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91_SB1065enr SB1065 Enrolled LRB9102324SMdvA 1 AN ACT to amend the Early Intervention Services System 2 Act by changing Sections 2, 3, 6, 11, 12, and 13 and by 3 repealing Section 14. 4 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 5 represented in the General Assembly: 6 Section 5. The Early Intervention Services System Act is 7 amended by changing Sections 2, 3, 6, 11, 12, and 13 as 8 follows: 9 (325 ILCS 20/2) (from Ch. 23, par. 4152) 10 Sec. 2. Legislative Findings and Policy. 11 (a) The General Assembly finds that there is an urgent 12 and substantial need to: 13 (1) enhance the development of all eligible infants 14 and toddlers in the State of Illinois in order to 15 minimize developmental delay and maximize individual 16 potential for adult independence; 17 (2) enhance the capacity of families to meet the 18 special needs of eligible infants and toddlers including 19 the purchase of services when necessary; 20 (3) reduce educational costs by minimizing the need 21 for special education and related services when eligible 22 infants and toddlers reach school age; 23 (4) enhance the independence, productivity and 24 integration with age-appropriate peers of eligible 25 children and their families; 26 (5) reduce social services costs and minimize the 27 need for institutionalization; and 28 (6) prevent secondary impairments and disabilities 29 by improving the health of infants and toddlers, thereby 30 reducing health costs for the families and the State. 31 (b) The General Assembly therefore intends that the SB1065 Enrolled -2- LRB9102324SMdvA 1 policy of this State shall be to: 2 (1) affirm the importance of the family in all 3 areas of the child's development and reinforce the role 4 of the family as a participant in the decision making 5 processes regarding their child; 6 (2) provide assistance and support to eligible 7 infants and toddlers and their families to address the 8 individual concerns and decisions of each family; 9 (3) develop and implement, on a statewide basis, 10 locally based comprehensive, coordinated, 11 interdisciplinary, interagency early intervention 12 services for all eligible infants and toddlers; 13 (4) enhance the local communities' capacity to 14 provide an array of quality early intervention services; 15 (5) identify and coordinate all available resources 16 for early intervention within the State including those 17 from federal, State, local and private sources; 18 (6) provide financial and technical assistance to 19 local communities for the purposes of coordinating early 20 intervention services in local communities and enhancing 21 the communities' capacity to provide individualized early 22 intervention services to all eligible infants and 23 toddlers in their homes or in community environments; and 24 (7) affirm that eligible infants and toddlers have 25 a right to receive early intervention services to the 26 maximum extent appropriate, in natural environments in 27 which infants and toddlers without disabilities would 28 participatein their own homes or, if provision of29services at home is not possible or is rejected by the30parents, in natural settings in local community31environments. 32 (c) The General Assembly further finds that early 33 intervention services are cost-effective and effectively 34 serve the developmental needs of eligible infants and SB1065 Enrolled -3- LRB9102324SMdvA 1 toddlers and their families. Therefore, the purpose of this 2 Act is to provide a comprehensive, coordinated, interagency, 3 interdisciplinary early intervention services system for 4 eligible infants and toddlers and their families by enhancing 5 the capacity to provide quality early intervention services, 6 expanding and improving existing services, and facilitating 7 coordination of payments for early intervention services from 8 various public and private sources. 9 (Source: P.A. 87-680.) 10 (325 ILCS 20/3) (from Ch. 23, par. 4153) 11 Sec. 3. Definitions. As used in this Act: 12 (a) "Eligible infants and toddlers" means infants and 13 toddlers under 36 months of age with any of the following 14 conditions: 15 (1) Developmental delays as defined by the 16 Department by ruleDisabilities due to developmental17delay. 18 (2) A physical or mental condition which typically 19 resultshas a high probability of resultingin 20 developmental delay. 21 (3) Being at risk of having substantial 22 developmental delays based on informed clinical judgment 23due to a combination of serious factors. 24 (b) "Developmental delay" means a delay in one or more 25 of the following areas of childhood development as measured 26 by appropriate diagnostic instruments and standard 27 procedures: cognitive; physical, including vision and 28 hearing; language, speech and communication; psycho-social; 29 or self-help skills. 