| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
1 | AN ACT concerning public aid.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
4 | Section 5. The Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
5 | changing Section 9A-11 as follows:
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
6 | (305 ILCS 5/9A-11) (from Ch. 23, par. 9A-11)
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
7 | Sec. 9A-11. Child Care.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
8 | (a) The General Assembly recognizes that families with | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
9 | children need child
care in order to work. Child care is | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
10 | expensive and families with low incomes,
including those who | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
11 | are transitioning from welfare to work, often struggle to
pay | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
12 | the costs of day care. The
General Assembly understands the | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
13 | importance of helping low income working
families become and | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
14 | remain self-sufficient. The General Assembly also believes
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
15 | that it is the responsibility of families to share in the costs | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
16 | of child care.
It is also the preference of the General | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
17 | Assembly that all working poor
families should be treated | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
18 | equally, regardless of their welfare status.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
19 | (b) To the extent resources permit, the Illinois Department | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
20 | shall provide
child care services to parents or other relatives | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
21 | as defined by rule who are
working or participating in | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
22 | employment or Department approved
education or training | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
23 | programs. At a minimum, the Illinois Department shall
cover the |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | following categories of families:
| ||||||
2 | (1) recipients of TANF under Article IV participating | ||||||
3 | in work and training
activities as specified in the | ||||||
4 | personal plan for employment and
self-sufficiency;
| ||||||
5 | (2) families transitioning from TANF to work;
| ||||||
6 | (3) families at risk of becoming recipients of TANF;
| ||||||
7 | (4) families with special needs as defined by rule; and
| ||||||
8 | (5) working families with very low incomes as defined | ||||||
9 | by rule ; and .
| ||||||
10 | (6) families that are income-eligible for child care | ||||||
11 | assistance, are not recipients of TANF under Article IV, | ||||||
12 | and need child care assistance to participate in education | ||||||
13 | and training activities. | ||||||
14 | The Department shall specify by rule the conditions of | ||||||
15 | eligibility, the
application process, and the types, amounts, | ||||||
16 | and duration of services.
Eligibility for
child care benefits | ||||||
17 | and the amount of child care provided may vary based on
family | ||||||
18 | size, income,
and other factors as specified by rule.
| ||||||
19 | In determining income eligibility for child care benefits, | ||||||
20 | the Department
annually, at the beginning of each fiscal year, | ||||||
21 | shall
establish, by rule, one income threshold for each family | ||||||
22 | size, in relation to
percentage of State median income for a | ||||||
23 | family of that size, that makes
families with incomes below the | ||||||
24 | specified threshold eligible for assistance
and families with | ||||||
25 | incomes above the specified threshold ineligible for
| ||||||
26 | assistance. Through and including fiscal year 2007, the |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | specified threshold must be no less than 50% of the
| ||||||
2 | then-current State median income for each family size. | ||||||
3 | Beginning in fiscal year 2008, the specified threshold must be | ||||||
4 | no less than 185% of the then-current federal poverty level for | ||||||
5 | each family size.
| ||||||
6 | In determining eligibility for
assistance, the Department | ||||||
7 | shall not give preference to any category of
recipients
or give | ||||||
8 | preference to individuals based on their receipt of benefits | ||||||
9 | under this
Code.
| ||||||
10 | The Department shall allocate $7,500,000 annually for a | ||||||
11 | test program for
families who are income-eligible for child | ||||||
12 | care assistance, who
are not recipients of TANF under Article | ||||||
13 | IV, and who need child care assistance
to participate in | ||||||
14 | education and training activities. The
Department shall | ||||||
15 | specify by rule the conditions of eligibility for this test
| ||||||
16 | program.
| ||||||
17 | Nothing in this Section shall be
construed as conferring | ||||||
18 | entitlement status to eligible families.
| ||||||
19 | The Illinois
Department is authorized to lower income | ||||||
20 | eligibility ceilings, raise parent
co-payments, create waiting | ||||||
21 | lists, or take such other actions during a fiscal
year as are | ||||||
22 | necessary to ensure that child care benefits paid under this
| ||||||
23 | Article do not exceed the amounts appropriated for those child | ||||||
24 | care benefits.
These changes may be accomplished by emergency | ||||||
25 | rule under Section 5-45 of the
Illinois Administrative | ||||||
26 | Procedure Act, except that the limitation on the number
of |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | emergency rules that may be adopted in a 24-month period shall | ||||||
2 | not apply.
| ||||||
3 | The Illinois Department may contract with other State | ||||||
4 | agencies or child care
organizations for the administration of | ||||||
5 | child care services.
| ||||||
6 | (c) Payment shall be made for child care that otherwise | ||||||
7 | meets the
requirements of this Section and applicable standards | ||||||
8 | of State and local
law and regulation, including any | ||||||
9 | requirements the Illinois Department
promulgates by rule in | ||||||
10 | addition to the licensure
requirements
promulgated by the | ||||||
11 | Department of Children and Family Services and Fire
Prevention | ||||||
12 | and Safety requirements promulgated by the Office of the State
| ||||||
13 | Fire Marshal and is provided in any of the following:
| ||||||
14 | (1) a child care center which is licensed or exempt | ||||||
15 | from licensure
pursuant to Section 2.09 of the Child Care | ||||||
16 | Act of 1969;
| ||||||
17 | (2) a licensed child care home or home exempt from | ||||||
18 | licensing;
| ||||||
19 | (3) a licensed group child care home;
| ||||||
20 | (4) other types of child care, including child care | ||||||
21 | provided
by relatives or persons living in the same home as | ||||||
22 | the child, as determined by
the Illinois Department by | ||||||
23 | rule.
