Public Act 0165 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
 

 
Public Act 104-0165
 
HB0871 EnrolledLRB104 04769 SPS 14796 b

    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
    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 5 as follows:
 
    (20 ILCS 505/5)
    (Text of Section before amendment by P.A. 103-1061)
    Sec. 5. Direct child welfare services; Department of 
Children and Family Services. To provide direct child welfare 
services when not available through other public or private 
child care or program facilities.
    (a) For purposes of this Section:
        (1) "Children" means persons found within the State 
    who are under the age of 18 years. The term also includes 
    persons under age 21 who:
            (A) were committed to the Department pursuant to 
        the Juvenile Court Act or the Juvenile Court Act of 
        1987 and who continue under the jurisdiction of the 
        court; or
            (B) were accepted for care, service and training 
        by the Department prior to the age of 18 and whose best 
        interest in the discretion of the Department would be 
        served by continuing that care, service and training 
        because of severe emotional disturbances, physical 
        disability, social adjustment or any combination 
        thereof, or because of the need to complete an 
        educational or vocational training program.
        (2) "Homeless youth" means persons found within the 
    State who are under the age of 19, are not in a safe and 
    stable living situation and cannot be reunited with their 
    families.
        (3) "Child welfare services" means public social 
    services which are directed toward the accomplishment of 
    the following purposes:
            (A) protecting and promoting the health, safety 
        and welfare of children, including homeless, 
        dependent, or neglected children;
            (B) remedying, or assisting in the solution of 
        problems which may result in, the neglect, abuse, 
        exploitation, or delinquency of children;
            (C) preventing the unnecessary separation of 
        children from their families by identifying family 
        problems, assisting families in resolving their 
        problems, and preventing the breakup of the family 
        where the prevention of child removal is desirable and 
        possible when the child can be cared for at home 
        without endangering the child's health and safety;
            (D) restoring to their families children who have 
        been removed, by the provision of services to the 
        child and the families when the child can be cared for 
        at home without endangering the child's health and 
        safety;
            (E) placing children in suitable permanent family 
        arrangements, through guardianship or adoption, in 
        cases where restoration to the birth family is not 
        safe, possible, or appropriate;
            (F) at the time of placement, conducting 
        concurrent planning, as described in subsection (l-1) 
        of this Section, 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;
            (G) (blank);
            (H) (blank); and
            (I) placing and maintaining children in facilities 
        that provide separate living quarters for children 
        under the age of 18 and for children 18 years of age 
        and older, unless a child 18 years of age is in the 
        last year of high school education or vocational 
        training, in an approved individual or group treatment 
        program, in a licensed shelter facility, or secure 
        child care facility. The Department is not required to 
        place or maintain children:
                (i) who are in a foster home, or
                (ii) who are persons with a developmental 
            disability, as defined in the Mental Health and 
            Developmental Disabilities Code, or
                (iii) who are female children who are 
            pregnant, pregnant and parenting, or parenting, or
                (iv) who are siblings, in facilities that 
            provide separate living quarters for children 18 
            years of age and older and for children under 18 
            years of age.
    (b) (Blank).
    (b-5) The Department shall adopt rules to establish a 
process for all licensed residential providers in Illinois to 
submit data as required by the Department if they contract or 
receive reimbursement for children's mental health, substance 
use, and developmental disability services from the Department 
of Human Services, the Department of Juvenile Justice, or the 
Department of Healthcare and Family Services. The requested 
data must include, but is not limited to, capacity, staffing, 
and occupancy data for the purpose of establishing State need 
and placement availability. 
    All information collected, shared, or stored pursuant to 
this subsection shall be handled in accordance with all State 
and federal privacy laws and accompanying regulations and 
rules, including without limitation the federal Health 
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (Public 
Law 104-191) and the Mental Health and Developmental 
Disabilities Confidentiality Act. 
    (c) The Department shall establish and maintain 
tax-supported child welfare services and extend and seek to 
improve voluntary services throughout the State, to the end 
that services and care shall be available on an equal basis 
throughout the State to children requiring such services.
    (d) The Director may authorize advance disbursements for 
any new program initiative to any agency contracting with the 
Department. As a prerequisite for an advance disbursement, the 
contractor must post a surety bond in the amount of the advance 
disbursement and have a purchase of service contract approved 
by the Department. The Department may pay up to 2 months 
operational expenses in advance. The amount of the advance 
disbursement shall be prorated over the life of the contract 
or the remaining months of the fiscal year, whichever is less, 
and the installment amount shall then be deducted from future 
bills. Advance disbursement authorizations for new initiatives 
shall not be made to any agency after that agency has operated 
during 2 consecutive fiscal years. The requirements of this 
Section concerning advance disbursements shall not apply with 
respect to the following: payments to local public agencies 
for child day care services as authorized by Section 5a of this 
Act; and youth service programs receiving grant funds under 
Section 17a-4.
    (e) (Blank).
    (f) (Blank).
    (g) The Department shall establish rules and regulations 
concerning its operation of programs designed to meet the 
goals of child safety and protection, family preservation, 
family reunification, and adoption, including, but not limited 
to:
        (1) adoption;
        (2) foster care;
        (3) family counseling;
        (4) protective services;
        (5) (blank);
        (6) homemaker service;
        (7) return of runaway children;
        (8) (blank);
        (9) placement under Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court 
    Act or Section 2-27, 3-28, 4-25, or 5-740 of the Juvenile 
    Court Act of 1987 in accordance with the federal Adoption 
    Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980; and
        (10) interstate services.
    Rules and regulations established by the Department shall 
include provisions for training Department staff and the staff 
of Department grantees, through contracts with other agencies 
or resources, in screening techniques to identify substance 
use disorders, as defined in the Substance Use Disorder Act, 
approved by the Department of Human Services, as a successor 
to the Department of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, for the 
purpose of identifying children and adults who should be 
referred for an assessment at an organization appropriately 
licensed by the Department of Human Services for substance use 
disorder treatment.
    (h) If the Department finds that there is no appropriate 
program or facility within or available to the Department for 
a youth in care and that no licensed private facility has an 
adequate and appropriate program or none agrees to accept the 
youth in care, the Department shall create an appropriate 
individualized, program-oriented plan for such youth in care. 
The plan may be developed within the Department or through 
purchase of services by the Department to the extent that it is 
within its statutory authority to do.
    (i) Service programs shall be available throughout the 
State and shall include but not be limited to the following 
services:
        (1) case management;
        (2) homemakers;
        (3) counseling;
        (4) parent education;
        (5) day care; and
        (6) emergency assistance and advocacy.
    In addition, the following services may be made available 
to assess and meet the needs of children and families:
        (1) comprehensive family-based services;
        (2) assessments;
        (3) respite care; and
        (4) in-home health services.
    The Department shall provide transportation for any of the 
services it makes available to children or families or for 
which it refers children or families.
    (j) The Department may provide categories of financial 
assistance and education assistance grants, and shall 
establish rules and regulations concerning the assistance and 
grants, to persons who adopt children with physical or mental 
disabilities, children who are older, or other hard-to-place 
children who (i) immediately prior to their adoption were 
youth in care or (ii) were determined eligible for financial 
assistance with respect to a prior adoption and who become 
available for adoption because the prior adoption has been 
dissolved and the parental rights of the adoptive parents have 
been terminated or because the child's adoptive parents have 
died. The Department may continue to provide financial 
assistance and education assistance grants for a child who was 
determined eligible for financial assistance under this 
subsection (j) in the interim period beginning when the 
child's adoptive parents died and ending with the finalization 
of the new adoption of the child by another adoptive parent or 
parents. The Department may also provide categories of 
financial assistance and education assistance grants, and 
shall establish rules and regulations for the assistance and 
grants, to persons appointed guardian of the person under 
Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court Act or Section 2-27, 3-28, 
4-25, or 5-740 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 for children 
who were youth in care for 12 months immediately prior to the 
appointment of the guardian.
    The amount of assistance may vary, depending upon the 
needs of the child and the adoptive parents, as set forth in 
the annual assistance agreement. Special purpose grants are 
allowed where the child requires special service but such 
costs may not exceed the amounts which similar services would 
cost the Department if it were to provide or secure them as 
guardian of the child.
    Any financial assistance provided under this subsection is 
inalienable by assignment, sale, execution, attachment, 
garnishment, or any other remedy for recovery or collection of 
a judgment or debt.
    (j-5) The Department shall not deny or delay the placement 
of a child for adoption if an approved family is available 
either outside of the Department region handling the case, or 
outside of the State of Illinois.
    (k) The Department shall accept for care and training any 
child who has been adjudicated neglected or abused, or 
dependent committed to it pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act 
or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
    (l) The Department shall offer family preservation 
services, as defined in Section 8.2 of the Abused and 
Neglected Child Reporting Act, to help families, including 
adoptive and extended families. Family preservation services 
shall be offered (i) to prevent the placement of children in 
substitute care when the children can be cared for at home or 
in the custody of the person responsible for the children's 
welfare, (ii) to reunite children with their families, or 
(iii) to maintain an adoptive placement. Family preservation 
services shall only be offered when doing so will not endanger 
the children's health or safety. With respect to children who 
are in substitute care pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act of 
1987, family preservation services shall not be offered if a 
goal other than those of subdivisions (A), (B), or (B-1) of 
subsection (2) of Section 2-28 of that Act has been set, except 
that reunification services may be offered as provided in 
paragraph (F) of subsection (2) of Section 2-28 of that Act. 
Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to create a 
private right of action or claim on the part of any individual 
or child welfare agency, except that when a child is the 
subject of an action under Article II of the Juvenile Court Act 
of 1987 and the child's service plan calls for services to 
facilitate achievement of the permanency goal, the court 
hearing the action under Article II of the Juvenile Court Act 
of 1987 may order the Department to provide the services set 
out in the plan, if those services are not provided with 
reasonable promptness and if those services are available.
    The Department shall notify the child and the child's 
family of the Department's responsibility to offer and provide 
family preservation services as identified in the service 
plan. The child and the child's family shall be eligible for 
services as soon as the report is determined to be 
"indicated". The Department may offer services to any child or 
family with respect to whom a report of suspected child abuse 
or neglect has been filed, prior to concluding its 
investigation under Section 7.12 of the Abused and Neglected 
Child Reporting Act. However, the child's or family's 
willingness to accept services shall not be considered in the 
investigation. The Department may also provide services to any 
child or family who is the subject of any report of suspected 
child abuse or neglect or may refer such child or family to 
services available from other agencies in the community, even 
if the report is determined to be unfounded, if the conditions 
in the child's or family's home are reasonably likely to 
subject the child or family to future reports of suspected 
child abuse or neglect. Acceptance of such services shall be 
voluntary. The Department may also provide services to any 
child or family after completion of a family assessment, as an 
alternative to an investigation, as provided under the 
"differential response program" provided for in subsection 
(a-5) of Section 7.4 of the Abused and Neglected Child 
Reporting Act.
