{"data":{"id":"us-il/20-ilcs-505-7.29","jurisdiction":"us-il","citation":"20 ILCS 505/7.29","heading":"Department, service provider, and caregiver conduct to prevent harmful treatment of youth.","body":"(a) Legislative findings and intent. The General Assembly finds and declares:\n(1) When the State of Illinois, through the Department of Children and Family Services, removes a youth from the care of a parent or guardian and assumes legal custody of that youth, the State undertakes a duty and affirmative obligation to safeguard the youth's safety, well-being, dignity, developmental interests, and fundamental rights, and that ultimate duty and obligation cannot be delegated to other states.\n(2) The State has a compelling interest in ensuring the safety, well-being, and development of all youth in the Department's care. The State's duty to protect youth in its care is continuous and is not extinguished by placement with foster parents, relative caregivers, or service providers. Out-of-state placement of a youth in the Department's care does not diminish the State's ultimate responsibility for ensuring lawful, safe, supportive care, and equitable treatment.\n(3) Youth under the Department's care are entitled to supportive care, services, and treatment free from discrimination, arbitrary decision-making, and unequal protection. The vulnerability inherent in State custody requires heightened attention to fairness, neutrality, and the protection of these youth's rights.\n(4) It is expressly recognized that Department, service provider, and caregiver conduct, as well as placement conditions, directly affect youth permanency, well-being, and fair and equitable treatment.\n(5) It is the purpose of this Section to clarify and reinforce the obligations of the State and those acting under its authority to ensure that youth receive nondiscriminatory and supportive care consistent with principles of safety, dignity, stability, and equal treatment, and to provide clear mechanisms for accountability where those obligations are violated.\n(b) Definitions. As used in this Section:\n\"Placement provider\" means a type of service provider that provides the youth's residence and daily care, including, but not limited to, a residential treatment center, group home, or child care institution under the Child Care Act of 1969 or a similar setting licensed in accordance with the laws of another state in which that youth is placed. \"Placement provider\" does not mean a \"caregiver\" as defined in this Act.\n\"Protected characteristic\" means any characteristic included in the definition of unlawful discrimination as defined in Section 1-103 of the Illinois Human Rights Act, including, but not limited to, actual or perceived race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, ancestry, disability, pregnancy, reproductive health decisions, or marital status.\n\"Service provider\" means a person, governmental unit, agency, organization, or body providing services or care for youth on behalf of the Department under a contract, grant agreement, or any other agreement or any other person, governmental unit, agency, organization, or body subcontracted or otherwise engaged in the furtherance of those services. A service provider does not include an attorney representing a child.\n\"Supportive care\" means Department, service provider, and caregiver practices that are supportive of and responsive to a youth's lived experience, needs, and protected characteristics and do not subject the youth to rejection or hostility based on, or coercive efforts to change, a protected characteristic.\n\"Youth\" has the meaning ascribed to that term in subsection (b) of Section 4e.\n(c) Applicability. This Section applies to the Department, service providers, and caregivers for youth.\n(d) Department, service provider, and caregiver conduct requirements to protect youth rights. The Department, service providers, and caregivers shall:\n(1) cooperate and support services, care planning, and placements that are consistent with the youth's health, safety, well-being, and best interests;\n(2) adhere to privacy-protective documentation practices regarding the youth, consistent with Department policy regarding documentation of sensitive identity information; and\n(3) provide supportive care consistent with the youth's case plan and best interests.\n(e) Prohibited conduct.\n(1) The Department, service providers, and caregivers are prohibited from engaging in conduct that:\n(A) demeans, harasses, rejects, intentionally disregards, discriminates against, or retaliates against a youth based on a youth's protected characteristic or characteristics;\n(B) intentionally interferes with services, supports, or treatment identified in the youth's case plan;\n(C) discloses or compels disclosure of a youth's sensitive identity information, without the youth's expressed consent, consistent with Department policy regarding documentation of sensitive identity information, and contrary to the terms of Section 5g.\n(2) The Department and service providers shall not:\n(A) exclude a youth from participation in, deny a youth the benefits of, or subject a youth to discrimination under any program or activity based on that youth's protected characteristic or characteristics;\n(B) utilize criteria or methods of administration that have the effect of subjecting youth to discrimination because of the youth's protected characteristic or characteristics; or\n(C) discourage, interfere with, or retaliate against a person who seeks to report a suspected or known statutory violation of this Section to an enforcement entity.\n(f) Scope and limitations.\n(1) Unless the youth affirmatively expresses support for a placement and that placement otherwise meets the placement requirements of Section 7 and the applicable licensing or approval standards, the Department shall not determine it is in a youth's best interest to be placed or remain placed with a placement provider or caregiver that: (i) will not expressly commit to comply with the conduct obligations of this Section; or (ii) violates the conduct requirements of subsection (d) or commits conduct that is prohibited under subsection (e). The Department shall provide youth in these circumstances the opportunity to express or withhold their support for the placement. If the youth does not affirmatively express support, as required for placement under this paragraph, the Department shall decline to place or maintain placement for the youth based on the placement provider's or caregiver's inability to meet the required conduct obligations under this Section. The Department shall not disclose a youth's lack of affirmative expressed support to the prospective or current placement provider or caregiver.