[ Search ] [ Legislation ] [ Bill Summary ]
[ Home ] [ Back ] [ Bottom ]
| [ Introduced ] | [ Engrossed ] | [ House Amendment 003 ] |
90_SB0789ccr001
LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 90TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
2 CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REPORT
3 ON SENATE BILL 789
4 -------------------------------------------------------------
5 -------------------------------------------------------------
6 To the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
7 House of Representatives:
8 We, the conference committee appointed to consider the
9 differences between the houses in relation to House Amendment
10 No. 3 to Senate Bill 789, recommend the following:
11 (1) that the Senate concur in House Amendment No. 3; and
12 (2) that Senate Bill 789, AS AMENDED, be further amended
13 as follows:
14 by replacing the title with the following:
15 "AN ACT in relation to rights and remedies."; and
16 by inserting after the enacting clause the following:
17 "Section 2. The Children and Family Services Act is
18 amended by changing Section 5 as follows:
19 (20 ILCS 505/5) (from Ch. 23, par. 5005)
20 (Text of Section before amendment by P.A. 89-507)
21 Sec. 5. To provide direct child welfare services when
22 not available through other public or private child care or
23 program facilities.
24 (a) For purposes of this Section:
25 (1) "Children" means persons found within the State
26 who are under the age of 18 years. The term also
27 includes persons under age 19 who:
28 (A) were committed to the Department pursuant
29 to the Juvenile Court Act or the Juvenile Court Act
30 of 1987, as amended, prior to the age of 18 and who
31 continue under the jurisdiction of the court; or
-2- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 (B) were accepted for care, service and
2 training by the Department prior to the age of 18
3 and whose best interest in the discretion of the
4 Department would be served by continuing that care,
5 service and training because of severe emotional
6 disturbances, physical disability, social adjustment
7 or any combination thereof, or because of the need
8 to complete an educational or vocational training
9 program.
10 (2) "Homeless youth" means persons found within the
11 State who are under the age of 19, are not in a safe and
12 stable living situation and cannot be reunited with their
13 families.
14 (3) "Child welfare services" means public social
15 services which are directed toward the accomplishment of
16 the following purposes:
17 (A) protecting and promoting the welfare of
18 children, including homeless, dependent or neglected
19 children;
20 (B) preventing or remedying, or assisting in
21 the solution of problems which may result in, the
22 neglect, abuse, exploitation or delinquency of
23 children;
24 (C) preventing the unnecessary separation of
25 children from their families by identifying family
26 problems, assisting families in resolving their
27 problems, and preventing the breakup of the family
28 where the prevention of child removal is desirable
29 and possible;
30 (D) restoring to their families children who
31 have been removed, by the provision of services to
32 the child and the families;
33 (E) placing children in suitable adoptive
34 homes, in cases where restoration to the biological
35 family is not possible or appropriate;
-3- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 (F) assuring adequate care of children away
2 from their homes, in cases where the child cannot be
3 returned home or cannot be placed for adoption;
4 (G) providing supportive services and living
5 maintenance which contribute to the physical,
6 emotional and social well-being of children who are
7 pregnant and unmarried;
8 (H) providing shelter and independent living
9 services for homeless youth; and
10 (I) placing and maintaining children in
11 facilities that provide separate living quarters for
12 children under the age of 18 and for children 18
13 years of age and older, unless a child 18 years of
14 age is in the last year of high school education or
15 vocational training, in an approved individual or
16 group treatment program, or in a licensed shelter
17 facility or secure child care facility. The
18 Department is not required to place or maintain
19 children:
20 (i) who are in a foster home, or
21 (ii) who are persons with a developmental
22 disability, as defined in the Mental Health and
23 Developmental Disabilities Code, or
24 (iii) who are female children who are
25 pregnant, pregnant and parenting or parenting,
26 or
27 (iv) who are siblings,
28 in facilities that provide separate living quarters
29 for children 18 years of age and older and for
30 children under 18 years of age.
31 (b) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to
32 authorize the expenditure of public funds for the purpose of
33 performing abortions.
34 (c) The Department shall establish and maintain
35 tax-supported child welfare services and extend and seek to
-4- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 improve voluntary services throughout the State, to the end
2 that services and care shall be available on an equal basis
3 throughout the State to children requiring such services.
4 (d) The Director may authorize advance disbursements for
5 any new program initiative to any agency contracting with the
6 Department. As a prerequisite for an advance disbursement,
7 the contractor must post a surety bond in the amount of the
8 advance disbursement and have a purchase of service contract
9 approved by the Department. The Department may pay up to 2
10 months operational expenses in advance. The amount of the
11 advance disbursement shall be prorated over the life of the
12 contract or the remaining months of the fiscal year,
13 whichever is less, and the installment amount shall then be
14 deducted from future bills. Advance disbursement
15 authorizations for new initiatives shall not be made to any
16 agency after that agency has operated during 2 consecutive
17 fiscal years. The requirements of this Section concerning
18 advance disbursements shall not apply with respect to the
19 following: payments to local public agencies for child day
20 care services as authorized by Section 5a of this Act; and
21 youth service programs receiving grant funds under Section
22 17a-4.
23 (e) For the purpose of insuring effective state-wide
24 planning, development, and utilization of resources for the
25 day care of children, operated under various auspices, the
26 Department is hereby designated to coordinate all day care
27 activities for children of the State and shall:
28 (1) Develop on or before December 1, 1977, and
29 update every year thereafter, a state comprehensive
30 day-care plan for submission to the Governor which
31 identifies high-priority areas and groups, relating them
32 to available resources, and identifying the most
33 effective approaches to the use of existing day care
34 services. The State comprehensive day-care plan shall be
35 made available to the General Assembly following the
-5- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 Governor's approval of the plan.
2 The plan shall include methods and procedures for
3 the development of additional day care resources for
4 children to meet the goal of reducing short-run and
5 long-run dependency and to provide necessary enrichment
6 and stimulation to the education of young children.
7 Recommendation shall be made for State policy on optimum
8 use of private and public, local, state and federal
9 resources, including an estimate of the resources needed
10 for the licensing and regulation of day care facilities.
11 A written report shall be submitted to the Governor
12 and the General Assembly, annually, on April 15, and
13 shall include an evaluation of developments over the
14 preceding fiscal year, including cost-benefit analyses of
15 various arrangements. Beginning with the report in 1990
16 and every 2 years thereafter, the report shall also
17 include the following:
18 (A) An assessment of the child care services,
19 needs and available resources throughout the State
20 and an assessment of the adequacy of existing child
21 care services, including, but not limited to,
22 services assisted under this Act and under any other
23 program administered by other State agencies.
24 (B) A survey of day care facilities to
25 determine the number of qualified caregivers, as
26 defined by rule, attracted to vacant positions and
27 any problems encountered by facilities in attracting
28 and retaining capable caregivers.
29 (C) The average wages and salaries and fringe
30 benefit packages paid to caregivers throughout the
31 State, computed on a regional basis.
32 (D) The qualifications of new caregivers hired
33 at licensed day care facilities during the previous
34 2 year period.
