103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB1448
 
Introduced 2/7/2023, by Sen. Javier L. Cervantes
 
SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:






20 ILCS 2405/3 from Ch. 23, par. 3434

 Amends the Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities Act. In a provision concerning personal care services under the Home Services Program, includes a program recipient's guardian, kin, or siblings to the list of persons the Department of Human Services shall allow to serve as a program recipient's provider of personal care or similar services. In a provision concerning wages to personal assistants, provides that wages
and other benefits for personal assistants shall not count
against benefits that guardians receive as outlined in the Guardians for Adults with Disabilities Article of the Probate Act of 1975.



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A BILL FOR
 


SB1448LRB103 27478 KTG 53850 b



1 AN ACT concerning State government.


2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,

3represented in the General Assembly:



4 Section 5. The Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities 
5Act is amended by changing Section 3 as follows:



6 (20 ILCS 2405/3) (from Ch. 23, par. 3434)


7 Sec. 3. Powers and duties. The Department shall have the 
8powers and
duties enumerated
herein:

9  (a) To cooperate with the federal government in the 
10 administration
of the provisions of the federal 
11 Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by the Workforce

12 Innovation and Opportunity Act,
and of the federal Social 
13 Security Act to the extent and in the manner
provided in 
14 these Acts.

15  (b) To prescribe and supervise such courses of 
16 vocational training
and provide such other services as may 
17 be necessary for the vocational rehabilitation of persons 
18 with one or more disabilities, including the

19 administrative activities under subsection (e) of this 
20 Section; to cooperate
with State and local school 
21 authorities and other recognized
agencies engaged in 
22 vocational
rehabilitation services; and to cooperate with 
23 the Department of Children
and Family Services, the 
 
 
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1 Illinois State Board of Education, and others regarding 
2 the education of children with one
or more disabilities.

3  (c) (Blank).

4  (d) To report in writing, to the Governor, annually on 
5 or before the
first day of December, and at such other 
6 times and in such manner and
upon such subjects as the 
7 Governor may require. The annual report shall
contain (1) 
8 information on the programs and activities dedicated to 
9 vocational rehabilitation, independent living, and other 
10 community services and supports administered by the 
11 Director; (2) information on the development of vocational 
12 rehabilitation services, independent living services, and 
13 supporting services administered by the Director in the 
14 State; and (3) information detailing the
amounts of money 
15 received from federal, State, and other sources, and of

16 the objects and purposes to which the respective items of 
17 these several
amounts have been devoted.

18  (e) (Blank).

19  (f) To establish a program of services to prevent the 
20 unnecessary
institutionalization of persons in need of 
21 long term care and who meet the criteria for blindness or 
22 disability as defined by the Social Security Act, thereby 
23 enabling them to
remain in their own homes. Such 
24 preventive
services include any or all of the following:

25   (1) personal assistant services;

26   (2) homemaker services;

 
 
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1   (3) home-delivered meals;

2   (4) adult day care services;

3   (5) respite care;

4   (6) home modification or assistive equipment;

5   (7) home health services;

6   (8) electronic home response;

7   (9) brain injury behavioral/cognitive services;

8   (10) brain injury habilitation;

9   (11) brain injury pre-vocational services; or

10   (12) brain injury supported employment.

11  The Department shall establish eligibility
standards 
12 for such services taking into consideration the unique

13 economic and social needs of the population for whom they 
14 are to
be provided. Such eligibility standards may be 
15 based on the recipient's
ability to pay for services; 
16 provided, however, that any portion of a
person's income 
17 that is equal to or less than the "protected income" level

18 shall not be considered by the Department in determining 
19 eligibility. The
"protected income" level shall be 
20 determined by the Department, shall never be
less than the 
21 federal poverty standard, and shall be adjusted each year 
22 to
reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index For All 
23 Urban Consumers as
determined by the United States 
24 Department of Labor. The standards must
provide that a 
25 person may not have more than $10,000 in assets to be 
26 eligible for the services, and the Department may increase 
 
 
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1 or decrease the asset limitation by rule. The Department 
2 may not decrease the asset level below $10,000. Subject to 
3 federal approval, the Department shall allow a recipient's 
4 spouse, guardian, kin, or siblings to serve as his or her 
5 provider of personal care or similar services.

