20 ILCS 505/35.5: Inspector General.

(a) The Governor shall appoint, and the Senate shall confirm, an Inspector General who shall have the authority to conduct investigations into allegations of or incidents of possible misconduct, misfeasance, malfeasance, or violations of rules, procedures, or laws by any employee, foster parent, service provider, or contractor of the Department of Children and Family Services, except for allegations of violations of the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act which shall be referred to the Office of the Governor's Executive Inspector General for investigation.

The Inspector General shall make recommendations to the Director of Children and Family Services concerning sanctions or disciplinary actions against Department employees or providers of service under contract to the Department. The Inspector General shall also make recommendations to the Director concerning measures to be taken to remediate harm caused to a youth who experienced harm due to conduct violating a requirement in Section 7.29 or 7.30, including, but not limited to, the provision of remedial services or other remedies available under law or equity. The Inspector General shall investigate reports involving conduct alleged to violate a minor's rights under Section 7.29 or 7.30 and make findings as to whether the violation can be substantiated.

The Director of Children and Family Services shall provide the Inspector General with an implementation report on the status of any corrective actions taken on recommendations under review and shall continue sending updated reports until the corrective action is completed. The Director shall provide a written response to the Inspector General indicating the status of (i) any sanctions or disciplinary actions against employees or providers of service involving any investigation subject to review and (ii) any service provision or remedial measures recommended by the Inspector General to address harm to a youth impacted by a violation of Section 7.29 or 7.30. In any case, information included in the reports to the Inspector General and Department responses shall be subject to the public disclosure requirements of the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act; however, any public disclosure pertaining to violations of Sections 7.29 or 7.30 shall be limited to information that cannot reasonably be linked to an identified or identifiable child in combination with other information, data sets, or sources. Any investigation conducted by the Inspector General shall be independent and separate from the investigation mandated by the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. The Inspector General shall be appointed for a term of 4 years. The Inspector General shall function independently within the Department of Children and Family Services with respect to the operations of the Office of Inspector General, including the performance of investigations and issuance of findings and recommendations, and shall report to the Director of Children and Family Services and the Governor and perform other duties the Director may designate. The Inspector General shall adopt rules as necessary to carry out the functions, purposes, and duties of the office of Inspector General in the Department of Children and Family Services, in accordance with the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act and any other applicable law.

(b) The Inspector General shall have access to all information and personnel necessary to perform the duties of the office. To minimize duplication of efforts, and to assure consistency and conformance with the requirements and procedures established in the B.H. v. Suter consent decree and to share resources when appropriate, the Inspector General shall coordinate the Inspector General's activities with the Bureau of Quality Assurance within the Department.

(c) The Inspector General shall be the primary liaison between the Department and the Illinois State Police with regard to investigations conducted under the Inspector General's auspices. If the Inspector General determines that a possible criminal act has been committed, or that special expertise is required in the investigation, the Inspector General shall immediately notify the Illinois State Police. All investigations conducted by the Inspector General shall be conducted in a manner designed to ensure the preservation of evidence for possible use in a criminal prosecution.

(d) The Inspector General may recommend to the Department of Children and Family Services, the Department of Public Health, or any other appropriate agency, sanctions to be imposed against service providers under the jurisdiction of or under contract with the Department for the protection of children in the custody or under the guardianship of the Department who received services from those providers. The Inspector General may seek the assistance of the Attorney General or any of the several State's Attorneys in imposing sanctions.

(e) The Inspector General shall at all times be granted access to any foster home, facility, or program operated for or licensed or funded by the Department.

(f) Nothing in this Section shall limit investigations by the Department of Children and Family Services that may otherwise be required by law or that may be necessary in that Department's capacity as the central administrative authority for child welfare.

(g) The Inspector General shall have the power to subpoena witnesses and compel the production of books and papers pertinent to an investigation authorized by this Act. The power to subpoena or to compel the production of books and papers, however, shall not extend to the person or documents of a labor organization or its representatives insofar as the person or documents of a labor organization relate to the function of representing an employee subject to investigation under this Act. Any person who fails to appear in response to a subpoena or to answer any question or produce any books or papers pertinent to an investigation under this Act, except as otherwise provided in this Section, or who knowingly gives false testimony in relation to an investigation under this Act is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

(h)(1) The Inspector General shall provide to the General Assembly and the Governor, no later than January 1 of each year, a summary of reports and investigations made under this Section for the prior fiscal year. The summaries shall detail the imposition of sanctions and the final disposition of those recommendations. The summaries shall not contain any confidential or identifying information concerning the subjects of the reports and investigations. The summaries also shall include detailed recommended administrative actions and matters for consideration by the General Assembly.

(2) As it pertains to the annual summary of reports and investigations required under paragraph (1), for reports received on or after January 1, 2028, the Inspector General shall:

(A) disclose the number of investigations commenced involving allegations that conduct occurred that violated a minor's rights under Section 7.29 or 7.30;

(B) disclose the number of those investigations that resulted in the Inspector General substantiating a finding that such conduct occurred; and

(C) for those investigations resulting in a substantiated finding by the Inspector General, the summaries provided shall detail: (i) the type of alleged violation; (ii) the type of entity alleged to have committed the conduct violation; (iii) whether any remedial services or interventions were provided to the youth to remedy harm related to the violation, if any; (iv) the final disposition of investigative recommendations the Inspector General provided to the Director and any reason provided to the Inspector General for declining to follow a recommendation, if any; and (v) any recommendations for systemic improvement to prevent future violations, including any enforcement mechanisms needed to ensure accountability for violations.

(i) The changes made to this Section by this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly apply on and after January 1, 2028.