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Public Act 094-0215 |
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AN ACT concerning State government.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended | ||||
by changing Section 5 as follows:
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(20 ILCS 505/5) (from Ch. 23, par. 5005)
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Sec. 5. Direct child welfare services; Department of | ||||
Children and Family
Services. To provide direct child welfare | ||||
services when not available
through other public or private | ||||
child care or program facilities.
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(a) For purposes of this Section:
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(1) "Children" means persons found within the State who | ||||
are under the
age of 18 years. The term also includes | ||||
persons under age 19 who:
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(A) were committed to the Department pursuant to | ||||
the
Juvenile Court Act or the Juvenile Court Act of | ||||
1987, as amended, prior to
the age of 18 and who | ||||
continue under the jurisdiction of the court; or
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(B) were accepted for care, service and training by
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the Department prior to the age of 18 and whose best | ||||
interest in the
discretion of the Department would be | ||||
served by continuing that care,
service and training | ||||
because of severe emotional disturbances, physical
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disability, social adjustment or any combination | ||||
thereof, or because of the
need to complete an | ||||
educational or vocational training program.
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(2) "Homeless youth" means persons found within the
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State who are under the age of 19, are not in a safe and | ||||
stable living
situation and cannot be reunited with their | ||||
families.
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(3) "Child welfare services" means public social | ||||
services which are
directed toward the accomplishment of |
the following purposes:
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(A) protecting and promoting the health, safety | ||
and welfare of
children,
including homeless, dependent | ||
or neglected children;
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(B) remedying, or assisting in the solution
of | ||
problems which may result in, the neglect, abuse, | ||
exploitation or
delinquency of children;
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(C) preventing the unnecessary separation of | ||
children
from their families by identifying family | ||
problems, assisting families in
resolving their | ||
problems, and preventing the breakup of the family
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where the prevention of child removal is desirable and | ||
possible when the
child can be cared for at home | ||
without endangering the child's health and
safety;
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(D) restoring to their families children who have | ||
been
removed, by the provision of services to the child | ||
and the families when the
child can be cared for at | ||
home without endangering the child's health and
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safety;
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(E) placing children in suitable adoptive homes, | ||
in
cases where restoration to the biological family is | ||
not safe, possible or
appropriate;
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(F) assuring safe and adequate care of children | ||
away from their
homes, in cases where the child cannot | ||
be returned home or cannot be placed
for adoption. At | ||
the time of placement, the Department shall consider
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concurrent planning,
as described in subsection (l-1) | ||
of this Section so that permanency may
occur at the | ||
earliest opportunity. Consideration should be given so | ||
that if
reunification fails or is delayed, the | ||
placement made is the best available
placement to | ||
provide permanency for the child;
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(G) (blank);
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(H) (blank); and
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(I) placing and maintaining children in facilities | ||
that provide
separate living quarters for children |
under the age of 18 and for children
18 years of age | ||
and older, unless a child 18 years of age is in the | ||
last
year of high school education or vocational | ||
training, in an approved
individual or group treatment | ||
program, in a licensed shelter facility,
or secure | ||
child care facility.
The Department is not required to | ||
place or maintain children:
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(i) who are in a foster home, or
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(ii) who are persons with a developmental | ||
disability, as defined in
the Mental
Health and | ||
Developmental Disabilities Code, or
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(iii) who are female children who are | ||
pregnant, pregnant and
parenting or parenting, or
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(iv) who are siblings,
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in facilities that provide separate living quarters | ||
for children 18
years of age and older and for children | ||
under 18 years of age.
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(b) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to authorize | ||
the
expenditure of public funds for the purpose of performing | ||
abortions.
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(c) The Department shall establish and maintain | ||
tax-supported child
welfare services and extend and seek to | ||
improve voluntary services
throughout the State, to the end | ||
that services and care shall be available
on an equal basis | ||
throughout the State to children requiring such services.
