HB5257eng 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB5257 Engrossed LRB100 18028 SLF 33216 b

AN ACT concerning juveniles.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended by changing Section 35.1 as follows:

(20 ILCS 505/35.1) (from Ch. 23, par. 5035.1)

Sec. 35.1. The case and clinical records of patients in Department supervised facilities, youth in care, children receiving or applying for child welfare services, persons receiving or applying for other services of the Department, and Department reports of injury or abuse to children shall not be open to the general public. Such case and clinical records and reports or the information contained therein shall be disclosed by the Director of the Department to juvenile authorities when necessary for the discharge of their official duties who request information concerning the minor and who certify in writing that the information will not be disclosed to any other party except as provided under law or order of court. For purposes of this Section, "juvenile authorities" means: (i) a judge of the circuit court and members of the staff of the court designated by the judge; (ii) parties to the proceedings under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 and their attorneys; (iii) probation officers and court appointed advocates for the juvenile authorized by the judge hearing the case; (iv) any individual, public or private agency having custody of the child pursuant to court order or pursuant to placement of the child by the Department; (v) any individual, public or private agency providing education, medical or mental health service to the child when the requested information is needed to determine the appropriate service or treatment for the minor; (vi) any potential placement provider when such release is authorized by the court for the limited purpose of determining the appropriateness of the potential placement; (vii) law enforcement officers and prosecutors; (viii) adult and juvenile prisoner review boards; (ix) authorized military personnel; (x) individuals authorized by court; (xi) the Illinois General Assembly or any committee or commission thereof. This Section does not apply to the Department's fiscal records, other records of a purely administrative nature, or any forms, documents or other records required of facilities subject to licensure by the Department except as may otherwise be provided under the Child Care Act of 1969. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, upon request, a guardian ad litem or attorney appointed to represent a child who is the subject of an action pursuant to Article II of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 may obtain a copy of foster home licensing records, including all information related to licensing complaints and investigations, regarding a home in which the child is placed or regarding a home in which the Department plans to place the child. Any information contained in foster home licensing records that is protected from disclosure by federal or State law may be obtained only in compliance with that law. Nothing in this Section restricts the authority of a court to order release of licensing records for purposes of discovery or as otherwise authorized by law.

Nothing contained in this Act prevents the sharing or disclosure of information or records relating or pertaining to juveniles subject to the provisions of the Serious Habitual Offender Comprehensive Action Program when that information is used to assist in the early identification and treatment of habitual juvenile offenders.

Nothing contained in this Act prevents the sharing or disclosure of information or records relating or pertaining to the death of a minor under the care of or receiving services from the Department and under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court with the juvenile court, the State's Attorney, and the minor's attorney.

In this paragraph, "significant event report" means a written document describing an occurrence or event beyond the customary operations, routines, or relationships in the Department, a child care facility, or other entity that is licensed or regulated by the Department or that provides services for the Department under a grant, contract, or purchase of service agreement; involving children or youth, employees, foster parents, or relative caregivers; allegations of abuse or neglect or any other incident raising a concern about the well-being of a minor under the jurisdiction of the court under Article II of the Juvenile Court Act; incidents involving damage to property, allegations of criminal activity, misconduct, or other occurrences affecting the operations of the Department or a child care facility; any incident that could have media impact; and unusual incidents as defined by Department rule. The Department shall provide a minor's guardian ad litem, appointed under Section 2-17 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, or a minor's attorney appointed under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, with a copy of each significant event report involving the minor no later than 3 days after the Department learns of an event requiring a significant event report to be written, or earlier as required by Department rule.

Nothing contained in this Section prohibits or prevents any individual dealing with or providing services to a minor from sharing information with another individual dealing with or providing services to a minor for the purpose of coordinating efforts on behalf of the minor. The sharing of such information is only for the purpose stated herein and is to be consistent with the intent and purpose of the confidentiality provisions of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. This provision does not abrogate any recognized privilege. Sharing information does not include copying of records, reports or case files unless authorized herein.

Nothing in this Section prohibits or prevents the re-disclosure of records, reports, or other information that reveals malfeasance or nonfeasance on the part of the Department, its employees, or its agents. Nothing in this Section prohibits or prevents the Department or a party in a proceeding under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 from copying records, reports, or case files for the purpose of sharing those documents with other parties to the litigation.

