Section 10.230  Confidentiality of Case Information

a)         For the protection of clients, any information about a client or case is confidential and shall be used only for purposes directly related to the administration of the assistance programs, except as provided in subsections (d) and (e) of this Section.  The following shall be considered as included in the administration of the programs:

1)         the establishment of a client's initial or continuing eligibility for public assistance;

2)         the establishment or the extent of an individual's need for financial assistance, medical assistance or other services; and

3)         the establishment of procedures assuring the health and safety of the client.

b)         Use of information for commercial, personal, or political purposes is specifically prohibited.

c)         Local office staff shall inform all agencies and governmental departments to whom information is furnished that this material is confidential and must be so considered by the agency or governmental department.

d)         Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and General Assistance

            TANF and General Assistance case records shall be made available upon request to the officers of any court or law enforcement agency, and to other persons or agencies authorized by any court.  In particular, case records may be made available to a law enforcement agency to determine the current address of a recipient for whom they have an outstanding arrest warrant.  Information shall also be disclosed to the Illinois State Scholarship Commission pursuant to its investigation or audit of a delinquent student loan or monetary award. Information may be exchanged among the Illinois Department of Public Aid, Department of Human Services, and Department of Revenue to verify sources and amounts of income and for other purposes directly related to the administration of the Illinois Public Aid Code and of the Illinois Income Tax Act.  The provisions of this Section, as they apply to applicants and recipients of assistance programs, shall be operative only to the extent that they do not conflict with any federal law or regulation governing federal grants to the State for such programs.

e)         Food Stamps

1)         For the protection of food stamp households, use or disclosure of individual or case information obtained from the household is restricted to the following:

A)        persons directly connected with the administration or enforcement of the provisions of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 USC 2011 et seq.) or regulations;

B)        persons directly connected with other federal or federally aided, or State means-tested assistance programs;

C)        Illinois State agencies involved in investigations of reports of child abuse or neglect, including the Department of Children and Family Services;

D)        employees of the Comptroller General's Office of the United States for audit examination;

E)        local, State or federal law enforcement officials, upon their written request, for the purpose of investigating an alleged violation of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 or regulations.  The written request shall identify the official making the request and the authority to do so; the violation being investigated; and the identity of the person on whom the information is requested; and

F)         State and local law enforcement officers for the current address of clients who are fugitive felons or probation/parole violators.  A fugitive felon is a person fleeing to avoid prosecution or to avoid incarceration as a result of his or her involvement in a felony case.  A person who has escaped from a correctional facility is a fugitive felon.  The current address of clients shall be disclosed only to properly identified (i.e., law enforcement badge and/or identification card) State and local law enforcement officers who:

i)          provide the Department with the name and social security number of the client; and

ii)         satisfy the requirements of 45 CFR 205.50(a)(v)(A) through (C) (rev. 10/01/1999).

            The client shall not be advised of the disclosure of individual or case information.

2)         If a written request to review materials in the case record is submitted by a responsible household member, the household's currently authorized representative, or a person acting in the household's behalf, the material and information in the case record shall be made available for inspection during normal business hours.  However, the local office may withhold confidential information, such as the names of individuals who have disclosed information about the household without the household's knowledge or the nature or status of pending criminal prosecutions.

(Source:  Amended at 24 Ill. Reg. 18153, effective November 30, 2000)