35 (E) Recommendations for increasing caregiver
-6- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 wages and salaries to insure quality care for
2 children.
3 (F) Evaluation of the fee structure and income
4 eligibility for child care subsidized by the State.
5 The requirement for reporting to the General
6 Assembly shall be satisfied by filing copies of the
7 report with the Speaker, the Minority Leader and the
8 Clerk of the House of Representatives and the President,
9 the Minority Leader and the Secretary of the Senate and
10 the Legislative Research Unit, as required by Section 3.1
11 of the General Assembly Organization Act, and filing such
12 additional copies with the State Government Report
13 Distribution Center for the General Assembly as is
14 required under paragraph (t) of Section 7 of the State
15 Library Act.
16 (2) Establish policies and procedures for
17 developing and implementing interagency agreements with
18 other agencies of the State providing child care services
19 or reimbursement for such services.
20 (3) In cooperation with other State agencies,
21 develop and implement a resource and referral system for
22 the State of Illinois either within the Department or by
23 contract with local or regional agencies. Funding for
24 implementation of this system may be provided through
25 Department appropriations or other inter-agency funding
26 arrangements. The resource and referral system shall
27 provide at least the following services:
28 (A) assembling and maintaining a data base on
29 the supply of child care services;
30 (B) providing information and referrals for
31 parents;
32 (C) coordinating the development of new child
33 care resources;
34 (D) providing technical assistance and
35 training to child care service providers; and
-7- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 (E) recording and analyzing the demand for
2 child care services.
3 The Department shall complete implementation of this
4 resource and referral system in all regions of the State
5 by January 1, 1992.
6 (4) Conduct day care planning activities with the
7 following priorities:
8 (A) development of voluntary day care
9 resources wherever possible, with the provision for
10 grants-in-aid only where demonstrated to be useful
11 and necessary as incentives or supports;
12 (B) emphasis on service to children of
13 recipients of public assistance where such service
14 will allow training or employment of the parent
15 toward achieving the goal of independence;
16 (C) maximum employment of recipients of public
17 assistance in day care centers and day care homes,
18 operated in conjunction with short-term work
19 training programs;
20 (D) care of children from families in stress
21 and crises whose members potentially may become, or
22 are in danger of becoming, non-productive and
23 dependent;
24 (E) expansion of family day care facilities
25 wherever possible;
26 (F) location of centers in economically
27 depressed neighborhoods, preferably in multi-service
28 centers with cooperation of other agencies;
29 (G) use of existing facilities free of charge
30 or for reasonable rental wherever possible in lieu
31 of construction;
32 (H) development of strategies for assuring a
33 more complete range of day care options, including
34 provision of day care services in homes, in schools
35 or in centers, which will enable a parent or parents
-8- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 to complete a course of education or obtain or
2 maintain employment.
3 Emphasis shall be given to support services which
4 will help to ensure such parents' graduation from high
5 school and to services for participants in the Project
6 Chance program of job training conducted by the Illinois
7 Department of Public Aid.
8 (5) Actively stimulate the development of public
9 and private resources at the local level. It shall also
10 seek the fullest utilization of federal funds directly or
11 indirectly available to the Department.
12 Where appropriate, existing non-governmental agencies or
13 associations shall be involved in planning by the Department.
14 (f) The Department, pursuant to a contract with the
15 Illinois Department of Public Aid, may provide child care
16 services to former recipients of assistance under The
17 Illinois Public Aid Code as authorized by Section 9-6.3 of
18 that Code.
19 (g) The Department shall establish rules and regulations
20 concerning its operation of programs designed to meet the
21 goals of child protection, family preservation, family
22 reunification, adoption and youth development, including but
23 not limited to:
24 (1) adoption;
25 (2) foster care;
26 (3) family counseling;
27 (4) protective services;
28 (5) service to unwed mothers;
29 (6) homemaker service;
30 (7) return of runaway children;
31 (8) independent living skills and shelter for
32 homeless youth;
33 (9) placement under Section 5-7 of the Juvenile
34 Court Act or Section 2-27, 3-28, 4-25 or 5-29 of the
35 Juvenile Court Act of 1987 in accordance with the federal
-9- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980; and
2 (10) interstate services.
3 Rules and regulations established by the Department shall
4 include provisions for training Department staff and the
5 staff of Department grantees, through contracts with other
6 agencies or resources, in alcohol and drug abuse screening
7 techniques to identify children and adults who should be
8 referred to an alcohol and drug abuse treatment program for
9 professional evaluation.
10 (h) If the Department finds that there is no appropriate
11 program or facility within or available to the Department for
12 a ward and that no licensed private facility has an adequate
13 and appropriate program or none agrees to accept the ward,
14 the Department shall create an appropriate individualized,
15 program-oriented plan for such ward. The plan may be
16 developed within the Department or through purchase of
17 services by the Department to the extent that it is within
18 its statutory authority to do.
19 (i) Service programs shall be available throughout the
20 State and shall include but not be limited to the following
21 services:
22 (1) case management;
23 (2) homemakers;
24 (3) counseling;
25 (4) parent education;
26 (5) day care; and
27 (6) emergency assistance and advocacy.
28 In addition, the following services may be made available
29 to assess and meet the needs of children and families:
30 (1) comprehensive family-based services;
31 (2) assessments;
32 (3) respite care; and
33 (4) in-home health services.
34 The Department shall provide transportation for any of
35 the services it makes available to children or families or
-10- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 for which it refers children or families.
2 (j) The Department may provide financial assistance, and
3 shall establish rules and regulations concerning such
4 assistance, to persons who adopt physically or mentally
5 handicapped, older and other hard-to-place children who
6 immediately prior to their adoption were legal wards of the
7 Department. The Department may also provide financial
8 assistance, and shall establish rules and regulations for
9 such assistance, to persons appointed guardian of the person
10 under Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court Act or Section 2-27,
11 3-28, 4-25 or 5-29 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 for
12 children who were wards of the Department for 12 months
13 immediately prior to the appointment of the successor
14 guardian and for whom the Department has set a goal of
15 permanent family placement with a foster family.
16 The amount of assistance may vary, depending upon the
17 needs of the child and the adoptive parents, but must be at
18 least $25 less than the monthly cost of care of the child in
19 a foster home, as set forth in the annual assistance
20 agreement. Special purpose grants are allowed where the
21 child requires special service but such costs may not exceed
22 the amounts which similar services would cost the Department
23 if it were to provide or secure them as guardian of the
24 child.
25 Any financial assistance provided under this subsection
26 is inalienable by assignment, sale, execution, attachment,
27 garnishment, or any other remedy for recovery or collection
28 of a judgment or debt.
29 (k) The Department shall accept for care and training
30 any child who has been adjudicated neglected or abused, or
31 dependent committed to it pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act
32 or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
33 (l) Before July 1, 2000, the Department may provide, and
34 beginning July 1, 2000, the Department shall provide, family
35 preservation services, as determined to be appropriate and in
-11- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 the child's best interests and when the child will not be in
2 imminent risk of harm, to any family whose child has been
3 placed in substitute care, any persons who have adopted a
4 child and require post-adoption services, or any persons
5 whose child or children are at risk of being placed outside
6 their home as documented by an "indicated" report of
7 suspected child abuse or neglect determined pursuant to the
8 Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. Nothing in this
9 paragraph shall be construed to create a private right of
10 action or claim on the part of any individual or child
11 welfare agency.
