Bill Text: IL SB1775 | 2015-2016 | 99th General Assembly | Chaptered

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Bill Title: Creates the Safeguard Our Children Act. Provides that any child or person in the care of the Department of Children and Family Services who is placed in a residential facility under contract with the Department shall be reported as missing to the local law enforcement agency within whose jurisdiction the facility is located, if: (1) there is no contact between an employee of the facility and the child or person within a period of 12 hours; and (2) the child or person is absent from the facility without prior approval. Requires the operator of the residential facility to inform the child's or person's caseworker that the child or person has been reported as missing to the appropriate local law enforcement agency; and to also report the child or person as missing to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and to the sheriff of the county in which the facility is located. Requires the operator of the residential facility to record a Plan of Care for any child or person who resides at the facility and who plans to leave the facility temporarily for more than 24 hours. Requires the Plan of Care to contain certain information. Defines terms. Amends the Intergovernmental Missing Child Recovery Act of 1984. Requires the Department of State Police to develop a standard missing persons alert for the LEADS network for use when a child or person in the care and legal custody of the Department of Children and Family Services is reported as missing to a local law enforcement agency. Provides that the standard missing persons alert shall contain certain information.

Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 13-1)

Status: (Passed) 2015-08-11 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 99-0351 [SB1775 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2015-SB1775-Chaptered.html

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Public Act 099-0351
SB1775 Enrolled LRB099 08363 KTG 31219 b
AN ACT concerning children.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
Safeguard Our Children Act.
Section 5. Definitions. In this Act:
"Caseworker" means an employee of the Department of
Children and Family Services who is assigned case management
duties concerning a child or person under the care and legal
custody of the Department.
"Child or person" means any child or person, regardless of
age, who is under the care and legal custody of the Department
of Children and Family Services.
"Department" means the Department of Children and Family
Services.
"Plan of Care" means a written or electronic document that
details the information required under Section 15 of this Act.
Section 10. Duty to report. Any child or person in the care
of the Department who is placed in a residential facility under
contract with the Department pursuant to the Children and
Family Services Act shall be reported as missing to the local
law enforcement agency within whose jurisdiction the facility

is located, if:
(1) there is no contact between an employee of the
residential facility and the child or person within a
period of 12 hours; and
(2) the child or person is absent from the residential
facility without prior approval.
The operator of the residential facility shall inform the
child's or person's caseworker that the child or person has
been reported as missing to the appropriate local law
enforcement agency. The operator of the residential facility
shall also report the child or person as missing to the
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and shall
make a subsequent telephone notification to the sheriff of the
county in which the residential facility is located.
The operator of the residential facility making the missing
persons report to the local law enforcement agency within whose
jurisdiction the facility is located shall report that the
missing person is a ward of the Department and shall inform the
law enforcement agency taking the report to include the
following statement within the missing persons report, in the
field of the Law Enforcement Agencies Data System (LEADS) known
as "Miscellaneous":
"This individual is a ward of the Illinois Department
of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and, regardless of
age, shall be released only to the custody of DCFS. Contact
the 24-hour hotline: [phone]."

Section 15. Plan of Care. The operator of a residential
facility under contract with the Department shall record a Plan
of Care for any child or person who resides at the facility and
who plans to leave the facility temporarily for more than 24
hours. A child's or person's Plan of Care must contain the
following information:
(1) The location of the place that the child or person
intends to visit after leaving the residential facility.
(2) The contact information of the individual the child
or person intends to stay with after leaving the
residential facility.
(3) The duration of the visit.
(4) The expected time or date the child or person
intends to return to the residential facility.
Section 20. The Intergovernmental Missing Child Recovery
Act of 1984 is amended by adding Section 3.6 as follows:
(325 ILCS 40/3.6 new)
Sec. 3.6. Department of Children and Family Services;
missing persons. The Department shall develop and conduct a
training advisory for LEADS reporting of missing persons when
the missing individual, regardless of age, is under the care
and legal custody of the Department of Children and Family
Services.