    The Department may, at its discretion except for those 
children also adjudicated neglected or dependent, accept for 
care and training any child who has been adjudicated addicted, 
as a truant minor in need of supervision or as a minor 
requiring authoritative intervention, under the Juvenile Court 
Act or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, but no such child shall 
be committed to the Department by any court without the 
approval of the Department. On and after January 1, 2015 (the 
effective date of Public Act 98-803) and before January 1, 
2017, a minor charged with a criminal offense under the 
Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012 or 
adjudicated delinquent shall not be placed in the custody of 
or committed to the Department by any court, except (i) a minor 
less than 16 years of age committed to the Department under 
Section 5-710 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, (ii) a minor 
for whom an independent basis of abuse, neglect, or dependency 
exists, which must be defined by departmental rule, or (iii) a 
minor for whom the court has granted a supplemental petition 
to reinstate wardship pursuant to subsection (2) of Section 
2-33 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. On and after January 1, 
2017, a minor charged with a criminal offense under the 
Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012 or 
adjudicated delinquent shall not be placed in the custody of 
or committed to the Department by any court, except (i) a minor 
less than 15 years of age committed to the Department under 
Section 5-710 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, (ii) a minor 
for whom an independent basis of abuse, neglect, or dependency 
exists, which must be defined by departmental rule, or (iii) a 
minor for whom the court has granted a supplemental petition 
to reinstate wardship pursuant to subsection (2) of Section 
2-33 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. An independent basis 
exists when the allegations or adjudication of abuse, neglect, 
or dependency do not arise from the same facts, incident, or 
circumstances which give rise to a charge or adjudication of 
delinquency. The Department shall assign a caseworker to 
attend any hearing involving a youth in the care and custody of 
the Department who is placed on aftercare release, including 
hearings involving sanctions for violation of aftercare 
release conditions and aftercare release revocation hearings. 
    As soon as is possible after August 7, 2009 (the effective 
date of Public Act 96-134), the Department shall develop and 
implement a special program of family preservation services to 
support intact, foster, and adoptive families who are 
experiencing extreme hardships due to the difficulty and 
stress of caring for a child who has been diagnosed with a 
pervasive developmental disorder if the Department determines 
that those services are necessary to ensure the health and 
safety of the child. The Department may offer services to any 
family whether or not a report has been filed under the Abused 
and Neglected Child Reporting Act. The Department may refer 
the child or family to services available from other agencies 
in the community if the conditions in the child's or family's 
home are reasonably likely to subject the child or family to 
future reports of suspected child abuse or neglect. Acceptance 
of these services shall be voluntary. The Department shall 
develop and implement a public information campaign to alert 
health and social service providers and the general public 
about these special family preservation services. The nature 
and scope of the services offered and the number of families 
served under the special program implemented under this 
paragraph shall be determined by the level of funding that the 
Department annually allocates for this purpose. The term 
"pervasive developmental disorder" under this paragraph means 
a neurological condition, including, but not limited to, 
Asperger's Syndrome and autism, as defined in the most recent 
edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental 
Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association.
    (l-1) The General Assembly recognizes that the best 
interests of the child require that the child be placed in the 
most permanent living arrangement as soon as is practically 
possible. To achieve this goal, the General Assembly directs 
the Department of Children and Family Services to conduct 
concurrent planning so that permanency may occur at the 
earliest opportunity. Permanent living arrangements may 
include prevention of placement of a child outside the home of 
the family when the child can be cared for at home without 
endangering the child's health or safety; reunification with 
the family, when safe and appropriate, if temporary placement 
is necessary; or movement of the child toward the most 
permanent living arrangement and permanent legal status.
    When determining reasonable efforts to be made with 
respect to a child, as described in this subsection, and in 
making such reasonable efforts, the child's health and safety 
shall be the paramount concern.
    When a child is placed in foster care, the Department 
shall ensure and document that reasonable efforts were made to 
prevent or eliminate the need to remove the child from the 
child's home. The Department must make reasonable efforts to 
reunify the family when temporary placement of the child 
occurs unless otherwise required, pursuant to the Juvenile 
Court Act of 1987. At any time after the dispositional hearing 
where the Department believes that further reunification 
services would be ineffective, it may request a finding from 
the court that reasonable efforts are no longer appropriate. 
The Department is not required to provide further 
reunification services after such a finding.
    A decision to place a child in substitute care shall be 
made with considerations of the child's health, safety, and 
best interests. At the time of placement, consideration should 
also be given so that if reunification fails or is delayed, the 
placement made is the best available placement to provide 
permanency for the child.
    The Department shall adopt rules addressing concurrent 
planning for reunification and permanency. The Department 
shall consider the following factors when determining 
appropriateness of concurrent planning:
        (1) the likelihood of prompt reunification;
        (2) the past history of the family;
        (3) the barriers to reunification being addressed by 
    the family;
        (4) the level of cooperation of the family;
        (5) the foster parents' willingness to work with the 
    family to reunite;
        (6) the willingness and ability of the foster family 
    to provide an adoptive home or long-term placement;
        (7) the age of the child;
        (8) placement of siblings.
    (m) The Department may assume temporary custody of any 
child if:
        (1) it has received a written consent to such 
    temporary custody signed by the parents of the child or by 
    the parent having custody of the child if the parents are 
    not living together or by the guardian or custodian of the 
    child if the child is not in the custody of either parent, 
    or
        (2) the child is found in the State and neither a 
    parent, guardian nor custodian of the child can be 
    located.
If the child is found in the child's residence without a 
parent, guardian, custodian, or responsible caretaker, the 
Department may, instead of removing the child and assuming 
temporary custody, place an authorized representative of the 
Department in that residence until such time as a parent, 
guardian, or custodian enters the home and expresses a 
willingness and apparent ability to ensure the child's health 
and safety and resume permanent charge of the child, or until a 
relative enters the home and is willing and able to ensure the 
child's health and safety and assume charge of the child until 
a parent, guardian, or custodian enters the home and expresses 
such willingness and ability to ensure the child's safety and 
resume permanent charge. After a caretaker has remained in the 
home for a period not to exceed 12 hours, the Department must 
follow those procedures outlined in Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8, or 
5-415 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
    The Department shall have the authority, responsibilities 
and duties that a legal custodian of the child would have 
pursuant to subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile 
Court Act of 1987. Whenever a child is taken into temporary 
custody pursuant to an investigation under the Abused and 
Neglected Child Reporting Act, or pursuant to a referral and 
acceptance under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 of a minor in 
limited custody, the Department, during the period of 
temporary custody and before the child is brought before a 
judicial officer as required by Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8, or 
5-415 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, shall have the 
authority, responsibilities and duties that a legal custodian 
of the child would have under subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of 
the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
    The Department shall ensure that any child taken into 
custody is scheduled for an appointment for a medical 
examination.
    A parent, guardian, or custodian of a child in the 
temporary custody of the Department who would have custody of 
the child if the child were not in the temporary custody of the 
Department may deliver to the Department a signed request that 
the Department surrender the temporary custody of the child. 
The Department may retain temporary custody of the child for 
10 days after the receipt of the request, during which period 
the Department may cause to be filed a petition pursuant to the 
Juvenile Court Act of 1987. If a petition is so filed, the 
Department shall retain temporary custody of the child until 
the court orders otherwise. If a petition is not filed within 
the 10-day period, the child shall be surrendered to the 
custody of the requesting parent, guardian, or custodian not 
later than the expiration of the 10-day period, at which time 
the authority and duties of the Department with respect to the 
temporary custody of the child shall terminate.
    (m-1) The Department may place children under 18 years of 
age in a secure child care facility licensed by the Department 
that cares for children who are in need of secure living 
arrangements for their health, safety, and well-being after a 
determination is made by the facility director and the 
Director or the Director's designate prior to admission to the 
facility subject to Section 2-27.1 of the Juvenile Court Act 
of 1987. This subsection (m-1) does not apply to a child who is 
subject to placement in a correctional facility operated 
pursuant to Section 3-15-2 of the Unified Code of Corrections, 
unless the child is a youth in care who was placed in the care 
of the Department before being subject to placement in a 
correctional facility and a court of competent jurisdiction 
has ordered placement of the child in a secure care facility.
    (n) The Department may place children under 18 years of 
age in licensed child care facilities when in the opinion of 
the Department, appropriate services aimed at family 
preservation have been unsuccessful and cannot ensure the 
child's health and safety or are unavailable and such 
placement would be for their best interest. Payment for board, 
clothing, care, training and supervision of any child placed 
in a licensed child care facility may be made by the 
Department, by the parents or guardians of the estates of 
those children, or by both the Department and the parents or 
guardians, except that no payments shall be made by the 
Department for any child placed in a licensed child care 
facility for board, clothing, care, training, and supervision 
of such a child that exceed the average per capita cost of 
maintaining and of caring for a child in institutions for 
dependent or neglected children operated by the Department. 
However, such restriction on payments does not apply in cases 
where children require specialized care and treatment for 
problems of severe emotional disturbance, physical disability, 
social adjustment, or any combination thereof and suitable 
facilities for the placement of such children are not 
available at payment rates within the limitations set forth in 
this Section. All reimbursements for services delivered shall 
be absolutely inalienable by assignment, sale, attachment, or 
garnishment or otherwise.
    (n-1) The Department shall provide or authorize child 
welfare services, aimed at assisting minors to achieve 
sustainable self-sufficiency as independent adults, for any 
minor eligible for the reinstatement of wardship pursuant to 
subsection (2) of Section 2-33 of the Juvenile Court Act of 
1987, whether or not such reinstatement is sought or allowed, 
provided that the minor consents to such services and has not 
yet attained the age of 21. The Department shall have 
responsibility for the development and delivery of services 
under this Section. An eligible youth may access services 
under this Section through the Department of Children and 
Family Services or by referral from the Department of Human 
Services. Youth participating in services under this Section 
shall cooperate with the assigned case manager in developing 
an agreement identifying the services to be provided and how 
the youth will increase skills to achieve self-sufficiency. A 
homeless shelter is not considered appropriate housing for any 
youth receiving child welfare services under this Section. The 
Department shall continue child welfare services under this 
Section to any eligible minor until the minor becomes 21 years 
of age, no longer consents to participate, or achieves 
self-sufficiency as identified in the minor's service plan. 
The Department of Children and Family Services shall create 
clear, readable notice of the rights of former foster youth to 
child welfare services under this Section and how such 
services may be obtained. The Department of Children and 
Family Services and the Department of Human Services shall 
disseminate this information statewide. The Department shall 
adopt regulations describing services intended to assist 
minors in achieving sustainable self-sufficiency as 
independent adults. 
    (o) The Department shall establish an administrative 
review and appeal process for children and families who 
request or receive child welfare services from the Department. 
Youth in care who are placed by private child welfare 
agencies, and foster families with whom those youth are 
placed, shall be afforded the same procedural and appeal 
rights as children and families in the case of placement by the 
Department, including the right to an initial review of a 
private agency decision by that agency. The Department shall 
ensure that any private child welfare agency, which accepts 
youth in care for placement, affords those rights to children 
and foster families. The Department shall accept for 
administrative review and an appeal hearing a complaint made 
by (i) a child or foster family concerning a decision 
following an initial review by a private child welfare agency 
or (ii) a prospective adoptive parent who alleges a violation 
of subsection (j-5) of this Section. An appeal of a decision 
concerning a change in the placement of a child shall be 
conducted in an expedited manner. A court determination that a 
current foster home placement is necessary and appropriate 
under Section 2-28 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 does not 
constitute a judicial determination on the merits of an 
administrative appeal, filed by a former foster parent, 
involving a change of placement decision.
    (p) (Blank).
    (q) The Department may receive and use, in their entirety, 
for the benefit of children any gift, donation, or bequest of 
money or other property which is received on behalf of such 
children, or any financial benefits to which such children are 
or may become entitled while under the jurisdiction or care of 
the Department, except that the benefits described in Section 
5.46 must be used and conserved consistent with the provisions 
under Section 5.46.
