Rep. Maura Hirschauer

Amends the Illinois Act on the Aging. In a provision requiring the Department on Aging to require an annual audit from all personal assistant and home care aide vendors contracting with the Department, provides that the annual audit shall assure that each audited vendor's procedures are in compliance with the Department's financial reporting guidelines requiring an 80% or higher employee wage and benefits cost split and an administrative cost split of no more than 20% (rather than an administrative and employee wage and benefits cost split as defined in administrative rules). Provides that subject to federal approval, on and after January 1, 2025, rates for homemaker services shall be increased to $32.75 to sustain a minimum wage of $20 per hour for direct service workers. Provides that rates in subsequent State fiscal years shall be no lower than $32.75 upon federal approval. Requires providers of in-home services to be required to certify to the Department that they remain in compliance with the mandated wage increase for direct service workers. Provides that fringe benefits, including, but not limited to, paid time off and payment for training, health insurance, travel, or transportation, shall not be reduced in relation to the rate increases. Provides that subject to federal approval, on and after January 1, 2025, the Department shall pay a rate add-on under the Community Care Program to those in-home service provider agencies that attest and document their direct service workers attend paid, quarterly, in-person training sessions to fulfill the in-service training requirements. Provides that the add-on shall be 1% of the homemaker services rate. Requires the Department to adopt rules.

Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that subject to federal approval, within 12 months after the effective date of the amendatory Act, nutrition care services and medical nutrition therapy provided by a registered dietitian licensed under the Dietitian Nutritionist Practice Act who is acting within the scope of his or her license shall be covered under the medical assistance program. Provides that the covered services may be aimed at prevention, delay, management, treatment, or rehabilitation of a disease or condition and include nutrition assessment, nutrition intervention, nutrition counseling, and nutrition monitoring and evaluation. Requires the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to apply for any federal waiver or Title XIX State Plan amendment, if required, to implement the amendatory Act. Permits the Department to adopt any rules, including standards and criteria, necessary to implement the amendatory Act.

Amends the State Treasurer Act. Provides that the State Treasurer may establish and administer a non-profit investment pool to supplement and enhance investment opportunities otherwise available to not-for-profit corporations in the State. Provides that the Treasurer may receive funds paid into the pool for the purpose of holding and investing those funds. Provides for surety bonds payable to not-for-profit corporations who participate in the pool. Makes changes to provisions concerning the direct deposit of State payments. Amends the Accountability for the Investment of Public Funds Act. Provides that the Treasurer shall adopt rules for the efficient administration of the pool. Provides that each State agency shall make available on the Internet, and update at least monthly, no later than the end of each month (rather than by the 15th of the month), sufficient information concerning the investment of any public funds held by that State agency to identify specified information. Effective immediately.

Amends the Invest in Kids Act. Provides that a qualified school that accepts scholarship students must comply with the provisions of federal and State laws and rules applicable to public schools pertaining to special education and instruction of English learners; the provisions of the School Code concerning charter schools; the provisions of the Illinois Humans Rights Act concerning public accommodations and educational institutions; and the provisions of the School Code concerning pregnancy and breastfeeding-related accommodations. Effective immediately.

Directs the Professional Review Panel and the Illinois State Board of Education to conduct the analysis and financial modeling required to evaluate the implications of implementing the recommended $22 minimum hourly rate for employees providing educational support services. The analyses should include the district impact of incremental increases beginning with $20 in school year 2025-2026, $21 in school year 2026-2027, and $22 in school year 2027-2028. The Professional Review Panel and the Illinois State Board of Education should include their findings in a written report to the General Assembly and Governor by December 31, 2024.

Urges the President of the United States to authorize the DHS Secretary to establish a program to evaluate parole and work authorization on a case-by-case basis for long-term immigrant workers who are undocumented and residing in Illinois to address this State's critical need for labor and to secure the family life for tens of thousands of mixed status families in Illinois. Urges the Governor to work with federal partners to urge, by all possible means, the establishment of such a parole and work authorization program for the long-term immigrant population who are undocumented and residing in Illinois.

Urges the State Board of Education to conduct a study on the number of schools, school districts, and other public school associations across the State that currently utilize Native American names, logos, and mascots. Urges the State Board of Education, through conversations with local schools and school districts, to collect findings on what the cost would be for these individual schools and districts to remove and change Native American names, mascots, and logos. Urges the State Board of Education to include its findings in a written report to the General Assembly no later than December 31, 2024. Urges schools, school districts, and other public school associations to consider and plan for changing these harmful Native American names, mascots, and logos. Urges the State Board of Education to use all tools available to work towards the immediate end of the practice of using racial slurs as team names in Illinois schools.

Creates the Safe Gun Storage Act. Provides that a firearm owner shall not store or keep any firearm in any premises where the firearm owner knows or reasonably should know a minor, an at-risk person, or a prohibited person is likely to gain access to the firearm unless the firearm is secured in a locked container, properly engaged so as to render the firearm inaccessible or unusable to any person other than the owner or other lawfully authorized user. Provides that if the firearm is carried by or under the control of the owner or other lawfully authorized user, then the firearm is deemed lawfully stored or kept. Establishes criminal and civil penalties. Provides that a violation of the Act is prima facie evidence of negligence per se in any civil proceeding if a minor, an at-risk person, or a prohibited person obtains a firearm and causes personal injury to the death of oneself or another or uses the firearm in the commission of a crime. Provides that an action to collect a civil penalty under the Act may be brought by the Attorney General or the State's Attorney of the county in which the violation occurred. Provides that any money received from the collection of a civil penalty under the Act shall be deposited in the Mental Health Fund. Defines "minor", "at-risk person", and a "prohibited person". Amends the Criminal Code of 2012 to make conforming changes. Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Creates an income tax credit for the eligible purchase of a firearm safety device. Effective immediately.

Maddy summaryThis bill designates September 21, 2024, as "It's Our Fox River Day" to honor the Fox River's historical and ecological significance. It directly affects residents and communities within the Fox River Valley in Wisconsin and Illinois by encouraging public and private events to celebrate the river's recovery from pollution. The resolution acknowledges the river's past role in supporting Native Americans and early settlers before detailing efforts to clean its waters and restore wildlife populations. By formally declaring this date, the legislation aims to foster community appreciation for the river's value as a safe resource for recreation and public water supply.

Urges the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) to continue taking appropriate action to facilitate equitable access to adolescent and adult vaccinations, including establishing appropriate programs and initiatives to raise public awareness on the importance of adolescent and adult vaccinations. Urges the IDPH to continue working with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), in-state healthcare providers, and patients to implement an effective and actionable state immunization strategy that includes adult immunizations. Urges the IDPH to continue increasing community resilience to communicable and other emerging disease threats. Urges the IDPH to continue determining goals on which to center the immunization plan. Urges the IDPH to continue exploring federal funding opportunities and partnerships to support vaccine awareness and access programs aligned with the goals established in the state immunization strategy.