State of Illinois
90th General Assembly
Legislation

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90_HB1336

      20 ILCS 505/5.15
          Amends the Children and Family  Services  Act.   Provides
      that the Department of Human Services shall establish certain
      priorities  for  services to children in State-subsidized day
      care.
                                                     LRB9004597PTcw
                                               LRB9004597PTcw
 1        AN ACT to amend the Children and Family Services  Act  by
 2    changing Section 5.15.
 3        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 4    represented in the General Assembly:
 5        Section 5.  The  Children  and  Family  Services  Act  is
 6    amended by changing Section 5.15 as follows:
 7        (20 ILCS 505/5.15)
 8        (This  Section  may contain text from a Public Act with a
 9    delayed effective date)
10        Sec. 5.15.  Daycare; Department of Human Services.
11        (a)  For the  purpose  of  ensuring  effective  statewide
12    planning,  development,  and utilization of resources for the
13    day care of children, operated under  various  auspices,  the
14    Department  of Human Services is designated to coordinate all
15    day care activities for  children  of  the  State  and  shall
16    develop  or  continue,  and  shall update every year, a State
17    comprehensive day-care plan for submission  to  the  Governor
18    that identifies high-priority areas and groups, relating them
19    to  available  resources  and  identifying the most effective
20    approaches to the use of  existing  day  care  services.  The
21    State  comprehensive day-care plan shall be made available to
22    the General Assembly following the  Governor's  approval   of
23    the plan.
24        The  plan  shall  include  methods and procedures for the
25    development of additional day care resources for children  to
26    meet  the  goal of reducing short-run and long-run dependency
27    and to provide necessary enrichment and  stimulation  to  the
28    education  of  young children.  Recommendations shall be made
29    for State policy on optimum use of private and public, local,
30    State and federal resources, including  an  estimate  of  the
31    resources needed for the licensing and regulation of day care
                            -2-                LRB9004597PTcw
 1    facilities.
 2        A  written  report shall be submitted to the Governor and
 3    the General Assembly annually on April 15. The  report  shall
 4    include  an  evaluation  of  developments  over the preceding
 5    fiscal  year,  including  cost-benefit  analyses  of  various
 6    arrangements.  Beginning with the report in 1990 submitted by
 7    the  Department's  predecessor  agency  and  every  2   years
 8    thereafter, the report shall also include the following:
 9             (1)  An assessment of the child care services, needs
10        and  available  resources  throughout  the  State  and an
11        assessment  of  the  adequacy  of  existing  child   care
12        services,   including,   but  not  limited  to,  services
13        assisted under this  Act  and  under  any  other  program
14        administered by other State agencies.
15             (2)  A  survey  of  day care facilities to determine
16        the number of qualified caregivers, as defined  by  rule,
17        attracted   to   vacant   positions   and   any  problems
18        encountered by facilities  in  attracting  and  retaining
19        capable caregivers.
20             (3)  The  average  wages  and  salaries  and  fringe
21        benefit packages paid to caregivers throughout the State,
22        computed on a regional basis.
23             (4)  The  qualifications  of new caregivers hired at
24        licensed day care facilities during the  previous  2-year
25        period.
26             (5)  Recommendations  for increasing caregiver wages
27        and salaries to ensure quality care for children.
28             (6)  Evaluation of  the  fee  structure  and  income
29        eligibility for child care subsidized by the State.
30        The  requirement  for  reporting  to the General Assembly
31    shall be satisfied by filing copies of the  report  with  the
32    Speaker,  the  Minority Leader, and the Clerk of the House of
33    Representatives, the President, the Minority Leader, and  the
34    Secretary  of  the Senate, and the Legislative Research Unit,
                            -3-                LRB9004597PTcw
 1    as  required  by  Section  3.1  of   the   General   Assembly
 2    Organization  Act, and filing such additional copies with the
 3    State Government Report Distribution Center for  the  General
 4    Assembly  as  is required under paragraph (t) of Section 7 of
 5    the State Library Act.
 6        (b)  The Department of  Human  Services  shall  establish
 7    policies  and  procedures  for  developing  and  implementing
