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1    AN ACT concerning public aid.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by
5changing Section 9A-11 as follows:
 
6    (305 ILCS 5/9A-11)  (from Ch. 23, par. 9A-11)
7    Sec. 9A-11. Child Care.
8    (a) The General Assembly recognizes that families with
9children need child care in order to work. Child care is
10expensive and families with low incomes, including those who
11are transitioning from welfare to work, often struggle to pay
12the costs of day care. The General Assembly understands the
13importance of helping low income working families become and
14remain self-sufficient. The General Assembly also believes
15that it is the responsibility of families to share in the costs
16of child care. It is also the preference of the General
17Assembly that all working poor families should be treated
18equally, regardless of their welfare status.
19    (b) To the extent resources permit, the Illinois Department
20shall provide child care services to parents or other relatives
21as defined by rule who are working or participating in
22employment or Department approved education or training
23programs. At a minimum, the Illinois Department shall cover the

 

 

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1following categories of families:
2        (1) recipients of TANF under Article IV participating
3    in work and training activities as specified in the
4    personal plan for employment and self-sufficiency;
5        (2) families transitioning from TANF to work;
6        (3) families at risk of becoming recipients of TANF;
7        (4) families with special needs as defined by rule; and
8        (5) working families with very low incomes as defined
9    by rule.
10    The Department shall specify by rule the conditions of
11eligibility, the application process, and the types, amounts,
12and duration of services. Eligibility for child care benefits
13and the amount of child care provided may vary based on family
14size, income, and other factors as specified by rule.
15    In determining income eligibility for child care benefits,
16the Department annually, at the beginning of each fiscal year,
17shall establish, by rule, one income threshold for each family
18size, in relation to percentage of State median income for a
19family of that size, that makes families with incomes below the
20specified threshold eligible for assistance and families with
21incomes above the specified threshold ineligible for
22assistance. Through and including fiscal year 2007, the
23specified threshold must be no less than 50% of the
24then-current State median income for each family size.
25Beginning in fiscal year 2008, the specified threshold must be
26no less than 185% of the then-current federal poverty level for

 

 

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1each family size.
2    In determining eligibility for assistance, the Department
3shall not give preference to any category of recipients or give
4preference to individuals based on their receipt of benefits
5under this Code.
6    The Department shall allocate $7,500,000 annually for a
7test program for families who are income-eligible for child
8care assistance, who are not recipients of TANF under Article
9IV, and who need child care assistance to participate in
10education and training activities. The Department shall
11specify by rule the conditions of eligibility for this test
12program.
13    Nothing in this Section shall be construed as conferring
14entitlement status to eligible families.
15    The Illinois Department is authorized to lower income
16eligibility ceilings, raise parent co-payments, create waiting
17lists, or take such other actions during a fiscal year as are
18necessary to ensure that child care benefits paid under this
19Article do not exceed the amounts appropriated for those child
20care benefits. These changes may be accomplished by emergency
21rule under Section 5-45 of the Illinois Administrative
22Procedure Act, except that the limitation on the number of
23emergency rules that may be adopted in a 24-month period shall
24not apply.
25    The Illinois Department may contract with other State
26agencies or child care organizations for the administration of

 

 

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1child care services.
2    (c) Payment shall be made for child care that otherwise
3meets the requirements of this Section and applicable standards
4of State and local law and regulation, including any
5requirements the Illinois Department promulgates by rule in
6addition to the licensure requirements promulgated by the
7Department of Children and Family Services and Fire Prevention
8and Safety requirements promulgated by the Office of the State
9Fire Marshal and is provided in any of the following:
10        (1) a child care center which is licensed or exempt
11    from licensure pursuant to Section 2.09 of the Child Care
12    Act of 1969;
13        (2) a licensed child care home or home exempt from
14    licensing;
15        (3) a licensed group child care home;
16        (4) other types of child care, including child care
17    provided by relatives or persons living in the same home as
18    the child, as determined by the Illinois Department by
19    rule.
20    (c-5) Solely for the purposes of coverage under the
21Illinois Public Labor Relations Act, child and day care home
22providers, including licensed and license exempt,
23participating in the Department's child care assistance
24program shall be considered to be public employees and the
25State of Illinois shall be considered to be their employer as
26of the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th