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(d) The Director may authorize advance disbursements for | ||
any new program
initiative to any agency contracting with the | ||
Department. As a
prerequisite for an advance disbursement, the | ||
contractor must post a
surety bond in the amount of the advance | ||
disbursement and have a
purchase of service contract approved | ||
by the Department. The Department
may pay up to 2 months | ||
operational expenses in advance. The amount of the
advance | ||
disbursement shall be prorated over the life of the contract
or | ||
the remaining months of the fiscal year, whichever is less, and | ||
the
installment amount shall then be deducted from future | ||
bills. Advance
disbursement authorizations for new initiatives |
shall not be made to any
agency after that agency has operated | ||
during 2 consecutive fiscal years.
The requirements of this | ||
Section concerning advance disbursements shall
not apply with | ||
respect to the following: payments to local public agencies
for | ||
child day care services as authorized by Section 5a of this | ||
Act; and
youth service programs receiving grant funds under | ||
Section 17a-4.
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(e) (Blank).
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(f) (Blank).
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(g) The Department shall establish rules and regulations | ||
concerning
its operation of programs designed to meet the goals | ||
of child safety and
protection,
family preservation, family | ||
reunification, and adoption, including but not
limited to:
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(1) adoption;
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(2) foster care;
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(3) family counseling;
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(4) protective services;
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(5) (blank);
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(6) homemaker service;
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(7) return of runaway children;
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(8) (blank);
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(9) placement under Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court | ||
Act or
Section 2-27, 3-28, 4-25 or 5-740 of the Juvenile | ||
Court Act of 1987 in
accordance with the federal Adoption | ||
Assistance and Child Welfare Act of
1980; and
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(10) interstate services.
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Rules and regulations established by the Department shall | ||
include
provisions for training Department staff and the staff | ||
of Department
grantees, through contracts with other agencies | ||
or resources, in alcohol
and drug abuse screening techniques | ||
approved by the Department of Human
Services, as a successor to | ||
the Department of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse,
for the | ||
purpose of identifying children and adults who
should be | ||
referred to an alcohol and drug abuse treatment program for
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professional evaluation.
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(h) If the Department finds that there is no appropriate |
program or
facility within or available to the Department for a | ||
ward and that no
licensed private facility has an adequate and | ||
appropriate program or none
agrees to accept the ward, the | ||
Department shall create an appropriate
individualized, | ||
program-oriented plan for such ward. The
plan may be developed | ||
within the Department or through purchase of services
by the | ||
Department to the extent that it is within its statutory | ||
authority
to do.
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(i) Service programs shall be available throughout the | ||
State and shall
include but not be limited to the following | ||
services:
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(1) case management;
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(2) homemakers;
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(3) counseling;
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(4) parent education;
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(5) day care; and
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(6) emergency assistance and advocacy.
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In addition, the following services may be made available | ||
to assess and
meet the needs of children and families:
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(1) comprehensive family-based services;
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(2) assessments;
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(3) respite care; and
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(4) in-home health services.
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The Department shall provide transportation for any of the | ||
services it
makes available to children or families or for | ||
which it refers children
or families.
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(j) The Department may provide categories of financial | ||
assistance and
education assistance grants, and shall
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establish rules and regulations concerning the assistance and | ||
grants, to
persons who
adopt physically or mentally | ||
handicapped, older and other hard-to-place
children who (i) | ||
immediately prior to their adoption were legal wards of
the | ||
Department
or (ii) were determined eligible for financial | ||
assistance with respect to a
prior adoption and who become | ||
available for adoption because the
prior adoption has been | ||
dissolved and the parental rights of the adoptive
parents have |
been
terminated or because the child's adoptive parents have | ||
died.
The Department may, subject to federal financial | ||
participation in the cost, continue to provide financial | ||
assistance and education assistance grants for a child who was | ||
determined eligible for financial assistance under this | ||
subsection (j) in the interim period beginning when the child's | ||
adoptive parents died and ending with the finalization of the | ||
new adoption of the child by another adoptive parent or | ||
parents. The Department may also provide categories of | ||
financial
assistance and education assistance grants, and
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shall establish rules and regulations for the assistance and | ||
grants, to persons
appointed guardian of the person under | ||
Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court
Act or Section 2-27, 3-28, | ||
4-25 or 5-740 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987
for children | ||
who were wards of the Department for 12 months immediately
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prior to the appointment of the guardian.
