Full Text of SB0201 102nd General Assembly
SB0201 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022 SB0201 Introduced 2/17/2021, by Sen. Julie A. Morrison SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
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20 ILCS 505/7 | from Ch. 23, par. 5007 |
225 ILCS 10/4 | from Ch. 23, par. 2214 |
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Amends the Children and Family Services Act. Requires a fictive kin with whom a child is placed to apply for licensure as a foster family home within 30 days (rather than 6 months) of the child's placement with the fictive kin. Removes a provision prohibiting the Department of Children and Family Services from removing a child from the home of a fictive kin on the basis that the fictive kin fails to apply for licensure within 6 months of the child's placement with the fictive kin, or fails to meet the standard for licensure. Amends the Child Care Act of 1969. Provides that any relative who receives a child or children for placement by the Department on a full-time basis shall apply within 30 days of placement for a license to operate a foster family home. Effective immediately.
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| | A BILL FOR |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning children.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended | 5 | | by changing Section 7 as follows:
| 6 | | (20 ILCS 505/7) (from Ch. 23, par. 5007)
| 7 | | Sec. 7. Placement of children; considerations.
| 8 | | (a) In placing any child under this Act, the Department | 9 | | shall place the
child, as far as possible, in the care and | 10 | | custody of some individual
holding the same religious belief | 11 | | as the parents of the child, or with some
child care facility | 12 | | which is operated by persons of like religious faith as
the | 13 | | parents of such child.
| 14 | | (a-5) In placing a child under this Act, the Department | 15 | | shall place the child with the child's
sibling or siblings | 16 | | under Section 7.4 of this Act unless the placement is not in | 17 | | each child's best
interest, or is otherwise not possible under | 18 | | the Department's rules. If the child is not
placed with a | 19 | | sibling under the Department's rules, the Department shall | 20 | | consider
placements that are likely to develop, preserve, | 21 | | nurture, and support sibling relationships, where
doing so is | 22 | | in each child's best interest. | 23 | | (b) In placing a child under this Act, the Department may |
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| 1 | | place a child
with a relative if the Department determines | 2 | | that the relative
will be able to adequately provide for the | 3 | | child's safety and welfare based on the factors set forth in | 4 | | the Department's rules governing relative placements, and that | 5 | | the placement is consistent with the child's best interests, | 6 | | taking into consideration the factors set out in subsection | 7 | | (4.05) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. | 8 | | When the Department first assumes custody of a child, in | 9 | | placing that child under this Act, the Department shall make | 10 | | reasonable efforts to identify, locate, and provide notice to | 11 | | all adult grandparents and other adult relatives of the child | 12 | | who are ready, willing, and able to care for the child. At a | 13 | | minimum, these efforts shall be renewed each time the child | 14 | | requires a placement change and it is appropriate for the | 15 | | child to be cared for in a home environment. The Department | 16 | | must document its efforts to identify, locate, and provide | 17 | | notice to such potential relative placements and maintain the | 18 | | documentation in the child's case file. | 19 | | If the Department determines that a placement with any | 20 | | identified relative is not in the child's best interests or | 21 | | that the relative does not meet the requirements to be a | 22 | | relative caregiver, as set forth in Department rules or by | 23 | | statute, the Department must document the basis for that | 24 | | decision and maintain the documentation in the child's case | 25 | | file.
