Rep. Jehan A. Gordon-Booth

Filed: 9/2/2015

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 570

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 570 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by
5changing 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
9children need child care in order to work. Child care is
10expensive and families with low incomes, including those who
11are transitioning from welfare to work, often struggle to pay
12the costs of day care. The General Assembly understands the
13importance of helping low income working families become and
14remain self-sufficient. The General Assembly also believes
15that it is the responsibility of families to share in the costs
16of child care. It is also the preference of the General

 

 

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1Assembly that all working poor families should be treated
2equally, regardless of their welfare status.
3    (b) The To the extent resources permit, the Illinois
4Department shall provide child care services to parents or
5other relatives as defined by rule who are working or
6participating in employment or Department approved education
7or training programs. At a minimum, the Illinois Department
8shall cover the following categories of families:
9        (1) recipients of TANF under Article IV participating
10    in work and training activities as specified in the
11    personal plan for employment and self-sufficiency;
12        (2) families transitioning from TANF to work;
13        (3) families at risk of becoming recipients of TANF;
14        (4) families with special needs as defined by rule; and
15        (5) working families with very low incomes as defined
16    by rule; and .
17        (6) families that are income-eligible for child care
18    assistance, are not recipients of TANF under Article IV,
19    and need child care assistance to participate in education
20    and training activities.
21    The Department shall specify by rule the conditions of
22eligibility, the application process, and the types, amounts,
23and duration of services. Eligibility for child care benefits
24and the amount of child care provided may vary based on family
25size, income, and other factors as specified by rule.
26    In determining income eligibility for child care benefits,

 

 

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1the Department annually, at the beginning of each fiscal year,
2shall establish, by rule, one income threshold for each family
3size, in relation to percentage of State median income for a
4family of that size, that makes families with incomes below the
5specified threshold eligible for assistance and families with
6incomes above the specified threshold ineligible for
7assistance. The Through and including fiscal year 2007, the
8specified threshold must be no less than 50% of the
9then-current State median income for each family size.
10Beginning in fiscal year 2008, the specified threshold must be
11no less than 185% of the then-current federal poverty level for
12each family size.
13    In determining eligibility for assistance, the Department
14shall not give preference to any category of recipients or give
15preference to individuals based on their receipt of benefits
16under this Code.
17    Notwithstanding any other provision of law or
18administrative rule to the contrary, the eligibility
19requirements for child care assistance services provided under
20this Article shall be no more restrictive than the eligibility
21requirements in effect on June 30, 2015.
22    Notwithstanding any other provision of law or
23administrative rule to the contrary, the Department shall not
24condition eligibility for child care assistance provided under
25this Article upon cooperation in establishing paternity of a
26child or cooperation with child support collection or

 

 

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1enforcement for a child. The Department may provide information
2about the availability of assistance from the Department of
3Healthcare and Family Services Division of Child Support
4Services to all applicants for child care assistance.
5    The Department shall allocate $7,500,000 annually for a
6test program for families who are income-eligible for child
7care assistance, who are not recipients of TANF under Article
8IV, and who need child care assistance to participate in
9education and training activities. The Department shall
10specify by rule the conditions of eligibility for this test
11program.
12    Nothing in this Section shall be construed as conferring
13entitlement status to eligible families.
14    The Illinois Department is authorized to lower income
15eligibility ceilings, raise parent co-payments, create waiting
16lists, or take such other actions during a fiscal year as are
17necessary to ensure that child care benefits paid under this
18Article do not exceed the amounts appropriated for those child
19care benefits. These changes may be accomplished by emergency
20rule under Section 5-45 of the Illinois Administrative
21Procedure Act, except that the limitation on the number of
22emergency rules that may be adopted in a 24-month period shall
23not apply.
24    The Illinois Department may contract with other State
25agencies or child care organizations for the administration of
26child care services.