(Source: P.A. 99-779, eff. 1-1-17; 100-159, eff. 8-18-17.)

Section 10. The Juvenile Court Act of 1987 is amended by changing Sections 1-3 and 2-17 as follows:

(705 ILCS 405/1-3) (from Ch. 37, par. 801-3)

Sec. 1-3. Definitions. Terms used in this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, have the following meanings ascribed to them:

(1) "Adjudicatory hearing" means a hearing to determine whether the allegations of a petition under Section 2-13, 3-15 or 4-12 that a minor under 18 years of age is abused, neglected or dependent, or requires authoritative intervention, or addicted, respectively, are supported by a preponderance of the evidence or whether the allegations of a petition under Section 5-520 that a minor is delinquent are proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

(2) "Adult" means a person 21 years of age or older.

(3) "Agency" means a public or private child care facility legally authorized or licensed by this State for placement or institutional care or for both placement and institutional care.

(4) "Association" means any organization, public or private, engaged in welfare functions which include services to or on behalf of children but does not include "agency" as herein defined.

(4.05) Whenever a "best interest" determination is required, the following factors shall be considered in the context of the child's age and developmental needs:

(a) the physical safety and welfare of the child, including food, shelter, health, and clothing;

(b) the development of the child's identity;

(c) the child's background and ties, including familial, cultural, and religious;

(d) the child's sense of attachments, including:

(i) where the child actually feels love, attachment, and a sense of being valued (as opposed to where adults believe the child should feel such love, attachment, and a sense of being valued);

(ii) the child's sense of security;

(iii) the child's sense of familiarity;

(iv) continuity of affection for the child;

(v) the least disruptive placement alternative for the child;

(e) the child's wishes and long-term goals;

(f) the child's community ties, including church, school, and friends;

(g) the child's need for permanence which includes the child's need for stability and continuity of relationships with parent figures and with siblings and other relatives;

(h) the uniqueness of every family and child;

(i) the risks attendant to entering and being in substitute care; and

(j) the preferences of the persons available to care for the child.

(4.1) "Chronic truant" shall have the definition ascribed to it in Section 26-2a of the School Code.

(5) "Court" means the circuit court in a session or division assigned to hear proceedings under this Act.

(6) "Dispositional hearing" means a hearing to determine whether a minor should be adjudged to be a ward of the court, and to determine what order of disposition should be made in respect to a minor adjudged to be a ward of the court.

(7) "Emancipated minor" means any minor 16 years of age or over who has been completely or partially emancipated under the Emancipation of Minors Act or under this Act.

(7.05) "Foster parent" includes a relative caregiver selected by the Department of Children and Family Services to provide care for the minor.

(8) "Guardianship of the person" of a minor means the duty and authority to act in the best interests of the minor, subject to residual parental rights and responsibilities, to make important decisions in matters having a permanent effect on the life and development of the minor and to be concerned with his or her general welfare. It includes but is not necessarily limited to:

(a) the authority to consent to marriage, to enlistment in the armed forces of the United States, or to a major medical, psychiatric, and surgical treatment; to represent the minor in legal actions; and to make other decisions of substantial legal significance concerning the minor;

(b) the authority and duty of reasonable visitation, except to the extent that these have been limited in the best interests of the minor by court order;

(c) the rights and responsibilities of legal custody except where legal custody has been vested in another person or agency; and

(d) the power to consent to the adoption of the minor, but only if expressly conferred on the guardian in accordance with Section 2-29, 3-30, or 4-27.

(9) "Legal custody" means the relationship created by an order of court in the best interests of the minor which imposes on the custodian the responsibility of physical possession of a minor and the duty to protect, train and discipline him and to provide him with food, shelter, education and ordinary medical care, except as these are limited by residual parental rights and responsibilities and the rights and responsibilities of the guardian of the person, if any.

(9.1) "Mentally capable adult relative" means a person 21 years of age or older who is not suffering from a mental illness that prevents him or her from providing the care necessary to safeguard the physical safety and welfare of a minor who is left in that person's care by the parent or parents or other person responsible for the minor's welfare.

(10) "Minor" means a person under the age of 21 years subject to this Act.