30 (c) "Physical or mental condition which typically 31 resultshas a high probability of resultingin developmental 32 delay" means: 33 (1) a diagnosed medical disorder bearing a SB1065 Enrolled -4- LRB9102324SMdvA 1 relatively well known expectancy for developmental 2 outcomes within varying ranges of developmental 3 disabilities; or 4 (2) a history of prenatal, perinatal, neonatal or 5 early developmental events suggestive of biological 6 insults to the developing central nervous system and 7 which either singly or collectively increase the 8 probability of developing a disability or delay based on 9 a medical history. 10 (d) "Informed clinical judgment" means both clinical 11 observations and parental participation to determine 12 eligibility by a consensus of a multidisciplinary team of 2 13 or more members based on their professional experience and 14 expertise."At risk of having substantial developmental15delay" means the presence of at least 3 at risk conditions,16plus a consensus based on clinical judgment, that the17presence of these conditions warrants a risk of substantial18developmental delay if early intervention services are not19provided. A list of at risk conditions shall be developed by20the Illinois Interagency Council on Early Intervention. When21relying on clinical judgment, which includes both clinical22observations and parental participation, a developmental23delay will be determined by a consensus of an24interdisciplinary team of at least 2 or more members based on25their professional experience and expertise.26 (e) "Early intervention services" means services which: 27 (1) are designed to meet the developmental needs of 28 each child eligible under this Act and the needs of his 29 or her family; 30 (2) are selected in collaboration with the child's 31 family; 32 (3) are provided under public supervision; 33 (4) are provided at no cost except where a schedule 34 of sliding scale fees or other system of payments by SB1065 Enrolled -5- LRB9102324SMdvA 1 families has been adopted in accordance with State and 2 federal law; 3 (5) are designed to meet an infant's or toddler's 4 developmental needs in any of the following areas: 5 (A) physical development, including vision and 6 hearing, 7 (B) cognitive development, 8 (C) communication development, 9 (D) social or emotional development, or 10 (E) adaptive development; 11 (6) meet the standards of the State, including the 12 requirements of this Act; 13 (7) include one or more of the following: 14 (A) family training, 15 (B) social work services, including 16 counseling, and home visits, 17 (C) special instruction, 18 (D) speech, language pathology and audiology, 19 (E) occupational therapy, 20 (F) physical therapy, 21 (G) psychological services, 22 (H) service coordination services, 23 (I) medical services only for diagnostic or 24 evaluation purposes, 25 (J) early identification, screening, and 26 assessment services, 27 (K) health services specified by the lead 28 agency as necessary to enable the infant or toddler 29 to benefit from the other early intervention 30 services, 31 (L) vision services, 32 (M) transportation, and 33 (N) assistive technology devices and services; 34 (8) are provided by qualified personnel, including SB1065 Enrolled -6- LRB9102324SMdvA 1 but not limited to: 2 (A) child development specialists or special 3 educators, 4 (B) speech and language pathologists and 5 audiologists, 6 (C) occupational therapists, 7 (D) physical therapists, 8 (E) social workers, 9 (F) nurses, 10 (G) nutritionists, 11 (H) optometrists, 12 (I) psychologists, and 13 (J) physicians; 14 (9) are provided in conformity with an 15 Individualized Family Service Plan; 16 (10) are provided throughout the year; and 17 (11) are provided in natural environments, 18 including the home and community settings in which 19 infants and toddlers without disabilities would 20 participate to the extent determined by the 21 multidisciplinary Individualized Family Service Plan 22desired by families. 23 (f) "Individualized Family Service Plan" or "Plan" means 24 a written plan for providing early intervention services to a 25 child eligible under this Act and the child's family, as set 26 forth in Section 11. 27 (g) "Local interagency agreement" means an agreement 28 entered into by local community and State and regional 29 agencies receiving early intervention funds directly from the 30 State and made in accordance with State interagency 31 agreements providing for the delivery of early intervention 32 services within a local community area. 33 (h) "Council" means the Illinois Interagency Council on 34 Early Intervention established under Section 4. SB1065 Enrolled -7- LRB9102324SMdvA 1 (i) "Lead agency" means the State agency responsible for 2 administering this Act and receiving and disbursing public 3 funds received in accordance with State and federal law and 4 rules. 5 (j) "Child find" means a service which identifies 6 eligible infants and toddlers. 7 (Source: P.A. 90-158, eff. 1-1-98.) 