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The amount of assistance may vary, depending upon the needs | ||
of the child
and the adoptive parents,
as set forth in the | ||
annual
assistance agreement. Special purpose grants are | ||
allowed where the child
requires special service but such costs | ||
may not exceed the amounts
which similar services would cost | ||
the Department if it were to provide or
secure them as guardian | ||
of the child.
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Any financial assistance provided under this subsection is
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inalienable by assignment, sale, execution, attachment, | ||
garnishment, or any
other remedy for recovery or collection of | ||
a judgment or debt.
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(j-5) The Department shall not deny or delay the placement | ||
of a child for
adoption
if an approved family is available | ||
either outside of the Department region
handling the case,
or | ||
outside of the State of Illinois.
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(k) The Department shall accept for care and training any | ||
child who has
been adjudicated neglected or abused, or | ||
dependent committed to it pursuant
to the Juvenile Court Act or | ||
the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
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(l) Before July 1, 2000, the Department may provide, and |
beginning
July 1, 2000, the Department shall
offer family | ||
preservation services, as defined in Section 8.2 of the Abused
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and
Neglected Child
Reporting Act, to help families, including | ||
adoptive and extended families.
Family preservation
services | ||
shall be offered (i) to prevent the
placement
of children in
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substitute care when the children can be cared for at home or | ||
in the custody of
the person
responsible for the children's | ||
welfare,
(ii) to
reunite children with their families, or (iii) | ||
to
maintain an adoptive placement. Family preservation | ||
services shall only be
offered when doing so will not endanger | ||
the children's health or safety. With
respect to children who | ||
are in substitute care pursuant to the Juvenile Court
Act of | ||
1987, family preservation services shall not be offered if a | ||
goal other
than those of subdivisions (A), (B), or (B-1) of | ||
subsection (2) of Section 2-28
of
that Act has been set.
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Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to create a | ||
private right of
action or claim on the part of any individual | ||
or child welfare agency.
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The Department shall notify the child and his family of the
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Department's
responsibility to offer and provide family | ||
preservation services as
identified in the service plan. The | ||
child and his family shall be eligible
for services as soon as | ||
the report is determined to be "indicated". The
Department may | ||
offer services to any child or family with respect to whom a
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report of suspected child abuse or neglect has been filed, | ||
prior to
concluding its investigation under Section 7.12 of the | ||
Abused and Neglected
Child Reporting Act. However, the child's | ||
or family's willingness to
accept services shall not be | ||
considered in the investigation. The
Department may also | ||
provide services to any child or family who is the
subject of | ||
any report of suspected child abuse or neglect or may refer | ||
such
child or family to services available from other agencies | ||
in the community,
even if the report is determined to be | ||
unfounded, if the conditions in the
child's or family's home | ||
are reasonably likely to subject the child or
family to future | ||
reports of suspected child abuse or neglect. Acceptance
of such |
services shall be voluntary.
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The Department may, at its discretion except for those | ||
children also
adjudicated neglected or dependent, accept for | ||
care and training any child
who has been adjudicated addicted, | ||
as a truant minor in need of
supervision or as a minor | ||
requiring authoritative intervention, under the
Juvenile Court | ||
Act or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, but no such child
shall | ||
be committed to the Department by any court without the | ||
approval of
the Department. A minor charged with a criminal | ||
offense under the Criminal
Code of 1961 or adjudicated | ||
delinquent shall not be placed in the custody of or
committed | ||
to the Department by any court, except a minor less than 13 | ||
years
of age committed to the Department under Section 5-710 of | ||
the Juvenile Court
Act
of 1987.
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(l-1) The legislature recognizes that the best interests of | ||
the child
require that
the child be placed in the most | ||
permanent living arrangement as soon as is
practically
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possible. To achieve this goal, the legislature directs the | ||
Department of
Children and
Family Services to conduct | ||
concurrent planning so that permanency may occur at
the
| ||
earliest opportunity. Permanent living arrangements may | ||
include prevention of
placement of a child outside the home of | ||
the family when the child can be cared
for at
home without | ||
endangering the child's health or safety; reunification with | ||
the
family,
when safe and appropriate, if temporary placement | ||
is necessary; or movement of
the child
toward the most | ||
permanent living arrangement and permanent legal status.