| ||||||
24 | (c-5)
Solely for the purposes of coverage under the | ||||||
25 | Illinois Public Labor Relations Act, child and day care home | ||||||
26 | providers, including licensed and license exempt, |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | participating in the Department's child care assistance | ||||||
2 | program shall be considered to be public employees and the | ||||||
3 | State of Illinois shall be considered to be their employer as | ||||||
4 | of the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th | ||||||
5 | General Assembly, but not before. The State shall engage in | ||||||
6 | collective bargaining with an exclusive representative of | ||||||
7 | child and day care home providers participating in the child | ||||||
8 | care assistance program concerning their terms and conditions | ||||||
9 | of employment that are within the State's control. Nothing in | ||||||
10 | this subsection shall be understood to limit the right of | ||||||
11 | families receiving services defined in this Section to select | ||||||
12 | child and day care home providers or supervise them within the | ||||||
13 | limits of this Section. The State shall not be considered to be | ||||||
14 | the employer of child and day care home providers for any | ||||||
15 | purposes not specifically provided in this amendatory Act of | ||||||
16 | the 94th General Assembly, including but not limited to, | ||||||
17 | purposes of vicarious liability in tort and purposes of | ||||||
18 | statutory retirement or health insurance benefits. Child and | ||||||
19 | day care home providers shall not be covered by the State | ||||||
20 | Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971. | ||||||
21 | In according child and day care home providers and their | ||||||
22 | selected representative rights under the Illinois Public Labor | ||||||
23 | Relations Act, the State intends that the State action | ||||||
24 | exemption to application of federal and State antitrust laws be | ||||||
25 | fully available to the extent that their activities are | ||||||
26 | authorized by this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly.
|
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | (d) The Illinois Department shall establish, by rule, a | ||||||
2 | co-payment scale that provides for cost sharing by families | ||||||
3 | that receive
child care services, including parents whose only | ||||||
4 | income is from
assistance under this Code. The co-payment shall | ||||||
5 | be based on family income and family size and may be based on | ||||||
6 | other factors as appropriate. Co-payments may be waived for | ||||||
7 | families whose incomes are at or below the federal poverty | ||||||
8 | level.
| ||||||
9 | (d-5) The Illinois Department, in consultation with its | ||||||
10 | Child Care and Development Advisory Council, shall develop a | ||||||
11 | plan to revise the child care assistance program's co-payment | ||||||
12 | scale. The plan shall be completed no later than February 1, | ||||||
13 | 2008, and shall include: | ||||||
14 | (1) findings as to the percentage of income that the | ||||||
15 | average American family spends on child care and the | ||||||
16 | relative amounts that low-income families and the average | ||||||
17 | American family spend on other necessities of life;
| ||||||
18 | (2) recommendations for revising the child care | ||||||
19 | co-payment scale to assure that families receiving child | ||||||
20 | care services from the Department are paying no more than | ||||||
21 | they can reasonably afford; | ||||||
22 | (3) recommendations for revising the child care | ||||||
23 | co-payment scale to provide at-risk children with complete | ||||||
24 | access to Preschool for All and Head Start; and | ||||||
25 | (4) recommendations for changes in child care program | ||||||
26 | policies that affect the affordability of child care.
|
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | (e) (Blank).
| ||||||
2 | (f) The Illinois Department shall, by rule, set rates to be | ||||||
3 | paid for the
various types of child care. Child care may be | ||||||
4 | provided through one of the
following methods:
| ||||||
5 | (1) arranging the child care through eligible | ||||||
6 | providers by use of
purchase of service contracts or | ||||||
7 | vouchers;
| ||||||
8 | (2) arranging with other agencies and community | ||||||
9 | volunteer groups for
non-reimbursed child care;
| ||||||
10 | (3) (blank); or
| ||||||
11 | (4) adopting such other arrangements as the Department | ||||||
12 | determines
appropriate.
| ||||||
13 | (f-5) (Blank). | ||||||
14 | (g) Families eligible for assistance under this Section | ||||||
15 | shall be given the
following options:
| ||||||
16 | (1) receiving a child care certificate issued by the | ||||||
17 | Department or a
subcontractor of the Department that may be | ||||||
18 | used by the parents as payment for
child care and | ||||||
19 | development services only; or
| ||||||
20 | (2) if space is available, enrolling the child with a | ||||||
21 | child care provider
that has a purchase of service contract | ||||||
22 | with the Department or a subcontractor
of the Department | ||||||
23 | for the provision of child care and development services.
| ||||||
24 | The Department may identify particular priority | ||||||
25 | populations for whom they may
request special | ||||||
26 | consideration by a provider with purchase of service
|
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | contracts, provided that the providers shall be permitted | ||||||
2 | to maintain a balance
of clients in terms of household | ||||||
3 | incomes and families and children with special
needs, as | ||||||
4 | defined by rule.
| ||||||
5 | (Source: P.A. 97-422, eff. 8-16-11.)
| ||||||
6 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
7 | becoming law.
|