Public Act 100-0136
 
HB2910 EnrolledLRB100 10476 SLF 20689 b


  
    AN ACT concerning courts.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  
 
 
    Section 5. The Juvenile Court Act of 1987 is amended  by 
changing Sections 1-3 and 2-28 and  by adding Section 2-27.2 as 
follows:
 


    (705 ILCS 405/1-3)  (from Ch. 37, par. 801-3)



    Sec. 1-3. Definitions. Terms used in this Act, unless the 
context
otherwise requires, have the following meanings 
ascribed to them:

    (1) "Adjudicatory hearing" means a hearing to
determine 
whether the allegations of a petition under Section 2-13, 3-15 
or
4-12 that a minor under 18 years of age is abused, neglected 
or dependent, or
requires authoritative intervention, or 
addicted, respectively, are supported
by a preponderance of the 
evidence or whether the allegations of a petition
under Section 
5-520 that a minor is delinquent are proved beyond a reasonable

doubt.

    (2) "Adult" means a person 21 years of age or older.

    (3) "Agency" means a public or private child care facility

legally authorized or licensed by this State for placement or 
institutional
care or for both placement and institutional 
care.

    (4) "Association" means any organization, public or

private, engaged in welfare functions which include services to 
or on behalf of
children but does not include "agency" as 
herein defined.

    (4.05)  Whenever a "best interest" determination is

required, the following factors shall be considered in the 
context of the
child's age and developmental needs:

        (a) the physical safety and welfare of the child, 
    including food, shelter,
health, and clothing;

        (b) the development of the child's identity;

        (c) the child's background and ties, including 
    familial,
cultural, and religious;

        (d) the child's sense of attachments, including:

            (i) where the child actually feels love, 
        attachment, and a sense of
being valued (as opposed to 
        where adults believe the child should
feel such love, 
        attachment, and a sense of being valued);

            (ii) the child's sense of security;

            (iii) the child's sense of familiarity;

            (iv) continuity of affection for the child;

            (v) the least disruptive placement alternative for 
        the child;

        (e) the child's wishes and long-term goals;

        (f) the child's community ties, including church, 
    school, and friends;

        (g) the child's need for permanence which includes the 
    child's need for
stability and continuity of relationships 
    with parent figures and with siblings
and other relatives;

        (h) the uniqueness of every family and child;

        (i) the risks attendant to entering and being in 
    substitute care; and

        (j) the preferences of the persons available to care 
    for the child.

    (4.1)  "Chronic truant" shall have the definition
ascribed 
to it in Section 26-2a of the School Code.

    (5) "Court" means the circuit court in a session or 
division
assigned to hear proceedings under this Act.

    (6) "Dispositional hearing" means a hearing to
determine 
whether a minor should be adjudged to be a ward of the court, 
and to
determine what order of disposition should be made in 
respect to a minor
adjudged to be a ward of the court.

    (7)  "Emancipated minor" means any minor 16 years of age or 
over who has
been completely or partially emancipated under the 
Emancipation of
 Minors Act or
under this Act.

    (7.05) "Foster parent" includes a relative caregiver 
selected by the Department of Children and Family Services to 
provide care for the minor. 
    (8) "Guardianship of the person" of a minor
means the duty 
and authority to act in the best interests of the minor, 
subject
to residual parental rights and responsibilities, to 
make important decisions
in matters having a permanent effect 
on the life and development of the minor
and to be concerned 
with his or her general welfare. It includes but is not

necessarily limited to:

        (a) the authority to consent to marriage, to enlistment 
    in the armed
forces of the United States, or to a major 
    medical, psychiatric, and
surgical treatment; to represent 
    the minor in legal actions; and to make
other decisions of 
    substantial legal significance concerning the minor;

        (b) the authority and duty of reasonable visitation, 
    except to the
extent that these have been limited in the 
    best interests of the minor by
court order;

        (c) the rights and responsibilities of legal custody 
    except where legal
custody has been vested in another 
    person or agency; and

        (d) the power to consent to the adoption of the minor, 
    but only if
expressly conferred on the guardian in 
    accordance with Section 2-29, 3-30, or
4-27.