8 (325 ILCS 20/6) (from Ch. 23, par. 4156) 9 Sec. 6. Local Structure and Interagency Councils. The 10 lead agency, in conjunction with the Council and as defined 11 by administrative rule, shall defineat least 40 and no more12than 60local service areas and define the geographic 13 boundaries of each so that all areas of the State are 14 included in a local service area but no area of the State is 15 included in more than one service area. In each local 16 service area, the lead agency shall designate a regional 17 entitycore providerresponsible for the assessment of 18 eligibility and services and a local interagency council 19 responsible for coordination and design of child find and 20 public awareness. The regional entityA21coordination/advocacy providershall be responsible for 22 staffing the local council, carrying out child find and 23 public awareness activities, and providing advocacy for 24 eligible families within the given geographic area. The 25 regionalcoordinatingentity is the prime contractor 26 responsible to the lead agency for implementation of this 27 Act. 28 The lead agency, in conjunction with the Council, shall 29 create local interagency councils. Members of each local 30 interagency council shall include, but not be limited to, the 31 following: parents; representatives from coordination and 32 advocacy service providers; local education agencies; other 33 local public and private service providers; representatives SB1065 Enrolled -8- LRB9102324SMdvA 1 from State agencies at the local level; and others deemed 2 necessary by the local council. 3 Local interagency councils shall: 4 (a) assist in the development of collaborative 5 agreements between local service providers, diagnostic 6 and other agencies providing additional services to the 7 child and family; 8 (b) assist in conducting local needs assessments 9 and planning efforts; 10 (c) identify and resolve local access issues; 11 (d) conduct collaborative child find activities; 12 (e) coordinate public awareness initiatives; 13 (f) coordinate local planning and evaluation; 14 (g) assist in the recruitment of specialty 15 personnel; 16 (h) develop plans for facilitating transition and 17 integration of eligible children and families into the 18 community; 19 (i) facilitate conflict resolution at the local 20 level; and 21 (j) report annually to the Council. 22 (Source: P.A. 87-680; 87-847.) 23 (325 ILCS 20/11) (from Ch. 23, par. 4161) 24 Sec. 11. Individualized Family Service Plans. Each 25 eligible infant or toddler and that infant's or toddler's 26 family shall receive: 27 (a) timely, comprehensive, multidisciplinary 28interdisciplinaryassessment of the unique needs of each 29 eligible infant and toddler, and assessment of the 30 concerns and priorities of the families to appropriately 31 assist them in meeting their needs and identify services 32 to meet those needs; and 33 (b) a written Individualized Family Service Plan SB1065 Enrolled -9- LRB9102324SMdvA 1 developed by a multidisciplinaryan interdisciplinary2 team which includes the parent or guardian. 3 The Individualized Family Service Plan shall be evaluated 4 once a year and the family shall be provided a review of the 5 Plan at 6 month intervals or more often where appropriate 6 based on infant or toddler and family needs. 7 The evaluation and initial assessment and initial Plan 8 meeting must be held within 45 days after the initial contact 9 with the early intervention services system. With parental 10 consent, early intervention services may commence before the 11 completion of the comprehensive assessment and development of 12 the Plan. 13 Parents must be informed that, at their discretion, early 14 intervention services shall be provided to each eligible 15 infant and toddler in the natural environment, which may 16 include the home or other community settingsparents' home. 17 Parents shall make the final decision to accept or decline 18 early intervention services. A decision to decline such 19 services shall not be a basis for administrative 20 determination of parental fitness, or other findings or 21 sanctions against the parents. Parameters of the Plan shall 22 be set forth in rules. 23 (Source: P.A. 87-680.) 24 (325 ILCS 20/12) (from Ch. 23, par. 4162) 25 Sec. 12. Procedural Safeguards. The lead agency shall 26 adopt procedural safeguards that meet federal requirements 27 and ensure effective implementation of the safeguards for 28 families by each public agency involved in the provision of 29 early intervention services under this Act. 30 The procedural safeguards shall provide, at a minimum, 31 the following: 32 (a) The timely administrative resolution of 33 complaints by parents as defined by administrative rule. SB1065 Enrolled -10- LRB9102324SMdvA 1The process shall use formal mediation procedures used by2the lead agency, as well as prescribed due process3procedures, which may be used by families at their4discretion.5 (b) The right to confidentiality of personally 6 identifiable information. 