12 The Department shall notify the child and his family of
13 the Department's responsibility to offer and provide family
14 preservation services as identified in the service plan. The
15 child and his family shall be eligible for services as soon
16 as the report is determined to be "indicated". The
17 Department may offer services to any child or family with
18 respect to whom a report of suspected child abuse or neglect
19 has been filed, prior to concluding its investigation under
20 Section 7.12 of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act.
21 However, the child's or family's willingness to accept
22 services shall not be considered in the investigation. The
23 Department may also provide services to any child or family
24 who is the subject of any report of suspected child abuse or
25 neglect or may refer such child or family to services
26 available from other agencies in the community, even if the
27 report is determined to be unfounded, if the conditions in
28 the child's or family's home are reasonably likely to subject
29 the child or family to future reports of suspected child
30 abuse or neglect. Acceptance of such services shall be
31 voluntary.
32 The Department may, at its discretion except for those
33 children also adjudicated neglected or dependent, accept for
34 care and training any child who has been adjudicated
35 addicted, as a truant minor in need of supervision or as a
-12- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 minor requiring authoritative intervention, under the
2 Juvenile Court Act or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, but no
3 such child shall be committed to the Department by any court
4 without the approval of the Department. A minor charged with
5 a criminal offense under the Criminal Code of 1961 or
6 adjudicated delinquent shall not be placed in the custody of
7 or committed to the Department by any court, except a minor
8 less than 13 years of age committed to the Department under
9 Section 5-23 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
10 (m) The Department may assume temporary custody of any
11 child if:
12 (1) it has received a written consent to such
13 temporary custody signed by the parents of the child or
14 by the parent having custody of the child if the parents
15 are not living together or by the guardian or custodian
16 of the child if the child is not in the custody of either
17 parent, or
18 (2) the child is found in the State and neither a
19 parent, guardian nor custodian of the child can be
20 located.
21 If the child is found in his or her residence without a
22 parent, guardian, custodian or responsible caretaker, the
23 Department may, instead of removing the child and assuming
24 temporary custody, place an authorized representative of the
25 Department in that residence until such time as a parent,
26 guardian or custodian enters the home and expresses a
27 willingness and apparent ability to resume permanent charge
28 of the child, or until a relative enters the home and is
29 willing and able to assume charge of the child until a
30 parent, guardian or custodian enters the home and expresses
31 such willingness and ability to resume permanent charge.
32 After a caretaker has remained in the home for a period not
33 to exceed 12 hours, the Department must follow those
34 procedures outlined in Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8 or 5-9 of the
35 Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
-13- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 The Department shall have the authority, responsibilities
2 and duties that a legal custodian of the child would have
3 pursuant to subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile
4 Court Act of 1987. Whenever a child is taken into temporary
5 custody pursuant to an investigation under the Abused and
6 Neglected Child Reporting Act, or pursuant to a referral and
7 acceptance under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 of a minor in
8 limited custody, the Department, during the period of
9 temporary custody and before the child is brought before a
10 judicial officer as required by Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8 or 5-9
11 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, shall have the authority,
12 responsibilities and duties that a legal custodian of the
13 child would have under subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of the
14 Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
15 The Department shall ensure that any child taken into
16 custody is scheduled for an appointment for a medical
17 examination.
18 A parent, guardian or custodian of a child in the
19 temporary custody of the Department who would have custody of
20 the child if he were not in the temporary custody of the
21 Department may deliver to the Department a signed request
22 that the Department surrender the temporary custody of the
23 child. The Department may retain temporary custody of the
24 child for 10 days after the receipt of the request, during
25 which period the Department may cause to be filed a petition
26 pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. If a petition is
27 so filed, the Department shall retain temporary custody of
28 the child until the court orders otherwise. If a petition is
29 not filed within the 10 day period, the child shall be
30 surrendered to the custody of the requesting parent, guardian
31 or custodian not later than the expiration of the 10 day
32 period, at which time the authority and duties of the
33 Department with respect to the temporary custody of the child
34 shall terminate.
35 (m-1) The Department may place children in secure child
-14- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 care facilities licensed by the Department that care for
2 children who are in need of secure living arrangements for
3 their health, safety, and well-being when the Department
4 determines that placement is (i) necessary for the
5 protection, safety, or well-being of the child or community,
6 (ii) the least restrictive setting available for the child,
7 and (iii) in the child's best interests. This subsection
8 (m-1) does not apply to a child who is subject to placement
9 in a correctional facility operated pursuant to Section
10 3-15-2 of the Unified Code of Corrections. Placements under
11 this subsection (m-1) shall comply with the child's case plan
12 and shall be subject to permanency hearing review under
13 Section 2-28 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
14 (n) The Department may place children under 18 years of
15 age in licensed child care facilities when in the opinion of
16 the Department, appropriate services aimed at family
17 preservation have been unsuccessful or unavailable and such
18 placement would be for their best interest. Payment for
19 board, clothing, care, training and supervision of any child
20 placed in a licensed child care facility may be made by the
21 Department, by the parents or guardians of the estates of
22 those children, or by both the Department and the parents or
23 guardians, except that no payments shall be made by the
24 Department for any child placed in a licensed child care
25 facility for board, clothing, care, training and supervision
26 of such a child that exceed the average per capita cost of
27 maintaining and of caring for a child in institutions for
28 dependent or neglected children operated by the Department.
29 However, such restriction on payments does not apply in cases
30 where children require specialized care and treatment for
31 problems of severe emotional disturbance, physical
32 disability, social adjustment, or any combination thereof and
33 suitable facilities for the placement of such children are
34 not available at payment rates within the limitations set
35 forth in this Section. All reimbursements for services
-15- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 delivered shall be absolutely inalienable by assignment,
2 sale, attachment, garnishment or otherwise.
3 (o) The Department shall establish an administrative
4 review and appeal process for children and families who
5 request or receive child welfare services from the
6 Department. Children who are wards of the Department and are
7 placed by private child welfare agencies, and foster families
8 with whom those children are placed, shall be afforded the
9 same procedural and appeal rights as children and families in
10 the case of placement by the Department, including the right
11 to an initial review of a private agency decision by that
12 agency. The Department shall insure that any private child
13 welfare agency, which accepts wards of the Department for
14 placement, affords those rights to children and foster
15 families. The Department shall accept for administrative
16 review and an appeal hearing a complaint made by a child or
17 foster family concerning a decision following an initial
18 review by a private child welfare agency. An appeal of a
19 decision concerning a change in the placement of a child
20 shall be conducted in an expedited manner.
