(305 ILCS 70/95-303)
    Sec. 95-303. Powers and duties. The workgroup shall have the following powers and duties:
        (1) To collaborate in sharing and analyzing
    
information and data for all of the following purposes:
            (i) Understanding the root causes of poverty and
        
economic insecurity, including contributing social, economic, and cultural factors.
            (ii) Understanding and addressing
        
intergenerational poverty by:
                (A) Identifying children who are at risk of
            
continuing in the cycle of poverty absent intervention.
                (B) Identifying and developing effective and
            
efficient plans, programs, and recommendations to help at-risk children in this State escape the cycle of poverty.
                (C) Implementing data-driven policies and
            
programs, to the extent authorized by law, addressing poverty, public assistance, education, economic development, criminal justice, and other areas as needed to measurably reduce the incidence of children in this State who remain in poverty as they become adults.
                (D) Establishing and facilitating improved
            
cooperation, data sharing, and policy coordination among all persons, from State agencies to case workers, in rescuing children from intergenerational poverty.
                (E) Studying and measuring the effect of
            
intergenerational poverty on the ability of parents and children to achieve economic stability, including the effect on educational attainment, rates of incarceration, lifetime earnings, access to healthcare, and access to housing.
                (F) Studying, evaluating, and reporting on
            
the status and effectiveness of policies, procedures, and programs that provide services to children in this State affected by intergenerational poverty.
                (G) Studying and evaluating the policies,
            
procedures, and programs implemented by other states and nongovernmental entities that address the needs of children affected by intergenerational poverty.
                (H) Identifying State policies, procedures,
            
and programs or federal requirements that are impeding efforts to help children in this State affected by intergenerational poverty escape the cycle of poverty.
                (I) Developing and implementing programs and
            
policies that use the two-generation approach.
            (iii) Studying and measuring the effect that
        
poverty and economic insecurity have on all of the following:
                (A) Worker productivity and economic output.
                (B) The health and welfare of children,
            
including access to health care, housing, proper nutrition, and quality education.
            (iv) Identifying State programs, including those
        
related to economic development, job creation, job training, the environment, disaster relief, hazard mitigation, extreme weather, and climate change, in need of reform to better target resources to low-income, minority, rural, urban, and other populations or geographic areas suffering from economic insecurity and disparate rates of poverty.
            (v) Measuring the fiscal impact on the State from
        
successfully transitioning individuals and families from poverty to long-term economic stability. Fiscal impact measurements may include all of the following:
                (A) Reductions in long-term costs of social
            
safety net programs.
                (B) Reductions in long-term health care costs
            
by improving the health of households formerly facing economic insecurity or poverty.
                (C) Increases in State and local revenues
            
attributable to new taxpaying individuals as a result of increased employment and disposable income.
                (D) Reductions in enrollment and costs in
            
need-based benefits and services programs.
                (E) Improvements to the overall economy of
            
this State and reduced financial pressures on the State and local governments.
        (2) To establish an ongoing system of data sharing,
    
policy coordination and communication among and within State agencies, local agencies, and other organizations related to programs aimed at improving economic security and eliminating poverty.
        (3) To identify knowledge gaps, research needs, and
    
policy and program deficiencies associated with economic insecurity and poverty.
        (4) To assist the Commission in the development of
    
the strategic plan, including sharing data and information identified under paragraphs (1) and (3) and analyses of that data and information.
        (5) To implement the strategic plan adopted by the
    
Commission, including all of the following:
            (i) Coordinating implementation of the strategic
        
plan.
            (ii) Advising and assisting relevant agencies in
        
the implementation of the strategic plan.
            (iii) Advising relevant agencies on specific
        
programmatic and policy matters related to the strategic plan.
            (iv) Providing relevant subject matter expertise
        
to each agency for purposes of implementing the strategic plan.
            (v) Identifying and addressing issues that may
        
influence the future of the strategic plan.
(Source: P.A. 101-636, eff. 6-10-20.)