Executive Report

Crime scene investigation, S-1279: A coroner has no power to "interfere with or control the police investigation of the crime scene," even if he feels they are conducting the investigation incorrectly. The lone exception would be "if the police are interfering with the coroner in his investigation to seek information and to obtain and secure evidence in cases on which there is reasonable ground to believe that a death was caused by other than natural means."

Liquor control searches, S-1268: "No probable cause is required for a warrantless search pursuant to section 8 of article X" of the Liquor Control Act (///. Rev. Stat. 1976 Supp., ch. 43, sec. 190). The law allows warrantless searches "for the limited purpose of determining whether any liquor law violations have occurred," and no "quantum of probable cause" is necessary for such searches.

State's attorney investigators, S-1280: Full and part-time investigators for state's attorneys "may not carry concealed firearms in the course of their official duties." A state's attorney is not a "peace officer" under the Criminal Code.

Skunk offspring, NP-1276: Offspring of legally possessed skunks are included under section 3.25 of the Illinois Game Code(///. Rev. Stat., 1975, ch. 61, sec. 3.25) which provides that "No fur-bearing animal breeder permits will be issued to hold, possess, or engage in the breeding and raising of skunks acquired after July 1, 1975." Moreover, "the term 'acquire' includes the offspring of legally possessed skunks."

October 1977 / Illinois Issues / 29

Executive Report
Continued from page 29.

Advocacy programs for disabled children
A $1 million advocacy program to protect the rights of disabled persons in the state was approved by Gov. James R. Thompson August 5 and will be underway by October 1. Mandated by the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare in 1975, the program was designed by the state's Planning Council on Developmental Disabilities and endorsed by the Task Force on Abuses in Mental Retardation Facilities — created last May after allegations of abuse of patients at Windgate Home, Woodstock.

The plan calls for a nonprofit, corporate board — independent of the agencies serving the disabled — to oversee advocacy through-out the state and in the 12 state institutions serving the developmentally disabled. Disabled adults will be involved in the program and will serve on all policymaking boards. Legal assistance is available through the program's Developmental Disabilities Law Project.

The task force also urged that money be set aside in the state's fiscal 1979 budget to develop better residential options for the disabled. These would include group residences that are an integral part of a neighborhood, foster care for persons who cannot live at home and help for individuals who want to buy or rent their own homes. Aid to families that would enable them to keep disabled children or adults at home was another recommendation.

Also working out of the governor's office but on an entirely different program, is Evette Zells, who was appointed in August as the state's child advocate after the beating death of a three-year-old girl in a state-licensed foster home. She deals with all state programs involving children with special emphasis on the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). Some children will be under the jurisdiction of both Zells and the advocacy board.

Schools desegregation
This fall nine Illinois school districts are implementing desegregation plans approved by the State Board of Education. They are Waukegan 60, East Moline 37, Freeport 145 and six Chicago metropolitan area districts: Blue Island 130, Crete-Monee201-U, Hazel Crest 152 1/2, Bellwood 88, Aurora West 129 and Zion 6. Springfield 186 is also implementing desegregation under a court order issued by U.S. District Judge J. Waldo Ackerman.

Chicago 299, Rockford 205 and Peoria 150 are acting on board approved plans, but not all will be implemented this year. Rockford and Peoria are much closer to full compliance than Chicago.

Of the 44 districts found in 1975 to be in noncompliance, 36 now have plans approved by the state board. Of the eight remaining districts, four are on probation. Of these, two schools, Chicago Heights 170 and Aurora East 131, have filed suits challenging the board's authority to issue and enforce desegregation guidelines. Maywood 89 remains on probation, and Chicago 299 has received an extension. Posen 143 1/2, Galesburg 205 and Rock Island 41 are working on plans. Springfield's desegregation plan has been approved by the court but not yet acted upon by the state board.

