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| Public Act 102-0208 | ||||
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AN ACT concerning courts.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended | ||||
by changing Section 5e and by adding Section 6b-1 as follows:
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(20 ILCS 505/5e)
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Sec. 5e. Advocacy Office for Children and Families. | ||||
(a) The
Department of Children and Family Services shall | ||||
establish and maintain
an Advocacy Office for Children and | ||||
Families that shall, in addition to
other duties assigned by | ||||
the Director, receive and respond to complaints
that may be | ||||
filed by children, parents, caretakers, and relatives of | ||||
children
receiving child welfare services from the Department | ||||
of Children and
Family Services or its agents. The Department | ||||
shall promulgate policies
and procedures for filing, | ||||
processing, investigating, and resolving the
complaints. The | ||||
Department shall make a final report to the complainant
of its | ||||
findings. If a final report is not completed, the Department | ||||
shall
report on its disposition every 30 days. | ||||
(b) If a youth in care, current foster parent or | ||||
caregiver, or caseworker requests the information, the | ||||
Advocacy Office shall make available the name, electronic mail | ||||
address, and telephone number for each youth's court-appointed | ||||
guardian ad litem and, if applicable, the guardian ad litem's | ||
supervisor. | ||
(c) The Advocacy Office shall include
a statewide | ||
toll-free telephone number and an electronic mail address that | ||
may be used to file complaints,
or to obtain information about | ||
the delivery of child welfare services by the
Department or | ||
its agents, and to obtain the contact information for the | ||
guardian ad litem. This telephone number and electronic mail | ||
address shall be included in all
appropriate notices and | ||
handbooks regarding services available through
the Department.
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(d) The Department shall provide a flyer to all youth | ||
entering care describing the responsibilities of the Advocacy | ||
Office listed in this Section, the toll-free telephone number | ||
and electronic mailing address for the Advocacy Office, and a | ||
description of the role of a guardian ad litem. The Department | ||
shall also provide this flyer to youth at every administrative | ||
case review. | ||
(Source: P.A. 92-334, eff. 8-10-01; 92-651, eff. 7-11-02.)
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(20 ILCS 505/6b-1 new) | ||
Sec. 6b-1. Maintaining and tracking information on | ||
guardians ad litem. The Department must maintain the name, | ||
electronic mail address, and telephone number for each youth | ||
in care's court-appointed guardian ad litem and, if | ||
applicable, the guardian ad litem's supervisor. The Department | ||
must update this contact information within 5 days of | ||
receiving notice of a change. The Advocacy Office for Children | ||
and Families, established pursuant to Section 5e, must make | ||
this contact information available to the youth in care, | ||
current foster parent or caregiver, or caseworker, if | ||
requested. By December 31, 2021, the Department shall adopt | ||
rules for maintaining and providing this information. | ||
Section 10. The Juvenile Court Act of 1987 is amended by | ||
changing Section 2-17 as follows:
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(705 ILCS 405/2-17) (from Ch. 37, par. 802-17)
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Sec. 2-17. Guardian ad litem.
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(1) Immediately upon the filing of a petition alleging | ||
that the minor is
a person described in Sections 2-3 or 2-4 of | ||
this Article, the court shall
appoint a guardian ad litem for | ||
the minor if:
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(a) such petition alleges that the minor is an abused | ||
or neglected
child; or
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(b) such petition alleges that charges alleging the | ||
commission
of any of the sex offenses defined in Article | ||
11 or in Sections 11-1.20, 11-1.30, 11-1.40, 11-1.50, | ||
11-1.60, 12-13,
12-14,
12-14.1,
12-15 or 12-16 of the | ||
Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, have | ||
been
filed against a defendant in any court and that such | ||
minor is the alleged
victim of the acts of defendant in the | ||
commission of such offense.
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Unless the guardian ad litem appointed pursuant to this | ||
paragraph
(1) is an attorney at law, he or she shall be | ||
represented in the performance
of his or her duties by | ||
counsel. The guardian ad litem shall represent the best
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interests of the minor and shall present recommendations to | ||
the court
consistent with that duty.
