Sen. Neil Anderson

Amends the Children and Family Services Act. Requires the Department of Children and Family Services to submit, beginning June 1, 2027, annual reports to the General Assembly on the total number of youth in care who were classified by the Department as missing during the previous calendar year and, from that reported number, the total number of missing youth who were later located or recovered. Requires the annual reports to include for each youth who was classified as missing: information on the youth's age and gender, the type of placement the youth was placed in before the youth was classified as missing, the total length of time the youth has been under the Department's custody or guardianship, the date upon which the youth was first classified as missing, the circumstances leading up to the Department classifying the youth as missing, actions the Department has taken to locate or recover the youth, and, if applicable, the date on which the Department located or recovered the youth. Requires the Department to follow all State and federal privacy laws and regulations when collecting, sharing, storing, or reporting the data and information on missing youth in care.

Amends the Decennial Committees on Local Government Efficiency Act. Provides that the term "governmental unit" does not include a fire protection district established under the Fire Protection District Act.

Amends the Administration Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that the Department of Human Services and the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, whichever is applicable, shall not consider veterans' disability benefits as countable income when determining an individual's eligibility for medical assistance, child care assistance, and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. Requires the Departments to apply for any federal waivers or approvals necessary to implement this income exemption.

Amends the Local Records Act. Provides that a unit of local government required to store public records under the Act may satisfy the requirements of the Act by storing the public records in an electronic form.

Amends the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act. Provides that, for purposes of determining the partisanship of any person who is appointed by the Governor to an office that either requires specific partisanship or limits the number of appointees from a single political party that may be appointed, the vote of that person in the 3 general primary elections immediately preceding the effective date of the appointment shall determine his or her partisanship for that person's term of office. Provides that a person who did not vote, or who voted but did not request a partisan ballot, in the 3 general primary elections immediately preceding the effective date of the appointment or who voted but requested partisan ballots for 2 or more different political parties in the 3 general primary elections immediately preceding the effective date of the appointment shall be deemed an independent for purposes of determining partisanship for that person's term of office.

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Creates a child care credit in an amount equal to 25% of the federal tax credit for each qualifying child. Effective immediately.

Creates the Healing Through History Act. Requires the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to provide prospective adoptive families, no less than 30 days prior to adoption finalization, with a complete, unredacted copy of the child's full case record, including, but not limited to: (i) all placement histories and foster home records; (ii) all caseworker notes and observations; (iii) all educational, psychological, and behavioral reports; (iv) all therapy or counseling notes, subject to certain federal requirements; and (v) all medical records in full, including historical records. Provides that former foster youth aged 18 or older are entitled to receive the same information and records at no cost in both physical and digital form. Contains provisions concerning ongoing record access post-adoption or post-emancipation; the development of Department protocols and infrastructure necessary to collect, preserve, and transmit full child records; exemption and confidentiality protections; federal disclosure requirements; and other matters. Effective January 1, 2026.

Maddy summarySB 939 amends the School Code by making a technical correction to the short title of a specific section. It does not change any substantive educational policies or programs. This procedural adjustment solely affects the formal naming of a section within the School Code. No new requirements, funding, or direct impacts on students, schools, or educators are created by this bill.

Amends the Educator Licensure Article of the School Code. Provides that an applicant for a Substitute Teaching License who holds a valid paraprofessional educator endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations and who has been working in the capacity of a paraprofessional in this State for a minimum of 5 school years does not need to hold a bachelor's degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution of higher education or be enrolled in an approved educator preparation program in this State and have earned at least 90 credit hours to be issued a Substitute Teaching License.

Amends the Counties Code. Provides that any recorder may publish property assessment lists in a newspaper of general circulation in the county or on the county's public-facing website.