| 26 | | If, pursuant to the Department's rules, any person files |
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| 1 | | an administrative appeal of the Department's decision not to | 2 | | place a child with a relative, it is the Department's burden to | 3 | | prove that the decision is consistent with the child's best | 4 | | interests. | 5 | | When the Department determines that the child requires | 6 | | placement in an environment, other than a home environment, | 7 | | the Department shall continue to make reasonable efforts to | 8 | | identify and locate relatives to serve as visitation resources | 9 | | for the child and potential future placement resources, except | 10 | | when the Department determines that those efforts would be | 11 | | futile or inconsistent with the child's best interests. | 12 | | If the Department determines that efforts to identify and | 13 | | locate relatives would be futile or inconsistent with the | 14 | | child's best interests, the Department shall document the | 15 | | basis of its determination and maintain the documentation in | 16 | | the child's case file. | 17 | | If the Department determines that an individual or a group | 18 | | of relatives are inappropriate to serve as visitation | 19 | | resources or possible placement resources, the Department | 20 | | shall document the basis of its determination and maintain the | 21 | | documentation in the child's case file. | 22 | | When the Department determines that an individual or a | 23 | | group of relatives are appropriate to serve as visitation | 24 | | resources or possible future placement resources, the | 25 | | Department shall document the basis of its determination, | 26 | | maintain the documentation in the child's case file, create a |
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| 1 | | visitation or transition plan, or both, and incorporate the | 2 | | visitation or transition plan, or both, into the child's case | 3 | | plan. For the purpose of this subsection, any determination as | 4 | | to the child's best interests shall include consideration of | 5 | | the factors set out in subsection (4.05) of Section 1-3 of the | 6 | | Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
| 7 | | The Department may not place a child with a relative, with | 8 | | the exception of
certain circumstances which may be waived as | 9 | | defined by the Department in
rules, if the results of a check | 10 | | of the Law Enforcement Agencies
Data System (LEADS) identifies | 11 | | a prior criminal conviction of the relative or
any adult | 12 | | member of the relative's household for any of the following | 13 | | offenses
under the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code | 14 | | of 2012:
| 15 | | (1) murder;
| 16 | | (1.1) solicitation of murder;
| 17 | | (1.2) solicitation of murder for hire;
| 18 | | (1.3) intentional homicide of an unborn child;
| 19 | | (1.4) voluntary manslaughter of an unborn child;
| 20 | | (1.5) involuntary manslaughter;
| 21 | | (1.6) reckless homicide;
| 22 | | (1.7) concealment of a homicidal death;
| 23 | | (1.8) involuntary manslaughter of an unborn child;
| 24 | | (1.9) reckless homicide of an unborn child;
| 25 | | (1.10) drug-induced homicide;
| 26 | | (2) a sex offense under Article 11, except offenses |
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| 1 | | described in Sections
11-7, 11-8, 11-12, 11-13, 11-35, | 2 | | 11-40, and 11-45;
| 3 | | (3) kidnapping;
| 4 | | (3.1) aggravated unlawful restraint;
| 5 | | (3.2) forcible detention;
| 6 | | (3.3) aiding and abetting child abduction;
| 7 | | (4) aggravated kidnapping;
| 8 | | (5) child abduction;
| 9 | | (6) aggravated battery of a child as described in | 10 | | Section 12-4.3 or subdivision (b)(1) of Section 12-3.05;
| 11 | | (7) criminal sexual assault;
| 12 | | (8) aggravated criminal sexual assault;
| 13 | | (8.1) predatory criminal sexual assault of a child;
| 14 | | (9) criminal sexual abuse;
| 15 | | (10) aggravated sexual abuse;
| 16 | | (11) heinous battery as described in Section 12-4.1 or | 17 | | subdivision (a)(2) of Section 12-3.05;
| 18 | | (12) aggravated battery with a firearm as described in | 19 | | Section 12-4.2 or subdivision (e)(1), (e)(2), (e)(3), or | 20 | | (e)(4) of Section 12-3.05;
| 21 | | (13) tampering with food, drugs, or cosmetics;
| 22 | | (14) drug-induced infliction of great bodily harm as | 23 | | described in Section 12-4.7 or subdivision (g)(1) of | 24 | | Section 12-3.05;
| 25 | | (15) aggravated stalking;
| 26 | | (16) home invasion;
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| 1 | | (17) vehicular invasion;
| 2 | | (18) criminal transmission of HIV;
| 3 | | (19) criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly person or | 4 | | person with a disability as described in Section 12-21 or | 5 | | subsection (b) of Section 12-4.4a;
| 6 | | (20) child abandonment;
| 7 | | (21) endangering the life or health of a child;
| 8 | | (22) ritual mutilation;
| 9 | | (23) ritualized abuse of a child;
| 10 | | (24) an offense in any other state the elements of | 11 | | which are similar and
bear a substantial relationship to | 12 | | any of the foregoing offenses.
