Human Services Committee

Filed: 3/5/2008

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 4456

2     AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 4456 by replacing
3 everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4     "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5 Commission on Children and Youth Act.
 
6     Section 5. Legislative findings. The General Assembly
7 finds that positive development opportunities for children and
8 youth are an essential investment in the future well-being of
9 our State. Over the past decade Illinois has invested
10 significant resources in programs and services for children and
11 youth in areas such as education, health care, delinquency
12 prevention, and child welfare. Recent initiatives to expand
13 health care and preschool for all children statewide are
14 significant steps toward establishing Illinois as a national
15 leader in providing foundational services to its youngest
16 residents. These investments have supported important

 

 

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1 opportunities for healthy development, yet there continue to be
2 unmet needs, service gaps, and other challenges facing
3 children, youth and young adults across Illinois. It has been
4 over 22 years since Illinois has had a commission to explore
5 how the State serves its children and youth and allocates its
6 resources in a manner that most effectively supports children
7 and youth. Illinois is committed to being a model state in
8 forging innovative life development opportunities for all
9 children and youth and needs to develop a vision and strategic
10 plan to achieve this goal.
 
11     Section 10. Commission on Children and Youth. The
12 Commission on Children and Youth is established. The purposes
13 of the Commission are to (1) create a comprehensive 5-year
14 strategic plan for providing services to children, youth and
15 young adults ages birth to 24 in Illinois, (2) monitor the
16 implementation of the strategic plan, and (3) review and, if
17 deemed appropriate, revise the strategic plan.
 
18     Section 15. Commission members; appointments. The
19 Commission shall be composed of the following members, to be
20 appointed within 60 days after the effective date of this Act:
21     (a) Four members of the General Assembly: 2 members of the
22 Illinois Senate, one member appointed by the President of the
23 Senate and one member appointed by the Senate Minority Leader;
24 2 members of the Illinois House of Representatives, one member

 

 

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1 appointed by the Speaker of the House and one member appointed
2 by the House Minority Leader.
3     (b) A member of the Governor's leadership team appointed by
4 the Governor, who shall serve as one of the co-chairs of the
5 Commission.
6     (c) Up to 30 public members appointed by the Governor with
7 demonstrated interest and expertise in children and youth
8 across the major stages of child and adolescent development.
9 Public members shall include rural, suburban and urban
10 entities; direct service providers; child advocates; human
11 rights organizations; faith-based service providers;
12 philanthropic organizations that invest in children and youth;
13 at least 3 parents of children under the age of 16; and at
14 least 3 young people between the ages of 16 and 24. A second
15 co-chair of the Commission shall be elected from among the
16 public members of the Commission by the public members.
17     (d) The following shall serve as ex-officio members of the
18 Commission: the Director of Children and Family Services or his
19 or her designee; the Director of Commerce and Economic
20 Opportunity or his or her designee; the Director of Corrections
21 or his or her designee; the Director of Employment Security or
22 his or her designee; the Director of Healthcare and Family
23 Services or his or her designee; the Secretary of Human
24 Services or his or her designee; the Director of Juvenile
25 Justice or his or her designee; the Director of Public Health
26 or his or her designee; the State Superintendent of Education

 

 

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1 or his or her designee; the Commissioner of the Chicago
2 Department of Children and Youth Services or his or her
3 designee; the Executive Director of the Illinois Violence
4 Prevention Authority or his or her designee; the Chair of the
5 Illinois African-American Family Commission or his or her
6 designee; and the Chair of the Latino Family Commission or his
7 or her designee. In addition, there shall be a representative
8 of a local government entity coordinating services for children
9 and youth and a representative of the Illinois Early Learning
10 Council, to be chosen by the chairs.
 
11     Section 20. Strategic plan; desired outcomes. The
12 Commission shall develop a 5-year strategic plan that includes
13 specific recommendations to enhance coordination of existing
14 State programs and services and innovative strategies to
15 achieve the following outcomes:
16     (1) Thriving: preventive health. All children and youth
17 should have access to adequate health care and be educated on
18 healthy lifestyle choices to prevent future illness and
19 disease.
20     (2) Learning: education completion. All children and youth
21 should have the opportunity to earn a high school diploma and
22 should receive appropriate individualized supports when they
23 face challenges in doing so.
24     (3) Working: workforce development. All children and youth
25 should have an opportunity for education, skill building, and

 

 

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1 work experience to prepare them for success in the workforce.
2     (4) Connecting: social and emotional development. All
3 children and youth should have opportunities to develop
4 essential social and emotional skills that allow them to
5 communicate effectively, resolve conflict, and manage stress.
6     (5) Leading: civic engagement. All children and youth
7 should have opportunities to build relationships with adults
8 and their peers as well as cultivate leadership skills through
9 service learning, mentoring, and other safe activities in their
10 communities.
 
11     Section 25. Strategic plan; responsibilities. The 5-year
12 strategic plan shall be developed by the Commission in
13 collaboration with other children and youth experts and service
14 providers as needed. Commission members, Commission staff, or
15 both may confer and collaborate with relevant State and
16 national organizations with expertise in child and youth
17 development. The Illinois Early Learning Council shall have
18 primary responsibility for development of the strategic plan
19 pertaining to children birth to 5 and shall collaborate with
20 the Commission on creation of the final plan. The Commission
21 may establish committees that address specific issues or
22 populations and may appoint individuals with relevant
23 expertise who are not appointed members of the Commission to
24 serve on committees as needed.
 

 

 

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1     Section 30. Recommendations; factors. The Commission shall
2 address all of the following factors in developing the 5-year
3 strategic plan:
4     (1) Strategies to broaden access to programs and services
5 to youth up through age 24.
6     (2) Disparities in access and outcomes that may be present
7 based on racial, ethnic, geographic, gender, sexual
8 orientation, disability, incarceration status, medically
9 fragile health conditions, or other variables.
10     (3) The role of and supports for families and communities
11 in achieving successful outcomes for children, youth and young
12 adults.
13     (4) Mechanisms for data collection and tracking that
14 integrate data across programs and funding streams when
15 possible.
16     (5) All other factors the Commission deems relevant to the
17 positive development of children, youth and young adults.
 
18     Section 35. Reporting; timelines. The Commission shall
19 issue an interim report to the Governor and to the General
20 Assembly on the Commission's activities on or before December
21 31, 2009. A draft strategic plan shall be submitted to the
22 Governor and to the General Assembly on or before December 31,
23 2010. The final strategic plan shall be submitted to the
24 Governor and to the General Assembly on or before June 1, 2011.
25 Any subsequent revisions to the strategic plan shall be

 

 

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1 submitted to the Governor and to the General Assembly within 30
2 days after the revisions are approved by the Commission.
 
3     Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
4 becoming law.".