    (9) "Legal custody" means the relationship created by an

order of court in the best interests of the minor which imposes 
on the
custodian the responsibility of physical possession of a 
minor and the duty to
protect, train and discipline him and to 
provide him with food, shelter,
education and ordinary medical 
care, except as these are limited by residual
parental rights 
and responsibilities and the rights and responsibilities of the

guardian of the person, if any.

    (9.1) "Mentally capable adult relative" means a person 21 
years of age or older who is not suffering from a mental 
illness that prevents him or her from providing the care 
necessary to safeguard the physical safety and welfare of a 
minor who is left in that person's care by the parent or 
parents or other person responsible for the minor's welfare. 
    (10) "Minor" means a person under the age of 21 years 
subject to
this Act.

    (11) "Parent" means a father or mother of a child and

includes any adoptive parent.  It also includes a person (i)

whose parentage
is presumed or has been established under the 
law of this or another
jurisdiction or (ii) who has registered 
with the Putative Father Registry in
accordance with Section 
12.1 of the Adoption Act and whose paternity has not
been ruled 
out under the law of this or another jurisdiction.  It does not

include a
parent whose rights in respect to the
minor have been 
terminated in any manner provided by law. It does not include a 
person who has been or could be determined to be a parent under 
the Illinois Parentage Act of 1984 or the Illinois Parentage 
Act of 2015, or similar  parentage law in any other state, if 
that person has been convicted of or pled nolo contendere to a 
crime that resulted in the conception of the child  under 
Section 11-1.20, 11-1.30, 11-1.40, 11-11, 12-13, 12-14, 
12-14.1, subsection (a) or  (b) (but not subsection (c)) of 
Section 11-1.50 or 12-15, or subsection (a), (b), (c), (e), or 
(f) (but not subsection (d)) of Section 11-1.60 or 12-16 of the 
Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012, or similar 
statute in another jurisdiction unless upon motion of any 
party, other than the offender,  to the juvenile court 
proceedings the court finds it is in the child's best interest 
to deem the offender a parent for purposes of the juvenile 
court proceedings.

    (11.1) "Permanency goal" means a goal set by the court as 
defined in
subdivision (2) of Section 2-28.

    (11.2) "Permanency hearing" means a hearing to set the 
permanency goal and
to review and determine (i) the 
appropriateness of the services contained in
the plan and 
whether those services have been provided, (ii) whether 
reasonable
efforts have been made by all the parties to the 
service plan to achieve the
goal, and (iii) whether the plan 
and goal have been achieved.

    (12) "Petition" means the petition provided for in Section

2-13, 3-15, 4-12 or 5-520, including any supplemental petitions 
thereunder
in Section 3-15, 4-12 or 5-520.

    (12.1) "Physically capable adult relative" means a person 
21 years of age or older who does not have a severe physical 
disability or medical condition, or is not suffering from 
alcoholism or drug addiction, that prevents him or her from 
providing the care necessary to safeguard the physical safety 
and welfare of a minor who is left in that person's care by the 
parent or parents or other person responsible for the minor's 
welfare. 
    (12.2) "Post Permanency Sibling Contact Agreement" has the 
meaning ascribed to the term in Section 7.4 of the Children and 
Family Services Act. 
    (12.3) "Residential treatment center" means a licensed 
setting that provides 24 hour care to children in a group home 
or institution, including a facility licensed as a child care 
institution under Section 2.06 of the Child Care Act, a 
licensed group home under Section 2.16 of the Child Care Act, a 
secure child care facility as defined in paragraph (18) of this 
Section, or any similar facility in another state. Residential 
treatment center does not include a relative foster home or a 
licensed foster family home. 
    (13) "Residual parental
rights and responsibilities" means 
those rights and responsibilities remaining
with the parent 
after the transfer of legal custody or guardianship of the

person, including, but not necessarily limited to, the right to 
reasonable
visitation (which may be limited by the court in the 
best interests of the
minor as provided in subsection (8)(b) of 
this Section), the right to consent
to adoption, the right to 
determine the minor's religious affiliation, and the

responsibility for his support.

