Illinois Administrative Code › Title 89 - SOCIAL SERVICES › Part 336 - APPEAL OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT INVESTIGATION FINDINGS › Section 336.20 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 28, July 12, 2024
"Abused child" means a child whose parent or immediate
				family member, or any person responsible for the child's welfare, or any
				individual residing in the same home as the child, or a paramour of the child's
				parent:
inflicts, causes to be inflicted, or allows to be
				inflicted upon such child physical
or mental
injury, by other
				than accidental means, which causes death, disfigurement, impairment of
				physical or emotional health, or loss or impairment of any bodily
				function;
creates a substantial risk of physical
or
				mental
injury to such child by other than accidental means which would
				be likely to cause death, disfigurement, impairment of physical or emotional
				health, or loss or impairment of any bodily function;
commits or allows to be committed any sex offense
				against such child, as such sex offenses are defined in the Criminal Code of
				2012
[ 720 ILCS 5 ]
or in the Wrongs to Children Act
[ 720 ILCS 150 ]
, and extending those definitions of sex offenses to
				include children under 18 years of age;
commits or allows to be committed an act or acts of
				torture upon such child;
inflicts excessive corporal punishment or, in the case
				of a person working for an agency who is prohibited from using corporal
				punishment, inflicts corporal punishment upon a child or adult resident with
				whom the person is working in his or her professional capacity;
commits or allows to be committed the offense of female
				genital mutilation, as defined in Section 12-34 of the Criminal Code of 2012,
				against the child.
causes to be sold, transferred, distributed or given to
				such child under 18 years of age a controlled substance as defined in Section
				102 of the Illinois Controlled Substances Act
[ 720 ILCS 570 ]
or in violation of the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection
				Act
[ 720 ILCS 646 ]
, except for controlled substances that
				are prescribed in accordance with Article III of the Illinois Controlled
				Substances Act and are dispensed to such child in a manner that substantially
				complies with the prescription; or
commits or allows to be committed the offense of
				involuntary servitude, involuntary sexual servitude of a minor, or trafficking
				in persons as defined in Section 10-9 of the Criminal Code of 2012 against the
				child.
A child shall not be considered abused for the sole
				reason that the child has been relinquished in accordance with the Abandoned
				Newborn Infant Protection Act.
[
				325 ILCS
				5/3 ]
"Administrative hearing", in the context of this Part, means a
				formal review of a final finding determination made by the Division of Child
				Protection at the conclusion of a child abuse and neglect investigation.
"Administrative Law Judge" or "ALJ" means a licensed attorney
				who is appointed by the Director of the Department and is responsible for
				conducting administrative hearings, including pre-hearings, and issuing a
				recommended decision.
"Adult resident" means any person between 18 and 22 years of
				age who resides in any facility licensed by the Department under the Child Care
				Act of 1969 [ 225 ILCS 10 ]. For the purpose of this Part, the definitions of
				"abused child" and "neglected child" include adult residents who meet the
				criteria set forth in those definitions.
"Agency" means
a child care facility licensed under
				Section 2.05 or Section 2.06 of the Child Care Act of 1969 and includes a
				transitional living program that accepts children and adult residents for
				placement who are in the guardianship of the Department
. [
				325 ILCS
				5/3 ]
"Amend", as used in this Part, means changing the final finding
				determination of an allegation in an indicated report of child abuse or neglect
				or changing identifying information of the subjects of an indicated report of
				child abuse or neglect.
"Administrative appeal" or "appeal" means the pre-hearing
				conference and formal administrative hearing.
"Appellant" means the person who requests a review or
				administrative hearing or in whose behalf a review and administrative hearing
				is requested.
"Authorized representative" means a person, including an
				attorney, authorized in writing by a party to assist in an administrative
				appeal. If the party is unable to reduce the authorization to writing, the
				Department, on request, shall assist the party in doing so.
"Blatant disregard" means
an incident where the real,
				significant and imminent risk of harm would be so obvious to a reasonable
				parent or caretaker that it is unlikely that a reasonable parent or caretaker
				would have exposed the child to the danger without exercising precautionary
				measures to protect the child from harm. With respect to a person working at an
				agency in his or her professional capacity with a child or adult resident,
				"blatant disregard" includes a failure by the person to perform job
				responsibilities intended to protect the child's or adult resident's health,
				physical well-being, or welfare, and, when viewed in light of the surrounding
				circumstances, evidence exists that would cause a reasonable person to believe
				that the child was neglected. With respect to an agency, "blatant disregard"
				includes a failure to implement practices that ensure the health, physical
				well-being, or welfare of the children and adult residents residing in the
				facility.
