Q: Why do you think the governor is pushing so hard for this vaccination mandate and doing away or at least amending the right of conscience act?
Bailey: I’ve said from day one, follow the money. I think it has a lot to do with the money. Big pharma money. I can’t prove that. But all the actions lead to that when we see each and every day the proof of even of even, you know, vaccinated people still dying from COVID, still catching it again. We’re not seeing the numbers and proof and the data and the facts that they say that they have.
Q: I’m thinking that money is a big part of this, probably the biggest part of this. But isn’t there a sense of we have the power to do this and this is a way we can control you?
Bailey: Again, we said it earlier. Marxism. Just how do you destroy a constitutional republic? This seems to be a pretty plausible roadmap to do that.
Whew. The drama is strong in that one.
* I’m assuming he wants his unvaccinated members to be paid in full by the city if they catch the virus and have to quarantine for 14 days…
Police union President John Catanzara said Tuesday his union members would agree to testing every day, but he’s still encouraging members to defy the city’s vaccine mandate.
“We will be OK with our members getting a rapid test every day they report to work, before they walk into roll call so they know if you’re contagious or not. Your vaccine status shouldn’t matter at that point,” Catanzara said.
Catanzara said officers who test negative would go to work.
“If you’re positive, you go home, go onto medical (leave) and quarantine for 14 days. It’s the simplest solution to stop the spread, if that’s what they really wanted to do,” he said.
Paying the unvaxed to stay home doesn’t seem fiscally prudent. If they take the risk, they should pay for the consequences.
Fourteen employees of NorthShore University HealthSystem are suing the hospital system, alleging that NorthShore won’t let them keep their jobs because of their religious objections to getting COVID-19 vaccines.
Liberty Counsel, which describes itself as a Christian ministry that advocates for religious freedom, is representing the 14 NorthShore employees in the lawsuit, which it filed on Monday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The lawsuit seeks class-action status.
Liberty Counsel—an evangelical nonprofit legal foundation—has been offering pro bono representation for clients in pursuit of religious exemption. The group previously focused on more traditional culture-war issues like anti-abortion suits and cases seeking to deny LGBTQ Americans their rights but Liberty’s founder, Mathew Staver, shares many of his clients conspiratorial views about vaccines and likes to air them in public. In speeches, he’s called COVID-19 shots part of a “depopulation” conspiracy to force the world to “have a tracking mechanism to determine whether or not you’ve had one of these particular injections.”
Just recently, one of Liberty Counsel’s most prominent cases involved health-care workers in Maine with a suit aimed at overturning the state’s vaccine mandate for hospital and nursing home employees. Last week, the Supreme Court declined to grant an emergency injunction as the case plays out in lower courts.
* More…
* COVID-19 update: 2,213 new cases, 34 more deaths, 1,230 hospitalizations: The state’s positivity rate for COVID-19 cases is 1.9% based on a seven-day average.
* Four Measures That Are Helping Germany Beat COVID: Ensure That Mass Events Don’t Facilitate Mass Transmission; Make Testing Cheap and Easy; Throw Out Those Cloth Masks (in favor of KN95 masks); Figure Out Contact Tracing
Aside from brief language at the very bottom repealing the Parental Notification of Abortion law, the amendment creates the Youth Health and Safety Act…
The Youth Health and Safety Act seeks to restate Illinois’ commitment to full and equitable access to reproductive health care for all persons across the State, without barriers based on race or ethnicity, immigration status, age, geographic location, economic means, education level, or other categories of identity. The Act confirms that Illinois will not move backwards and will continue to assure that reproductive rights are protected and recognized.
It also creates the Youth Health and Safety Advisory Working Group and specifies duties and responsibilities, including…
The Youth Health and Safety Advisory Working Group is created for the purpose of identifying and reviewing laws and regulations that impact pregnant and parenting youth and youth that may become pregnant or a parent. The working group shall identify existing and needed resources for pregnant and parenting youth, and youth seeking reproductive healthcare. In this Act, “youth” means an individual under 18 years of age. The working group shall prepare and make public a report that details available information and makes recommendations as necessary.
The act would sunset in 2024.
Discuss.
…Adding… Very small rally today opposing the bill…
It’s different for the new 3rd — with only a 43.75% Hispanic voting age population, it is barely a minority district. One estimate from a Democratic political operative — discounting for folks who can’t vote and youths who don’t vote — put the number of Hispanics who will actually vote in the new 3rd at 37%.
A Democratic primary with multiple Hispanics will divide the Hispanic vote, leaving the door wide open for a non-Hispanic candidate to claim the seat.
Three candidates are already mulling bids.
Ald. Gilbert Villegas, (36th) told Sun-Times City Hall reporter Fran Spielman on Monday he is “seriously considering” a bid.
Sun-Times politics writer Rachel Hinton reports that Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Chicago, said in a statement she’s “carefully” considering a run for Congress. State Sen. Omar Aquino, D-Chicago, the chair of the Senate Redistricting Committee, is also expected to look at a run.
More are expected to jump in once the map is finalized. This could be a once-in-a-generation opportunity.
Tuesday, Oct 26, 2021 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Illinois families will soon be losing their opportunity to purchase dogs and cats from safe, highly-regulated local pet retailers, such as Petland, who offer their customers the choice of a pet that best fits their needs and provide health warranties. This change is coming because the state’s Animal Welfare Act has been updated through HB 1711 which bans the retail sales of dogs and cats obtained from licensed and regulated professional breeders.
But HB 1711 needs fixing, because while singularly blocking retail pet sales, it fails to strengthen any animal standards or protections at unregulated puppy mills across the state. Consumers looking for particular breeds will have no choice but to purchase dogs from unregulated breeders or dog auctions – thus perpetuating puppy mills. Responsible breeders and retailers will be heavily penalized while HB 1711 does nothing to address the issue of substandard breeders across the state.
Petland is dedicated to improving animal welfare and we have publicly demonstrated this commitment; in fact, we support the Humane Society’s petition effort to improve standards of care. Petland’s breeder pledge is a commitment to provide more space, more exercise, and more socialization for their pets plus numerous other improvements to standards of care.
Tuesday, Oct 26, 2021 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Many patients in Illinois rely on copay assistance to access and afford their prescription medications, often in instances when no generic option exists. Recognizing the important role copay assistance plays for patients, Illinois took legislative action to prohibit health plans from instituting “copay accumulator” policies that don’t apply copay assistance towards patient out-of-pocket costs.
Illinois stood with patients then – and must do so again.