    (14) "Shelter" means the temporary care of a minor in

physically unrestricting facilities pending court disposition 
or execution of
court order for placement.

    (14.1) "Sibling Contact Support Plan" has the meaning 
ascribed to the term in Section 7.4 of the Children and Family 
Services Act. 
    (15)  "Station adjustment" means the informal
handling of an 
alleged offender by a juvenile police officer.

    (16) "Ward of the court" means a minor who is so
adjudged 
under Section 2-22, 3-23, 4-20 or 5-705, after a finding of the

requisite jurisdictional facts, and thus is subject to the 
dispositional powers
of the court under this Act.

    (17) "Juvenile police officer" means a sworn
police officer 
who has completed a Basic Recruit Training Course, has been

assigned to the position of juvenile police officer by his or 
her chief law
enforcement officer and has completed the 
necessary juvenile officers training
as prescribed by the 
Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board, or in
the 
case of a State police officer, juvenile officer
training 
approved by the Director of the Department of State Police.

    (18) "Secure child care facility" means any child care 
facility licensed
by the Department of Children and Family 
Services to provide secure living
arrangements for children 
under 18 years of age who are subject to placement in

facilities under the Children and Family Services Act and who 
are not subject
to placement in facilities for whom standards 
are established by the Department
of Corrections under Section 
3-15-2 of the Unified Code of Corrections.
"Secure child care 
facility" also means a
facility that is designed and operated 
to ensure that all entrances and
exits
from the facility, a 
building, or a distinct part of the building are under the

exclusive control of the staff of the facility, whether or not 
the child has
the freedom of movement within the perimeter of 
the facility, building, or
distinct part of the building.

(Source: P.A. 98-249, eff. 1-1-14; 99-85, eff. 1-1-16.)

 
    (705 ILCS 405/2-27.2 new)
    Sec. 2-27.2. Placement; out-of-state residential treatment 
center.
    (a) In addition to the provisions of subsection (3) of 
Section 2-27 of this Act, no placement by any probation officer 
or agency whose representative is an appointed guardian of the 
person or legal custodian of the minor may be made in an 
out-of-state residential treatment center unless the court has 
determined that the out-of-state residential placement is in 
the best interest and is the least restrictive, most 
family-like setting for the minor. The Department's 
application to the court to place a minor in an out-of-state 
residential treatment center shall include:
        (1) an explanation of what in State resources, if any, 
    were considered for the minor and why the minor cannot be 
    placed in a residential treatment center or other placement 
    in this State;
        (2) an explanation as to how the out-of-state 
    residential treatment center will impact the minor's 
    relationships with family and other individuals important 
    to the minor in and what steps the Department will take to 
    preserve those relationships;
        (3) an explanation as to how the Department will ensure 
    the safety and well-being of the minor in the out-of-state 
    residential treatment center; and
        (4) an explanation as to why it is in the minor's best 
    interest to be placed in an out-of-state residential 
    treatment center, including a description of the minor's 
    treatment needs and how those needs will be met in the 
    proposed placement.
    (b) If the out-of-state residential treatment center is a 
secure facility as defined in paragraph (18) of Section 1-3 of 
this Act, the requirements of Section 27.1 of this Act shall 
also be met prior to the minor's placement in the out-of-state 
residential treatment center.
    (c) This Section does not apply to an out-of-state 
placement of a minor in a family foster home, relative foster 
home, a home of a parent, or a dormitory or independent living 
setting of a minor attending a post-secondary educational 
institution.
 



    (705 ILCS 405/2-28)  (from Ch. 37, par. 802-28)


    Sec. 2-28. Court review. 

