Veto Session Updates

Building on what has been a historic year in the state legislature, we had an extraordinarily busy and successful veto session this week in Springfield. Over the last two weeks, my colleagues and I worked extremely hard to pass legislation that continues to make our state a leader on equity, reproductive rights, and our response to the COVID pandemic. Here are a few of the highlights of the work we did as well as an important update on the state’s rental assistance program which is re-opening on November 8.

HB1291 - Congressional Maps

One of our primary tasks this veto session was to legislate boundaries for congressional districts as we are constitutionally required to do so every 10 years. I am proud to say we passed a historic map which for the first time ever creates two congressional districts that are Latinx influenced while preserving representation for other minority groups. This is a historic day for our state which recognizes the importance and impact of our growing and thriving Latinx communities.

HB1784 - Elected School Board Trailer

This summer I passed long awaited legislation to shift Chicago from an appointed school board to one that will be fully elected by 2026. One of the critical components of that legislation was a moratorium on school closures through this transition period from an appointed to an elected board. This veto session we passed legislation to ensure that this moratorium would be effective immediately to ensure that school closures will not be on the table at any time while we transition from an appointed board to a fully elected and representative school board.

HB2778 - Education Paid Covid leave

We also passed an important measure to protect educators during the COVID-19 pandemic. HB2788 provides COVID administrative leave for all school employees and guaranteed paycheck protection for non-instructional staff. Because of the bill, educators and school staff across our state will get paid time off when they or their children are forced to quarantine because of COVID illness or exposure. This time off will not impact an employee's earned sick leave.

HB370 - Parental Notification of Abortion Repeal

We continued our work to become one of the nation’s most progressive states on reproductive rights by repealing the Parental Notice of Abortion law. This was one of the remaining laws restricting access to reproductive care.

HB1769 Electric Vehicles

We passed legislation to incentivize the construction of electric vehicle manufacturing in our state. This was passed in collaboration with labor stakeholders to ensure that as this growing industry expands in our state, we will be creating good paying jobs for workers.

HB 2791 - Reimagine Public Safety

We also passed HB 2791, an update to the Reimagine Public Safety Act that will ensure that state resources to address gun violence will be targeted at the communities that are most in need of those resources. This includes Humboldt Park.

Rental Assistance

While we did not take further action on housing this veto session, earlier this week I joined Governor Pritzker to announce a new round of rental assistance through the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA), which will be opening its application process on November 8. If your household or your tenant has experienced hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic, you may be eligible for rental assistance through IHDA or DHS. To see eligibility requirements and for the latest updates on the new program launching Nov 8, you can visit illinoisrentalassistance.org.