ICOY applauds the passage of the FY2020 Illinois State Budget
Publisher: ICOY Staff
On behalf of the children, youth, and families who need community support to weather life’s storms, we applaud the bipartisan passage of a balanced Illinois state budget for FY2020. This budget invests in Illinois’ young people, including those who are homeless, those who are at risk of involvement in the juvenile justice system, and those who have been abused or neglected. We know that all children and youth have the capacity to succeed; when our young people can achieve their potential, they are able to give back and contribute to our society in positive ways. This budget is an investment in their future, and in the future of Illinois.
Those investments include:
- * $100 million to begin rebuilding the Department of Children and Family Services, including a 5% rate increase to community providers
- * $4 million increase for youth employment programs
- * $2 million increase for crisis intervention services for runaway and homeless youth
- * $1 million increase for both Redeploy Illinois and Homeless Youth Services
Governor Pritzker and the General Assembly have taken a first step toward rebuilding the human service infrastructure that has been so severely neglected in recent years. We are committed to working with them going forward to address the workforce crisis that is straining the child welfare and other human services systems. Being able to pay an appropriate wage and benefits to the people who work hard to help children and youth address their trauma will make a tremendous difference in the lives of the young people who depend on their care and support.
“We thank the members of the General Assembly who worked hard to shore up the foundation of Illinois’ child welfare and youth service systems,” said Andrea Durbin, Chief Executive Officer of the Illinois Collaboration on Youth. “Their leadership will help to halt years of neglect that has led to terrible outcomes for some of our most vulnerable residents. We have much work to do to repair what has been broken. This budget is a positive and significant effort to stabilize these systems.”