Illinois can show leadership by ensuring patients are protected from these policies and have the guarantee that their copay assistance will count. At a time when Illinoisans are struggling financially from COVID-19, the state should protect the broadest set of patients to help them access critical medications for conditions like cancer and HIV.
Patient advocates are calling for our leaders in Springfield to stand with patients. We hope they answer that call. Tell Congress to count all copays. Stand with patients and support HR 516.
Tuesday, Oct 26, 2021 - Posted by Advertising Department
[The following is a paid advertisement.]
Dear members of the Illinois General Assembly:
As organizations, we support the repeal of Illinois’ Parental Notice of Abortion Act, and urge the General Assembly to take up legislation to get rid of this dangerous law during the current veto session.
Decades of research and experience demonstrate that such forced parental involvement laws hurt young people and serve no valid purpose. Most young people will involve a parent or other adult family member in their decision about having an abortion voluntarily regardless of what the law says. The minority of young people who do not talk to their parents in this situation have grave concerns such as: fear of physical or emotional abuse, loss of financial support, or homelessness; fear of being forced to give birth against their will; or serious family problems such as a parent who is sick or imprisoned.
This law has been in effect and putting young people in our state in harm’s way for over eight years, and the time for the General Assembly to protect youth and repeal this law is now. The urgency of eliminating this dangerous barrier to abortion access is all the more apparent with a case to overturn Roe v. Wade pending in the U.S. Supreme Court, and a new radical law in Texas that authorizes individual bounty hunters to enforce a ban on abortion.
Here's how it often plays out: a young person is shot and killed, and a year later a birthday or event anniversary pops up on Facebook. A rival group may do something disrespectful with the post, and the deceased's friends take action.
We understand the roles that social media played in the capitol attack and on vaccine misinformation. Why do we not frame conflicts that lead to gun violence with the same lens?
A St. Louis-to-Chicago gun trafficking network began with a relationship that was kindled on an online sneaker marketplace, federal authorities say.
Two men who met on a Facebook specialty sneaker group started trading guns for marijuana about a year ago, authorities say.
Over the past week, Chicago police and ATF agents arrested those men and their supplier, a 71-year-old Missouri retiree who’d traveled the country to buy weapons at gun shows, according to affidavits filed in federal court by an agent with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Behind the scenes, Facebook programmed the algorithm that decides what people see in their news feeds to use the reaction emoji as signals to push more emotional and provocative content — including content likely to make them angry. Starting in 2017, Facebook’s ranking algorithm treated emoji reactions as five times more valuable than “likes,” internal documents reveal. The theory was simple: Posts that prompted lots of reaction emoji tended to keep users more engaged, and keeping users engaged was the key to Facebook’s business.
Facebook’s own researchers were quick to suspect a critical flaw. Favoring “controversial” posts — including those that make users angry — could open “the door to more spam/abuse/clickbait inadvertently,” a staffer, whose name was redacted, wrote in one of the internal documents. A colleague responded, “It’s possible.”
The warning proved prescient. The company’s data scientists confirmed in 2019 that posts that sparked angry reaction emoji were disproportionately likely to include misinformation, toxicity and low-quality news.
That means Facebook for three years systematically amped up some of the worst of its platform, making it more prominent in users’ feeds and spreading it to a much wider audience. The power of the algorithmic promotion undermined the efforts of Facebook’s content moderators and integrity teams, who were fighting an uphill battle against toxic and harmful content. […]
When Facebook finally set the weight on the angry reaction to zero, users began to get less misinformation, less “disturbing” content and less “graphic violence,” company data scientists found. As it turned out, after years of advocacy and pushback, there wasn’t a trade-off after all. According to one of the documents, users’ level of activity on Facebook was unaffected.
Former state representative and Breakthrough Ideas’ CEO Jeanne Ives presented evidence today that 1,343 DuPage County registered voters no longer lived at their registered DuPage County address when they voted on Nov. 3, 2020.
Watch the full press conference here.
By law, these votes are fraudulent and invalid, as one cannot vote from an address where one does not reside.
Ives said the 1,343 voters were identified by comparing county voter records to the National Change of Address database; they each filled out forms attesting to the federal government that they had moved prior to September 1, 2020, so the Post Office would forward their mail.
Ives was joined by lead analyst John Morrissey of Elmhurst (?), who explained the process by which his team produced the analysis. […]
Here is an example:
State Voter ID 2J7HR72Y changed addresses in March 2020 from Hinsdale to Naples Florida according to the NCOA. We verified through the County Treasurer’s office that property owned by that individual for which the individual was registered to vote from, was sold in March 2020. We have a match with the NCOA that the voter moved and a match from the Treasurer’s office that the voter sold the home. Voter records show that the voter, though, voted by mail using the Hinsdale address in November 2020. This voter remains on the latest voter list.
Morrissey is the Vice-Chair of the York Township Republican Party.
Adam Johnson, spokesman for DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek, said in a statement the office follows federal law in maintaining its voter rolls, using everything from death certificates to undeliverable mail to biannual change of address notifications to keep the list up to date.
He said the one voter Ives highlighted at her news conference — a person who allegedly moved to Florida from Hinsdale but still listed the old address while voting by mail — notified the clerk’s office months before the election that they had moved elsewhere within DuPage County and cast the proper ballot.
* This was a compromise with the mayor’s office that would also allow for an immediate moratorium on school closures…
Another measure that could be considered is a change to a legislation that passed this spring and was subsequently signed into law by Pritzker that would put a fully elected school board in place in Chicago in January 2027.
Under a proposed amendment to the law, Chicago’s mayor would be able to make 10 appointments to the board and choose its president without having to seek City Council approval. Previously, the bill required her appointments to be approved by aldermen, which Lightfoot opposed.
The Pritzker administration also is seeking approval of a package of tax credits and incentives to encourage more manufacturing of electric vehicles and their components in the state, following in the wake of the interest in vehicles being produced by Rivian in the former Mitsubishi Motors plant in Normal.
The proposed Reimagining Electric Vehicles in Illinois Act, or the “REV” act, would provide for tax credits for large business development and allow businesses to claim some if not all of income tax withholdings attributable to new employees. It also would provide for construction job credits for building facilities, create a streamlined permitting process and establishes a state government procurement price preference for electric vehicles built in Illinois.
Two years ago, state Rep. Carol Ammons pushed — and came close to passing — legislation opening the way for electing more Democratic judges in downstate counties like Champaign.
Now Ammons’ bill has been re-cast in a plan to create judicial sub-circuits in counties with populations over 150,000. And Champaign County Chief Judge Randy Rosenbaum isn’t happy about it.
Meanwhile, the progress toward getting more of the state workforce vaccinated came as legislation surfaced to tighten a decades-old state law so that it can’t be used to evade state and local vaccination mandates.
