Full Text of HB5257 100th General Assembly
HB5257 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018 HB5257 Introduced , by Rep. Patricia R. Bellock SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
| 20 ILCS 505/35.1 | from Ch. 23, par. 5035.1 | 705 ILCS 405/2-17 | from Ch. 37, par. 802-17 |
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Amends the Children and Family Services Act. Provides that the Department of Children and Family Services shall provide a minor's guardian ad litem or a minor's attorney appointed under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, with a copy of each significant event report, as defined by Department rule, involving the minor no later than 3 days after the Department learns of an event requiring a significant event report to be written, or earlier as required by Department rule. Amends the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. Provides that a guardian ad litem appointed or attorney appointed under the Act, shall receive a copy of each significant event report, as defined by Department of Children and Family Services rule, that involves the minor no later than 3 days after the Department learns of an event requiring a significant event report to be written, or earlier as required by Department rule.
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| | A BILL FOR |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning juveniles.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended | 5 | | by changing Section 35.1 as follows:
| 6 | | (20 ILCS 505/35.1) (from Ch. 23, par. 5035.1)
| 7 | | Sec. 35.1. The case and clinical records of patients in | 8 | | Department
supervised facilities, youth in care, children | 9 | | receiving or
applying for child welfare services, persons | 10 | | receiving or applying for
other services of the Department, and | 11 | | Department reports of injury or abuse to
children shall not be | 12 | | open to the general public. Such case and clinical
records and | 13 | | reports or the information contained therein shall be disclosed | 14 | | by
the Director of the Department
to juvenile authorities
when | 15 | | necessary for the discharge of their official duties
who | 16 | | request information concerning the minor
and who
certify in | 17 | | writing that the information will not be disclosed to any other
| 18 | | party except as provided under law or order of court. For | 19 | | purposes of this
Section, "juvenile authorities" means: (i) a | 20 | | judge of
the circuit court and members of the staff of the | 21 | | court designated by the
judge; (ii) parties to the proceedings | 22 | | under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 and
their attorneys; (iii) | 23 | | probation
officers and court appointed advocates for the |
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| 1 | | juvenile authorized by the judge
hearing the case; (iv) any | 2 | | individual, public or private agency having custody
of the | 3 | | child pursuant to court order or pursuant to placement of the | 4 | | child by the Department; (v) any individual, public or private
| 5 | | agency providing education, medical or mental health service to | 6 | | the child when
the requested information is needed to determine | 7 | | the appropriate service or
treatment for the minor; (vi) any | 8 | | potential placement provider when such
release
is authorized by | 9 | | the court for the limited purpose of determining the
| 10 | | appropriateness of the potential placement; (vii) law | 11 | | enforcement officers and
prosecutors;
(viii) adult and | 12 | | juvenile prisoner review boards; (ix) authorized military
| 13 | | personnel; (x)
individuals authorized by court; (xi) the | 14 | | Illinois General Assembly or
any committee
or commission | 15 | | thereof. This Section does not apply
to
the Department's fiscal | 16 | | records, other records of a purely administrative
nature, or | 17 | | any forms, documents or other records required of facilities | 18 | | subject
to licensure by the Department except as may otherwise | 19 | | be provided under the
Child Care Act of 1969. Notwithstanding | 20 | | any other provision of this Section, upon request, a guardian | 21 | | ad litem or attorney appointed to represent a child who is the | 22 | | subject of an action pursuant to Article II of the Juvenile | 23 | | Court Act of 1987 may obtain a copy of foster home licensing | 24 | | records, including all information related to licensing | 25 | | complaints and investigations, regarding a home in which the | 26 | | child is placed or regarding a home in which the Department |
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| 1 | | plans to place the child. Any information contained in foster | 2 | | home licensing records that is protected from disclosure by | 3 | | federal or State law may be obtained only in compliance with | 4 | | that law. Nothing in this Section restricts the authority of a | 5 | | court to order release of licensing records for purposes of | 6 | | discovery or as otherwise authorized by law.
| 7 | | Nothing contained in this Act prevents the sharing or | 8 | | disclosure of
information or records relating or pertaining to | 9 | | juveniles subject to the
provisions of the Serious Habitual | 10 | | Offender Comprehensive Action Program when
that information is | 11 | | used to assist in the early identification and treatment of
| 12 | | habitual juvenile offenders.
| 13 | | Nothing contained in this Act prevents the sharing or | 14 | | disclosure of
information or records relating or pertaining to | 15 | | the death of a minor under the
care of or receiving services | 16 | | from the Department and under the jurisdiction of
the juvenile | 17 | | court with the juvenile court, the State's Attorney, and the
| 18 | | minor's attorney.
| 19 | | The Department shall provide a minor's guardian ad litem, | 20 | | appointed under Section 2-17 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 | 21 | | or a minor's attorney appointed under the Juvenile Court Act of | 22 | | 1987, with a copy of each significant event report, as defined | 23 | | by Department rule, involving the minor no later than 3 days | 24 | | after the Department learns of an event requiring a significant | 25 | | event report to be written, or earlier as required by | 26 | | Department rule. |
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| 1 | | Nothing contained in this Section prohibits or prevents any | 2 | | individual
dealing with or providing services to a minor from | 3 | | sharing information with
another individual dealing with or | 4 | | providing services to a minor for the
purpose of coordinating | 5 | | efforts on behalf of the minor. The sharing of such
information | 6 | | is only for the purpose stated herein and is to be consistent | 7 | | with
the intent and purpose of the confidentiality provisions | 8 | | of the Juvenile Court
Act of 1987. This provision does not | 9 | | abrogate any recognized privilege.
