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92_HB5140eng HB5140 Engrossed LRB9212138DJcs 1 AN ACT in relation to child support. 2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 3 represented in the General Assembly: 4 Section 1. This Act may be cited as the Unified Child 5 Support Services Act. 6 Section 5. Definitions. In this Act: 7 "Child support services" mean any services provided with 8 respect to parentage establishment, support establishment, 9 medical support establishment, support modification, or 10 support enforcement. 11 "Child support specialist" means a paralegal, attorney, 12 or other staff member with specialized training in child 13 support services. 14 "Current child support case" means a case that is pending 15 in the IV-D Child Support Program for which any action is 16 being taken by a Unified Child Support Services Program. 17 "Department" means the Illinois Department of Public Aid. 18 "IV-D Child Support Program" means the child support 19 enforcement program established pursuant to Title IV, Part D 20 of the federal Social Security Act and Article X of the 21 Illinois Public Aid Code. 22 "KIDS" means the Key Information Delivery System that 23 includes a statewide database of all cases in the IV-D Child 24 Support Program. 25 "Medicaid" means the medical assistance program under 26 Article V of the Illinois Public Aid Code. 27 "Obligor" and "obligee" mean those terms as defined in 28 the Income Withholding for Support Act. 29 "Plan" means a plan for a Unified Child Support Services 30 Program. 31 "Program" means the Unified Child Support Services HB5140 Engrossed -2- LRB9212138DJcs 1 Program in a county or group of counties. 2 "State Disbursement Unit" means the State Disbursement 3 Unit established under Section 10-26 of the Illinois Public 4 Aid Code. 5 "State's Attorney" means the duly elected State's 6 Attorney of an Illinois county or 2 or more State's Attorneys 7 who have formed a consortium for purposes of managing a 8 Unified Child Support Services Program within a specific 9 region of the State. 10 "Temporary Assistance for Needy Families" means the 11 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program under 12 Article IV of the Illinois Public Aid Code. 13 Section 10. Plan for Unified Child Support Services. 14 (a) On July 1, 2004, the Department shall delegate to 15 the State's Attorney in each Illinois county with a 16 population of 900,000 or more the responsibility for managing 17 a Unified Child Support Services Program pursuant to an 18 approved Plan for Unified Child Support Services and an 19 intergovernmental agreement entered into between that 20 county's State's Attorney and the Department. 21 (b) By July 1, 2003, and by July 1 of each subsequent 22 year, each State's Attorney of a county with a population of 23 900,000 or more shall submit to the Department a Plan that 24 includes all of the components set forth in Section 15 of 25 this Act and that includes a projected budget of the 26 necessary and reasonable costs for operation of the Plan. 27 Upon approval by the State's Attorney and the Department, 28 however, the Plan may provide for phasing in the Program with 29 different implementation dates. 30 (c) The Department shall approve or reject each Plan, 31 subject to the approval of the Illinois Attorney General, by 32 December 1 of the year in which it is submitted. If the 33 Department rejects a Plan, then (i) the Department must set HB5140 Engrossed -3- LRB9212138DJcs 1 forth specific reasons that the Plan fails to satisfy the 2 specific goals and requirements of this Act or other State or 3 federal requirements and (ii) the Department and the State's 4 Attorney must set forth specific reasons that a budget for 5 the necessary and reasonable costs for operation of the Plan 6 could not be agreed upon. The Department and the State's 7 Attorney shall enter into an intergovernmental agreement 8 incorporating the approved Plan. 9 (d) By July 1, 2006 or any July 1 thereafter, a State's 10 Attorney in any county with a population less than 900,000 11 may elect to submit a Plan to the Department to manage a 12 Program, and all of the provisions of this Act shall apply to 13 an approved Plan. The Department may approve a maximum of 3 14 such Plans per year. 15 (e) Any State's Attorney who submits a Plan pursuant to 16 this Act shall commit to manage the Program for a period of 17 no less than 3 years. 18 Section 15. Components of a Unified Child Support 19 Services Program. 20 (a) Any intergovernmental agreement incorporating an 21 approved Plan under this Act must provide that the State's 22 Attorney shall create and manage a Program offering child 23 support services in all IV-D cases pending in the county as 24 of the approval date of the Plan and all new cases in the 25 Department's IV-D Child Support Program, based upon the 26 jurisdiction of the case and in accordance with all relevant 27 laws or Department policies. 28 (b) The child support services offered by each Program 29 and incorporated in the State's Attorney's Plan must comply 30 with the Department's approved Title IV, Part D State Plan 31 and, except as provided in Section 35, must include, but need 32 not be limited to, the following: 33 (1) Accepting applications for child support HB5140 Engrossed -4- LRB9212138DJcs 1 services from private parties or referrals from any State 2 agency that submits information to KIDS, and providing 3 for the conducting of initial interviews with applicants 4 by telephone or other electronic means. 5 (2) Maintaining flexible office hours, including 6 evening or weekend hours for in-person or telephone 7 appointments, or any other appropriate means in order to 8 meet customer service demands. 