21 (p) There is hereby created the Department of Children
22 and Family Services Emergency Assistance Fund from which the
23 Department may provide special financial assistance to
24 families which are in economic crisis when such assistance is
25 not available through other public or private sources and the
26 assistance is deemed necessary to prevent dissolution of the
27 family unit or to reunite families which have been separated
28 due to child abuse and neglect. The Department shall
29 establish administrative rules specifying the criteria for
30 determining eligibility for and the amount and nature of
31 assistance to be provided. The Department may also enter
32 into written agreements with private and public social
33 service agencies to provide emergency financial services to
34 families referred by the Department. Special financial
35 assistance payments shall be available to a family no more
-16- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 than once during each fiscal year and the total payments to a
2 family may not exceed $500 during a fiscal year.
3 (q) The Department may receive and use, in their
4 entirety, for the benefit of children any gift, donation or
5 bequest of money or other property which is received on
6 behalf of such children, or any financial benefits to which
7 such children are or may become entitled while under the
8 jurisdiction or care of the Department.
9 The Department shall set up and administer no-cost,
10 interest-bearing savings accounts in appropriate financial
11 institutions ("individual accounts") for children for whom
12 the Department is legally responsible and who have been
13 determined eligible for Veterans' Benefits, Social Security
14 benefits, assistance allotments from the armed forces, court
15 ordered payments, parental voluntary payments, Supplemental
16 Security Income, Railroad Retirement payments, Black Lung
17 benefits, or other miscellaneous payments. Interest earned
18 by each individual account shall be credited to the account,
19 unless disbursed in accordance with this subsection.
20 In disbursing funds from children's individual accounts,
21 the Department shall:
22 (1) Establish standards in accordance with State
23 and federal laws for disbursing money from children's
24 individual accounts. In all circumstances, the
25 Department's "Guardianship Administrator" or his or her
26 designee must approve disbursements from children's
27 individual accounts. The Department shall be responsible
28 for keeping complete records of all disbursements for
29 each individual account for any purpose.
30 (2) Calculate on a monthly basis the amounts paid
31 from State funds for the child's board and care, medical
32 care not covered under Medicaid, and social services; and
33 utilize funds from the child's individual account, as
34 covered by regulation, to reimburse those costs.
35 Monthly, disbursements from all children's individual
-17- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 accounts, up to 1/12 of $13,000,000, shall be deposited
2 by the Department into the General Revenue Fund and the
3 balance over 1/12 of $13,000,000 into the DCFS Children's
4 Services Fund.
5 (3) Maintain any balance remaining after
6 reimbursing for the child's costs of care, as specified
7 in item (2). The balance shall accumulate in accordance
8 with relevant State and federal laws and shall be
9 disbursed to the child or his or her guardian, or to the
10 issuing agency.
11 (r) The Department shall promulgate regulations
12 encouraging all adoption agencies to voluntarily forward to
13 the Department or its agent names and addresses of all
14 persons who have applied for and have been approved for
15 adoption of a hard-to-place or handicapped child and the
16 names of such children who have not been placed for adoption.
17 A list of such names and addresses shall be maintained by the
18 Department or its agent, and coded lists which maintain the
19 confidentiality of the person seeking to adopt the child and
20 of the child shall be made available, without charge, to
21 every adoption agency in the State to assist the agencies in
22 placing such children for adoption. The Department may
23 delegate to an agent its duty to maintain and make available
24 such lists. The Department shall ensure that such agent
25 maintains the confidentiality of the person seeking to adopt
26 the child and of the child.
27 (s) The Department of Children and Family Services may
28 establish and implement a program to reimburse Department and
29 private child welfare agency foster parents licensed by the
30 Department of Children and Family Services for damages
31 sustained by the foster parents as a result of the malicious
32 or negligent acts of foster children, as well as providing
33 third party coverage for such foster parents with regard to
34 actions of foster children to other individuals. Such
35 coverage will be secondary to the foster parent liability
-18- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 insurance policy, if applicable. The program shall be funded
2 through appropriations from the General Revenue Fund,
3 specifically designated for such purposes.
4 (t) The Department shall perform home studies and
5 investigations and shall exercise supervision over visitation
6 as ordered by a court pursuant to the Illinois Marriage and
7 Dissolution of Marriage Act or the Adoption Act only if:
8 (1) an order entered by an Illinois court
9 specifically directs the Department to perform such
10 services; and
11 (2) the court has ordered one or both of the
12 parties to the proceeding to reimburse the Department for
13 its reasonable costs for providing such services in
14 accordance with Department rules, or has determined that
15 neither party is financially able to pay.
16 The Department shall provide written notification to the
17 court of the specific arrangements for supervised visitation
18 and projected monthly costs within 60 days of the court
19 order. The Department shall send to the court information
20 related to the costs incurred except in cases where the court
21 has determined the parties are financially unable to pay. The
22 court may order additional periodic reports as appropriate.
23 (u) Whenever the Department places a child in a licensed
24 foster home, group home, child care institution, or in a
25 relative home, the Department shall provide to the caretaker:
26 (1) available detailed information concerning the
27 child's educational and health history, copies of
28 immunization records (including insurance and medical
29 card information), a history of the child's previous
30 placements, if any, and reasons for placement changes
31 excluding any information that identifies or reveals the
32 location of any previous caretaker;
33 (2) a copy of the child's portion of the client
34 service plan, including any visitation arrangement, and
35 all amendments or revisions to it as related to the
-19- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 child; and
2 (3) information containing details of the child's
3 individualized educational plan when the child is
4 receiving special education services.
5 The caretaker shall be informed of any known social or
6 behavioral information (including, but not limited to, fire
7 setting, perpetuation of sexual abuse, destructive behavior,
8 and substance abuse) necessary to care for and safeguard the
9 child.
10 (u-5) Effective July 1, 1995, only foster care
11 placements licensed as foster family homes pursuant to the
12 Child Care Act of 1969 shall be eligible to receive foster
13 care payments from the Department. Relative caregivers who,
14 as of July 1, 1995, were approved pursuant to approved
15 relative placement rules previously promulgated by the
16 Department at 89 Ill. Adm. Code 335 and had submitted an
17 application for licensure as a foster family home may
18 continue to receive foster care payments only until the
19 Department determines that they may be licensed as a foster
20 family home or that their application for licensure is denied
21 or until September 30, 1995, whichever occurs first.
22 (v) The Department shall access criminal history record
23 information as defined in the Illinois Uniform Conviction
24 Information Act and information maintained in the
25 adjudicatory and dispositional record system as defined in
26 subdivision (A)19 of Section 55a of the Civil Administrative
27 Code of Illinois if the Department determines the information
28 is necessary to perform its duties under the Abused and
29 Neglected Child Reporting Act, the Child Care Act of 1969,
30 and the Children and Family Services Act. The Department
31 shall provide for interactive computerized communication and
32 processing equipment that permits direct on-line
33 communication with the Department of State Police's central
34 criminal history data repository. The Department shall
35 comply with all certification requirements and provide
-20- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 certified operators who have been trained by personnel from
2 the Department of State Police. In addition, one Office of
3 the Inspector General investigator shall have training in the
4 use of the criminal history information access system and
5 have access to the terminal. The Department of Children and
6 Family Services and its employees shall abide by rules and
7 regulations established by the Department of State Police
8 relating to the access and dissemination of this information.