    The Department shall set up and administer no-cost, 
interest-bearing accounts in appropriate financial 
institutions for children for whom the Department is legally 
responsible and who have been determined eligible for 
Veterans' Benefits, Social Security benefits, assistance 
allotments from the armed forces, court ordered payments, 
parental voluntary payments, Supplemental Security Income, 
Railroad Retirement payments, Black Lung benefits, or other 
miscellaneous payments. Interest earned by each account shall 
be credited to the account, unless disbursed in accordance 
with this subsection.
    In disbursing funds from children's accounts, the 
Department shall:
        (1) Establish standards in accordance with State and 
    federal laws for disbursing money from children's 
    accounts. In all circumstances, the Department's 
    Guardianship Administrator or the Guardianship 
    Administrator's designee must approve disbursements from 
    children's accounts. The Department shall be responsible 
    for keeping complete records of all disbursements for each 
    account for any purpose.
        (2) Calculate on a monthly basis the amounts paid from 
    State funds for the child's board and care, medical care 
    not covered under Medicaid, and social services; and 
    utilize funds from the child's account, as covered by 
    regulation, to reimburse those costs. Monthly, 
    disbursements from all children's accounts, up to 1/12 of 
    $13,000,000, shall be deposited by the Department into the 
    General Revenue Fund and the balance over 1/12 of 
    $13,000,000 into the DCFS Children's Services Fund.
        (3) Maintain any balance remaining after reimbursing 
    for the child's costs of care, as specified in item (2). 
    The balance shall accumulate in accordance with relevant 
    State and federal laws and shall be disbursed to the child 
    or the child's guardian or to the issuing agency.
    (r) The Department shall promulgate regulations 
encouraging all adoption agencies to voluntarily forward to 
the Department or its agent names and addresses of all persons 
who have applied for and have been approved for adoption of a 
hard-to-place child or child with a disability and the names 
of such children who have not been placed for adoption. A list 
of such names and addresses shall be maintained by the 
Department or its agent, and coded lists which maintain the 
confidentiality of the person seeking to adopt the child and 
of the child shall be made available, without charge, to every 
adoption agency in the State to assist the agencies in placing 
such children for adoption. The Department may delegate to an 
agent its duty to maintain and make available such lists. The 
Department shall ensure that such agent maintains the 
confidentiality of the person seeking to adopt the child and 
of the child.
    (s) The Department of Children and Family Services may 
establish and implement a program to reimburse Department and 
private child welfare agency foster parents licensed by the 
Department of Children and Family Services for damages 
sustained by the foster parents as a result of the malicious or 
negligent acts of foster children, as well as providing third 
party coverage for such foster parents with regard to actions 
of foster children to other individuals. Such coverage will be 
secondary to the foster parent liability insurance policy, if 
applicable. The program shall be funded through appropriations 
from the General Revenue Fund, specifically designated for 
such purposes.
    (t) The Department shall perform home studies and 
investigations and shall exercise supervision over visitation 
as ordered by a court pursuant to the Illinois Marriage and 
Dissolution of Marriage Act or the Adoption Act only if:
        (1) an order entered by an Illinois court specifically 
    directs the Department to perform such services; and
        (2) the court has ordered one or both of the parties to 
    the proceeding to reimburse the Department for its 
    reasonable costs for providing such services in accordance 
    with Department rules, or has determined that neither 
    party is financially able to pay.
    The Department shall provide written notification to the 
court of the specific arrangements for supervised visitation 
and projected monthly costs within 60 days of the court order. 
The Department shall send to the court information related to 
the costs incurred except in cases where the court has 
determined the parties are financially unable to pay. The 
court may order additional periodic reports as appropriate.
    (u) In addition to other information that must be 
provided, whenever the Department places a child with a 
prospective adoptive parent or parents, in a licensed foster 
home, group home, or child care institution, or in a relative 
home, the Department shall provide to the prospective adoptive 
parent or parents or other caretaker:
        (1) available detailed information concerning the 
    child's educational and health history, copies of 
    immunization records (including insurance and medical card 
    information), a history of the child's previous 
    placements, if any, and reasons for placement changes 
    excluding any information that identifies or reveals the 
    location of any previous caretaker;
        (2) a copy of the child's portion of the client 
    service plan, including any visitation arrangement, and 
    all amendments or revisions to it as related to the child; 
    and
        (3) information containing details of the child's 
    individualized educational plan when the child is 
    receiving special education services.
    The caretaker shall be informed of any known social or 
behavioral information (including, but not limited to, 
criminal background, fire setting, perpetuation of sexual 
abuse, destructive behavior, and substance abuse) necessary to 
care for and safeguard the children to be placed or currently 
in the home. The Department may prepare a written summary of 
the information required by this paragraph, which may be 
provided to the foster or prospective adoptive parent in 
advance of a placement. The foster or prospective adoptive 
parent may review the supporting documents in the child's file 
in the presence of casework staff. In the case of an emergency 
placement, casework staff shall at least provide known 
information verbally, if necessary, and must subsequently 
provide the information in writing as required by this 
subsection. 
    The information described in this subsection shall be 
provided in writing. In the case of emergency placements when 
time does not allow prior review, preparation, and collection 
of written information, the Department shall provide such 
information as it becomes available. Within 10 business days 
after placement, the Department shall obtain from the 
prospective adoptive parent or parents or other caretaker a 
signed verification of receipt of the information provided. 
Within 10 business days after placement, the Department shall 
provide to the child's guardian ad litem a copy of the 
information provided to the prospective adoptive parent or 
parents or other caretaker. The information provided to the 
prospective adoptive parent or parents or other caretaker 
shall be reviewed and approved regarding accuracy at the 
supervisory level. 
    (u-5) Effective July 1, 1995, only foster care placements 
licensed as foster family homes pursuant to the Child Care Act 
of 1969 shall be eligible to receive foster care payments from 
the Department. Relative caregivers who, as of July 1, 1995, 
were approved pursuant to approved relative placement rules 
previously promulgated by the Department at 89 Ill. Adm. Code 
335 and had submitted an application for licensure as a foster 
family home may continue to receive foster care payments only 
until the Department determines that they may be licensed as a 
foster family home or that their application for licensure is 
denied or until September 30, 1995, whichever occurs first.
    (v) The Department shall access criminal history record 
information as defined in the Illinois Uniform Conviction 
Information Act and information maintained in the adjudicatory 
and dispositional record system as defined in Section 2605-355 
of the Illinois State Police Law if the Department determines 
the information is necessary to perform its duties under the 
Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, the Child Care Act 
of 1969, and the Children and Family Services Act. The 
Department shall provide for interactive computerized 
communication and processing equipment that permits direct 
on-line communication with the Illinois State Police's central 
criminal history data repository. The Department shall comply 
with all certification requirements and provide certified 
operators who have been trained by personnel from the Illinois 
State Police. In addition, one Office of the Inspector General 
investigator shall have training in the use of the criminal 
history information access system and have access to the 
terminal. The Department of Children and Family Services and 
its employees shall abide by rules and regulations established 
by the Illinois State Police relating to the access and 
dissemination of this information.
    (v-1) Prior to final approval for placement of a child, 
the Department shall conduct a criminal records background 
check of the prospective foster or adoptive parent, including 
fingerprint-based checks of national crime information 
databases. Final approval for placement shall not be granted 
if the record check reveals a felony conviction for child 
abuse or neglect, for spousal abuse, for a crime against 
children, or for a crime involving violence, including rape, 
sexual assault, or homicide, but not including other physical 
assault or battery, or if there is a felony conviction for 
physical assault, battery, or a drug-related offense committed 
within the past 5 years.
    (v-2) Prior to final approval for placement of a child, 
the Department shall check its child abuse and neglect 
registry for information concerning prospective foster and 
adoptive parents, and any adult living in the home. If any 
prospective foster or adoptive parent or other adult living in 
the home has resided in another state in the preceding 5 years, 
the Department shall request a check of that other state's 
child abuse and neglect registry. 
    (w) Within 120 days of August 20, 1995 (the effective date 
of Public Act 89-392), the Department shall prepare and submit 
to the Governor and the General Assembly, a written plan for 
the development of in-state licensed secure child care 
facilities that care for children who are in need of secure 
living arrangements for their health, safety, and well-being. 
For purposes of this subsection, secure care facility shall 
mean 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. The plan shall 
include descriptions of the types of facilities that are 
needed in Illinois; the cost of developing these secure care 
facilities; the estimated number of placements; the potential 
cost savings resulting from the movement of children currently 
out-of-state who are projected to be returned to Illinois; the 
necessary geographic distribution of these facilities in 
Illinois; and a proposed timetable for development of such 
facilities.
    (x) The Department shall conduct annual credit history 
checks to determine the financial history of children placed 
under its guardianship pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act of 
1987. The Department shall conduct such credit checks starting 
when a youth in care turns 12 years old and each year 
thereafter for the duration of the guardianship as terminated 
pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. The Department 
shall determine if financial exploitation of the child's 
personal information has occurred. If financial exploitation 
appears to have taken place or is presently ongoing, the 
Department shall notify the proper law enforcement agency, the 
proper State's Attorney, or the Attorney General.
    (y) Beginning on July 22, 2010 (the effective date of 
Public Act 96-1189), a child with a disability who receives 
residential and educational services from the Department shall 
be eligible to receive transition services in accordance with 
Article 14 of the School Code from the age of 14.5 through age 
21, inclusive, notwithstanding the child's residential 
services arrangement. For purposes of this subsection, "child 
with a disability" means a child with a disability as defined 
by the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education 
Improvement Act of 2004. 
    (z) The Department shall access criminal history record 
information as defined as "background information" in this 
subsection and criminal history record information as defined 
in the Illinois Uniform Conviction Information Act for each 
Department employee or Department applicant. Each Department 
employee or Department applicant shall submit the employee's 
or applicant's fingerprints to the Illinois State Police in 
the form and manner prescribed by the Illinois State Police. 
These fingerprints shall be checked against the fingerprint 
records now and hereafter filed in the Illinois State Police 
and the Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history 
records databases. The Illinois State Police shall charge a 
fee for conducting the criminal history record check, which 
shall be deposited into the State Police Services Fund and 
shall not exceed the actual cost of the record check. The 
Illinois State Police shall furnish, pursuant to positive 
identification, all Illinois conviction information to the 
Department of Children and Family Services. 
    For purposes of this subsection: 
    "Background information" means all of the following: 
        (i) Upon the request of the Department of Children and 
    Family Services, conviction information obtained from the 
    Illinois State Police as a result of a fingerprint-based 
    criminal history records check of the Illinois criminal 
    history records database and the Federal Bureau of 
    Investigation criminal history records database concerning 
    a Department employee or Department applicant. 
        (ii) Information obtained by the Department of 
    Children and Family Services after performing a check of 
    the Illinois State Police's Sex Offender Database, as 
    authorized by Section 120 of the Sex Offender Community 
    Notification Law, concerning a Department employee or 
    Department applicant. 
        (iii) Information obtained by the Department of 
    Children and Family Services after performing a check of 
    the Child Abuse and Neglect Tracking System (CANTS) 
    operated and maintained by the Department. 
    "Department employee" means a full-time or temporary 
employee coded or certified within the State of Illinois 
Personnel System. 