9 (3) Providing for a staffing plan that includes 10 assigning cases to a child support specialist who is 11 responsible for coordinating child support services for 12 the case, receiving new and updated information about the 13 case and forwarding that information to all relevant 14 persons and agencies, responding to parents' inquiries 15 and requests in a timely manner, and making appropriate 16 referrals as specified in paragraph (12) of this 17 subsection. 18 (4) Assessing each case for child support services 19 by determining the status of the case and the necessary 20 steps appropriate for the case, including establishing 21 and following standards for determining whether to use 22 judicial or administrative processes for child support 23 services, and establishing and following standards for 24 seeking cooperation from the parties before invoking 25 other enforcement mechanisms. 26 (5) Taking all necessary steps identified in 27 paragraph (4) of this subsection as appropriate for the 28 case, whether by use of judicial or administrative 29 processes, and making appropriate referrals to the 30 Department to follow agency processes for which it is 31 responsible under Section 35 of this Act. 32 (6) Offering genetic testing to determine parentage 33 at the site of the unified child support services 34 operations or near the county courthouse or HB5140 Engrossed -5- LRB9212138DJcs 1 administrative hearing office where proceedings to 2 establish parentage are conducted. 3 (7) Identifying cases that have moved into 4 non-compliance with obligations set forth in an order 5 involving a child support case and taking steps necessary 6 to bring the case into compliance, including 7 investigating sources of income and the location and type 8 of assets of child support obligors who are in arrears in 9 the payment of support. 10 (8) Providing for periodic or other review of 11 administrative and court orders for support consistent 12 with federal guidelines to determine whether a 13 modification of the order should be sought. 14 (9) Taking responsibility for using KIDS, for 15 entering data with respect to a current child support 16 case into KIDS and editing that data, and for having 17 conflicting or incorrect data reconciled with respect to 18 a current child support case, whether by staff of a 19 State's Attorney, the Department staff, the State 20 Disbursement Unit staff, or staff of a Clerk of the 21 Circuit Court. 22 (10) Reporting cooperation or the circumstances for 23 lack of cooperation with child support services by 24 recipients of public aid under Temporary Assistance for 25 Needy Families or Medicaid. 26 (11) Conducting account reviews and 27 redeterminations with respect to a current child support 28 case in accordance with Department policies and federal 29 guidelines. 30 (12) Establishing referral procedures and making 31 appropriate referrals for programs such as voluntary 32 mediation on custody and visitation, domestic violence, 33 employment and training, child care, and governmental 34 benefits such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families HB5140 Engrossed -6- LRB9212138DJcs 1 and Medicaid. 2 (13) Establishing and maintaining an administrative 3 process for parentage establishment, support 4 establishment, and support modification that affords due 5 process of law to alleged fathers and custodial and 6 non-custodial parents; and furnishing copies of all such 7 administrative orders to the clerk of the circuit court 8 and the Department. 9 (14) Providing all information on the Program's 10 operation needed by the Department to satisfy the 11 Department's reporting requirements to the State and 12 federal governments on a timely basis. 13 (15) Responding to requests for Administrative 14 Accountability Analyses under Article X of the Illinois 15 Public Aid Code, for State's Attorney cases as of the 16 effective date of this Act, and reporting final 17 determinations to the Department. 18 (16) Marketing the Program within the county in 19 which it is operating so that potential applicants learn 20 about child support services offered. 21 (17) Appointing a local, unpaid child support 22 advisory board, with the State's Attorney operating the 23 Program as the chair, that meets at least quarterly. 24 (18) Establishing procedures for referral to the 25 Illinois Attorney General of designated child support 26 cases brought by non-custodial parents. 27 (19) Conducting all operations in accordance with 28 any applicable State or federal laws and regulations and 29 the Plan. 30 Section 20. Subcontracts. A Plan submitted by a State's 31 Attorney for approval to manage a Program must include those 32 subcontracts and intergovernmental agreements necessary for 33 the provision of any components of child support services HB5140 Engrossed -7- LRB9212138DJcs 1 under the Plan. The Plan must also include a copy of each 2 signed subcontract or intergovernmental agreement or other 3 evidence of the proposed subcontractor or other local 4 governmental entity's intent to perform the services covered 5 by the subcontract or intergovernmental agreement. The 6 subcontract or intergovernmental agreement may be approved by 7 the Department only if the subcontractor or other 8 intergovernmental entity's services are fully integrated into 9 the Program and the subcontractor or other intergovernmental 10 entity's services enhance the efficiency, accessibility, and 11 effectiveness of child support services. 12 Section 25. Performance standards. 