* Capitol News Illinois…

Illinois lawmakers have decided to delay a ban on “swipe fees” for another year as bankers are locked in a court battle with the state over the ban.

Lawmakers passed the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act last spring as part of the legislative package that enacted the state budget. It prohibits financial institutions from charging fees on the tax and tip portions of credit and debit card transactions. The rest of the transaction, including the price of goods or services, would still be subject to the fees.

The ban was supposed to take effect on July 1, but lawmakers voted with strong bipartisan majorities Sunday morning to pass House Bill 742 to push the ban back until July 2026. […]

The measure pushing back the effective date still needs approval from Gov. JB Pritzker.

* WAND…

In the state capitol, a set of three bills passed this recent legislative session to improve school safety drill procedures.

One plan would require the Illinois State Board of Education to work with the State Fire Marshall, State Police, and Illinois Emergency Management Agency to develop clear threat assessment procedures and rapid entry response plans. [..]

Another proposal would require guidance on how schools handle emergencies involving chemical spills for explosions. […]

The third bill would require all substitute teachers to be trained in their school districts safety procedures.

* Sen. Bill Cunningham…

State Senator Bill Cunningham advanced a measure through the Senate that would ensure protected leave for employees whose newborns require intensive care after birth. […]

Under Cunningham’s measure, employees of mid-sized companies with 16-50 employees would be eligible for up to 10 days of unpaid leave while their child is in a NICU, while those working for larger companies with 51 or more employees would be eligible for up to 20 days. This leave is in addition to protections under the Family and Medical Leave Act and ensures continued health insurance coverage and job protection throughout the leave period.

Cunningham’s nephew was born prematurely and was placed in the NICU for months. Through this experience, he saw firsthand the tremendous burden on family members facing similar situations. […]

House Bill 2978 passed the Senate on Saturday.

* WCIA…

When law enforcement finds a gun while investigating a crime scene, they can track its history on a national database called eTrace. A bill that passed both chambers of the statehouse would require all law enforcement agencies to use it.

Illinois law enforcement agencies have been encouraged to partner with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ software in the past. But now a bill on the governor’s desk would make that mandatory.

Law enforcement leaders like Kenny Winslow, the Executive Director of the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police, said many of the smallest departments didn’t have the resources to participate before.

“It requires a lot of staffing hours to try to back trace this,” he said.

* CBS Chicago…

New legislation aiming to help solve missing persons cases is headed to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk for final approval.

The Missing Persons Identification Act requires law enforcement to report immediately when they learn of a missing person and enter it into the Law Enforcement Agencies Data System.

If a person is missing for more than 60 days, investigators will be required to also collect any existing fingerprint or dental records and photos and enter that info into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System database.

The legislation also requires that missing persons cases remain active and in databases until the person is found.

* Capitol News Illinois…

Lawmakers in both chambers unanimously passed Senate Bill 73, which bans the sale and distribution of baby food in Illinois that contains levels of toxic elements – including arsenic, cadmium, lead or mercury – that surpasses the limits set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The bill now only needs a signature from the governor to become law.

Under SB73, any manufacturer selling baby food in Illinois would be required to test a sample of their product monthly to ensure the levels of toxic elements contained in the product fall in line with the limits set by the FDA. The bill also gives the Illinois Department of Public Health the right to request and review manufacturers’ testing results and requires manufacturers to publish the levels of each toxic element in each of their products on the manufacturer’s website.

Manufacturers who sell products in Illinois would also have to print a QR code on the label of any baby food that contains toxic elements that are limited by the FDA. The QR would be required to direct consumers to the product’s testing information and FDA guidelines on “the health effects of the toxic element on children.”

The bill comes after a study published in 2019 by Healthy Babies Bright Futures, which found that 95% of 168 baby foods tested for toxic elements contained one or more contaminants. One in four of the baby foods tested in the study contained all four elements, with arsenic being found in 73% of the baby foods tested and lead in 94% of the products. […]

If signed by the governor, the bill will take effect on Jan. 1, 2026.