HR0745 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0745 LRB102 26837 LAW 37862 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The Neutral Site Custody Exchange Funding Act of the Counties Code, 55 ILCS 82, authorizes any county to establish and maintain a fund to defray the expenses thereof by collecting a fee with a statutory maximum of $8 per civil case filing; and

WHEREAS, Peoria County is charged with making grant disbursements from the fund to one or more qualified not-for-profit organizations for the purpose of providing supervised visitations for the betterment of families in the community; and

WHEREAS, Peoria County has established a relationship with Crittenton Centers, a not-for-profit child welfare organization serving central Illinois since 1892, to house supervised visits for children and parents to re-establish, maintain, and build relationships; and

WHEREAS, Peoria County's neutral site custody exchange fund balance has run an annual deficit for seven (7) consecutive years and will soon become depleted; and

WHEREAS, Visitation hours have been reduced to 15.5 hours per week; despite this reduction, the fund is still running an annual deficit; and

WHEREAS, Exposure to parental conflict or violence is detrimental to positive child development; and

WHEREAS, The visitation center facilitates positive parental contact with children and reduces children's exposure to inter-parental conflict around parenting visitation issues; the program additionally recognizes that children's needs are best met by positive relationships with both the mother and father; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize the importance of and need to maintain healthy families in order to foster strong, stable young people.