The measure sponsored by state Rep. Robyn Gabel, D-Evanston, would amend the state Health Care Right of Conscience Act, which offers liability protections for medical practitioners unwilling to perform abortions or offer contraception on moral grounds.
The law has been cited increasingly by educators and police officers trying to defend against potential job losses over their philosophical objections to being forced to be vaccinated for COVID-19 by their government employers.
Gabel’s amendment would explicitly note that the law does not offer protections for those wanting to invoke it to sidestep mandated COVID-19 vaccinations and empower governments to terminate workers who don’t comply with vaccination orders.
Despite Pritzker’s backing, its prospects this week are hazy, and Gabel did not immediately respond to WBEZ for comment.
A spokeswoman for House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, D-Hillside, stopped short of predicting passage Monday but said he “supports getting it done” and is “ready to listen and compromise.”
* Subscribers know much more about this caucus and what happened afterward, but here’s Politico…
If the fireworks that erupted in yesterday’s House Democratic Caucus meeting are any indication, Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s amendment to the Health Care Right of Conscience Act is in trouble. […]
During caucus meeting Monday, Rep. Mary Flowers spoke passionately about how the amendment would target the state’s poorest residents.
Flowers said amending the law would primarily affect working-class residents who have to get up and go out every day to their jobs. Employees working in the corporate world or who have office jobs that allow them to work at home aren’t likely to be affected by Pritzker’s amendment, Flowers told caucus members, according to folks in the room.
Lawmakers are also frustrated that they haven’t heard from Pritzker or his “well-paid deputy governors” to better explain why they should vote for the amendment.
Because the measure would take effect immediately, it needs 71 votes to pass, and the buzz is that those votes just aren’t there.
How we’ll know: The bill will only be called if the numbers add up.
This isn’t really about deputy governors. This is about people believing some very weird stuff or being unclear on what the bill is intended to do.
* The opposition is very small, but very well organized and intense…
I’ve never seen this before. Nearly 30k people went online and filled out a witness slip to oppose stronger vaccine mandate powers, and they did it in less than 24 hours. Several anti-vax groups are organizing on Facebook and directing people to fill out witness slips. pic.twitter.com/rgpwy6YkSI
Still haven’t heard anyone articulate a serious religious objection to spitting into a tube to make sure you’re not infecting your coworkers with Coronavirus. The bill would still allow employers to provide a testing alternative to the vaccine. pic.twitter.com/gxxolvebsC
A suburban judge granted a temporary restraining order to a group of nurses who sued Riverside Healthcare over the hospital system’s vaccine mandate.
Kankakee County Judge Nancy Nicholson granted the temporary restraining order until Nov. 19. She will then hold a hearing on a motion for a preliminary injunction requested by the nurses.
Liberty Justice Center Managing Attorney Daniel Suhr said the ruling was a win.
“Today’s ruling marks an important step toward victory for these nurses – and it sends a signal to all Americans about the importance of fighting for your rights,” he said. “Employers and government officials should take note that forcing people to violate their conscience not only is wrong, it’s illegal. No one should be forced to choose between keeping their job and sacrificing their beliefs.”
The nurses sued Riverside Healthcare on Oct. 13 claiming the state’s Health Care Right of Conscience Act gives them the right to refuse the COVID-19 vaccine. The nurses said their religious beliefs conflict with getting the vaccine.
The blow-up occurred in a caucus of House Democrats when several Black lawmakers came out against the bill, with Rep. Mary Flowers, D-Chicago, alleging at one point that the same “synthetic” ingredients used to produce crack cocaine are used in making COVID vaccinations.
The Black members later met with Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, who tried to convince them the intent of the freedom of conscious act is being abused. I hear different things about whether Raoul’s pitch worked. We’ll find out when and if the bill is called for a vote before the veto session’s scheduled end on Thursday.
“When he ran for office, Governor Pritzker pledged to veto any congressional map that wasn’t drawn by a fair and independent commission. But now he’s changed his tune in a desperate ploy to help Nancy Pelosi keep the majority in Congress,” Republican Illinois Rep. Mike Bost told Fox News.
This requires only a simple yes or no response: Will you pledge as governor to veto any state legislative redistricting map proposal that is in any way drafted or created by legislators, political party leaders and/or their staffs or allies? The exception, of course, would be the final official draft by LRB.
Emphasis added.
* I suggested that this FiveThirtyEight writer delete this tweet and hilarity ensued…
The map puts GOP Rep. Rodney Davis in a Dem-leaning seat & sets up a likely GOP incumbent-vs-GOP incumbent primary. It also creates a new majority-Hispanic #IL03 at the expense of Marie Newman, who's thrown in with Sean Casten. https://t.co/6bnNFbCTL9pic.twitter.com/GLwnL9T4T1
* While we’re on the topic, here’s some more remap stuff…
* Democrats propose revised congressional map as last week of veto session approaches: U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood no longer would represent parts of Springfield and Sangamon County under the latest proposal for new congressional district boundaries released over the weekend by General Assembly Democrats who control the map-making process.
* Give him credit, Sen. Bailey is always on-brand…
Though the gubernatorial primary isn’t until June 2022, Republican candidates vying for their party’s nomination are already looking for who will be their lieutenant governor. […]
State Sen. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, said he’s closing in on a selection. His goal, he said, is to return the base of power back to Springfield. To do that, he’s looking for a lieutenant governor to oversee Chicago.
“You know, the ambassador role for the urban areas so they can help hold the Chicago mayor and Chicago politics accountable,” Bailey said.
Dixmoor and Cook County officials said Saturday that a boil order was still in effect in the south suburban village that has gone without running water for a week — but they maintained progress was being made.
No one could give a timeframe on when the problem attributed to the water main in Harvey, which supplies water to Dixmoor, would be diagnosed and fixed. That means for the time being, more than 3,000 residents will have to make do with bottled water.
“I can’t tell you how long it’s going to take, but there is light at the end of the tunnel,” said Bill Barnes, executive director at the Cook County Emergency Management and Regional Security, said a news conference. […]
However, there was recent ground gained in upping the system’s water pressure. Roberts said as of Saturday, the village was at 17 pounds of pressure after temporarily rerouting water from Blue Island. That isn’t enough to reach the ideal 35 pounds of pressure, but Roberts said, “the issue at hand is being resolved as I speak.”
While the boil water order remains in effect, residents are now able to take showers and resume some normal use of water as pressure returns to Dixmoor, according to Village President Fitzgerald Roberts.
The Village is back feeding water from Blue Island in their reservoir and there is also some increased water pressure coming from Harvey.
