Full Text of HB4186 94th General Assembly
HB4186 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006 HB4186
Introduced 11/3/2005, by Rep. Sara Feigenholtz SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
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20 ILCS 505/5 |
from Ch. 23, par. 5005 |
20 ILCS 505/35.1 |
from Ch. 23, par. 5035.1 |
20 ILCS 520/1-15 |
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225 ILCS 10/7.4 |
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225 ILCS 10/8 |
from Ch. 23, par. 2218 |
225 ILCS 10/15 |
from Ch. 23, par. 2225 |
325 ILCS 5/11.1 |
from Ch. 23, par. 2061.1 |
740 ILCS 110/11 |
from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 811 |
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Amends the Children and Family Services Act, the Foster Parent Law, the Child Care Act of 1969, the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, and the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act. Provides that DCFS must provide certain information concerning a child, including known social and behavioral information, to prospective adoptive parents (in addition to caretakers of children in foster homes, group homes, child care institutions, or relative homes).
Provides that whenever a licensed child welfare agency places a child in a licensed foster family home, the agency shall provide that same information to the child's caretaker. Provides that a foster parent's rights include the right to be given such information. Provides that "juvenile authorities" to whom DCFS may disclose information include individuals and agencies having custody of a child pursuant to placement of the child by the Department; and provides that nothing in the Child Care Act of 1969 prevents the disclosure of information or records by a licensed child welfare agency as required by this amendatory Act. Provides that DCFS may revoke or refuse to renew a child welfare agency's license for failure to comply with the disclosure requirements of this amendatory Act. Permits a prospective adoptive parent or foster parent to have access to records concerning reports of child abuse and neglect. Authorizes the disclosure of records under the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act. Effective immediately.
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A BILL FOR
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HB4186 |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| AN ACT concerning children.
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| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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| represented in the General Assembly:
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| Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended | 5 |
| by changing Sections 5 and 35.1 as follows:
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| (20 ILCS 505/5) (from Ch. 23, par. 5005)
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| Sec. 5. Direct child welfare services; Department of | 8 |
| Children and Family
Services. To provide direct child welfare | 9 |
| services when not available
through other public or private | 10 |
| child care or program facilities.
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| (a) For purposes of this Section:
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| (1) "Children" means persons found within the State who | 13 |
| are under the
age of 18 years. The term also includes | 14 |
| persons under age 19 who:
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| (A) were committed to the Department pursuant to | 16 |
| the
Juvenile Court Act or the Juvenile Court Act of | 17 |
| 1987, as amended, prior to
the age of 18 and who | 18 |
| continue under the jurisdiction of the court; or
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| (B) were accepted for care, service and training by
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| the Department prior to the age of 18 and whose best | 21 |
| interest in the
discretion of the Department would be | 22 |
| served by continuing that care,
service and training | 23 |
| because of severe emotional disturbances, physical
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| disability, social adjustment or any combination | 25 |
| thereof, or because of the
need to complete an | 26 |
| educational or vocational training program.
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| (2) "Homeless youth" means persons found within the
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| State who are under the age of 19, are not in a safe and | 29 |
| stable living
situation and cannot be reunited with their | 30 |
| families.
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| (3) "Child welfare services" means public social | 32 |
| services which are
directed toward the accomplishment of |
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| the following purposes:
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| (A) protecting and promoting the health, safety | 3 |
| and welfare of
children,
including homeless, dependent | 4 |
| or neglected children;
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| (B) remedying, or assisting in the solution
of | 6 |
| problems which may result in, the neglect, abuse, | 7 |
| exploitation or
delinquency of children;
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| (C) preventing the unnecessary separation of | 9 |
| children
from their families by identifying family | 10 |
| problems, assisting families in
resolving their | 11 |
| problems, and preventing the breakup of the family
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| where the prevention of child removal is desirable and | 13 |
| possible when the
child can be cared for at home | 14 |
| without endangering the child's health and
safety;
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| (D) restoring to their families children who have | 16 |
| been
removed, by the provision of services to the child | 17 |
| and the families when the
child can be cared for at | 18 |
| home without endangering the child's health and
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| safety;
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| (E) placing children in suitable adoptive homes, | 21 |
| in
cases where restoration to the biological family is | 22 |
| not safe, possible or
appropriate;
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| (F) assuring safe and adequate care of children | 24 |
| away from their
homes, in cases where the child cannot | 25 |
| be returned home or cannot be placed
for adoption. At | 26 |
| the time of placement, the Department shall consider
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| concurrent planning,
as described in subsection (l-1) | 28 |
| of this Section so that permanency may
occur at the | 29 |
| earliest opportunity. Consideration should be given so | 30 |
| that if
reunification fails or is delayed, the | 31 |
| placement made is the best available
placement to | 32 |
| provide permanency for the child;
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| (G) (blank);
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| (H) (blank); and
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| (I) placing and maintaining children in facilities | 36 |
| that provide
separate living quarters for children |
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| under the age of 18 and for children
18 years of age | 2 |
| and older, unless a child 18 years of age is in the | 3 |
| last
year of high school education or vocational | 4 |
| training, in an approved
individual or group treatment | 5 |
| program, in a licensed shelter facility,
or secure | 6 |
| child care facility.
The Department is not required to | 7 |
| place or maintain children:
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| (i) who are in a foster home, or
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| (ii) who are persons with a developmental | 10 |
| disability, as defined in
the Mental
Health and | 11 |
| Developmental Disabilities Code, or
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| (iii) who are female children who are | 13 |
| pregnant, pregnant and
parenting or parenting, or
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| (iv) who are siblings, in facilities that | 15 |
| provide separate living quarters for children 18
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| years of age and older and for children under 18 | 17 |
| years of age.
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| (b) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to authorize | 19 |
| the
expenditure of public funds for the purpose of performing | 20 |
| abortions.
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| (c) The Department shall establish and maintain | 22 |
| tax-supported child
welfare services and extend and seek to | 23 |
| improve voluntary services
throughout the State, to the end | 24 |
| that services and care shall be available
on an equal basis | 25 |
| throughout the State to children requiring such services.
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| (d) The Director may authorize advance disbursements for | 27 |
| any new program
initiative to any agency contracting with the | 28 |
| Department. As a
prerequisite for an advance disbursement, the | 29 |
| contractor must post a
surety bond in the amount of the advance | 30 |
| disbursement and have a
purchase of service contract approved | 31 |
| by the Department. The Department
may pay up to 2 months | 32 |
| operational expenses in advance. The amount of the
advance | 33 |
| disbursement shall be prorated over the life of the contract
or | 34 |
| the remaining months of the fiscal year, whichever is less, and | 35 |
| the
installment amount shall then be deducted from future | 36 |
| bills. Advance
disbursement authorizations for new initiatives |
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| shall not be made to any
agency after that agency has operated | 2 |
| during 2 consecutive fiscal years.
The requirements of this | 3 |
| Section concerning advance disbursements shall
not apply with | 4 |
| respect to the following: payments to local public agencies
for | 5 |
| child day care services as authorized by Section 5a of this | 6 |
| Act; and
youth service programs receiving grant funds under | 7 |
| Section 17a-4.
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| (e) (Blank).
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| (f) (Blank).
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| (g) The Department shall establish rules and regulations | 11 |
| concerning
its operation of programs designed to meet the goals | 12 |
| of child safety and
protection,
family preservation, family | 13 |
| reunification, and adoption, including but not
limited to:
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| (1) adoption;
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| (2) foster care;
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| (3) family counseling;
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| (4) protective services;
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| (5) (blank);
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| (6) homemaker service;
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| (7) return of runaway children;
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| (8) (blank);
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| (9) placement under Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court | 23 |
| Act or
Section 2-27, 3-28, 4-25 or 5-740 of the Juvenile | 24 |
| Court Act of 1987 in
accordance with the federal Adoption | 25 |
| Assistance and Child Welfare Act of
1980; and
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| (10) interstate services.
