Full Text of HB3684 99th General Assembly
HB3684ham002 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY | Rep. Litesa E. Wallace Filed: 4/7/2015
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| 1 | | AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 3684
| 2 | | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 3684 by replacing | 3 | | everything after the enacting clause with the following:
| 4 | | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 | | Foster Children's Bill of Rights Act. | 6 | | Section 5. Foster Children's Bill or Rights. It is the | 7 | | policy of this State that every child and
adult in the care of | 8 | | the Department of Children and Family Services who is placed in | 9 | | foster care shall have the following rights: | 10 | | (1) To live in a safe, healthy, and comfortable home | 11 | | where he or
she is treated with respect. | 12 | | (2) To be free from physical, sexual, emotional, or | 13 | | other abuse,
or corporal punishment. | 14 | | (3) To receive adequate and healthy food, adequate | 15 | | clothing, and,
for youth in group homes, an allowance. | 16 | | (4) To receive medical, dental, vision, and mental |
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| 1 | | health
services. | 2 | | (5) To be free of the administration of medication or | 3 | | chemical
substances, unless authorized by a physician. | 4 | | (6) To contact family members, unless prohibited by | 5 | | court order,
and social workers, attorneys, foster youth | 6 | | advocates and supporters,
Court Appointed Special | 7 | | Advocates (CASAs), and probation officers. | 8 | | (7) To visit and contact brothers and sisters, unless | 9 | | prohibited
by court order. | 10 | | (8) To contact the Advocacy Office for Children and | 11 | | Families established under the Children and Family | 12 | | Services Act or the Department of Children and Family | 13 | | Services' Office of the Inspector General regarding | 14 | | violations of rights, to speak to representatives of these
| 15 | | offices confidentially, and to be free from threats or | 16 | | punishment for
making complaints. | 17 | | (9) To make and receive confidential telephone calls | 18 | | and send and
receive unopened mail, unless prohibited by | 19 | | court order.
| 20 | | (10) To attend religious services and activities of his | 21 | | or her
choice.
| 22 | | (11) To maintain an emancipation bank account and | 23 | | manage personal
income, consistent with the child's age and | 24 | | developmental level,
unless prohibited by the case plan. | 25 | | (12) To not be locked in a room, building, or facility | 26 | | premises,
unless placed in a secure child care facility |
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| 1 | | licensed by the Department of Children and Family Services | 2 | | under the Child Care Act of 1969. | 3 | | (13) To attend school and participate in | 4 | | extracurricular,
cultural, and personal enrichment | 5 | | activities, consistent with the
child's age and | 6 | | developmental level, with minimal disruptions to
school | 7 | | attendance and educational stability. | 8 | | (14) To work and develop job skills at an | 9 | | age-appropriate level,
consistent with State law. | 10 | | (15) To have social contacts with people outside of the | 11 | | foster
care system, including teachers, church members, | 12 | | mentors, and
friends. | 13 | | (16) If he or she meets age requirements, to attend | 14 | | services and programs operated by the Department of | 15 | | Children and Family Services or any other appropriate State | 16 | | agency that aim to help current and former foster youth | 17 | | achieve self-sufficiency prior to and after leaving foster | 18 | | care. | 19 | | (17) To attend court hearings and speak to the judge. | 20 | | (18) To have storage space for private use. | 21 | | (19) To be involved in the development of his or her | 22 | | own case plan
and plan for permanent placement. | 23 | | (20) To review his or her own case plan and plan for | 24 | | permanent
placement, if he or she is 12 years of age or | 25 | | older and in a
permanent placement, and to receive | 26 | | information about his or her
out-of-home placement and case |
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| 1 | | plan, including being told of changes
to the case plan. | 2 | | (21) To be free from unreasonable searches of personal | 3 | | belongings. | 4 | | (22) To the confidentiality of all juvenile court | 5 | | records
consistent with existing law. | 6 | | (23) To have fair and equal access to all available | 7 | | services,
placement, care, treatment, and benefits, and to | 8 | | not be subjected to
discrimination or harassment on the | 9 | | basis of actual or perceived
race, ethnic group | 10 | | identification, ancestry, national origin, color,
| 11 | | religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental | 12 | | or
physical disability, or HIV status. | 13 | | (24) To have caregivers and child welfare personnel who | 14 | | have received sensitivity training and instruction on | 15 | | matters concerning race and ethnicity. | 16 | | (25) To have caregivers and child welfare personnel who | 17 | | have
received instruction on cultural competency and | 18 | | sensitivity relating
to, and best practices for, providing | 19 | | adequate care to lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender | 20 | | youth in out-of-home care. | 21 | | (26) At 16 years of age or older, to have access to | 22 | | existing
information regarding the educational options | 23 | | available, including,
but not limited to, the coursework | 24 | | necessary for vocational and
postsecondary educational | 25 | | programs, and information regarding
financial aid for | 26 | | postsecondary education. |
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| 1 | | (27) To have access to age-appropriate, medically | 2 | | accurate
information about reproductive health care, the | 3 | | prevention of
unplanned pregnancy, and the prevention and | 4 | | treatment of sexually
transmitted infections at 12 years of | 5 | | age or older.
| 6 | | (28) To receive a copy of this Act from and have it | 7 | | fully explained by the Department of Children and Family | 8 | | Services when the child or adult is placed in the care of | 9 | | the Department of Children and Family Services. | 10 | | Section 10. Foster care provider. Nothing in this Act shall | 11 | | be interpreted to require a
foster care provider to take any | 12 | | action that would impair the health
and safety of children in | 13 | | out-of-home placement.".
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