The reservoir is also now filling up and businesses are able to open, but schools will likely still be learning virtually on Monday.
Jeff Maxey said that means figuring out schedules for his six kids that range from five to 14-years-old.
* Dixmoor Mayor Fitzgerald Roberts was on WGN Radio today to talk about the situation. They’re still waiting on the special cameras to locate the problem, he said. He said he hoped that by the end of this week or “sometime next week” the water will be drinkable. But volunteers have donated “plenty of water,” including a truckload on its way from Texas.
Today, State Representative Ann Williams (D-Chicago) introduced House Bill 4192, the “Community Oversight of Vaccination Deception Act,” or the “COViD Act.” This initiative would allow any citizen, employer, business, academic institution, or entertainment venue to bring a civil action against a person who utilizes a fake vaccine document to gain entry or admission into a location or entity which requires proof of vaccination.
Modeled after the law recently passed in Texas that allows any citizen to sue someone who performs or aids an abortion, the COViD Act – in contrast to the Texas law – is actually designed to promote public health and safety by ensuring those who falsely represent their vaccine status can be held accountable.
“The Supreme Court ruling on the Texas law allows citizens to take civil action to enforce the State’s draconian abortion law. Here, we follow that approach, but rather than allowing a citizen to bring a civil action to enforce a law which doesn’t impact them, the COViD Act allows citizens to protect their own health and the health of others by holding those who falsify their vaccine status accountable,” said Williams. “The science shows vaccines have the ability to impact transmission of the virus by preventing infection altogether and by reducing the amount of infectious virus should a vaccinated individual become infected.”
The legislation provides for injunctive relief and allows plaintiffs to recover no less than $10,000 in statutory damages, as well as costs and attorney’s fees.
“Choosing to patronize an event, attend a meeting or gather with people who you believe to be vaccinated is one way a person can choose to mitigate risk,” said Williams. “A person who claims to be vaccinated but is not presents a threat to the health of community members who may be relying on the fact they are associating with or in the physical presence of only vaccinated individuals.”
“Falsifying your vaccination status is simply wrong and those who do it should be held accountable,” she added.
* The Question: Should people who use a fake vax card be subjected to civil suits? Make sure to explain your answer in comments.
House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch is pleased to welcome the WNBA Champion Chicago Sky basketball team to the House of Representatives on Tuesday October, 26.
Members of the team in attendance will be recognized on the House floor at the commencement of session at noon. Face coverings must be worn and House members will be asked to follow additional protocols to encourage social distancing and avoid crowding. In keeping with current practice to reduce the spread of COVID-19, the House gallery will remain closed to members of the public.
“This Chicago Sky championship win is historic and we are honored to celebrate their achievements here in the State Capitol,” said Speaker Welch. “Of course, I am incredibly proud of this team for their performance on the court, but I am even more inspired by the values they exemplify off the court. These women are the role models our communities deserve and they make our state exceptionally proud.”
* I don’t usually do such things, but this Adidas ad about Candace Parker is just so good…
Nobody knows for sure yet which players will be in attendance tomorrow.
Continuing Illinois’ progress as the vaccination leader of the Midwest, Governor JB Pritzker announced the largest union agreement regarding vaccines for 7,800 state employees who are represented by AFSCME. Nearly 10,000 state workers are now covered under union vaccine agreements.
This agreement will ensure employees in 24/7 congregate facilities within the Illinois Departments of Human Services, and Veterans’ Affairs are protected with the COVID-19 vaccines. Employees under all union vaccine agreements are required to get their first shot by October 26 and second shot by November 30.
“I’m proud to announce our sixth and largest union agreement that will protect nearly 10,000 state workers and the people under their care,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “We’ve overcome tremendous challenges during the pandemic, and I want to thank our partners in the labor movement for being a part of the solution. Each person that gets vaccinated is protecting themselves, the people around them and our state as a whole. We will continue to work through the established legal process to ensure all state employees who work with the vulnerable and incarcerated are vaccinated.”
In addition to the announced agreements, the State and AFSCME have reached an impasse at the bargaining table for employees at the Departments of Corrections and Juvenile Justice. The next steps for those bargaining units are as follows:
• For roughly 10,300 security employees at the Departments of Corrections and Juvenile Justice, the State and the union will submit to interest arbitration.
• For an additional 1,900 non-security employees at those two departments, the State has informed AFSCME that it will implement the following terms: employees must get their first shot by October 26 and their second shot by November 30. This is in accordance with state law.
State employees who remain unvaccinated pose a significant risk to individuals in Illinois’ congregate facilities. Therefore, if employees do not receive the vaccine or an exemption by the dates identified, progressive disciplinary measures will be implemented. The agreement includes a process whereby employees can seek an exemption based on medical contraindications or sincerely held religious beliefs.
Following Gov. Pritzker’s announcement that all state workers who work in state-run congregate facilities would be required to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, the agreements covering 2,090 workers have been made:
• VR-704: 260 supervisory employees at the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) and the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ). Agreement announced on September 20, 2021.
• Illinois Nurses Association: approximately 1,100 nurses working in 24/7 facilities like McFarland Mental Health Facility, Quincy Veterans’ Home and Jacksonville Correctional Center. Agreement announced on October 7, 2021.
• Illinois Federation of Public Employees: approximately 160 employees working in Human Services and Veterans’ Affairs. Agreement announced on October 7, 2021.
• Illinois Trade Unions: approximately 470 employees working in 24/7 facilities such as Menard Corrections Center, Shapiro Developmental Center and Quincy Veteran’s Home. Agreement announced on October 18, 2021.
• Teamsters: approximately 100 maintenance equipment operators and maintenance workers at the Illinois Department of Human Services and Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Agreement announced on October 20, 2021.
• AFSCME: approximately 7,800 employees in 24/7 congregate facilities within the Illinois Departments of Human Services, and Veterans’ Affairs.
To further encourage vaccinations under the agreements with the unions, employees will receive an additional personal day. If the vaccine administration is not available during an employee’s regularly scheduled shift, the employee may be compensated at their regular pay for the time taken to receive the vaccine. In addition, vaccinated employees will receive paid “COVID time,” so that if a vaccinated employee gets COVID-19 they will receive a period of paid time off without using their benefit time.
The administration has taken extensive measures to make the COVID-19 vaccine equitable and accessible. The Pritzker administration established 25 mass vaccination sites. The Illinois National Guard supported more than 800 mobile vaccination clinics on top of an additional 1,705 state-supported mobile sites that focused on communities hardest hit by the pandemic, young residents, and rural communities. The COVID-19 vaccine has been available for healthcare and nursing home workers since December 15, 2020, and open to teachers since January 25, 2021.
