SB1794 EngrossedLRB103 26871 KTG 53235 b

1    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Department of Human Services Act is amended
5by adding Section 10-16 as follows:
 
6    (20 ILCS 1305/10-16 new)
7    Sec. 10-16. Home visiting program.
8    (a) The General Assembly finds that research-informed home
9visiting programs work to strengthen families' functioning and
10support parents in caring for their children to ensure optimal
11child development.
12    (b) The Department shall establish a home visiting program
13to support communities in providing intensive home visiting
14programs to pregnant persons and families with children from
15birth up to elementary school enrollment. Services shall be
16offered on a voluntary basis to families. In awarding grants
17under the program, the Department shall prioritize populations
18or communities in need of such services, as determined by the
19Department, based on data including, but not limited to,
20statewide home visiting needs assessments. Eligibility under
21the program shall also take into consideration requirements of
22the federal Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home
23Visiting Program and Head Start and Early Head Start to ensure

 

 

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1appropriate alignment. The overall goals for these services
2are to:
3        (1) improve maternal and newborn health;
4        (2) prevent child abuse and neglect;
5        (3) promote children's development and readiness to
6    participate in school; and
7        (4) connect families to needed community resources and
8    supports.
9    (b) Allowable uses of funding include:
10        (1) Grants to community-based organizations to
11    implement home visiting and family support services with
12    fidelity to research-informed home visiting program
13    models, as defined by the Department. Services may
14    include, but are not limited to:
15            (A) personal visits with a child and the child's
16        parent or caregiver at a periodicity aligned with the
17        model being implemented;
18            (B) opportunities for connections with other
19        parents and caregivers in their community and other
20        social and community supports;
21            (C) enhancements to research-informed home
22        visiting program models based on community needs
23        including doula services, and other program
24        innovations as approved by the Department; and
25            (D) referrals to other resources needed by
26        families.

 

 

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1        (2) Infrastructure supports for grantees, including,
2    but not limited to, professional development for the
3    workforce, technical assistance and capacity-building,
4    data system and supports, infant and early childhood
5    mental health consultation, trauma-informed practices,
6    research, universal newborn screening, and coordinated
7    intake.
8    (c) Subject to appropriation, the Department shall award
9grants to community-based agencies in accordance with this
10Section and any other rules that may be adopted by the
11Department. Successful grantees under this program shall
12comply with policies and procedures on program, data, and
13expense reporting as developed by the Department.
14    (d) Funds received under this Section shall supplement,
15not supplant, other existing or new federal, State, or local
16sources of funding for these services. Any new federal funding
17received shall supplement and not supplant funding for this
18program.
19    (e) The Department shall collaborate with relevant
20agencies to support the coordination and alignment of home
21visiting services provided through other State and federal
22funds, to the extent possible. The Department shall
23collaborate with the State Board of Education, the Department
24of Healthcare and Family Services, and Head Start and Early
25Head Start in the implementation of these services to support
26alignment with home visiting services provided through the

 

 

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1Early Childhood Block Grant and the State's Medical Assistance
2Program, respectively, to the extent possible.
3    (f) An advisory committee shall advise the Department
4concerning the implementation of the home visiting program.
5The advisory committee shall make recommendations on policy
6and implementation. The Department shall determine whether the
7advisory committee shall be a newly created body or an
8existing body such as a committee of the Illinois Early
9Learning Council. The advisory committee shall consist of one
10or more representatives of the Department, other members
11representing public and private entities that serve and
12interact with the families served under the home visiting
13program, with the input of families engaged in home visiting
14or related services themselves. Family input may be secured by
15engaging families as members of this advisory committee or as
16a separate committee of family representatives.
17    (g) The Department may adopt any rules necessary to
18implement this Section.