SUICIDE-FIRST RESPONDERS

Creates the First Responders Suicide Prevention Act. Provides that emergency services personnel and public safety personnel may refer any person to an employee assistance program or peer support counselor within the emergency services provider or law enforcement agency, or if those services are not available within the agency, to another employee assistance program or peer support counseling program that is available. Provides that any communication made by a participant or counselor in a peer support counseling session conducted by a law enforcement agency or by an emergency services provider for public safety personnel or emergency services personnel and any oral or written information conveyed in the peer support counseling session is confidential and may not be disclosed by any person participating in the peer support counseling session. Provides that any oral communication or written information made or conveyed by a participant or counselor in a peer support session, including an employee assistance program, is not admissible in any judicial proceeding, arbitration proceeding, or other adjudicatory proceeding. Amends the Department of State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, Illinois Police Training Act, and the Illinois Fire Protection Training Act to require training programs for police and fire fighters to recognize signs of work-related cumulative stress and other related issues that may lead to suicide and offer appropriate solutions for intervention. Makes other changes. Effective immediately. House Floor Amendment No. 4 Deletes reference to: 20 ILCS 2605/2605-99 new 50 ILCS 705/10.17-2 new 50 ILCS 740/12.2 new Adds reference to: 20 ILCS 801/1-31 new 20 ILCS 2605/2605-610 new 50 ILCS 705/7 from Ch. 85, par. 507 50 ILCS 725/7.2 50 ILCS 740/8 from Ch. 85, par. 538 55 ILCS 5/3-6012.2 new 55 ILCS 5/3-6050 new 65 ILCS 5/11-1-14 new 65 ILCS 5/11-6-11 new 730 ILCS 110/19 new Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Creates the First Responders Suicide Prevention Act. Provides that an emergency services provider, law enforcement agency, union, or other entity providing counseling support, referrals, information, or other social services to public safety personnel or emergency services personnel that creates an employee assistance program is subject to the Act. Provides for applicability and exemptions in the Act. Amends the Counties Code and Municipal Code. Requires employment of at least one mental health specialist for every 1,000 persons employed for sheriff offices, police departments, and firefighter stations. Amends the Department of Natural Resources Act, Department of State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, the Counties Code, and the Probation and Probation Officers Act. Provides that the employer of a Conservation Police officer, State Police officer, law enforcement officer, or probation officer shall not make possession of a Firearm Owner's Identification Card a condition of continued employment if the officer's Firearm Owner's Identification Card is revoked or seized because the officer has been a patient of a mental health facility and the officer has not been determined to pose a clear and present danger to himself, herself, or others as determined by a physician, clinical psychologist, or qualified examiner. Provides that a collective bargaining agreement already in effect on this issue on the effective date of the amendatory Act cannot be modified, but on or after the effective date of the amendatory Act, the employer cannot require a Firearm Owner's Identification Card as a condition of continued employment in a collective bargaining agreement. Amends the Uniform Peace Officers' Disciplinary Act. Provides that the employer shall document if and why an officer has been determined to pose a clear and present danger. Makes other changes. Effective immediately. Senate Floor Amendment No. 2 Deletes reference to: 20 ILCS 801/1-31 new 20 ILCS 2605/2605-610 new 50 ILCS 740/12.2 new 55 ILCS 705/10-17-2 new Adds reference to: 50 ILCS 705/7 from Ch. 85, par. 507 Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Creates the First Responders Suicide Prevention Act. Provides that an emergency services provider, law enforcement agency, or collective bargaining organization shall ensure that peer support advisors receive appropriate training in counseling to conduct peer support counseling sessions. Provides that emergency services personnel and public safety personnel may refer any person to a peer support advisor within the emergency services provider or law enforcement agency, or if those services are not available within the agency, to another peer support counseling program that is available and approved by the emergency services provider or law enforcement agency. Creates the First Responders Suicide Task Force to pursue recommendations to help reduce the risk and rates of suicide among first responders, along with developing a mechanism to help reduce the risk and rates of suicide among first responders. Provides that the Department of State Police shall provide administrative support for the Task Force, and if the subject matter is either sensitive or classified, the Task Force may hold the hearings in private. Provides that the Task Force shall issue a final report to the General Assembly on or before December 31, 2020 and, one year after filing of its report, is dissolved. Amends the Department of State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, Illinois Police Training Act, and the Illinois Fire Protection Training Act to require training programs for police and firefighters to recognize signs of work-related cumulative stress and other related issues that may lead to suicide and offer appropriate solutions for intervention. In the amendatory changes to the Department of State Police Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, provides that the Department of State Police shall not make possession of a Firearm Owner's Identification Card a condition of continued employment if the State Police officer's Firearm Owner's Identification Card is revoked or seized because the State Police officer has been a patient of a mental health facility and the State Police officer has not been determined to pose a clear and present danger to himself, herself, or others as determined by a physician, clinical psychologist, or qualified examiner. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.