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When determining reasonable efforts to be made with respect | ||
to a child, as
described in this
subsection, and in making such | ||
reasonable efforts, the child's health and
safety shall be the
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paramount concern.
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When a child is placed in foster care, the Department shall | ||
ensure and
document that reasonable efforts were made to | ||
prevent or eliminate the need to
remove the child from the | ||
child's home. The Department must make
reasonable efforts to | ||
reunify the family when temporary placement of the child
occurs
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unless otherwise required, pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act | ||
of 1987.
At any time after the dispositional hearing where the | ||
Department believes
that further reunification services would | ||
be ineffective, it may request a
finding from the court that | ||
reasonable efforts are no longer appropriate. The
Department is | ||
not required to provide further reunification services after | ||
such
a
finding.
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A decision to place a child in substitute care shall be | ||
made with
considerations of the child's health, safety, and | ||
best interests. At the
time of placement, consideration should | ||
also be given so that if reunification
fails or is delayed, the | ||
placement made is the best available placement to
provide | ||
permanency for the child.
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The Department shall adopt rules addressing concurrent | ||
planning for
reunification and permanency. The Department | ||
shall consider the following
factors when determining | ||
appropriateness of concurrent planning:
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(1) the likelihood of prompt reunification;
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(2) the past history of the family;
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(3) the barriers to reunification being addressed by | ||
the family;
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(4) the level of cooperation of the family;
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(5) the foster parents' willingness to work with the | ||
family to reunite;
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(6) the willingness and ability of the foster family to | ||
provide an
adoptive
home or long-term placement;
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(7) the age of the child;
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(8) placement of siblings.
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(m) The Department may assume temporary custody of any | ||
child if:
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(1) it has received a written consent to such temporary | ||
custody
signed by the parents of the child or by the parent | ||
having custody of the
child if the parents are not living | ||
together or by the guardian or
custodian of the child if | ||
the child is not in the custody of either
parent, or
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(2) the child is found in the State and neither a |
parent,
guardian nor custodian of the child can be located.
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If the child is found in his or her residence without a parent, | ||
guardian,
custodian or responsible caretaker, the Department | ||
may, instead of removing
the child and assuming temporary | ||
custody, place an authorized
representative of the Department | ||
in that residence until such time as a
parent, guardian or | ||
custodian enters the home and expresses a willingness
and | ||
apparent ability to ensure the child's health and safety and | ||
resume
permanent
charge of the child, or until a
relative | ||
enters the home and is willing and able to ensure the child's | ||
health
and
safety and assume charge of the
child until a | ||
parent, guardian or custodian enters the home and expresses
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such willingness and ability to ensure the child's safety and | ||
resume
permanent charge. After a caretaker has remained in the | ||
home for a period not
to exceed 12 hours, the Department must | ||
follow those procedures outlined in
Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8, or | ||
5-415 of the Juvenile Court Act
of 1987.
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The Department shall have the authority, responsibilities | ||
and duties that
a legal custodian of the child would have | ||
pursuant to subsection (9) of
Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court | ||
Act of 1987. Whenever a child is taken
into temporary custody | ||
pursuant to an investigation under the Abused and
Neglected | ||
Child Reporting Act, or pursuant to a referral and acceptance
| ||
under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 of a minor in limited | ||
custody, the
Department, during the period of temporary custody | ||
and before the child
is brought before a judicial officer as | ||
required by Section 2-9, 3-11,
4-8, or 5-415 of the Juvenile | ||
Court Act of 1987, shall have
the authority, responsibilities | ||
and duties that a legal custodian of the child
would have under | ||
subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of
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1987.
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The Department shall ensure that any child taken into | ||
custody
is scheduled for an appointment for a medical | ||
examination.
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A parent, guardian or custodian of a child in the temporary | ||
custody of the
Department who would have custody of the child |
if he were not in the
temporary custody of the Department may | ||
deliver to the Department a signed
request that the Department | ||
surrender the temporary custody of the child.