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| Rules and regulations established by the Department shall | 28 |
| include
provisions for training Department staff and the staff | 29 |
| of Department
grantees, through contracts with other agencies | 30 |
| or resources, in alcohol
and drug abuse screening techniques | 31 |
| approved by the Department of Human
Services, as a successor to | 32 |
| the Department of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse,
for the | 33 |
| purpose of identifying children and adults who
should be | 34 |
| referred to an alcohol and drug abuse treatment program for
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| professional evaluation.
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| (h) If the Department finds that there is no appropriate |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| program or
facility within or available to the Department for a | 2 |
| ward and that no
licensed private facility has an adequate and | 3 |
| appropriate program or none
agrees to accept the ward, the | 4 |
| Department shall create an appropriate
individualized, | 5 |
| program-oriented plan for such ward. The
plan may be developed | 6 |
| within the Department or through purchase of services
by the | 7 |
| Department to the extent that it is within its statutory | 8 |
| authority
to do.
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| (i) Service programs shall be available throughout the | 10 |
| State and shall
include but not be limited to the following | 11 |
| services:
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| (1) case management;
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| (2) homemakers;
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| (3) counseling;
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| (4) parent education;
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| (5) day care; and
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| (6) emergency assistance and advocacy.
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| In addition, the following services may be made available | 19 |
| to assess and
meet the needs of children and families:
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| (1) comprehensive family-based services;
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| (2) assessments;
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| (3) respite care; and
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| (4) in-home health services.
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| The Department shall provide transportation for any of the | 25 |
| services it
makes available to children or families or for | 26 |
| which it refers children
or families.
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| (j) The Department may provide categories of financial | 28 |
| assistance and
education assistance grants, and shall
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| establish rules and regulations concerning the assistance and | 30 |
| grants, to
persons who
adopt physically or mentally | 31 |
| handicapped, older and other hard-to-place
children who (i) | 32 |
| immediately prior to their adoption were legal wards of
the | 33 |
| Department
or (ii) were determined eligible for financial | 34 |
| assistance with respect to a
prior adoption and who become | 35 |
| available for adoption because the
prior adoption has been | 36 |
| dissolved and the parental rights of the adoptive
parents have |
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| been
terminated or because the child's adoptive parents have | 2 |
| died.
The Department may, subject to federal financial | 3 |
| participation in the cost, continue to provide financial | 4 |
| assistance and education assistance grants for a child who was | 5 |
| determined eligible for financial assistance under this | 6 |
| subsection (j) in the interim period beginning when the child's | 7 |
| adoptive parents died and ending with the finalization of the | 8 |
| new adoption of the child by another adoptive parent or | 9 |
| parents. The Department may also provide categories of | 10 |
| financial
assistance and education assistance grants, and
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| shall establish rules and regulations for the assistance and | 12 |
| grants, to persons
appointed guardian of the person under | 13 |
| Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court
Act or Section 2-27, 3-28, | 14 |
| 4-25 or 5-740 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987
for children | 15 |
| who were wards of the Department for 12 months immediately
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| prior to the appointment of the guardian.
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| The amount of assistance may vary, depending upon the needs | 18 |
| of the child
and the adoptive parents,
as set forth in the | 19 |
| annual
assistance agreement. Special purpose grants are | 20 |
| allowed where the child
requires special service but such costs | 21 |
| may not exceed the amounts
which similar services would cost | 22 |
| the Department if it were to provide or
secure them as guardian | 23 |
| of the child.
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| Any financial assistance provided under this subsection is
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| inalienable by assignment, sale, execution, attachment, | 26 |
| garnishment, or any
other remedy for recovery or collection of | 27 |
| a judgment or debt.
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| (j-5) The Department shall not deny or delay the placement | 29 |
| of a child for
adoption
if an approved family is available | 30 |
| either outside of the Department region
handling the case,
or | 31 |
| outside of the State of Illinois.
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| (k) The Department shall accept for care and training any | 33 |
| child who has
been adjudicated neglected or abused, or | 34 |
| dependent committed to it pursuant
to the Juvenile Court Act or | 35 |
| the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
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| (l) Before July 1, 2000, the Department may provide, and |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| beginning
July 1, 2000, the Department shall
offer family | 2 |
| preservation services, as defined in Section 8.2 of the Abused
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| and
Neglected Child
Reporting Act, to help families, including | 4 |
| adoptive and extended families.
Family preservation
services | 5 |
| shall be offered (i) to prevent the
placement
of children in
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| substitute care when the children can be cared for at home or | 7 |
| in the custody of
the person
responsible for the children's | 8 |
| welfare,
(ii) to
reunite children with their families, or (iii) | 9 |
| to
maintain an adoptive placement. Family preservation | 10 |
| services shall only be
offered when doing so will not endanger | 11 |
| the children's health or safety. With
respect to children who | 12 |
| are in substitute care pursuant to the Juvenile Court
Act of | 13 |
| 1987, family preservation services shall not be offered if a | 14 |
| goal other
than those of subdivisions (A), (B), or (B-1) of | 15 |
| subsection (2) of Section 2-28
of
that Act has been set.
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| Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to create a | 17 |
| private right of
action or claim on the part of any individual | 18 |
| or child welfare agency.
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| The Department shall notify the child and his family of the
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| Department's
responsibility to offer and provide family | 21 |
| preservation services as
identified in the service plan. The | 22 |
| child and his family shall be eligible
for services as soon as | 23 |
| the report is determined to be "indicated". The
Department may | 24 |
| offer services to any child or family with respect to whom a
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| report of suspected child abuse or neglect has been filed, | 26 |
| prior to
concluding its investigation under Section 7.12 of the | 27 |
| Abused and Neglected
Child Reporting Act. However, the child's | 28 |
| or family's willingness to
accept services shall not be | 29 |
| considered in the investigation. The
Department may also | 30 |
| provide services to any child or family who is the
subject of | 31 |
| any report of suspected child abuse or neglect or may refer | 32 |
| such
child or family to services available from other agencies | 33 |
| in the community,
even if the report is determined to be | 34 |
| unfounded, if the conditions in the
child's or family's home | 35 |
| are reasonably likely to subject the child or
family to future | 36 |
| reports of suspected child abuse or neglect. Acceptance
of such |
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| services shall be voluntary.
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| The Department may, at its discretion except for those | 3 |
| children also
adjudicated neglected or dependent, accept for | 4 |
| care and training any child
who has been adjudicated addicted, | 5 |
| as a truant minor in need of
supervision or as a minor | 6 |
| requiring authoritative intervention, under the
Juvenile Court | 7 |
| Act or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, but no such child
shall | 8 |
| be committed to the Department by any court without the | 9 |
| approval of
the Department. A minor charged with a criminal | 10 |
| offense under the Criminal
Code of 1961 or adjudicated | 11 |
| delinquent shall not be placed in the custody of or
committed | 12 |
| to the Department by any court, except a minor less than 13 | 13 |
| years
of age committed to the Department under Section 5-710 of | 14 |
| the Juvenile Court
Act
of 1987.
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| (l-1) The legislature recognizes that the best interests of | 16 |
| the child
require that
the child be placed in the most | 17 |
| permanent living arrangement as soon as is
practically
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| possible. To achieve this goal, the legislature directs the | 19 |
| Department of
Children and
Family Services to conduct | 20 |
| concurrent planning so that permanency may occur at
the
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| earliest opportunity. Permanent living arrangements may | 22 |
| include prevention of
placement of a child outside the home of | 23 |
| the family when the child can be cared
for at
home without | 24 |
| endangering the child's health or safety; reunification with | 25 |
| the
family,
when safe and appropriate, if temporary placement | 26 |
| is necessary; or movement of
the child
toward the most | 27 |
| permanent living arrangement and permanent legal status.
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| When determining reasonable efforts to be made with respect | 29 |
| to a child, as
described in this
subsection, and in making such | 30 |
| reasonable efforts, the child's health and
safety shall be the
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| paramount concern.
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| When a child is placed in foster care, the Department shall | 33 |
| ensure and
document that reasonable efforts were made to | 34 |
| prevent or eliminate the need to
remove the child from the | 35 |
| child's home. The Department must make
reasonable efforts to | 36 |
| reunify the family when temporary placement of the child
occurs
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| unless otherwise required, pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act | 2 |
| of 1987.
