Public Act 102-0506
 
HB3821 EnrolledLRB102 14103 KTG 22477 b


  
    AN ACT concerning children.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  



 
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Racial 
Disproportionality in Child Welfare Task Force Act.
 
    Section 3. Purposes. The purposes of this Act are to 
understand the underlying factors of child welfare system 
involvement for families; examine the racial disparities of 
children and families involved in the child welfare system at 
every key procedural phase of system involvement and the 
causes of such disparities; and explore resources, policies, 
and practices that could prevent system entry for families and 
reduce racial disproportionality at each key procedural phase 
of system involvement.  
 
    Section 5. Findings.  The General Assembly finds the 
following:
    (1) Historically, Black children and Black parents and 
caregivers, women in particular, are disproportionately 
represented in the child welfare system.
    (2) According to the Fiscal Year 2018 Disproportionality 
and Disparity Report prepared by the Children and Family 
Research Center of the University of Illinois, School of 
Social Work, racial disparities exist at each key decision 
point in the Illinois child welfare system with Black children 
being overrepresented at each point. 
    (3) Multiple studies show that removals which separate 
children from parents, even "short removals" lasting 48 hours, 
trigger responses in the children that include anxiety, 
isolation, aggression, substance abuse, and post-traumatic 
stress disorder and release higher levels of cortisol and 
damages brain cells. These impacts are experienced in 
"reciprocal and synergistic" ways by parents during 
separation.
    (4) According to Child Trends' fiscal year 2019 
"State-level Data for Understanding Child Welfare in the 
United States", the average length of stay in foster care in 
Illinois was 28.6 months compared to the national average of 
19.8 months, and 12% of children in Illinois foster care were 
there 5 or more years compared to 5% of children nationally in 
foster care for that long.
    (5) As of December 31, 2020, the population of Illinois' 
youth in care was approximately 44% Black according to data 
from the Department of Children and Family Services, while 
recent data from the Annie E. Casey Foundation's KIDS COUNT 
Data Center estimate the 2019 child population of Illinois to 
have been approximately 15% Black. 
    (6) Black children and youth are represented in the child 
welfare system in Illinois at approximately 3 times the 
percentage of the statewide child population that is Black. 
Nationally, Black children and youth are represented in foster 
care at approximately 2 times the percentage of the national 
child population that is Black according to the National 
Conference of State Legislatures. 
    (7) Between fiscal years 2018 and 2020, the number of 
Illinois children removed from their homes annually increased 
by 30%, according to data from the Department of Children and 
Family Services. The increase in 2019 was 17%, the 
second-highest increase in the country. 
    (8) More than 90% of foster youth with 5 or more moves 
become involved in the juvenile justice system. In 2019, 
children in the custody of the Department of Children and 
Family Services averaged 3.8 moves/1,000 days; for Black 
children, the average was 4.4 moves/1,000 days. 
    (9) In Chapin Hall's Midwest Study of the Illinois, 
Wisconsin, and Iowa child welfare systems, almost 70% of youth 
involved in the study had been arrested by their mid-20s. 
    (10) In 2018, 79% of calls made to the Illinois Child Abuse 
Hotline were made by mandated reporters. Of these calls, 25.8% 
came from education personnel, 24.2% from law enforcement 
personnel, 13.5% from medical personnel, and 10.7% from social 
service personnel.
    (11) According to Child Trends' state-level data for 
federal fiscal year 2018 for Illinois, 65% of child abuse and 
neglect cases were due to allegations of neglect, 12% due to 
allegations of physical abuse, and 13% due to allegations of 
sexual abuse.
    (12) According to Child Trends' state-level data for 
federal fiscal year 2019 for Illinois, 89% of entries into 
foster care were due to neglect, 12% due to parental substance 
abuse, 11% due to physical abuse, and 2% due to sexual abuse.
    (13) In 2018, 20,815 reports to the Illinois Child Abuse 
Hotline involved an allegation of abuse and 35,310 involved a 
neglect allegation. Of these reports, only 10,189 were 
investigated, and of these investigations, only 1,544 resulted 
in an indicated finding. Of the investigations resulting in an 
indicated finding, only 225 were screened into court.
    (14) According to the Fiscal Year 2020 Monitoring Report 
of the B.H. Consent Decree prepared by the Children and Family 
Research Center of the University of Illinois, School of 
Social Work, Black children in 2019 were less likely than 
white and Latinx  children to be placed in kinship foster 
homes. Black children were more likely to be placed in 
traditional foster homes than white and Latinx children. Black 
children were also more likely to be placed in institutions or 
group homes than white and Latinx children.
 