[
				325 ILCS
				5/3 ]
"Chief Administrative Law Judge" or "Chief ALJ" means the
				person who is responsible for the supervision of the Administrative Law Judges
				and the coordination of the administrative hearing appeal process.
"Child care worker" means any person who is employed to work
				directly with children and any person who is an owner/operator of a child care
				facility, regardless of whether the facility is licensed by the Department.
				"Child care worker" also means persons employed as full-time nannies. "Child
				care worker" also includes a person currently enrolled in an academic program
				that leads to a position as a child care worker; or who has applied for a
				license required for a child care worker position. A person will be considered
				to be a child care worker under this Part if, at the time of the notice of the
				investigation, he or she:
has applied for, or will apply within 180 days for, a position
				as a child care worker;
is enrolled in, or will commence within 180 days, an academic
				program that leads to a position as a child care worker; or
has applied for a license as a child care worker.
A child care worker may be subject to this Part if alleged to
				be responsible for child abuse or neglect outside of his or her
				employment.
For the purposes of this definition, any person who is employed
				full- or part-time at or is the owner of any of the following shall be
				considered a child care worker:
child care institutions;
child welfare agencies;
day care/night care centers;
day care/night care homes;
day care/night care group day care homes;
group homes;
hospitals or health care facilities;
schools, including school aides, bus drivers, school teachers
				and administrators, but not tenured school teachers or administrators who have
				other disciplinary processes available to them; and
before and after school programs, recreational programs and
				summer camps.
"Child" means any person under the age of 18 years,
				unless legally emancipated by reason of marriage or entry into a branch of the
				United States armed services.
[ 325 ILCS 5/31 ]
"Credible evidence of child abuse or neglect" means that the
				available facts, when viewed in light of surrounding circumstances, would cause
				a reasonable person to believe that a child was abused or neglected.
"Date of action" means the date on which any Department action
				becomes effective.
"Day", for purposes of computation of time, means business day,
				unless otherwise specified.
"Department" means the Illinois Department of Children and
				Family Services.
"Department's legal representative" means an attorney who is
				licensed to practice law in the State of Illinois and who is responsible for
				presenting the Department's case.
"Discovery", for purposes of this Part, means the rights of any
				party to request and have access to, in advance of the hearing, any materials
				relevant to the investigation and indicated finding and a list of witnesses in
				the possession of any other party.
"Expedited appeal" means an appeal that may be requested only
				by a child care worker who is the subject of a Department determination of
				indicated child abuse and/or neglect. Expedited appeals require that the
				Director issue a final administrative decision within 35 calendar days after
				the date of receipt by the Department's Administrative Hearings Unit of a
				written request for an expedited appeal, excluding any continuances at the
				request of, or with the agreement of, the appellant.
"Expunge", as used in this Part, means removing identifying
				information regarding the subjects of an indicated child abuse or neglect
				report from the State Central Register.
"Final administrative decision" means the Department's final
				decision, order or determination on an appealed issue rendered by the Director
				in a particular case that affects the legal rights, duties or privileges of
				participants, that terminates the proceedings on the specific appeal before the
				Department's Administrative Hearings Unit, and that may be further appealed to
				the circuit court under the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act.
"Indicated report" means any report made under the
				Abused and Neglected Child Reporting
Act [ 325 ILCS 5 ] (ANCRA)
for which it is determined, after an investigation, that credible
				evidence of the alleged abuse or neglect exists
[
				325 ILCS
				5/3 ].
"Member of the clergy" means a clergyman or practitioner of any
				religious denomination accredited by the religious body to which he or she
				belongs.
"Neglected child" means any child:
who is not receiving:
the proper or necessary nourishment or medically
				indicated treatment, including food or care not provided solely on the basis of
				the present or anticipated mental or physical impairment as determined by a
				physician acting alone or in consultation with other physicians;
				or
the proper or necessary support or medical or other
				remedial care recognized under State law as necessary for a child's well-being;
				or
other care necessary for his or her well-being,
				including adequate food, clothing and shelter;
who is subjected to an environment which is injurious
				insofar as:
the child's environment creates a likelihood of harm to
				the child's health, physical well-being, or welfare; and
the likely harm to the child is the result of a blatant
				disregard of parent, caretaker, or agency responsibilities;
who is abandoned by his or her parents or other person
				responsible for the child's welfare without a proper plan of
				care;
who has been provided with interim crisis intervention
				services under Section 3-5 of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987
[ 705
				ILCS 405 ]
and whose parent, guardian or custodian refuses to permit
				the child to return home and no other living arrangement agreeable to the
				parent, guardian or custodian can be made, and the parent, guardian or
				custodian has not made any other appropriate living arrangement for the child;
				or
who is a newborn infant whose blood, urine or meconium
				contains any amount of a controlled substance as defined in Section 102(f) of
				the Illinois Controlled Substances Act or a metabolite thereof, with the
				exception of a controlled substance or metabolite thereof whose presence in the
				newborn infant is the result of medical treatment administered to the mother or
				the newborn infant.