At any time after the dispositional hearing where the | 3 |
| Department believes
that further reunification services would | 4 |
| be ineffective, it may request a
finding from the court that | 5 |
| reasonable efforts are no longer appropriate. The
Department is | 6 |
| not required to provide further reunification services after | 7 |
| such
a
finding.
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| A decision to place a child in substitute care shall be | 9 |
| made with
considerations of the child's health, safety, and | 10 |
| best interests. At the
time of placement, consideration should | 11 |
| also be given so that if reunification
fails or is delayed, the | 12 |
| placement made is the best available placement to
provide | 13 |
| permanency for the child.
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| The Department shall adopt rules addressing concurrent | 15 |
| planning for
reunification and permanency. The Department | 16 |
| shall consider the following
factors when determining | 17 |
| appropriateness of concurrent planning:
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| (1) the likelihood of prompt reunification;
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| (2) the past history of the family;
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| (3) the barriers to reunification being addressed by | 21 |
| the family;
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| (4) the level of cooperation of the family;
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| (5) the foster parents' willingness to work with the | 24 |
| family to reunite;
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| (6) the willingness and ability of the foster family to | 26 |
| provide an
adoptive
home or long-term placement;
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| (7) the age of the child;
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| (8) placement of siblings.
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| (m) The Department may assume temporary custody of any | 30 |
| child if:
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| (1) it has received a written consent to such temporary | 32 |
| custody
signed by the parents of the child or by the parent | 33 |
| having custody of the
child if the parents are not living | 34 |
| together or by the guardian or
custodian of the child if | 35 |
| the child is not in the custody of either
parent, or
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| (2) the child is found in the State and neither a |
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| parent,
guardian nor custodian of the child can be located.
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| If the child is found in his or her residence without a parent, | 3 |
| guardian,
custodian or responsible caretaker, the Department | 4 |
| may, instead of removing
the child and assuming temporary | 5 |
| custody, place an authorized
representative of the Department | 6 |
| in that residence until such time as a
parent, guardian or | 7 |
| custodian enters the home and expresses a willingness
and | 8 |
| apparent ability to ensure the child's health and safety and | 9 |
| resume
permanent
charge of the child, or until a
relative | 10 |
| enters the home and is willing and able to ensure the child's | 11 |
| health
and
safety and assume charge of the
child until a | 12 |
| parent, guardian or custodian enters the home and expresses
| 13 |
| such willingness and ability to ensure the child's safety and | 14 |
| resume
permanent charge. After a caretaker has remained in the | 15 |
| home for a period not
to exceed 12 hours, the Department must | 16 |
| follow those procedures outlined in
Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8, or | 17 |
| 5-415 of the Juvenile Court Act
of 1987.
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| The Department shall have the authority, responsibilities | 19 |
| and duties that
a legal custodian of the child would have | 20 |
| pursuant to subsection (9) of
Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court | 21 |
| Act of 1987. Whenever a child is taken
into temporary custody | 22 |
| pursuant to an investigation under the Abused and
Neglected | 23 |
| Child Reporting Act, or pursuant to a referral and acceptance
| 24 |
| under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 of a minor in limited | 25 |
| custody, the
Department, during the period of temporary custody | 26 |
| and before the child
is brought before a judicial officer as | 27 |
| required by Section 2-9, 3-11,
4-8, or 5-415 of the Juvenile | 28 |
| Court Act of 1987, shall have
the authority, responsibilities | 29 |
| and duties that a legal custodian of the child
would have under | 30 |
| subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of
| 31 |
| 1987.
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| The Department shall ensure that any child taken into | 33 |
| custody
is scheduled for an appointment for a medical | 34 |
| examination.
| 35 |
| A parent, guardian or custodian of a child in the temporary | 36 |
| custody of the
Department who would have custody of the child |
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| if he were not in the
temporary custody of the Department may | 2 |
| deliver to the Department a signed
request that the Department | 3 |
| surrender the temporary custody of the child.
The Department | 4 |
| may retain temporary custody of the child for 10 days after
the | 5 |
| receipt of the request, during which period the Department may | 6 |
| cause to
be filed a petition pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act | 7 |
| of 1987. If a
petition is so filed, the Department shall retain | 8 |
| temporary custody of the
child until the court orders | 9 |
| otherwise. If a petition is not filed within
the 10 day period, | 10 |
| the child shall be surrendered to the custody of the
requesting | 11 |
| parent, guardian or custodian not later than the expiration of
| 12 |
| the 10 day period, at which time the authority and duties of | 13 |
| the Department
with respect to the temporary custody of the | 14 |
| child shall terminate.
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| (m-1) The Department may place children under 18 years of | 16 |
| age in a secure
child care facility licensed by the Department | 17 |
| that cares for children who are
in need of secure living | 18 |
| arrangements for their health, safety, and well-being
after a | 19 |
| determination is made by the facility director and the Director | 20 |
| or the
Director's designate prior to admission to the facility | 21 |
| subject to Section
2-27.1 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. | 22 |
| This subsection (m-1) does not apply
to a child who is subject | 23 |
| to placement in a correctional facility operated
pursuant to | 24 |
| Section 3-15-2 of the Unified Code of Corrections, unless the
| 25 |
| child is a ward who was placed under the care of the Department | 26 |
| before being
subject to placement in a correctional facility | 27 |
| and a court of competent
jurisdiction has ordered placement of | 28 |
| the child in a secure care facility.
| 29 |
| (n) The Department may place children under 18 years of age | 30 |
| in
licensed child care facilities when in the opinion of the | 31 |
| Department,
appropriate services aimed at family preservation | 32 |
| have been unsuccessful and
cannot ensure the child's health and | 33 |
| safety or are unavailable and such
placement would be for their | 34 |
| best interest. Payment
for board, clothing, care, training and | 35 |
| supervision of any child placed in
a licensed child care | 36 |
| facility may be made by the Department, by the
parents or |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| 1 |
| guardians of the estates of those children, or by both the
| 2 |
| Department and the parents or guardians, except that no | 3 |
| payments shall be
made by the Department for any child placed | 4 |
| in a licensed child care
facility for board, clothing, care, | 5 |
| training and supervision of such a
child that exceed the | 6 |
| average per capita cost of maintaining and of caring
for a | 7 |
| child in institutions for dependent or neglected children | 8 |
| operated by
the Department. However, such restriction on | 9 |
| payments does not apply in
cases where children require | 10 |
| specialized care and treatment for problems of
severe emotional | 11 |
| disturbance, physical disability, social adjustment, or
any | 12 |
| combination thereof and suitable facilities for the placement | 13 |
| of such
children are not available at payment rates within the | 14 |
| limitations set
forth in this Section. All reimbursements for | 15 |
| services delivered shall be
absolutely inalienable by | 16 |
| assignment, sale, attachment, garnishment or
otherwise.
| 17 |
| (o) The Department shall establish an administrative | 18 |
| review and appeal
process for children and families who request | 19 |
| or receive child welfare
services from the Department. Children | 20 |
| who are wards of the Department and
are placed by private child | 21 |
| welfare agencies, and foster families with whom
those children | 22 |
| are placed, shall be afforded the same procedural and appeal
| 23 |
| rights as children and families in the case of placement by the | 24 |
| Department,
including the right to an initial review of a | 25 |
| private agency decision by
that agency. The Department shall | 26 |
| insure that any private child welfare
agency, which accepts | 27 |
| wards of the Department for placement, affords those
rights to | 28 |
| children and foster families. The Department shall accept for
| 29 |
| administrative review and an appeal hearing a complaint made by | 30 |
| (i) a child
or foster family concerning a decision following an | 31 |
| initial review by a
private child welfare agency or (ii) a | 32 |
| prospective adoptive parent who alleges
a violation of | 33 |
| subsection (j-5) of this Section. An appeal of a decision
| 34 |
| concerning a change in the placement of a child shall be | 35 |
| conducted in an
expedited manner.
| 36 |
| (p) There is hereby created the Department of Children and |
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| Family
Services Emergency Assistance Fund from which the | 2 |
| Department may provide
special financial assistance to | 3 |
| families which are in economic crisis when
such assistance is | 4 |
| not available through other public or private sources
and the | 5 |
| assistance is deemed necessary to prevent dissolution of the | 6 |
| family
unit or to reunite families which have been separated | 7 |
| due to child abuse and
neglect. The Department shall establish | 8 |
| administrative rules specifying
the criteria for determining | 9 |
| eligibility for and the amount and nature of
assistance to be | 10 |
| provided. The Department may also enter into written
agreements | 11 |
| with private and public social service agencies to provide
| 12 |
| emergency financial services to families referred by the | 13 |
| Department.
