🏛️End of Session Updates: Projects For Next Year
Dear Neighbor,
Last week I shared with you the five bills I sponsored that are headed to the Governor's desk to become law. He should be signing them in August.
Today, I want to share some of the projects I worked on that didn't pass this year. This happens! In fact, almost every major bill I've passed in my career has been a multi-year fight.
We talked about this one earlier this spring, but I've spent a lot of time taking on the car insurance industry. You may have noticed your premiums going up quite a lot recently. Well, there's no state regulation on how much they can raise your rates. And they're allowed to use all kinds of discriminatory factors in setting the premiums — not just how safely you drive, but your credit score, your ZIP code, employment, education, homeownership, all kinds of things that have nothing to do with driving.
I introduced a bill to take on these unfair practices this year. But the industry lobbyists are very powerful in Springfield. Allstate and State Farm are both based in Illinois, and they're very influential with my colleagues. So we couldn't get it passed this year, but we had really good committee hearings and have gotten a lot of my colleagues on board with the idea that something needs to be done.
Another really important issue I worked on was returning state-owned land to the Potawatomi Nation. In 1829, the federal government signed a treaty with the Prairie Band Potawatomi guaranteeing their ownership of 1280 acres in Illinois. Twenty years later, the government sold that land illegally to a group of white settlers. The Nation has been fighting to get the land back ever since. Today, much of that land is in the Shabbona Lake State Park. Our bill would cede ownership of the park to the Prairie Band, correcting a historic injustice while keeping the park open to the public.
It's been an incredible honor to get to work on this issue, to meet the Prairie Band leaders, and to advocate for this bill. It passed the Senate, and I even debated it on the House floor (you can watch some highlights of that debate here). But the Republicans were able to stop the bill on esoteric procedural grounds, so we'll have to come back and do it this fall.
I had a couple of smaller bills hit roadblocks too. A measure to increase safety for sex workers, a bill to improve hearings for individuals seeking medical release from prison, and a proposal to let craft breweries have mug clubs and rewards programs all got hung up.
And my colleagues worked on some other important topics that we'll need to revisit in the near future. The House passed a bill to repeal the subminimum wage for adults with disabilities, but that still needs passage in the Senate. And we really need to do something about hemp-derived THC products (delta-8, delta-9, etc.). These products are completely unregulated, can be legally sold to minors, and they don't have any product safety or labeling requirements. I think we need to regulate the bad actors in this space. But we also need a way for responsible hemp producers to keep selling their products — our good friends at Hopewell and Marz Brewing make hemp-derived THC beverages that they label and sell responsibly, and I don't think we should force them to shut that down entirely. The legislature considered some bills on this topic but didn't wind up passing anything this year.
Anyway, all this is to say: we've got more work to do! We will return to session in November, and whatever we don't finish then will be ripe for next year's spring session.
That's all for Springfield updates — back to your regularly scheduled programming next week!
All my best,
Will
Legislative Town Hall
Join our Progressive Northwest Side Caucus members to learn more about the groundbreaking legislative victories we've achieved this session and to share your questions and feedback with your legislators! We'll delve into key topics such as the state budget, increased funding for affordable housing initiatives, efforts to end homelessness, and continued support for our immigrant community. Our town hall will be held at Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center, 4048 W Armitage Ave on Thursday, July 11, 5:30pm to 7:30pm. RSVP here: bit.ly/townhallspring.
Office Closure Notice
Our office will be closed on Wednesday, June 19 in honor of Juneteenth. We wish everyone a safe, reflective holiday. We will reopen on Thursday, June 20 from 9:00am - 5:00pm. Please contact us at (773) 853-2570 or at will@repguzzardi.com for assistance.
IDCFS Virtual Employment Workshops
The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services is seeking qualified candidates for a number of positions across the state. They are hosting Virtual Employment Workshops from July through December. Find more information on the flier above. Apply directly at dcfsjobs.illinois.gov.