SB0866eng 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SB0866 Engrossed LRB100 08696 MJP 18831 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 Department of Veterans Affairs Act is amended by changing Section 2 as follows:

(20 ILCS 2805/2) (from Ch. 126 1/2, par. 67)

Sec. 2. Powers and duties. The Department shall have the following powers and duties:

To perform such acts at the request of any veteran, or his or her spouse, surviving spouse or dependents as shall be reasonably necessary or reasonably incident to obtaining or endeavoring to obtain for the requester any advantage, benefit or emolument accruing or due to such person under any law of the United States, the State of Illinois or any other state or governmental agency by reason of the service of such veteran, and in pursuance thereof shall:

(1) Contact veterans, their survivors and dependents and advise them of the benefits of state and federal laws and assist them in obtaining such benefits;

(2) Establish field offices and direct the activities of the personnel assigned to such offices;

(3) Create and maintain a volunteer field force; the volunteer field force may include representatives from the following without limitation: educational institutions, labor organizations, veterans organizations, employers, churches, and farm organizations; the volunteer field force may not process federal veterans assistance claims;

(4) Conduct informational and training services;

(5) Conduct educational programs through newspapers, periodicals, social media, television, and radio for the specific purpose of disseminating information affecting veterans and their dependents;

(6) Coordinate the services and activities of all state departments having services and resources affecting veterans and their dependents;

(7) Encourage and assist in the coordination of agencies within counties giving service to veterans and their dependents;

(8) Cooperate with veterans organizations and other governmental agencies;

(9) Make, alter, amend and promulgate reasonable rules and procedures for the administration of this Act;

(10) Make and publish annual reports to the Governor regarding the administration and general operation of the Department;

(11) (Blank); and

(12) (Blank); and .

(13) Provide informational resources and education to veterans returning from deployment regarding service animals for individuals with disabilities, including, but not limited to, resources and education on service animals that guide people who are blind, pull a wheelchair, alert a person with hearing loss, protect a person having a seizure, assist a person with a traumatic brain injury, and calm a person with post-traumatic stress disorder during an anxiety attack or psychiatric episode.

The Department may accept and hold on behalf of the State, if for the public interest, a grant, gift, devise or bequest of money or property to the Department made for the general benefit of Illinois veterans, including the conduct of informational and training services by the Department and other authorized purposes of the Department. The Department shall cause each grant, gift, devise or bequest to be kept as a distinct fund and shall invest such funds in the manner provided by the Public Funds Investment Act, as now or hereafter amended, and shall make such reports as may be required by the Comptroller concerning what funds are so held and the manner in which such funds are invested. The Department may make grants from these funds for the general benefit of Illinois veterans. Grants from these funds, except for the funds established under Sections 2.01a and 2.03, shall be subject to appropriation.

The Department has the power to make grants, from funds appropriated from the Illinois Military Family Relief Fund, for benefits authorized under the Survivors Compensation Act.

(Source: P.A. 99-314, eff. 8-7-15; 99-576, eff. 7-15-16.)