Special financial assistance payments shall be | 14 |
| available to a family no
more than once during each fiscal year | 15 |
| and the total payments to a
family may not exceed $500 during a | 16 |
| fiscal year.
| 17 |
| (q) The Department may receive and use, in their entirety, | 18 |
| for the
benefit of children any gift, donation or bequest of | 19 |
| money or other
property which is received on behalf of such | 20 |
| children, or any financial
benefits to which such children are | 21 |
| or may become entitled while under
the jurisdiction or care of | 22 |
| the Department.
| 23 |
| The Department shall set up and administer no-cost, | 24 |
| interest-bearing accounts in appropriate financial | 25 |
| institutions
for children for whom the Department is legally | 26 |
| responsible and who have been
determined eligible for Veterans' | 27 |
| Benefits, Social Security benefits,
assistance allotments from | 28 |
| the armed forces, court ordered payments, parental
voluntary | 29 |
| payments, Supplemental Security Income, Railroad Retirement
| 30 |
| payments, Black Lung benefits, or other miscellaneous | 31 |
| payments. Interest
earned by each account shall be credited to | 32 |
| the account, unless
disbursed in accordance with this | 33 |
| subsection.
| 34 |
| In disbursing funds from children's accounts, the | 35 |
| Department
shall:
| 36 |
| (1) Establish standards in accordance with State and |
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HB4186 |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| federal laws for
disbursing money from children's | 2 |
| accounts. In all
circumstances,
the Department's | 3 |
| "Guardianship Administrator" or his or her designee must
| 4 |
| approve disbursements from children's accounts. The | 5 |
| Department
shall be responsible for keeping complete | 6 |
| records of all disbursements for each account for any | 7 |
| purpose.
| 8 |
| (2) Calculate on a monthly basis the amounts paid from | 9 |
| State funds for the
child's board and care, medical care | 10 |
| not covered under Medicaid, and social
services; and | 11 |
| utilize funds from the child's account, as
covered by | 12 |
| regulation, to reimburse those costs. Monthly, | 13 |
| disbursements from
all children's accounts, up to 1/12 of | 14 |
| $13,000,000, shall be
deposited by the Department into the | 15 |
| General Revenue Fund and the balance over
1/12 of | 16 |
| $13,000,000 into the DCFS Children's Services Fund.
| 17 |
| (3) Maintain any balance remaining after reimbursing | 18 |
| for the child's costs
of care, as specified in item (2). | 19 |
| The balance shall accumulate in accordance
with relevant | 20 |
| State and federal laws and shall be disbursed to the child | 21 |
| or his
or her guardian, or to the issuing agency.
| 22 |
| (r) The Department shall promulgate regulations | 23 |
| encouraging all adoption
agencies to voluntarily forward to the | 24 |
| Department or its agent names and
addresses of all persons who | 25 |
| have applied for and have been approved for
adoption of a | 26 |
| hard-to-place or handicapped child and the names of such
| 27 |
| children who have not been placed for adoption. A list of such | 28 |
| names and
addresses shall be maintained by the Department or | 29 |
| its agent, and coded
lists which maintain the confidentiality | 30 |
| of the person seeking to adopt the
child and of the child shall | 31 |
| be made available, without charge, to every
adoption agency in | 32 |
| the State to assist the agencies in placing such
children for | 33 |
| adoption. The Department may delegate to an agent its duty to
| 34 |
| maintain and make available such lists. The Department shall | 35 |
| ensure that
such agent maintains the confidentiality of the | 36 |
| person seeking to adopt the
child and of the child.
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| (s) The Department of Children and Family Services may | 2 |
| establish and
implement a program to reimburse Department and | 3 |
| private child welfare
agency foster parents licensed by the | 4 |
| Department of Children and Family
Services for damages | 5 |
| sustained by the foster parents as a result of the
malicious or | 6 |
| negligent acts of foster children, as well as providing third
| 7 |
| party coverage for such foster parents with regard to actions | 8 |
| of foster
children to other individuals. Such coverage will be | 9 |
| secondary to the
foster parent liability insurance policy, if | 10 |
| applicable. The program shall
be funded through appropriations | 11 |
| from the General Revenue Fund,
specifically designated for such | 12 |
| purposes.
| 13 |
| (t) The Department shall perform home studies and | 14 |
| investigations and
shall exercise supervision over visitation | 15 |
| as ordered by a court pursuant
to the Illinois Marriage and | 16 |
| Dissolution of Marriage Act or the Adoption
Act only if:
| 17 |
| (1) an order entered by an Illinois court specifically
| 18 |
| directs the Department to perform such services; and
| 19 |
| (2) the court has ordered one or both of the parties to
| 20 |
| the proceeding to reimburse the Department for its | 21 |
| reasonable costs for
providing such services in accordance | 22 |
| with Department rules, or has
determined that neither party | 23 |
| is financially able to pay.
| 24 |
| The Department shall provide written notification to the | 25 |
| court of the
specific arrangements for supervised visitation | 26 |
| and projected monthly costs
within 60 days of the court order. | 27 |
| The Department shall send to the court
information related to | 28 |
| the costs incurred except in cases where the court
has | 29 |
| determined the parties are financially unable to pay. The court | 30 |
| may
order additional periodic reports as appropriate.
| 31 |
| (u) Whenever the Department places a child with a | 32 |
| prospective adoptive parent or parents or in a licensed foster | 33 |
| home,
group home, child care institution, or in a relative | 34 |
| home, the Department
shall provide to the prospective adoptive | 35 |
| parent or parents or other caretaker:
| 36 |
| (1) available detailed information concerning the |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| child's educational
and health history, copies of | 2 |
| immunization records (including insurance
and medical card | 3 |
| information), a history of the child's previous | 4 |
| placements,
if any, and reasons for placement changes | 5 |
| excluding any information that
identifies or reveals the | 6 |
| location of any previous caretaker;
| 7 |
| (2) a copy of the child's portion of the client service | 8 |
| plan, including
any visitation arrangement, and all | 9 |
| amendments or revisions to it as
related to the child; and
| 10 |
| (3) information containing details of the child's | 11 |
| individualized
educational plan when the child is | 12 |
| receiving special education services.
| 13 |
| The prospective adoptive parent or parents or other
| 14 |
| caretaker shall be informed of any known social or behavioral
| 15 |
| information (including, but not limited to, criminal | 16 |
| background, fire
setting, perpetuation of
sexual abuse, | 17 |
| destructive behavior, and substance abuse) necessary to care
| 18 |
| for and safeguard the child.
| 19 |
| (u-5) Effective July 1, 1995, only foster care placements | 20 |
| licensed as
foster family homes pursuant to the Child Care Act | 21 |
| of 1969 shall be eligible to
receive foster care payments from | 22 |
| the Department.
Relative caregivers who, as of July 1, 1995, | 23 |
| were approved pursuant to approved
relative placement rules | 24 |
| previously promulgated by the Department at 89 Ill.
