97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB4004

 

Introduced 1/18/2012, by Rep. Jim Sacia

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
305 ILCS 5/4-1  from Ch. 23, par. 4-1
305 ILCS 5/4-1.13 new

    Amends the Temporary Assistance for Needy Family Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Requires the Department of Human Services to develop a program to screen and test each applicant or recipient who is otherwise eligible for TANF benefits and who the Department has reasonable suspicion to believe, based on the screening, engages in the unlawful use or consumption of controlled substances. Provides that any applicant or recipient who is found to have tested positive for the unlawful use or consumption of a controlled substance shall, after an administrative hearing conducted by the Department, be declared ineligible for TANF benefits for a period of one year from the date of the administrative hearing decision. Grants the Department the authority to require an applicant or recipient who tested positive for the unlawful use or consumption of a controlled substance to enter a substance abuse program approved by the Department as a condition of continued eligibility for TANF benefits. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB4004LRB097 14832 KTG 59861 b

1    AN ACT concerning public aid.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by
5changing Section 4-1 and adding Section 4-1.13 as follows:
 
6    (305 ILCS 5/4-1)  (from Ch. 23, par. 4-1)
7    Sec. 4-1. Eligibility requirements. Financial aid in
8meeting basic maintenance requirements for a livelihood
9compatible with health and well-being shall be given under this
10Article to or in behalf of families with dependent children who
11meet the eligibility conditions of the following Sections
12preceding Section 4-2 Sections 4-1.1 through 4-1.11. It shall
13be the policy of the Illinois Department to provide aid under
14this Article to all qualified persons who seek assistance and
15to conduct outreach efforts to educate the public about the
16program. The Department shall provide timely, accurate, and
17fair service to all applicants for assistance. Persons who meet
18the eligibility criteria authorized under this Article shall be
19treated equally, provided that nothing in this Article shall be
20construed to create an entitlement to a particular grant or
21service level or to aid in amounts not authorized under this
22Code, nor construed to limit the authority of the General
23Assembly to change the eligibility requirements or provisions

 

 

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1respecting assistance amounts. The General Assembly recognizes
2that the need for aid will fluctuate with the economic
3situation in Illinois and that at times the number of people
4receiving aid under this Article will increase.
5    The Illinois Department shall advise every applicant for
6and recipient of aid under this Article of (i) the requirement
7that all recipients move toward self-sufficiency and (ii) the
8value and benefits of employment. As a condition of eligibility
9for that aid, every person who applies for aid under this
10Article on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act
11of 1995 shall prepare and submit, as part of the application or
12subsequent redetermination, a personal plan for achieving
13employment and self-sufficiency. The plan shall incorporate
14the individualized assessment and employability plan set out in
15subsections (d), (f), and (g) of Section 9A-8. The plan may be
16amended as the recipient's needs change. The assessment process
17to develop the plan shall include questions that screen for
18domestic violence issues and steps needed to address these
19issues may be part of the plan. If the individual indicates
20that he or she is a victim of domestic violence, he or she may
21also be referred to an available domestic violence program.
22Failure of the client to follow through on the personal plan
23for employment and self-sufficiency may be a basis for sanction
24under Section 4-21.
25(Source: P.A. 96-866, eff. 7-1-10.)
 

 

 

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1    (305 ILCS 5/4-1.13 new)
2    Sec. 4-1.13. Drug screening and testing; continued
3eligibility. The Department shall develop a program to screen
4and test each applicant or recipient who is otherwise eligible
5for benefits under this Article and who the Department has
6reasonable suspicion to believe, based on the screening,
7engages in the unlawful use or consumption of controlled
8substances. In implementing the provisions of this Section the
9Department shall not discriminate against any applicant or
10recipient on the basis of race or ethnicity.
11    Any applicant or recipient who is found to have tested
12positive for the unlawful use or consumption of a controlled
13substance, which was not prescribed for such applicant or
14recipient by a licensed health care provider, shall, after an
15administrative hearing conducted by the Department, be
16declared ineligible for benefits under this Article for a
17period of one year from the date of the administrative hearing
18decision.
19    The Department shall have the authority to require, if it
20so chooses, an applicant or recipient who tested positive for
21the unlawful use or consumption of a controlled substance which
22was not prescribed for such applicant or recipient by a
23licensed health care provider to enter a substance abuse
24program approved by the Department as a condition of continued
25eligibility for benefits under this Article.
26    In accordance with the rules and regulations of the

 

 

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1Department, other members of a household which includes a
2person who has been declared ineligible for benefits under this
3Section shall, if otherwise eligible, continue to receive
4benefits as protective or vendor payments to a third-party
5payee for the benefit of the members of the household.
6    The Department shall have the authority to promulgate any
7rules necessary to implement this Section.
 
8    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
9becoming law.