SB0201 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB102 05105 KTG 15125 b

102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
SB0201

Introduced 2/17/2021, by Sen. Julie A. Morrison

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

20 ILCS 505/7	from Ch. 23, par. 5007
225 ILCS 10/4	from Ch. 23, par. 2214

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.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning children.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended by changing Section 7 as follows:

(20 ILCS 505/7) (from Ch. 23, par. 5007)

Sec. 7. Placement of children; considerations.

(a) In placing any child under this Act, the Department shall place the child, as far as possible, in the care and custody of some individual holding the same religious belief as the parents of the child, or with some child care facility which is operated by persons of like religious faith as the parents of such child.

(a-5) In placing a child under this Act, the Department shall place the child with the child's sibling or siblings under Section 7.4 of this Act unless the placement is not in each child's best interest, or is otherwise not possible under the Department's rules. If the child is not placed with a sibling under the Department's rules, the Department shall consider placements that are likely to develop, preserve, nurture, and support sibling relationships, where doing so is in each child's best interest.

(b) In placing a child under this Act, the Department may place a child with a relative if the Department determines that the relative will be able to adequately provide for the child's safety and welfare based on the factors set forth in the Department's rules governing relative placements, and that the placement is consistent with the child's best interests, taking into consideration the factors set out in subsection (4.05) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.

When the Department first assumes custody of a child, in placing that child under this Act, the Department shall make reasonable efforts to identify, locate, and provide notice to all adult grandparents and other adult relatives of the child who are ready, willing, and able to care for the child. At a minimum, these efforts shall be renewed each time the child requires a placement change and it is appropriate for the child to be cared for in a home environment. The Department must document its efforts to identify, locate, and provide notice to such potential relative placements and maintain the documentation in the child's case file.

If the Department determines that a placement with any identified relative is not in the child's best interests or that the relative does not meet the requirements to be a relative caregiver, as set forth in Department rules or by statute, the Department must document the basis for that decision and maintain the documentation in the child's case file.

If, pursuant to the Department's rules, any person files an administrative appeal of the Department's decision not to place a child with a relative, it is the Department's burden to prove that the decision is consistent with the child's best interests.

When the Department determines that the child requires placement in an environment, other than a home environment, the Department shall continue to make reasonable efforts to identify and locate relatives to serve as visitation resources for the child and potential future placement resources, except when the Department determines that those efforts would be futile or inconsistent with the child's best interests.

If the Department determines that efforts to identify and locate relatives would be futile or inconsistent with the child's best interests, the Department shall document the basis of its determination and maintain the documentation in the child's case file.

If the Department determines that an individual or a group of relatives are inappropriate to serve as visitation resources or possible placement resources, the Department shall document the basis of its determination and maintain the documentation in the child's case file.

When the Department determines that an individual or a group of relatives are appropriate to serve as visitation resources or possible future placement resources, the Department shall document the basis of its determination, maintain the documentation in the child's case file, create a visitation or transition plan, or both, and incorporate the visitation or transition plan, or both, into the child's case plan. For the purpose of this subsection, any determination as to the child's best interests shall include consideration of the factors set out in subsection (4.05) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.

The Department may not place a child with a relative, with the exception of certain circumstances which may be waived as defined by the Department in rules, if the results of a check of the Law Enforcement Agencies Data System (LEADS) identifies a prior criminal conviction of the relative or any adult member of the relative's household for any of the following offenses under the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012:

(1) murder;

(1.1) solicitation of murder;

(1.2) solicitation of murder for hire;

(1.3) intentional homicide of an unborn child;

(1.4) voluntary manslaughter of an unborn child;

(1.5) involuntary manslaughter;

(1.6) reckless homicide;

(1.7) concealment of a homicidal death;

(1.8) involuntary manslaughter of an unborn child;

(1.9) reckless homicide of an unborn child;

(1.10) drug-induced homicide;

(2) a sex offense under Article 11, except offenses described in Sections 11-7, 11-8, 11-12, 11-13, 11-35, 11-40, and 11-45;

(3) kidnapping;

(3.1) aggravated unlawful restraint;

(3.2) forcible detention;

(3.3) aiding and abetting child abduction;

(4) aggravated kidnapping;

(5) child abduction;

(6) aggravated battery of a child as described in Section 12-4.3 or subdivision (b)(1) of Section 12-3.05;

(7) criminal sexual assault;

(8) aggravated criminal sexual assault;

(8.1) predatory criminal sexual assault of a child;

(9) criminal sexual abuse;

(10) aggravated sexual abuse;

(11) heinous battery as described in Section 12-4.1 or subdivision (a)(2) of Section 12-3.05;

(12) aggravated battery with a firearm as described in Section 12-4.2 or subdivision (e)(1), (e)(2), (e)(3), or (e)(4) of Section 12-3.05;

(13) tampering with food, drugs, or cosmetics;

(14) drug-induced infliction of great bodily harm as described in Section 12-4.7 or subdivision (g)(1) of Section 12-3.05;

(15) aggravated stalking;

(16) home invasion;

(17) vehicular invasion;

(18) criminal transmission of HIV;

(19) criminal abuse or neglect of an elderly person or person with a disability as described in Section 12-21 or subsection (b) of Section 12-4.4a;

(20) child abandonment;

(21) endangering the life or health of a child;

(22) ritual mutilation;

(23) ritualized abuse of a child;

(24) an offense in any other state the elements of which are similar and bear a substantial relationship to any of the foregoing offenses.