Adm. Code | 25 |
| 335 and had submitted an application for licensure as a foster | 26 |
| family
home may continue to receive foster care payments only | 27 |
| until the Department
determines that they may be licensed as a | 28 |
| foster family home or that their
application for licensure is | 29 |
| denied or until September 30, 1995, whichever
occurs first.
| 30 |
| (v) The Department shall access criminal history record | 31 |
| information
as defined in the Illinois Uniform Conviction | 32 |
| Information Act and information
maintained in the adjudicatory | 33 |
| and dispositional record system as defined in
Section 2605-355 | 34 |
| of the
Department of State Police Law (20 ILCS 2605/2605-355)
| 35 |
| if the Department determines the information is necessary to | 36 |
| perform its duties
under the Abused and Neglected Child |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| 1 |
| Reporting Act, the Child Care Act of 1969,
and the Children and | 2 |
| Family Services Act. The Department shall provide for
| 3 |
| interactive computerized communication and processing | 4 |
| equipment that permits
direct on-line communication with the | 5 |
| Department of State Police's central
criminal history data | 6 |
| repository. The Department shall comply with all
certification | 7 |
| requirements and provide certified operators who have been
| 8 |
| trained by personnel from the Department of State Police. In | 9 |
| addition, one
Office of the Inspector General investigator | 10 |
| shall have training in the use of
the criminal history | 11 |
| information access system and have
access to the terminal. The | 12 |
| Department of Children and Family Services and its
employees | 13 |
| shall abide by rules and regulations established by the | 14 |
| Department of
State Police relating to the access and | 15 |
| dissemination of
this information.
| 16 |
| (w) Within 120 days of August 20, 1995 (the effective date | 17 |
| of Public Act
89-392), the Department shall prepare and submit | 18 |
| to the Governor and the
General Assembly, a written plan for | 19 |
| the development of in-state licensed
secure child care | 20 |
| facilities that care for children who are in need of secure
| 21 |
| living
arrangements for their health, safety, and well-being. | 22 |
| For purposes of this
subsection, secure care facility shall | 23 |
| mean a facility that is designed and
operated to ensure that | 24 |
| all entrances and exits from the facility, a building
or a | 25 |
| distinct part of the building, are under the exclusive control | 26 |
| of the
staff of the facility, whether or not the child has the | 27 |
| freedom of movement
within the perimeter of the facility, | 28 |
| building, or distinct part of the
building. The plan shall | 29 |
| include descriptions of the types of facilities that
are needed | 30 |
| in Illinois; the cost of developing these secure care | 31 |
| facilities;
the estimated number of placements; the potential | 32 |
| cost savings resulting from
the movement of children currently | 33 |
| out-of-state who are projected to be
returned to Illinois; the | 34 |
| necessary geographic distribution of these
facilities in | 35 |
| Illinois; and a proposed timetable for development of such
| 36 |
| facilities.
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| 1 |
| (Source: P.A. 94-215, eff. 1-1-06.)
| 2 |
| (20 ILCS 505/35.1) (from Ch. 23, par. 5035.1)
| 3 |
| Sec. 35.1. The case and clinical records of patients in | 4 |
| Department
supervised facilities, wards of the Department, | 5 |
| children receiving or
applying for child welfare services, | 6 |
| persons receiving or applying for
other services of the | 7 |
| Department, and Department reports of injury or abuse to
| 8 |
| children shall not be open to the general public. Such case and | 9 |
| clinical
records and reports or the information contained | 10 |
| therein shall be disclosed by
the Director of the Department
to | 11 |
| juvenile authorities
when necessary for the discharge of their | 12 |
| official duties
who request information concerning the minor
| 13 |
| and who
certify in writing that the information will not be | 14 |
| disclosed to any other
party except as provided under law or | 15 |
| order of court. For purposes of this
Section, "juvenile | 16 |
| authorities" means: (i) a judge of
the circuit court and | 17 |
| members of the staff of the court designated by the
judge; (ii) | 18 |
| parties to the proceedings under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 | 19 |
| and
their attorneys; (iii) probation
officers and court | 20 |
| appointed advocates for the juvenile authorized by the judge
| 21 |
| hearing the case; (iv) any individual, public or private agency | 22 |
| having custody
of the child pursuant to court order or pursuant | 23 |
| to placement of the child by the Department ; (v) any | 24 |
| individual, public or private
agency providing education, | 25 |
| medical or mental health service to the child when
the | 26 |
| requested information is needed to determine the appropriate | 27 |
| service or
treatment for the minor; (vi) any potential | 28 |
| placement provider when such
release
is authorized by the court | 29 |
| for the limited purpose of determining the
appropriateness of | 30 |
| the potential placement; (vii) law enforcement officers and
| 31 |
| prosecutors;
(viii) adult and juvenile prisoner review boards; | 32 |
| (ix) authorized military
personnel; (x)
individuals authorized | 33 |
| by court; (xi) the Illinois General Assembly or
any committee
| 34 |
| or commission thereof. This Section does not apply
to
the | 35 |
| Department's fiscal records, other records of a purely |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| 1 |
| administrative
nature, or any forms, documents or other records | 2 |
| required of facilities subject
to licensure by the Department | 3 |
| except as may otherwise be provided under the
Child Care Act of | 4 |
| 1969.
| 5 |
| Nothing contained in this Act prevents the sharing or | 6 |
| disclosure of
information or records relating or pertaining to | 7 |
| juveniles subject to the
provisions of the Serious Habitual | 8 |
| Offender Comprehensive Action Program when
that information is | 9 |
| used to assist in the early identification and treatment of
| 10 |
| habitual juvenile offenders.
| 11 |
| Nothing contained in this Act prevents the sharing or | 12 |
| disclosure of
information or records relating or pertaining to | 13 |
| the death of a minor under the
care of or receiving services | 14 |
| from the Department and under the jurisdiction of
the juvenile | 15 |
| court with the juvenile court, the State's Attorney, and the
| 16 |
| minor's attorney.
| 17 |
| Nothing contained in this Section prohibits or prevents any | 18 |
| individual
dealing with or providing services to a minor from | 19 |
| sharing information with
another individual dealing with or | 20 |
| providing services to a minor for the
purpose of coordinating | 21 |
| efforts on behalf of the minor. The sharing of such
information | 22 |
| is only for the purpose stated herein and is to be consistent | 23 |
| with
the intent and purpose of the confidentiality provisions | 24 |
| of the Juvenile Court
Act of 1987. This provision does not | 25 |
| abrogate any recognized privilege.
Sharing information does | 26 |
| not include copying of records, reports or case files
unless | 27 |
| authorized herein.
| 28 |
| Nothing in this Section prohibits or prevents the | 29 |
| re-disclosure of records,
reports,
or other information that | 30 |
| reveals malfeasance or nonfeasance on the part of the
| 31 |
| Department, its employees, or its agents. Nothing in this | 32 |
| Section prohibits
or prevents
the Department or a party in a | 33 |
| proceeding under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987
from copying | 34 |
| records, reports, or case files for the purpose of sharing | 35 |
| those
documents with other parties to the litigation.
| 36 |
| (Source: P.A. 90-15, eff. 6-13-97; 90-590, eff. 1-1-00; 91-812, |
|
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HB4186 |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| 1 |
| eff.
6-13-00.)
| 2 |
| Section 10. The Foster Parent Law is amended by changing | 3 |
| Section 1-15 as follows:
| 4 |
| (20 ILCS 520/1-15)
| 5 |
| Sec. 1-15. Foster parent rights. A foster parent's rights | 6 |
| include, but
are
not limited to, the following:
| 7 |
| (1) The right to be treated with dignity, respect, and | 8 |
| consideration as a
professional member of the child welfare | 9 |
| team.
| 10 |
| (2) The right to be given standardized pre-service | 11 |
| training and
appropriate ongoing training to meet mutually | 12 |
| assessed needs and improve the
foster parent's skills.
| 13 |
| (3) The right to be informed as to how to contact the | 14 |
| appropriate child
placement agency in order to receive | 15 |
| information and assistance to access
supportive services | 16 |
| for children in the foster parent's care.
| 17 |
| (4) The right to receive timely financial | 18 |
| reimbursement commensurate with
the care needs of the child | 19 |
| as specified in the service plan.
| 20 |
| (5) The right to be provided a clear, written | 21 |
| understanding of a placement
agency's plan concerning the | 22 |
| placement of a child in the foster parent's home.