13 (a) In consultation with the Department's statewide 14 Child Support Advisory Committee, the Department shall 15 establish the following by rule: 16 (1) Measures of performance for all State's 17 Attorneys operating a program and contractors and local 18 governmental entities providing child support services in 19 the IV-D Child Support Program with respect to parentage 20 establishment, support order establishment, current 21 support collections, arrearage collections, 22 cost-effectiveness, or any other measures used by the 23 federal government or as set forth by the Department. 24 (2) Procedures for apportioning any projected 25 incentive funding between any eligible contractors or 26 local governmental entities. 27 (b) Once each year, the Department shall estimate the 28 total State and federal incentive funding that will be 29 available for distribution under this subsection during the 30 following year. Any State's Attorney operating a program and 31 a contractor or local governmental entity providing child 32 support services in the IV-D Child Support Program are 33 eligible to earn incentive payments, based on the score HB5140 Engrossed -8- LRB9212138DJcs 1 received for performance standards required under this 2 Section and the amount available for that year under this 3 subsection. 4 (c) Once each year, the Department shall apply the 5 performance standards to all State's Attorneys operating a 6 program and contractors and local governmental entities 7 providing child support services in the IV-D Child Support 8 Program, and shall publish a report of such performance 9 levels and corresponding scores used in calculating the 10 incentive payment amount. 11 Section 30. Annual report to General Assembly. The 12 Department shall submit to the General Assembly an annual 13 report on the operation of Programs during the preceding 14 State fiscal year. The annual report must include, but need 15 not be limited to, the following: 16 (1) The report of performance levels and 17 corresponding scores used in calculating the incentive 18 payment amounts under Section 20. 19 (2) A narrative description of each Program 20 operating in the State, including (i) the manner in which 21 a State's Attorney complied or failed to comply with each 22 assurance included in the applicable Plan and (ii) the 23 Program's annual budget and staffing. 24 Section 35. IV-D Child Support Program responsibilities. 25 (a) The Department has the authority and responsibility 26 for administering the IV-D Child Support Program in 27 compliance with Title IV, Part D of the federal Social 28 Security Act. 29 (b) The Department may enter into agreements with 30 contractors or local governmental entities to manage any 31 services provided by the IV-D Child Support Program in 32 counties in which the State's Attorney is not operating a HB5140 Engrossed -9- LRB9212138DJcs 1 Program. All contractors or local governmental entities 2 entering into agreements with the Department must meet the 3 applicable performance standards set forth in Section 25. 4 (c) In any county in which a program is operating, the 5 Department may enter into an intergovernmental agreement, 6 with the Clerk of the Circuit Court to be responsible for 7 filing, recording, and making available for retrieval all 8 administrative orders of parentage and administrative orders 9 setting, modifying, or terminating child support obligations. 10 (d) With respect to those counties in which a State's 11 Attorney is operating a Program, the Department must, at a 12 minimum, fulfill its responsibilities under Title IV, Part D 13 of the federal Social Security Act and Article X of the 14 Illinois Public Aid Code in connection with the following: 15 (1) Operation of a statewide toll free telephone 16 number that refers parties to the appropriate contact as 17 established by a Plan. 18 (2) Management and supervision of the State 19 Disbursement Unit. 20 (3) Management and supervision of KIDS and the 21 State Case Registry established under Section 10-27 of 22 the Illinois Public Aid Code. A State's Attorney 23 operating a Program, however, must be able to enter data 24 directly into KIDS with respect to any current child 25 support cases for which the State's Attorney is 26 responsible and must be able to edit that data when 27 necessary. 28 (4) Federal income tax refund intercepts. 29 (5) State income tax refund and other payment 30 intercepts. 31 (6) Sending notices required by law to parents, 32 except as otherwise provided in a Plan. 33 (7) Submitting past due support information to 34 licensing agencies. HB5140 Engrossed -10- LRB9212138DJcs 1 (8) Notifying the Illinois Department of Public 2 Health of parentage establishments and acknowledgments. 3 (9) Maintaining the Central Case Registry with 4 respect to interstate cases, and taking any necessary 5 actions that are not otherwise specified in a Plan. 6 (10) Submittal of past-due support information to 7 the Illinois Department of Revenue. 8 (11) Requests for data matches with financial 9 institutions. 10 (12) Account reviews and redeterminations for any 11 child support cases in which administrative processes are 12 utilized by the Department under this Section. 13 (13) Reports to the federal government. 14 (14) All other duties required under Title IV, Part 15 D of the federal Social Security Act that are not 16 otherwise included in a Plan. 17 (e) To the extent that the provisions of this Act are 18 inconsistent with the responsibilities or requirements 19 imposed on the IV-D Child Support Program under Article X of 20 the Illinois Public Aid Code, the provisions of this Act 21 shall control, unless doing so violates Title IV, Part D of 22 the federal Social Security Act.