Moline District 40, whose desegregation plan had been approved, filed suit against the state board in Rock Island Circuit Court August 18 to block implementation. According to the district, transferring students from the predominantly Mexican-American Ericsson School would destroy the school's bilingual program. State officials were granted a continuance until September 22 to decide whether the state board or the attorney general's office will defend the state. Until then the state cannot act against the district.

Powerton coal gas plant
Representatives of government and private interests completed an agreement to build the experimental Powerton coal-togas facility near Pekin. Design work will be done by Commonwealth Research, a subsidiary of Commonwealth Edison, with construction scheduled to begin in mid-1978. The facility should begin conversion of Illinois high-sulfur coal to gas in 1980.

Costs will be shared by the federal Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA), $115.6 million; Electric Power Research Institutes, $30 million; Commonwealth Edison, $14.2 million; and the Illinois Department of Business and Economic Development, $7.2 million.

Illinois is the first state to receive federal funds for coal gasification since President Carter's energy program was announced.

Plans for another coal gasification plant at New Athens, which would have used a different method of conversion were scrapped by ERDA June 15. Reasons cited were large cost overruns and government mismanagement of the project which was still in the design stage.

DCFS developments
In an effort to reestablish rapport that had been lacking in past years between the Department of Children and Family Services and private child care agencies, the Committee of 30 — composed of 15 representatives each from DCFS and private child care agencies — worked through July and August to develop a standard contract for services rendered to the department. The committee also recommended new rate setting mechanisms and suggested that Director Margaret Kennedy continue to use the DCFS/private agency forum to give the agencies more imput into policy and budget recommendations that affect them.

Subsidized housing needs
Illinois does not have enough housing for the poor and the elderly, according to a study released

30 / October 1977 / Illinois Issues

in August by the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IDHA). The report states that 72,198 additional units were needed last year: 40,170 for low income families and 25,128 for the elderly. Previous studies show the need for subsidized housing in the state increases by more than 5,000 units each year. Yet only about 3,000 units were produced last year by IDHA and about 1,000 by other agencies.

Cook County accounted for more than 45 per cent of total state requirements. St. Clair County had the second greatest need. DuPage, the richest county in the state, required 637 units, and Kendall was the only county that did not need subsidized housing.

Deadline for limited license doctors
There are still 135 foreign-trained, limited license physicians employed by the Department of Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities. They must take an exam in early December in order to qualify for full licensing and keep their jobs. A special exam given last year to 127 limited license doctors caused a crisis when none of them passed. Gov. James R. Thompson suspended the physicians until the legislature extended the deadline for full licensing to March 1978. This year, training programs to prepare the doctors for the exam are being scheduled by the Southern Illinois' University School of Medicine, Springfield, and the University of Chicago School of Medicine, Chicago. However, a spokesman for the doctors said the training programs are inadequate.

Auto insurance complaints
To help consumers identify automobile insurance companies with the highest complaint ratios, the Department of Insurance issued in August a list of 93 companies and the number of complaints it had processed against them in 1976. The list also shows the ratio of complaints to the amount of direct automobile insurance premiums written by the companies in Illinois for the same period.

The complaints covered claims, cancellations, nonrenewals and premium ratings. No attempt was made in the list to determine whether complaints were justified. However, the department intends to examine the companies that had high ratios.

Affirmative action for state police
More members of minority groups are becoming state troopers. Although the active State Police force is still pretty much dominated by white males — with only 50 black males, 6 Latinos, 2 white females and 3 black females out of 1,600 troopers — this represents a considerable increase over 1974 when there were only 30 blacks and 3 Latinos on the entire force. The present training class numbers 57 of which almost half are from minority groups.

State employees on welfare
The five agencies with the highest number of employees on the welfare rolls are: Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities, 413; Public Aid, 353; Illinois Community College System, 278; University of Illinois, 143; Department of Labor, 117. In other agencies the numbers were considerably lower. The total for all agencies on the initial computer matchup was 2,148 employees who are also receiving welfare checks. ž

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