Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of Public Act 098-0817
Illinois General Assembly

Previous General Assemblies

Public Act 098-0817


 

Public Act 0817 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY



 


 
Public Act 098-0817
 
SB1999 EnrolledLRB098 06516 JDS 36559 b

    AN ACT concerning government.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Child Care Act of 1969 is amended by
changing Section 7 as follows:
 
    (225 ILCS 10/7)  (from Ch. 23, par. 2217)
    Sec. 7. (a) The Department must prescribe and publish
minimum standards for licensing that apply to the various types
of facilities for child care defined in this Act and that are
equally applicable to like institutions under the control of
the Department and to foster family homes used by and under the
direct supervision of the Department. The Department shall seek
the advice and assistance of persons representative of the
various types of child care facilities in establishing such
standards. The standards prescribed and published under this
Act take effect as provided in the Illinois Administrative
Procedure Act, and are restricted to regulations pertaining to
the following matters and to any rules and regulations required
or permitted by any other Section of this Act:
        (1) The operation and conduct of the facility and
    responsibility it assumes for child care;
        (2) The character, suitability and qualifications of
    the applicant and other persons directly responsible for
    the care and welfare of children served. All child day care
    center licensees and employees who are required to report
    child abuse or neglect under the Abused and Neglected Child
    Reporting Act shall be required to attend training on
    recognizing child abuse and neglect, as prescribed by
    Department rules;
        (3) The general financial ability and competence of the
    applicant to provide necessary care for children and to
    maintain prescribed standards;
        (4) The number of individuals or staff required to
    insure adequate supervision and care of the children
    received. The standards shall provide that each child care
    institution, maternity center, day care center, group
    home, day care home, and group day care home shall have on
    its premises during its hours of operation at least one
    staff member certified in first aid, in the Heimlich
    maneuver and in cardiopulmonary resuscitation by the
    American Red Cross or other organization approved by rule
    of the Department. Child welfare agencies shall not be
    subject to such a staffing requirement. The Department may
    offer, or arrange for the offering, on a periodic basis in
    each community in this State in cooperation with the
    American Red Cross, the American Heart Association or other
    appropriate organization, voluntary programs to train
    operators of foster family homes and day care homes in
    first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation;
        (5) The appropriateness, safety, cleanliness and
    general adequacy of the premises, including maintenance of
    adequate fire prevention and health standards conforming
    to State laws and municipal codes to provide for the
    physical comfort, care and well-being of children
    received;
        (6) Provisions for food, clothing, educational
    opportunities, program, equipment and individual supplies
    to assure the healthy physical, mental and spiritual
    development of children served;
        (7) Provisions to safeguard the legal rights of
    children served;
        (8) Maintenance of records pertaining to the
    admission, progress, health and discharge of children,
    including, for day care centers and day care homes, records
    indicating each child has been immunized as required by
    State regulations. The Department shall require proof that
    children enrolled in a facility have been immunized against
    Haemophilus Influenzae B (HIB);
        (9) Filing of reports with the Department;
        (10) Discipline of children;
        (11) Protection and fostering of the particular
    religious faith of the children served;
        (12) Provisions prohibiting firearms on day care
    center premises except in the possession of peace officers;
        (13) Provisions prohibiting handguns on day care home
    premises except in the possession of peace officers or
    other adults who must possess a handgun as a condition of
    employment and who reside on the premises of a day care
    home;
        (14) Provisions requiring that any firearm permitted
    on day care home premises, except handguns in the
    possession of peace officers, shall be kept in a
    disassembled state, without ammunition, in locked storage,
    inaccessible to children and that ammunition permitted on
    day care home premises shall be kept in locked storage
    separate from that of disassembled firearms, inaccessible
    to children;
        (15) Provisions requiring notification of parents or
    guardians enrolling children at a day care home of the
    presence in the day care home of any firearms and
    ammunition and of the arrangements for the separate, locked
    storage of such firearms and ammunition; and
        (16) Provisions requiring all licensed child care
    facility employees who care for newborns and infants to
    complete training every 3 years on the nature of sudden
    unexpected infant death (SUID), sudden infant death
    syndrome (SIDS), and the safe sleep recommendations of the
    American Academy of Pediatrics.
    (b) If, in a facility for general child care, there are
children diagnosed as mentally ill, intellectually disabled or