    Section 10. Composition.  The Racial Disproportionality in 
Child Welfare Task Force is created within the Department of 
Children and Family Services consisting of members appointed 
as follows:
    (1) Two members from the Senate, one appointed by the 
President of the Senate and one appointed by the Senate 
Minority Leader.
    (2) Two members from the House of Representatives, one 
appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and 
one appointed by the House Minority Leader.
    (3) Two General Assembly members from the Illinois 
Legislative Black Caucus, appointed by the Joint Caucus Chair 
of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus.
    (4) Two General Assembly members from the Illinois Latino 
Caucus, appointed by the Chair of the Illinois Latino Caucus.
    (5) One member from the Office of the Governor appointed 
by the Governor.
    (6) The Director of Children and Family Services, or his 
or her designee.
    (7) The Secretary of Human Services, or his or her 
designee.
    (8) The Director of Healthcare and Family Services, or his 
or her designee.
    (9) One member from an organization with expertise in 
housing and the Continuum of Care Program that works with 
impacted populations or convenes advocates to prevent and end 
homelessness, appointed by the Governor's Office.
    (10) The Inspector General of the Department of Children 
and Family Services, or his or her designee.
    (11) One member from an organization with expertise in the 
child welfare system that advocates to preserve and reunify 
families, appointed by the Governor's Office.
    (12) One member who is an academic researcher who has 
studied the racialized history and impact of the child welfare 
system on children, families, and communities, appointed by 
the Governor's Office.
    (13) One member from the Administrative Office of the 
Illinois Courts, Children and Families Unit, Court Services 
Division, appointed by the Director of the Administrative 
Office of the Illinois Courts. 
    (14) Three members who are parents directly impacted by 
the child welfare system, at least 2 of whom come from a 
disproportionately represented racial group, appointed by the 
Governor's Office.
    (15) The Cook County Public Guardian, or his or her 
designee.
    (16) One member who provides legal representation to 
children in child protection cases from outside of Cook 
County, appointed by the Governor's Office.
    (17) Two members who provide legal representation to 
parents in child protection cases, one from the Law Office of 
the Cook County Public Defender, appointed by the Governor's 
Office, and one from outside of Cook County, appointed by the 
Governor's Office.
    (18) Two members who provide legal representation on 
behalf of the State of Illinois in child protection cases, one 
from the Cook County State's Attorney's Office, appointed by 
the Governor's Office, and one from a State's Attorney's 
office outside of Cook County, appointed by the Governor's 
Office.
    (19) One member who provides legal services to parents 
impacted by gender-based violence during the investigation 
phase of child abuse or neglect cases, including services 
related to safety plans, intact services, and administrative 
appeals, appointed by the Governor's Office.
    (20) Three members who have experience as youth in the 
child welfare system, at least 2 of whom come from a 
disproportionately represented racial group, appointed by the 
Governor's Office.
    (21) One member from a statewide organization advocating 
for the advancement of civil liberties for at least 80 years in 
Illinois, appointed by the Governor's Office.
    (22) One member from an organization that advocates on 
behalf of children, youth, and families and the 
community-based providers that serve them, appointed by the 
Governor's Office.
 
    Section 15. Meetings; co-chairs; administrative support.   
All members appointed under Section 10 shall serve without 
compensation. Task Force members shall be appointed within 60 
days after the effective date of this Act. The Task Force shall 
hold its initial meetings within 90 days after the effective 
date of this Act. The Task Force shall meet at least 4 times. 
The following individuals shall serve as co-chairs of the Task 
Force: (i) the member from the organization with expertise in 
the child welfare system that advocates to preserve and 
reunify families; and (ii) the member from the organization 
that advocates on behalf of children, youth, and families and 
the community-based providers that serve them. The Department 
of Children and Family Services shall provide any necessary 
administrative and other support to the Task Force. Any data 
provided by the Department of Children and Family Services to 
the Task Force shall not contain any personally identifiable 
information of any clients or families in accordance with the 
provisions of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. 
The Department of Children and Family Services shall 
facilitate the prompt and timely collection and provision of 
data as requested by or on behalf of the Task Force.  Such 
facilitation shall include, without limitation, authorizing 
the provision of reports and underlying Department data that 
the Department currently or previously has provided or made 
available to the Children and Family Research Center of the 
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Chapin Hall, 
Northwestern University, and any other of the Department's 
university partners and consultants. 
 
    Section 20.  Duties.  The Task Force shall:
        (1) Examine the historical and current role of 
    mandatory reporting and its impact on the racial and 
    gender disparities of families involved with the 
    Department of Children and Family Services.
        (2) Examine the underlying factors that bring families 
    into contact with the Department of Children and Family 
    Services and the factors that lead to child removal, 
    including, but not limited to, suspected or known 
    substance use or dependency, intergenerational child 
    welfare system involvement, and lack of access to shelter, 
    food, clothing, income or employment, and healthcare, and 
    how these impact the length of time families remain 
    involved in the child welfare system.
        (3) Review the Department of Children and Family 
    Services' progress on the planning and implementation of 
    the Family First Prevention Services Act and determine 
    what impact, if any, the plan may have on the current 
    racial disparities of children and families in the child 
    welfare system.
        (4) Examine the current processes and policies, data, 
    and data collection methods for families involved 
    simultaneously in the child welfare, juvenile justice, or 
    criminal justice systems, including, but not limited to, 
    youth who are dually involved in the juvenile justice and 
    child welfare systems.
        (5) Explore policies and protocols that honor 
    language, culture, and heritage in identity formation and 
    familial relationships, including, but not limited to, 
    race-blind child protection screenings and child removal 
    reviews, as implemented in other jurisdictions around the 
    United States, and make recommendations for implementation 
    in Illinois.
        (6) Explore the development of a curriculum for a 
    child welfare specific implicit bias training for all 
    public and private direct service staff and supervisors 
    who interact with children and families.
 
    Section 25.  Report.  The Task Force shall produce and 
submit policy recommendations, both administrative and 
legislative, to the General Assembly and the Governor within 
one year after the first meeting of the Task Force. The 
recommendations shall seek to: (i) prioritize preserving and 
reunifying families involved in the child welfare system, 
particularly Black families; (ii) reduce child welfare system 
involvement, particularly for Black families; and (iii) 
eliminate racial disproportionality in system involvement and 
the disproportionate impact of system involvement on families. 
The Task Force co-chairs shall convene a final meeting before 
the repeal date of this Act to discuss an implementation plan 
based on the produced policy recommendations.
 
    Section 30. Repeal.  The Task Force is dissolved, and this 
Act is repealed on, January 1, 2024.
 
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.