\n(2) If a youth is placed or remains placed with a placement provider or caregiver in such circumstances as permitted under paragraph (1), the Department shall document the youth's affirmative expression of support for placement with this placement provider or caregiver using age-appropriate and developmentally appropriate methods, including, but not limited to: interviews, written statements, structured surveys, clinical evaluations or consultations, drawings, or guided play. After affirmatively expressing such support for this placement, the youth has the right to withdraw this support at any time and the Department has an ongoing obligation to monitor whether the youth maintains or withdraws such support. The Department shall inform the youth of that right and provide the youth simple options for the youth to communicate withdrawal of support to the Department.\n(g) Clinical judgment and safety exception. Actions taken in accordance with the good-faith exercise of clinical judgment by a licensed professional, or actions necessary to address immediate risk of serious harm to youth or others, shall not constitute a violation of this Section, provided that such actions are not based on bias against a protected characteristic, are narrowly tailored to address the identified risk, and are documented in the youth-specific record, consistent with Department policy regarding documentation of sensitive identity information.\n(h) Compliance as a requirement for caregivers and service providers. Compliance with this Section is a condition of serving as a caregiver or service provider for a particular youth as required by that youth's best interest. This Section shall not be construed to establish independent licensure criteria under the Child Care Act of 1969.\n(i) Enforcement.\n(1) When a caregiver or service provider fails to comply with the requirements of this Section to care for a specific youth, the Department may take appropriate action authorized by law, including, but not limited to, placement changes and enhanced monitoring. No enforcement action under this paragraph shall be construed as a decision regarding licensure under the Child Care Act of 1969.\n(2) Any known, alleged, or suspected violation of a statutory requirement of this Section shall immediately be reported to the Department's Office of the Inspector General, the court presiding over the youth's case in accordance with the Juvenile Court Act of 1987, and the youth's attorney and guardian ad litem. A known, alleged, or suspected violation of a statutory requirement of this Section constitutes a significant event and requires a significant event report by the Department as defined in Section 35.1 of this Act and paragraph (14.2) of Section 1-3 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.\n(3) Any youth aggrieved by conduct that violates subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (2) of subsection (e) or paragraph (1) of subsection (f) may seek review under subsection (1.3) of Section 2-28 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987.\n(4) This subsection is in addition to and does not limit any enforcement authority of the Department or diminish any other remedies available to the youth under the law or equity.\n(j) Mandatory disclosure of rights and enforcement options. Upon a youth's entry into the Department's care, and every 6 months thereafter, the Department shall provide youth with written notice:\n(1) in plain language in the youth's primary language;\n(2) in an age and developmentally appropriate format;\n(3) in a manner accessible to individuals with disabilities;\n(4) describing the youth's rights under this Section and the types of violations and conduct that may be reported; and\n(5) the contact information for and procedures by which the youth can report alleged violations described in accordance with paragraph (4) to the Department's Inspector General, the Department's licensing division, and the court presiding over the youth's case in accordance with the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. The caseworker shall document in the youth's case file that the required disclosure of rights and enforcement options was provided to the youth in a format that is age appropriate, developmentally appropriate, and tailored to the youth's individual needs.\n(k)(1) This Section shall be construed broadly to promote the safety, well-being, best interest, and equitable treatment of youth, consistent with the State's compelling interest in protecting youth.\n(2) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to:\n(A) compel an individual's beliefs or religious practices;\n(B) require the Department, service providers, or caregivers to provide medical treatment beyond that authorized by law, court order, parental or guardian consent, or Department policy; or\n(C) prohibit reasonable and developmentally appropriate limits necessary to protect the safety of the youth or others.\n(3) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to limit or diminish: (i) the rights of a youth to be free from discrimination or to receive care consistent with the protections guaranteed under State and federal law; (ii) the Department's obligation to comply with subsection (o) of Section 5 and rules and procedures developed in accordance with that subsection (o); (iii) the Department's obligation to act in the youth's best interests; or (iv) a youth's right to seek any other enforcement or legal remedies for violations available under law or equity.\n(l) No later than July 1, 2027, the Department shall propose rules for adoption to implement the statutory protections under this Section. Rules shall address standards and criteria for conduct required or prohibited under subsections (d) and (e), including, but not limited to, the application of the terms used in this Section. No later than January 1, 2028, the Department shall adopt such rules.\n(m) If any provision of this Section or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity of that provision or application does not affect other provisions or applications of this Section that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.\n(n) The provisions of subsections (a), (b), (c), and (l) apply on and after July 1, 2027 and the provisions of subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (h), (i), (j), (k), and (m) apply on and after January 1, 2028.","path":["CHAPTER 20 EXECUTIVE BRANCH","Children and Family Services Act."],"source_url":"https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ILCS/details?ActID=242\u0026ChapterID=5\u0026ChapAct=FullText\u0026Print=True","current_through":"at least Public Act 104-790","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-15T04:46:13Z","sha256":"e3f740dc5dfd7bc24ac85b64a81eeb1519089c01d52f451783650ff2477533ec","source_id":"us-il","stale":false,"prev":"us-il/20-ilcs-505-7.8","next":"us-il/20-ilcs-505-7.30"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}