    "Department applicant" means an individual who has 
conditional Department full-time or part-time work, a 
contractor, an individual used to replace or supplement staff, 
an academic intern, a volunteer in Department offices or on 
Department contracts, a work-study student, an individual or 
entity licensed by the Department, or an unlicensed service 
provider who works as a condition of a contract or an agreement 
and whose work may bring the unlicensed service provider into 
contact with Department clients or client records. 
(Source: P.A. 102-538, eff. 8-20-21; 102-558, eff. 8-20-21; 
102-1014, eff. 5-27-22; 103-22, eff. 8-8-23; 103-50, eff. 
1-1-24; 103-546, eff. 8-11-23; 103-605, eff. 7-1-24.)
 
    (Text of Section after amendment by P.A. 103-1061)
    Sec. 5. Direct child welfare services; Department of 
Children and Family Services. To provide direct child welfare 
services when not available through other public or private 
child care or program facilities.
    (a) For purposes of this Section:
        (1) "Children" means persons found within the State 
    who are under the age of 18 years. The term also includes 
    persons under age 21 who:
            (A) were committed to the Department pursuant to 
        the Juvenile Court Act or the Juvenile Court Act of 
        1987 and who continue under the jurisdiction of the 
        court; or
            (B) were accepted for care, service and training 
        by the Department prior to the age of 18 and whose best 
        interest in the discretion of the Department would be 
        served by continuing that care, service and training 
        because of severe emotional disturbances, physical 
        disability, social adjustment or any combination 
        thereof, or because of the need to complete an 
        educational or vocational training program.
        (2) "Homeless youth" means persons found within the 
    State who are under the age of 19, are not in a safe and 
    stable living situation and cannot be reunited with their 
    families.
        (3) "Child welfare services" means public social 
    services which are directed toward the accomplishment of 
    the following purposes:
            (A) protecting and promoting the health, safety 
        and welfare of children, including homeless, 
        dependent, or neglected children;
            (B) remedying, or assisting in the solution of 
        problems which may result in, the neglect, abuse, 
        exploitation, or delinquency of children;
            (C) preventing the unnecessary separation of 
        children from their families by identifying family 
        problems, assisting families in resolving their 
        problems, and preventing the breakup of the family 
        where the prevention of child removal is desirable and 
        possible when the child can be cared for at home 
        without endangering the child's health and safety;
            (D) restoring to their families children who have 
        been removed, by the provision of services to the 
        child and the families when the child can be cared for 
        at home without endangering the child's health and 
        safety;
            (E) placing children in suitable permanent family 
        arrangements, through guardianship or adoption, in 
        cases where restoration to the birth family is not 
        safe, possible, or appropriate;
            (F) at the time of placement, conducting 
        concurrent planning, as described in subsection (l-1) 
        of this Section, 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;
            (G) (blank);
            (H) (blank); and
            (I) placing and maintaining children in facilities 
        that provide separate living quarters for children 
        under the age of 18 and for children 18 years of age 
        and older, unless a child 18 years of age is in the 
        last year of high school education or vocational 
        training, in an approved individual or group treatment 
        program, in a licensed shelter facility, or secure 
        child care facility. The Department is not required to 
        place or maintain children:
                (i) who are in a foster home, or
                (ii) who are persons with a developmental 
            disability, as defined in the Mental Health and 
            Developmental Disabilities Code, or
                (iii) who are female children who are 
            pregnant, pregnant and parenting, or parenting, or
                (iv) who are siblings, in facilities that 
            provide separate living quarters for children 18 
            years of age and older and for children under 18 
            years of age.
    (b) (Blank).
    (b-5) The Department shall adopt rules to establish a 
process for all licensed residential providers in Illinois to 
submit data as required by the Department if they contract or 
receive reimbursement for children's mental health, substance 
use, and developmental disability services from the Department 
of Human Services, the Department of Juvenile Justice, or the 
Department of Healthcare and Family Services. The requested 
data must include, but is not limited to, capacity, staffing, 
and occupancy data for the purpose of establishing State need 
and placement availability. 
    All information collected, shared, or stored pursuant to 
this subsection shall be handled in accordance with all State 
and federal privacy laws and accompanying regulations and 
rules, including without limitation the federal Health 
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (Public 
Law 104-191) and the Mental Health and Developmental 
Disabilities Confidentiality Act. 
    (c) The Department shall establish and maintain 
tax-supported child welfare services and extend and seek to 
improve voluntary services throughout the State, to the end 
that services and care shall be available on an equal basis 
throughout the State to children requiring such services.
    (d) The Director may authorize advance disbursements for 
any new program initiative to any agency contracting with the 
Department. As a prerequisite for an advance disbursement, the 
contractor must post a surety bond in the amount of the advance 
disbursement and have a purchase of service contract approved 
by the Department. The Department may pay up to 2 months 
operational expenses in advance. The amount of the advance 
disbursement shall be prorated over the life of the contract 
or the remaining months of the fiscal year, whichever is less, 
and the installment amount shall then be deducted from future 
bills. Advance disbursement authorizations for new initiatives 
shall not be made to any agency after that agency has operated 
during 2 consecutive fiscal years. The requirements of this 
Section concerning advance disbursements shall not apply with 
respect to the following: payments to local public agencies 
for child day care services as authorized by Section 5a of this 
Act; and youth service programs receiving grant funds under 
Section 17a-4.
    (e) (Blank).
    (f) (Blank).
    (g) The Department shall establish rules and regulations 
concerning its operation of programs designed to meet the 
goals of child safety and protection, family preservation, and 
permanency, including, but not limited to:
        (1) reunification, guardianship, and adoption;
        (2) relative and licensed foster care;
        (3) family counseling;
        (4) protective services;
        (5) (blank);
        (6) homemaker service;
        (7) return of runaway children;
        (8) (blank);
        (9) placement under Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court 
    Act or Section 2-27, 3-28, 4-25, or 5-740 of the Juvenile 
    Court Act of 1987 in accordance with the federal Adoption 
    Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980; and
        (10) interstate services.
    Rules and regulations established by the Department shall 
include provisions for training Department staff and the staff 
of Department grantees, through contracts with other agencies 
or resources, in screening techniques to identify substance 
use disorders, as defined in the Substance Use Disorder Act, 
approved by the Department of Human Services, as a successor 
to the Department of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, for the 
purpose of identifying children and adults who should be 
referred for an assessment at an organization appropriately 
licensed by the Department of Human Services for substance use 
disorder treatment.
    (h) If the Department finds that there is no appropriate 
program or facility within or available to the Department for 
a youth in care and that no licensed private facility has an 
adequate and appropriate program or none agrees to accept the 
youth in care, the Department shall create an appropriate 
individualized, program-oriented plan for such youth in care. 
The plan may be developed within the Department or through 
purchase of services by the Department to the extent that it is 
within its statutory authority to do.
    (i) Service programs shall be available throughout the 
State and shall include but not be limited to the following 
services:
        (1) case management;
        (2) homemakers;
        (3) counseling;
        (4) parent education;
        (5) day care;
        (6) emergency assistance and advocacy; and
        (7) kinship navigator and relative caregiver supports. 
    In addition, the following services may be made available 
to assess and meet the needs of children and families:
        (1) comprehensive family-based services;
        (2) assessments;
        (3) respite care; and
        (4) in-home health services.
    The Department shall provide transportation for any of the 
services it makes available to children or families or for 
which it refers children or families.
    (j) The Department may provide categories of financial 
assistance and education assistance grants, and shall 
establish rules and regulations concerning the assistance and 
grants, to persons who adopt or become subsidized guardians of 
children with physical or mental disabilities, children who 
are older, or other hard-to-place children who (i) immediately 
prior to their adoption or subsidized guardianship were youth 
in care or (ii) were determined eligible for financial 
assistance with respect to a prior adoption and who become 
available for adoption because the prior adoption has been 
dissolved and the parental rights of the adoptive parents have 
been terminated or because the child's adoptive parents have 
died. The Department may continue to provide financial 
assistance and education assistance grants for a child who was 
determined eligible for financial assistance under this 
subsection (j) in the interim period beginning when the 
child's adoptive parents died and ending with the finalization 
of the new adoption of the child by another adoptive parent or 
parents. The Department may also provide categories of 
financial assistance and education assistance grants, and 
shall establish rules and regulations for the assistance and 
grants, to persons appointed guardian of the person under 
Section 5-7 of the Juvenile Court Act or Section 2-27, 3-28, 
4-25, or 5-740 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 for children 
who were youth in care for 12 months immediately prior to the 
appointment of the guardian.
    The amount of assistance may vary, depending upon the 
needs of the child and the adoptive parents or subsidized 
guardians, as set forth in the annual assistance agreement. 
Special purpose grants are allowed where the child requires 
special service but such costs may not exceed the amounts 
which similar services would cost the Department if it were to 
provide or secure them as guardian of the child.
    Any financial assistance provided under this subsection is 
inalienable by assignment, sale, execution, attachment, 
garnishment, or any other remedy for recovery or collection of 
a judgment or debt.
    (j-5) The Department shall not deny or delay the placement 
of a child for adoption if an approved family is available 
either outside of the Department region handling the case, or 
outside of the State of Illinois.
    (k) The Department shall accept for care and training any 
child who has been adjudicated neglected or abused, or 
dependent committed to it pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act 
or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
    (l) The Department shall offer family preservation 
services, as defined in Section 8.2 of the Abused and 
Neglected Child Reporting Act, to help families, including 
adoptive and extended families. Family preservation services 
shall be offered (i) to prevent the placement of children in 
substitute care when the children can be cared for at home or 
in the custody of the person responsible for the children's 
welfare, (ii) to reunite children with their families, or 
(iii) to maintain an adoption or subsidized guardianship. 
Family preservation services shall only be offered when doing 
so will not endanger the children's health or safety. With 
respect to children who are in substitute care pursuant to the 
Juvenile Court Act of 1987, family preservation services shall 
not be offered if a goal other than those of subdivisions (A), 
(B), or (B-1) of subsection (2.3) of Section 2-28 of that Act 
has been set, except that reunification services may be 
offered as provided in paragraph (F) of subsection (2.3) of 
Section 2-28 of that Act. Nothing in this paragraph shall be 
construed to create a private right of action or claim on the 
part of any individual or child welfare agency, except that 
when a child is the subject of an action under Article II of 
the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 and the child's service plan 
calls for services to facilitate achievement of the permanency 
goal, the court hearing the action under Article II of the 
Juvenile Court Act of 1987 may order the Department to provide 
the services set out in the plan, if those services are not 
provided with reasonable promptness and if those services are 
available.
    The Department shall notify the child and the child's 
family of the Department's responsibility to offer and provide 
family preservation services as identified in the service 
plan. The child and the child's family shall be eligible for 
services as soon as the report is determined to be 
"indicated". The Department may offer services to any child or 
family with respect to whom a report of suspected child abuse 
or neglect has been filed, prior to concluding its 
investigation under Section 7.12 of the Abused and Neglected 
Child Reporting Act. However, the child's or family's 
willingness to accept services shall not be considered in the 
investigation. The Department may also provide services to any 
child or family who is the subject of any report of suspected 
child abuse or neglect or may refer such child or family to 
services available from other agencies in the community, even 
if the report is determined to be unfounded, if the conditions 
in the child's or family's home are reasonably likely to 
subject the child or family to future reports of suspected 
child abuse or neglect. Acceptance of such services shall be 
voluntary. The Department may also provide services to any 
child or family after completion of a family assessment, as an 
alternative to an investigation, as provided under the 
"differential response program" provided for in subsection 
(a-5) of Section 7.4 of the Abused and Neglected Child 
Reporting Act.