 

 

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1    (c) Payment shall be made for child care that otherwise
2meets the requirements of this Section and applicable standards
3of State and local law and regulation, including any
4requirements the Illinois Department promulgates by rule in
5addition to the licensure requirements promulgated by the
6Department of Children and Family Services and Fire Prevention
7and Safety requirements promulgated by the Office of the State
8Fire Marshal and is provided in any of the following:
9        (1) a child care center which is licensed or exempt
10    from licensure pursuant to Section 2.09 of the Child Care
11    Act of 1969;
12        (2) a licensed child care home or home exempt from
13    licensing;
14        (3) a licensed group child care home;
15        (4) other types of child care, including child care
16    provided by relatives or persons living in the same home as
17    the child, as determined by the Illinois Department by
18    rule.
19    (c-5) Solely for the purposes of coverage under the
20Illinois Public Labor Relations Act, child and day care home
21providers, including licensed and license exempt,
22participating in the Department's child care assistance
23program shall be considered to be public employees and the
24State of Illinois shall be considered to be their employer as
25of the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th
26General Assembly, but not before. The State shall engage in

 

 

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1collective bargaining with an exclusive representative of
2child and day care home providers participating in the child
3care assistance program concerning their terms and conditions
4of employment that are within the State's control. Nothing in
5this subsection shall be understood to limit the right of
6families receiving services defined in this Section to select
7child and day care home providers or supervise them within the
8limits of this Section. The State shall not be considered to be
9the employer of child and day care home providers for any
10purposes not specifically provided in this amendatory Act of
11the 94th General Assembly, including but not limited to,
12purposes of vicarious liability in tort and purposes of
13statutory retirement or health insurance benefits. Child and
14day care home providers shall not be covered by the State
15Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971.
16    In according child and day care home providers and their
17selected representative rights under the Illinois Public Labor
18Relations Act, the State intends that the State action
19exemption to application of federal and State antitrust laws be
20fully available to the extent that their activities are
21authorized by this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly.
22    (d) Except as provided in this subsection, the The Illinois
23Department shall establish, by rule, a co-payment scale that
24provides for cost sharing by families that receive child care
25services, including parents whose only income is from
26assistance under this Code. The co-payment shall be based on

 

 

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1family income and family size and may be based on other factors
2as appropriate. Co-payments may be waived for families whose
3incomes are at or below the federal poverty level.
4    Notwithstanding any other provision of law or
5administrative rule to the contrary, beginning on the effective
6date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly and
7until the Department establishes a new co-payment scale by
8rule, co-payments shall be equal to those in effect on June 30,
92015.
10    Co-payments for child care services may not be increased
11more than once every 6 months and may not be increased at a
12rate that exceeds the percentage increase in the Consumer Price
13Index for all Urban Consumers during the prior calendar year or
145%, whichever is less. Co-payments shall not exceed 10% of
15family income.
16    (d-5) (Blank). The Illinois Department, in consultation
17with its Child Care and Development Advisory Council, shall
18develop a plan to revise the child care assistance program's
19co-payment scale. The plan shall be completed no later than
20February 1, 2008, and shall include:
21        (1) findings as to the percentage of income that the
22    average American family spends on child care and the
23    relative amounts that low-income families and the average
24    American family spend on other necessities of life;
25        (2) recommendations for revising the child care
26    co-payment scale to assure that families receiving child

 

 

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1    care services from the Department are paying no more than
2    they can reasonably afford;
3        (3) recommendations for revising the child care
4    co-payment scale to provide at-risk children with complete
5    access to Preschool for All and Head Start; and
6        (4) recommendations for changes in child care program
7    policies that affect the affordability of child care.
8    (e) (Blank).
9    (f) The Illinois Department shall, by rule, set rates to be
10paid for the various types of child care. Child care may be
11provided through one of the following methods:
12        (1) arranging the child care through eligible
13    providers by use of purchase of service contracts or
14    vouchers;
15        (2) arranging with other agencies and community
16    volunteer groups for non-reimbursed child care;
17        (3) (blank); or
18        (4) adopting such other arrangements as the Department
19    determines appropriate.
20    (f-5) (Blank).
21    (g) Families eligible for assistance under this Section
22shall be given the following options:
23        (1) receiving a child care certificate issued by the
24    Department or a subcontractor of the Department that may be
25    used by the parents as payment for child care and
26    development services only; or

 

 

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1        (2) if space is available, enrolling the child with a
2    child care provider that has a purchase of service contract
3    with the Department or a subcontractor of the Department
4    for the provision of child care and development services.
5    The Department may identify particular priority
6    populations for whom they may request special
7    consideration by a provider with purchase of service
8    contracts, provided that the providers shall be permitted
9    to maintain a balance of clients in terms of household
10    incomes and families and children with special needs, as
11    defined by rule.
12    (h) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
13contrary, the Department may not adopt emergency rules relating
14to child care assistance services provided under this Article.
15(Source: P.A. 97-422, eff. 8-16-11.)".