Full Text of SB0730 101st General Assembly
SB0730eng 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning State government.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the First | 5 | | Responders Suicide Prevention Act. | 6 | | Section 5. Legislative findings. The General Assembly | 7 | | finds that: | 8 | | (1) This State's first responders are tasked with work that | 9 | | is highly stressful if one continually faces the impact of | 10 | | murder, violence, accidents, serious injury, and death. The day | 11 | | in and day out impact of these situations wreak havoc | 12 | | personally and professionally on those who serve their | 13 | | communities. Work as a first responder is a combination of | 14 | | extreme boredom with incidents of mind-numbing terror. No | 15 | | person, no matter how highly trained or well-adjusted, is | 16 | | immune to the long-term impact of cumulative stress or sudden | 17 | | critical incidents. | 18 | | (2) Since September 11, 2001, the role of first responders | 19 | | has changed dramatically. First responders have become the | 20 | | teachers, advocates, counselors, enforcement, and safety to | 21 | | those they serve, yet year after year, police and firefighters | 22 | | always rank at the top for the most stressful jobs in this | 23 | | country. The demands of shift work, change in politics and |
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| 1 | | public policy, and having to make life changing decisions | 2 | | within seconds are all contributing factors in the mental | 3 | | health and welfare of our public servants. Alcoholism, divorce, | 4 | | depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), | 5 | | stress-related health issues, and suicide among first | 6 | | responders are constantly well above the national average. The | 7 | | health and well-being of first responders not only affect the | 8 | | officer or firefighter, but those who work closely around the | 9 | | first responder and the public he or she serves and protects. | 10 | | (3) The purpose of this Act is to allow agencies to train | 11 | | personnel in peer counseling. This allows firefighters and law | 12 | | enforcement officers to have access to trained persons within | 13 | | their respective fields to speak to and seek guidance during | 14 | | difficult and challenging times in their careers and lives. | 15 | | Most first responders feel comfortable speaking to others | 16 | | within their profession that have experienced similar | 17 | | situations. Allowing this type of counseling gives public | 18 | | servants the ability to seek help during trying times with the | 19 | | confidence of knowing their issue is held in confidence with | 20 | | someone who understands. No longer should these public servants | 21 | | have to suffer in silence. | 22 | | (4) Maintaining an emotional and mentally healthy class of | 23 | | first responders should be a priority goal to achieve. Healthy | 24 | | police make better decisions, increase productivity, create | 25 | | better work environments, and respond to society in a much more | 26 | | open and effective manner. |
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| 1 | | Section 10. Definitions. In this Act: | 2 | | "Emergency services provider" means any public employer | 3 | | that employs persons to provide firefighting services. | 4 | | "Emergency services personnel" means any employee of an | 5 | | emergency services provider who is engaged in providing | 6 | | firefighting services. | 7 | | "Employee assistance program" means a program established | 8 | | by a law enforcement agency or emergency services provider to | 9 | | provide counseling support services to employees of the law | 10 | | enforcement agency or emergency services provider, including | 11 | | peer support counselors who have received training in | 12 | | counseling and moral support. | 13 | | "Law enforcement agency" means any county sheriff, | 14 | | municipal police department, police department established by | 15 | | a university, Department of State Police, Department of | 16 | | Corrections, Department of Children and Family Services, | 17 | | Division of Probation Services of the Supreme Court, the Office | 18 | | of the Statewide 9-1-1 Administrator, and other local or county | 19 | | agency comprised of county probation officers, corrections | 20 | | employees, or 9-1-1 telecommunicators or emergency medical | 21 | | dispatchers. | 22 | | "Peer support counseling session" means communication with | 23 | | a counselor through an employee assistance program or a trained | 24 | | peer support counselor designated by the emergency services | 25 | | provider or law enforcement agency. |