Sharing information does | 10 | | not include copying of records, reports or case files
unless | 11 | | authorized herein.
| 12 | | Nothing in this Section prohibits or prevents the | 13 | | re-disclosure of records,
reports,
or other information that | 14 | | reveals malfeasance or nonfeasance on the part of the
| 15 | | Department, its employees, or its agents. Nothing in this | 16 | | Section prohibits
or prevents
the Department or a party in a | 17 | | proceeding under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987
from copying | 18 | | records, reports, or case files for the purpose of sharing | 19 | | those
documents with other parties to the litigation.
| 20 | | (Source: P.A. 99-779, eff. 1-1-17; 100-159, eff. 8-18-17.)
| 21 | | Section 10. The Juvenile Court Act of 1987 is amended by | 22 | | changing Section 2-17 as follows:
| 23 | | (705 ILCS 405/2-17) (from Ch. 37, par. 802-17)
| 24 | | Sec. 2-17. Guardian ad litem.
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| 1 | | (1) Immediately upon the filing of a petition alleging that | 2 | | the minor is
a person described in Sections 2-3 or 2-4 of this | 3 | | Article, the court shall
appoint a guardian ad litem for the | 4 | | minor if:
| 5 | | (a) such petition alleges that the minor is an abused | 6 | | or neglected
child; or
| 7 | | (b) such petition alleges that charges alleging the | 8 | | commission
of any of the sex offenses defined in Article 11 | 9 | | or in Sections 11-1.20, 11-1.30, 11-1.40, 11-1.50, | 10 | | 11-1.60, 12-13,
12-14,
12-14.1,
12-15 or 12-16 of the | 11 | | Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, have | 12 | | been
filed against a defendant in any court and that such | 13 | | minor is the alleged
victim of the acts of defendant in the | 14 | | commission of such offense.
| 15 | | Unless the guardian ad litem appointed pursuant to this | 16 | | paragraph
(1) is an attorney at law he shall be represented in | 17 | | the performance
of his duties by counsel. The guardian ad litem | 18 | | shall represent the best
interests of the minor and shall | 19 | | present recommendations to the court
consistent with that duty.
| 20 | | (2) Before proceeding with the hearing, the court shall
| 21 | | appoint a guardian ad litem for the minor if
| 22 | | (a) no parent, guardian, custodian or relative of the | 23 | | minor appears
at the first or any subsequent hearing of the | 24 | | case;
| 25 | | (b) the petition prays for the appointment of a | 26 | | guardian with power
to consent to adoption; or
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| 1 | | (c) the petition for which the minor is before the | 2 | | court resulted
from a report made pursuant to the Abused | 3 | | and Neglected Child Reporting
Act.
| 4 | | (3) The court may appoint a guardian ad litem for the minor | 5 | | whenever
it finds that there may be a conflict of interest | 6 | | between the minor and
his parents or other custodian or that it | 7 | | is otherwise in the minor's
best interest to do so.
| 8 | | (4) Unless the guardian ad litem is an attorney, he shall | 9 | | be
represented by counsel.
| 10 | | (5) The reasonable fees of a guardian ad litem appointed | 11 | | under this
Section shall be fixed by the court and charged to | 12 | | the parents of the
minor, to the extent they are able to pay. | 13 | | If the parents are unable to
pay those fees, they shall be paid | 14 | | from the general fund of the county.
| 15 | | (6) A guardian ad litem appointed under this Section, shall | 16 | | receive
copies of any and all classified reports of child abuse | 17 | | and neglect made
under the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting | 18 | | Act in which the minor who
is the subject of a report under the | 19 | | Abused and Neglected Child Reporting
Act, is also the minor for | 20 | | whom the guardian ad litem is appointed under
this Section.
| 21 | | (6.5) A guardian ad litem appointed under this Section or | 22 | | attorney appointed under this Act, shall receive a copy of each | 23 | | significant event report, as defined by Department of Children | 24 | | and Family Services rule, that involves the minor no later than | 25 | | 3 days after the Department learns of an event requiring a | 26 | | significant event report to be written, or earlier as required |
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| 1 | | by Department rule. | 2 | | (7) The appointed
guardian ad
litem shall remain the | 3 | | child's guardian ad litem throughout the entire juvenile
trial | 4 | | court
proceedings, including permanency hearings and | 5 | | termination of parental rights
proceedings, unless there is a | 6 | | substitution entered by order of the court.
| 7 | | (8) The guardian
ad
litem or an agent of the guardian ad | 8 | | litem shall have a minimum of one
in-person contact with the | 9 | | minor and one contact with one
of the
current foster parents or | 10 | | caregivers prior to the
adjudicatory hearing, and at
least one | 11 | | additional in-person contact with the child and one contact | 12 | | with
one of the
current foster
parents or caregivers after the | 13 | | adjudicatory hearing but
prior to the first permanency hearing
| 14 | | and one additional in-person contact with the child and one | 15 | | contact with one
of the current
foster parents or caregivers | 16 | | each subsequent year. For good cause shown, the
judge may | 17 | | excuse face-to-face interviews required in this subsection.
| 18 | | (9) In counties with a population of 100,000 or more but | 19 | | less than
3,000,000, each guardian ad litem must successfully | 20 | | complete a training program
approved by the Department of | 21 | | Children and Family Services. The Department of
Children and | 22 | | Family Services shall provide training materials and documents | 23 | | to
guardians ad litem who are not mandated to attend the | 24 | | training program. The
Department of Children and Family | 25 | | Services shall develop
and
distribute to all guardians ad litem | 26 | | a bibliography containing information
including but not |
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| 1 | | limited to the juvenile court process, termination of
parental | 2 | | rights, child development, medical aspects of child abuse, and | 3 | | the
child's need for safety and permanence.
| 4 | | (Source: P.A. 96-1551, eff. 7-1-11; 97-1150, eff. 1-25-13.)
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