Public Act 0524 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB0202 Enrolled LRB095 04632 HLH 24690 b

Public Act 095-0524

AN ACT concerning State government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Youthbuild Act is amended by changing Sections 15, 25, 30, 35, and 40 and by adding Section 45 as follows:

(20 ILCS 1315/15)

Sec. 15. Program requirements. The Secretary shall, subject to appropriation, is authorized to make grants to applicants for the purpose of carrying out Youthbuild programs as approved under this Section. All programs funded pursuant to the provisions of this Section shall reflect strong youth and community involvement. In addition, funding provided under this Section shall be used by each Youthbuild program to provide, at a minimum, the following services:

(a) Acquisition, rehabilitation, acquisition and rehabilitation, or construction of housing and related facilities to be used for the purpose of providing home ownership for disadvantaged persons, residential housing for homeless individuals, and low-income and very low-income families, or transitional housing for persons who are homeless, have disabilities, are ill, are deinstitutionalized, or have special needs, and rehabilitation or construction of community facilities owned by not-for-profit or public agencies.

(b) Integrated education and job skills training services and activities which are evenly divided within the program, with 50% of students' time spent in classroom-based instruction, counseling, and leadership development instruction and 50% of their time spent in experiential training on the construction site. The programs shall include, at a minimum, the following elements:

(1) An education component which includes basic skills instruction, secondary education services, and other activities designed to lead to the attainment of a high school diploma or its equivalent. The curriculum for this component shall include math, language arts, vocational education, life skills training, social studies related to the cultural and community history of the students, leadership skills, and other topics at the discretion of the programs. Bilingual services shall be available for individuals with limited-English proficiency. The desired minimum teacher to student ratio shall be one teacher for every 18 students.

(2) A work experience and skills training component apprenticeship program that includes the construction and rehabilitation activities described in subsection (a). The process of construction must be coupled with skills training and with close on-site supervision by experienced trainers. The curriculum for this component shall contain a set of locally agreed upon skills and competencies that are systematically taught, with a student's mastery assessed individually on a regular, ongoing basis. Safety skills shall be taught at the outset. The desired trainer to student ratio shall be one trainer for every 7 students. The work experience and skills training component shall be coordinated to the maximum extent feasible with preapprenticeship and apprenticeship programs.

(3) Assistance in attaining post secondary education and required financial aid shall be made available to participants prior to graduation.

(c) Counseling services designed to assist participants to positively participate in society, which should include all of the following if necessary: outreach, assessment, and orientation; individual and peer counseling; life skills training, drug and alcohol abuse education and prevention; and referral to appropriate drug rehabilitation, medical, mental health, legal, housing, and other services and resources in the community. The desired counselor to participant ratio shall be one counselor for every 28 students.

(d) Leadership development training that provides participants with meaningful opportunities to develop leadership skills such as decision making, problem solving, and negotiating. The program must also encourage participants to develop strong peer group ties that support their mutual pursuit of skills and values.

All programs must establish a youth council in which participants are afforded opportunities to develop public speaking and negotiating skills, and management and policy making participation in specific aspects of the program.

(e) Stipends and wages. A training subsidy, living allowance, or stipend that will be no less than minimum wage must be provided to program participants for the time spent at the worksite in construction training. For those participants who receive public assistance, this training subsidy, living allowance, or stipend will not affect their housing benefits, medical benefits, child care benefits or food stamp benefits. Stipends and wages may be distributed in a manner that offers incentives for good performance.

(f) Full time participation in a Youthbuild program shall be offered for a period of not less than 6 months and not more than 24 months.

(g) A concentrated effort shall be made to find construction, construction-related, and nonconstruction jobs for all graduates of the program who have performed well. The skills training curriculum shall provide participants with basic preparation for seeking and maintaining a job. Follow-up counseling and assistance in job-seeking shall also be provided to participants for at least the 12 months following graduation from the program.

(h) All programs serving 28 trainees or more are required to have a full-time director responsible for the coordination of all aspects of the Youthbuild program.

(Source: P.A. 90-247, eff. 1-1-98.)

(20 ILCS 1315/25)

Sec. 25. Eligible participants. Eligible participants are youth 16 to 24 years old who are economically disadvantaged as defined in United States Code, Title 29, Section 1503, and who are part of one of the following groups:

(a) Persons who are not attending any school and have not received a secondary school diploma or its equivalent.

(b) Persons currently enrolled in a traditional or alternative school setting or a GED program and who are in danger of dropping out of school.