9 (w) Within 120 days of August 20, 1995 (the effective
10 date of Public Act 89-392), the Department shall prepare and
11 submit to the Governor and the General Assembly, a written
12 plan for the development of in-state licensed secure child
13 care facilities that care for children who are in need of
14 secure living arrangements for their health, safety, and
15 well-being. For purposes of this subsection, secure care
16 facility shall mean a facility that is designed and operated
17 to ensure that all entrances and exits from the facility, a
18 building or a distinct part of the building, are under the
19 exclusive control of the staff of the facility, whether or
20 not the child has the freedom of movement within the
21 perimeter of the facility, building, or distinct part of the
22 building. The plan shall include descriptions of the types
23 of facilities that are needed in Illinois; the cost of
24 developing these secure care facilities; the estimated number
25 of placements; the potential cost savings resulting from the
26 movement of children currently out-of-state who are projected
27 to be returned to Illinois; the necessary geographic
28 distribution of these facilities in Illinois; and a proposed
29 timetable for development of such facilities.
30 (Source: P.A. 88-380; 88-398; 88-487; 88-614, eff. 9-7-94;
31 88-670, eff. 12-2-94; 89-21, eff. 6-6-95; 89-392, eff.
32 8-20-95; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96.)
33 (Text of Section after amendment by P.A. 89-507)
34 Sec. 5. Direct child welfare services; Department of
-21- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 Children and Family Services. To provide direct child welfare
2 services when not available through other public or private
3 child care or program facilities.
4 (a) For purposes of this Section:
5 (1) "Children" means persons found within the State
6 who are under the age of 18 years. The term also
7 includes persons under age 19 who:
8 (A) were committed to the Department pursuant
9 to the Juvenile Court Act or the Juvenile Court Act
10 of 1987, as amended, prior to the age of 18 and who
11 continue under the jurisdiction of the court; or
12 (B) were accepted for care, service and
13 training by the Department prior to the age of 18
14 and whose best interest in the discretion of the
15 Department would be served by continuing that care,
16 service and training because of severe emotional
17 disturbances, physical disability, social adjustment
18 or any combination thereof, or because of the need
19 to complete an educational or vocational training
20 program.
21 (2) "Homeless youth" means persons found within the
22 State who are under the age of 19, are not in a safe and
23 stable living situation and cannot be reunited with their
24 families.
25 (3) "Child welfare services" means public social
26 services which are directed toward the accomplishment of
27 the following purposes:
28 (A) protecting and promoting the welfare of
29 children, including homeless, dependent or neglected
30 children;
31 (B) remedying, or assisting in the solution of
32 problems which may result in, the neglect, abuse,
33 exploitation or delinquency of children;
34 (C) preventing the unnecessary separation of
35 children from their families by identifying family
-22- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 problems, assisting families in resolving their
2 problems, and preventing the breakup of the family
3 where the prevention of child removal is desirable
4 and possible;
5 (D) restoring to their families children who
6 have been removed, by the provision of services to
7 the child and the families;
8 (E) placing children in suitable adoptive
9 homes, in cases where restoration to the biological
10 family is not possible or appropriate;
11 (F) assuring adequate care of children away
12 from their homes, in cases where the child cannot be
13 returned home or cannot be placed for adoption;
14 (G) (blank);
15 (H) (blank); and
16 (I) placing and maintaining children in
17 facilities that provide separate living quarters for
18 children under the age of 18 and for children 18
19 years of age and older, unless a child 18 years of
20 age is in the last year of high school education or
21 vocational training, in an approved individual or
22 group treatment program, or in a licensed shelter
23 facility or secure child care facility. The
24 Department is not required to place or maintain
25 children:
26 (i) who are in a foster home, or
27 (ii) who are persons with a developmental
28 disability, as defined in the Mental Health and
29 Developmental Disabilities Code, or
30 (iii) who are female children who are
31 pregnant, pregnant and parenting or parenting,
32 or
33 (iv) who are siblings,
34 in facilities that provide separate living quarters
35 for children 18 years of age and older and for
-23- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 children under 18 years of age.
2 (b) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to
3 authorize the expenditure of public funds for the purpose of
4 performing abortions.
5 (c) The Department shall establish and maintain
6 tax-supported child welfare services and extend and seek to
7 improve voluntary services throughout the State, to the end
8 that services and care shall be available on an equal basis
9 throughout the State to children requiring such services.
10 (d) The Director may authorize advance disbursements for
11 any new program initiative to any agency contracting with the
12 Department. As a prerequisite for an advance disbursement,
13 the contractor must post a surety bond in the amount of the
14 advance disbursement and have a purchase of service contract
15 approved by the Department. The Department may pay up to 2
16 months operational expenses in advance. The amount of the
17 advance disbursement shall be prorated over the life of the
18 contract or the remaining months of the fiscal year,
19 whichever is less, and the installment amount shall then be
20 deducted from future bills. Advance disbursement
21 authorizations for new initiatives shall not be made to any
22 agency after that agency has operated during 2 consecutive
23 fiscal years. The requirements of this Section concerning
24 advance disbursements shall not apply with respect to the
25 following: payments to local public agencies for child day
26 care services as authorized by Section 5a of this Act; and
27 youth service programs receiving grant funds under Section
28 17a-4.
29 (e) (Blank).
30 (f) (Blank).
31 (g) The Department shall establish rules and regulations
32 concerning its operation of programs designed to meet the
33 goals of child protection, family preservation, family
34 reunification, and adoption, including but not limited to:
35 (1) adoption;
-24- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 (2) foster care;
2 (3) family counseling;
3 (4) protective services;
4 (5) (blank);
5 (6) homemaker service;
6 (7) return of runaway children;
7 (8) (blank);
8 (9) placement under Section 5-7 of the Juvenile
9 Court Act or Section 2-27, 3-28, 4-25 or 5-29 of the
10 Juvenile Court Act of 1987 in accordance with the federal
11 Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980; and
12 (10) interstate services.
13 Rules and regulations established by the Department shall
14 include provisions for training Department staff and the
15 staff of Department grantees, through contracts with other
16 agencies or resources, in alcohol and drug abuse screening
17 techniques to identify children and adults who should be
18 referred to an alcohol and drug abuse treatment program for
19 professional evaluation.
20 (h) If the Department finds that there is no appropriate
21 program or facility within or available to the Department for
22 a ward and that no licensed private facility has an adequate
23 and appropriate program or none agrees to accept the ward,
24 the Department shall create an appropriate individualized,
25 program-oriented plan for such ward. The plan may be
26 developed within the Department or through purchase of
27 services by the Department to the extent that it is within
28 its statutory authority to do.
29 (i) Service programs shall be available throughout the
30 State and shall include but not be limited to the following
31 services:
32 (1) case management;
33 (2) homemakers;
34 (3) counseling;
35 (4) parent education;
-25- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 (5) day care; and
2 (6) emergency assistance and advocacy.