 

 

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1General Assembly, but not before. The State shall engage in
2collective bargaining with an exclusive representative of
3child and day care home providers participating in the child
4care assistance program concerning their terms and conditions
5of employment that are within the State's control. Nothing in
6this subsection shall be understood to limit the right of
7families receiving services defined in this Section to select
8child and day care home providers or supervise them within the
9limits of this Section. The State shall not be considered to be
10the employer of child and day care home providers for any
11purposes not specifically provided in this amendatory Act of
12the 94th General Assembly, including but not limited to,
13purposes of vicarious liability in tort and purposes of
14statutory retirement or health insurance benefits. Child and
15day care home providers shall not be covered by the State
16Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971.
17    In according child and day care home providers and their
18selected representative rights under the Illinois Public Labor
19Relations Act, the State intends that the State action
20exemption to application of federal and State antitrust laws be
21fully available to the extent that their activities are
22authorized by this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly.
23    (d) The Illinois Department shall establish, by rule, a
24co-payment scale that provides for cost sharing by families
25that receive require co-payments for child care services by any
26parent, including parents whose only income is from assistance

 

 

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1under this Code. The co-payment shall be assessed based on a
2sliding scale based on family income and , family size, and may
3be based on other factors as appropriate the number of children
4in care. Co-payments may be waived for families whose incomes
5are at or below the federal poverty level shall not be
6increased due solely to a change in the methodology for
7counting family income.
8    (d-5) The Illinois Department, in consultation with its
9Child Care and Development Advisory Council, shall develop a
10plan to revise the child care assistance program's co-payment
11scale. The plan shall be completed no later than February 1,
122008, and shall include:
13        (1) findings as to the percentage of income that the
14    average American family spends on child care and the
15    relative amounts that low-income families and the average
16    American family spend on other necessities of life;
17        (2) recommendations for revising the child care
18    co-payment scale to assure that families receiving child
19    care services from the Department are paying no more than
20    they can reasonably afford;
21        (3) recommendations for revising the child care
22    co-payment scale to provide at-risk children with complete
23    access to Preschool for All and Head Start; and
24        (4) recommendations for changes in child care program
25    policies that affect the affordability of child care.
26    (e) (Blank).

 

 

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1    (f) The Illinois Department shall, by rule, set rates to be
2paid for the various types of child care. Child care may be
3provided through one of the following methods:
4        (1) arranging the child care through eligible
5    providers by use of purchase of service contracts or
6    vouchers;
7        (2) arranging with other agencies and community
8    volunteer groups for non-reimbursed child care;
9        (3) (blank); or
10        (4) adopting such other arrangements as the Department
11    determines appropriate.
12    (f-5) (Blank).
13    (g) Families eligible for assistance under this Section
14shall be given the following options:
15        (1) receiving a child care certificate issued by the
16    Department or a subcontractor of the Department that may be
17    used by the parents as payment for child care and
18    development services only; or
19        (2) if space is available, enrolling the child with a
20    child care provider that has a purchase of service contract
21    with the Department or a subcontractor of the Department
22    for the provision of child care and development services.
23    The Department may identify particular priority
24    populations for whom they may request special
25    consideration by a provider with purchase of service
26    contracts, provided that the providers shall be permitted

 

 

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1    to maintain a balance of clients in terms of household
2    incomes and families and children with special needs, as
3    defined by rule.
4(Source: P.A. 94-320, eff. 1-1-06; 95-206, eff. 8-16-07;
595-322, eff. 1-1-08; 95-876, eff. 8-21-08.)
 
6    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
7becoming law.