physically handicapped, who are determined to be in need of
special mental treatment or of nursing care, or both mental
treatment and nursing care, the Department shall seek the
advice and recommendation of the Department of Human Services,
the Department of Public Health, or both Departments regarding
the residential treatment and nursing care provided by the
institution.
    (c) The Department shall investigate any person applying to
be licensed as a foster parent to determine whether there is
any evidence of current drug or alcohol abuse in the
prospective foster family. The Department shall not license a
person as a foster parent if drug or alcohol abuse has been
identified in the foster family or if a reasonable suspicion of
such abuse exists, except that the Department may grant a
foster parent license to an applicant identified with an
alcohol or drug problem if the applicant has successfully
participated in an alcohol or drug treatment program, self-help
group, or other suitable activities.
    (d) The Department, in applying standards prescribed and
published, as herein provided, shall offer consultation
through employed staff or other qualified persons to assist
applicants and licensees in meeting and maintaining minimum
requirements for a license and to help them otherwise to
achieve programs of excellence related to the care of children
served. Such consultation shall include providing information
concerning education and training in early childhood
development to providers of day care home services. The
Department may provide or arrange for such education and
training for those providers who request such assistance.
    (e) The Department shall distribute copies of licensing
standards to all licensees and applicants for a license. Each
licensee or holder of a permit shall distribute copies of the
appropriate licensing standards and any other information
required by the Department to child care facilities under its
supervision. Each licensee or holder of a permit shall maintain
appropriate documentation of the distribution of the
standards. Such documentation shall be part of the records of
the facility and subject to inspection by authorized
representatives of the Department.
    (f) The Department shall prepare summaries of day care
licensing standards. Each licensee or holder of a permit for a
day care facility shall distribute a copy of the appropriate
summary and any other information required by the Department,
to the legal guardian of each child cared for in that facility
at the time when the child is enrolled or initially placed in
the facility. The licensee or holder of a permit for a day care
facility shall secure appropriate documentation of the
distribution of the summary and brochure. Such documentation
shall be a part of the records of the facility and subject to
inspection by an authorized representative of the Department.
    (g) The Department shall distribute to each licensee and
holder of a permit copies of the licensing or permit standards
applicable to such person's facility. Each licensee or holder
of a permit shall make available by posting at all times in a
common or otherwise accessible area a complete and current set
of licensing standards in order that all employees of the
facility may have unrestricted access to such standards. All
employees of the facility shall have reviewed the standards and
any subsequent changes. Each licensee or holder of a permit
shall maintain appropriate documentation of the current review
of licensing standards by all employees. Such records shall be
part of the records of the facility and subject to inspection
by authorized representatives of the Department.
    (h) Any standards involving physical examinations,
immunization, or medical treatment shall include appropriate
exemptions for children whose parents object thereto on the
grounds that they conflict with the tenets and practices of a
recognized church or religious organization, of which the
parent is an adherent or member, and for children who should
not be subjected to immunization for clinical reasons.
    (i) The Department, in cooperation with the Department of
Public Health, shall work to increase immunization awareness
and participation among parents of children enrolled in day
care centers and day care homes by publishing on the
Department's website information about the benefits of
immunization against vaccine preventable diseases, including
influenza and pertussis. The information for vaccine
preventable diseases shall include the incidence and severity
of the diseases, the availability of vaccines, and the
importance of immunizing children and persons who frequently
have close contact with children. The website content shall be
reviewed annually in collaboration with the Department of
Public Health to reflect the most current recommendations of
the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). The
Department shall work with day care centers and day care homes
licensed under this Act to ensure that the information is
annually distributed to parents in August or September.
    (j) Any standard adopted by the Department that requires an
applicant for a license to operate a day care home to include a
copy of a high school diploma or equivalent certificate with
his or her application shall be deemed to be satisfied if the
applicant includes a copy of a high school diploma or
equivalent certificate or a copy of a degree from an accredited
institution of higher education or vocational institution or
equivalent certificate.
(Source: P.A. 96-391, eff. 8-13-09; 97-83, eff. 1-1-12; 97-227,
eff. 1-1-12; 97-494, eff. 8-22-11; 97-813, eff. 7-13-12.)

Effective Date: 1/1/2015