 8    interagency  agreements  with  other  agencies  of  the State
 9    providing child  care  services  or  reimbursement  for  such
10    services.
11        (c)  In   cooperation  with  other  State  agencies,  the
12    Department of Human Services shall  develop and implement, or
13    shall continue, a resource and referral system for the  State
14    of  Illinois either within the Department or by contract with
15    local or regional agencies.  Funding  for  implementation  of
16    this system may be provided through Department appropriations
17    or  other inter-agency funding arrangements. The resource and
18    referral  system  shall  provide  at  least   the   following
19    services:
20             (1)  Assembling  and  maintaining a data base on the
21        supply of child care services.
22             (2)  Providing   information   and   referrals   for
23        parents.
24             (3)  Coordinating the development of new child  care
25        resources.
26             (4)  Providing  technical assistance and training to
27        child care service providers.
28             (5)  Recording and analyzing the  demand  for  child
29        care services.
30        (d)  The  Department  of Human Services shall conduct day
31    care planning activities with the following priorities:
32             (1)  Development of  voluntary  day  care  resources
33        wherever  possible,  with the provision for grants-in-aid
34        only where demonstrated to be  useful  and  necessary  as
                            -4-                LRB9004597PTcw
 1        incentives or supports.
 2             (2)  Emphasis   on  service  to  children  with  the
 3        following priorities:
 4                  (A)  Children  from  families  in  stress   and
 5             crises  whose members potentially may become, or are
 6             in danger of becoming, non-productive and  dependent
 7             and   children   in  protective  service  cases  and
 8             children with special needs.
 9                  (B)  Children  of  working  parents  who   have
10             recently  exhausted  their  day  care  benefits from
11             State or federal public assistance.
12                  (C)  Children   of   recipients    of    public
13             assistance when the such service will allow training
14             or  employment  of  the  parent toward achieving the
15             goal of independence. Emphasis shall also  be  given
16             to  support  services  that  will help to ensure the
17             parents' graduation from high school and to services
18             for participants in the Project  Chance  program  of
19             job training conducted by the Department.
20                  (D)  Children of teen-age parents.
21                  (E)  Children  in very low income families with
22             working parents.
23                  (F)  Children of all other eligible families.
24             (3)  Maximum  employment  of  recipients  of  public
25        assistance in  day  care  centers  and  day  care  homes,
26        operated  in  conjunction  with  short-term work training
27        programs.
28             (4)  (Blank). Care  of  children  from  families  in
29        stress  and  crises whose members potentially may become,
30        or  are  in  danger  of  becoming,   non-productive   and
31        dependent.
32             (5)  Expansion   of   family   day  care  facilities
33        wherever possible.
34             (6)  Location of centers in  economically  depressed
                            -5-                LRB9004597PTcw
 1        neighborhoods,  preferably  in multi-service centers with
 2        cooperation of other agencies.
 3             (7)  Use of existing facilities free  of  charge  or
 4        for  reasonable  rental  whenever  possible  in  lieu  of
 5        construction.
 6             (8)  Development  of  strategies for assuring a more
 7        complete range of day care options,  including  provision
 8        of day care services in homes, in schools, or in centers,
 9        which  will  enable  a  parent  or  parents to complete a
10        course of education or obtain or maintain employment.
11        Emphasis shall be given to  support  services  that  will
12    help  to ensure such parents' graduation from high school and
13    to services for participants in the Project Chance program of
14    job training conducted by the Department.
15        (e)  The Department  of  Human  Services  shall  actively
16    stimulate  the development of public and private resources at
17    the local level. It shall also seek the  fullest  utilization
18    of  federal  funds  directly  or  indirectly available to the
19    Department.
20        Where appropriate, existing non-governmental agencies  or
21    associations shall be involved in planning by the Department.
22    (Source: P.A. 89-507, eff. 7-1-97.)

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