(11) "Parent" means a father or mother of a child and includes any adoptive parent. It also includes a person (i) whose parentage is presumed or has been established under the law of this or another jurisdiction or (ii) who has registered with the Putative Father Registry in accordance with Section 12.1 of the Adoption Act and whose paternity has not been ruled out under the law of this or another jurisdiction. It does not include a parent whose rights in respect to the minor have been terminated in any manner provided by law. It does not include a person who has been or could be determined to be a parent under the Illinois Parentage Act of 1984 or the Illinois Parentage Act of 2015, or similar parentage law in any other state, if that person has been convicted of or pled nolo contendere to a crime that resulted in the conception of the child under Section 11-1.20, 11-1.30, 11-1.40, 11-11, 12-13, 12-14, 12-14.1, subsection (a) or (b) (but not subsection (c)) of Section 11-1.50 or 12-15, or subsection (a), (b), (c), (e), or (f) (but not subsection (d)) of Section 11-1.60 or 12-16 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, or similar statute in another jurisdiction unless upon motion of any party, other than the offender, to the juvenile court proceedings the court finds it is in the child's best interest to deem the offender a parent for purposes of the juvenile court proceedings.

(11.1) "Permanency goal" means a goal set by the court as defined in subdivision (2) of Section 2-28.

(11.2) "Permanency hearing" means a hearing to set the permanency goal and to review and determine (i) the appropriateness of the services contained in the plan and whether those services have been provided, (ii) whether reasonable efforts have been made by all the parties to the service plan to achieve the goal, and (iii) whether the plan and goal have been achieved.

(12) "Petition" means the petition provided for in Section 2-13, 3-15, 4-12 or 5-520, including any supplemental petitions thereunder in Section 3-15, 4-12 or 5-520.

(12.1) "Physically capable adult relative" means a person 21 years of age or older who does not have a severe physical disability or medical condition, or is not suffering from alcoholism or drug addiction, that prevents him or her from providing the care necessary to safeguard the physical safety and welfare of a minor who is left in that person's care by the parent or parents or other person responsible for the minor's welfare.

(12.2) "Post Permanency Sibling Contact Agreement" has the meaning ascribed to the term in Section 7.4 of the Children and Family Services Act.

(12.3) "Residential treatment center" means a licensed setting that provides 24-hour 24 hour care to children in a group home or institution, including a facility licensed as a child care institution under Section 2.06 of the Child Care Act of 1969, a licensed group home under Section 2.16 of the Child Care Act of 1969, a secure child care facility as defined in paragraph (18) of this Section, or any similar facility in another state. "Residential treatment center" does not include a relative foster home or a licensed foster family home.

(13) "Residual parental rights and responsibilities" means those rights and responsibilities remaining with the parent after the transfer of legal custody or guardianship of the person, including, but not necessarily limited to, the right to reasonable visitation (which may be limited by the court in the best interests of the minor as provided in subsection (8)(b) of this Section), the right to consent to adoption, the right to determine the minor's religious affiliation, and the responsibility for his support.

(14) "Shelter" means the temporary care of a minor in physically unrestricting facilities pending court disposition or execution of court order for placement.

(14.05) "Shelter placement" means a temporary or emergency placement for a minor, including an emergency foster home placement.

(14.1) "Sibling Contact Support Plan" has the meaning ascribed to the term in Section 7.4 of the Children and Family Services Act.

(14.2) "Significant event report" means a written document describing an occurrence or event beyond the customary operations, routines, or relationships in the Department of Children of Family Services, a child care facility, or other entity that is licensed or regulated by the Department of Children of Family Services or that provides services for the Department of Children of Family Services under a grant, contract, or purchase of service agreement; involving children or youth, employees, foster parents, or relative caregivers; allegations of abuse or neglect or any other incident raising a concern about the well-being of a minor under the jurisdiction of the court under Article II of the Juvenile Court Act; incidents involving damage to property, allegations of criminal activity, misconduct, or other occurrences affecting the operations of the Department of Children of Family Services or a child care facility; any incident that could have media impact; and unusual incidents as defined by Department of Children and Family Services rule.

(15) "Station adjustment" means the informal handling of an alleged offender by a juvenile police officer.

(16) "Ward of the court" means a minor who is so adjudged under Section 2-22, 3-23, 4-20 or 5-705, after a finding of the requisite jurisdictional facts, and thus is subject to the dispositional powers of the court under this Act.

