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SB0328 Engrossed |
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LRB094 06273 DRJ 36344 b |
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| AN ACT concerning child care.
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| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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| represented in the General Assembly:
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| Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the |
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| Helping Heroes Child Care Program Act.
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| Section 5. Definitions. In this Act: |
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| "Department" means the Department of Human Services. |
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| "Deployed" means activated to serve in an active military |
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| operation or emergency. |
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| "Program" means the Helping Heroes Child Care Program |
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| established under this Act.
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| Section 10. Program established. |
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| (a) The Helping Heroes Child Care Program is established |
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| for the purpose of providing vouchers for child care to |
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| Illinois families who have one or more parents deployed to Iraq |
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| or Afghanistan by the armed services. The Department shall |
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| administer the program. The Department shall implement the |
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| program only if federal funding is made available for that |
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| purpose. Any such federal moneys received by the State shall be |
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| deposited into the Fund for Child Care for Deployed Military |
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| Personnel, which is created as a special fund in the State |
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| treasury. Moneys in the Fund shall be appropriated to the |
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| Department for the purpose of administering this Act. |
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| (b) Any Illinois resident who (i) is serving in the active |
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| military, reserves, or National Guard, (ii) has been deployed |
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| to Iraq or Afghanistan by the armed services, and (iii) meets |
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| the income eligibility criteria established by the Department |
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| by rule is eligible for a child care voucher under the program. |
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| A family that received child care assistance before the |
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| parent's deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan is eligible only for |
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| a voucher for the cost of any additional hours of child care |