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| 1 | | "Public safety personnel" means any employee of a law | 2 | | enforcement agency. | 3 | | Section 15. Establishment of employee assistance program; | 4 | | applicability. | 5 | | (a) This Act applies to peer support counseling sessions | 6 | | conducted by an employee or other person who: | 7 | | (1) has been designated by a law enforcement agency or | 8 | | emergency services provider or by an employee assistance | 9 | | program to act as a counselor; and | 10 | | (2) has received training in counseling to provide | 11 | | emotional and moral support to public safety personnel or | 12 | | emergency services personnel who have been involved in | 13 | | emotionally traumatic incidents by reason of their | 14 | | employment that may affect their ability to execute their | 15 | | respective duties. | 16 | | (b) An emergency services provider or law enforcement | 17 | | agency may establish an employee assistance program to assist | 18 | | emergency services personnel and public safety personnel, | 19 | | including designating a person within the emergency services | 20 | | provider or law enforcement agency to act as a peer support | 21 | | counselor. An emergency services provider or law enforcement | 22 | | agency shall give appropriate training in counseling to provide | 23 | | emotional and moral support to persons designated as a peer | 24 | | support counselor. Emergency services personnel and public | 25 | | safety personnel may refer any person to an employee assistance |
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| 1 | | program or peer support counselor within the emergency services | 2 | | provider or law enforcement agency, or if those services are | 3 | | not available within the agency, to another employee assistance | 4 | | program or peer support counseling program that is available. | 5 | | Section 20. Confidentiality; exemptions. | 6 | | (a) Any communication made by a participant or counselor in | 7 | | a peer support counseling session conducted by a law | 8 | | enforcement agency or by an emergency services provider for | 9 | | public safety personnel or emergency services personnel and any | 10 | | oral or written information conveyed in the peer support | 11 | | counseling session is confidential and may not be disclosed by | 12 | | any person participating in the peer support counseling | 13 | | session. | 14 | | (b) Any communication relating to a peer support counseling | 15 | | session made confidential under this Section that is made | 16 | | between counselors, between counselors and the supervisors or | 17 | | staff of an employee assistance program, or between the | 18 | | supervisor or staff of an employee assistance program, is | 19 | | confidential and may not be disclosed. | 20 | | (c) This Section does not prohibit any communications | 21 | | between counselors who conduct peer support counseling | 22 | | sessions or any communications between counselors and the | 23 | | supervisors or staff of an employee assistance program. | 24 | | (d) This Section does not apply to: | 25 | | (1) any threat of suicide or homicide made by a |
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| 1 | | participant in a peer counseling session or any information | 2 | | conveyed in a peer support counseling session related to a | 3 | | threat of suicide or homicide; | 4 | | (2) any information relating to the abuse of children | 5 | | or of the elderly or other information that is required to | 6 | | be reported by law; or | 7 | | (3) any admission or knowledge of criminal conduct. | 8 | | (e) All communications, notes, records, and reports | 9 | | arising out of a peer support counseling session shall be | 10 | | exempt from inspection and copying under the Freedom of | 11 | | Information Act. | 12 | | (f) A cause of action exists for public safety personnel or
| 13 | | emergency services personnel if the emergency services
| 14 | | provider or law enforcement agency uses confidential
| 15 | | information obtained during a confidential peer support
| 16 | | counseling session conducted by a law enforcement agency or by
| 17 | | an emergency services provider for an adverse employment action
| 18 | | against the participant.
| 19 | | Section 25. Judicial proceedings. | 20 | | (a) Any oral communication or written information made or | 21 | | conveyed by a participant or counselor in a peer support | 22 | | session, including an employee assistance program, is not | 23 | | admissible in any judicial proceeding, arbitration proceeding, | 24 | | or other adjudicatory proceeding, except to the extent | 25 | | necessary in an action
described in subsection (f) of Section |
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| 1 | | 20 or if related to information obtained under subsection (d) | 2 | | of Section 20. | 3 | | (b) Nothing in this Section limits the discovery or | 4 | | introduction into evidence, knowledge acquired by any public | 5 | | safety personnel or emergency services personnel from | 6 | | observations made during the course of employment or material | 7 | | or information acquired during the course of employment that is | 8 | | otherwise subject to discovery in evidence. | 9 | | Section 110. The Department of State Police Law of the
| 10 | | Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is amended by adding | 11 | | Section 2605-99 as follows: | 12 | | (20 ILCS 2605/2605-99 new) | 13 | | Sec. 2605-99. Training; suicide prevention. The | 14 | | Department, in consultation with a statewide association that | 15 | | represents public pension funds under Article 3 and Article 4 | 16 | | of the Illinois Pension Code, shall conduct or approve a 2-day | 17 | | in-service training program for State Police officers in | 18 | | job-related stress management and suicide prevention. The | 19 | | in-service training program shall train State Police officers | 20 | | to recognize signs of work-related cumulative stress and other | 21 | | related issues that may lead to suicide and offer appropriate | 22 | | solutions for intervention. This in-service training program | 23 | | shall be completed every 2 years by each State Police officer. | 24 | | The Department shall establish the training program on or |
