Infant Protection Act. A child shall not be considered
6neglected or abused for the sole reason that such child's
7parent or other person responsible for his or her welfare
8depends upon spiritual means through prayer alone for the
9treatment or cure of disease or remedial care as provided
10under Section 4 of this Act. A child shall not be considered
11neglected or abused solely because the child is not attending
12school in accordance with the requirements of Article 26 of
13The School Code, as amended. Refusal by a child's parent or
14other person responsible for the child's welfare to get the
15child vaccinated against COVID-19 shall not be considered to
16be medical neglect. The Department is prohibited from removing
17a child from his or her parent or any other person responsible
18for the child's welfare on the basis of neglect because of the
19parent's or other responsible adult's refusal to get the child
20vaccinated against COVID-19 or make the child wear a face mask
21due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.
22    "Child Protective Service Unit" means certain specialized
23State employees of the Department assigned by the Director to
24perform the duties and responsibilities as provided under
25Section 7.2 of this Act.
26    "Near fatality" means an act that, as certified by a

 

 

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1physician, places the child in serious or critical condition,
2including acts of great bodily harm inflicted upon children
3under 13 years of age, and as otherwise defined by Department
4rule.
5    "Great bodily harm" includes bodily injury which creates a
6high probability of death, or which causes serious permanent
7disfigurement, or which causes a permanent or protracted loss
8or impairment of the function of any bodily member or organ, or
9other serious bodily harm.
10    "Person responsible for the child's welfare" means the
11child's parent; guardian; foster parent; relative caregiver;
12any person responsible for the child's welfare in a public or
13private residential agency or institution; any person
14responsible for the child's welfare within a public or private
15profit or not for profit child care facility; or any other
16person responsible for the child's welfare at the time of the
17alleged abuse or neglect, including any person who commits or
18allows to be committed, against the child, the offense of
19involuntary servitude, involuntary sexual servitude of a
20minor, or trafficking in persons for forced labor or services,
21as provided in Section 10-9 of the Criminal Code of 2012,
22including, but not limited to, the custodian of the minor, or
23any person who came to know the child through an official
24capacity or position of trust, including, but not limited to,
25health care professionals, educational personnel, recreational
26supervisors, members of the clergy, and volunteers or support

 

 

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1personnel in any setting where children may be subject to
2abuse or neglect.
3    "Temporary protective custody" means custody within a
4hospital or other medical facility or a place previously
5designated for such custody by the Department, subject to
6review by the Court, including a licensed foster home, group
7home, or other institution; but such place shall not be a jail
8or other place for the detention of criminal or juvenile
9offenders.
10    "An unfounded report" means any report made under this Act
11for which it is determined after an investigation that no
12credible evidence of abuse or neglect exists.
13    "An indicated report" means a report made under this Act
14if an investigation determines that credible evidence of the
15alleged abuse or neglect exists.
16    "An undetermined report" means any report made under this
17Act in which it was not possible to initiate or complete an
18investigation on the basis of information provided to the
19Department.
20    "Subject of report" means any child reported to the
21central register of child abuse and neglect established under
22Section 7.7 of this Act as an alleged victim of child abuse or
23neglect and the parent or guardian of the alleged victim or
24other person responsible for the alleged victim's welfare who
25is named in the report or added to the report as an alleged
26perpetrator of child abuse or neglect.

 

 

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1    "Perpetrator" means a person who, as a result of
2investigation, has been determined by the Department to have
3caused child abuse or neglect.
4    "Member of the clergy" means a clergyman or practitioner
5of any religious denomination accredited by the religious body
6to which he or she belongs.
7(Source: P.A. 102-567, eff. 1-1-22; 102-676, eff. 12-3-21;
8revised 1-15-22.)