For the purpose of this subsection, "relative" shall include any person, 21 years of age or over, other than the parent, who (i) is currently related to the child in any of the following ways by blood or adoption: grandparent, sibling, great-grandparent, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, first cousin, second cousin, godparent, great-uncle, or great-aunt; or (ii) is the spouse of such a relative; or (iii) is the child's step-father, step-mother, or adult step-brother or step-sister; or (iv) is a fictive kin; "relative" also includes a person related in any of the foregoing ways to a sibling of a child, even though the person is not related to the child, when the child and its sibling are placed together with that person. For children who have been in the guardianship of the Department, have been adopted, and are subsequently returned to the temporary custody or guardianship of the Department, a "relative" may also include any person who would have qualified as a relative under this paragraph prior to the adoption, but only if the Department determines, and documents, that it would be in the child's best interests to consider this person a relative, based upon the factors for determining best interests set forth in subsection (4.05) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. A relative with whom a child is placed pursuant to this subsection may, but is not required to, apply for licensure as a foster family home pursuant to the Child Care Act of 1969; provided, however, that as of July 1, 1995, foster care payments shall be made only to licensed foster family homes pursuant to the terms of Section 5 of this Act.

Notwithstanding any other provision under this subsection to the contrary, a fictive kin with whom a child is placed pursuant to this subsection shall apply for licensure as a foster family home pursuant to the Child Care Act of 1969 within 30 days 6 months of the child's placement with the fictive kin. The Department shall conduct an assessment of the home within 90 days of placement. The Department shall not remove 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. All other requirements established under the rules and procedures of the Department concerning the placement of a child, for whom the Department is legally responsible, with a relative shall apply. By June 1, 2015, the Department shall promulgate rules establishing criteria and standards for placement, identification, and licensure of fictive kin.

For purposes of this subsection, "fictive kin" means any individual, unrelated by birth or marriage, who:

(i) is shown to have significant and close personal or emotional ties with the child or the child's family prior to the child's placement with the individual; or

(ii) is the current foster parent of a child in the custody or guardianship of the Department pursuant to this Act and the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, if the child has been placed in the home for at least one year and has established a significant and family-like relationship with the foster parent, and the foster parent has been identified by the Department as the child's permanent connection, as defined by Department rule.

The provisions added to this subsection (b) by Public Act 98-846 shall become operative on and after June 1, 2015.

(c) In placing a child under this Act, the Department shall ensure that the child's health, safety, and best interests are met. In rejecting placement of a child with an identified relative, the Department shall ensure that the child's health, safety, and best interests are met. In evaluating the best interests of the child, the Department shall take into consideration the factors set forth in subsection (4.05) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.

The Department shall consider the individual needs of the child and the capacity of the prospective foster or adoptive parents to meet the needs of the child. When a child must be placed outside his or her home and cannot be immediately returned to his or her parents or guardian, a comprehensive, individualized assessment shall be performed of that child at which time the needs of the child shall be determined. Only if race, color, or national origin is identified as a legitimate factor in advancing the child's best interests shall it be considered. Race, color, or national origin shall not be routinely considered in making a placement decision. The Department shall make special efforts for the diligent recruitment of potential foster and adoptive families that reflect the ethnic and racial diversity of the children for whom foster and adoptive homes are needed. "Special efforts" shall include contacting and working with community organizations and religious organizations and may include contracting with those organizations, utilizing local media and other local resources, and conducting outreach activities.

(c-1) At the time of placement, the Department shall consider concurrent planning, as described in subsection (l-1) of Section 5, so that permanency may occur at the earliest opportunity. Consideration should be given so that if reunification fails or is delayed, the placement made is the best available placement to provide permanency for the child. To the extent that doing so is in the child's best interests as set forth in subsection (4.05) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, the Department should consider placements that will permit the child to maintain a meaningful relationship with his or her parents.

(d) The Department may accept gifts, grants, offers of services, and other contributions to use in making special recruitment efforts.

(e) The Department in placing children in adoptive or foster care homes may not, in any policy or practice relating to the placement of children for adoption or foster care, discriminate against any child or prospective adoptive or foster parent on the basis of race.

(Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15; 99-340, eff. 1-1-16; 99-642, eff. 7-28-16; 99-836, eff. 1-1-17; 100-101, eff. 8-11-17.)

Section 10. The Child Care Act of 1969 is amended by changing Section 4 as follows:

(225 ILCS 10/4) (from Ch. 23, par. 2214)

Sec. 4. License requirement; application; notice.

(a) Any person, group of persons or corporation who or which receives children or arranges for care or placement of one or more children unrelated to the operator must apply for a license to operate one of the types of facilities defined in Sections 2.05 through 2.19 and in Section 2.22 of this Act. Any relative, as defined in Section 2.17 of this Act, who receives a child or children for placement by the Department on a full-time basis shall apply within 30 days of placement may apply for a license to operate a foster family home as defined in Section 2.17 of this Act.

