Section 120.10  Legislative Base

a)         Federal

1)         On July 31, 1981, Congress passed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 (Public Law 97-35).  This Act established 7 block grant programs, including the Community Services Block Grant.  These block grants replace a large number of programs previously administered by the Federal Government.  The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act also transferred primary responsibility for the administration of the block grant programs to the states and conferred substantial discretion on the states as to use of the block grant funds.

2)         The Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) Act (Act) was enacted as Subtitle B of Title VI of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (Sections 671-683) and replaced the following programs formerly administered by the Community Services Administration under the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 (42 USC 2701 et seq.):

A)        Community Action/Local Initiative

B)        Senior Opportunities and Services

C)        Community Food and Nutrition

3)         The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act authorized to be appropriated $389,375,000 for fiscal year 1982 and such sums as may be determined by Congress for the succeeding fiscal years to carry out the provisions of that Act.

4)         States were eligible to receive funds under the Community Services Block Grant on October 1, 1981.

b)         State

1)         On September 9, 1981, the Governor officially requested the Secretary of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services to delegate to the State responsibility for administering the Community Services Block Grant Program in Illinois.  At this time, he also designated the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs as the agency to administer the program for the State.  On September 29, 1981, the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs submitted the application document consisting of the assurances and plan required under Section 675 of the law, and the pre-expenditure report for fiscal year 1982 as required by Section 1742(a).

2)         The State must hold at least one legislative hearing every three years in conjunction with the development of the State Plan (42 USC 99087(a)(3)).

3)         As part of its application, the State certified that it agreed to use funds available under the Community Services Block Grant:

A)        to support activities that are designed to assist low-income families and individuals, including families and individuals receiving assistance under Part A of Title IV of the Social Security Act (42 USC 601 et seq.), homeless families and individuals, migrant or seasonal farmworkers, and elderly low-income individuals and families, and a description of how such activities will enable the families and individuals:

i)          to remove obstacles and solve problems that block the achievement of self-sufficiency (including self-sufficiency for families and individuals who are attempting to transition off a State program carried out under Part A of Title IV of the Social Security Act);

ii)         to secure and retain meaningful employment;

iii)        to attain an adequate education, with particular attention toward improving literacy skills of the low-income families in the communities involved, which may include carrying out family literacy initiatives;

iv)        to make better use of available income;

v)         to obtain and maintain adequate housing and a suitable living environment;

vi)        to obtain emergency assistance through loans, grants, or other means to meet immediate and urgent family and individual needs; and

vii)       to achieve greater participation in the affairs of the communities involved, including the development of public and private grassroots partnerships with local law enforcement agencies, local housing authorities, private foundations, and other public and private partners to: document best practices based on successful grassroots intervention in urban areas, to develop methodologies for widespread replication; and  strengthen and improve relationships with local law enforcement agencies, which may include participation in activities such as neighborhood or community policing efforts;

B)        to address the needs of youth in low-income communities through youth development programs that support the primary role of the family, give priority to the prevention of youth problems and crime, and promote increased community coordination and collaboration in meeting the needs of youth, and support development and expansion of innovative community-based youth development programs that have demonstrated success in preventing or reducing youth crime, such as:

i)          programs for the establishment of violence-free zones that would involve youth development and intervention youth mediation, youth mentoring, life skills training, job creation, and entrepreneurship programs; and

ii)         after-school child care programs;

C)        to make more effective use of, and to coordinate with, other programs related to the purposes of the federal statute (including State welfare reform efforts) (42 USC 9908(b)(1)(A)-(C));

D)        to provide on an emergency basis for the provision of such supplies and services, nutritious foodstuffs, and related services, as may be necessary to counteract conditions of starvation and malnutrition among the poor;

E)        to coordinate and establish linkages between governmental and other social services programs in order to assure the effective delivery of such services to low-income individuals; and

F)         to encourage the use of private sector entities of the community in efforts to ameliorate poverty in the community.

(Source:  Amended at 27 Ill. Reg. 7986, effective April 28, 2003)