Van Pelt encourages residents to check eligibility for federal Child Tax Credit

CHICAGO – State Senator Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago) is encouraging residents of Chicago’s West Side check their eligibility for the federal Child Tax Credit, even if they did not file taxes in the last two years.

“I encourage families that are eligible to take advantage of this opportunity,” Van Pelt said. “By filling out the non-filer application on the IRS website, you can still get relief, even if you did not file taxes in 2019 or 2020.”

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Castro welcomes 90 North project to Schaumburg

SCHAUMBURG – State Senator Cristina Castro (D- Elgin) was honored to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the 90 North District development project in Schaumburg. The project includes $40 million in funding for community improvements this fiscal year.

“From job creation to beautification, I am excited to see all the improvements this new development will bring to the community,” Castro said.  “I commend the Village of Schaumburg and Village President Tom Dailly in their hard work throughout this difficult year in securing the grants and funding to make this project happen.”

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Affordable housing for community college students becomes law

SPRINGFIELD – Community college boards of trustees and local housing authorities will now have authority to develop affordable housing for community college students, under a new law sponsored by State Senator Doris Turner (D—Springfield).

“This is about bettering the college experience for every student in this state,” said Turner. “Research shows that students who live on campus have higher GPAs. When students live on campus they are more plugged-in to the campus community and have more opportunities to join clubs, attend events and meet new people.”

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Series of new Peters laws focus on safety, justice for communities

Measures signed include ban on lying to kids during interrogations

CHICAGO – During a ceremony at a Northwestern University campus in Chicago, four public safety and criminal justice reform measures sponsored by State Senator Robert Peters (D-Chicago) were signed by Gov. JB Pritzker and became law.

The ceremony was a culmination of several years of hard work from Peters and advocates to reimagine what safety and justice look like in Illinois.

Senate Bill 2122 makes statements provided by a minor inadmissible in court if they were made after a law enforcement official intentionally lied during the interrogation. Deception is defined as “knowingly providing false information about evidence or leniency.”

“It is an unfortunately common practice for police officers to lie to kids in order to coerce them into saying what they want to hear,” Peters said. “These are stressful and frightening situations for many kids, and a lot of the time the statements aren’t truthful, but were still made because the kids thought it would get them out of the situation.”

Read more: Series of new Peters laws focus on safety, justice for communities