    The Department may, at its discretion except for those 
children also adjudicated neglected or dependent, accept for 
care and training any child who has been adjudicated addicted, 
as a truant minor in need of supervision or as a minor 
requiring authoritative intervention, under the Juvenile Court 
Act or the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, but no such child shall 
be committed to the Department by any court without the 
approval of the Department. On and after January 1, 2015 (the 
effective date of Public Act 98-803) and before January 1, 
2017, a minor charged with a criminal offense under the 
Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012 or 
adjudicated delinquent shall not be placed in the custody of 
or committed to the Department by any court, except (i) a minor 
less than 16 years of age committed to the Department under 
Section 5-710 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, (ii) a minor 
for whom an independent basis of abuse, neglect, or dependency 
exists, which must be defined by departmental rule, or (iii) a 
minor for whom the court has granted a supplemental petition 
to reinstate wardship pursuant to subsection (2) of Section 
2-33 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. On and after January 1, 
2017, a minor charged with a criminal offense under the 
Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012 or 
adjudicated delinquent shall not be placed in the custody of 
or committed to the Department by any court, except (i) a minor 
less than 15 years of age committed to the Department under 
Section 5-710 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, (ii) a minor 
for whom an independent basis of abuse, neglect, or dependency 
exists, which must be defined by departmental rule, or (iii) a 
minor for whom the court has granted a supplemental petition 
to reinstate wardship pursuant to subsection (2) of Section 
2-33 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. An independent basis 
exists when the allegations or adjudication of abuse, neglect, 
or dependency do not arise from the same facts, incident, or 
circumstances which give rise to a charge or adjudication of 
delinquency. The Department shall assign a caseworker to 
attend any hearing involving a youth in the care and custody of 
the Department who is placed on aftercare release, including 
hearings involving sanctions for violation of aftercare 
release conditions and aftercare release revocation hearings. 
    As soon as is possible, the Department shall develop and 
implement a special program of family preservation services to 
support intact, relative, foster, and adoptive families who 
are experiencing extreme hardships due to the difficulty and 
stress of caring for a child who has been diagnosed with a 
pervasive developmental disorder if the Department determines 
that those services are necessary to ensure the health and 
safety of the child. The Department may offer services to any 
family whether or not a report has been filed under the Abused 
and Neglected Child Reporting Act. The Department may refer 
the child or family to services available from other agencies 
in the community if the conditions in the child's or family's 
home are reasonably likely to subject the child or family to 
future reports of suspected child abuse or neglect. Acceptance 
of these services shall be voluntary. The Department shall 
develop and implement a public information campaign to alert 
health and social service providers and the general public 
about these special family preservation services. The nature 
and scope of the services offered and the number of families 
served under the special program implemented under this 
paragraph shall be determined by the level of funding that the 
Department annually allocates for this purpose. The term 
"pervasive developmental disorder" under this paragraph means 
a neurological condition, including, but not limited to, 
Asperger's Syndrome and autism, as defined in the most recent 
edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental 
Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association.
    (l-1) The General Assembly recognizes that the best 
interests of the child require that the child be placed in the 
most permanent living arrangement that is an appropriate 
option for the child, consistent with the child's best 
interest, using the factors set forth in subsection (4.05) of 
Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 as soon as is 
practically possible. To achieve this goal, the General 
Assembly directs the Department of Children and Family 
Services to conduct concurrent planning so that permanency may 
occur at the earliest opportunity. Permanent living 
arrangements may include prevention of placement of a child 
outside the home of the family when the child can be cared for 
at home without endangering the child's health or safety; 
reunification with the family, when safe and appropriate, if 
temporary placement is necessary; or movement of the child 
toward the most appropriate living arrangement and legal 
status.
    When determining reasonable efforts to be made with 
respect to a child, as described in this subsection, and in 
making such reasonable efforts, the child's health and safety 
shall be the paramount concern.
    When a child is placed in foster care, the Department 
shall ensure and document that reasonable efforts were made to 
prevent or eliminate the need to remove the child from the 
child's home. The Department must make reasonable efforts to 
reunify the family when temporary placement of the child 
occurs unless otherwise required, pursuant to the Juvenile 
Court Act of 1987. At any time after the dispositional hearing 
where the Department believes that further reunification 
services would be ineffective, it may request a finding from 
the court that reasonable efforts are no longer appropriate. 
The Department is not required to provide further 
reunification services after such a finding.
    A decision to place a child in substitute care shall be 
made with considerations of the child's health, safety, and 
best interests. The Department shall make diligent efforts to 
place the child with a relative, document those diligent 
efforts, and document reasons for any failure or inability to 
secure such a relative placement. If the primary issue 
preventing an emergency placement of a child with a relative 
is a lack of resources, including, but not limited to, 
concrete goods, safety modifications, and services, the 
Department shall make diligent efforts to assist the relative 
in obtaining the necessary resources. No later than July 1, 
2025, the Department shall adopt rules defining what is 
diligent and necessary in providing supports to potential 
relative placements. At the time of placement, consideration 
should also be given so that if reunification fails or is 
delayed, the placement has the potential to be an appropriate 
permanent placement for the child.
    The Department shall adopt rules addressing concurrent 
planning for reunification and permanency. The Department 
shall consider the following factors when determining 
appropriateness of concurrent planning:
        (1) the likelihood of prompt reunification;
        (2) the past history of the family;
        (3) the barriers to reunification being addressed by 
    the family;
        (4) the level of cooperation of the family;
        (4.5) the child's wishes; 
        (5) the caregivers' willingness to work with the 
    family to reunite;
        (6) the willingness and ability of the caregivers' to 
    provide a permanent placement;
        (7) the age of the child;
        (8) placement of siblings; and
        (9) the wishes of the parent or parents unless the 
    parental preferences are contrary to the best interests of 
    the child. 
    (m) The Department may assume temporary custody of any 
child if:
        (1) it has received a written consent to such 
    temporary custody signed by the parents of the child or by 
    the parent having custody of the child if the parents are 
    not living together or by the guardian or custodian of the 
    child if the child is not in the custody of either parent, 
    or
        (2) the child is found in the State and neither a 
    parent, guardian nor custodian of the child can be 
    located.
If the child is found in the child's residence without a 
parent, guardian, custodian, or responsible caretaker, the 
Department may, instead of removing the child and assuming 
temporary custody, place an authorized representative of the 
Department in that residence until such time as a parent, 
guardian, or custodian enters the home and expresses a 
willingness and apparent ability to ensure the child's health 
and safety and resume permanent charge of the child, or until a 
relative enters the home and is willing and able to ensure the 
child's health and safety and assume charge of the child until 
a parent, guardian, or custodian enters the home and expresses 
such willingness and ability to ensure the child's safety and 
resume permanent charge. After a caretaker has remained in the 
home for a period not to exceed 12 hours, the Department must 
follow those procedures outlined in Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8, or 
5-415 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
    The Department shall have the authority, responsibilities 
and duties that a legal custodian of the child would have 
pursuant to subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile 
Court Act of 1987. Whenever a child is taken into temporary 
custody pursuant to an investigation under the Abused and 
Neglected Child Reporting Act, or pursuant to a referral and 
acceptance under the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 of a minor in 
limited custody, the Department, during the period of 
temporary custody and before the child is brought before a 
judicial officer as required by Section 2-9, 3-11, 4-8, or 
5-415 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, shall have the 
authority, responsibilities and duties that a legal custodian 
of the child would have under subsection (9) of Section 1-3 of 
the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
    The Department shall ensure that any child taken into 
custody is scheduled for an appointment for a medical 
examination.
    A parent, guardian, or custodian of a child in the 
temporary custody of the Department who would have custody of 
the child if the child were not in the temporary custody of the 
Department may deliver to the Department a signed request that 
the Department surrender the temporary custody of the child. 
The Department may retain temporary custody of the child for 
10 days after the receipt of the request, during which period 
the Department may cause to be filed a petition pursuant to the 
Juvenile Court Act of 1987. If a petition is so filed, the 
Department shall retain temporary custody of the child until 
the court orders otherwise. If a petition is not filed within 
the 10-day period, the child shall be surrendered to the 
custody of the requesting parent, guardian, or custodian not 
later than the expiration of the 10-day period, at which time 
the authority and duties of the Department with respect to the 
temporary custody of the child shall terminate.
    (m-1) The Department may place children under 18 years of 
age in a secure child care facility licensed by the Department 
that cares for children who are in need of secure living 
arrangements for their health, safety, and well-being after a 
determination is made by the facility director and the 
Director or the Director's designate prior to admission to the 
facility subject to Section 2-27.1 of the Juvenile Court Act 
of 1987. This subsection (m-1) does not apply to a child who is 
subject to placement in a correctional facility operated 
pursuant to Section 3-15-2 of the Unified Code of Corrections, 
unless the child is a youth in care who was placed in the care 
of the Department before being subject to placement in a 
correctional facility and a court of competent jurisdiction 
has ordered placement of the child in a secure care facility.
    (n) The Department may place children under 18 years of 
age in licensed child care facilities when in the opinion of 
the Department, appropriate services aimed at family 
preservation have been unsuccessful and cannot ensure the 
child's health and safety or are unavailable and such 
placement would be for their best interest. Payment for board, 
clothing, care, training and supervision of any child placed 
in a licensed child care facility may be made by the 
Department, by the parents or guardians of the estates of 
those children, or by both the Department and the parents or 
guardians, except that no payments shall be made by the 
Department for any child placed in a licensed child care 
facility for board, clothing, care, training, and supervision 
of such a child that exceed the average per capita cost of 
maintaining and of caring for a child in institutions for 
dependent or neglected children operated by the Department. 
However, such restriction on payments does not apply in cases 
where children require specialized care and treatment for 
problems of severe emotional disturbance, physical disability, 
social adjustment, or any combination thereof and suitable 
facilities for the placement of such children are not 
available at payment rates within the limitations set forth in 
this Section. All reimbursements for services delivered shall 
be absolutely inalienable by assignment, sale, attachment, or 
garnishment or otherwise.
    (n-1) The Department shall provide or authorize child 
welfare services, aimed at assisting minors to achieve 
sustainable self-sufficiency as independent adults, for any 
minor eligible for the reinstatement of wardship pursuant to 
subsection (2) of Section 2-33 of the Juvenile Court Act of 
1987, whether or not such reinstatement is sought or allowed, 
provided that the minor consents to such services and has not 
yet attained the age of 21. The Department shall have 
responsibility for the development and delivery of services 
under this Section. An eligible youth may access services 
under this Section through the Department of Children and 
Family Services or by referral from the Department of Human 
Services. Youth participating in services under this Section 
shall cooperate with the assigned case manager in developing 
an agreement identifying the services to be provided and how 
the youth will increase skills to achieve self-sufficiency. A 
homeless shelter is not considered appropriate housing for any 
youth receiving child welfare services under this Section. The 
Department shall continue child welfare services under this 
Section to any eligible minor until the minor becomes 21 years 
of age, no longer consents to participate, or achieves 
self-sufficiency as identified in the minor's service plan. 
The Department of Children and Family Services shall create 
clear, readable notice of the rights of former foster youth to 
child welfare services under this Section and how such 
services may be obtained. The Department of Children and 
Family Services and the Department of Human Services shall 
disseminate this information statewide. The Department shall 
adopt regulations describing services intended to assist 
minors in achieving sustainable self-sufficiency as 
independent adults. 