    (1) The court may require any legal custodian or guardian 
of the person
appointed under this Act to report periodically 
to the court or may cite
him into court and require him or his 
agency, to make a full and
accurate report of his or its doings 
in behalf of the minor.  The
custodian or guardian, within 10 
days after such citation, shall make
the report, either in 
writing verified by affidavit or orally under oath
in open 
court, or otherwise as the court directs.  Upon the hearing of

the report the court may remove the custodian or guardian and 
appoint
another in his stead or restore the minor to the 
custody of his parents
or former guardian or custodian.  
However, custody of the minor shall
not be restored to any 
parent, guardian or legal custodian in any case
in which the 
minor is found to be neglected or abused under Section 2-3 or

dependent under Section 2-4 of this
Act, unless the minor can 
be cared for at home without endangering the
minor's health or 
safety and it is in the best interests of the minor, and
if 
such neglect,
abuse, or dependency is found by the court under 
paragraph (1)
of Section 2-21 of
this Act to have come about 
due to the acts or omissions or both of such
parent, guardian

or legal custodian, until such time as an investigation is made 
as provided in
paragraph (5) and a hearing is held on the issue 
of the fitness of such parent,
guardian or legal custodian to 
care for the minor and the court enters an order
that such 
parent, guardian or legal custodian is fit to care for the 
minor.

    (2) The first permanency hearing shall be
conducted by the 
judge.   Subsequent permanency hearings may be
heard by a judge 
or by hearing officers appointed or approved by the court in

the manner set forth in Section 2-28.1 of this Act.
The initial 
hearing shall be held (a) within 12 months from the date

temporary
custody was taken, regardless of whether an 
adjudication or dispositional hearing has been completed 
within that time frame, (b) if the parental rights of both 
parents have been
terminated in accordance with the procedure 
described in subsection (5) of
Section 2-21, within
30 days of 
the order for termination of parental rights and appointment of

a guardian with power to consent to adoption, or (c) in 
accordance with
subsection
(2) of Section 2-13.1.  Subsequent 
permanency hearings
shall be held every 6 months
or more 
frequently if necessary in the court's determination following 
the
initial permanency hearing, in accordance with the 
standards set forth in this
Section, until the court determines 
that the plan and goal have been achieved.
Once the plan and 
goal have been achieved, if the minor remains in substitute

care, the case shall be reviewed at least every 6 months 
thereafter, subject to
the provisions of this Section, unless 
the minor is placed in the guardianship
of a suitable relative 
or other person and the court determines that further

monitoring by the court does not further the health, safety or 
best interest of
the child and that this is a stable permanent 
placement.
The permanency hearings must occur within the time 
frames set forth in this
subsection and may not be delayed in 
anticipation of a report from any source or due to the agency's 
failure to timely file its written report (this
written report 
means the one required under the next paragraph and does not

mean the service plan also referred to in that paragraph).

    The public agency that is the custodian or guardian of the 
minor, or another
agency responsible for the minor's care, 
shall ensure that all parties to the
permanency hearings are 
provided a copy of the most recent
service plan prepared within 
the prior 6 months
at least 14 days in advance of the hearing.  
If not contained in the plan, the
agency shall also include a 
report setting forth (i) any special
physical, psychological, 
educational, medical, emotional, or other needs of the
minor or 
his or her family that are relevant to a permanency or 
placement
determination and (ii) for any minor age 16 or over, 
a written description of
the programs and services that will 
enable the minor to prepare for independent
living.  The 
agency's written report must detail what progress or lack of

progress the parent has made in correcting the conditions 
requiring the child
to be in care; whether the child can be 
returned home without jeopardizing the
child's health, safety, 
and welfare, and if not, what permanency goal is
recommended to 
be in the best interests of the child, and why the other

permanency goals are not appropriate.  The caseworker must 
appear and testify
at the permanency hearing.  If a permanency 
hearing has not previously been
scheduled by the court, the 
moving party shall move for the setting of a
permanency hearing 
and the entry of an order within the time frames set forth
in 
this subsection.

    At the permanency hearing, the court shall determine the 
future status
of the child.  The court shall set one of the 
following permanency goals:


        (A) The minor will be returned home by a specific date 
    within 5
months.


        (B) The minor will be in short-term care with a

    continued goal to return home within a period not to exceed 
    one
year, where the progress of the parent or parents is 
    substantial giving
particular consideration to the age and 
    individual needs of the minor.