Vaccination is the key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic and returning to normal life. All Illinois residents over the age of 12 are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine at no cost and proof of immigration status is not required to receive the vaccine. To find a vaccination center near you, visit vaccines.gov.
*** UPDATE *** From Council 31…
AFSCME represents some 39,000 Illinois state employees. Some 20,000 of these work in 24/7 congregate facilities—such as veterans homes, psychiatric hospitals, residential programs for people with developmental disabilities, prisons and juvenile justice centers—that are affected by the state’s vaccine requirements.
While employers have the right to require vaccination, they must negotiate how such requirements are implemented. Since August we have engaged in negotiations over the implementation of those requirements.
Human Services and Veterans Affairs
The parties have now reached an agreement on terms affecting more than 7,000 employees in the departments of Human Services and Veterans Affairs. Employees are required to have their first shot by Tuesday, Oct. 26, or may file for a religious or medical exemption by the same date. Failure to do so will result not in discharge but progressive discipline culminating in either unpaid leave or layoff.
Importantly, the union secured paid time off for employees who contract the virus, must quarantine due to exposure, or have to care for a dependent who is sick or quarantined, as well as an added personal day off for employees who are fully vaccinated.
In addition, a special Labor-Management COVID Safety Committee will be established in each impacted agency to fight the spread of the virus on all fronts.
Corrections and Juvenile Justice—security employees
The parties have been unable to reach agreement on terms for employees in the Departments of Corrections and Juvenile Justice. The more than 10,000 employees who work in security positions (such as correctional officers) have the right to submit unresolved issues to a neutral third-party arbitrator. We have filed the necessary paperwork with the state labor board to initiate this process. The vaccine requirement cannot be implemented until interest arbitration is concluded.
Corrections and Juvenile Justice—non-security employees
The parties also have not reached agreement on terms for the more than 2,000 non-security employees (e.g. clerical and other support workers) in prisons and youth centers. These employees do not have the right to interest arbitration. Arguing that the parties are at impasse in negotiations, the administration is planning to impose the terms of the DHS/DVA agreement on these workers. The union does not agree that the parties are at impasse and will bring the matter before the Illinois Labor Relations Board.
AFSCME is continuing our efforts to share authoritative information with union members about the benefits of getting vaccinated. Safe and effective, vaccines are the best way to protect ourselves, our families, our coworkers and communities, to defeat the pandemic and return to normal.
Local school superintendents are asking the Illinois State Board of Education to give them greater control over their affairs in light of state mandates in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Superintendents from Teutopolis and Altamont addressed the board prior to Tuesday’s meeting, spotlighting their districts’ efforts to keep classes in session and criticizing the board and state leaders for forcing them to implement measures without their input. […]
The tug-of-war between the state and area school districts is best exemplified through the state’s mask mandate for anyone on school property, initially implemented in August. Many area districts chafed at this idea, with large groups of parents coming into meetings to voice their displeasure with the state’s actions.
Some school districts – such as Teutopolis, Dieterich, Altamont and Beecher City – initially deadlocked or decided not to pass a mandate. The consequences were severe for districts that didn’t go along: potential loss of recognition, inability to compete in state competitions at the junior high or high school level, diplomas being invalid for entry into any college or institution of higher education.
Some hugely important context was left out of that story. Hospitalizations more than doubled from the beginning of August through mid-September, but those superintendents were pushing back against the state mandate throughout. And now they demand to be trusted to handle things on their own?
Nope.
Also, the UK’s summer surge started a couple of months before ours did. They’re now surging again. Hard. 79 percent of UK residents 12 and above have received two doses compared to 66 percent in Illinois. And it’s less than that in Effingham County. People keep spiking the football before they’re even in the red zone.
* Press release sent yesterday from Fraternal Order of Police State Lodge President Chris Southwood…
“The Illinois Fraternal Order of Police remains strongly opposed to any changes to the Health Care Right of Conscience Act that would diminish any individual’s right to their religious liberties.
“In America, one group can’t force another to have certain beliefs or dictate how they should feel. The U.S. Constitution guarantees that the government cannot impose the beliefs of one segment of the population onto another, no matter how well-intentioned the government claims its actions to be.
“We are confident that any attempt to usurp these religious freedom rights will be found unconstitutional by the courts. And we fully intend to make every Illinois legislator’s constituents aware of how they voted on this basic right we all have as Americans.”
I followed up at 7 this morning to ask what specific “religious freedom rights” the ILFOP was talking about. I was promised a response at 8:25 this morning. I have not yet heard back.
The 700+ parents who have brought legal action against their local school districts, as well as the Governor, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Illinois State Board of Education, by and through, Thomas De Vore, Attorney at Law, provide the following statement: […]
Parents will no longer sit idly by while Governor J.B. Pritzker rules by executive fiat, to say nothing of the simple fact that lawful requests for the executive to share the ‘facts and science’ on which his edicts are based go unanswered.
Pretty sure the science has been explained all along. Also, the General Assembly has been free from the beginning to step in whenever a majority of their members decided to do so. The GA has so far decided to mostly stay out of it (although that may change this week). The super-majority of legislators made a conscious decision to stand aside.
Republicans wanted to have a bill heard to limit the governor’s emergency powers to 30 days. Gov. J.B. Pritzker has issued more than 90 such orders over the past 20 months unchecked by the legislature.
In the majority, state Rep. William Davis, D-Hazel Crest, said the governor is doing just fine.
“I would argue the governor is trying to keep us safe and healthy,” Davis said. “The science suggests that that’s what he’s trying to do so I’m okay with executive orders.”
* This appears to be quite common. Vaccinated person earns nice living in part by urging others to resist the vax mandate…
Cumulus Media, owner of news/talk WLS 890-AM and more than 400 other radio stations nationwide, is on a collision course with some of its biggest personalities over the company’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for all employees.
Dan Bongino, who took over Rush Limbaugh’s coveted midday slot (11 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays) in May, is threatening to quit — even though he already was vaccinated on the advice of his doctors because he has Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Bongino addressed his “Cumulus struggle” and “protesting their vaccine mandate” during his October 20 show, saying he “wouldn’t be letting it go.” He went on to encourage his audience to join his protest, saying, “I’m one spoke in an enormous wheel of people who are fighting back. Don’t let them break you. Don’t let them break you. They want to break you. There’s a cabal of idiots, little mini-tyrants and totalitarians who need subjugation, and they want you to kneel, get on your knees, sit in the corner, and shut your mouth.”