The Department | ||
may retain temporary custody of the child for 10 days after
the | ||
receipt of the request, during which period the Department may | ||
cause to
be filed a petition pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act | ||
of 1987. If a
petition is so filed, the Department shall retain | ||
temporary custody of the
child until the court orders | ||
otherwise. If a petition is not filed within
the 10 day period, | ||
the child shall be surrendered to the custody of the
requesting | ||
parent, guardian or custodian not later than the expiration of
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the 10 day period, at which time the authority and duties of | ||
the Department
with respect to the temporary custody of the | ||
child shall terminate.
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(m-1) The Department may place children under 18 years of | ||
age in a secure
child care facility licensed by the Department | ||
that cares for children who are
in need of secure living | ||
arrangements for their health, safety, and well-being
after a | ||
determination is made by the facility director and the Director | ||
or the
Director's designate prior to admission to the facility | ||
subject to Section
2-27.1 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. | ||
This subsection (m-1) does not apply
to a child who is subject | ||
to placement in a correctional facility operated
pursuant to | ||
Section 3-15-2 of the Unified Code of Corrections, unless the
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child is a ward who was placed under the care of the Department | ||
before being
subject to placement in a correctional facility | ||
and a court of competent
jurisdiction has ordered placement of | ||
the child in a secure care facility.
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(n) The Department may place children under 18 years of age | ||
in
licensed child care facilities when in the opinion of the | ||
Department,
appropriate services aimed at family preservation | ||
have been unsuccessful and
cannot ensure the child's health and | ||
safety or are unavailable and such
placement would be for their | ||
best interest. Payment
for board, clothing, care, training and | ||
supervision of any child placed in
a licensed child care | ||
facility may be made by the Department, by the
parents or |
guardians of the estates of those children, or by both the
| ||
Department and the parents or guardians, except that no | ||
payments shall be
made by the Department for any child placed | ||
in a licensed child care
facility for board, clothing, care, | ||
training and supervision of such a
child that exceed the | ||
average per capita cost of maintaining and of caring
for a | ||
child in institutions for dependent or neglected children | ||
operated by
the Department. However, such restriction on | ||
payments does not apply in
cases where children require | ||
specialized care and treatment for problems of
severe emotional | ||
disturbance, physical disability, social adjustment, or
any | ||
combination thereof and suitable facilities for the placement | ||
of such
children are not available at payment rates within the | ||
limitations set
forth in this Section. All reimbursements for | ||
services delivered shall be
absolutely inalienable by | ||
assignment, sale, attachment, garnishment or
otherwise.
| ||
(o) The Department shall establish an administrative | ||
review and appeal
process for children and families who request | ||
or receive child welfare
services from the Department. Children | ||
who are wards of the Department and
are placed by private child | ||
welfare agencies, and foster families with whom
those children | ||
are placed, shall be afforded the same procedural and appeal
| ||
rights as children and families in the case of placement by the | ||
Department,
including the right to an initial review of a | ||
private agency decision by
that agency. The Department shall | ||
insure that any private child welfare
agency, which accepts | ||
wards of the Department for placement, affords those
rights to | ||
children and foster families. The Department shall accept for
| ||
administrative review and an appeal hearing a complaint made by | ||
(i) a child
or foster family concerning a decision following an | ||
initial review by a
private child welfare agency or (ii) a | ||
prospective adoptive parent who alleges
a violation of | ||
subsection (j-5) of this Section. An appeal of a decision
| ||
concerning a change in the placement of a child shall be | ||
conducted in an
expedited manner.
| ||
(p) There is hereby created the Department of Children and |
Family
Services Emergency Assistance Fund from which the | ||
Department may provide
special financial assistance to | ||
families which are in economic crisis when
such assistance is | ||
not available through other public or private sources
and the | ||
assistance is deemed necessary to prevent dissolution of the | ||
family
unit or to reunite families which have been separated | ||
due to child abuse and
neglect. The Department shall establish | ||
administrative rules specifying
the criteria for determining | ||
eligibility for and the amount and nature of
assistance to be | ||
provided. The Department may also enter into written
agreements | ||
with private and public social service agencies to provide
| ||
emergency financial services to families referred by the | ||
Department.
