102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB0141

 

Introduced 1/14/2021, by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
305 ILCS 5/9A-11  from Ch. 23, par. 9A-11

    Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that, beginning July 1, 2021, a family eligible for child care services whose income is at or below 185% of the most recent United States Department of Health and Human Services Federal Poverty Guidelines for the applicable family size shall pay a $1 monthly fee as a co-payment for child care services. Deletes a provision that: (i) requires the Department of Human Services to establish, by rule, a co-payment scale that provides for cost sharing by families that receive child care services, including parents whose only income is from assistance under this Code; and (ii) that require co-payments to be based on family income and family size and other factors as appropriate. Removes a provision that authorizes the Department to raise parent co-payments. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning public aid.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by
5changing Section 9A-11 as follows:
 
6    (305 ILCS 5/9A-11)  (from Ch. 23, par. 9A-11)
7    Sec. 9A-11. Child care.
8    (a) The General Assembly recognizes that families with
9children need child care in order to work. Child care is
10expensive and families with low incomes, including those who
11are transitioning from welfare to work, often struggle to pay
12the costs of day care. The General Assembly understands the
13importance of helping low-income working families become and
14remain self-sufficient. The General Assembly also believes
15that it is the responsibility of families to share in the costs
16of child care. It is also the preference of the General
17Assembly that all working poor families should be treated
18equally, regardless of their welfare status.
19    (b) To the extent resources permit, the Illinois
20Department shall provide child care services to parents or
21other relatives as defined by rule who are working or
22participating in employment or Department approved education
23or training programs. At a minimum, the Illinois Department

 

 

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1shall cover the following categories of families:
2        (1) recipients of TANF under Article IV participating
3    in work and training activities as specified in the
4    personal plan for employment and self-sufficiency;
5        (2) families transitioning from TANF to work;
6        (3) families at risk of becoming recipients of TANF;
7        (4) families with special needs as defined by rule;
8        (5) working families with very low incomes as defined
9    by rule;
10        (6) families that are not recipients of TANF and that
11    need child care assistance to participate in education and
12    training activities; and
13        (7) families with children under the age of 5 who have
14    an open intact family services case with the Department of
15    Children and Family Services. Any family that receives
16    child care assistance in accordance with this paragraph
17    shall remain eligible for child care assistance 6 months
18    after the child's intact family services case is closed,
19    regardless of whether the child's parents or other
20    relatives as defined by rule are working or participating
21    in Department approved employment or education or training
22    programs. The Department of Human Services, in
23    consultation with the Department of Children and Family
24    Services, shall adopt rules to protect the privacy of
25    families who are the subject of an open intact family
26    services case when such families enroll in child care

 

 

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1    services. Additional rules shall be adopted to offer
2    children who have an open intact family services case the
3    opportunity to receive an Early Intervention screening and
4    other services that their families may be eligible for as
5    provided by the Department of Human Services.
6    The Department shall specify by rule the conditions of
7eligibility, the application process, and the types, amounts,
8and duration of services. Eligibility for child care benefits
9and the amount of child care provided may vary based on family
10size, income, and other factors as specified by rule.
11    A family's eligibility for child care services shall be
12redetermined no sooner than 12 months following the initial
13determination or most recent redetermination. During the
1412-month periods, the family shall remain eligible for child
15care services regardless of (i) a change in family income,
16unless family income exceeds 85% of State median income, or
17(ii) a temporary change in the ongoing status of the parents or
18other relatives, as defined by rule, as working or attending a
19job training or educational program.
20    In determining income eligibility for child care benefits,
21the Department annually, at the beginning of each fiscal year,
22shall establish, by rule, one income threshold for each family
23size, in relation to percentage of State median income for a
24family of that size, that makes families with incomes below
25the specified threshold eligible for assistance and families
26with incomes above the specified threshold ineligible for

 

 

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1assistance. Through and including fiscal year 2007, the
2specified threshold must be no less than 50% of the
3then-current State median income for each family size.
4Beginning in fiscal year 2008, the specified threshold must be
5no less than 185% of the then-current federal poverty level
6for each family size. Notwithstanding any other provision of
7law or administrative rule to the contrary, beginning in
8fiscal year 2019, the specified threshold for working families
9with very low incomes as defined by rule must be no less than
10185% of the then-current federal poverty level for each family
11size.
12    In determining eligibility for assistance, the Department
13shall not give preference to any category of recipients or
14give preference to individuals based on their receipt of
15benefits under this Code.
16    Nothing in this Section shall be construed as conferring
17entitlement status to eligible families.
18    The Illinois Department is authorized to lower income
19eligibility ceilings, raise parent co-payments, create waiting
20lists, or take such other actions during a fiscal year as are
21necessary to ensure that child care benefits paid under this
22Article do not exceed the amounts appropriated for those child
23care benefits. These changes may be accomplished by emergency
24rule under Section 5-45 of the Illinois Administrative
25Procedure Act, except that the limitation on the number of
26emergency rules that may be adopted in a 24-month period shall

 

 