…Adding… Press release excerpt…
With nearly 6.2 million children nationwide testing positive for COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, Governor JB Pritzker today outlined the coordinated statewide efforts to prepare for the anticipated approval of the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5-11. Joined by Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike and other pediatric healthcare professionals, the governor announced the administration is partnering with pediatricians, local health departments, schools, and other organizations ahead of the expected emergency-use authorization from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Federal Drug Administration (FDA).
Once the Pfizer vaccine is authorized for use in children ages 5-11, more than 2,200 locations and providers statewide, including Chicago, are already enrolled to provide the vaccine. Illinois is expected to receive an initial allotment of approximately 306,000 doses for the state’s youngest residents, with an additional 73,000 doses for the City of Chicago, and well over 100,000 additional doses headed to the federal government’s pharmacy partners in Illinois. Overall, the initial allocation will amount to approximately 500,000 doses available to children in Illinois.
* Other stuff…
* Matt Nagy tests positive for COVID-19: He announced the diagnosis on Zoom call Monday morning. He will not be allowed inside Halas Hall until he can pass two tests within 48 hours. Nagy received the call Monday morning from head trainer Andre Tucker.
With the backing of the legislature’s Democratic majority, Illinois has been at the forefront of expanding abortion access in recent years, even enshrining a “fundamental right” to the procedure in state statute.
Legislative efforts backed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker to repeal a quarter-century-old Republican-sponsored law requiring parents to be notified when a minor seeks an abortion, however, have not been an easy sell. Even some Democrats question whether such a move goes too far in pitting abortion rights against parental rights. […]
Another complicating factor is that all 177 seats in the legislature will be up for election next year under new boundaries drawn during the once-a-decade redistricting process. That leaves some incumbents potentially wary of taking on a highly polarizing issue before having to court voters in unfamiliar territory, especially in suburban areas where Democrats have picked up seats from the GOP in recent elections. […]
Several Democratic lawmakers either declined to discuss the issue during the first half of the legislature’s two-week fall session, didn’t return calls seeking comment or said they were undecided on how they’d vote if the matter is taken up.
One undecided legislator was state Rep. Lawrence Walsh Jr., an Elwood Democrat who voted against the 2019 Reproductive Health Act, which codified into state law the “fundamental right” to an abortion. He questioned whether a vote to repeal parental notification was ready for consideration.
State Sen. Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) argues the effort to repeal the Parental Notice of Abortion Act (PNA) of 1995 is taking away parental rights. […]
Bryant said nothing about repealing the PNA stands to make the situation better for any those involved.
“This will not fix child abuse,” she said. “It will only leave young girls with mental health issues that could last a lifetime if they don’t receive the proper support and care that they need. We must take a stand to protect parental rights and safeguard the system in place already that allows a parent to be there for their child at an unimaginably vulnerable time.”
Bryant is joined by several other Republican lawmakers in speaking out, with Senate Republican deputy leader Sue Rezin (R-Morris) arguing that the assertion that this legislation is needed in light of a recently passed Texas law that sets up more legal barricades for a woman seeking an abortion.
“They know that what is happening in Texas has no effect on what’s happening in our state,” she said.
The number of patients from Texas visiting an abortion clinic in Granite City hasn’t changed much, even since the state effectively banned abortions in September.
The reason?
“We’ve always seen those patients,” said Alison Dreith, the clinic’s deputy director.
Illinois has long been a destination for those seeking care, predating Texas’ Senate Bill 8 and its drastic new legal precedent. Even since the Supreme Court found abortion constitutional in 1973, it has been easier to drive hours or fly to Illinois.
As Illinois has increased abortion rights while other states whittled away at them, out-of-state patients have increasingly sought services here. In 2015, they accounted for 8% of all abortions in the state. In 2016, that number increased to 12%, and it has risen every year since.
* Background is here and here if you need it. Rep. Robyn Gabel’s House Amendment 2 to SB1169…
The Health Care Right of Conscience Act is amended by adding Section 13.5 as follows:
Violations related to COVID-19 requirements. It is not a violation of this Act for any person or public official, or for any public or private association, agency, corporation, entity, institution, or employer, to take any measures or impose any requirements, including, but not limited to, any measures or requirements that involve provision of services by a physician or health care personnel, intended to prevent contraction or transmission of COVID-19 or any pathogens that result in COVID-19 or any of its subsequent iterations.
It is not a violation of this Act to enforce such measures or requirements, including by terminating employment or excluding individuals from a school, a place of employment, or public or private premises in response to noncompliance. This Section is a declaration of existing law and shall not be construed as a new enactment. Accordingly, this Section shall apply to all actions commenced or pending on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly. Nothing in this Section is intended to affect any right or remedy under federal law.
…Adding… The Catholic Conference of Illinois issued this today before the amendment surfaced. I’ve asked for further comment…
There is an attempt during this Fall Veto Session in Springfield to amend the Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act in order to remove the ability of someone to make a conscience objection to COVID-19 vaccine mandates in Illinois. The bishops of Illinois oppose any amendment to this important Act. A letter from the Illinois bishops has been sent to the Governor and legislative leaders on this; a copy of the letter has also been sent to all members of the Illinois General Assembly.
*** UPDATE *** A spokesperson for the Illinois Hospital Association tells me that his group is supporting the bill and “urging legislators to vote Yes.”
Illinois Democrats have unveiled a revised congressional map that sets up the potential for a second Latino district, two primary matchups featuring Republican incumbents and, surprisingly, a one-on-one primary battle between suburban Democratic incumbents. […]
Reflecting a growing Latino population in the state, the new map would create an opportunity for a second Latino district in Illinois along with the 4th District now held by U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia.
Garcia’s current district would see much of its Northwest Side Latino population moved into a redrawn open 3rd District seat that stretches into the western suburbs and is designed to capture growth in the Latino community in Cook and DuPage county suburbs.
One prominent resident of the proposed 3rd District is Chicago Ald. Gilbert Villegas, 36th, who chairs the City Council Latino Caucus. On Sunday, Villegas and the 13-member Latino Caucus issued a statement urging Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker to sign the revised map. The caucus is also seeking greater representation in the redrawing of aldermanic boundaries.
A new east-west district currently lacking an incumbent connects Latino populations in Logan Square on Chicago’s Northwest Side and West Chicago in the western suburbs. That proposed district is nearly 44% Latino compared to 43% white, according to legislative data showing voting-age constituents. Only the 4th Congressional District now held by U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, D-Chicago, has a higher concentration of Latino voters, standing at 62% on the new map.
