(305 ILCS 5/Art. I heading)
(305 ILCS 5/1-1) (from Ch. 23, par. 1-1)
Sec. 1-1. Public purpose-Aims in providing financial aid and services. The purpose of this Code is to assist in the alleviation and prevention of poverty and thereby to protect and promote the health and welfare of all the people of this State.
To accomplish this purpose, this Code authorizes financial aid and social welfare services for persons in need thereof by reason of unemployment, illness, or other cause depriving them of the means of a livelihood compatible with health and well-being, and provides for the development, use and coordination of all resources in this State, governmental and private.
The Illinois Department shall establish such standards of financial aid and services as will encourage and assist applicants and recipients to maintain a livelihood compatible with health and well being and to develop their self-reliance and realize their capacities for self-care, self-support, and responsible citizenship.
The maintenance and strengthening of the family unit shall be a principal consideration in the administration of this Code. All public aid policies shall be formulated and administered to achieve this end.
(Source: P.A. 89-507, eff. 7-1-97.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-2) (from Ch. 23, par. 1-2)
Sec. 1-2. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Illinois Public Aid Code.
(Source: P.A. 86-1475.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-3) (from Ch. 23, par. 1-3)
Sec. 1-3. (Repealed).
(Source: Laws 1967, p. 122. Repealed by P.A. 92-111, eff. 1-1-02.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-4) (from Ch. 23, par. 1-4)
Sec. 1-4. Reference to article.
Whenever reference is made in this Code to an Article or Articles, the reference applies to an Article or Articles of this Code, unless the context otherwise requires.
(Source: Laws 1967, p. 122.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-5) (from Ch. 23, par. 1-5)
Sec. 1-5. Construction. The provisions of this Code shall be liberally construed to effect its objects and purposes.
(Source: Laws 1967, p. 122.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-6) (from Ch. 23, par. 1-6)
Sec. 1-6. Notwithstanding any provisions of this Code to the contrary, a person, if eligible, shall be required to file for unemployment compensation benefits as a condition for qualifying for public assistance benefits under programs of aid to the aged, blind, or disabled, aid to families with dependent children, and aid to families with dependent children-- unemployed, which are administered by the Illinois Department, or general assistance programs administered by some other public agency.
(Source: P.A. 89-507, eff. 7-1-97.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-7) (from Ch. 23, par. 1-7)
Sec. 1-7. (a) For purposes of determining eligibility for assistance under this Code, the Illinois Department, County Departments, and local governmental units shall exclude from consideration restitution payments, including all income and resources derived therefrom, made to persons of Japanese or Aleutian ancestry pursuant to the federal Civil Liberties Act of 1988 and the Aleutian and Pribilof Island Restitution Act, P.L. 100-383.
(b) For purposes of any program or form of assistance where a person's income or assets are considered in determining eligibility or level of assistance, whether under this Code or another authority, neither the State of Illinois nor any entity or person administering a program wholly or partially financed by the State of Illinois or any of its political subdivisions shall include restitution payments, including all income and resources derived therefrom, made pursuant to the federal Civil Liberties Act of 1988 and the Aleutian and Pribilof Island Restitution Act, P.L. 100-383, in the calculation of income or assets for determining eligibility or level of assistance.
(c) For purposes of determining eligibility for or the amount of assistance under this Code, except for the determination of eligibility for payments or programs under the TANF employment, education, and training programs and the Food Stamp Employment and Training Program, the Illinois Department, County Departments, and local governmental units shall exclude from consideration any financial assistance received under any student aid program administered by an agency of this State or the federal government, by a person who is enrolled as a full-time or part-time student of any public or private university, college, or community college in this State.
(d) For purposes of determining eligibility for or the amount of assistance under this Code, except for the determination of eligibility for payments or programs under the TANF employment, education, and training programs and the SNAP Employment and Training Program, the Illinois Department, County Departments, and local governmental units shall exclude from consideration, for a period of 36 months, any financial assistance, including wages, that is provided to a person who is enrolled in a demonstration project that is not funded with general revenue funds and that is intended as a bridge to self-sufficiency by offering (i) intensive workforce support and training and (ii) support services for new and expectant parents that are intended to foster multi-generational healthy families as described in Section 12-4.51.
(e)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code, and to the maximum extent permitted by federal law, for purposes of determining eligibility and the amount of assistance under this Code, the Illinois Department and local governmental units shall exclude from consideration, for a period of no more than 60 months, any financial assistance, including wages, cash transfers, or gifts, that is provided to a person who is enrolled in a program or research project that is not funded with general revenue funds and that is intended to investigate the impacts of policies or programs designed to reduce poverty, promote social mobility, or increase financial stability for Illinois residents if there is an explicit plan to collect data and evaluate the program or initiative that is developed prior to participants in the study being enrolled in the program and if a research team has been identified to oversee the evaluation.
(2) The Department shall choose State options and seek all necessary federal approvals or waivers to implement this subsection.
(Source: P.A. 100-806, eff. 1-1-19; 101-415, eff. 8-16-19.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-8)
Sec. 1-8. Fugitives ineligible.
(a) The following persons are not eligible for aid under this Code, or federal food stamps or federal food stamp benefits:
In this Section, "felony" means a violation of a penal statute of this or any other state or the United States for which a sentence to death or to a term of imprisonment in a penitentiary for one year or more is provided.
