IL SB1504

Requires the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to develop individualized youth-driven transition plans for foster youth aged 15 and older, addressing life skills, education, employment, housing, mental health, and connections to supportive adults

Establishes Successful Transition to Adulthood Review (STAR) hearings for youth with independence goals or those 17 and older, requiring courts to review DCFS efforts in preparing minors for adult living at least annually

Expands permanency goal considerations to include transition planning for youth who may need guardians as persons with disabilities under the Probate Act, and adds kinship navigator and relative caregiver supports as required service programs

Requires certified relative caregiver homes to receive foster care maintenance payments equal to licensed foster family homes beginning July 1, 2025, and non-certified relative homes to receive at least 90% of those payments

Creates a relative support program authorizing DCFS to reimburse costs for home safety modifications, provide emergency funds to relative caregivers experiencing hardships, and establish kinship navigator services with federal funding