6  The services shall be provided, as established by the

7 Department by rule, to eligible persons
to prevent 
8 unnecessary or premature institutionalization, to
the 
9 extent that the cost of the services, together with the

10 other personal maintenance expenses of the persons, are 
11 reasonably
related to the standards established for care 
12 in a group facility
appropriate to their condition. These 
13 non-institutional
services, pilot projects or experimental 
14 facilities may be provided as part of
or in addition to 
15 those authorized by federal law or those funded and

16 administered by the Illinois Department on Aging. The 
17 Department shall set rates and fees for services in a fair 
18 and equitable manner. Services identical to those offered 
19 by the Department on Aging shall be paid at the same rate. 

20  Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, 
21 personal assistants shall be paid at a rate negotiated

22 between the State and an exclusive representative of 
23 personal
assistants under a collective bargaining 
24 agreement. In no case
shall the Department pay personal 
25 assistants an hourly wage
that is less than the federal 
26 minimum wage. Within 30 days after July 6, 2017 (the 
 
 
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1 effective date of Public Act 100-23), the hourly wage paid 
2 to personal assistants and individual maintenance home 
3 health workers shall be increased by $0.48 per hour. Wages 
4 and other benefits for personal assistants shall not count 
5 against benefits that guardians receive as outlined in 
6 Article XIa of the Probate Act of 1975. 

7  Solely for the purposes of coverage under the Illinois 
8 Public Labor
Relations
Act, personal assistants providing

9 services under
the Department's Home Services Program 
10 shall be considered to be public
employees
and the State 
11 of Illinois shall be considered to be their employer as of 
12 July 16, 2003 (the
effective date of Public Act 93-204), 
13 but not before. Solely for the purposes of coverage under 
14 the Illinois Public Labor Relations Act, home care and 
15 home health workers who function as personal assistants 
16 and individual maintenance home health workers and who 
17 also provide services under the Department's Home Services 
18 Program shall be considered to be public employees, no 
19 matter whether the State provides such services through 
20 direct fee-for-service arrangements, with the assistance 
21 of a managed care organization or other intermediary, or 
22 otherwise, and the State of Illinois shall be considered 
23 to be the employer of those persons as of January 29, 2013 
24 (the effective date of Public Act 97-1158), but not before 
25 except as otherwise provided under this subsection (f). 
26 The State
shall
engage in collective bargaining with an 
 
 
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1 exclusive representative of home care and home health 
2 workers who function as personal assistants and individual 
3 maintenance home health workers working under the Home 
4 Services Program
concerning
their terms and conditions of 
5 employment that are within the State's control.
Nothing in

6 this paragraph shall be understood to limit the right of 
7 the persons receiving
services
defined in this Section to 
8 hire and fire
home care and home health workers who 
9 function as personal assistants
and individual maintenance 
10 home health workers working under the Home Services 
11 Program or to supervise them within the limitations set by 
12 the Home Services Program. The
State
shall not be 
13 considered to be the employer of
home care and home health 
14 workers who function as personal
assistants and individual 
15 maintenance home health workers working under the Home 
16 Services Program for any purposes not specifically 
17 provided in Public Act 93-204 or Public Act 97-1158, 
18 including but not limited to, purposes of vicarious 
19 liability
in tort and
purposes of statutory retirement or 
20 health insurance benefits. Home care and home health 
21 workers who function as personal assistants and individual 
22 maintenance home health workers and who also provide 
23 services under the Department's Home Services Program 
24 shall not be covered by the State Employees Group

25 Insurance Act
of 1971.

26  The Department shall execute, relative to nursing home 
 
 
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1 prescreening, as authorized by Section 4.03 of the 
2 Illinois Act on the Aging,
written inter-agency agreements 
3 with the Department on Aging and
the Department of 
4 Healthcare and Family Services, to effect the intake 
5 procedures
and eligibility criteria for those persons who 
6 may need long term care. On and after July 1, 1996, all 
7 nursing
home prescreenings for individuals 18 through 59 
8 years of age shall be
conducted by the Department, or a 
9 designee of the
Department.

10  The Department is authorized to establish a system of 
11 recipient cost-sharing
for services provided under this 
12 Section. The cost-sharing shall be based upon
the 
13 recipient's ability to pay for services, but in no case 
14 shall the
recipient's share exceed the actual cost of the 
15 services provided. Protected
income shall not be 
16 considered by the Department in its determination of the

17 recipient's ability to pay a share of the cost of 
18 services. The level of
cost-sharing shall be adjusted each 
19 year to reflect changes in the "protected
income" level. 
20 The Department shall deduct from the recipient's share of 
21 the
cost of services any money expended by the recipient 
22 for disability-related
expenses.