(c) A member of a low-income family, a youth in foster care (including a youth aging-out of foster care), a youth offender, a youth with a disability, a child of incarcerated parents, or a migrant youth Very low-income persons.

Not more than Up to 25% of the participants in the program may be individuals who do not meet the requirements of subsections (a) or , (b), and (c), but who are deficient in basic skills despite having attained a secondary school diploma, General Educational Development (GED) certificate, or other State-recognized equivalent, or who have been referred by a local secondary school for participation in a Youthbuild program leading to the attainment of a secondary school diploma have educational needs despite the attainment of a high school diploma.

(Source: P.A. 90-247, eff. 1-1-98.)

(20 ILCS 1315/30)

Sec. 30. Selection criteria. Priority in the awarding of funds under this Act shall be given to applicants with experience in operating Youthbuild programs. Organizations claiming to have operated Youthbuild programs must be licensed by Youthbuild USA or be organizations that have received federal HUD Youthbuild funding.

(Source: P.A. 90-247, eff. 1-1-98.)

(20 ILCS 1315/35)

Sec. 35. Eligible entities. Those eligible to be awarded funds under this Act are not-for-profit private agencies, or public agencies with experience operating a Youthbuild program or with a plan to incubate a Youthbuild program until it can be established as a program applicant not-for-profit private agency.

(Source: P.A. 90-247, eff. 1-1-98.)

(20 ILCS 1315/40)

Sec. 40. Application requirements. The Secretary shall require that an application for Youthbuild funds under this Act contain at a minimum:

(1) a request for an implementation grant, specifying the amount of the grant requested and its proposed uses;

(2) a description of the applicant and a statement of its qualifications, including a description of the applicant's past experience running a Youthbuild program, and with housing rehabilitation or construction and with youth and youth education, youth leadership development and employment training programs, and its relationship with local unions and youth apprenticeship programs, and other community groups;

(3) a description of the proposed construction site for the program and evidence of site control;

(4) a description of the educational and job training activities, work opportunities, and other services that will be provided to participants;

(5) a description of the proposed construction or rehabilitation activities to be undertaken and the anticipated schedule for carrying out such activities;

(6) a description of the manner in which eligible youths will be recruited and selected, including a description of the arrangements which will be made with community-based organizations, local educational agencies, including agencies of Native American nations, public assistance agencies, the courts of jurisdiction for status and youth offenders, shelters for homeless individuals and other agencies that serve homeless youth, foster care agencies, and other appropriate public and private agencies;

(7) a description of the special efforts that will be undertaken to recruit eligible young women (including young women with dependent children) with appropriate supports, especially childcare;

(8) a description of how the proposed program will be coordinated with other federal, State, and local activities and activities conducted by Native American nations, including public schools, national service, crime prevention programs, vocational, adult, and bilingual education programs, and job training;

(9) assurances that there will be a sufficient number of adequately trained supervisory personnel in the program who have attained the level of journeyman or its equivalent;

(10) a description of the applicant's relationship with any local building trade unions which may exist, regarding their involvement in training, and the relationship of the Youthbuild program with registered established apprenticeship programs;

(11) a description of activities that will be undertaken to develop the leadership skills of participants, including their role in decision making;

(12) a detailed budget and a description of the system of fiscal controls and auditing and accountability procedures that will be used to ensure fiscal soundness;

(13) a description of any contracts and arrangements entered into between the applicant and other agencies and entities including all in-kind donations and grants from both public and private entities that will serve to augment Illinois Youthbuild Act funds;

(14) identification and description of the financing proposed for any:

(A) acquisition of the property;

(B) rehabilitation; or

(C) construction;

(15) identification and description of the entity that will operate and manage the property;

(16) a certification that the applicant will comply with the requirements of the Fair Housing Act, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and will affirmatively further fair housing; and

(17) the qualifications and past experience of the person who will fill the full-time program director position.

(Source: P.A. 90-247, eff. 1-1-98.)

(20 ILCS 1315/45 new)

Sec. 45. Annual report. The Department of Human Services shall prepare an annual report summarizing costs and outcome data associated with the Youthbuild programs. The report must include, but not be limited to, the following information: (i) the number of participants in the program, (ii) the average cost per participant, (iii) the number of participants who achieve a high school diploma or its equivalent, and (iv) the number of projects completed by Youthbuild participants during that year. The Department must submit the report to the General Assembly by July 1, 2008 and by July 1 of each year thereafter.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.