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(2) Before proceeding with the hearing, the court shall
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appoint a guardian ad litem for the minor if:
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(a) no parent, guardian, custodian or relative of the | ||
minor appears
at the first or any subsequent hearing of | ||
the case;
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(b) the petition prays for the appointment of a | ||
guardian with power
to consent to adoption; or
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(c) the petition for which the minor is before the | ||
court resulted
from a report made pursuant to the Abused | ||
and Neglected Child Reporting
Act.
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(3) The court may appoint a guardian ad litem for the minor | ||
whenever
it finds that there may be a conflict of interest | ||
between the minor and
his parents or other custodian or that it | ||
is otherwise in the minor's
best interest to do so.
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(4) Unless the guardian ad litem is an attorney, he or she | ||
shall be
represented by counsel. | ||
(4.5) Pursuant to Section 6b-1 of the Children and Family | ||
Services Act, the Department of Children and Family Services | ||
must maintain the name, electronic mail address, and telephone | ||
number for each minor's court-appointed guardian ad litem and, | ||
if applicable, the guardian ad litem's supervisor. The | ||
Department of Children and Family Services must update this | ||
contact information within 5 days of receiving notice of a | ||
change. The Advocacy Office for Children and Families, | ||
established pursuant to Section 5e of the Children and Family | ||
Services Act, must make this contact information available to | ||
the minor, current foster parent or caregiver, or caseworker, | ||
if requested.
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(5) The reasonable fees of a guardian ad litem appointed | ||
under this
Section shall be fixed by the court and charged to | ||
the parents of the
minor, to the extent they are able to pay. | ||
If the parents are unable to
pay those fees, they shall be paid | ||
from the general fund of the county.
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(6) A guardian ad litem appointed under this Section, | ||
shall receive
copies of any and all classified reports of | ||
child abuse and neglect made
under the Abused and Neglected | ||
Child Reporting Act in which the minor who
is the subject of a | ||
report under the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting
Act, is | ||
also the minor for whom the guardian ad litem is appointed | ||
under
this Section.
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(6.5) A guardian ad litem appointed under this Section or | ||
attorney appointed under this Act shall receive a copy of each | ||
significant event report that involves the minor no later than | ||
3 days after the Department learns of an event requiring a | ||
significant event report to be written, or earlier as required | ||
by Department rule. | ||
(7) The appointed
guardian ad
litem shall remain the | ||
minor's child's guardian ad litem throughout the entire | ||
juvenile
trial court
proceedings, including permanency | ||
hearings and termination of parental rights
proceedings, | ||
unless there is a substitution entered by order of the court.
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(8) The guardian
ad
litem or an agent of the guardian ad | ||
litem shall have a minimum of one
in-person contact with the | ||
minor and one contact with one
of the
current foster parents or | ||
caregivers prior to the
adjudicatory hearing, and at
least one | ||
additional in-person contact with the child and one contact | ||
with
one of the
current foster
parents or caregivers after the | ||
adjudicatory hearing but
prior to the first permanency hearing
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and one additional in-person contact with the child and one | ||
contact with one
of the current
foster parents or caregivers | ||
each subsequent year. For good cause shown, the
judge may | ||
excuse face-to-face interviews required in this subsection.
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(9) In counties with a population of 100,000 or more but | ||
less than
3,000,000, each guardian ad litem must successfully | ||
complete a training program
approved by the Department of | ||
Children and Family Services. The Department of
Children and | ||
Family Services shall provide training materials and documents | ||
to
guardians ad litem who are not mandated to attend the | ||
training program. The
Department of Children and Family | ||
Services shall develop
and
distribute to all guardians ad | ||
litem a bibliography containing information
including but not | ||
limited to the juvenile court process, termination of
parental | ||
rights, child development, medical aspects of child abuse, and | ||
the
child's need for safety and permanence.
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(Source: P.A. 100-689, eff. 1-1-19; 101-81, eff. 7-12-19.)
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Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||
becoming law. | ||