093_HJ0015
LRB093 08776 MKM 09007 r
1 HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, A displaced homemaker is an individual who has
3 been providing unpaid services to family members in the home,
4 has been dependent on the income of another family member but
5 is no longer supported by that income, and is currently
6 unemployed or underemployed and experiencing difficulty in
7 obtaining or upgrading employment; and
8 WHEREAS, Displaced homemakers are often
9 disproportionately poor when compared to the rest of the
10 population; and
11 WHEREAS, Displaced homemakers must enter the workforce to
12 support themselves and their families, but may face
13 significant barriers to economic self-sufficiency due to a
14 limited education, a lack of work experience, and age
15 discrimination in the hiring process and the workplace; and
16 WHEREAS, Displaced homemakers may face severe housing
17 problems because they are suddenly left with little or no
18 income and have difficulty finding adequate employment, and
19 because those who are awarded their homes in divorce
20 settlements often cannot afford to maintain the mortgage
21 payments and property taxes; and
22 WHEREAS, In fiscal year 2002, 1,758 displaced homemakers
23 were enrolled in the Illinois Displaced Homemaker Program,
24 administered by the Illinois Department of Labor, and 75% of
25 these individuals were considered the sole financial support
26 for children under the age of 18; and
27 WHEREAS, As states respond to federal welfare reform and
28 workforce development legislation, it is likely that Illinois
29 will experience changes in the types of services they
30 currently provide; and
31 WHEREAS, It is important to continue responding to the
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1 needs of displaced homemakers and to expand services to reach
2 more displaced homemakers by moving them out of poverty and
3 beyond reliance on State welfare support and into gainful
4 employment so they may become more active participants in the
5 Illinois economy; therefore be it
6 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
7 NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
8 SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that a Task Force on Displaced
9 Homemakers, comprised of members of the General Assembly,
10 representatives of the Governor, and concerned members of the
11 public, be created to investigate the services currently
12 offered to displaced homemakers in Illinois and to make
13 recommendations for improvements to those services; and be it
14 further
15 RESOLVED, That 2 members who are elected members of the
16 House of Representatives or the Senate be appointed by each
17 of the following elected officials: the Speaker of the House,
18 the Minority Leader of the House, the President of the
19 Senate, and the Minority Leader of the Senate; and be it
20 further
21 RESOLVED, That 2 members be appointed by the Governor to
22 represent State agencies currently offering services and
23 assistance to the displaced homemaker population in Illinois;
24 and be it further
25 RESOLVED, That the members of the General Assembly
26 appointed to the Task Force appoint 2 chairpersons, who shall
27 be members of the Task Force who are members of the General
28 Assembly; and be it further
29 RESOLVED, That meetings of the Task Force be held at the
30 call of the chairpersons and that the chairpersons appoint 4
31 members of the public who have adequate expertise on the
32 issue of displaced homemakers and the services and assistance
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1 provided to them; and be it further
2 RESOLVED, That all appointed members of the Task Force
3 shall be considered to be members with voting rights, that a
4 quorum of the Task Force shall consist of a simple majority
5 of the members of the Task Force, and that all actions and
6 recommendations of the Task Force be approved by a simple
7 majority of the members of the Task Force; and be it further
8 RESOLVED, That members appointed to the Task Force shall
9 be compensated only for costs that arise out of their
10 official duties with the Task Force and that compensation
11 shall come from an appropriate fund; and be it further
12 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
13 delivered to the Governor.