* Sen. Laura Fine’s 9th District congressional campaign…

Democratic State Senator Laura Fine, the only candidate in Illinois’ Ninth Congressional District Democratic Primary with ads on broadcast TV, is calling out right-wing Republicans for mobilizing against her legislation that would bar the roughly 12,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers hired by Donald Trump since his inauguration from working in state or local law enforcement.

“Republicans in Illinois and across the country take their marching orders from Donald Trump and Stephen Miller, and they are throwing the kitchen sink at my bill holding them accountable for inciting fear and violence in our community,” Senator Fine said. “I’ve never backed down from a fight—not when the insurance companies tried to bankrupt my family—and not when Donald Trump’s MAGA loyalists are making our communities less safe. In Congress, I’ll work to abolish ICE. Here at home, I’m working to make sure these officers, who are being hired without necessary training, cannot work for our law enforcement agencies as trusted community partners.”

Over the holiday weekend, Awake Illinois announced it was launching a “mobility campaign” against Senator Fine and her new legislation (SB 2820). More than 350 people have already contacted Senator Fine’s official office.

Highlights of Awake Illinois’s efforts:

- Shannon Adcock, Founder and President of Awake Illinois, said the group “will not back down until this harmful bill is defeated,” referred to ICE agents as “battle-tested federal pros.”

- Far-right news network Newsmax highlighted Senator Fine’s SB 2820, featuring State Rep. John Cabello (R-Machesney Park) calling the legislation “stupid.”

- Retired Riverside, Ill. Police Chief Tom Weitzel in a Tik Tok video likened the bill to “targeting African-Americans, Hispanic, Native Americans.”
- Illinois House Republican leadership has attacked the bill as a “radical sanctuary expansion,” claiming it unfairly targets officers hired during the Trump administration despite reports that show ICE agents were often hired without standard background checks.

- During a segment on AM 560 The Answer, radio hosts and guest commentators characterized Senator Fine’s legislation as a “Leninist-style purge” of law enforcement and a “political litmus test.”

Senator Fine previously championed legislation that banned civil ICE arrests in and around courthouses, expanded “sensitive location” protections to schools, hospitals and daycares, created a state cause of action to allow people to sue after violations of their constitutional rights and restricted state and local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. She has emerged as one of Illinois’ most effective lawmakers, with more than 190 bills passed into law. Her record includes landmark consumer protection measures that have lowered costs and helped make Illinois one of the most consumer-friendly states in the country.

* The Coalition for Small Business Lending Transparency…

Advocates, Small Business Owners to Urge Passage of “APR for All” Legislation Loophole exposes Illinois small businesses to APRs over 300%

WHO:

- State Rep. Kam Buckner, (D-Chicago)
- Horacio Méndez, President & CEO, Woodstock Institute
- Brad McConnell, CEO, Allies for Community Business
- Geri Aglipay, Senior Fellow, Small Business Majority
- Jay Goltz, Illinois Small Business Owner

WHAT:
A press conference featuring small business owners, nonprofits and advocates urging Illinois lawmakers to pass the Small Business Financing Transparency Act (HB744 HA #1), also known as “APR for All.”

The legislation would require non-bank lenders to disclose the Annual Percentage Rate (APR) of loans offered to small businesses, giving entrepreneurs the same transparency consumers have relied on for decades. Speakers will highlight how confusing loan pricing schemes obscure the true cost of credit, drain wealth from Illinois communities and disproportionately harm Black and Hispanic-owned businesses.

WHEN: Wednesday, January 21, 2026 10-10:30 am

WHERE: Illinois State Capitol Blue Room

* WAND…

Two local Republican lawmakers have introduced reforms for the Pretrial Fairness Act with backing from the Sangamon County Sheriff and State’s Attorney. […]

[Rep. Mike Coffey’s] plan would allow courts to deny pretrial release if someone is charged with any felony and prosecutors allege they pose a threat to public safety or are likely to miss court. Pretrial release could also be denied if the defendant has been convicted of two or more of the same felonies or misdemeanors.

Coffey and Rep. Wayne Rosenthal (R-Morrisonville) wanted advice from experts while crafting the proposal, so they worked with Sangamon County Sheriff Paula Crouch and State’s Attorney John Milhiser.

“It’s not throwing everything out or bringing back cash bail,” Milhiser said. “We don’t need to do it. We just need to make sure and ensure that those individuals in our communities causing crime and making it more dangerous are detained.”

* Rep. Kimberly DuBuclet…

State Representative Kimberly DuBuclet (D-Chicago) has introduced new legislation to expand voter registration opportunities for high school students across Illinois, honoring the legacy of civil rights icon Jesse Jackson, Sr. and his lifelong fight to make democracy accessible to all.

For decades, Rev. Jackson stood at the forefront of the struggle to protect and expand voting rights—organizing, marching, and challenging systems that excluded young people, Black communities, and working families from full participation in civic life. Naming this legislation in his honor is both a tribute and a statement of purpose: democracy only works when every generation is invited in. […]

Rep. DuBuclet filed House Bill 4339, the Jesse Jackson, Sr. Young Voter Empowerment Law, which would require Illinois high schools to provide students with the opportunity to register to vote in a nonpartisan setting. Participation would remain voluntary, and the bill explicitly prohibits partisan organizations from engaging in voter registration activities in schools—ensuring the process is educational, neutral, and student-centered.

* HB4483 from Rep. Mike Coffey…

Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Provides that if a person causes a fatality while operating a motor vehicle and it is determined that the fatality was caused entirely by the medical condition of the person, the Secretary of State shall suspend the person’s driver’s license until the person provides medical documentation that the medical condition is being treated. Effective immediately.

* The Tribune…

Two recent deaths at Chicago-area nursing homes highlight a growing problem not just of poor care, nursing home advocates say, but of difficulty in holding those responsible accountable. […]

The cases highlight common problems, advocates say, involving nursing homes that are run by a confusing web of shell corporations that avoid financial liability and increasingly are under- or uninsured, leaving them unable to compensate victims. […]

Lawyers who advocate for nursing home residents have talked to lawmakers about the problems, saying that state law should be changed to require better insurance for nursing homes and to require greater transparency in their ownership.

“It’s time to amend the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act,” attorney Margaret Battersby Black said. “No incentive to improve care or meet staffing requirements.”

The state did pass a nursing home reform law in 2022, which tied increased funding to increased staffing, and aimed at greater disclosure of nursing home ownership, but advocates say more needs to be done.