(a-5) Any agency, person, group of persons, association, organization, corporation, institution, center, or group providing adoption services must be licensed by the Department as a child welfare agency as defined in Section 2.08 of this Act. "Providing adoption services" as used in this Act, includes facilitating or engaging in adoption services.

(b) Application for a license to operate a child care facility must be made to the Department in the manner and on forms prescribed by it. An application to operate a foster family home shall include, at a minimum: a completed written form; written authorization by the applicant and all adult members of the applicant's household to conduct a criminal background investigation; medical evidence in the form of a medical report, on forms prescribed by the Department, that the applicant and all members of the household are free from communicable diseases or physical and mental conditions that affect their ability to provide care for the child or children; the names and addresses of at least 3 persons not related to the applicant who can attest to the applicant's moral character; the name and address of at least one relative who can attest to the applicant's capability to care for the child or children; and fingerprints submitted by the applicant and all adult members of the applicant's household.

(b-5) Prior to submitting an application for a foster family home license, a quality of care concerns applicant as defined in Section 2.22a of this Act must submit a preliminary application to the Department in the manner and on forms prescribed by it. The Department shall explain to the quality of care concerns applicant the grounds for requiring a preliminary application. The preliminary application shall include a list of (i) all children placed in the home by the Department who were removed by the Department for reasons other than returning to a parent and the circumstances under which they were removed and (ii) all children placed by the Department who were subsequently adopted by or placed in the private guardianship of the quality of care concerns applicant who are currently under 18 and who no longer reside in the home and the reasons why they no longer reside in the home. The preliminary application shall also include, if the quality of care concerns applicant chooses to submit, (1) a response to the quality of care concerns, including any reason the concerns are invalid, have been addressed or ameliorated, or no longer apply and (2) affirmative documentation demonstrating that the quality of care concerns applicant's home does not pose a risk to children and that the family will be able to meet the physical and emotional needs of children. The Department shall verify the information in the preliminary application and review (i) information regarding any prior licensing complaints, (ii) information regarding any prior child abuse or neglect investigations, and (iii) information regarding any involuntary foster home holds placed on the home by the Department. Foster home applicants with quality of care concerns are presumed unsuitable for future licensure.

Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection (b-5), the Department may make an exception and issue a foster family license to a quality of care concerns applicant if the Department is satisfied that the foster family home does not pose a risk to children and that the foster family will be able to meet the physical and emotional needs of children. In making this determination, the Department must obtain and carefully review all relevant documents and shall obtain consultation from its Clinical Division as appropriate and as prescribed by Department rule and procedure. The Department has the authority to deny a preliminary application based on the record of quality of care concerns of the foster family home. In the alternative, the Department may (i) approve the preliminary application, (ii) approve the preliminary application subject to obtaining additional information or assessments, or (iii) approve the preliminary application for purposes of placing a particular child or children only in the foster family home. If the Department approves a preliminary application, the foster family shall submit an application for licensure as described in subsection (b) of this Section. The Department shall notify the quality of care concerns applicant of its decision and the basis for its decision in writing.

(c) The Department shall notify the public when a child care institution, maternity center, or group home licensed by the Department undergoes a change in (i) the range of care or services offered at the facility, (ii) the age or type of children served, or (iii) the area within the facility used by children. The Department shall notify the public of the change in a newspaper of general circulation in the county or municipality in which the applicant's facility is or is proposed to be located.

(d) If, upon examination of the facility and investigation of persons responsible for care of children and, in the case of a foster home, taking into account information obtained for purposes of evaluating a preliminary application, if applicable, the Department is satisfied that the facility and responsible persons reasonably meet standards prescribed for the type of facility for which application is made, it shall issue a license in proper form, designating on that license the type of child care facility and, except for a child welfare agency, the number of children to be served at any one time.

(e) The Department shall not issue or renew the license of any child welfare agency providing adoption services, unless the agency (i) is officially recognized by the United States Internal Revenue Service as a tax-exempt organization described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (or any successor provision of federal tax law) and (ii) is in compliance with all of the standards necessary to maintain its status as an organization described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (or any successor provision of federal tax law). The Department shall grant a grace period of 24 months from the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly for existing child welfare agencies providing adoption services to obtain 501(c)(3) status. The Department shall permit an existing child welfare agency that converts from its current structure in order to be recognized as a 501(c)(3) organization as required by this Section to either retain its current license or transfer its current license to a newly formed entity, if the creation of a new entity is required in order to comply with this Section, provided that the child welfare agency demonstrates that it continues to meet all other licensing requirements and that the principal officers and directors and programs of the converted child welfare agency or newly organized child welfare agency are substantially the same as the original. The Department shall have the sole discretion to grant a one year extension to any agency unable to obtain 501(c)(3) status within the timeframe specified in this subsection (e), provided that such agency has filed an application for 501(c)(3) status with the Internal Revenue Service within the 2-year timeframe specified in this subsection (e).

(Source: P.A. 101-63, eff. 7-12-19.)

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