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| 1 | | before January 1, 2020. | 2 | | Section 115. The Illinois Police Training Act is amended by | 3 | | changing Section 7 and by adding Section 10.17-2 as follows:
| 4 | | (50 ILCS 705/7) (from Ch. 85, par. 507)
| 5 | | Sec. 7. Rules and standards for schools. The Board shall | 6 | | adopt rules and
minimum standards for such schools which shall | 7 | | include, but not be limited to,
the following:
| 8 | | a. The curriculum for probationary police officers | 9 | | which shall be
offered by all certified schools shall | 10 | | include, but not be limited to,
courses of procedural | 11 | | justice, arrest and use and control tactics, search and | 12 | | seizure, including temporary questioning, civil rights, | 13 | | human rights, human relations,
cultural competency, | 14 | | including implicit bias and racial and ethnic sensitivity,
| 15 | | criminal law, law of criminal procedure, constitutional | 16 | | and proper use of law enforcement authority, vehicle and | 17 | | traffic law including
uniform and non-discriminatory | 18 | | enforcement of the Illinois Vehicle Code,
traffic control | 19 | | and accident investigation, techniques of obtaining
| 20 | | physical evidence, court testimonies, statements, reports, | 21 | | firearms
training, training in the use of electronic | 22 | | control devices, including the psychological and | 23 | | physiological effects of the use of those devices on | 24 | | humans, first-aid (including cardiopulmonary |
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| 1 | | resuscitation), training in the administration of opioid | 2 | | antagonists as defined in paragraph (1) of subsection (e) | 3 | | of Section 5-23 of the Substance Use Disorder Act, handling | 4 | | of
juvenile offenders, recognition of
mental conditions | 5 | | and crises, including, but not limited to, the disease of | 6 | | addiction, which require immediate assistance and response | 7 | | and methods to
safeguard and provide assistance to a person | 8 | | in need of mental
treatment, recognition of abuse, neglect, | 9 | | financial exploitation, and self-neglect of adults with | 10 | | disabilities and older adults, as defined in Section 2 of | 11 | | the Adult Protective Services Act, crimes against the | 12 | | elderly, law of evidence, the hazards of high-speed police | 13 | | vehicle
chases with an emphasis on alternatives to the | 14 | | high-speed chase, and
physical training. The curriculum | 15 | | shall include specific training in
techniques for | 16 | | immediate response to and investigation of cases of | 17 | | domestic
violence and of sexual assault of adults and | 18 | | children, including cultural perceptions and common myths | 19 | | of sexual assault and sexual abuse as well as interview | 20 | | techniques that are age sensitive and are trauma informed, | 21 | | victim centered, and victim sensitive. The curriculum | 22 | | shall include
training in techniques designed to promote | 23 | | effective
communication at the initial contact with crime | 24 | | victims and ways to comprehensively
explain to victims and | 25 | | witnesses their rights under the Rights
of Crime Victims | 26 | | and Witnesses Act and the Crime
Victims Compensation Act. |
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| 1 | | The curriculum shall also include training in effective | 2 | | recognition of and responses to stress, trauma, and | 3 | | post-traumatic stress experienced by police officers. The | 4 | | curriculum shall also include a block of instruction aimed | 5 | | at identifying and interacting with persons with autism and | 6 | | other developmental or physical disabilities, reducing | 7 | | barriers to reporting crimes against persons with autism, | 8 | | and addressing the unique challenges presented by cases | 9 | | involving victims or witnesses with autism and other | 10 | | developmental disabilities. The curriculum for
permanent | 11 | | police officers shall include, but not be limited to: (1) | 12 | | refresher
and in-service training in any of the courses | 13 | | listed above in this
subparagraph, (2) advanced courses in | 14 | | any of the subjects listed above in
this subparagraph, (3) | 15 | | training for supervisory personnel, and (4)
specialized | 16 | | training in subjects and fields to be selected by the | 17 | | board. The training in the use of electronic control | 18 | | devices shall be conducted for probationary police | 19 | | officers, including University police officers.
| 20 | | b. Minimum courses of study, attendance requirements | 21 | | and equipment
requirements.
| 22 | | c. Minimum requirements for instructors.
| 23 | | d. Minimum basic training requirements, which a | 24 | | probationary police
officer must satisfactorily complete | 25 | | before being eligible for permanent
employment as a local | 26 | | law enforcement officer for a participating local
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| 1 | | governmental agency. Those requirements shall include | 2 | | training in first aid
(including cardiopulmonary | 3 | | resuscitation).