Special financial assistance payments shall be | ||
available to a family no
more than once during each fiscal year | ||
and the total payments to a
family may not exceed $500 during a | ||
fiscal year.
| ||
(q) The Department may receive and use, in their entirety, | ||
for the
benefit of children any gift, donation or bequest of | ||
money or other
property which is received on behalf of such | ||
children, or any financial
benefits to which such children are | ||
or may become entitled while under
the jurisdiction or care of | ||
the Department.
| ||
The Department shall set up and administer no-cost, | ||
interest-bearing accounts in appropriate financial | ||
institutions
for children for whom the Department is legally | ||
responsible and who have been
determined eligible for Veterans' | ||
Benefits, Social Security benefits,
assistance allotments from | ||
the armed forces, court ordered payments, parental
voluntary | ||
payments, Supplemental Security Income, Railroad Retirement
| ||
payments, Black Lung benefits, or other miscellaneous | ||
payments. Interest
earned by each account shall be credited to | ||
the account, unless
disbursed in accordance with this | ||
subsection.
| ||
In disbursing funds from children's accounts, the | ||
Department
shall:
| ||
(1) Establish standards in accordance with State and |
federal laws for
disbursing money from children's | ||
accounts. In all
circumstances,
the Department's | ||
"Guardianship Administrator" or his or her designee must
| ||
approve disbursements from children's accounts. The | ||
Department
shall be responsible for keeping complete | ||
records of all disbursements for each account for any | ||
purpose.
| ||
(2) Calculate on a monthly basis the amounts paid from | ||
State funds for the
child's board and care, medical care | ||
not covered under Medicaid, and social
services; and | ||
utilize funds from the child's account, as
covered by | ||
regulation, to reimburse those costs. Monthly, | ||
disbursements from
all children's accounts, up to 1/12 of | ||
$13,000,000, shall be
deposited by the Department into the | ||
General Revenue Fund and the balance over
1/12 of | ||
$13,000,000 into the DCFS Children's Services Fund.
| ||
(3) Maintain any balance remaining after reimbursing | ||
for the child's costs
of care, as specified in item (2). | ||
The balance shall accumulate in accordance
with relevant | ||
State and federal laws and shall be disbursed to the child | ||
or his
or her guardian, or to the issuing agency.
| ||
(r) The Department shall promulgate regulations | ||
encouraging all adoption
agencies to voluntarily forward to the | ||
Department or its agent names and
addresses of all persons who | ||
have applied for and have been approved for
adoption of a | ||
hard-to-place or handicapped child and the names of such
| ||
children who have not been placed for adoption. A list of such | ||
names and
addresses shall be maintained by the Department or | ||
its agent, and coded
lists which maintain the confidentiality | ||
of the person seeking to adopt the
child and of the child shall | ||
be made available, without charge, to every
adoption agency in | ||
the State to assist the agencies in placing such
children for | ||
adoption. The Department may delegate to an agent its duty to
| ||
maintain and make available such lists. The Department shall | ||
ensure that
such agent maintains the confidentiality of the | ||
person seeking to adopt the
child and of the child.
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(s) The Department of Children and Family Services may | ||
establish and
implement a program to reimburse Department and | ||
private child welfare
agency foster parents licensed by the | ||
Department of Children and Family
Services for damages | ||
sustained by the foster parents as a result of the
malicious or | ||
negligent acts of foster children, as well as providing third
| ||
party coverage for such foster parents with regard to actions | ||
of foster
children to other individuals. Such coverage will be | ||
secondary to the
foster parent liability insurance policy, if | ||
applicable. The program shall
be funded through appropriations | ||
from the General Revenue Fund,
specifically designated for such | ||
purposes.
| ||
(t) The Department shall perform home studies and | ||
investigations and
shall exercise supervision over visitation | ||
as ordered by a court pursuant
to the Illinois Marriage and | ||
Dissolution of Marriage Act or the Adoption
Act only if:
| ||
(1) an order entered by an Illinois court specifically
| ||
directs the Department to perform such services; and
| ||
(2) the court has ordered one or both of the parties to
| ||
the proceeding to reimburse the Department for its | ||
reasonable costs for
providing such services in accordance | ||
with Department rules, or has
determined that neither party | ||
is financially able to pay.
| ||
The Department shall provide written notification to the | ||
court of the
specific arrangements for supervised visitation | ||
and projected monthly costs
within 60 days of the court order. | ||
The Department shall send to the court
information related to | ||
the costs incurred except in cases where the court
has | ||
determined the parties are financially unable to pay. The court | ||
may
order additional periodic reports as appropriate.
