* Sen. Cristopher Belt…

State Senator Christopher Belt passed a measure to stop gym and fitness centers from cancelling or changing benefits of a promised lifetime membership.

“We all know the feeling of being swamped by memberships and subscriptions, the last thing we need is a price hike on what was a promised rate.” said Belt (D-Swansea). “This legislation makes sure gyms and fitness centers are honest with their members.”

Belt’s measure is designed to prevent fitness centers and gyms from changing prices or reducing benefits for any “lifetime membership” price they advertise. If a fitness center wants to change prices or benefits for one of these contracts, they would have to clearly disclosure their intention when the gym membership contract is being signed.

“What we are trying to do here is uphold a standard for consumers,” said Belt. “Deceptive tactics looking to squeeze money from our residents will not be tolerated, no matter the industry.”

Senate Bill 314 passed the Senate on Thursday.

* Crain’s…

Opposing interests in the health care world are escalating their fight over an Illinois bill on the 340B drug discount program, which seeks to prevent pharmaceutical manufacturers from restricting which providers get the steep drug discounts allowed for in the federal 340B legislation.

Companion bills House Bill 3350 and Senate Bill 2385 follow the general text of legislation considered by other states that require drugmakers to give discounts to all the pharmacies that contract with hospitals and federally qualified health centers under 340B.

Numerous pharmaceutical manufacturers have restricted the scope of the federally mandated discounts to provider’s contracted pharmacies. While federal and state courts weigh in on whether drug companies can refuse discounts to contracted pharmacies, state legislatures are seeking to establish their own rules, with Arkansas and Louisiana already passing similar bills. […]

“It’s a bare-knuckled fight on both sides,” said Bill Sarraille, a health policy expert and professor at the University of Maryland. […]

Today marks SB2385’s deadline to get out of the Senate, while HB3350 remains in the House Rules Committee.

* WAND…

An Illinois bill to crackdown on third party warranties for car dealerships passed a Senate committee unanimously.

The plan would require any warranty deal outside the dealership to provide a copy of the contract which clearly displays a summary of all the costs.

These costs would include deductibles, service fees, coverage limits and repairs or services not covered by the contract. State Sen. Michael Halpin (D-Rock Island) said he’s seen these type of contracts in his district.

“Transactions they’ll have you pay for sometimes are lost in the fine print,” Halpin said. “So what this is designed to do is to get on very specific disclosure all in one place as to what’s covered and what’s not.”

* Center Square…

Operators of virtual currency kiosks in Illinois may soon be regulated by the state.

The Illinois Senate Executive Committee advanced legislation Wednesday which would place kiosks that exchange cryptocurrency and cash under supervision of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR).

State Sen. Laura Ellman, D-Naperville, said Senate Bill 2319 provides consumer protections.

“Currently there are no regulations, no consumer protections for cryptokiosks in Illinois. This bill establishes those consumer protections, and it also provides the industry a predictable setting to not only operate, but also grow here in Illinois,” Ellman said.

* Investigate Midwest…

The Good Food Purchasing Program (GFPP), proposed during this year’s Illinois General Assembly, would have required food vendors like M.J. Kellner to provide more information about how and where they source their food.

House Bill B3701 and Senate Bill 2187 would have significantly changed state food procurement practices, which advocates say are outdated and divert millions of public dollars out of state each year, instead of going to local farmers. The bills would have also raised standards for food companies’ labor, environmental and animal welfare practices.

However, state lawmakers did not pass the bills before a key legislative deadline in April.

“That is what you call a missed opportunity,” said Sen. Willie Preston, D-Chicago, the Senate bill’s sponsor.

* Sen. Suzy Glowiak Hilton…

After experiencing a sexual assault, survivors often face the added stress of figuring out how to get to a safe location once their medical exam is complete. To help ease this burden, State Senator Suzy Glowiak Hilton advanced a bill that would expand the state’s sexual assault services voucher program to cover transportation following treatment.

“No one should be left stranded after a traumatic experience,” said Glowiak Hilton (D-Western Springs). “This bill makes sure survivors can get to their next destination safely, without worrying about the cost.”

In Illinois, after an individual receives medical care for a sexual assault, hospitals issue a voucher that a patient can use for related health care expenses. The voucher is valid for 90 days from the date of their hospital visit and can be used to cover costs of ambulance rides, medical forensic or laboratory services, pharmacy expenses and follow-up health care treatment.

Glowiak Hilton’s measure, Senate Bill 1274, would expand the list of eligible expenses covered by the voucher to include taxi or rideshare services, such as Uber or Lyft, to return home or to the transferring hospital, or to reach a shelter. The legislation follows the recommendation of the Illinois Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Services Implementation Task Force, which identified rideshare services as a helpful option when providing support for sexual assault survivors. […]

Senate Bill 1274 passed the Senate on Thursday.

* Sen. Graciela Guzmán…

By collecting data on the need for more affordable housing options, State Senator Graciela Guzmán joined the initiative to incentivize government agencies and organizations to invest and support affordable housing projects throughout the state. […]

Illinois has passed legislation addressing housing insecurity by prioritizing the needs of the state’s most vulnerable to experiencing homelessness. The Office to Prevent and End Homelessness has implemented a multi-year strategy, Home Illinois, to strive towards functional zero homelessness statewide. Additionally, the Illinois Housing Development Authority finances and encourages the growth and preservation of affordable housing for renters at 80% of the area median income and below. These measures have worked to prevent some of the most vulnerable Illinoisans from experiencing homelessness.

However, folks earning between 80% and 140% of the area median income are often overlooked. Still facing a lack of reasonably priced housing, middle-income earners are pushed into the affordable housing market, making it less accessible for them and folks with even lower incomes.

House Bill 3616, led in the House by Rep. Will Guzzardi, aims to illuminate the demand for affordable housing and the lack of housing inventory that middle-income earners are facing. It would require IHDA to collect data on the available inventory of affordable housing in each local government in Illinois available for sale or for rent to extremely low-income and middle-income households. Every five years, IHDA would be required to publish the data collected, make the data available to the public, and report the data to the General Assembly. From there, it may be used to influence policy to invest in more development of affordable housing options. […]

House Bill 3616 passed the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.

* Brownfield Ag News…

The deputy director of the Illinois Stewardship Alliance says a proposal gaining momentum in the state legislature would expand on-farm processing exemptions for poultry producers.

Liz Rupel tells Brownfield it would increase the state’s exemption from 5,000 chickens per year.

“We are asking for it to increase to 7,500 to process those chickens on farm with the right facility in place.” She says, “We would love to see the ability for these farmers to sell those products at farmers markets.”

Currently only on-farm sales or deliveries from the farm are allowed. She says it’s a step toward bringing Illinois regulations in line with surrounding states. […]

She says the legislation has passed the Illinois House and is expected to see bipartisan support in the Senate this week.

* WAND…

A plan moving in the state capitol could create a task force to study how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted chronic absence of students.

This group could identify strategies, mechanisms, and approaches to help families, teachers, principals, and superintendents address chronic absence for K-12 students.

The state’s previous attendance commission’s work ended in December 2020, and lawmakers intended to bring a task force back to better understand the ongoing impact of the pandemic. […]

Senate Bill 407 passed unanimously out of the House Education Policy Committee Wednesday and now moves to the House floor for further consideration. The measure previously gained unanimous support in the Senate on April 9.