**UPDATED WITH DIRECT LINKS TO EACH BILL FOR WITNESS SLIP**
Special thanks to Illinois Family Institute (IFI) for sharing a legislative alert and recommendations on the following bills. They are a lighthouse in the bombastic waters of IL legislation!
They have provided recommendations and links with additional context. We are sharing these alerts with our members who may be empowered to support or oppose as "self" on the following bills-see step by step instructions at bottom.
Awake Illinois witness slips are filed on behalf of our 50,000+ members and supporters.
Note: Witness Slips must be filed BEFORE committee hearing start. Some may have expired below.
Illinois Senate Education Committee (Past Deadline for Witness Slips)
Tuesday, March 12, 2024, 2:00 PM, Room 212 Capitol Bldg.
SB 3261 (Fowler) – This provides that school boards conduct training, at least once every two years, for school employees on how to identify those children caught up in sex trafficking.
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois support. Filed witness slips.
Illinois Senate Public Health Committee (Past Deadline for Witness Slips)
Tuesday, March 12, 2024, 2:00 PM, Room 400 Capitol Bldg.
SB 3350 (Ellman) – Provides that Dept. of Human Services set up a program to dispense and distribute fentanyl test trips and train individuals to use them. Requires law enforcement agencies and “relevant fire departments” as well as all health care facilities in Illinois to use these fentanyl test strips (at no charge).
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois support. Filed witness slips.
Illinois House Judiciary – Criminal Committee (Past Deadline for Witness Slips)
Tuesday, March 12, 2024, 4:00 PM, Room D-1 Stratton Bldg.
HB 4332 (Cabello) – This bill increases penalties for someone caught giving or selling firearms while in custody of the Dept. of Corrections.
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois support. Filed witness slips.
HB 4623 (Gong-Gershowitz) – Under this bill, if someone is convicted of obscene depiction of a purported child, that person is ineligible to receive a school bus driver permit. This bill goes after the AI usages in child pornography in which a child appears to be, rather than is, portrayed in a sexual act.
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois support. Filed witness slips. This has bi-partisan support with dozens of co-sponsors, Democrat and Republican.
HB 4889 (Vella) – Increases penalties on those convicted of child pornography.
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois support. Filed witness slips.
HB 5134 (La Ha) -- This adds sex trafficking to the definition of the Sex Offender Registration Act.
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois support. Filed witness slips.This has bi-partisan support.
Illinois House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee
Wednesday, March 13, 2024, 8:00 AM, Room D-1 Stratton Bldg.
HB 2401 (Ford) – Requires school districts (including charter schools) to include books that are written by diverse authors, including, but not limited to, authors who are African American, women, Native American, LatinnX, and Asian. It also says that the reading material must not perpetuate bias against persons based on specified categories.
Recommendation: IFI opposes. Filed witness slip. AWAKE ILLINOIS ABSTAINED.
*HB 4133 (Croke) – This mandates public schools’ bullying prevention policies (that contain LGBTQ propaganda) into religious schools. This is against religious freedom as well as free speech.
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois oppose. Filed witness slips. Read more HERE.
*HB 4895 (Yang Rohr) – A more comprehensive bill that mandates teaching climate change in public schools by getting the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency involved in training and instruction materials.
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois oppose. Filed witness slips. Read more HERE.
Illinois House Human Services Committee
Wednesday, March 13, 2024, 8:30 AM, 118 Capitol
*HB 5239 (Cassidy) – Prohibits the state from cooperating or providing any information to those seeking to impose a civil or criminal liability upon out-of-staters seeking abortion-related services in Illinois. Specifically, this legislation shields from liability anyone in Illinois refusing to cooperate with any out-of-state law enforcement entities or agencies.
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois oppose. Filed witness slips.
Illinois House Economic Opportunity and Equity Committee
Wednesday, March 13, 2024, 2:00 PM, Room D-1 Stratton Bldg.
HB 4595 (Gonzalez) -- Provides that the Secretary of State shall include data fields on its annual report form that allows a corporation to report the aggregated demographic information of its directors and officers, including race, ethnicity, gender, disability status, veteran status, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Provides that, within 30 days after filing its annual AG990-IL Charitable Organization Annual Report, a corporation that reports grants of $1,000,000 or more to other charitable organizations shall post on its publicly available website the aggregated demographic information of the corporation's directors and officers, including race, ethnicity, gender, disability status, veteran status, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
Recommendation: IFI and Awake Illinois oppose. Filed witness slips.
HOW TO SUBMIT WITNESS SLIPS:
CLICK DIRECT LINK TO EACH BILL--see above links.
Fill out the form and choose PROPONENT (support) or OPPONENT (reject) depending on bill. Select "Record of Appearance" and CLICK "create (slip)" to submit witness slip.
Stay tuned for any additional legislative alerts.