3 In addition, the following services may be made available
4 to assess and meet the needs of children and families:
5 (1) comprehensive family-based services;
6 (2) assessments;
7 (3) respite care; and
8 (4) in-home health services.
9 The Department shall provide transportation for any of
10 the services it makes available to children or families or
11 for which it refers children or families.
12 (j) The Department may provide financial assistance, and
13 shall establish rules and regulations concerning such
14 assistance, to persons who adopt physically or mentally
15 handicapped, older and other hard-to-place children who
16 immediately prior to their adoption were legal wards of the
17 Department. The Department may also provide financial
18 assistance, and shall establish rules and regulations for
19 such assistance, to persons appointed guardian of the person
20 under Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court Act or Section 2-27,
21 3-28, 4-25 or 5-29 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 for
22 children who were wards of the Department for 12 months
23 immediately prior to the appointment of the successor
24 guardian and for whom the Department has set a goal of
25 permanent family placement with a foster family.
26 The amount of assistance may vary, depending upon the
27 needs of the child and the adoptive parents, but must be at
28 least $25 less than the monthly cost of care of the child in
29 a foster home, as set forth in the annual assistance
30 agreement. Special purpose grants are allowed where the
31 child requires special service but such costs may not exceed
32 the amounts which similar services would cost the Department
33 if it were to provide or secure them as guardian of the
34 child.
35 Any financial assistance provided under this subsection
-26- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 is inalienable by assignment, sale, execution, attachment,
2 garnishment, or any other remedy for recovery or collection
3 of a judgment or debt.
4 (k) The Department shall accept for care and training
5 any child who has been adjudicated neglected or abused, or
6 dependent committed to it pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act
7 or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
8 (l) Before July 1, 2000, the Department may provide, and
9 beginning July 1, 2000, the Department shall provide, family
10 preservation services, as determined to be appropriate and in
11 the child's best interests and when the child will not be in
12 imminent risk of harm, to any family whose child has been
13 placed in substitute care, any persons who have adopted a
14 child and require post-adoption services, or any persons
15 whose child or children are at risk of being placed outside
16 their home as documented by an "indicated" report of
17 suspected child abuse or neglect determined pursuant to the
18 Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. Nothing in this
19 paragraph shall be construed to create a private right of
20 action or claim on the part of any individual or child
21 welfare agency.
22 The Department shall notify the child and his family of
23 the Department's responsibility to offer and provide family
24 preservation services as identified in the service plan. The
25 child and his family shall be eligible for services as soon
26 as the report is determined to be "indicated". The
27 Department may offer services to any child or family with
28 respect to whom a report of suspected child abuse or neglect
29 has been filed, prior to concluding its investigation under
30 Section 7.12 of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act.
31 However, the child's or family's willingness to accept
32 services shall not be considered in the investigation. The
33 Department may also provide services to any child or family
34 who is the subject of any report of suspected child abuse or
35 neglect or may refer such child or family to services
-27- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 available from other agencies in the community, even if the
2 report is determined to be unfounded, if the conditions in
3 the child's or family's home are reasonably likely to subject
4 the child or family to future reports of suspected child
5 abuse or neglect. Acceptance of such services shall be
6 voluntary.
7 The Department may, at its discretion except for those
8 children also adjudicated neglected or dependent, accept for
9 care and training any child who has been adjudicated
10 addicted, as a truant minor in need of supervision or as a
11 minor requiring authoritative intervention, under the
12 Juvenile Court Act or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, but no
13 such child shall be committed to the Department by any court
14 without the approval of the Department. A minor charged with
15 a criminal offense under the Criminal Code of 1961 or
16 adjudicated delinquent shall not be placed in the custody of
17 or committed to the Department by any court, except a minor
18 less than 13 years of age committed to the Department under
19 Section 5-23 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
20 (m) The Department may assume temporary custody of any
21 child if:
22 (1) it has received a written consent to such
23 temporary custody signed by the parents of the child or
24 by the parent having custody of the child if the parents
25 are not living together or by the guardian or custodian
26 of the child if the child is not in the custody of either
27 parent, or
28 (2) the child is found in the State and neither a
29 parent, guardian nor custodian of the child can be
30 located.
31 If the child is found in his or her residence without a
32 parent, guardian, custodian or responsible caretaker, the
33 Department may, instead of removing the child and assuming
34 temporary custody, place an authorized representative of the
35 Department in that residence until such time as a parent,
-28- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 guardian or custodian enters the home and expresses a
2 willingness and apparent ability to resume permanent charge
3 of the child, or until a relative enters the home and is
4 willing and able to assume charge of the child until a
5 parent, guardian or custodian enters the home and expresses
6 such willingness and ability to resume permanent charge.
7 After a caretaker has remained in the home for a period not
8 to exceed 12 hours, the Department must follow those
9 procedures outlined in Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8 or 5-9 of the
10 Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
11 The Department shall have the authority, responsibilities
12 and duties that a legal custodian of the child would have
13 pursuant to subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile
14 Court Act of 1987. Whenever a child is taken into temporary
15 custody pursuant to an investigation under the Abused and
16 Neglected Child Reporting Act, or pursuant to a referral and
17 acceptance under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 of a minor in
18 limited custody, the Department, during the period of
19 temporary custody and before the child is brought before a
20 judicial officer as required by Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8 or 5-9
21 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, shall have the authority,
22 responsibilities and duties that a legal custodian of the
23 child would have under subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of the
24 Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
25 The Department shall ensure that any child taken into
26 custody is scheduled for an appointment for a medical
27 examination.
28 A parent, guardian or custodian of a child in the
29 temporary custody of the Department who would have custody of
30 the child if he were not in the temporary custody of the
31 Department may deliver to the Department a signed request
32 that the Department surrender the temporary custody of the
33 child. The Department may retain temporary custody of the
34 child for 10 days after the receipt of the request, during
35 which period the Department may cause to be filed a petition
-29- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. If a petition is
2 so filed, the Department shall retain temporary custody of
3 the child until the court orders otherwise. If a petition is
4 not filed within the 10 day period, the child shall be
5 surrendered to the custody of the requesting parent, guardian
6 or custodian not later than the expiration of the 10 day
7 period, at which time the authority and duties of the
8 Department with respect to the temporary custody of the child
9 shall terminate.
10 (m-1) The Department may place children in secure child
11 care facilities licensed by the Department that care for
12 children who are in need of secure living arrangements for
13 their health, safety, and well-being when the Department
14 determines that placement is (i) necessary for the
15 protection, safety, or well-being of the child or community,
16 (ii) the least restrictive setting available for the child,
17 and (iii) in the child's best interests. This subsection
18 (m-1) does not apply to a child who is subject to placement
19 in a correctional facility operated pursuant to Section
20 3-15-2 of the Unified Code of Corrections. Placements under
21 this subsection (m-1) shall comply with the child's case plan
22 and shall be subject to permanency hearing review under
23 Section 2-28 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
24 (n) The Department may place children under 18 years of
25 age in licensed child care facilities when in the opinion of
26 the Department, appropriate services aimed at family
27 preservation have been unsuccessful or unavailable and such
28 placement would be for their best interest. Payment for
29 board, clothing, care, training and supervision of any child
30 placed in a licensed child care facility may be made by the
31 Department, by the parents or guardians of the estates of
32 those children, or by both the Department and the parents or
33 guardians, except that no payments shall be made by the
34 Department for any child placed in a licensed child care
35 facility for board, clothing, care, training and supervision
-30- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 of such a child that exceed the average per capita cost of
2 maintaining and of caring for a child in institutions for
3 dependent or neglected children operated by the Department.