Inherent | 23 |
| in this right is the foster parent's responsibility to | 24 |
| support
activities
that will promote the child's right to | 25 |
| relationships with his or her own family
and cultural | 26 |
| heritage.
| 27 |
| (6) The right to be provided a fair, timely, and | 28 |
| impartial investigation
of complaints concerning the | 29 |
| foster parent's licensure, to be provided the
opportunity | 30 |
| to have a person
of the foster parent's choosing present | 31 |
| during the investigation, and to be
provided due
process | 32 |
| during the investigation; the right to be provided the | 33 |
| opportunity to
request and receive
mediation or an | 34 |
| administrative review of decisions that affect licensing
|
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| 1 |
| parameters, or both mediation and an administrative | 2 |
| review; and the right to
have decisions concerning a | 3 |
| licensing
corrective action plan specifically explained | 4 |
| and tied to the licensing
standards violated.
| 5 |
| (7) The right, at any time during which a child is | 6 |
| placed with the foster
parent, to receive additional or | 7 |
| necessary information that is relevant to the
care of the | 8 |
| child.
| 9 |
| (7.5) The right to be given information concerning a | 10 |
| child (i) from the Department as required under subsection | 11 |
| (u) of Section 5 of the Children and Family Services Act | 12 |
| and (ii) from a child welfare agency as required under | 13 |
| subsection (c-5) of Section 7.4 of the Child Care Act of | 14 |
| 1969.
| 15 |
| (8) The right to be notified of scheduled meetings and | 16 |
| staffings
concerning the foster child in order to actively | 17 |
| participate in the case
planning and decision-making | 18 |
| process regarding the child, including individual
service | 19 |
| planning meetings, administrative case reviews, | 20 |
| interdisciplinary
staffings, and individual educational | 21 |
| planning meetings; the right to be
informed of decisions | 22 |
| made by the courts or the child welfare agency concerning
| 23 |
| the child;
the right to provide input concerning the plan | 24 |
| of services for the child and to
have that
input given full | 25 |
| consideration in the same manner as information presented | 26 |
| by
any other professional on the team; and the right to | 27 |
| communicate with other
professionals who work with the | 28 |
| foster child within the context of the team,
including | 29 |
| therapists, physicians, and teachers.
| 30 |
| (9) The right to be given, in a timely and consistent | 31 |
| manner, any
information a case worker has regarding the | 32 |
| child and the child's
family which is pertinent to the care | 33 |
| and needs of the child and to the making
of a permanency | 34 |
| plan for the child. Disclosure of information concerning | 35 |
| the
child's family shall be limited to that
information | 36 |
| that is essential for understanding the needs of and |
|
|
|
HB4186 |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| 1 |
| providing
care to the child in order to protect the rights | 2 |
| of the child's family. When a
positive relationship exists | 3 |
| between the foster parent and the child's family,
the | 4 |
| child's family may consent to disclosure of additional | 5 |
| information.
| 6 |
| (10) The right to be given reasonable written notice of | 7 |
| (i) any change in
a child's case plan, (ii) plans to | 8 |
| terminate the placement of the child with
the foster | 9 |
| parent, and (iii) the reasons for the change or termination | 10 |
| in
placement. The notice shall be waived only in cases of a | 11 |
| court order or when
the child is determined to be at | 12 |
| imminent risk of harm.
| 13 |
| (11) The right to be notified in a timely and complete | 14 |
| manner of all court
hearings, including notice of the date | 15 |
| and time of the court hearing, the name
of the
judge or | 16 |
| hearing officer hearing the case, the location of the | 17 |
| hearing,
and the court docket number of the case; and the | 18 |
| right to intervene
in court proceedings or to seek mandamus | 19 |
| under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
| 20 |
| (12) The right to be considered as a placement option | 21 |
| when a foster child
who was formerly placed with the foster | 22 |
| parent is to be re-entered into foster
care, if that | 23 |
| placement is consistent with the best interest of the child | 24 |
| and
other children in the foster parent's home.
| 25 |
| (13) The right to have timely access to the
child | 26 |
| placement agency's existing appeals process and the right | 27 |
| to be
free from acts of harassment and retaliation by any | 28 |
| other party when exercising
the right to appeal.
| 29 |
| (14) The right to be informed of the Foster Parent | 30 |
| Hotline established
under Section 35.6 of the Children and | 31 |
| Family Services Act and all of the
rights accorded to | 32 |
| foster parents concerning
reports of misconduct by | 33 |
| Department employees, service providers, or
contractors, | 34 |
| confidential handling of those reports, and investigation | 35 |
| by the
Inspector General appointed under Section 35.5 of | 36 |
| the Children and Family
Services Act.
|
|
|
|
HB4186 |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
|
| 1 |
| (Source: P.A. 89-19, eff. 6-3-95.)
| 2 |
| Section 15. The Child Care Act of 1969 is amended by | 3 |
| changing Sections 7.4, 8, and 15 as follows: | 4 |
| (225 ILCS 10/7.4) | 5 |
| Sec. 7.4. Disclosures.
| 6 |
| (a) Every child welfare agency providing adoption services | 7 |
| and licensed by the Department shall provide to all prospective | 8 |
| clients and to the public written disclosures with respect to | 9 |
| its adoption services, policies, and practices, including | 10 |
| general eligibility criteria, fees, and the mutual rights and | 11 |
| responsibilities of clients, including biological parents and | 12 |
| adoptive parents. The written disclosure shall be posted on any | 13 |
| website maintained by the child welfare agency that relates to | 14 |
| adoption services. The Department shall adopt rules relating to | 15 |
| the contents of the written disclosures. Eligible agencies may | 16 |
| be deemed compliant with this subsection (a). | 17 |
| (b) Every licensed child welfare agency providing adoption | 18 |
| services shall provide to all applicants, prior to application, | 19 |
| a written schedule of estimated fees, expenses, and refund | 20 |
| policies. Every child welfare agency providing adoption | 21 |
| services shall have a written policy that shall be part of its | 22 |
| standard adoption contract and state that it will not charge | 23 |
| additional fees and expenses beyond those disclosed in the | 24 |
| adoption contract unless additional fees are reasonably | 25 |
| required by the circumstances and are disclosed to the adoptive | 26 |
| parents or parent before they are incurred. The Department | 27 |
| shall adopt rules relating to the contents of the written | 28 |
| schedule and policy. Eligible agencies may be deemed compliant | 29 |
| with this subsection (b). | 30 |
| (c) Every licensed child welfare agency providing adoption | 31 |
| services must make full and fair disclosure to its clients, | 32 |
| including biological parents and adoptive parents, of all | 33 |
| circumstances material to the placement of a child for | 34 |
| adoption. The Department shall adopt rules necessary for the |
|
|
|
HB4186 |
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| implementation and regulation of the requirements of this | 2 |
| subsection (c). | 3 |
| (c-5) Whenever a licensed child welfare agency places a | 4 |
| child in a licensed foster family home, the agency shall | 5 |
| provide the following to the caretaker: | 6 |
| (1) Available detailed information concerning the | 7 |
| child's educational
and health history, copies of | 8 |
| immunization records (including insurance
and medical card | 9 |
| information), a history of the child's previous | 10 |
| placements,
if any, and reasons for placement changes, | 11 |
| excluding any information that
identifies or reveals the | 12 |
| location of any previous caretaker. | 13 |
| (2) A copy of the child's portion of the client service | 14 |
| plan, including
any visitation arrangement, and all | 15 |
| amendments or revisions to it as
related to the child. | 16 |
| (3) Information containing details of the child's | 17 |
| individualized
educational plan when the child is | 18 |
| receiving special education services. | 19 |
| (4) Any known social or behavioral
information | 20 |
| (including, but not limited to, criminal background, fire
| 21 |
| setting, perpetration of
sexual abuse, destructive | 22 |
| behavior, and substance abuse) necessary to care
for and | 23 |
| safeguard the child.
| 24 |
| The Department shall adopt rules necessary for the | 25 |
| implementation and regulation of the requirements of this | 26 |
| subsection (c-5).
| 27 |
| (d) Every licensed child welfare agency providing adoption | 28 |
| services shall meet minimum standards set forth by the | 29 |
| Department concerning the taking or acknowledging of a consent | 30 |
| prior to taking or acknowledging a consent from a prospective | 31 |
| biological parent. The Department shall adopt rules concerning | 32 |
| the minimum standards required by agencies under this Section.
