Public Act 095-0524
 		





HB0202 Enrolled
LRB095 04632 HLH 24690 b






    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.