4 However, such restriction on payments does not apply in cases
5 where children require specialized care and treatment for
6 problems of severe emotional disturbance, physical
7 disability, social adjustment, or any combination thereof and
8 suitable facilities for the placement of such children are
9 not available at payment rates within the limitations set
10 forth in this Section. All reimbursements for services
11 delivered shall be absolutely inalienable by assignment,
12 sale, attachment, garnishment or otherwise.
13 (o) The Department shall establish an administrative
14 review and appeal process for children and families who
15 request or receive child welfare services from the
16 Department. Children who are wards of the Department and are
17 placed by private child welfare agencies, and foster families
18 with whom those children are placed, shall be afforded the
19 same procedural and appeal rights as children and families in
20 the case of placement by the Department, including the right
21 to an initial review of a private agency decision by that
22 agency. The Department shall insure that any private child
23 welfare agency, which accepts wards of the Department for
24 placement, affords those rights to children and foster
25 families. The Department shall accept for administrative
26 review and an appeal hearing a complaint made by a child or
27 foster family concerning a decision following an initial
28 review by a private child welfare agency. An appeal of a
29 decision concerning a change in the placement of a child
30 shall be conducted in an expedited manner.
31 (p) There is hereby created the Department of Children
32 and Family Services Emergency Assistance Fund from which the
33 Department may provide special financial assistance to
34 families which are in economic crisis when such assistance is
35 not available through other public or private sources and the
-31- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 assistance is deemed necessary to prevent dissolution of the
2 family unit or to reunite families which have been separated
3 due to child abuse and neglect. The Department shall
4 establish administrative rules specifying the criteria for
5 determining eligibility for and the amount and nature of
6 assistance to be provided. The Department may also enter
7 into written agreements with private and public social
8 service agencies to provide emergency financial services to
9 families referred by the Department. Special financial
10 assistance payments shall be available to a family no more
11 than once during each fiscal year and the total payments to a
12 family may not exceed $500 during a fiscal year.
13 (q) The Department may receive and use, in their
14 entirety, for the benefit of children any gift, donation or
15 bequest of money or other property which is received on
16 behalf of such children, or any financial benefits to which
17 such children are or may become entitled while under the
18 jurisdiction or care of the Department.
19 The Department shall set up and administer no-cost,
20 interest-bearing savings accounts in appropriate financial
21 institutions ("individual accounts") for children for whom
22 the Department is legally responsible and who have been
23 determined eligible for Veterans' Benefits, Social Security
24 benefits, assistance allotments from the armed forces, court
25 ordered payments, parental voluntary payments, Supplemental
26 Security Income, Railroad Retirement payments, Black Lung
27 benefits, or other miscellaneous payments. Interest earned
28 by each individual account shall be credited to the account,
29 unless disbursed in accordance with this subsection.
30 In disbursing funds from children's individual accounts,
31 the Department shall:
32 (1) Establish standards in accordance with State
33 and federal laws for disbursing money from children's
34 individual accounts. In all circumstances, the
35 Department's "Guardianship Administrator" or his or her
-32- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 designee must approve disbursements from children's
2 individual accounts. The Department shall be responsible
3 for keeping complete records of all disbursements for
4 each individual account for any purpose.
5 (2) Calculate on a monthly basis the amounts paid
6 from State funds for the child's board and care, medical
7 care not covered under Medicaid, and social services; and
8 utilize funds from the child's individual account, as
9 covered by regulation, to reimburse those costs.
10 Monthly, disbursements from all children's individual
11 accounts, up to 1/12 of $13,000,000, shall be deposited
12 by the Department into the General Revenue Fund and the
13 balance over 1/12 of $13,000,000 into the DCFS Children's
14 Services Fund.
15 (3) Maintain any balance remaining after
16 reimbursing for the child's costs of care, as specified
17 in item (2). The balance shall accumulate in accordance
18 with relevant State and federal laws and shall be
19 disbursed to the child or his or her guardian, or to the
20 issuing agency.
21 (r) The Department shall promulgate regulations
22 encouraging all adoption agencies to voluntarily forward to
23 the Department or its agent names and addresses of all
24 persons who have applied for and have been approved for
25 adoption of a hard-to-place or handicapped child and the
26 names of such children who have not been placed for adoption.
27 A list of such names and addresses shall be maintained by the
28 Department or its agent, and coded lists which maintain the
29 confidentiality of the person seeking to adopt the child and
30 of the child shall be made available, without charge, to
31 every adoption agency in the State to assist the agencies in
32 placing such children for adoption. The Department may
33 delegate to an agent its duty to maintain and make available
34 such lists. The Department shall ensure that such agent
35 maintains the confidentiality of the person seeking to adopt
-33- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 the child and of the child.
2 (s) The Department of Children and Family Services may
3 establish and implement a program to reimburse Department and
4 private child welfare agency foster parents licensed by the
5 Department of Children and Family Services for damages
6 sustained by the foster parents as a result of the malicious
7 or negligent acts of foster children, as well as providing
8 third party coverage for such foster parents with regard to
9 actions of foster children to other individuals. Such
10 coverage will be secondary to the foster parent liability
11 insurance policy, if applicable. The program shall be funded
12 through appropriations from the General Revenue Fund,
13 specifically designated for such purposes.
14 (t) The Department shall perform home studies and
15 investigations and shall exercise supervision over visitation
16 as ordered by a court pursuant to the Illinois Marriage and
17 Dissolution of Marriage Act or the Adoption Act only if:
18 (1) an order entered by an Illinois court
19 specifically directs the Department to perform such
20 services; and
21 (2) the court has ordered one or both of the
22 parties to the proceeding to reimburse the Department for
23 its reasonable costs for providing such services in
24 accordance with Department rules, or has determined that
25 neither party is financially able to pay.
26 The Department shall provide written notification to the
27 court of the specific arrangements for supervised visitation
28 and projected monthly costs within 60 days of the court
29 order. The Department shall send to the court information
30 related to the costs incurred except in cases where the court
31 has determined the parties are financially unable to pay. The
32 court may order additional periodic reports as appropriate.
33 (u) Whenever the Department places a child in a licensed
34 foster home, group home, child care institution, or in a
35 relative home, the Department shall provide to the caretaker:
-34- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 (1) available detailed information concerning the
2 child's educational and health history, copies of
3 immunization records (including insurance and medical
4 card information), a history of the child's previous
5 placements, if any, and reasons for placement changes
6 excluding any information that identifies or reveals the
7 location of any previous caretaker;
8 (2) a copy of the child's portion of the client
9 service plan, including any visitation arrangement, and
10 all amendments or revisions to it as related to the
11 child; and
12 (3) information containing details of the child's
13 individualized educational plan when the child is
14 receiving special education services.
