SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) is announcing that school districts in the 28^th Senate District will receive $177,711,359 in additional funding to help address the many challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Over the past year, teachers and parents have put in thousands of hours of additional effort to keep our kids engaged in learning,” Murphy said. “This funding gives schools and students the support they need to make a full recovery after the pandemic.”

The funding comes as part of the most recent federal COVID-19 relief package. Schools, students and parents have overcome challenges that no one could have imagined before the pandemic began, including remote and hybrid learning, digital connection issues, new processes for receiving state and federal aid that normally flow through schools, and more.

Local school districts are set to receive the following amounts:

• School District U-46 - $95,027,296
• Schaumburg Community Consolidated School District 54 - $18,762,224
• Community Consolidated School District 59 - $12,435,762
• Des Plaines Community Consolidated School District 62 - $10,129,759
• Park Ridge Consolidated Community School District 64 - $2,040,685
• Maine Township High School District 207 - $8,389,466
• Keeneyville School District 20 - $2,636,287
• Lake Park Community High School District 108 - $2,333,579
• Township High School District 211 - $13,400,938
• Township High School District 214 - $12,555,363

The majority of the funding comes from the American Rescue Plan, which gives local schools a great deal of flexibility in how they can use the money over the next 3 ½ years. At least 20% of the funding must be used to address learning loss, but beyond that, school districts can use the money to address many different issues and costs. For example, it can be used to better equip schools for safe learning, to prevent layoffs, to address students’ social and emotional needs, to fund summer programs, or to ensure all students have access to reliable Wi-Fi and technology.

The State Board of Education, in collaboration with other state agencies that address education, has produced a guide for local school districts to help them decide how to best use their resources. While the guide and other state-sponsored services are completely voluntary, the state aims to support local districts during this difficult time.

“Our local schools have the ultimate say in how they use this funding—as they should,” Murphy said. “But, this guide can provide them some direction as they make plans for the future.”

In total, Illinois received nearly $7 billion to support local school districts.

SPRINGFIELD – As Illinois moves toward a full reopening following the COVID-19 pandemic, State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) wants to ensure the legislature is involved in the decision-making process by reinstating the Restore Illinois Collaborative Commission.

“The Restore Illinois Collaborative Commission gives legislators a chance to raise and address not only our own concerns, but the concerns we’re hearing from individuals in our communities,” Murphy said. “Our involvement in the reopening process is critical to ensuring Illinois’ families and businesses make a full recovery.”

Murphy’s proposal would reenact the Restore Illinois Collaborative Commission, a bipartisan, bicameral commission created last May to monitor and help shape the state’s economic recovery plans after the COVID-19 crisis.

The commission met from July through December 2020, joined by representatives from a variety of state agencies to ask questions and offer feedback to help advance the state’s recovery.

The commission originally sunset on Dec. 31, 2020, but in light of the continuing challenges of the pandemic, Murphy’s initiative would extend the operation of the commission by two years to Jan. 1, 2023.

“From the vaccine rollout to the relaxation of capacity limits, the state faces a lot of important decisions over the next few months,” Murphy said. “The executive branch doesn’t work in a vacuum—the people of Illinois must be heard when plans are being made.”

Senate Bill 632 passed the Commerce Committee Thursday and now heads to the full Senate.

SPRINGFIELD – To ensure the state is doing its part to keep roadways safe for pedestrians, State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) backed legislation to require the Illinois Department of Transportation to look more closely into traffic accidents on state highways that result in the death of a pedestrian.

“Illinoisans deserve to be able to walk to school or work, go for a run, or simply take a stroll around their neighborhood safely,” Murphy said. “If we can identify problem areas on our state highways, we can implement solutions that will save lives.”

SPRINGFIELD – To ease feelings of stress, anxiety and burnout on college campuses in Illinois, State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) has sponsored a new initiative to create an online resource hub geared toward campus mental health.

“As the parent of a college freshman, I know higher education presents a number of unique stressors,” Murphy said. “It’s important that those experiencing mental health conditions have easy access to targeted support.”

The legislation would require the Department of Human Services to maintain a resources page on its website with mental health resources specifically tailored to post-secondary education institutions, their staff, students and families.

Currently, DHS provides digital brochures and links on its website of helpful tools for those who may be dealing with a mental health concern. However, the website does not contain provisions directly targeted to post-secondary education and its communities.

“We know college students suffer high levels of stress and anxiety, but many people aren’t aware that faculty and staff experience similar pressures,” Murphy said. “With the pandemic taking an additional toll on everyone’s mental health, now is the time to make sure our campus communities know help is available.”