“The changes made in this updated congressional map will help ensure the diversity of Illinois is reflected in Washington,” said state Sen. Omar Aquino, D-Chicago, chair of the Senate Redistricting Committee. “We appreciate the many advocacy groups and individuals that continue to guide our work with passion and dedication, as we remain focused on the creation of a fair map that will provide equal representation for all.”
Aquino, who lists his residence in the new 3rd Congressional District, said he has not ruled out a potential bid for that seat assuming this latest map isn’t revised a third time before a possible vote. “It’s a serious conversation I’d need to have with my family,” he said.
The draft map, which was released late Saturday afternoon, isn’t final. Sources close to the process say they expect a few more revisions, though the new Latino district will stand. The Democratic-led General Assembly votes on it this week during the scheduled veto session.
NEWMAN/CASTEN — State Democratic legislative mapmakers didn’t care if they sparked an intra-party fight by throwing Newman, a progressive from LaGrange, and Casten, a centrist from Downers Grove, in the same district since it will not impact the Democratic bottom line.
Casten represents the current 6th District. The new 6th, anchored in the western suburbs, takes away Newman’s Southwest Side Chicago and southwest suburban political base.
President Joe Biden won the new 6th by about 12 points, according to an analysis by Scott Kennedy’s Illinois Election Data operation. Casten had $1,049,641 cash-on-hand as of Sept. 30, according to the Federal Election Commission, compared to $437,873 for Newman. […]
UNDERWOOD SAFER: Democrat Rep. Lauren Underwood of Naperville is one of the few Black members of Congress who won in a majority white district. She only won by a point in 2020. This second map is improved for her because it gets rid of Republican McHenry County.
BLACK DISTRICTS: The loss of Black population in Illinois means fewer Black residents in the three districts — all Democratic — created to yield Black lawmakers. Voting-age population is 50.13% in Rep. Bobby Rush’s 1st; 43.75% in Rep. Robin Kelly’s 2nd and only 40.05 % in Rep. Danny Davis’ 7th.
* There might possibly be more than two Democratic primary candidates in that new 6th District…
According to Calabrese, it is “hard to say what” this latest proposed map would mean for former Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-IL), a conservative Democrat who was ousted by Newman in the 2020 primary. Lipinski is reportedly considering a primary bid to reclaim his seat.
“He could do well in a three-way Democratic primary,” Calabrese said. “Split the liberal vote [between Newman and Casten] and he can win the moderate vote. Still lots of moderate Democrats in the district.”
* Depending on the intensity of the national mood, a Newman primary victory might also draw a serious GOP challenger…
Here is the past electoral performance for the 2nd newly proposed congressional districts released by the ILGA. If you'd like to compare them to the current map you can find that here:https://t.co/D8IGJjgQIhpic.twitter.com/6i74xMolYF
Republican incumbents Darin LaHood and Adam Kinzinger would be shoved into the same congressional district under an updated version of the redistricting map released Saturday.
The map, drawn by Illinois Democrats, is different than the one released Aug. 15. That first draft was skewered by Republicans who called it the “Nancy Pelosi protection plan” and even by some Democrats, who wanted their party to protect their House majority more aggressively. […]
Saturday’s map also makes it likely U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis would no longer represent any portion of Bloomington-Normal in the House. Davis, a Republican from Taylorville, would be placed into the new 15th Congressional District.
It’s unclear if Davis will seek re-election to that seat or possibly run for governor.
Illinois GOP spokesman Joe Hackler on Sunday called the latest maps an “even more aggressive” plan to protect Democrats.
“As we said for the last version of the map, Illinois Democrats, led by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, have made it clear that they are willing to disenfranchise Illinois voters and break repeated campaign promises to do the bidding of (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi and (Washington) D.C. power brokers,” Hackler said in an email.
(O)n Saturday, the Democrats brought out a new map, this one placing [US Rep. Mary Miller] in the same district as another Republican: Rep. Mike Bost of Murphysboro, who has been in Congress since 2015 and in the Legislature for 10 years before that. […]
In Saturday’s proposed remap, Miller goes into a mammoth district that includes almost all of Illinois south of Interstate 70. It appears to include all or parts of 34 of Illinois’ 102 counties, the largest of them in the Metro East area across the river from St. Louis, where Bost is well known and she isn’t.
Miller would lose Danville and Charleston-Mattoon, two of the larger urban areas in her current district.
She’s not a big campaign fundraiser. For the quarter recently ended, she brought in about $250,000, a good haul for her but a modest sum for others. LaHood, for example, raised $490,000 in that period. Davis collected $477,000 and Kinzinger brought in $393,000. Only Bost brought in less, about $177,000.
Unlike most veteran members of Congress, Miller received the majority of her campaign contributions from individuals ($204,458) rather than political action committees ($46,084).
As for local representatives in this current iteration of the maps, Darin LaHood’s 18th District goes away. He is now drawn into a proposed 16th District that treks him northward into the same district with Adam Kinzinger.
Current 13th District Congressman Rodney Davis would take over the entire listening area in the proposed 15th District. The new 15th district stretches from Illinois’ western and eastern borders. Davis’ district would have over 20 counties and stretch from the Metro East in the south to just south of the Quad Cities in the north.
He would be drawn out of the 13th District, which would encompass every major city in Central Illinois from Alton to Champaign. The 13th would be vacant next year and likely go to Democratic Challenger Nikki Budzinski.
* We’ve already been over much of this on the blog, but here’s my weekly syndicated newspaper column…
It has been a foregone conclusion since the official U.S. Census numbers were released in August that the first state legislative redistricting plan passed back in May would be ruled unconstitutional. And the inevitable happened last week when a federal court tossed out the General Assembly’s spring plan.
The official population data showed that the May version of the remap, drawn using the less-accurate American Community Survey data, violated longstanding federal judicial precedent that state legislative maps as a whole can have a “maximum population deviation” between districts of no more than 10 percent to meet the “one person, one vote” constitutional requirement for districts. Illinois’ deviation was about 30 percent in the House and almost 20 percent in the Senate.
Oops.
So, the super-majority Democrats in the General Assembly had to redraw the maps in August because the Census data made it abundantly clear that there was no way the plan which was then on the books would ever withstand judicial scrutiny.
The Democrats decided to move forward in May without Census data because waiting until after June 30 would’ve triggered first a constitutionally mandated bipartisan redistricting commission and then when that commission deadlocked (as it has in most all previous attempts) a lottery would be held to choose a partisan tiebreaker, giving the Republicans a 50-50 chance at taking complete control of the legislative map-making process.