15 The caretaker shall be informed of any known social or
16 behavioral information (including, but not limited to, fire
17 setting, perpetuation of sexual abuse, destructive behavior,
18 and substance abuse) necessary to care for and safeguard the
19 child.
20 (u-5) Effective July 1, 1995, only foster care
21 placements licensed as foster family homes pursuant to the
22 Child Care Act of 1969 shall be eligible to receive foster
23 care payments from the Department. Relative caregivers who,
24 as of July 1, 1995, were approved pursuant to approved
25 relative placement rules previously promulgated by the
26 Department at 89 Ill. Adm. Code 335 and had submitted an
27 application for licensure as a foster family home may
28 continue to receive foster care payments only until the
29 Department determines that they may be licensed as a foster
30 family home or that their application for licensure is denied
31 or until September 30, 1995, whichever occurs first.
32 (v) The Department shall access criminal history record
33 information as defined in the Illinois Uniform Conviction
34 Information Act and information maintained in the
35 adjudicatory and dispositional record system as defined in
-35- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 subdivision (A)19 of Section 55a of the Civil Administrative
2 Code of Illinois if the Department determines the information
3 is necessary to perform its duties under the Abused and
4 Neglected Child Reporting Act, the Child Care Act of 1969,
5 and the Children and Family Services Act. The Department
6 shall provide for interactive computerized communication and
7 processing equipment that permits direct on-line
8 communication with the Department of State Police's central
9 criminal history data repository. The Department shall
10 comply with all certification requirements and provide
11 certified operators who have been trained by personnel from
12 the Department of State Police. In addition, one Office of
13 the Inspector General investigator shall have training in the
14 use of the criminal history information access system and
15 have access to the terminal. The Department of Children and
16 Family Services and its employees shall abide by rules and
17 regulations established by the Department of State Police
18 relating to the access and dissemination of this information.
19 (w) Within 120 days of August 20, 1995 (the effective
20 date of Public Act 89-392), the Department shall prepare and
21 submit to the Governor and the General Assembly, a written
22 plan for the development of in-state licensed secure child
23 care facilities that care for children who are in need of
24 secure living arrangements for their health, safety, and
25 well-being. For purposes of this subsection, secure care
26 facility shall mean a facility that is designed and operated
27 to ensure that all entrances and exits from the facility, a
28 building or a distinct part of the building, are under the
29 exclusive control of the staff of the facility, whether or
30 not the child has the freedom of movement within the
31 perimeter of the facility, building, or distinct part of the
32 building. The plan shall include descriptions of the types
33 of facilities that are needed in Illinois; the cost of
34 developing these secure care facilities; the estimated number
35 of placements; the potential cost savings resulting from the
-36- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 movement of children currently out-of-state who are projected
2 to be returned to Illinois; the necessary geographic
3 distribution of these facilities in Illinois; and a proposed
4 timetable for development of such facilities.
5 (Source: P.A. 88-380; 88-398; 88-487; 88-614, eff. 9-7-94;
6 88-670, eff. 12-2-94; 89-21, eff. 6-6-95; 89-392, eff.
7 8-20-95; 89-507, eff. 7-1-97; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96.)
8 Section 3. The Child Care Act of 1969 is amended by
9 changing Section 4 and adding Sections 2.22 and 3.1 as
10 follows:
11 (225 ILCS 10/2.22 new)
12 Sec. 2.22. Secure child care facility. "Secure child
13 care facility" means any child care facility licensed by the
14 Department to provide secure living arrangements for children
15 under 19 years of age who are not subject to placement in
16 facilities for whom standards are established by the
17 Department of Corrections under Section 3-15-2 of the Unified
18 Code of Corrections and which comply with the requirements of
19 this Act and applicable rules of the Department and which
20 shall be consistent with requirements established for child
21 residents of mental health facilities under the Mental Health
22 and Developmental Disabilities Code.
23 (225 ILCS 10/3.1 new)
24 Sec. 3.1. Licenses for secure child care facility. The
25 Department shall establish standards for licensing secure
26 child care facilities which comply with the requirements of
27 this Act, applicable requirements of the Mental Health and
28 Developmental Disabilities Code, and applicable rules of the
29 Department. On or before January 1, 1998, the Department
30 shall develop rules that set standards and the degree of need
31 for licensed secure facilities. Within 90 days after the
32 effective date of this amendatory Act of 1997, the Director
-37- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 shall appoint an advisory committee to assist the Department
2 in the development of these rules.
3 (225 ILCS 10/4) (from Ch. 23, par. 2214)
4 Sec. 4. Any person, group of persons or corporation who
5 or which receives children or arranges for care or placement
6 of one or more children unrelated to the operator must apply
7 for a license to operate one of the types of facilities
8 defined in Sections 2.05 through 2.19 and Section 2.22 of
9 this Act. Any relative who receives a child or children for
10 placement by the Department on a full-time basis may apply
11 for a license to operate a foster family home as defined in
12 Section 2.17 of this Act. Application for a license to
13 operate a child care facility must be made to the Department
14 in the manner and on forms prescribed by it. An application
15 to operate a foster family home shall include, at a minimum:
16 a completed written form; written authorization by the
17 applicant and all adult members of the applicant's household
18 to conduct a criminal background investigation; medical
19 evidence in the form of a medical report, on forms prescribed
20 by the Department, that the applicant and all members of the
21 household are free from communicable diseases or physical and
22 mental conditions that affect their ability to provide care
23 for the child or children; the names and addresses of at
24 least 3 persons not related to the applicant who can attest
25 to the applicant's moral character; and fingerprints
26 submitted by the applicant and all adult members of the
27 applicant's household. If, upon examination of the facility
28 and investigation of persons responsible for care of
29 children, the Department is satisfied that the facility and
30 responsible persons reasonably meet standards prescribed for
31 the type of facility for which application is made, it shall
32 issue a license in proper form, designating on that license
33 the type of child care facility and, except for a child
34 welfare agency, the number of children to be served at any
-38- LRB9002572RCksccr3
1 one time.
2 (Source: P.A. 89-21, eff. 7-1-95.)"; and
3 by inserting immediately above Section 99 the following:
4 "Section 95. No acceleration or delay. Where this Act
5 makes changes in a statute that is represented in this Act by
6 text that is not yet or no longer in effect (for example, a
7 Section represented by multiple versions), the use of that
8 text does not accelerate or delay the taking effect of (i)
9 the changes made by this Act or (ii) provisions derived from
10 any other Public Act.".
11 Submitted on , 1997.
12 ______________________________ _____________________________
13 Senator Hawkinson Representative Dart
14 ______________________________ _____________________________
15 Senator Dillard Representative Gash
16 ______________________________ _____________________________
17 Senator Petka Representative Hannig
18 ______________________________ _____________________________
19 Senator Molaro Representative Churchill
20 ______________________________ _____________________________
21 Senator Farley Representative Tom Johnson
22 Committee for the Senate Committee for the House