Senate Bill 1786 passed the Senate Behavioral and Mental Health Committee and now heads to the full Senate.

SPRINGFIELD – To allow local governments to undertake grant projects when the time is best for their community, State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) introduced a measure to give park districts more time to complete projects funded through the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development (OSLAD) grant program. 

“As communities recover from the economic impact of the pandemic, local governments are getting back on track with their long-term project goals,” Murphy said. “Our park districts are best positioned to decide when it makes sense for their community to start taking on new projects again.”

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources, which administers the OSLAD grant program, provides an advance payment of 50% of the grant value upon awarding the grant. State law requires grantees to complete projects within two years of receiving grant funds, meaning that park districts have just two years after this advance payment to complete projects.

The legislation Murphy has proposed would allow park districts to opt out of advance payments on OSLAD grants, delaying the start of the two-year grant timeline and giving them more authority over when to begin projects.

In addition to allowing park districts more freedom on future projects, Murphy’s initiative would also provide more flexibility on active grant projects by directing IDNR to consider requests by grant recipients to extend the deadline on the use of grant funds.

“Recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic will take time. This legislation will ensure that park districts’ hard-earned grant funding will still be available when they’re ready to tackle new projects,” Murphy said.

Senate Bill 321 passed the Local Government Committee Tuesday and awaits consideration by the full Senate.

SPRINGFIELD – Residents of mobile home parks could see improved financial transparency and more dependable clean water access under two measures proposed by State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines).

“There are a number of mobile home parks in the Northwest Suburbs and surrounding communities. Our friends and neighbors live in these parks, and they need someone to advocate on their behalf,” Murphy said. “These initiatives are meant to increase transparency for mobile home buyers and improve conditions in mobile home parks.”

A loan for a mobile home located in a mobile home park is different from a mortgage: Mobile homes are assessed and taxed as personal property, not real estate; interest rates are often much higher than those for typical home loans; and refinancing options are limited. To ensure residents are well informed when purchasing a mobile home, Senate Bill 1779 would require lenders to disclose these differences to prospective mobile home buyers.

Murphy has also introduced Senate Bill 1780, which calls for the owner of a mobile home park to provide water to residents if the normal water supply has been disrupted for more than three days. Murphy was inspired to introduce the legislation after a weeklong water shortage in 2019 at the Blackhawk Estates mobile home park in unincorporated Des Plaines, which left residents unable to shower, do laundry or wash dishes.

“Mobile home owners are part of our community,” Murphy said. “Like any other property owner, they deserve to know the terms of their loan agreements, and they deserve to be able to depend on a basic standard of living.”

Senate Bills 1779 and 1780 passed the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday and now head to the full Senate.

SPRINGFIELD – Residents of long-term care facilities could avoid burdensome red tape and administrative delays in receiving their prescribed medications under a measure proposed by State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) to exempt these individuals from the four-prescription limit imposed on Medicaid patients.

“For residents of long-term care facilities, whose drug regimens are regularly reviewed, prior authorization requirements are often just an unnecessary hoop to jump through,” Murphy said. “Removing this barrier would allow patients to get the care they need more quickly and efficiently.”

The legislation would exempt residents in long-term care facilities, community-integrated living arrangements, supportive living facilities, and intellectual and developmental disability care facilities from having to request prior authorization when prescribed more than four medications.

Nearly 92% of older adults have at least one chronic condition and 77% have at least two, according to the Illinois Association of Long Term Care Pharmacy Providers. That often results in many long-term care facility residents regularly being prescribed more than four prescriptions.

Federal law mandates that a patient in a long-term care facility has his or her drug regimen reviewed at least once a month by a licensed pharmacist, who must report any irregularities to the attending physician and the director of nursing. The physician must make changes based on these reports. Advocates say this rigorous review process should allow long-term care facility residents to bypass the prior authorization requirement.

“We should be making it easier, not harder, for patients to follow the treatment plans prescribed by their doctors,” Murphy said. “This legislation would eliminate a significant obstacle standing between long-term care residents and better health.”

Senate Bill 142 passed the Senate Health Committee Tuesday and now heads to the full Senate.

SPRINGFIELD – More students could represent their schools feeling comfortable, confident and included under a proposed measure from State Senator Laura Murphy (D-Des Plaines) that would allow student athletes to modify their athletic uniforms to adhere to cultural, faith-based or physical comfort requirements.

“Athletic uniforms are about establishing a sense of unity among team members, but in certain situations, they can unintentionally exclude groups of students,” Murphy said. “By allowing athletes more flexibility in the design of their uniforms, we can give every student the opportunity to represent their school with pride.”