| ||
(u) Whenever the Department places a child in a licensed | ||
foster home,
group home, child care institution, or in a | ||
relative home, the Department
shall provide to the caretaker:
| ||
(1) available detailed information concerning the | ||
child's educational
and health history, copies of | ||
immunization records (including insurance
and medical card |
information), a history of the child's previous | ||
placements,
if any, and reasons for placement changes | ||
excluding any information that
identifies or reveals the | ||
location of any previous caretaker;
| ||
(2) a copy of the child's portion of the client service | ||
plan, including
any visitation arrangement, and all | ||
amendments or revisions to it as
related to the child; and
| ||
(3) information containing details of the child's | ||
individualized
educational plan when the child is | ||
receiving special education services.
| ||
The caretaker shall be informed of any known social or | ||
behavioral
information (including, but not limited to, | ||
criminal background, fire
setting, perpetuation of
sexual | ||
abuse, destructive behavior, and substance abuse) necessary to | ||
care
for and safeguard the child.
| ||
(u-5) Effective July 1, 1995, only foster care placements | ||
licensed as
foster family homes pursuant to the Child Care Act | ||
of 1969 shall be eligible to
receive foster care payments from | ||
the Department.
Relative caregivers who, as of July 1, 1995, | ||
were approved pursuant to approved
relative placement rules | ||
previously promulgated by the Department at 89 Ill.
Adm. Code | ||
335 and had submitted an application for licensure as a foster | ||
family
home may continue to receive foster care payments only | ||
until the Department
determines that they may be licensed as a | ||
foster family home or that their
application for licensure is | ||
denied or until September 30, 1995, whichever
occurs first.
| ||
(v) The Department shall access criminal history record | ||
information
as defined in the Illinois Uniform Conviction | ||
Information Act and information
maintained in the adjudicatory | ||
and dispositional record system as defined in
Section 2605-355 | ||
of the
Department of State Police Law (20 ILCS 2605/2605-355)
| ||
if the Department determines the information is necessary to | ||
perform its duties
under the Abused and Neglected Child | ||
Reporting Act, the Child Care Act of 1969,
and the Children and | ||
Family Services Act. The Department shall provide for
| ||
interactive computerized communication and processing |
equipment that permits
direct on-line communication with the | ||
Department of State Police's central
criminal history data | ||
repository. The Department shall comply with all
certification | ||
requirements and provide certified operators who have been
| ||
trained by personnel from the Department of State Police. In | ||
addition, one
Office of the Inspector General investigator | ||
shall have training in the use of
the criminal history | ||
information access system and have
access to the terminal. The | ||
Department of Children and Family Services and its
employees | ||
shall abide by rules and regulations established by the | ||
Department of
State Police relating to the access and | ||
dissemination of
this information.
| ||
(w) Within 120 days of August 20, 1995 (the effective date | ||
of Public Act
89-392), the Department shall prepare and submit | ||
to the Governor and the
General Assembly, a written plan for | ||
the development of in-state licensed
secure child care | ||
facilities that care for children who are in need of secure
| ||
living
arrangements for their health, safety, and well-being. | ||
For purposes of this
subsection, secure care facility shall | ||
mean a facility that is designed and
operated to ensure that | ||
all entrances and exits from the facility, a building
or a | ||
distinct part of the building, are under the exclusive control | ||
of the
staff of the facility, whether or not the child has the | ||
freedom of movement
within the perimeter of the facility, | ||
building, or distinct part of the
building. The plan shall | ||
include descriptions of the types of facilities that
are needed | ||
in Illinois; the cost of developing these secure care | ||
facilities;
the estimated number of placements; the potential | ||
cost savings resulting from
the movement of children currently | ||
out-of-state who are projected to be
returned to Illinois; the | ||
necessary geographic distribution of these
facilities in | ||
Illinois; and a proposed timetable for development of such
| ||
facilities.
| ||
(Source: P.A. 91-239, eff. 1-1-00; 91-357, eff. 7-29-99; | ||
91-812, eff.
6-13-00; 92-154, eff. 1-1-02.)
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