    (o) The Department shall establish an administrative 
review and appeal process for children and families who 
request or receive child welfare services from the Department. 
Youth in care who are placed by private child welfare 
agencies, and caregivers with whom those youth are placed, 
shall be afforded the same procedural and appeal rights as 
children and families in the case of placement by the 
Department, including the right to an initial review of a 
private agency decision by that agency. The Department shall 
ensure that any private child welfare agency, which accepts 
youth in care for placement, affords those rights to children 
and caregivers with whom those children are placed. The 
Department shall accept for administrative review and an 
appeal hearing a complaint made by (i) a child or caregiver 
with whom the child is placed concerning a decision following 
an initial review by a private child welfare agency or (ii) a 
prospective adoptive parent who alleges a violation of 
subsection (j-5) of this Section. An appeal of a decision 
concerning a change in the placement of a child shall be 
conducted in an expedited manner. A court determination that a 
current placement is necessary and appropriate under Section 
2-28 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 does not constitute a 
judicial determination on the merits of an administrative 
appeal, filed by a former caregiver, involving a change of 
placement decision. No later than July 1, 2025, the Department 
shall adopt rules to develop a reconsideration process to 
review: a denial of certification of a relative, a denial of 
placement with a relative, and a denial of visitation with an 
identified relative. Rules shall include standards and 
criteria for reconsideration that incorporate the best 
interests of the child under subsection (4.05) of Section 1-3 
of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, address situations where 
multiple relatives seek certification, and provide that all 
rules regarding placement changes shall be followed. The rules 
shall outline the essential elements of each form used in the 
implementation and enforcement of the provisions of this 
amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly. 
    (p) (Blank).
    (q) The Department may receive and use, in their entirety, 
for the benefit of children any gift, donation, or bequest of 
money or other property which is received on behalf of such 
children, or any financial benefits to which such children are 
or may become entitled while under the jurisdiction or care of 
the Department, except that the benefits described in Section 
5.46 must be used and conserved consistent with the provisions 
under Section 5.46.
    The Department shall set up and administer no-cost, 
interest-bearing accounts in appropriate financial 
institutions for children for whom the Department is legally 
responsible and who have been determined eligible for 
Veterans' Benefits, Social Security benefits, assistance 
allotments from the armed forces, court ordered payments, 
parental voluntary payments, Supplemental Security Income, 
Railroad Retirement payments, Black Lung benefits, or other 
miscellaneous payments. Interest earned by each account shall 
be credited to the account, unless disbursed in accordance 
with this subsection.
    In disbursing funds from children's accounts, the 
Department shall:
        (1) Establish standards in accordance with State and 
    federal laws for disbursing money from children's 
    accounts. In all circumstances, the Department's 
    Guardianship Administrator or the Guardianship 
    Administrator's designee must approve disbursements from 
    children's accounts. The Department shall be responsible 
    for keeping complete records of all disbursements for each 
    account for any purpose.
        (2) Calculate on a monthly basis the amounts paid from 
    State funds for the child's board and care, medical care 
    not covered under Medicaid, and social services; and 
    utilize funds from the child's account, as covered by 
    regulation, to reimburse those costs. Monthly, 
    disbursements from all children's accounts, up to 1/12 of 
    $13,000,000, shall be deposited by the Department into the 
    General Revenue Fund and the balance over 1/12 of 
    $13,000,000 into the DCFS Children's Services Fund.
        (3) Maintain any balance remaining after reimbursing 
    for the child's costs of care, as specified in item (2). 
    The balance shall accumulate in accordance with relevant 
    State and federal laws and shall be disbursed to the child 
    or the child's guardian or to the issuing agency.
    (r) The Department shall promulgate regulations 
encouraging all adoption agencies to voluntarily forward to 
the Department or its agent names and addresses of all persons 
who have applied for and have been approved for adoption of a 
hard-to-place child or child with a disability and the names 
of such children who have not been placed for adoption. A list 
of such names and addresses shall be maintained by the 
Department or its agent, and coded lists which maintain the 
confidentiality of the person seeking to adopt the child and 
of the child shall be made available, without charge, to every 
adoption agency in the State to assist the agencies in placing 
such children for adoption. The Department may delegate to an 
agent its duty to maintain and make available such lists. The 
Department shall ensure that such agent maintains the 
confidentiality of the person seeking to adopt the child and 
of the child.
    (s) The Department of Children and Family Services may 
establish and implement a program to reimburse caregivers 
licensed, certified, or otherwise approved by the Department 
of Children and Family Services for damages sustained by the 
caregivers as a result of the malicious or negligent acts of 
children placed by the Department, as well as providing third 
party coverage for such caregivers with regard to actions of 
children placed by the Department to other individuals. Such 
coverage will be secondary to the caregiver's liability 
insurance policy, if applicable. The program shall be funded 
through appropriations from the General Revenue Fund, 
specifically designated for such purposes.
    (t) The Department shall perform home studies and 
investigations and shall exercise supervision over visitation 
as ordered by a court pursuant to the Illinois Marriage and 
Dissolution of Marriage Act or the Adoption Act only if:
        (1) an order entered by an Illinois court specifically 
    directs the Department to perform such services; and
        (2) the court has ordered one or both of the parties to 
    the proceeding to reimburse the Department for its 
    reasonable costs for providing such services in accordance 
    with Department rules, or has determined that neither 
    party is financially able to pay.
    The Department shall provide written notification to the 
court of the specific arrangements for supervised visitation 
and projected monthly costs within 60 days of the court order. 
The Department shall send to the court information related to 
the costs incurred except in cases where the court has 
determined the parties are financially unable to pay. The 
court may order additional periodic reports as appropriate.
    (u) In addition to other information that must be 
provided, whenever the Department places a child with a 
prospective adoptive parent or parents, in a licensed foster 
home, group home, or child care institution, in a relative 
home, or in a certified relative caregiver home, the 
Department shall provide to the caregiver, appropriate 
facility staff, or prospective adoptive parent or parents:
        (1) available detailed information concerning the 
    child's educational and health history, copies of 
    immunization records (including insurance and medical card 
    information), a history of the child's previous 
    placements, if any, and reasons for placement changes 
    excluding any information that identifies or reveals the 
    location of any previous caregiver or adoptive parents;
        (2) a copy of the child's portion of the client 
    service plan, including any visitation arrangement, and 
    all amendments or revisions to it as related to the child; 
    and
        (3) information containing details of the child's 
    individualized educational plan when the child is 
    receiving special education services.
    The caregiver, appropriate facility staff, or prospective 
adoptive parent or parents, shall be informed of any known 
social or behavioral information (including, but not limited 
to, criminal background, fire setting, perpetuation of sexual 
abuse, destructive behavior, and substance abuse) necessary to 
care for and safeguard the children to be placed or currently 
in the home or setting. The Department may prepare a written 
summary of the information required by this paragraph, which 
may be provided to the caregiver, appropriate facility staff, 
or prospective adoptive parent in advance of a placement. The 
caregiver, appropriate facility staff, or prospective adoptive 
parent may review the supporting documents in the child's file 
in the presence of casework staff. In the case of an emergency 
placement, casework staff shall at least provide known 
information verbally, if necessary, and must subsequently 
provide the information in writing as required by this 
subsection. 
    The information described in this subsection shall be 
provided in writing. In the case of emergency placements when 
time does not allow prior review, preparation, and collection 
of written information, the Department shall provide such 
information as it becomes available. Within 10 business days 
after placement, the Department shall obtain from the 
caregiver, appropriate facility staff, or prospective adoptive 
parent or parents a signed verification of receipt of the 
information provided. Within 10 business days after placement, 
the Department shall provide to the child's guardian ad litem 
a copy of the information provided to the caregiver, 
appropriate facility staff, or prospective adoptive parent or 
parents. The information provided to the caregiver, 
appropriate facility staff, or prospective adoptive parent or 
parents shall be reviewed and approved regarding accuracy at 
the supervisory level. 
    (u-5) Beginning July 1, 2025, certified relative caregiver 
homes under Section 3.4 of the Child Care Act of 1969 shall be 
eligible to receive foster care maintenance payments from the 
Department in an amount no less than payments made to licensed 
foster family homes. Beginning July 1, 2025, relative homes 
providing care to a child placed by the Department that are not 
a certified relative caregiver home under Section 3.4 of the 
Child Care Act of 1969 or a licensed foster family home shall 
be eligible to receive payments from the Department in an 
amount no less 90% of the payments made to licensed foster 
family homes and certified relative caregiver homes.
    (u-6) To assist relative and certified relative 
caregivers, no later than July 1, 2025, the Department shall 
adopt rules to implement a relative support program, as 
follows: 
        (1) For relative and certified relative caregivers, 
    the Department is authorized to reimburse or prepay 
    reasonable expenditures to remedy home conditions 
    necessary to fulfill the home safety-related requirements 
    of relative caregiver homes. 
        (2) The Department may provide short-term emergency 
    funds to relative and certified relative caregiver homes 
    experiencing extreme hardships due to the difficulty and 
    stress associated with adding youth in care as new 
    household members. 
        (3) Consistent with federal law, the Department shall 
    include in any State Plan made in accordance with the 
    Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980, Titles 
    IV-E and XIX of the Social Security Act, and any other 
    applicable federal laws the provision of kinship navigator 
    program services. The Department shall apply for and 
    administer all relevant federal aid in accordance with 
    law. Federal funds acquired for the kinship navigator 
    program shall be used for the development, implementation, 
    and operation of kinship navigator program services. The 
    kinship navigator program services may provide 
    information, referral services, support, and assistance to 
    relative and certified relative caregivers of youth in 
    care to address their unique needs and challenges. Until 
    the Department is approved to receive federal funds for 
    these purposes, the Department shall publicly post on the 
    Department's website semi-annual updates regarding the 
    Department's progress in pursuing federal funding. 
    Whenever the Department publicly posts these updates on 
    its website, the Department shall notify the General 
    Assembly through the General Assembly's designee. 
    (u-7) To support finding permanency for children through 
subsidized guardianship and adoption and to prevent disruption 
in guardianship and adoptive placements, the Department shall 
establish and maintain accessible subsidized guardianship and 
adoption support services for all children under 18 years of 
age placed in guardianship or adoption who, immediately 
preceding the guardianship or adoption, were in the custody or 
guardianship of the Department under Article II of the 
Juvenile Court Act of 1987.
    The Department shall establish and maintain a toll-free 
number to respond to requests from the public about its 
subsidized guardianship and adoption support services under 
this subsection and shall staff the toll-free number so that 
calls are answered on a timely basis, but in no event more than 
one business day after the receipt of a request. These 
requests from the public may be made anonymously. To meet this 
obligation, the Department may utilize the same toll-free 
number the Department operates to respond to post-adoption 
requests under subsection (b-5) of Section 18.9 of the 
Adoption Act. The Department shall publicize information about 
the Department's subsidized guardianship support services and 
toll-free number as follows:
        (1) it shall post information on the Department's 
    website;
        (2) it shall provide the information to every licensed 
    child welfare agency and any entity providing subsidized 
    guardianship support services in Illinois courts;
        (3) it shall reference such information in the 
    materials the Department provides to caregivers pursuing 
    subsidized guardianship to inform them of their rights and 
    responsibilities under the Child Care Act of 1969 and this 
    Act;
        (4) it shall provide the information, including the 
    Department's Post Adoption and Guardianship Services 
    booklet, to eligible caregivers as part of its 
    guardianship training and at the time they are presented 
    with the Permanency Commitment form;
        (5) it shall include, in each annual notification 
    letter mailed to subsidized guardians, a short, 2-sided 
    flier or news bulletin in plain language that describes 
    access to post-guardianship services, how to access 
    services under the Family Support Program, formerly known 
    as the Individual Care Grant Program, the webpage address 
    to the Post Adoption and Guardianship Services booklet, 
    information on how to request that a copy of the booklet be 
    mailed; and
        (6) it shall ensure that kinship navigator programs of 
    this State, when established, have this information to 
    include in materials the programs provide to caregivers.