(17) "Juvenile police officer" means a sworn police officer who has completed a Basic Recruit Training Course, has been assigned to the position of juvenile police officer by his or her chief law enforcement officer and has completed the necessary juvenile officers training as prescribed by the Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board, or in the case of a State police officer, juvenile officer training approved by the Director of the Department of State Police.

(18) "Secure child care facility" means any child care facility licensed by the Department of Children and Family Services to provide secure living arrangements for children under 18 years of age who are subject to placement in facilities under the Children and Family Services Act and who are not subject to placement in facilities for whom standards are established by the Department of Corrections under Section 3-15-2 of the Unified Code of Corrections. "Secure child care facility" also means 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.

(Source: P.A. 99-85, eff. 1-1-16; 100-136, eff. 8-8-17; 100-229, eff. 1-1-18; revised 10-10-17.)

(705 ILCS 405/2-17) (from Ch. 37, par. 802-17)

Sec. 2-17. Guardian ad litem.

(1) Immediately upon the filing of a petition alleging that the minor is a person described in Sections 2-3 or 2-4 of this Article, the court shall appoint a guardian ad litem for the minor if:

(a) such petition alleges that the minor is an abused or neglected child; or

(b) such petition alleges that charges alleging the commission of any of the sex offenses defined in Article 11 or in Sections 11-1.20, 11-1.30, 11-1.40, 11-1.50, 11-1.60, 12-13, 12-14, 12-14.1, 12-15 or 12-16 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, have been filed against a defendant in any court and that such minor is the alleged victim of the acts of defendant in the commission of such offense.

Unless the guardian ad litem appointed pursuant to this paragraph (1) is an attorney at law he shall be represented in the performance of his duties by counsel. The guardian ad litem shall represent the best interests of the minor and shall present recommendations to the court consistent with that duty.

(2) Before proceeding with the hearing, the court shall appoint a guardian ad litem for the minor if

(a) no parent, guardian, custodian or relative of the minor appears at the first or any subsequent hearing of the case;

(b) the petition prays for the appointment of a guardian with power to consent to adoption; or

(c) the petition for which the minor is before the court resulted from a report made pursuant to the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act.

(3) The court may appoint a guardian ad litem for the minor whenever it finds that there may be a conflict of interest between the minor and his parents or other custodian or that it is otherwise in the minor's best interest to do so.

(4) Unless the guardian ad litem is an attorney, he shall be represented by counsel.

(5) The reasonable fees of a guardian ad litem appointed under this Section shall be fixed by the court and charged to the parents of the minor, to the extent they are able to pay. If the parents are unable to pay those fees, they shall be paid from the general fund of the county.

(6) A guardian ad litem appointed under this Section, shall receive copies of any and all classified reports of child abuse and neglect made under the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act in which the minor who is the subject of a report under the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, is also the minor for whom the guardian ad litem is appointed under this Section.

(6.5) A guardian ad litem appointed under this Section or attorney appointed under this Act, shall receive a copy of each significant event report that involves the minor no later than 3 days after the Department learns of an event requiring a significant event report to be written, or earlier as required by Department rule.

(7) The appointed guardian ad litem shall remain the child's guardian ad litem throughout the entire juvenile trial court proceedings, including permanency hearings and termination of parental rights proceedings, unless there is a substitution entered by order of the court.

(8) The guardian ad litem or an agent of the guardian ad litem shall have a minimum of one in-person contact with the minor and one contact with one of the current foster parents or caregivers prior to the adjudicatory hearing, and at least one additional in-person contact with the child and one contact with one of the current foster parents or caregivers after the adjudicatory hearing but prior to the first permanency hearing and one additional in-person contact with the child and one contact with one of the current foster parents or caregivers each subsequent year. For good cause shown, the judge may excuse face-to-face interviews required in this subsection.

(9) In counties with a population of 100,000 or more but less than 3,000,000, each guardian ad litem must successfully complete a training program approved by the Department of Children and Family Services. The Department of Children and Family Services shall provide training materials and documents to guardians ad litem who are not mandated to attend the training program. The Department of Children and Family Services shall develop and distribute to all guardians ad litem a bibliography containing information including but not limited to the juvenile court process, termination of parental rights, child development, medical aspects of child abuse, and the child's need for safety and permanence.

(Source: P.A. 96-1551, eff. 7-1-11; 97-1150, eff. 1-25-13.)