To implement this Section, the Illinois Department may exchange necessary information with an appropriate law enforcement agency of this or any other state, a political subdivision of this or any other state, or the United States.
(b) (Blank).
(Source: P.A. 92-111, eff. 1-1-02.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-8.5)
Sec. 1-8.5. Eligibility for medical assistance during periods of incarceration or detention.
(a) To the extent permitted by federal law and notwithstanding any other provision of this Code, the Department of Healthcare and Family Services shall not cancel a person's eligibility for medical assistance, nor shall the Department deny a person's application for medical assistance, solely because that person has become or is an inmate of a public institution, including, but not limited to, a county jail, juvenile detention center, or State correctional facility. The person may be and remain enrolled for medical assistance as long as all other eligibility criteria are met.
(b) The Department may adopt rules to permit a person to apply for medical assistance while he or she is an inmate of a public institution as described in subsection (a). The rules may limit applications to persons who would be likely to qualify for medical assistance if they resided in the community. Any such person who is not already enrolled for medical assistance may apply for medical assistance prior to the date of scheduled release or discharge from a penal institution or county jail or similar status.
(c) Except as provided under Section 17 of the County Jail Act, the Department shall not be responsible to provide medical assistance under this Code for any medical care, services, or supplies provided to a person while he or she is an inmate of a public institution as described in subsection (a). The responsibility for providing medical care shall remain as otherwise provided by law with the Department of Corrections, county, or other arresting authority. The Department may seek federal financial participation, to the extent that it is available and with the cooperation of the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Department of Corrections, or the relevant county, for the costs of those services.
(d) To the extent permitted under State and federal law, the Department shall develop procedures to expedite required periodic reviews of continued eligibility for persons described in subsection (a).
(e) Counties, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Department of Human Services, and the Department of Corrections shall cooperate with the Department in administering this Section. That cooperation shall include managing eligibility processing and sharing information sufficient to inform the Department, in a manner established by the Department, that a person enrolled in the medical assistance program has been detained or incarcerated.
(f) The Department shall resume responsibility for providing medical assistance upon release of the person to the community as long as all of the following apply:
(g) This Section applies on and after December 31, 2011.
(Source: P.A. 98-139, eff. 1-1-14; 99-415, eff. 8-20-15.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-9)
Sec. 1-9. Misrepresentation of residence. A person who has been convicted in federal or State court of having made a fraudulent statement or representation with respect to residence in order to receive assistance simultaneously from 2 or more states shall be ineligible for cash assistance under this Code for 10 years beginning on the date of conviction.
(Source: P.A. 90-17, eff. 7-1-97.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-10)
Sec. 1-10. Drug convictions.
(a) Persons convicted of an offense under the Illinois Controlled Substances Act, the Cannabis Control Act, or the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act which is a Class X felony, or a Class 1 felony, or comparable federal criminal law which has as an element the possession, use, or distribution of a controlled substance, as defined in Section 102(6) of the federal Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802(c)), shall not be eligible for cash assistance provided under this Code.
(b) Persons convicted of any other felony under the Illinois Controlled Substances Act, the Cannabis Control Act, or the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act which is not a Class X or Class 1 felony, or comparable federal criminal law which has as an element the possession, use, or distribution of a controlled substance, as defined in Section 102(6) of the federal Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802(c)), shall not be eligible for cash assistance provided under this Code for 2 years from the date of conviction. This prohibition shall not apply if the person is in a drug treatment program, aftercare program, or similar program as defined by rule.
(c) Persons shall not be determined ineligible for food stamps provided under this Code based upon a conviction of any felony or comparable federal or State criminal law which has an element the possession, use or distribution of a controlled substance, as defined in Section 102(6) of the federal Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802(c)).
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section to the contrary, persons shall not be determined ineligible for cash assistance provided under Article IV of this Code based upon a conviction for any drug-related felony under State or federal law.
(Source: P.A. 102-178, eff. 10-30-21.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-11)
Sec. 1-11. Citizenship. To the extent not otherwise provided in this Code or federal law, all clients who receive cash or medical assistance under Article III, IV, V, or VI of this Code must meet the citizenship requirements as established in this Section. To be eligible for assistance an individual, who is otherwise eligible, must be either a United States citizen or included in one of the following categories of non-citizens:
Those persons who are in the categories set forth in subdivisions 6 and 7 of this Section, who enter the United States on or after August 22, 1996, shall not be eligible for 5 years beginning on the date the person entered the United States.
The Illinois Department may, by rule, cover prenatal care or emergency medical care for non-citizens who are not otherwise eligible under this Section. Local governmental units which do not receive State funds may impose their own citizenship requirements and are authorized to provide any benefits and impose any citizenship requirements as are allowed under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-193).
(Source: P.A. 99-870, eff. 8-22-16.)
(305 ILCS 5/1-12)
Sec. 1-12. Providing information to the State Board of Elections. The Secretary of the Department of Human Services and the Director of the Department of Healthcare and Family Services shall make information available, except where prohibited by federal law or regulation, to the State Board of Elections as may be required by an agreement the State Board of Elections has entered into with a multi-state voter registration list maintenance system.
(Source: P.A. 98-1171, eff. 6-1-15.)