SB 908 amends the Illinois Unified Code of Corrections to update the powers and duties of the Department of Corrections. The bill adds provisions for using pupillometer technology to screen inmates for drug use, creating a pilot program starting in 2002. It also establishes a program to track inmate gang affiliations, allows for pre-release job preparation, and permits the use of tablets as rewards for inmate compliance. Additionally, the bill authorizes the Department of Corrections to lease correctional facilities built by local governments using revenue bonds and outlines a highway cleanup program using prisoners for trash removal.
Amends the Unified Code of Corrections. Provides that all institutions and facilities of the Department of Corrections shall permit every committed person to send and receive all original physical mail (rather than an unlimited number of uncensored letters), but the Director may order that mail be inspected and read for reasons of the security, safety, or morale of the institution or facility. Provides that no institutions or facility of the Department shall deny the distribution of original physical mail to committed persons after such incoming mail has undergone inspection and it has been determined that the mail does not pose a threat to the security or safety of the facility, personnel of the Department, or committed persons. Provides that the Department shall collect evidence of original physical mail that is deemed to pose a threat to the safety or security of the facility or institution, personnel of the Department, or committed persons. Defines "original physical mail" and "threat to the security or safety".
Amends the Unified Code of Corrections concerning the transfer of committed persons funds. Provides that the Department of Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice shall not enter into or renew any contract with a vendor that provides electronic funds transfer services that include total fees and charges of more than 2% of the total amount of funds being transferred or $15 per transaction, whichever is less, for the privilege of electronically transferring funds. Effective immediately.
Amends the Community Emergency Services and Support Act. Replaces all references to the Division of Mental Health of the Department of Human Services with the Department of Human Services throughout the Act. Provides that 9-1-1 public safety answering points shall screen specific types of law enforcement calls and follow approved protocols and processes under the Act to identify callers experiencing behavioral health crises and to refer them for a behavioral health response. Provides that 9-1-1 public safety answering points shall open and follow the emergency medical dispatch protocols established under the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Systems Act at the start of all emergency calls to ensure the protocols are used and applied consistently and uniformly to ensure that information related to behavioral health emergency calls is available for data collection and can be used to determine which calls should be referred for a behavioral health response. Provides that, among other things, each Regional Advisory Committee or subregional committee must (1) review regional and subregional crisis response system capacities and resources to inform planning and implementation and to foster collaboration across all sectors of the system and (2) determine the need for and make a plan to support local communities to develop and use other resources to create additional mobile mental health relief provider services to expand the capacity to provide more immediate service coverage. Amends the Emergency Telephone System Act. Provides that, beginning July 1, 2027, all public safety answering points shall use the protocols established under the Community Emergency Services and Support Act to identify behavioral and mental health-related emergencies that do not require a law enforcement response. Amends the Illinois State Police Law. Amends the Illinois Police Training Act. Provides that Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training programs shall include, among other things, community response options including, the community response options under the Community Emergency Services and Support Act. Makes other changes.
Amends the Unified Code of Corrections. Provides that an individual convicted of a sex offense and released from the Department of Corrections to mandatory supervised release shall, to the extent practicable, be placed on mandatory supervised release in either: (1) the sentencing community or (2) a community of connection. Provides that placement outside the sentencing community or a community of connection may occur only upon a documented determination by the Department of Corrections that such placement is necessary due to one or more of the following: (1) verified public safety concerns; (2) victim safety considerations, including the location of a victim or the existence of protective orders; (3) the unavailability of compliant housing that satisfies statutory or mandatory supervised release conditions; or (4) the unavailability of required treatment, monitoring, or supervision resources. Provides that prior to release, the Department of Corrections shall develop an individualized reentry plan for each individual subject to the provision that identifies the sentencing community and any communities of connection and evaluates appropriate housing, treatment, and supervision options. Provides that nothing in the provision shall be construed to limit the authority of the Department of Corrections to impose conditions of mandatory supervised release necessary to protect public safety or to comply with existing law. Provides that the Department of Corrections shall submit an annual report to the General Assembly no later than March 1 of each year containing aggregate data regarding: (1) mandatory supervised release placement patterns for individuals convicted of sex offenses; (2) the number of placements made outside sentencing communities or communities of connection; (3) the primary reasons for such placements; and (4) geographic distribution by county. Provides that the report shall not include personally identifying information. Defines "sex offense", "sentencing community", and "community of connection". Effective immediately.
