Urges the Auditor General to perform a program audit of the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation with regard to the Department's disciplining of physicians who violate provisions of the Medical Practice Act of 1967.
Mourns the death of Al Scott.
Amends the Children and Family Services Act. Repeals Sections concerning charges to a parent or guardian resulting from the care and training of a child by the Department of Children and Family Services. Amends the Juvenile Court Act. Deletes language concerning a parent's or guardian's liability to pay for the support of a child who has been removed from that parent's or guardian's care. Amends the Unified Code of Corrections. Repeals a Section concerning reimbursement for the expenses of committed persons. Amends the Code of Civil Procedure to make corresponding changes.
Amends the School Code. Provides that if a student must be transferred from one attendance center to another within a school district because the attendance center the student is currently attending exceeds its attendance capacity, then the attendance center the student is to be transferred to must not be an attendance center that is on the academic watch list. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation without reimbursement. Effective July 1, 2005.
Amends the Juvenile Court Act of 1987. Provides that in cases relating to allegations of parental or custodial unfitness based upon neglect, dependency, or abuse of the minor, the Department of Children and Family Services, or the agency responsible, must submit a report to the court documenting the services offered and provided to preserve or reunify the family, and substantiating any determination of the success or failure of such services, and the court shall determine if such evidence is clear and convincing that such services will fail.
Amends the School Code. Provides that a student may not be expelled, except (i) for any criminal offense for which a sentence to the Department of Corrections may be imposed or (ii) when the student is determined to have brought a weapon to school, any school-sponsored activity, or an activity or event that bears a reasonable relationship to school.
Amends the Telecommunications Article of the Public Utilities Act. Requires that network interfaces for a residential or business customer be located inside a structure owned, rented, or leased by the customer. Prohibits the location of a network interface on the outside of a structure. Requires reimbursement of any expenses the customer has incurred in making a network interface device compatible with a security system. Effective immediately.
Creates the Nursing and Hospital Worker Protection Act. Provides that a nurse may not be disciplined, discriminated against, dismissed, discharged or retaliated against, or made subject to any other adverse employment decision for refusing to work more than 12 consecutive hours a day or 40 hours per week. Provides that an employer that is a health system and commits more than 500 violations of wage and hour regulations and laws for registered nurses within a 3-year period shall be fined up to 5% of gross hospital patient revenues. Provides that monies from the fines shall be used to fund care for the indigent and shall be allocated to the Department of Public Health for nursing scholarships awarded pursuant to the Nursing Education Scholarship Law in addition to any other funds set aside and appropriated for that purpose. Provides that a hospital employee must receive a 30-minute meal period and 2 15-minute rest periods for every 5 hours of work. Effective immediately.
Amends the Children and Family Services Act. Prohibits the approval of a disbursement for certain expenses that are payable from other public and private sources. Removes provisions requiring the Department (i) to calculate amounts paid from State funds for certain purposes; (ii) to utilize funds from a child's account to reimburse those costs; and (iii) to maintain the remaining balance after reimbursement. Removes a provision requiring the Department to deposit disbursements from all children's accounts into the DCFS Children's Services Fund.
Amends the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act. Provides that if a DCFS employee involved in making an investigation of a report of suspected child abuse or neglect intentionally makes a false finding or intentionally misrepresents a fact in connection with the investigation, and that false finding or misrepresentation is material in determining whether the report is "indicated" or "unfounded", the person is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
