* Background is here if you need it. HB5862 from Rep. Kevin Olickal…

Provides that a municipality or a law enforcement agency may not enforce any provision of law restricting or punishing an individual for sleeping in public spaces in a nonobstructive manner within a municipality if the municipality’s homeless population exceeds the number of available beds in homeless shelters within the municipality. Provides that “nonobstructive manner” means in a manner that does not render passageways, walkways, or roadways impassable or hazardous. Limits the concurrent exercise of home rule powers.

* The Gun Violence Prevention PAC…

In the wake of last week’s school shooting in Georgia, the Gun Violence Prevention PAC (G-PAC) of Illinois joined with Sen. Laura Ellman and Rep. Maura Hirschauer to announce a push to change Illinois’ gun storage law to prevent minors and other at-risk individuals from accessing deadly weapons and inflicting tragedy.

The Safe Firearm Storage Act (SB 3527/HB 5065) would strengthen existing Illinois law around safe firearm storage to better prevent a tragedy like the horrific shooting that occurred in Winder, Ga. Illinois law, unlike Georgia, requires locked storage of a gun in some cases, but only if there is a person aged 13 or younger living in the house.

The recently proposed safe storage legislation would change the age limit to require secure, locked storage for weapons in a home with a minor aged 18 or younger.

“Simple changes in our laws can help save countless lives, and G-PAC is committed to making those changes with the help of our gun safety champions,” said Kathleen Sances, President and CEO of G-PAC, Illinois’ leading gun violence prevention advocacy organization. “A 14-year-old child should never have access to a firearm. We don’t need to keep living this way.”

“Illinois is committed to leading the charge in gun violence prevention, and the next crucial step is ensuring safe firearm storage,” Ellman said. “Proper gun storage is a lifesaving measure. Incidents like the tragic mass shooting at Apalachee High School should never be considered an inevitable part of life – they are a failure of our system. Legislation that mandates safe storage can help avert such tragedies and address the everyday horrors of unintentional shootings by children and teen gun suicide.”

“Our heart breaks for the families impacted in Georgia’s school shooting, but we won’t just offer our thoughts and prayers - we will act,” Hirschauer said. “We will build on our record of nation-leading gun violence prevention legislation and ensuring safe storage of firearms is a common-sense measure long overdue.”

While the legislation was introduced last spring session, the Illinois General Assembly did not act on it. G-PAC is launching the “Safe At Home” campaign to push for the legislation this fall, as well as a bill to strengthen reporting requirements around lost and stolen weapons.

Details of the Safe Firearm Storage Act:

- Prohibit someone from leaving a firearm outside of their immediate possession or control unless it is unloaded and secured in a lock box or container that makes it inaccessible to anyone but the owner or another legally authorized user.
- Prohibits storing or leaving a firearm where the owner would know a minor, an at-risk person, or someone prohibited from using firearms is likely to gain access to them.
- Defines “Minor” as a person aged 18 and under.
- Adds “At-risk person” as someone who has made statements or exhibited behavior to a reasonable person there is a likelihood the person is at risk of attempting suicide or causing physical harm to oneself or others.
- Adds “Prohibited person” as a person ineligible under federal or state law to possess a firearm.
- Adds civil penalties associated with the failure to safely secure firearms:
- Violations begin at $500 and escalate to $1,000 if a person knowingly prohibited from accessing a gun obtains a weapon.
- Establishes a penalty of $10,000 if a minor, at-risk person, or someone prohibited from having a firearm obtains one and uses it to injure or cause the death of someone or uses it in a crime.
Fines received from penalties will benefit the Mental Health fund.
- At first violation, court may impose community service or restitution in lieu of civil penalties.

* Rep. Harry Benton…

In an effort to decrease prescription drug costs and expand access to lifesaving medications, Rep. Harry Benton, D-Plainfield, has filed a bill requiring insurance companies to pass along rebate savings to patients.

“Too often, high prices make it hard for working families to afford their prescriptions,” Benton said. “My bill aims to reduce the cost of prescription drugs, making quality healthcare more affordable and accessible for Illinois families. It reflects my commitment to putting working families first and prioritizes people’s health rather than profits.”

Benton filed House Bill 5865, which would require insurers to apply any rebate amount they receive to the shared cost of prescription drugs between an individual and insurer. Any rebate that is greater than the defined shared cost amount will be applied to an individuals’ premium, reducing insurance premiums as well. The bill requires the price of a prescription drug to be determined at the point of sale after at least 100% of all rebates received by the insurer have been applied to the price.

“We’ve all seen how the cost of living in Illinois has increased at a rapid pace over the past few years, much the same as has happened across the country.” Benton said. “We’re working hard to increase the affordability of living in Illinois and driving value to working families. Because when we support working families, we help keep moving Illinois forward.”

* UChicago Harm Reduction Project founder Eshan Dosani and University of Chicago professor Harold Pollack…

Fifty-six years after the Fair Housing Act banned redlining and racial discrimination in housing, economic and racial segregation remains entrenched across our state. Indeed, Illinois ranks first among the 50 states in the share of Black residents living in census tracts that are at least 90% Black. By some measures, Chicago remains the most segregated large city in America.

Across political lines, residents of our state acknowledge the aftershocks of decades of legally sanctioned racial segregation that denied millions of people proper access to public services, education and housing opportunities. Many of us in comfortable circumstances are less comfortable acknowledging other policies that perpetuate equally stark economic and racial divides and that specifically exclude low-income families from our own communities. […]

Given our state’s checkerboard pattern of local governance and land-use authorities, addressing this problem requires something more: coordinated action at the state level. Last legislative session, state Rep. Kam Buckner and co-sponsor Rep. Theresa Mah introduced several bills to limit exclusionary zoning in Illinois, including a bill to end the practice of single-family-only zoning restrictions in cities with populations of more than 100,000 people. Under this bill, cities would no longer be allowed to decree that only the most expensive housing — single family homes — can be built and must allow the construction of multifamily housing on residentially zoned land.

Chicago’s state legislators should put their full support behind this bill. It’s a show-don’t-tell moment for all those who claim to support housing affordability, equal opportunity and the need to address the legacy of racial and economic segregation.

* Chicago Ald. Gil Villegas…

As Chicago wrestles with a billion-dollar FY 2025 budget deficit, supporters will join Alderman Gil Villegas (36th Ward) on Wednesday, September 11th, for a press conference to advocate for passage of the data residency ordinance — an ordinance designed to incentivize the storage of city data within city limits, which will support the development of new data centers within Chicago, which can generate millions in new revenue without increasing taxes on residents, while also creating jobs and economic development in underserved communities.

Currently, the city spends hundreds of millions of dollars to store taxpayer data in other cities and states, allowing them to profit from Chicagoans’ data and their tax dollars. At the press conference, prominent leaders from community organizations, faith groups, and businesses will emphasize the importance of storing city data locally to support economic development. The City Chicago Council Economic, Capital and Technology Development Committee will hold a hearing on the ordinance directly following the press conference.