        (B-1) The minor will be in short-term care with a 
    continued goal to return
home pending a status hearing.  
    When the court finds that a parent has not made
reasonable 
    efforts or reasonable progress to date, the court shall 
    identify
what actions the parent and the Department must 
    take in order to justify a
finding of reasonable efforts or 
    reasonable progress and shall set a status
hearing to be 
    held not earlier than 9 months from the date of 
    adjudication nor
later than 11 months from the date of 
    adjudication during which the parent's
progress will again 
    be reviewed.


        (C) The minor will be in substitute care pending court

    determination on termination of parental rights.


        (D) Adoption, provided that parental rights have been 
    terminated or
relinquished.


        (E) The guardianship of the minor will be transferred 
    to an individual or
couple on a permanent basis provided 
    that goals (A) through (D) have
been ruled out.


        (F) The minor over age 15 will be in substitute care 
    pending
independence.


        (G) The minor will be in substitute care because he or 
    she cannot be
provided for in a home environment due to 
    developmental
disabilities or mental illness or because he 
    or she is a danger to self or
others, provided that goals 
    (A) through (D) have been ruled out.

    In selecting any permanency goal, the court shall indicate 
in writing the
reasons the goal was selected and why the 
preceding goals were ruled out.
Where the court has selected a 
permanency goal other than (A), (B), or (B-1),
the
Department 
of Children and Family Services shall not provide further

reunification services, but shall provide services
consistent 
with the goal
selected.

        (H) Notwithstanding any other provision in this 
    Section, the court may select the goal of continuing foster 
    care as a permanency goal if: 
            (1) The Department of Children and Family Services 
        has custody and guardianship of the minor; 
            (2) The court has ruled out all other permanency 
        goals based on the child's best interest;


            (3) The court has found compelling reasons, based 
        on written documentation reviewed by the court, to 
        place the minor in continuing foster care. Compelling 
        reasons include:


                (a) the child does not wish to be adopted or to 
            be placed in the guardianship of his or her 
            relative or foster care placement;


                (b) the child exhibits an extreme level of need 
            such that the removal of the child from his or her 
            placement would be detrimental to the child; or


                (c) the child who is the subject of the 
            permanency hearing has existing close and strong 
            bonds with a sibling, and achievement of another 
            permanency goal would substantially interfere with 
            the subject child's sibling relationship, taking 
            into consideration the nature and extent of the 
            relationship, and whether ongoing contact is in 
            the subject child's best interest, including 
            long-term emotional interest, as compared with the 
            legal and emotional benefit of permanence;


            (4)        The child has lived with the relative or foster 
        parent for at least one year; and


            (5)        The relative or foster parent currently caring 
        for the child is willing and capable of providing the 
        child with a stable and permanent environment. 
    The court shall set a
permanency
goal that is in the best 
interest of the child.  In determining that goal, the court 
shall consult with the minor in an age-appropriate manner 
regarding the proposed permanency or transition plan for the 
minor. The court's determination
shall include the following 
factors:


        (1) Age of the child.


        (2) Options available for permanence, including both 
    out-of-State and in-State placement options.


        (3) Current placement of the child and the intent of 
    the family regarding
adoption.


        (4) Emotional, physical, and mental status or 
    condition of the child.


        (5) Types of services previously offered and whether or 
    not
the services were successful and, if not successful, 
    the reasons the services
failed.


        (6) Availability of services currently needed and 
    whether the services
exist.


        (7) Status of siblings of the minor.

    The court shall consider (i) the permanency goal contained 
in the service
plan, (ii) the appropriateness of the
services 
contained in the plan and whether those services have been

provided, (iii) whether reasonable efforts have been made by 
all
the parties to the service plan to achieve the goal, and 
(iv) whether the plan
and goal have been achieved.  All evidence

relevant to determining these questions, including oral and 
written reports,
may be admitted and may be relied on to the 
extent of their probative value.