| 33 |
| (Source: P.A. 94-586, eff. 8-15-05.)
| 34 |
| (225 ILCS 10/8) (from Ch. 23, par. 2218)
| 35 |
| Sec. 8. The Department may revoke or refuse to renew the |
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| license of any
child care facility or child welfare agency or | 2 |
| refuse to issue full license to the holder of a permit
should | 3 |
| the licensee or holder of a permit:
| 4 |
| (1) fail to maintain standards prescribed and | 5 |
| published by the Department;
| 6 |
| (2) violate any of the provisions of the license | 7 |
| issued;
| 8 |
| (3) furnish or make any misleading or any false | 9 |
| statement or report to
the Department;
| 10 |
| (4) refuse to submit to the Department any reports or | 11 |
| refuse to make
available to the Department any records | 12 |
| required by the Department in
making investigation of the | 13 |
| facility for licensing purposes;
| 14 |
| (5) fail or refuse to submit to an investigation by the | 15 |
| Department;
| 16 |
| (6) fail or refuse to admit authorized representatives | 17 |
| of the Department
at any reasonable time for the purpose of | 18 |
| investigation;
| 19 |
| (7) fail to provide, maintain, equip and keep in safe | 20 |
| and sanitary
condition premises established or used for | 21 |
| child care as required under
standards prescribed by the | 22 |
| Department, or as otherwise required by any
law, regulation | 23 |
| or ordinance applicable to the location of such facility;
| 24 |
| (8) refuse to display its license or permit;
| 25 |
| (9) be the subject of an indicated report under Section | 26 |
| 3 of the Abused
and Neglected Child Reporting Act or fail | 27 |
| to discharge or sever
affiliation with the child care | 28 |
| facility of an employee or volunteer at the
facility with | 29 |
| direct contact with children who is the subject of an | 30 |
| indicated
report under Section 3 of that Act;
| 31 |
| (10) fail to comply with the provisions of Section 7.1;
| 32 |
| (11) fail to exercise reasonable care in the hiring, | 33 |
| training and
supervision of facility personnel;
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| (12) fail to report suspected abuse or neglect of | 35 |
| children within the
facility, as required by the Abused and | 36 |
| Neglected Child Reporting Act; |
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| (12.5) fail to comply with subsection (c-5) of Section | 2 |
| 7.4;
| 3 |
| (13) fail to comply with Section 5.1 or 5.2 of this | 4 |
| Act; or
| 5 |
| (14) be identified in an investigation by the | 6 |
| Department as an addict or
alcoholic, as defined in the | 7 |
| Alcoholism and Other Drug Abuse and Dependency
Act, or be a | 8 |
| person whom the Department knows has abused alcohol or | 9 |
| drugs,
and has not
successfully participated in treatment, | 10 |
| self-help groups or other suitable
activities, and the | 11 |
| Department determines that because of such abuse the
| 12 |
| licensee, holder of the permit, or any other person | 13 |
| directly responsible
for the care and welfare of the | 14 |
| children served, does not comply with
standards relating to | 15 |
| character, suitability or other qualifications
established | 16 |
| under Section 7 of this Act.
| 17 |
| (Source: P.A. 94-586, eff. 8-15-05.)
| 18 |
| (225 ILCS 10/15) (from Ch. 23, par. 2225)
| 19 |
| Sec. 15. Every child care facility must keep and maintain | 20 |
| such records as the
Department may prescribe pertaining to the | 21 |
| admission, progress, health and
discharge of children under the | 22 |
| care of the facility and shall report
relative thereto to the | 23 |
| Department whenever called for, upon forms
prescribed by the | 24 |
| Department. All records regarding children and all facts
| 25 |
| learned about children and their relatives must be kept | 26 |
| confidential both
by the child care facility and by the | 27 |
| Department.
| 28 |
| Nothing contained in this Act prevents the sharing or
| 29 |
| disclosure of information or records relating or pertaining to | 30 |
| juveniles
subject to the provisions of the Serious Habitual | 31 |
| Offender Comprehensive
Action Program when that information is | 32 |
| used to assist in the early
identification and treatment of | 33 |
| habitual juvenile offenders. | 34 |
| Nothing contained in this Act prevents the disclosure of | 35 |
| information or records by a licensed child welfare agency as |
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| required under subsection (c-5) of Section 7.4.
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| (Source: P.A. 87-928.)
| 3 |
| Section 20. The Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act is | 4 |
| amended by changing Section 11.1 as follows:
| 5 |
| (325 ILCS 5/11.1) (from Ch. 23, par. 2061.1)
| 6 |
| Sec. 11.1. Access to records.
| 7 |
| (a) A person shall have access to the
records described in | 8 |
| Section 11 only in furtherance of purposes directly
connected | 9 |
| with the administration of this Act or the Intergovernmental | 10 |
| Missing
Child Recovery Act of 1984. Those persons and purposes | 11 |
| for access include:
| 12 |
| (1) Department staff in the furtherance of their | 13 |
| responsibilities under
this Act, or for the purpose of | 14 |
| completing background investigations on
persons or | 15 |
| agencies licensed by the Department or with whom the | 16 |
| Department
contracts for the provision of child welfare | 17 |
| services.
| 18 |
| (2) A law enforcement agency investigating known or | 19 |
| suspected child abuse
or neglect, known or suspected | 20 |
| involvement with child pornography, known or
suspected | 21 |
| criminal sexual assault, known or suspected criminal | 22 |
| sexual abuse, or
any other sexual offense when a child is | 23 |
| alleged to be involved.
| 24 |
| (3) The Department of State Police when administering | 25 |
| the provisions of
the Intergovernmental Missing Child | 26 |
| Recovery Act of 1984.
| 27 |
| (4) A physician who has before him a child whom he | 28 |
| reasonably
suspects may be abused or neglected.
| 29 |
| (5) A person authorized under Section 5 of this Act to | 30 |
| place a child
in temporary protective custody when such | 31 |
| person requires the
information in the report or record to | 32 |
| determine whether to place the
child in temporary | 33 |
| protective custody.
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| (6) A person having the legal responsibility or |
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| authorization to
care for, treat, or supervise a child , or | 2 |
| a parent, prospective adoptive parent, foster parent,
| 3 |
| guardian, or other
person responsible for the child's | 4 |
| welfare , who is the subject of a report.
| 5 |
| (7) Except in regard to harmful or detrimental | 6 |
| information as
provided in Section 7.19, any subject of the | 7 |
| report, and if the subject of
the report is a minor, his | 8 |
| guardian or guardian ad litem.
| 9 |
| (8) A court, upon its finding that access to such | 10 |
| records may be
necessary for the determination of an issue | 11 |
| before such court; however,
such access shall be limited to | 12 |
| in camera inspection, unless the court
determines that | 13 |
| public disclosure of the information contained therein
is | 14 |
| necessary for the resolution of an issue then pending | 15 |
| before it.
| 16 |
| (8.1) A probation officer or other authorized | 17 |
| representative of a
probation or court services department | 18 |
| conducting an investigation ordered
by a court under the | 19 |
| Juvenile Court Act of l987.
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| (9) A grand jury, upon its determination that access to | 21 |
| such records
is necessary in the conduct of its official | 22 |
| business.
| 23 |
| (10) Any person authorized by the Director, in writing, | 24 |
| for audit or
bona fide research purposes.
| 25 |
| (11) Law enforcement agencies, coroners or medical | 26 |
| examiners,
physicians, courts, school superintendents and | 27 |
| child welfare agencies
in other states who are responsible | 28 |
| for child abuse or neglect
investigations or background | 29 |
| investigations.
| 30 |
| (12) The Department of Professional Regulation, the | 31 |
| State Board of
Education and school superintendents in | 32 |
| Illinois, who may use or disclose
information from the | 33 |
| records as they deem necessary to conduct
investigations or | 34 |
| take disciplinary action, as provided by law.
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| (13) A coroner or medical examiner who has reason to
| 36 |
| believe that a child has died as the result of abuse or |
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| neglect.
