It’s now a law
Friday, Aug 15, 2025 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* Sun-Times…
Gov. JB Pritzker on Thursday signed two measures aimed at strengthening union protections in Illinois amid the Trump administration’s stripping of federal workers’ union contracts.
The signing comes after the Federal Emergency Management Agency joined at least three other federal agencies in canceling contracts with unions to comply with a March executive order that said collective bargaining requirements no longer applied to many federal agencies. President Donald Trump said the cancellations were allowed because the agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency, play a role in national security, a claim that labor groups are disputing in court.
“With my signature, we are restoring hard fought worker protections that Trump and Congress are trying to destroy, protections that were established under the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Coal Mine Safety Act,” Pritzker said. “This new state law means Trump can’t take these rights away from Illinois workers.”
One measure requires that the Illinois Department of Labor replace any repealed federal occupational safety standard with a state standard to protect workers across the state. A second measure signed into law changes the Prevailing Wage Act and ensures that workers are paid the Illinois prevailing wage whenever it is higher than the federal rate when federal construction projects are administered by a state or local government.
* More from the governor’s press release…
HB1189 amends the Prevailing Wage Act, to ensure that when federal construction projects are administered by a state or local government, workers are paid the Illinois prevailing wage whenever it is higher than the federal rate. This ensures timely, fair compensation that reflects current local labor conditions, rather than waiting for federal adjustments.
HB2488, which the Governor signed previously but was highlighted at today’s ceremony, eliminates references to a federal program in the Equal Pay Act to ensure that federal changes do not undermine the state requirement that private employers with 100 or more employees report on employee wages by gender and race or ethnicity. The bill also clarifies that apprentices are not subject to a lower fringe benefit rate than journeymen under the Prevailing Wage Act.
* 25News Now…
An Illinois law taking effect next year will prioritize child internet crimes.
Illinois is joining 13 other states in enforcing “Alicia’s Law”, or HB2586, which will help prioritize state resources to combat child internet predators after Gov. JB Pritzker signed the bill on Monday.
Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly said ISP has opened 145 cases of internet child crimes in 2025. He said with the new law, internet crimes against kids are now a statutory, legal, and required mission of state police.
“About four years ago, ISP really started to focus on these internet crimes against children cases,” said Kelly. “We work very closely with our federal partners and our partners in the attorney general’s office. This something that has become a bigger part of what we do.”
* We told you about this recently-signed law last month. ABC Chicago…
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker recently signed a bill to crack down on squatting, but that law doesn’t go into effect until January 1. […]
[Army veteran Bradford Robinson] says his realtor came by his property last month to show a prospective buyer the house, but when they arrived, the lockbox had been broken and the locks were changed. […]
“The young lady in the house showed [the police] a bogus lease,” Robinson said. “With that being said, with the lease, the police said there’s nothing that they could do… the police actually asked me to have you come out to do a report because you seem to have a little bit more pull in getting things done.” […]
State Representative La Shawn Ford, who co-sponsored the squatter bill, met with the veteran to see what he could do to help.
“I’ve been working with Speaker Welch, and we’re gonna do everything we can,” Rep. Ford said. “I asked if we can file a bill to make it effective in October.”
- Anotheretiree - Friday, Aug 15, 25 @ 11:46 am:
I’m still baffeled how burglary, ceases to be burglary, if you spend the night and bring a pillow,toothbrush and fake lease ? Burglary seems to have a time limit on it being a crime?
- Remember the Alamo II - Friday, Aug 15, 25 @ 12:11 pm:
In order to prove a case of burglary, you would have to show that the offender 1. Knowingly entered the building 2. Without authority 3. With intent to commit therein a felony or theft.
Just being inside of someone’s house without authority isn’t a burglary unless they enter the premises with the intent to commit a burglary or theft inside. Otherwise its just trespassing.
- Irreverent - Friday, Aug 15, 25 @ 12:19 pm:
@Anotheretiree
If you don’t care about the health, safety, or well-being of renters, then it’s easy to have police deciding on the spot whether a given lease is valid.
- Grandson of Man - Friday, Aug 15, 25 @ 12:38 pm:
“March executive order that said collective bargaining requirements no longer applied to many federal agencies”
Imagine truly believing Republicans are the party of the working class. Grievances, maybe. Peddle those and get the anti-worker policies, workers voting to cut themselves. Thankfully it’s not an Illinois thing.
- Count Floyd - Friday, Aug 15, 25 @ 12:53 pm:
The problem is that the eviction process in Cook County doubled in length by administrative fiat of the chief judge. Pre-covid if a landlord had a squatter the issue could get in front of a judge in a matter of weeks. Now the entire process takes a minimum of five months. Criminals can be very smart and they exploited this. This whole issue could be solved if eviction courts went back to their original purpose of determining who is entitled to possession of property via an expedited court proceeding (that still allows a tenant/occupant to plead their case and present any relevant defense). Nor due I think this minor tweak in the law is going to solve this issue for victims of squatters.
- fs - Friday, Aug 15, 25 @ 1:00 pm:
== Otherwise its just trespassing.==
Which, last I checked, is still a crime.
== If you don’t care about the health, safety, or well-being of renters, then it’s easy to have police deciding on the spot whether a given lease is valid.==
If a person has broken a lockbox, changed the locks, and the house is listed as for sale. It shouldn’t be out of the realm that it could be probable cause for arrest.
If an officer doesn’t think there is probable cause, or just doesn’t want to deal with it, there has to be a middle ground for these situations beyond the drawn out eviction process. If it’s not a legit lease, there person doesn’t have a legal right to be there and should be removed, and it shouldn’t take six months to a year…or even a month…to determine that.