    The court shall make findings as to whether, in violation 
of Section 8.2 of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, 
any portion of the service plan compels a child or parent to 
engage in any activity or refrain from any activity that is not 
reasonably related to remedying a condition or conditions that 
gave rise or which could give rise to any finding of child 
abuse or neglect. The services contained in the service plan 
shall include services reasonably related to remedy the 
conditions that gave rise to removal of the child from the home 
of his or her parents, guardian, or legal custodian or that the 
court has found must be remedied prior to returning the child 
home.   Any tasks the court requires of the parents, guardian, or 
legal custodian or child prior to returning the child home, 
must be reasonably related to remedying a condition or 
conditions that gave rise to or  which could give rise to any 
finding of child abuse or neglect. 
    If the permanency goal is to return home, the court shall 
make findings that identify any problems that are causing 
continued placement of the children away from the home and 
identify what outcomes would be considered a resolution to 
these problems. The court shall explain to the parents that 
these findings are based on the information that the court has 
at that time and may be revised, should additional evidence be 
presented to the court. 
    The court shall review the Sibling Contact Support Plan 
developed or modified under subsection (f) of Section 7.4 of 
the Children and Family Services Act, if applicable. If the 
Department has not convened a meeting to
develop or modify a 
Sibling Contact Support Plan, or if the court finds that the 
existing Plan
is not in the child's best interest, the court 
may enter an order requiring the Department to
develop, modify 
or implement a Sibling Contact Support Plan, or order 
mediation. 
    If the goal has been achieved, the court shall enter orders 
that are
necessary to conform the minor's legal custody and 
status to those findings.

    If, after receiving evidence, the court determines that the 
services
contained in the plan are not reasonably calculated to 
facilitate achievement
of the permanency goal, the court shall 
put in writing the factual basis
supporting the determination 
and enter specific findings based on the evidence.
 The court 
also shall enter an order for the Department to develop and

implement a new service plan or to implement changes to the 
current service
plan consistent with the court's findings.  The 
new service plan shall be filed
with the court and served on 
all parties within 45 days of the date of the
order.  The court 
shall continue the matter until the new service plan is
filed.  
Unless otherwise specifically authorized by law, the court is 
not
empowered under this subsection (2) or under subsection (3) 
to order specific
placements, specific services, or specific 
service providers to be included in
the plan.

    A guardian or custodian appointed by the court pursuant to 
this Act shall
file updated case plans with the court every 6 
months.

    Rights of wards of the court under this Act are enforceable 
against
any public agency by complaints for relief by mandamus 
filed in any
proceedings brought under this Act.

    (3) Following the permanency hearing, the court shall enter 
a written order
that includes the determinations required under 
subsection (2) of this
Section and sets forth the following:


        (a) The future status of the minor, including the 
    permanency goal, and
any order necessary to conform the 
    minor's legal custody and status to such
determination; or


        (b) If the permanency goal of the minor cannot be 
    achieved immediately,
the specific reasons for continuing 
    the minor in the care of the Department of
Children and 
    Family Services or other agency for short term placement, 
    and the
following determinations:


            (i) (Blank).


            (ii) Whether the services required by the court
and 
        by any service plan prepared within the prior 6 months

        have been provided and (A) if so, whether the services 
        were reasonably
calculated to facilitate the 
        achievement of the permanency goal or (B) if not

        provided, why the services were not provided.


            (iii) Whether the minor's placement current or 
        planned is necessary, and appropriate to the
plan and 
        goal, recognizing the right of minors to the least 
        restrictive (most
family-like) setting available and 
        in close proximity to the parents' home
consistent with 
        the health, safety, best interest and special needs of 
        the
minor and, if the minor is placed out-of-State, 
        whether the out-of-State
placement continues to be 
        appropriate and consistent with the health, safety,

        and best interest of the minor.


            (iv) (Blank).


            (v) (Blank).

    (4) The minor or any person interested in the minor may 
apply to the
court for a change in custody of the minor and the 
appointment of a new
custodian or guardian of the person or for 
the restoration of the minor
to the custody of his parents or 
former guardian or custodian.

    When return home is not selected as the permanency goal:


        (a) The Department, the minor, or the current
foster 
    parent or relative
caregiver seeking private guardianship 
    may file a motion for private
guardianship of the minor.  
    Appointment of a guardian under this Section
requires 
    approval of the court.


