SPRINGFIELD – On Wednesday, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed House Bill 4781, the Kinship in Demand (“KIND”) Act, into law, allowing the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to develop more flexible standards to certify grandparents and other relatives who are able to safely care for youth in DCFS’s care. The bill also creates a path for more youth in care to find permanent homes through guardianship. Studies show that when youth-in-care are able to remain with relatives in stable and familiar homes they often experience better outcomes, a stronger sense of identity and connection, and greater well-being.
“Staying in a familiar place and seeing a comforting face every day can make all the difference in the life of a child-in-care,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “The KIND Act enhances family finding efforts to ensure we are doing everything we can to identify relatives who can care for and maintain ongoing, supportive connections with our youth. Just as importantly, it holds us accountable to incorporate the voices of youth and families in decisions that have a lasting impact on their lives. Thank you to the General Assembly, the Illinois ACLU, and my state government partners for helping make this important legislation possible.”
Today, 9,300 children and youth in DCFS are living with relatives and many do not receive the same benefits as licensed foster caregivers due to outdated requirements. Relative caregivers are typically extended family members, such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, or cousins, responsible for the safety, care, and supervision of the child or youth.
Licensed caregivers are foster parents who have met DCFS requirements and obtained a license to care for a child or youth in the child welfare system. The provisions of the KIND Act will allow for increased financial support to relative caregivers.
Through the KIND Act, DCFS will develop more flexible certification standards for relative caregivers while maintaining essential safety and welfare standards. Unlike the traditional licensing process – initially designed for foster parents who may be unfamiliar to the child – certification allows for a less burdensome path for relatives to receive financial support. DCFS is currently drafting rules outlining the standards for relative caregiver homes and will adopt them in the coming months.
As a result of certification, increased financial support and an enhanced network of supports for relative caregivers, more children and youth in Illinois will have the opportunity to grow up living with extended family members who they already know and love when reunification with their parents is not an immediate option.
“The KIND Act reflects a simple reality – children whose lives have been disrupted need stability and love wherever and whenever possible,” said Nora Collins-Mandeville, director of systems reform policy at the ACLU of Illinois. “We know that placing youth in the child welfare system with relatives lessens the trauma associated with family separation, reduces the number of times a child is moved, enhances permanency options if youth cannot be reunified and results in higher placement satisfaction for youth in care; and delivers better social, behavioral, mental health and educational outcomes for youth than when they are placed in non-kin foster care. Providing appropriate resources to family members to get these positive outcomes is good policy for children and for the state of Illinois.”
“Children are more likely to thrive if they remain connected to their loved ones and community,” said Illinois Department of Children and Family Services Director Heidi E. Mueller. “The KIND Act recognizes the significant role that families and communities play in the lives of children and youth and helps to equalize the cost of raising a child. The KIND Act is a firm example of our commitment to center our policies, practices and procedures on what is best for children and families, and we are grateful to Governor Pritzker, the Illinois legislature, and the ACLU for recognizing the importance of supporting our youth in care by supporting their families.”
“Children in Illinois deserve the best possible outcomes when involved with DCFS,” said State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago). “Through the KIND Act, youth and families will be provided with greater opportunities in maintaining familial and community connections, in addition to improved access to support and resources.”
“The KIND Act will finally ensure that the state will do everything we can to keep families together by prioritizing familial connections when placing system-involved youth,” said Rep. Marcus Evans (D-Chicago). “Evidence shows that young people are more likely to thrive when these bonds are maintained, and I’m proud to have a governor and state that are committed to ensuring that all of our young people have the support and resources they need to succeed.”
The KIND Act will enhance the child welfare system and improve support for relatives raising children and youth by:
- equalizing payments to relatives with the rate provided to traditional foster parents,
- helping youth-in-care maintain connections with their families,
- tailoring services and supports to kinship families,
- engaging youth, their families, and kinship caregivers in permanency planning to materially improve their overall experiences,
- making certain the wishes of youth and their families are taken into account when planning for the youth’s future, and
- treating adoption and guardianship as equally viable options when reunification with parents is not possible.
“The KIND Act recognizes what we’ve always known in our communities – that children thrive when they maintain connections to family and familiar faces during difficult transitions. By prioritizing kinship care, we’re preserving children’s sense of identity, cultural bonds, and family relationships,” said State Senator Elgie R. Sims, Jr. (D-Chicago). “This law transforms our approach to child welfare, putting families first and giving our children the best chance to heal and flourish in the care of those who already know and love them.”
“Placing a child in a safe home with relatives will improve outcomes for our most at-risk young people,” said Rep. Joyce Mason (D-Gurnee). “Not only does it improve their behavioral and mental health outcomes, but it promotes sibling ties, preserves community connections, improves their well-being, and decreases their chance of re-entering foster care.”
“There are so many relatives across Illinois taking care of children and family members who will get some much-needed support today,” said State Senator Lakesia Collins (D-Chicago). “The KIND Act will allow families to stay together and children to get the best care possible. I am proud to stand in support of a law protecting and advocating for Illinois children.”
“The KIND Act provides responsible, commonsense updates to DCFS practice that will make it easier for family members to step up and provide stable, caring homes for children in crisis,” said Rep. Terra Costa Howard (D-Glen Ellyn). “When we support these family caregivers and provide the foster care benefits these families need and deserve, we can help to put these children on a path to happier, healthier adult lives.”
“Our priority when making any legislative decisions about foster care is about the well-being of the kids,” said State Senator Javier Cervantes (D-Chicago). “This law will ensure young people in foster care have a better chance of getting matched with their family, allowing them to maintain these essential familial connections as they get older. Kids should be with their families if at all possible, and this will ensure we are prioritizing these ties of love and loyalty over bureaucratic standards.”
“The KIND Act is key legislation that will ultimately improve the mental health of our youth in care,” said Rep. Camille Lilly (D-Chicago). “A kin-first approach helps children sustain a connection to their cultural legacy which reduces the trauma they may experience from being separated from their families.”
“Illinois is taking a critical step toward ensuring that children in the state’s care can grow up in safe, loving, and familiar homes. By giving DCFS the flexibility to certify relative caregivers separately from traditional foster licensing, we are breaking down barriers that have historically prevented families from staying together,” said State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove). “This law recognizes the invaluable role that grandparents, aunts, uncles, and other relatives play in a child’s life and provides them with the financial and structural support they need to care for their loved ones.”
“Every child deserves to grow up in a home filled with love, stability, and a sense of belonging,” said Rep. Dagmara Avelar (D-Bolingbrook). “With the KIND Act, we are ensuring that children can stay with the people who know them best and love them most ‘whether by blood or by bond’ rather than being placed in an unfamiliar system. This is about protecting their childhood, their well-being, and their future. It’s a step toward justice, a step toward healing, and just the beginning of the work we must do to keep families whole.”
“The KIND Act provides much needed support to foster children placed with their relatives,” said State Senator Mike Halpin (D-Rock Island). “A majority of relative caregivers in the DCFS system do not receive benefits they need to aid in raising these foster kids. With this legislation, we can close that gap demonstrate our dedication to protecting vulnerable youth and their families.”