| 13 | | For the purpose of this subsection, "relative" shall | 14 | | include
any person, 21 years of age or over, other than the | 15 | | parent, who (i) is
currently related to the child in any of the | 16 | | following ways by blood or
adoption: grandparent, sibling, | 17 | | great-grandparent, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece,
first cousin, | 18 | | second cousin, godparent, great-uncle, or great-aunt; or (ii) | 19 | | is
the spouse of such a
relative; or (iii) is the child's | 20 | | step-father, step-mother, or adult
step-brother or | 21 | | step-sister; or (iv) is a fictive kin; "relative" also | 22 | | includes a person related in any
of the foregoing ways to a | 23 | | sibling of a child, even though the person is not
related to | 24 | | the child, when the
child and its sibling are placed together | 25 | | with that person. For children who have been in the | 26 | | guardianship of the Department, have been adopted, and are |
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| 1 | | subsequently returned to the temporary custody or guardianship | 2 | | of the Department, a "relative" may also include any person | 3 | | who would have qualified as a relative under this paragraph | 4 | | prior to the adoption, but only if the Department determines, | 5 | | and documents, that it would be in the child's best interests | 6 | | to consider this person a relative, based upon the factors for | 7 | | determining best interests set forth in subsection (4.05) of | 8 | | Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. A relative with
| 9 | | whom a child is placed pursuant to this subsection may, but is | 10 | | not required to,
apply for licensure as a foster family home | 11 | | pursuant to the Child Care Act of
1969; provided, however, | 12 | | that as of July 1, 1995, foster care payments shall be
made | 13 | | only to licensed foster family homes pursuant to the terms of | 14 | | Section 5 of
this Act.
| 15 | | Notwithstanding any other provision under this subsection | 16 | | to the contrary, a fictive kin with whom a child is placed | 17 | | pursuant to this subsection shall apply for licensure as a | 18 | | foster family home pursuant to the Child Care Act of 1969 | 19 | | within 30 days 6 months of the child's placement with the | 20 | | fictive kin. The Department shall conduct an assessment of the | 21 | | home within 90 days of placement. The Department shall not | 22 | | remove a child from the home of a fictive kin on the basis that | 23 | | the fictive kin fails to apply for licensure within 6 months of | 24 | | the child's placement with the fictive kin, or fails to meet | 25 | | the standard for licensure. All other requirements established | 26 | | under the rules and procedures of the Department concerning |
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| 1 | | the placement of a child, for whom the Department is legally | 2 | | responsible, with a relative shall apply. By June 1, 2015, the | 3 | | Department shall promulgate rules establishing criteria and | 4 | | standards for placement, identification, and licensure of | 5 | | fictive kin. | 6 | | For purposes of this subsection, "fictive kin" means any | 7 | | individual, unrelated by birth or marriage, who: | 8 | | (i) is shown to have significant and close personal or | 9 | | emotional ties with the child or the child's family prior | 10 | | to the child's placement with the individual; or | 11 | | (ii) is the current foster parent of a child in the | 12 | | custody or guardianship of the Department pursuant to this | 13 | | Act and the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, if the child has | 14 | | been placed in the home for at least one year and has | 15 | | established a significant and family-like relationship | 16 | | with the foster parent, and the foster parent has been | 17 | | identified by the Department as the child's permanent | 18 | | connection, as defined by Department rule. | 19 | | The provisions added to this subsection (b) by Public Act | 20 | | 98-846 shall become operative on and after June 1, 2015. | 21 | | (c) In placing a child under this Act, the Department | 22 | | shall ensure that
the child's health, safety, and best | 23 | | interests are met.
In rejecting placement of a child with an | 24 | | identified relative, the Department shall ensure that the | 25 | | child's health, safety, and best interests are met. In | 26 | | evaluating the best interests of the child, the Department |
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| 1 | | shall take into consideration the factors set forth in | 2 | | subsection (4.05) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of | 3 | | 1987.
| 4 | | The Department shall consider the individual needs of the
| 5 | | child and the capacity of the prospective foster or adoptive
| 6 | | parents to meet the needs of the child. When a child must be | 7 | | placed
outside his or her home and cannot be immediately | 8 | | returned to his or her
parents or guardian, a comprehensive, | 9 | | individualized assessment shall be
performed of that child at | 10 | | which time the needs of the child shall be
determined. Only if | 11 | | race, color, or national origin is identified as a
legitimate | 12 | | factor in advancing the child's best interests shall it be
| 13 | | considered. Race, color, or national origin shall not be | 14 | | routinely
considered in making a placement decision. The | 15 | | Department shall make
special
efforts for the diligent | 16 | | recruitment of potential foster and adoptive families
that | 17 | | reflect the ethnic and racial diversity of the children for | 18 | | whom foster
and adoptive homes are needed. "Special efforts" | 19 | | shall include contacting and
working with community | 20 | | organizations and religious organizations and may
include | 21 | | contracting with those organizations, utilizing local media | 22 | | and other
local resources, and conducting outreach activities.