    No later than July 1, 2026, the Department shall provide a 
mechanism for the public to make information requests by 
electronic means. 
    The Department shall review and update annually all 
information relating to its subsidized guardianship support 
services, including its Post Adoption and Guardianship 
Services booklet, to include updated information on Family 
Support Program services eligibility and subsidized 
guardianship support services that are available through the 
medical assistance program established under Article V of the 
Illinois Public Aid Code or any other State program for mental 
health services. The Department and the Department of 
Healthcare and Family Services shall coordinate their efforts 
in the development of these resources.
    Every licensed child welfare agency and any entity 
providing kinship navigator programs funded by the Department 
shall provide the Department's website address and link to the 
Department's subsidized guardianship support services 
information set forth in subsection (d), including the 
Department's toll-free number, to every relative who is or 
will be providing guardianship placement for a child placed by 
the Department.
    (v) The Department shall access criminal history record 
information as defined in the Illinois Uniform Conviction 
Information Act and information maintained in the adjudicatory 
and dispositional record system as defined in Section 2605-355 
of the Illinois State Police Law if the Department determines 
the information is necessary to perform its duties under the 
Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, the Child Care Act 
of 1969, and the Children and Family Services Act. The 
Department shall provide for interactive computerized 
communication and processing equipment that permits direct 
on-line communication with the Illinois State Police's central 
criminal history data repository. The Department shall comply 
with all certification requirements and provide certified 
operators who have been trained by personnel from the Illinois 
State Police. In addition, one Office of the Inspector General 
investigator shall have training in the use of the criminal 
history information access system and have access to the 
terminal. The Department of Children and Family Services and 
its employees shall abide by rules and regulations established 
by the Illinois State Police relating to the access and 
dissemination of this information.
    (v-1) Prior to final approval for placement of a child 
with a foster or adoptive parent, the Department shall conduct 
a criminal records background check of the prospective foster 
or adoptive parent, including fingerprint-based checks of 
national crime information databases. Final approval for 
placement shall not be granted if the record check reveals a 
felony conviction for child abuse or neglect, for spousal 
abuse, for a crime against children, or for a crime involving 
violence, including human trafficking, sex trafficking, rape, 
sexual assault, or homicide, but not including other physical 
assault or battery, or if there is a felony conviction for 
physical assault, battery, or a drug-related offense committed 
within the past 5 years.
    (v-2) Prior to final approval for placement of a child 
with a foster or adoptive parent, the Department shall check 
its child abuse and neglect registry for information 
concerning prospective foster and adoptive parents, and any 
adult living in the home. If any prospective foster or 
adoptive parent or other adult living in the home has resided 
in another state in the preceding 5 years, the Department 
shall request a check of that other state's child abuse and 
neglect registry. 
    (v-3) Prior to the final approval of final placement of a 
related child in a certified relative caregiver home as 
defined in Section 2.37 of the Child Care Act of 1969, the 
Department shall ensure that the background screening meets 
the standards required under subsection (c) of Section 3.4 of 
the Child Care Act of 1969. 
    (v-4) Prior to final approval for placement of a child 
with a relative, as defined in Section 4d of this Act, who is 
not a licensed foster parent, has declined to seek approval to 
be a certified relative caregiver, or was denied approval as a 
certified relative caregiver, the Department shall: 
        (i) check the child abuse and neglect registry for 
    information concerning the prospective relative caregiver 
    and any other adult living in the home. If any prospective 
    relative caregiver or other adult living in the home has 
    resided in another state in the preceding 5 years, the 
    Department shall request a check of that other state's 
    child abuse and neglect registry; and 
        (ii) conduct a criminal records background check of 
    the prospective relative caregiver and all other adults 
    living in the home, including fingerprint-based checks of 
    national crime information databases. Final approval for 
    placement shall not be granted if the record check reveals 
    a felony conviction for child abuse or neglect, for 
    spousal abuse, for a crime against children, or for a 
    crime involving violence, including human trafficking, sex 
    trafficking, rape, sexual assault, or homicide, but not 
    including other physical assault or battery, or if there 
    is a felony conviction for physical assault, battery, or a 
    drug-related offense committed within the past 5 years; 
    provided however, that the Department is empowered to 
    grant a waiver as the Department may provide by rule, and 
    the Department approves the request for the waiver based 
    on a comprehensive evaluation of the caregiver and 
    household members and the conditions relating to the 
    safety of the placement.
    No later than July 1, 2025, the Department shall adopt 
rules or revise existing rules to effectuate the changes made 
to this subsection (v-4). The rules shall outline the 
essential elements of each form used in the implementation and 
enforcement of the provisions of this amendatory Act of the 
103rd General Assembly. 
    (w) (Blank).
    (x) The Department shall conduct annual credit history 
checks to determine the financial history of children placed 
under its guardianship pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act of 
1987. The Department shall conduct such credit checks starting 
when a youth in care turns 12 years old and each year 
thereafter for the duration of the guardianship as terminated 
pursuant to the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. The Department 
shall determine if financial exploitation of the child's 
personal information has occurred. If financial exploitation 
appears to have taken place or is presently ongoing, the 
Department shall notify the proper law enforcement agency, the 
proper State's Attorney, or the Attorney General.
    (y) Beginning on July 22, 2010 (the effective date of 
Public Act 96-1189), a child with a disability who receives 
residential and educational services from the Department shall 
be eligible to receive transition services in accordance with 
Article 14 of the School Code from the age of 14.5 through age 
21, inclusive, notwithstanding the child's residential 
services arrangement. For purposes of this subsection, "child 
with a disability" means a child with a disability as defined 
by the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education 
Improvement Act of 2004. 
    (z) The Department shall access criminal history record 
information as defined as "background information" in this 
subsection and criminal history record information as defined 
in the Illinois Uniform Conviction Information Act for each 
Department employee or Department applicant. Each Department 
employee or Department applicant shall submit the employee's 
or applicant's fingerprints to the Illinois State Police in 
the form and manner prescribed by the Illinois State Police. 
These fingerprints shall be checked against the fingerprint 
records now and hereafter filed in the Illinois State Police 
and the Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history 
records databases. The Illinois State Police shall charge a 
fee for conducting the criminal history record check, which 
shall be deposited into the State Police Services Fund and 
shall not exceed the actual cost of the record check. The 
Illinois State Police shall furnish, pursuant to positive 
identification, all Illinois conviction information to the 
Department of Children and Family Services. 
    For purposes of this subsection: 
    "Background information" means all of the following: 
        (i) Upon the request of the Department of Children and 
    Family Services, conviction information obtained from the 
    Illinois State Police as a result of a fingerprint-based 
    criminal history records check of the Illinois criminal 
    history records database and the Federal Bureau of 
    Investigation criminal history records database concerning 
    a Department employee or Department applicant. 
        (ii) Information obtained by the Department of 
    Children and Family Services after performing a check of 
    the Illinois State Police's Sex Offender Database, as 
    authorized by Section 120 of the Sex Offender Community 
    Notification Law, concerning a Department employee or 
    Department applicant. 
        (iii) Information obtained by the Department of 
    Children and Family Services after performing a check of 
    the Child Abuse and Neglect Tracking System (CANTS) 
    operated and maintained by the Department. 
    "Department employee" means a full-time or temporary 
employee coded or certified within the State of Illinois 
Personnel System. 
    "Department applicant" means an individual who has 
conditional Department full-time or part-time work, a 
contractor, an individual used to replace or supplement staff, 
an academic intern, a volunteer in Department offices or on 
Department contracts, a work-study student, an individual or 
entity licensed by the Department, or an unlicensed service 
provider who works as a condition of a contract or an agreement 
and whose work may bring the unlicensed service provider into 
contact with Department clients or client records. 
    (aa) The changes made to this Section by this amendatory 
Act of the 104th General Assembly are declarative of existing 
law and are not a new enactment. 
(Source: P.A. 102-538, eff. 8-20-21; 102-558, eff. 8-20-21; 
102-1014, eff. 5-27-22; 103-22, eff. 8-8-23; 103-50, eff. 
1-1-24; 103-546, eff. 8-11-23; 103-605, eff. 7-1-24; 103-1061, 
eff. 7-1-25.)
 
    Section 10. The Child Care Act of 1969 is amended by 
changing Section 3.4 as follows:
 
    (225 ILCS 10/3.4)
    (This Section may contain text from a Public Act with a 
delayed effective date)
    Sec. 3.4. Standards for certified relative caregiver 
homes.
    (a) No later than July 1, 2025, the Department shall adopt 
rules outlining the standards for certified relative caregiver 
homes, which are reasonably in accordance with the national 
consortium recommendations and federal law and rules, and 
consistent with the requirements of this Act. The standards 
for certified relative caregiver homes shall: (i) be different 
from licensing standards used for non-relative foster family 
homes under Section 4; (ii) align with the recommendation of 
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' 
Administration for Children and Families for implementation of 
Section 471(a)(10), 471(a)(11), and 471(a)(20) and Section 474 
of Title IV-E of the Social Security Act; (iii) be no more 
restrictive than, and reasonably in accordance with, national 
consortium recommendations; and (iv) address background 
screening for caregivers and other household residents and 
assessing home safety and caregiver capacity to meet the 
identified child's needs.
    A guiding premise for certified relative caregiver home 
standards is that foster care maintenance payments for every 
relative, starting upon placement, regardless of federal 
reimbursement, are critical to ensure that the basic needs and 
well-being of all children in relative care are being met. If 
an agency places a child in the care of a relative, the 
relative must immediately be provided with adequate support to 
care for that child. The Department shall review foster care 
maintenance payments to ensure that children receive the same 
amount of foster care maintenance payments whether placed in a 
certified relative caregiver home or a licensed foster family 
home. 
    In developing rules, the Department shall solicit and 
incorporate feedback from relative caregivers. No later than 
60 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 
103rd General Assembly, the Department shall begin soliciting 
input from relatives who are currently or have recently been 
caregivers to youth in care to develop the rules and 
procedures to implement the requirements of this Section. The 
Department shall solicit this input in a manner convenient for 
caregivers to participate, including without limitation, 
in-person convenings at after hours and weekend venues, 
locations that provide child care, and modalities that are 
accessible and welcoming to new and experienced relative 
caregivers from all regions of the State. The rules shall 
outline the essential elements of each form used in the 
implementation and enforcement of the provisions of this 
amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly. 