| 4 | | e. Minimum basic training requirements, which a | 5 | | probationary county
corrections officer must | 6 | | satisfactorily complete before being eligible for
| 7 | | permanent employment as a county corrections officer for a | 8 | | participating
local governmental agency.
| 9 | | f. Minimum basic training requirements which a | 10 | | probationary court
security officer must satisfactorily | 11 | | complete before being eligible for
permanent employment as | 12 | | a court security officer for a participating local
| 13 | | governmental agency. The Board shall
establish those | 14 | | training requirements which it considers appropriate for | 15 | | court
security officers and shall certify schools to | 16 | | conduct that training.
| 17 | | A person hired to serve as a court security officer | 18 | | must obtain from the
Board a certificate (i) attesting to | 19 | | his or her successful completion of the
training course; | 20 | | (ii) attesting to his or her satisfactory
completion of a | 21 | | training program of similar content and number of hours | 22 | | that
has been found acceptable by the Board under the | 23 | | provisions of this Act; or
(iii) attesting to the Board's | 24 | | determination that the training
course is unnecessary | 25 | | because of the person's extensive prior law enforcement
| 26 | | experience.
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| 1 | | Individuals who currently serve as court security | 2 | | officers shall be deemed
qualified to continue to serve in | 3 | | that capacity so long as they are certified
as provided by | 4 | | this Act within 24 months of June 1, 1997 (the effective | 5 | | date of Public Act 89-685). Failure to be so certified, | 6 | | absent a waiver from the
Board, shall cause the officer to | 7 | | forfeit his or her position.
| 8 | | All individuals hired as court security officers on or | 9 | | after June 1, 1997 (the effective
date of Public Act | 10 | | 89-685) shall be certified within 12 months of the
date of | 11 | | their hire, unless a waiver has been obtained by the Board, | 12 | | or they
shall forfeit their positions.
| 13 | | The Sheriff's Merit Commission, if one exists, or the | 14 | | Sheriff's Office if
there is no Sheriff's Merit Commission, | 15 | | shall maintain a list of all
individuals who have filed | 16 | | applications to become court security officers and
who meet | 17 | | the eligibility requirements established under this Act. | 18 | | Either
the Sheriff's Merit Commission, or the Sheriff's | 19 | | Office if no Sheriff's Merit
Commission exists, shall | 20 | | establish a schedule of reasonable intervals for
| 21 | | verification of the applicants' qualifications under
this | 22 | | Act and as established by the Board.
| 23 | | g. Minimum in-service training requirements, which a | 24 | | police officer must satisfactorily complete every 3 years. | 25 | | Those requirements shall include constitutional and proper | 26 | | use of law enforcement authority, procedural justice, |
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| 1 | | civil rights, human rights, mental health awareness and | 2 | | response, officer wellness, and cultural competency. | 3 | | h. Minimum in-service training requirements, which a | 4 | | police officer must satisfactorily complete at least | 5 | | annually. Those requirements shall include law updates and | 6 | | use of force training which shall include scenario based | 7 | | training, or similar training approved by the Board. | 8 | | (Source: P.A. 99-352, eff. 1-1-16; 99-480, eff. 9-9-15; 99-642, | 9 | | eff. 7-28-16; 99-801, eff. 1-1-17; 100-121, eff. 1-1-18; | 10 | | 100-247, eff. 1-1-18; 100-759, eff. 1-1-19; 100-863, eff. | 11 | | 8-14-18; 100-910, eff. 1-1-19; revised 9-28-19.)
| 12 | | (50 ILCS 705/10.17-2 new) | 13 | | Sec. 10.17-2. Training; suicide prevention. The Board, in | 14 | | consultation with a statewide association that represents | 15 | | public pension funds under Article 3 and Article 4 of the | 16 | | Illinois Pension Code, shall conduct or approve an in-service | 17 | | training program for law enforcement officers in job-related | 18 | | stress management and suicide prevention. The in-service | 19 | | training program shall train law enforcement officers of local | 20 | | government agencies to recognize signs of work-related | 21 | | cumulative stress and other related issues that may lead to | 22 | | suicide and offer appropriate solutions for intervention. This | 23 | | in-service training program shall be completed every 3 years by | 24 | | each local law enforcement officer. The Board shall establish | 25 | | the training program on or before January 1, 2020.
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| 1 | | Section 999. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 2 | | becoming law.
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