Amends the Illinois Municipal Code. Removes provisions allowing a municipality to evaluate a police officer based on the police officer's points of contact.
Creates the Home for Good Act. Provides that the Home for Good Program is created as a statewide coordinated program designed to provide housing and services to persons with arrest and conviction records and persons who are currently or formerly incarcerated (targeted population). Provides that the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) shall be responsible for providing appropriate resources to potential applicants to acquire, develop, and rehabilitate permanent affordable housing units and transitional housing units that are designated exclusively for the targeted population. Provides that the granting and application process shall follow the existing program model of the Housing for Justice Involved Individuals Program. Requires IHDA to be responsible for providing site-based rental housing subsidies to community organizations who work with the targeted population which may be used to enter into lease agreements and master lease agreements for the purpose of providing housing for program participants, and tenant-based rental subsidies. Requires the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA) to provide appropriate resources to community organizations who work with the targeted population. Provides that such resources shall be used to provide case management and reentry navigation services to Program participants; and to make supportive services available to Program participants, which may include housing and related services, physical and behavioral health, education, family reunification and relationship building, transportation, job training, acquiring vital documents, and meeting basic needs. Contains provisions concerning a requirement that a housing needs assessment tool be administered to all individuals exiting the Illinois Department of Corrections; a requirement that the Executive Director of IHDA create a Home for Good Institute to provide training and technical assistance to community organizations who intend to acquire, develop, rehabilitate, or operate permanent and transitional housing units for the targeted population; the establishment of the Home for Good Oversight Board; and rulemaking authority to implement the Act. Effective immediately.
Amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Provides that a first responder who reasonably believes that a person's presence within 14 feet of the first responder will interfere with the performance of the first responder's legal duty may warn the person not to approach or to remain within 14 feet of the first responder. Provides that it is unlawful for a person, after receiving a warning not to approach from a first responder who is engaged in the lawful performance of a legal duty, to knowingly or intentionally violate the warning and approach or remain within 14 feet of the first responder with the intent to: (1) interrupt, disrupt, hinder, impede, or interfere with the first responder's ability to perform the first responder's legal duty; (2) threaten the first responder with physical harm; or (3) harass the first responder by interfering with the first responder performing the first responder's legal duty. Provides that a violation is a Class A misdemeanor. Defines "harass" and "first responder".
Amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Creates the offense of torture. Provides that a person commits torture when that person knowingly and cruelly engages in a course of conduct that torments a victim under the age of 18 years. Provides that proof that a victim suffered physical, mental, or emotional impairment is not an element of the offense. Provides that torture does not include: (1) reasonable parental discipline or (2) any medical examination or procedure that is conducted by a physician, nurse, medical or hospital personnel, parent, or caretaker for purposes and in a manner consistent with reasonable medical standards and care. Provides that a victim under the age of 18 years cannot consent to torture. Provides that torture is a Class X felony. Provides that an offender under the age of 18 years at the time of the commission of the offense shall be sentenced under the provisions of the Unified Code of Corrections concerning the sentencing of individuals under the age of 18 at the time of the commission of an offense. Defines "course of conduct" and "cruelly".
Creates the Emerging Adult Criminal Justice Task Force Act. Establishes the Emerging Adult Criminal Justice Task Force within the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority. Provides that the Task Force shall hold public meetings. Requires at least 3 meetings of the Task Force to be held in different regions of Illinois. Provides that the first meeting of the Task Force shall be held within 60 days after the appointment of its members. Provides that the Task Force shall review Illinois law and practices affecting emerging adults across pretrial, sentencing, corrections, supervision, and reentry. Provides that the Task Force shall develop recommendations for statutory, policy, and programmatic improvements to the Illinois criminal justice system. Allows any Task Force member to prepare a written dissent or statement of concern regarding any finding or recommendation. Provides that the Task Force shall submit an interim report summarizing preliminary findings, analyses, and recommendations, to the Governor and the General Assembly, no later than January 31, 2027. Provides that the Task Force shall submit a final report, including all final findings and recommendations, draft statutory language, and estimated fiscal impacts, no later than December 1, 2027. Repeals the Act on June 30, 2028. Effective immediately.