There were some risks to the Democrats’ strategy, though. The greatest risk (although never very likely) was that a federal judge could rule that the unconstitutionality of the initial map plan somehow triggered the bipartisan commission, which could ultimately have a chance of leading to a Republican-drawn map. That didn’t happen. Far from it. The federal judges opined last week that the demand by the Republican plaintiffs to start the bipartisan commission process was “far-fetched” and the proposed remedy was legally “implausible.”
Instead, the federal court decided that the revised remap plan passed in August and signed into law in September would henceforth be used as a “starting point” in the process for approving a new redistricting plan.
The court also “invited” the plaintiffs (Republicans and the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Education Fund) to submit their own alternative maps accompanied by statements explaining “the constitutional or statutory defects” in the Democrats’ revised map and an explanation of how their revisions or alternatives “cure” the alleged defects. The Democrats will then be provided an opportunity to respond.
So far, it’s not a horrible outcome for the Democrats, who feel confident that their revised remap plan will withstand judicial scrutiny, and which has so far not been changed one iota. And, despite what you might have read elsewhere, the court did not yet declare that the revised remap plan is in need of being changed. All it said was that the revised remap is basically now up for debate. Since petition circulation doesn’t begin until January, there is quite a bit of time left to wrap this up. And if it can’t be wrapped up quickly, the General Assembly (or perhaps a federal judge) could change the circulation, filing and voting timelines.
This also means, of course, that the Republicans and the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Education Fund are still very much in the game. They have an opportunity now to present and prove their cases. And if they fail, a federal lawsuit was filed this month by the NAACP claiming Black voting strength in the East St. Louis-based House district was diluted to help neighboring white legislative Democrats hold onto their seats.
One other item of interest. The court noted last week that the plaintiffs allege the newly revised maps were approved “a single day after publicly releasing any version of its amended map and within hours of releasing the version that it enacted into law.”
The judges then went on to say, “Defendants may well disagree with those characterizations, and we need not (and do not) do more than to note them at this time.”
So, maybe the super-majority could take a hint from that oblique warning and not jam through the congressional remap plan in a day this week.
Instead, what’s happened is painfully predictable. Citizens and voters talking to officials about the maps complain about what they don’t have in common with others in their districts as drawn. Race is a key factor, as is the rural-urban mixtures.
One of the largest issues is more wide-reaching. When voters see that their areas of representation are being divvied up in a partisan debate, they’re bound to lose identity. They can feel disenfranchised. Not in a literal sense – they’re still able to vote. But imagining their vote counts for anything is difficult.
That ultimately winds up with the worst result possible in a dem0cracy – apathy. If we don’t care what happens, we’re leaving open the door for the worst to happen.
The House and Senate Redistricting Committees today released an updated version of the proposed congressional map that accounts for public feedback while improving minority influence.
“These new proposed congressional boundaries are historic and reflect the great diversity present throughout the state,” said Rep. Lisa Hernandez, Chair of the House Redistricting Committee. “The proposal ensures minorities, as well as the rest of Illinoisans, have an equitable voice in representation in Washington. I want to thank everyone who has participated in helping our bipartisan redistricting committee collect feedback, and I look forward to additional hearings next week.”
“The changes made in this updated congressional map will help ensure the diversity of Illinois is reflected in Washington,” said Sen. Omar Aquino, Chair of the Senate Redistricting Committee. “We appreciate the many advocacy groups and individuals that continue to guide our work with passion and dedication, as we remain focused on the creation of a fair map that will provide equal representation for all.”
This amended version of the proposed congressional boundaries reflects changes based on testimony received in previous hearings. For example, the map keeps the Round Lakes area together in one Congressional District. This proposal also creates a new coalition district to enhance minority influence.
The proposal can be viewed at www.ilhousedems.com/redistricting and www.ilsenateredistricting.com. The public is encouraged to provide feedback during additional hearings next week.
Tentative Hearing Schedule:
· House Hearing: Tuesday, October 26 (Time/Location TBD)
· Senate Hearing: Wednesday, October 27 (Time/Location TBD)
Details on the hearing schedule will be forthcoming as times and locations are finalized. These will be hybrid hearings with the opportunity for in-person and virtual testimony. Those wishing to provide testimony, submit electronic testimony or submit electronic witness slips can do so in advance of the hearing via the General Assembly website www.ilga.gov or through email at redistrictingcommittee@hds.ilga.gov and redistrictingcommittee@senatedem.ilga.gov.
The House and Senate Redistricting Committees also encourage the public to utilize the map making portal. This tool allows residents to draw and submit proposed boundaries for lawmakers to consider. The portal can be accessed at www.ilhousedems.com/redistricting or www.ilsenatedems.com/redistricting. While the portal will remain open for the duration of these redistricting efforts, residents are encouraged to submit their proposals as soon as possible. Returning users that have previously used the portal do not need to create a new account.
The General Assembly is expected to vote on new congressional boundaries by the end of the scheduled fall veto session.
* The proposed map has a majority Latino voting age population district (currently represented by Chuy Garcia) and a Latino influenced VAP district (the 3rd District, which has no current incumbent). Click the chart for a larger view…
The first draft map had a solid Latino district and no significantly Latino influenced district.
* Democratic US Reps. Marie Newman and Sean Casten are mapped together in the 6th CD. Former US Rep. Dan Lipinski is also in the 6th.
*** UPDATE *** Republican US Reps. Darin LaHood and Adam Kinzinger are in the same district (16). And Republicans Mike Bost and Mary Miller are in the same district (12).
* Rodney Davis’ district is the 15th, the purple one above which runs from western Illinois, over to eastern Illinois and then back down to near the Metro East.
* Lauren Underwood’s 14th District runs from Joliet out to LaSalle County and up to DeKalb.
* Here are the incumbents and their respective districts…
Bobby Rush: 1
Robin Kelly: 2
VACANT (Latino influenced): 3
Chuy Garcia: 4
Mike Quigley: 5
Marie Newman: 6
Sean Casten: 6
Danny Davis: 7
Raja Krishnamoorthi: 8
Jan Schakowsky: 9
Brad Schneider: 10
Bill Foster: 11
Mike Bost: 12
Mary Miller: 12
VACANT (Nikki Budzinski): 13
Lauren Underwood: 14
Rodney Davis: 15
Darin LaHood: 16
Adam Kinzinger: 16
VACANT (Dem-leaning - Rockford, QC, Peoria, Bloomington): 17
…Adding… I should probably remind you that there is no guarantee that this is the final map. Do not automatically assume that there will be no further changes.
Here is the past electoral performance for the 2nd newly proposed congressional districts released by the ILGA. If you'd like to compare them to the current map you can find that here:https://t.co/D8IGJjgQIhpic.twitter.com/6i74xMolYF