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| (14) The Director of a State-operated facility when an | 3 |
| employee of that
facility is the perpetrator in an | 4 |
| indicated report.
| 5 |
| (15) The operator of a licensed child care facility or | 6 |
| a facility licensed
by the Department of Human Services (as | 7 |
| successor to the Department of
Alcoholism and Substance | 8 |
| Abuse) in which children reside
when a current or | 9 |
| prospective employee of that facility is the perpetrator in
| 10 |
| an indicated child abuse or neglect report, pursuant to | 11 |
| Section 4.3 of the
Child Care Act of 1969.
| 12 |
| (16) Members of a multidisciplinary team in the | 13 |
| furtherance of its
responsibilities under subsection (b) | 14 |
| of Section 7.1. All reports
concerning child abuse and | 15 |
| neglect made available to members of such
| 16 |
| multidisciplinary teams and all records generated as a | 17 |
| result of such
reports shall be confidential and shall not | 18 |
| be disclosed, except as
specifically authorized by this Act | 19 |
| or other applicable law. It is a Class
A misdemeanor to | 20 |
| permit, assist or encourage the unauthorized release of
any | 21 |
| information contained in such reports or records. Nothing | 22 |
| contained in
this Section prevents the sharing of reports | 23 |
| or records relating or pertaining
to the death of a minor | 24 |
| under the care of or receiving services from the
Department | 25 |
| of Children and Family Services and under the jurisdiction | 26 |
| of the
juvenile court with the juvenile court, the State's | 27 |
| Attorney, and the minor's
attorney.
| 28 |
| (17) The Department of Human Services, as provided
in | 29 |
| Section 17 of the Disabled Persons Rehabilitation Act.
| 30 |
| (18) Any other agency or investigative body, including | 31 |
| the Department of
Public Health and a local board of | 32 |
| health, authorized by State law to
conduct an investigation | 33 |
| into the quality of care provided to children in
hospitals | 34 |
| and other State regulated care facilities. The access to | 35 |
| and
release of information from such records shall be | 36 |
| subject to the approval
of the Director of the Department |
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| or his designee.
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| (19) The person appointed, under Section 2-17 of the | 3 |
| Juvenile Court
Act of 1987, as the guardian ad litem of a | 4 |
| minor who is the subject of a
report or
records under this | 5 |
| Act.
| 6 |
| (20) The Department of Human Services, as provided in | 7 |
| Section 10 of the
Early
Intervention Services System Act, | 8 |
| and the operator of a facility providing
early
intervention | 9 |
| services pursuant to that Act, for the purpose of | 10 |
| determining
whether a
current or prospective employee who | 11 |
| provides or may provide direct services
under that
Act is | 12 |
| the perpetrator in an indicated report of child abuse or | 13 |
| neglect filed
under this Act.
| 14 |
| (b) Nothing contained in this Act prevents the sharing or
| 15 |
| disclosure of information or records relating or pertaining to | 16 |
| juveniles
subject to the provisions of the Serious Habitual | 17 |
| Offender Comprehensive
Action Program when that information is | 18 |
| used to assist in the early
identification and treatment of | 19 |
| habitual juvenile offenders.
| 20 |
| (c) To the extent that persons or agencies are given access | 21 |
| to
information pursuant to this Section, those persons or | 22 |
| agencies may give this
information to and
receive this | 23 |
| information from each other in order to facilitate an
| 24 |
| investigation
conducted by those persons or agencies.
| 25 |
| (Source: P.A. 93-147, eff. 1-1-04.)
| 26 |
| Section 25. The Mental Health and Developmental | 27 |
| Disabilities Confidentiality Act is amended by changing | 28 |
| Section 11 as follows:
| 29 |
| (740 ILCS 110/11) (from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 811)
| 30 |
| Sec. 11. Disclosure of records and communications. Records | 31 |
| and
communications may be disclosed:
| 32 |
| (i) in accordance with the provisions of the
Abused and | 33 |
| Neglected Child Reporting Act , subsection (u) of Section 5 | 34 |
| of the Children and Family Services Act, or Section 7.4 of |
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| the Child Care Act of 1969 ;
| 2 |
| (ii) when, and to the extent, a
therapist, in his or | 3 |
| her sole discretion, determines that disclosure is
| 4 |
| necessary to initiate or continue civil commitment | 5 |
| proceedings under the laws
of this State or to otherwise | 6 |
| protect the recipient or other person against a
clear, | 7 |
| imminent risk of serious physical or mental injury or | 8 |
| disease or death
being inflicted upon the recipient or by | 9 |
| the recipient on himself or another;
| 10 |
| (iii) when, and to the extent disclosure is, in the | 11 |
| sole discretion of the
therapist, necessary to the | 12 |
| provision of emergency medical care to a recipient
who is | 13 |
| unable to assert or waive his or her rights hereunder;
| 14 |
| (iv) when
disclosure is necessary to collect sums or | 15 |
| receive third
party payment representing charges for | 16 |
| mental health or developmental
disabilities services | 17 |
| provided by a therapist or agency to a recipient
under | 18 |
| Chapter V of the Mental Health and Developmental | 19 |
| Disabilities Code or to
transfer debts under the | 20 |
| Uncollected State Claims Act; however, disclosure
shall be | 21 |
| limited to information needed to pursue collection, and the
| 22 |
| information so disclosed shall not be used for any other | 23 |
| purposes nor shall it
be redisclosed except in connection | 24 |
| with collection activities;
| 25 |
| (v) when
requested by a family member, the Department | 26 |
| of Human Services may assist in
the location of the | 27 |
| interment site of a deceased recipient who is interred in a
| 28 |
| cemetery established under Section 100-26 of the Mental | 29 |
| Health and
Developmental Disabilities Administrative Act;
| 30 |
| (vi) in judicial proceedings
under Article VIII of | 31 |
| Chapter III and Article V of Chapter IV of the Mental
| 32 |
| Health and Developmental Disabilities Code and proceedings | 33 |
| and investigations
preliminary thereto, to the State's | 34 |
| Attorney for the county or residence of a
person who is the | 35 |
| subject of such proceedings, or in which the person is | 36 |
| found,
or in which the facility is located, to the attorney |
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LRB094 14135 DRJ 49309 b |
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| representing the recipient
in the judicial proceedings, to | 2 |
| any person or agency providing mental health
services that | 3 |
| are the subject of the proceedings and to that person's or
| 4 |
| agency's attorney, to any court personnel, including but | 5 |
| not limited to judges
and circuit court clerks, and to a | 6 |
| guardian ad litem if one has been appointed
by the court, | 7 |
| provided that the information so disclosed shall not be | 8 |
| utilized
for any other purpose nor be redisclosed except in | 9 |
| connection with the
proceedings or investigations;
| 10 |
| (vii) when, and to the extent disclosure is
necessary | 11 |
| to comply with the requirements of the Census Bureau in | 12 |
| taking the
federal Decennial Census;
| 13 |
| (viii) when, and to the extent, in the
therapist's sole | 14 |
| discretion, disclosure is necessary to warn or protect a
| 15 |
| specific individual against whom a recipient has made a | 16 |
| specific threat of
violence where there exists a | 17 |
| therapist-recipient relationship or a special
| 18 |
| recipient-individual relationship;
| 19 |
| (ix) in accordance with the Sex Offender
Registration | 20 |
| Act; and
| 21 |
| (x) in accordance with the Rights of Crime Victims and
| 22 |
| Witnesses Act.
| 23 |
| Any person, institution, or agency, under
this Act, | 24 |
| participating in good faith in the making of a report under the
| 25 |
| Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act or in the disclosure | 26 |
| of records and
communications under this Section, shall have | 27 |
| immunity from any liability,
civil, criminal or otherwise, that | 28 |
| might result by reason of such action. For
the purpose of any | 29 |
| proceeding, civil or criminal, arising out of a report or
| 30 |
| disclosure under this Section, the good faith of any person, | 31 |
| institution, or
agency so reporting or disclosing shall be | 32 |
| presumed.
| 33 |
| (Source: P.A. 90-423, eff. 8-15-97; 90-538, eff. 12-1-97; | 34 |
| 90-655, eff.
7-30-98; 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)
| 35 |
| Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
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| becoming law.
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