SPRINGFIELD – Children in the state’s foster care system will be given an opportunity to have their voices heard about issues within the system that affect them under a measure sponsored by State Senator Robert Peters (D-Chicago) that was signed into law today.

“The kids in the foster care system know it better than anyone else,” Peters said. “DCFS will have a much easier time fixing the deficiencies in areas where the system is failing if they’re getting their information directly from the children who are impacted.”

Senate Bill 1743 mandates the Department of Children and Family Services to create a standardized survey to gather feedback from youth who are currently aging out or who have recently aged out of the foster care system, with the goal of helping DCFS and its supporting agencies identify and fix issues within the system by learning about them from the people directly affected by them. Peters called it a first step toward policy changes to help address these issues.

The bill passed the Senate and House of Representatives unanimously and is effective immediately.