| 23 | | (c-1) At the time of placement, the Department shall | 24 | | consider concurrent
planning, as described in subsection (l-1) | 25 | | of Section 5, so that permanency may
occur at the earliest | 26 | | opportunity. Consideration should be given so that if
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| 1 | | reunification fails or is delayed, the placement made is the | 2 | | best available
placement to provide permanency for the child. | 3 | | To the extent that doing so is in the child's best interests as | 4 | | set forth in subsection (4.05) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile | 5 | | Court Act of 1987, the Department should consider placements | 6 | | that will permit the child to maintain a meaningful | 7 | | relationship with his or her parents.
| 8 | | (d) The Department may accept gifts, grants, offers of | 9 | | services, and
other contributions to use in making special | 10 | | recruitment efforts.
| 11 | | (e) The Department in placing children in adoptive or | 12 | | foster care homes
may not, in any policy or practice relating | 13 | | to the placement of children for
adoption or foster care, | 14 | | discriminate against any child or prospective adoptive
or | 15 | | foster parent on the basis of race.
| 16 | | (Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15; 99-340, eff. 1-1-16; | 17 | | 99-642, eff. 7-28-16; 99-836, eff. 1-1-17; 100-101, eff. | 18 | | 8-11-17.) | 19 | | Section 10. The Child Care Act of 1969 is amended by | 20 | | changing Section 4 as follows:
| 21 | | (225 ILCS 10/4) (from Ch. 23, par. 2214)
| 22 | | Sec. 4. License requirement; application; notice.
| 23 | | (a) Any person, group of persons or corporation who or | 24 | | which
receives children or arranges for care or placement of |
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| 1 | | one or more
children unrelated to the operator must apply for a | 2 | | license to operate
one of the types of facilities defined in | 3 | | Sections 2.05 through 2.19 and in
Section 2.22 of
this Act. Any | 4 | | relative, as defined in Section 2.17 of this Act, who receives | 5 | | a child or children for placement by the
Department on a | 6 | | full-time basis shall apply within 30 days of placement may | 7 | | apply for a license to operate a foster
family home as defined | 8 | | in Section 2.17 of this Act.
| 9 | | (a-5) Any agency, person, group of persons, association, | 10 | | organization, corporation, institution, center, or group | 11 | | providing adoption services must be licensed by the Department | 12 | | as a child welfare agency as defined in Section 2.08 of this | 13 | | Act. "Providing adoption services" as used in this Act, | 14 | | includes facilitating or engaging in adoption services.
| 15 | | (b) Application for a license
to operate a child care | 16 | | facility must be made to the Department in the manner
and on | 17 | | forms prescribed by it. An application to operate a foster | 18 | | family home
shall include, at a minimum: a completed written | 19 | | form; written authorization by
the applicant and all adult | 20 | | members of the applicant's household to conduct a
criminal | 21 | | background investigation; medical evidence in the form of a | 22 | | medical
report, on forms prescribed by the Department, that | 23 | | the applicant and all
members of the household are free from | 24 | | communicable diseases or physical and
mental conditions that | 25 | | affect their ability to provide care for the child or
| 26 | | children; the names and addresses of at least 3 persons not |
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| 1 | | related to the
applicant who can attest to the applicant's | 2 | | moral character; the name and address of at least one relative | 3 | | who can attest to the applicant's capability to care for the | 4 | | child or children; and fingerprints
submitted by the applicant | 5 | | and all adult members of the applicant's household.
