Legislation requires agency to accompany photos of children in their care

[January 10, 2024]  By Kevin Bessler | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Saying foster children in the state’s child welfare system need to be humanized, an Illinois lawmaker is lobbying for pictures to be part of the process.

State Rep. Jed Davis’ House Bill 4263 would require the Department of Children and Family Services to take and submit photos of each new child placed in its care. The photo will remain in the child's permanent file and accessible to the judge assigned to the case.

“Through the system, a lot of times we kind of lose the humanity behind it,” said Davis, R-Yorkville. “People just become files, numbers, names, and we’re trying to introduce a photograph into the record of the court of each foster child so that as the judge is looking at all the documents of the cases there's also a picture.”

Davis said he has reached out to DCFS officials to gauge their interest in an effort to bypass the legislature.

The much embattled agency is in a transition stage, with Department of Juvenile Justice Director Heidi Mueller taking over as director of DCFS on Feb. 1.

"In my role as Director of DJJ, I have witnessed firsthand the critical importance of a strong and supportive safety net for our state's most vulnerable residents, and the tragedy that results when there are holes in that net,” Mueller said in a news release.

If Davis' measure progresses through the General Assembly, he said he doesn't expect any opposition.

“For too long children have been falling through the cracks of our foster care system. This simple bill will significantly improve accountability and transparency for one of our most vulnerable populations,” Davis said.

Illinois lawmakers return to Springfield Jan. 16.

[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2022 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.