HB4807 Summary

• Department of Children and Family Services must consider a child's former foster parent as a placement option when the child re-enters substitute care.

• If DCFS determines placement with a former foster parent is not in the child's best interest, the department must document its reasoning and maintain documentation in the child's case file.

• A former foster parent's licensing through a different agency or lack of current foster care license cannot be the sole basis for denying placement, provided the former foster parent is eligible for a permit under the Child Care Act of 1969 and willing to apply for a foster care license.

• This provision does not apply if a court previously found the child's placement in the former foster home was not necessary or appropriate, or if the child was previously removed from that foster parent's care due to abuse or neglect.