    (b) In order to assess whether standards are met for a 
certified relative caregiver home under this Section, the 
Department or a licensed child welfare agency shall: 
        (1) complete the home safety and needs assessment and 
    identify and provide any necessary concrete goods or 
    safety modifications to assist the prospective certified 
    relative caregiver in meeting the needs of the specific 
    child or children being placed by the Department, in a 
    manner consistent with Department rule;
        (2) assess the ability of the prospective certified 
    relative caregiver to care for the physical, emotional, 
    medical, and educational needs of the specific child or 
    children being placed by the Department using the protocol 
    and form provided through national consortium 
    recommendations; and
        (3) using the standard background check form 
    established by rule, complete a background check for each 
    person seeking certified relative caregiver approval and 
    any other adults living in the home as required under this 
    Section. 
    (c) The Department or a licensed child welfare agency 
shall conduct the following background screening investigation 
for every prospective certified relative caregiver and adult 
resident living in the home:
        (1) a name-based State, local, or tribal criminal 
    background check, and as soon as reasonably possible, 
    initiate a fingerprint-based background check;
        (2) a review of this State's Central Registry and 
    registries of any state in which an adult household member 
    has resided in the last 5 years, if applicable to 
    determine if the person has been determined to be a 
    perpetrator in an indicated report of child abuse or 
    neglect; and
        (3) a review of the sex offender registry. 
    No home may be a certified relative caregiver home if any 
prospective caregivers or adult residents in the home refuse 
to authorize a background screening investigation as required 
by this Section. Only information and standards that bear a 
reasonable and rational relation to the caregiving capacity of 
the certified relative caregiver and adult member of the 
household and overall safety provided by residents of that 
home shall be used by the Department or licensed child welfare 
agency. 
    In approving a certified relative caregiver home in 
accordance with this Section, if an adult has a criminal 
record, the Department or licensed child welfare agency shall 
thoroughly investigate and evaluate the criminal history of 
the adult and, in so doing, include an assessment of the 
adult's character and, in the case of the prospective 
certified relative caregiver, the impact that the criminal 
history has on the prospective certified relative caregiver's 
ability to parent the child; the investigation should consider 
the type of crime, the number of crimes, the nature of the 
offense, the age of the person at the time of the crime, the 
length of time that has elapsed since the last conviction, the 
relationship of the crime to the ability to care for children, 
the role that adult will have with the child, and any evidence 
of rehabilitation. In accordance with federal law, a home 
shall not be approved if the record of the prospective 
certified relative caregiver's background screening reveals: 
(i) a felony conviction for child abuse or neglect, for 
spousal abuse, for a crime against children crimes against a 
child, including child pornography, or for a crime involving 
violence, including human trafficking, sex trafficking, of 
rape, sexual assault, or homicide, but not including other 
physical assault or battery; or (ii) a felony conviction in 
the last 5 years for physical assault, battery, or a 
drug-related offense. 
    If the Department is contemplating denying approval of a 
certified relative caregiver home, the Department shall 
provide a written notice in the prospective certified relative 
caregiver's primary language to each prospective certified 
relative caregiver before the Department takes final action to 
deny approval of the home. This written notice shall include 
the specific reason or reasons the Department is considering 
denial, list actions prospective certified relative caregivers 
can take, if any, to remedy such conditions and the timeframes 
in which such actions would need to be completed, explain 
reasonable supports that the Department can provide to assist 
the prospective certified relative caregivers in taking 
remedial actions and how the prospective certified relative 
caregivers can request such assistance, and provide the 
recourse prospective certified relative caregivers can seek to 
resolve disputes about the Department's findings. The 
Department shall provide prospective certified relative 
caregivers reasonable opportunity pursuant to rulemaking to 
cure any remediable deficiencies that the Department 
identified before taking final action to deny approval of a 
certified relative caregiver home. 
    If conditions have not been remedied after a reasonable 
opportunity and assistance to cure identified deficiencies has 
been provided, the Department shall provide a final written 
notice explaining the reasons for denying the certified 
relative caregiver home approval and the reconsideration 
process to review the decision to deny certification. The 
Department shall not prohibit a prospective certified relative 
caregiver from being reconsidered for approval if the 
prospective certified relative caregivers are able to 
demonstrate a change in circumstances that improves deficient 
conditions. 
    Documentation that a certified relative caregiver home 
meets the required standards may be filed on behalf of such 
homes by a licensed child welfare agency, by a State agency 
authorized to place children in foster care, or by 
out-of-state agencies approved by the Department to place 
children in this State. For documentation on behalf of a home 
in which specific children are placed by and remain under 
supervision of the applicant agency, such agency shall 
document that the certified relative caregiver home, 
responsible for the care of related specific children therein, 
was found to be in reasonable compliance with standards 
prescribed by the Department for certified relative caregiver 
homes under this Section. Certification is applicable to one 
or more related children and documentation for certification 
shall indicate the specific child or children who would be 
eligible for placement in this certified relative caregiver 
home. 
    Information concerning criminal convictions of prospective 
certified relative caregivers and adult residents of a 
prospective certified relative caregiver home investigated 
under this Section, including the source of the information, 
State conviction information provided by the Illinois State 
Police, and any conclusions or recommendations derived from 
the information, shall be offered to the prospective certified 
relative caregivers and adult residents of a prospective 
certified relative caregiver home, and provided, upon request, 
to such persons prior to final action by the Department in the 
certified relative caregiver home approval process. 
    Any information concerning criminal charges or the 
disposition of such criminal charges obtained by the 
Department shall be confidential and may not be transmitted 
outside the Department, except as required or permitted by 
State or federal law, and may not be transmitted to anyone 
within the Department except as needed for the purpose of 
evaluating standards for a certified relative caregiver home 
or for evaluating the placement of a specific child in the 
home. Information concerning a prospective certified relative 
caregiver or an adult resident of a prospective certified 
relative caregiver home obtained by the Department for the 
purposes of this Section shall be confidential and exempt from 
public inspection and copying as provided under Section 7 of 
the Freedom of Information Act, and such information shall not 
be transmitted outside the Department, except as required or 
authorized by State or federal law, including applicable 
provisions in the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act, 
and shall not be transmitted to anyone within the Department 
except as provided in the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting 
Act, and shall not be transmitted to anyone within the 
Department except as needed for the purposes of evaluating 
homes. Any employee of the Department, the Illinois State 
Police, or a licensed child welfare agency receiving 
confidential information under this Section who gives or 
causes to be given any confidential information concerning any 
criminal convictions or child abuse or neglect reports 
involving a prospective certified relative caregiver or an 
adult resident of a prospective certified relative caregiver 
home shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor unless release of 
such information is authorized by this Section or Section 11.1 
of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. 
    The Department shall permit, but shall not require, a 
prospective certified relative caregiver who does not yet have 
eligible children placed by the Department in the relative's 
home to commence the process to become a certified relative 
caregiver home for a particular identified child under this 
Section before a child is placed by the Department if the 
prospective certified relative caregiver prefers to begin this 
process in advance of the identified child being placed. No 
later than July 1, 2025, the Department shall adopt rules 
delineating the process for re-assessing a certified relative 
caregiver home if the identified child is not placed in that 
home within 6 months of the home becoming certified.
    (d) The Department shall ensure that prospective certified 
relative caregivers are provided with assistance in completing 
the steps required for approval as a certified relative 
caregiver home, including, but not limited to, the following 
types of assistance:
        (1) completing forms together with the relative or for 
    the relative, if possible;
        (2) obtaining court records or dispositions related to 
    background checks;
        (3) accessing translation services;
        (4) using mobile fingerprinting devices in the home, 
    and if mobile devices are unavailable, providing 
    assistance scheduling appointments that are accessible and 
    available at times that fit the household members' 
    schedules, providing transportation and child care to 
    allow the household members to complete fingerprinting 
    appointments, and contracting with community-based 
    fingerprinting locations that offer evening and weekend 
    appointments;
        (5) reimbursement or advance payment for the 
    prospective certified relative caregiver to help with 
    reasonable home maintenance to resolve critical safety 
    issues in accordance with Department rulemaking; and
        (6) purchasing required safety or comfort items such 
    as a car seat or mattress.
    (e) Orientation provided to certified relative caregivers 
shall include information regarding:
        (1) caregivers' right to be heard in juvenile court 
    proceedings;
        (2) the availability of the advocacy hotline and 
    Office of the Inspector General that caregivers may use to 
    report incidents of misconduct or violation of rules by 
    Department employees, service providers, or contractors;
        (3) the Department's expectations for caregiving 
    obligations including, but not limited to, specific 
    requirements of court orders, critical incident 
    notifications and timeframes, supervision for the child's 
    age and needs, out-of-state travel, and consent 
    procedures;
        (4) assistance available to the certified relative 
    caregivers, including child care, respite care, 
    transportation assistance, case management, training and 
    support groups, kinship navigator services, financial 
    assistance, and after hours and weekend 24 hours, 7 days a 
    week emergency supports, and how to access such 
    assistance;
        (5) reasonable and prudent parenting standards; and
        (6) permanency options.
    Orientation shall be provided in a setting and modality 
convenient for the residents of the certified relative 
caregiver home, which shall include the option for one-on-one 
sessions at the residence, after business hours, and in the 
primary language of the caregivers. Training opportunities 
shall be offered to the residents of the certified relative 
caregiver home, but shall not be a requirement that delays the 
certified relative caregiver home approval process from being 
completed.
    The Department or licensed child welfare agency may 
provide support groups and development opportunities for 
certified relative caregivers, and take other steps to support 
permanency, such as offering voluntary training, or concurrent 
assessments of multiple prospective certified relative 
caregivers to determine which may be best suited to provide 
long-term permanency for a particular child. However, these 
support groups and development opportunities shall not be 
requirements for prospective certified relative caregiver 
homes or delay immediate placement and support to a relative 
who satisfies the standards set forth in this Section. 
    (f) All child welfare agencies serving relative and 
certified relative caregiver homes shall be required by the 
Department to have complaint policies and procedures that 
shall be provided in writing to prospective and current 
certified relative caregivers and residents of prospective and 
current certified relative caregiver homes, at the earliest 
time possible. The complaint procedure shall allow residents 
of prospective and current certified relative caregiver homes 
to submit complaints 7 days a week and complaints shall be 
reviewed by the Department within 30 days of receipt. These 
complaint procedures must be filed with the Department within 
6 months after the effective date of this amendatory of the 
103rd General Assembly.
    No later than July 1, 2025, the Department shall revise 
any rules and procedures pertaining to eligibility of 
certified relative caregivers to qualify for State and federal 
subsidies and services under the guardianship and adoption 
assistance program and remove any requirements that exceed the 
federal requirements for participation in these programs or 
supports to ensure that certified relative caregiver homes are 
deemed eligible for permanency options, such as adoption or 
subsidized guardianship, if the child is unable to safely 
return to the child's parents. The rules shall outline the 
essential elements of each form used in the implementation and 
enforcement of the provisions of this amendatory Act of the 
103rd General Assembly.
    The Department shall submit any necessary State plan 
amendments necessary to comply with this Section and to ensure 
Title IV-E reimbursement eligibility under Section 
671(a)(20)(A-B) of the Social Security Act can be achieved 
expediently. The Department shall differentiate expenditures 
related to certified relative caregivers from licensed care 
placements to provide clarity in expenditures of State and 
federal monies for certified relative caregiver supports.
(Source: P.A. 103-1061, eff. 7-1-25.)
 
    Section 95. No acceleration or delay. Where this Act makes 
changes in a statute that is represented in this Act by text 
that is not yet or no longer in effect (for example, a Section 
represented by multiple versions), the use of that text does 
not accelerate or delay the taking effect of (i) the changes 
made by this Act or (ii) provisions derived from any other 
Public Act.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1, 
2025.