23  To the extent permitted under the federal Social 
24 Security Act, the Department, or the Department's 
25 authorized representative, may recover
the amount of 
26 moneys expended for services provided to or in behalf of a 
 
 
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1 person
under this Section by a claim against the person's 
2 estate or against the estate
of the person's surviving 
3 spouse, but no recovery may be had until after the
death of 
4 the surviving spouse, if any, and then only at such time 
5 when there is
no surviving child who is under age 21 or 
6 blind or who has a permanent and total disability. This 
7 paragraph, however, shall not bar recovery, at the death 
8 of the
person, of moneys for services provided to the 
9 person or in behalf of the
person under this Section to 
10 which the person was not entitled; provided that
such 
11 recovery shall not be enforced against any real estate 
12 while
it is occupied as a homestead by the surviving 
13 spouse or other dependent, if no
claims by other creditors 
14 have been filed against the estate, or, if such
claims 
15 have been filed, they remain dormant for failure of 
16 prosecution or
failure of the claimant to compel 
17 administration of the estate for the purpose
of payment. 
18 This paragraph shall not bar recovery from the estate of a 
19 spouse,
under Sections 1915 and 1924 of the Social 
20 Security Act and Section 5-4 of the
Illinois Public Aid 
21 Code, who precedes a person receiving services under this

22 Section in death. All moneys for services
paid to or in 
23 behalf of the person under this Section shall be claimed 
24 for
recovery from the deceased spouse's estate. 
25 "Homestead", as used in this
paragraph, means the dwelling 
26 house and
contiguous real estate occupied by a surviving 
 
 
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1 spouse or relative, as defined
by the rules and 
2 regulations of the Department of Healthcare and Family 
3 Services,
regardless of the value of the property.

4  (g) To establish such subdivisions of the Department

5 as shall be desirable and assign to the various 
6 subdivisions the
responsibilities and duties placed upon 
7 the Department by law.

8  (h) To cooperate and enter into any necessary 
9 agreements with the
Department of Employment Security for 
10 the provision of job placement and
job referral services 
11 to clients of the Department, including job
service 
12 registration of such clients with Illinois Employment 
13 Security
offices and making job listings maintained by the 
14 Department of Employment
Security available to such 
15 clients.

16  (i) To possess all powers reasonable and necessary for

17 the exercise and administration of the powers, duties and

18 responsibilities of the Department which are provided for 
19 by law.

20  (j) (Blank).

21  (k) (Blank).

22  (l) To establish, operate, and maintain a Statewide 
23 Housing Clearinghouse
of information on available 
24 government subsidized housing accessible to
persons with 
25 disabilities and available privately owned housing 
26 accessible to
persons with disabilities. The information 
 
 
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1 shall include, but not be limited to, the
location, rental 
2 requirements, access features and proximity to public

3 transportation of available housing. The Clearinghouse 
4 shall consist
of at least a computerized database for the 
5 storage and retrieval of
information and a separate or 
6 shared toll free telephone number for use by
those seeking 
7 information from the Clearinghouse. Department offices and

8 personnel throughout the State shall also assist in the 
9 operation of the
Statewide Housing Clearinghouse. 
10 Cooperation with local, State, and federal
housing 
11 managers shall be sought and extended in order to 
12 frequently and
promptly update the Clearinghouse's 
13 information.

14  (m) To assure that the names and case records of 
15 persons who received or
are
receiving services from the 
16 Department, including persons receiving vocational

17 rehabilitation, home services, or other services, and 
18 those attending one of
the Department's schools or other 
19 supervised facility shall be confidential and
not be open 
20 to the general public. Those case records and reports or 
21 the
information contained in those records and reports 
22 shall be disclosed by the
Director only to proper law 
23 enforcement officials, individuals authorized by a
court, 
24 the General Assembly or any committee or commission of the 
25 General
Assembly, and other persons and for reasons as the 
26 Director designates by rule.
Disclosure by the Director 
 
 
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1 may be only in accordance with other applicable
law.

2(Source: P.A. 102-264, eff. 8-6-21; 102-826, eff. 5-13-22.)