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1not apply.
2    The Illinois Department may contract with other State
3agencies or child care organizations for the administration of
4child care services.
5    (c) Payment shall be made for child care that otherwise
6meets the requirements of this Section and applicable
7standards of State and local law and regulation, including any
8requirements the Illinois Department promulgates by rule in
9addition to the licensure requirements promulgated by the
10Department of Children and Family Services and Fire Prevention
11and Safety requirements promulgated by the Office of the State
12Fire Marshal, and is provided in any of the following:
13        (1) a child care center which is licensed or exempt
14    from licensure pursuant to Section 2.09 of the Child Care
15    Act of 1969;
16        (2) a licensed child care home or home exempt from
17    licensing;
18        (3) a licensed group child care home;
19        (4) other types of child care, including child care
20    provided by relatives or persons living in the same home
21    as the child, as determined by the Illinois Department by
22    rule.
23    (c-5) Solely for the purposes of coverage under the
24Illinois Public Labor Relations Act, child and day care home
25providers, including licensed and license exempt,
26participating in the Department's child care assistance

 

 

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1program shall be considered to be public employees and the
2State of Illinois shall be considered to be their employer as
3of January 1, 2006 (the effective date of Public Act 94-320),
4but not before. The State shall engage in collective
5bargaining with an exclusive representative of child and day
6care home providers participating in the child care assistance
7program concerning their terms and conditions of employment
8that are within the State's control. Nothing in this
9subsection shall be understood to limit the right of families
10receiving services defined in this Section to select child and
11day care home providers or supervise them within the limits of
12this Section. The State shall not be considered to be the
13employer of child and day care home providers for any purposes
14not specifically provided in Public Act 94-320, including, but
15not limited to, purposes of vicarious liability in tort and
16purposes of statutory retirement or health insurance benefits.
17Child and day care home providers shall not be covered by the
18State Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971.
19    In according child and day care home providers and their
20selected representative rights under the Illinois Public Labor
21Relations Act, the State intends that the State action
22exemption to application of federal and State antitrust laws
23be fully available to the extent that their activities are
24authorized by Public Act 94-320.
25    (d) Beginning July 1, 2021, a family eligible for child
26care services whose income is at or below 185% of the most

 

 

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1recent United States Department of Health and Human Services
2Federal Poverty Guidelines for the applicable family size
3shall pay a $1 monthly fee as a co-payment for child care
4services. The Illinois Department shall establish, by rule, a
5co-payment scale that provides for cost sharing by families
6that receive child care services, including parents whose only
7income is from assistance under this Code. The co-payment
8shall be based on family income and family size and may be
9based on other factors as appropriate. Co-payments may be
10waived for families whose incomes are at or below the federal
11poverty level.
12    (d-5) The Illinois Department, in consultation with its
13Child Care and Development Advisory Council, shall develop a
14plan to revise the child care assistance program's co-payment
15scale. The plan shall be completed no later than February 1,
162008, and shall include:
17        (1) findings as to the percentage of income that the
18    average American family spends on child care and the
19    relative amounts that low-income families and the average
20    American family spend on other necessities of life;
21        (2) recommendations for revising the child care
22    co-payment scale to assure that families receiving child
23    care services from the Department are paying no more than
24    they can reasonably afford;
25        (3) recommendations for revising the child care
26    co-payment scale to provide at-risk children with complete

 

 

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1    access to Preschool for All and Head Start; and
2        (4) recommendations for changes in child care program
3    policies that affect the affordability of child care.
4    (e) (Blank).
5    (f) The Illinois Department shall, by rule, set rates to
6be paid for the various types of child care. Child care may be
7provided through one of the following methods:
8        (1) arranging the child care through eligible
9    providers by use of purchase of service contracts or
10    vouchers;
11        (2) arranging with other agencies and community
12    volunteer groups for non-reimbursed child care;
13        (3) (blank); or
14        (4) adopting such other arrangements as the Department
15    determines appropriate.
16    (f-1) Within 30 days after June 4, 2018 (the effective
17date of Public Act 100-587), the Department of Human Services
18shall establish rates for child care providers that are no
19less than the rates in effect on January 1, 2018 increased by
204.26%.
21    (f-5) (Blank).
22    (g) Families eligible for assistance under this Section
23shall be given the following options:
24        (1) receiving a child care certificate issued by the
25    Department or a subcontractor of the Department that may
26    be used by the parents as payment for child care and

 

 

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1    development services only; or
2        (2) if space is available, enrolling the child with a
3    child care provider that has a purchase of service
4    contract with the Department or a subcontractor of the
5    Department for the provision of child care and development
6    services. The Department may identify particular priority
7    populations for whom they may request special
8    consideration by a provider with purchase of service
9    contracts, provided that the providers shall be permitted
10    to maintain a balance of clients in terms of household
11    incomes and families and children with special needs, as
12    defined by rule.
13(Source: P.A. 100-387, eff. 8-25-17; 100-587, eff. 6-4-18;
14100-860, eff. 2-14-19; 100-909, eff. 10-1-18; 100-916, eff.
158-17-18; 101-81, eff. 7-12-19.)
 
16    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
17becoming law.