A child shall not be considered neglected for the sole
				reason that:
the child's parent or other person responsible for his
				or her welfare has left the child in the care of an adult relative for any
				period of time;
the child has been relinquished in accordance with the
				Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act
[ 325 ILCS 2 ].
A child shall not be considered neglected or abused for
				the sole reason that:
the child's parent or other person responsible for his
				or her welfare depends upon spiritual means through prayer alone for the
				treatment or cure of disease or remedial care as provided under Section
				4
of ANCRA; or
the child is not attending school in accordance with
				the requirements of Article 26 of the School Code
[ 105 ILCS 5 ]. [
				325 ILCS
				5/3 ]
"Parents" means the child's legal parents whose rights have not
				been terminated.
"Parties" means the Department and those persons who have
				appealed the final finding determination made by the Department. No person may
				join in an appeal unless that person would have standing to appeal the
				determination himself or herself.
"Perpetrator" means a person who, as a result of
				investigation, has been determined by the Department to have caused child abuse
				or neglect.
[
				325 ILCS
				5/3 ]
"Person responsible for the child's welfare"
				means:
the child's parent, guardian, foster parent or relative
				caregiver;
any person responsible for the child's welfare
				in
a public or private residential agency or
				institution;
any person responsible for the child's welfare within a
				public or private profit or not-for-profit child care facility;
				or
any other person responsible for the child's welfare at
				the time of the alleged abuse or neglect, including:
any person that is the custodian of a child under 18
				years of age who commits or allows to be committed, against the child, the
				offense of involuntary servitude, involuntary sexual servitude of a minor, or
				trafficking in persons for forced labor or services
(see
Section 10-9
(b), (c) and (d)
of the Criminal Code of
				2012
);
or
any person who came to know the child through an
				official capacity or position of trust, including but not limited to health
				care professionals, educational personnel, recreational supervisors, members of
				the clergy, and volunteers or support personnel in any setting where children
				may be subject to abuse or neglect
. [
				325 ILCS
				5/3 ]
"Preponderance of the evidence" means the greater weight of the
				evidence which renders a fact more likely than not.
"Regular appeal" means an appeal that may be requested by a
				perpetrator, including child care workers, in which the final administrative
				decision by the Director is issued within 90 calendar days after the date of
				receipt by the Department's Administrative Hearings Unit of a written request
				for an appeal, excluding any requests for a continuance by the perpetrator or
				any continuances by the agreement of the parties.
"Request for an appeal" means the written request by an
				appellant for an administrative hearing to determine whether the record of the
				report should be amended, expunged, or removed on the grounds that it is
				inaccurate or being maintained in a manner inconsistent with the Abused and
				Neglected Child Reporting Act. If the appellant is unable to request an appeal
				in writing, the Department or purchase of service agency shall help the
				appellant put the request in writing.
"State Central Register" or "SCR" is the record of child abuse
				and/or neglect reports maintained by the Department pursuant to ANCRA. The
				State Central Register is also referred to as the Department's statewide
				toll-free child abuse and neglect hotline.
"Stipulation" means an agreement by the parties that certain
				facts are true or can be introduced into evidence without further proof.
"Subject of report" means any child or adult resident reported
				to the
central register of child abuse and neglect established under
				Section 7.7 of ANCRA as an alleged victim of child abuse or neglect and the
				parent or guardian of the alleged victim or other person responsible for the
				alleged victim's welfare
who is named in the report
or added
				to the report as an alleged perpetrator of child abuse or neglect.
[
				325 ILCS
				5/3 ]
"Unfounded report" means any report made under ANCRA
				for which it is determined, after an investigation, that no credible evidence
				of the alleged abuse or neglect exists.
[
				325 ILCS
				5/3 ]
"Unknown perpetrator" means a person who caused or is alleged
				to have caused child abuse or neglect and whose identity or identifying
				information has not been determined by the Department.