7 (c) The opportunity for parents and a guardian to 8 examine and receive copies of records relating to 9 assessment, screening, eligibility determinations, and 10 the development and implementation of the Individualized 11 Family Service Plan. 12 (d) Procedures to protect the rights of the 13 eligible infant or toddler whenever the parents or 14 guardians of the child are not known or unavailable or 15 the child is a ward of the State, including the 16 assignment of an individual (who shall not be an employee 17 of the State agency or local agency providing services) 18 to act as a surrogate for the parents or guardian. 19 (e) Timely written prior notice to the parents or 20 guardian of the eligible infant or toddler whenever the 21 State agency or public or private service provider 22 proposes to initiate or change or refuses to initiate or 23 change the identification, evaluation, placement, or the 24 provision of appropriate early intervention services to 25 the eligible infant or toddler. 26 (f) Written prior notice to fully inform the 27 parents or guardians, in their primary language, in a 28 comprehensible manner, of these procedural safeguards. 29 (g) During the pendency of any proceedings or 30 action involving a complaint, unless the State agency and 31 the parents or guardian otherwise agree, the child shall 32 continue to receive the appropriate early intervention 33 services currently being provided, or in the case of an 34 application for initial services, the child shall receive SB1065 Enrolled -11- LRB9102324SMdvA 1 the services not in dispute. 2 (Source: P.A. 87-680; 87-847.) 3 (325 ILCS 20/13) (from Ch. 23, par. 4163) 4 Sec. 13. Funding and Fiscal Responsibility. The lead 5 agency and every other participating State agency may receive 6 and expend funds appropriated by the General Assembly to 7 implement the early intervention services system as required 8 by this Act. 9 The lead agency and each participating State agency shall 10 identify and report on an annual basis to the Council the 11 State agency funds utilized for the provision of early 12 intervention services to eligible infants and toddlers. 13 Funds provided under Section 633673of the Individuals 14 with Disabilities Education Act (20 United States Code 1433 151473) may not be used to satisfy a financial commitment for 16 services which would have been paid for from another public 17 or private source but for the enactment of this Act, except 18 whenever considered necessary to prevent delay in receiving 19 appropriate early intervention services by the eligible 20 infant or toddler or family in a timely manner. Funds 21 provided under Section 633673of the Individuals with 22 Disabilities Education Act may be used by the lead agency to 23 pay the provider of services pending reimbursement from the 24 appropriate state agency. 25 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to permit the 26 State to reduce medical or other assistance available or to 27 alter eligibility under Title V and Title XIX of the Social 28 Security Act relating to the Maternal Child Health Program 29 and Medicaid for eligible infants and toddlers in this State. 30From the sum appropriated to the lead agency for the31purposes of this Act, the lead agency shall distribute funds32to the prime contractor for each local community area for the33provision of early intervention services. The local communitySB1065 Enrolled -12- LRB9102324SMdvA 1area may meet its obligations to assure appropriate early2intervention services through contracts with public or3private agencies that meet the requirements of this Act.4 The lead agency shall create a central billing office to 5 receive and dispense all relevant State and federal 6 resources, as well as local government or independent 7 resources available, for early intervention services. This 8 office shall assure that maximum federal resources are 9 utilized and that providers receive funds with minimal 10 duplications or interagency reporting and with consolidated 11 audit procedures.The lead agency shall also create a12resource review committee on the use of public and private13sector resources.14 The lead agency may also create a system of payments by 15 families, including a schedule of fees. No fees, however, may 16 be charged for: implementing child find, evaluation and 17 assessment, service coordination, administrative and 18 coordination activities related to the development, review, 19 and evaluation of Individualized Family Service Plans, or the 20 implementation of procedural safeguards and other 21 administrative components of the statewide early intervention 22 system. 23 (Source: P.A. 87-680.) 24 (325 ILCS 20/14 rep.) 25 Section 10. The Early Intervention Services System Act 26 is amended by repealing Section 14. 27 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 28 becoming law.