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90_HB1813ham001
LRB9001607MWpcam
1 AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 1813
2 AMENDMENT NO. . Amend House Bill 1813 by replacing
3 the title with the following:
4 "AN ACT to amend the Department of Human Services Act by
5 adding Article 15."; and
6 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the
7 following:
8 "Section 5. The Department of Human Services Act is
9 amended by adding Article 15 as follows:
10 (20 ILCS 1305/Art. 15 heading new)
11 ARTICLE 15. TASK FORCE ON RESPONSIBLE FATHERHOOD
12 (20 ILCS 1305/15-5 new)
13 Sec. 15-5. Task Force on Responsible Fatherhood created.
14 (a) The Task Force on Responsible Fatherhood is created
15 within the Department of Human Services. The task force
16 shall consist of not more than 25 members, as provided in
17 this Section. The following or their designees shall serve
18 as ex officio members: the Secretary of Human Services, who
19 shall serve as chairperson of the task force; the Directors
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1 of Public Health, Public Aid, and Children and Family
2 Services; the heads of any other State agencies as determined
3 by the Governor; the Attorney General; and the Chief Justice
4 of the Illinois Supreme Court. The Secretary of Human
5 Services shall appoint members of the general public as
6 members of the task force. The President of the Senate,
7 the Minority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the House
8 of Representatives, and the Minority Leader of the House of
9 Representatives shall each appoint 2 members of the task
10 force. The Governor may remove any member of the task force
11 for cause.
12 (b) The members of the task force shall serve without
13 compensation but shall be reimbursed for their reasonable
14 expenses actually incurred in performing their duties.
15 (c) The Department of Human Services shall provide staff
16 and technical assistance needed by the task force in order to
17 perform its functions.
18 (d) The task force shall hold its first meeting within
19 30 days after the members are appointed.
20 (e) The task force may apply for grants and accept
21 donations for the purpose of funding its activities under
22 this Article.
23 (20 ILCS 1305/15-10 new)
24 Sec. 15-10. Task force; purpose and functions.
25 (a) The purpose of the Task Force on Responsible
26 Fatherhood is to raise awareness of the problems created when
27 a child grows up without the presence of a responsible
28 father, to identify obstacles that impede or prevent the
29 involvement of responsible fathers in the lives of their
30 children, and to identify strategies that are successful in
31 encouraging responsible fatherhood.
32 (b) The following principles shall guide the work of the
33 task force:
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1 (1) The historically low expectations held about
2 fathers must change in all areas of society, and
3 responsible fathers must be encouraged to be full
4 partners in parenting their children.
5 (2) Networks of peer support for fathers are an
6 essential part of any successful strategy to connect or
7 reconnect responsible fathers to their children.
8 (3) Women have a crucial role in promoting and
9 supporting the involvement of responsible fathers in the
10 lives of their children, and that role must not be
11 overlooked or diminished.
12 (4) Family violence must not be tolerated.
13 (5) Special attention should be focused on
14 interventions aimed at males and females prior to
15 parenthood.
16 (6) The areas where responsible fathering appear to
17 break down should be addressed. Those areas include, but
18 are not limited to, fathers who are absent from the home
19 and voluntarily do not participate in their children's
20 lives, fathers who have been involuntarily obstructed
21 from participating in the lives of their children, and
22 fathers who are present in the home but are disengaged
23 from their children's lives.
24 (c) In order to carry out its purpose, and subject to
25 the availability of resources, the task force shall do the
26 following:
27 (1) Compile available information on the extent and
28 implications of the absence of responsible fathers from
29 families.
30 (2) Identify barriers in both the public and the
31 private sectors to responsible fatherhood and make
32 recommendations that pursue the elimination of those
33 barriers.
34 (3) Identify successful strategies that encourage
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1 responsible fatherhood and recommend and promote those
2 that should be recognized, expanded, or replicated.
3 (4) Identify how existing State and community
4 resources can be used to encourage responsible
5 fatherhood.
6 (5) Identify strategies to use to meet the needs of
7 children and families when a responsible father is not
8 available for a family.
9 (6) Work in cooperation with local community-based
10 prenatal and infant health care coalitions to advise
11 these coalitions on their implementation of plans to
12 increase the participation of responsible fathers in
13 families.
14 (7) Sponsor a statewide symposium on the issue of
15 responsible fatherhood no later than the summer of 1998.
16 (8) Present a report to the Governor, the General
17 Assembly, the Attorney General, and the Chief Justice of
18 the Supreme Court no later than December 31, 1998.
19 (20 ILCS 1305/15-95 new)
20 Sec. 15-95. Repeal. This Article 15 is repealed on July
21 1, 1999.".