End of Session Recap: Public Safety ⚖️
Dear Friend,
Last week, I told you about some of the key components of the budget we just passed in Springfield. Specifically, I pointed out the billions of dollars we put toward long-term fiscal stability, and billions more toward direct, one-time cash relief to families like yours.
This week, I’d like to dive into the subject of public safety.
I know many of you are concerned about safety in our neighborhoods, about rising levels of crime and instability. I hear you, and I’m with you. We need to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. We spent a lot of our focus and attention this year in Springfield on smart strategies to reduce violence and help our communities thrive.
We started by acknowledging the obvious: violent crime is up everywhere in the country — in red states and blue states, in cities with progressive prosecutors and lock-’em-up prosecutors. It started going up in March of 2020.
Something else happened then too: a global pandemic that shut down schools, closed social services, disrupted communities, and created enormous trauma.
We wanted solutions that help law enforcement do their jobs and actually solve violent crime, while also combating the root causes of violence — those very disruptions that were exacerbated by the pandemic.
What we weren’t going to do was revert to the 90s-era “lock them up and throw away the key” policies that failed so miserably. Not only did they fail to reduce crime, they ravaged mostly Black and Latinx families and communities and contributed to the very instability — unemployment, poverty, trauma and mental health challenges — that have led us to this moment.
So: we took a targeted approach. We worked on new interjurisdictional task forces to investigate carjacking rings and illegal gun smuggling. We banned “ghost guns,” untraceable firearms that are increasingly used in criminal activity. We built out new programs to support victims and witnesses of violent crime. We created co-responder pilots in cities across the state so social workers can ride along with law enforcement. And we’re piloting mental health supports specifically for law enforcement officials, understanding the challenges of the job and recognizing that unaddressed trauma in cops is bad for them, their families, and the communities they work in.
But we also recognized that we truly need to invest in communities to bring about real public safety. We created a landmark new $250 million violence prevention fund called Reimagine Public Safety — those dollars will start flowing to violence interrupters, afterschool programs, behavioral health resources, and other community investments early this summer, hopefully in time to stem the tide of violence during the warmer months. We know carjackings have gone up, so we funded summer jobs and other programs specifically for youth at risk of getting pulled into carjacking rings. And given the very troubling rise in domestic violence during the pandemic, we more than tripled our investment in DV shelters and services so that abused spouses and children can have safe places to go.Last week, I told you about some of the key components of the budget we just passed in Springfield. Specifically, I pointed out the billions of dollars we put toward long-term fiscal stability, and billions more toward direct, one-time cash relief to families like yours.
This week, I’d like to dive into the subject of public safety.
I know many of you are concerned about safety in our neighborhoods, about rising levels of crime and instability. I hear you, and I’m with you. We need to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. We spent a lot of our focus and attention this year in Springfield on smart strategies to reduce violence and help our communities thrive.
We started by acknowledging the obvious: violent crime is up everywhere in the country — in red states and blue states, in cities with progressive prosecutors and lock-’em-up prosecutors. It started going up in March of 2020.
Something else happened then too: a global pandemic that shut down schools, closed social services, disrupted communities, and created enormous trauma.
We wanted solutions that help law enforcement do their jobs and actually solve violent crime, while also combating the root causes of violence — those very disruptions that were exacerbated by the pandemic.
What we weren’t going to do was revert to the 90s-era “lock them up and throw away the key” policies that failed so miserably. Not only did they fail to reduce crime, they ravaged mostly Black and Latinx families and communities and contributed to the very instability — unemployment, poverty, trauma and mental health challenges — that have led us to this moment.
So: we took a targeted approach. We worked on new interjurisdictional task forces to investigate carjacking rings and illegal gun smuggling. We banned “ghost guns,” untraceable firearms that are increasingly used in criminal activity. We built out new programs to support victims and witnesses of violent crime. We created co-responder pilots in cities across the state so social workers can ride along with law enforcement. And we’re piloting mental health supports specifically for law enforcement officials, understanding the challenges of the job and recognizing that unaddressed trauma in cops is bad for them, their families, and the communities they work in.
But we also recognized that we truly need to invest in communities to bring about real public safety. We created a landmark new $250 million violence prevention fund called Reimagine Public Safety — those dollars will start flowing to violence interrupters, afterschool programs, behavioral health resources, and other community investments early this summer, hopefully in time to stem the tide of violence during the warmer months. We know carjackings have gone up, so we funded summer jobs and other programs specifically for youth at risk of getting pulled into carjacking rings. And given the very troubling rise in domestic violence during the pandemic, we more than tripled our investment in DV shelters and services so that abused spouses and children can have safe places to go.
Let’s face it: the safest communities in our state aren’t the ones with the most police, the most arrests, the most people incarcerated. True safety doesn’t come from handcuffs or prison bars. It comes from economic stability, quality education, opportunity, and hope. It comes when people in crisis get treatment and love, not trauma and neglect.
No single budget, no one-time solution can reverse the decades of disinvestment and trauma that have led us to this moment. But in this year’s budget, and with the new policies we’ve passed, we’re making a down payment on true public safety. And we hope and believe that it’ll bear fruit.
One more wrap-up email to come next week! I’ll be talking about a few of the legislative initiatives I championed this year (ones you’ve heard about before if you’ve been reading these emails) and where those measures ended up.
If you have any questions about any of this, don’t hesitate to reach out. And we’ll be hosting another Coffee with Will on April 30th at The Brewed Coffee — if you’d like to talk further in person, please RSVP for that event here!
Sincerely,
Will
SHARE YOUR LEGISLATIVE FEEDBACK
COFFEE WITH WILL
Join Rep. Guzzardi for a free cup of coffee to discuss ongoing policy work and your neighborhood and community concerns.
Saturday, April 30
10:00am - 1:00pm
The Brewed Cafe, 2843 N Milwaukee Ave
OR call Rep. Guzzardi: (773) 853-2570
PROPERTY TAX APPEAL WORKSHOP
The Cook County Board of Review will be hosting a virtual workshop, in English and Spanish, for property owners to learn more about how to appeal their property tax assessments.
The webinar will be held on Wednesday, April 27th at 6pm. Register here!