Rep. Milton Patterson

Amends the Criminal Code of 1961 relating to the offense of sexual exploitation of a child. Provides that a second or subsequent violation of a substantially similar law of another state is a Class 4 felony. Provides that if the victim of sexual exploitation of a child is under 13 years of age at the time of the commission of the offense, the offense is a Class 4 felony. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Insurance Code and the Health Maintenance Organization Act. Requires coverage of mammograms for women under 40 years of age with a family history of breast cancer or other risk factors at the age and intervals deemed medically necessary by the woman's health care provider. Effective immediately.

Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Requires insurers to cover surveillance tests for ovarian cancer for female insureds who are at risk for ovarian cancer. Provides a definition for "at risk for ovarian cancer" and "surveillance tests for ovarian cancer". Effective January 1, 2006.

Creates the Rental Housing Support Program Act. Provides for grants from the Illinois Housing Development Authority to local administering agencies to provide subsidies for landlords in order to allow them to charge rent that is affordable for low-income tenants. Also provides for grants from the Illinois Housing Development Authority to developers of affordable rental housing. Sets forth criteria for the awarding of grants. Requires the Authority to establish an operating reserve for the program. Amends the State Finance Act to create the Rental Housing Support Program Fund, a special fund in the State treasury. Amends the Counties Code. Provides that the county recorder shall collect a $10 surcharge for the recordation of any real estate-related document, one dollar of which shall be deposited into the county's general revenue fund and $9 of which shall be deposited into the Rental Housing Support Program Fund. Sets forth the conditions upon which and purposes for which expenditures may be made from the Accounts. Effective July 1, 2005.

Amends the Department of Public Health Powers and Duties Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Provides that the Department of Public Health, subject to appropriation or other available funding, shall conduct a program to promote awareness, testing, diagnosis and treatment of chronic kidney disease. Establishes a Chronic Kidney Disease Awareness, Testing, Diagnosis and Treatment Program in the Department of Public Health. Provides that the Program shall apply to certain persons and entities. Provides that administrative costs of the Department shall not exceed 10% of the funds allocated to the Program. Provides that indirect costs of the entities funded by the Program shall not exceed 12%. Provides that the Department or any entity funded by the Program shall collect personal and medical information necessary to administer the Program from any individual applying for services under the Program.

Amends the Criminal Code of 1961. Provides that a person commits a hate crime if by reason of the actual or perceived race, color, creed, religion, ancestry, gender, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, or national origin of another individual or group of individuals, regardless of the existence of any other motivating factor or factors, he or she commits any form of harassment through electronic communications as defined in the Harassing and Obscene Communications Act (rather than just threatening injury to the person or to the property of the person to whom the electronic communication is directed). Effective immediately.

Creates the Helping Heroes Child Care Program Act and amends the State Finance Act. Establishes the Helping Heroes Child Care Program for the purpose of providing vouchers for child care to Illinois families who have one or more parents deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan by the armed services. Provides for the program to be administered by the Department of Human Services, but only if federal funding is made available for that purpose. Provides that any such federal moneys received by the State shall be deposited into the Fund for Child Care for Deployed Military Personnel, which is created as a special fund in the State treasury. Provides for income eligibility criteria to be established by the Department by rule. Provides that a family that received child care assistance before the parent's deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan is eligible only for a voucher for the cost of any additional hours of child care that are necessary by reason of that deployment. Provides that a family is not eligible for a child care voucher if the family receives child care services from the United States military. Repeals the Act on July 1, 2010. Effective immediately.

Amends the State Finance Act and the Children's Product Safety Act. Provides that a "children's product" is one designed or intended for children under age 12 (instead of 6); changes and adds other definitions. Provides that a children's product is deemed to be unsafe "only" if it meets certain specified criteria. Adds requirements concerning the Department of Public Health's list of unsafe children's products. Makes changes concerning safety standards for baby cribs. Imposes duties on manufacturers, importers, wholesalers, and distributors in connection with recalls of children's products. Provides for civil penalties for violations of the Children's Product Safety Act, and removes a provision making a violation a Class C misdemeanor. Provides that nothing in the Act relieves a commercial dealer from compliance with stricter requirements that may be imposed by an agency of the federal government. Adds enforcement powers of the Attorney General. Creates the Attorney General Court Ordered and Voluntary Compliance Payment Projects Fund; provides for the deposit of civil penalties into the fund and for the use of moneys in the fund by the Attorney General. Effective immediately.

Creates the Commission to Study the Transatlantic Slave Trade and its Past and Present Effects on African-Americans.

Urges Congress to take all steps necessary, by means of substantive legislation and by means of appropriation, to provide adequate Impact Aid and Impact Aid supplement funding to the Department of Education and the Department of Defense to ensure that the children of military families attending local public schools receive the same level of educational opportunity available to children in neighboring, non-federally impacted school districts.