| 6 | | (b-5) Prior to submitting an application for a foster | 7 | | family home license, a quality of care concerns applicant as | 8 | | defined in Section 2.22a of this Act must submit a preliminary | 9 | | application to the Department in the manner and on forms | 10 | | prescribed by it. The Department shall explain to the quality | 11 | | of care concerns applicant the grounds for requiring a | 12 | | preliminary application. The preliminary application shall | 13 | | include a list of (i) all children placed in the home by the | 14 | | Department who were removed by the Department for reasons | 15 | | other than returning to a parent and the circumstances under | 16 | | which they were removed and (ii) all children placed by the | 17 | | Department who were subsequently adopted by or placed in the | 18 | | private guardianship of the quality of care concerns applicant | 19 | | who are currently under 18 and who no longer reside in the home | 20 | | and the reasons why they no longer reside in the home. The | 21 | | preliminary application shall also include, if the quality of | 22 | | care concerns applicant chooses to submit, (1) a response to | 23 | | the quality of care concerns, including any reason the | 24 | | concerns are invalid, have been addressed or ameliorated, or | 25 | | no longer apply and (2) affirmative documentation | 26 | | demonstrating that the quality of care concerns applicant's |
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| 1 | | home does not pose a risk to children and that the family will | 2 | | be able to meet the physical and emotional needs of children. | 3 | | The Department shall verify the information in the preliminary | 4 | | application and review (i) information regarding any prior | 5 | | licensing complaints, (ii) information regarding any prior | 6 | | child abuse or neglect investigations, and (iii) information | 7 | | regarding any involuntary foster home holds placed on the home | 8 | | by the Department. Foster home applicants with quality of care | 9 | | concerns are presumed unsuitable for future licensure. | 10 | | Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection (b-5), | 11 | | the Department may make an exception and issue a foster family | 12 | | license to a quality of care concerns applicant if the | 13 | | Department is satisfied that the foster family home does not | 14 | | pose a risk to children and that the foster family will be able | 15 | | to meet the physical and emotional needs of children. In | 16 | | making this determination, the Department must obtain and | 17 | | carefully review all relevant documents and shall obtain | 18 | | consultation from its Clinical Division as appropriate and as | 19 | | prescribed by Department rule and procedure. The Department | 20 | | has the authority to deny a preliminary application based on | 21 | | the record of quality of care concerns of the foster family | 22 | | home. In the alternative, the Department may (i) approve the | 23 | | preliminary application, (ii) approve the preliminary | 24 | | application subject to obtaining additional information or | 25 | | assessments, or (iii) approve the preliminary application for | 26 | | purposes of placing a particular child or children only in the |
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| 1 | | foster family home. If the Department approves a preliminary | 2 | | application, the foster family shall submit an application for | 3 | | licensure as described in subsection (b) of this Section. The | 4 | | Department shall notify the quality of care concerns applicant | 5 | | of its decision and the basis for its decision in writing. | 6 | | (c) The Department shall notify the public when a child | 7 | | care institution,
maternity center, or group home licensed by | 8 | | the Department undergoes a change
in (i) the range of care or | 9 | | services offered at the facility, (ii) the age or
type of | 10 | | children served, or (iii) the area within the facility used by
| 11 | | children. The Department shall notify the public of the change | 12 | | in a newspaper
of general
circulation in the county or | 13 | | municipality in which the applicant's facility is
or is | 14 | | proposed to be located.
| 15 | | (d) If, upon examination of the facility and investigation | 16 | | of persons
responsible
for care of children and, in the case of | 17 | | a foster home, taking into account information obtained for | 18 | | purposes of evaluating a preliminary application, if | 19 | | applicable, the Department is satisfied that the facility and
| 20 | | responsible persons reasonably meet standards prescribed for | 21 | | the type of
facility for which application is made, it shall | 22 | | issue a license in proper
form, designating on that license | 23 | | the type of child care facility and, except
for a child welfare | 24 | | agency, the number of children to be served at any one
time.
| 25 | | (e) The Department shall not issue or renew the license of | 26 | | any child welfare agency providing adoption services, unless |
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| 1 | | the agency (i) is officially recognized by the United States | 2 | | Internal Revenue Service as a tax-exempt organization | 3 | | described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of | 4 | | 1986 (or any successor provision of federal tax law) and (ii) | 5 | | is in compliance with all of the standards necessary to | 6 | | maintain its status as an organization described in Section | 7 | | 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (or any | 8 | | successor provision of federal tax law). The Department shall | 9 | | grant a grace period of 24 months from the effective date of | 10 | | this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly for existing | 11 | | child welfare agencies providing adoption services to obtain | 12 | | 501(c)(3) status. The Department shall permit an existing | 13 | | child welfare agency that converts from its current structure | 14 | | in order to be recognized as a 501(c)(3) organization as | 15 | | required by this Section to either retain its current license | 16 | | or transfer its current license to a newly formed entity, if | 17 | | the creation of a new entity is required in order to comply | 18 | | with this Section, provided that the child welfare agency | 19 | | demonstrates that it continues to meet all other licensing | 20 | | requirements and that the principal officers and directors and | 21 | | programs of the converted child welfare agency or newly | 22 | | organized child welfare agency are substantially the same as | 23 | | the original. The Department shall have the sole discretion to | 24 | | grant a one year extension to any agency unable to obtain | 25 | | 501(c)(3) status within the timeframe specified in this | 26 | | subsection (e), provided that such agency has filed an |
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| 1 | | application for 501(c)(3) status with the Internal Revenue | 2 | | Service within the 2-year timeframe specified in this | 3 | | subsection (e).
| 4 | | (Source: P.A. 101-63, eff. 7-12-19.)
| 5 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 6 | | becoming law.
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