        (b) The State's Attorney may file a motion to terminate 
    parental rights of
any parent who has failed to make 
    reasonable efforts to correct the conditions
which led to 
    the removal of the child or reasonable progress toward the 
    return
of the child, as defined in subdivision (D)(m) of 
    Section 1 of the Adoption Act
or for whom any other 
    unfitness ground for terminating parental rights as

    defined in subdivision (D) of Section 1 of the Adoption Act 
    exists. 
        When parental rights have been terminated for a minimum 
    of 3 years and the child who is the subject of the 
    permanency hearing is 13 years old or older and is not 
    currently placed in a placement likely to achieve 
    permanency, the Department of
Children and Family Services 
    shall make reasonable efforts to locate parents whose 
    rights have been terminated, except when the Court 
    determines that those efforts would be futile or 
    inconsistent with the subject child's best interests. The 
    Department of
Children and Family Services shall assess the 
    appropriateness of the parent whose rights have been 
    terminated, and shall, as appropriate, foster and support 
    connections between the parent whose rights have been 
    terminated and the youth.  The Department of
Children and 
    Family Services shall document its determinations and 
    efforts to foster connections in the child's case plan. 

    Custody of the minor shall not be restored to any parent, 
guardian or legal
custodian in any case in which the minor is 
found to be neglected or abused
under Section 2-3 or dependent 
under Section 2-4 of this Act, unless the
minor can be cared 
for at home
without endangering his or her health or safety and 
it is in the best
interest of the minor,
and if such neglect, 
abuse, or dependency is found by the court
under paragraph (1) 
of Section 2-21 of this Act to have come
about due to the acts 
or omissions or both of such parent, guardian or legal

custodian, until such time as an investigation is made as 
provided in
paragraph (5) and a hearing is held on the issue of 
the health,
safety and
best interest of the minor and the 
fitness of such
parent, guardian or legal custodian to care for 
the minor and the court
enters an order that such parent, 
guardian or legal custodian is fit to
care for the minor.  In 
the event that the minor has attained 18 years
of age and the 
guardian or custodian petitions the court for an order

terminating his guardianship or custody, guardianship or 
custody shall
terminate automatically 30 days after the receipt 
of the petition unless
the court orders otherwise.  No legal 
custodian or guardian of the
person may be removed without his 
consent until given notice and an
opportunity to be heard by 
the court.

    When the court orders a child restored to the custody of 
the parent or
parents, the court shall order the parent or 
parents to cooperate with the
Department of Children and Family 
Services and comply with the terms of an
after-care plan, or 
risk the loss of custody of the child and possible
termination 
of their parental rights.  The court may also enter an order of

protective supervision in accordance with Section 2-24.

    (5) Whenever a parent, guardian, or legal custodian files a 
motion for
restoration of custody of the minor, and the minor 
was adjudicated
neglected, abused, or dependent as a result of 
physical abuse,
the court shall cause to be
made an 
investigation as to whether the movant has ever been charged

with or convicted of any criminal offense which would indicate 
the
likelihood of any further physical abuse to the minor.  
Evidence of such
criminal convictions shall be taken into 
account in determining whether the
minor can be cared for at 
home without endangering his or her health or safety
and 
fitness of the parent, guardian, or legal custodian.


        (a) Any agency of this State or any subdivision thereof 
    shall
co-operate with the agent of the court in providing 
    any information
sought in the investigation.


        (b) The information derived from the investigation and 
    any
conclusions or recommendations derived from the 
    information shall be
provided to the parent, guardian, or 
    legal custodian seeking restoration
of custody prior to the 
    hearing on fitness and the movant shall have
an opportunity 
    at the hearing to refute the information or contest its

    significance.


        (c) All information obtained from any investigation 
    shall be confidential
as provided in Section 5-150 of this 
    Act.

(Source: P.A. 97-425, eff. 8-16-11; 97-1076, eff. 8-24-12; 
98-756, eff. 7-16-14.)

 
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law. 
  


Effective Date:  8/18/2017