CHAMPAIGN – State Senator Scott Bennett (D-Champaign) is highlighting an opportunity for area airports to apply for funding for improvement projects through the Rebuild Illinois statewide construction program.
“Even though our state serves as a hub for transit, our airports have been in a tough spot as a result of the pandemic,” Bennett said. “With this funding, airports in Central Illinois and across the state will have the opportunity to make critical updates that will improve safety for all passengers. I invite all of our local airports to apply for funding as soon as possible.”
Gov. JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Transportation announced that the Rebuild Illinois program will provide $94 million in funding to improve public airports throughout the state. Through a competitive grant process, airports may submit project proposals for updates, improvements, and extensions of their facilities.
Airports must be for public use and included in the Illinois Aviation System Plan to be eligible for the funding. Applications are due June 14 to be eligible for grants of up to $25 million.
Airports in the Champaign area that are eligible to apply for the funding include University of Illinois Willard Airport and Rantoul National Aviation Center (Frank Elliott Field).
Application information is available by visiting IDOT’s Airport Improvement Program page. Awards are anticipated to be announced later this year.
SPRINGFIELD – A measure sponsored by State Senator Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago) to permanently establish the Call4Calm text line to support Illinois residents' mental health needs passed committee Tuesday, falling in line with Mental Health Awareness Month.
“Call4Calm was a great initiative during the COVID-19 pandemic, and can still benefit those who struggle with their mental health even after this pandemic is over,” Van Pelt said. “Mental health outcomes are more concerning than ever before due to the public health crisis, and this text line is an essential outlet.”
Read more: Van Pelt Call4Calm Bill passes Human Services Committee
SPRINGFIELD – A measure sponsored by State Senator Christopher Belt (D-Centreville) that would require the Illinois Department of Transportation to provide funding to create additional infrastructure in urban areas passed committee on Tuesday.
The measure would require IDOT to fully fund all aspects of construction projects on state roadways, including infrastructure for pedestrians walking and bicycling within one mile of an urban area. Additionally, the measure requires IDOT to complete any of these unfinished infrastructure projects in municipalities with a population of 1,000 or more.
Read more: Belt measure would help build sidewalks along state roads
SPRINGFIELD – A measure sponsored by State Senator Christopher Belt that would require homeless shelters to prioritize the purchase of feminine hygiene products for all who need them passed committee on Tuesday.
“There is no excuse for depriving any individual the right to basic hygiene,” Belt said. “Not providing for such an essential need to some of our most vulnerable citizens is shameful and should no longer happen in Illinois.”
The measure would prioritize providing feminine hygiene products at no cost at all homeless shelters to people who need them.
SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago) is leading an initiative to expand the Alternative Health Care Delivery Demonstration Program to include birthing centers in more areas of the state with disparate health outcomes for Black mothers.
“On average, 75 women die every year while pregnant or within a year of pregnancy, -- a tragic statistic,” Van Pelt said. “It is even more tragic to know that four out of five pregnancy-related deaths could have been preventable. We must do everything we can to combat the issues of maternal mortality, which include increasing birthing centers.”
House Bill 738 expands the available licenses for birthing centers under the Alternative Health Care Delivery Demonstration Program from 10 to 17.
Read more: Van Pelt seeks to expand birthing center licenses
SPRINGFIELD – After seeing the stress social isolation put on residents of long-term care facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic, State Senator Tom Cullerton (D- Villa Park) has sponsored a measure to require long-term care facilities to help residents have daily communication with their family when a disaster is declared.
“I’m sure we all felt the effects of isolation during this pandemic, but for people in long-term care facilities, those feelings were even more intense,” Cullerton said. “If anything like this happens again, ensuring residents of these homes have a connection to their loved ones must be a priority.”
According to a report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, more than one-third of adults aged 45 and older report feeling lonely, and nearly one-fourth of adults aged 65 and older are considered to be socially isolated. COVID-19 has only exacerbated these statistics.
House Bill 3147 would require long-term care facilities to make every reasonable effort to facilitate at least one phone or video call between a resident and a family member each day during a disaster declared by the governor, unless doing so could pose a danger to residents or staff, or redirects resources away from direct resident care and protection.
The measure also requires hospitals to develop a contact policy to encourage patients to engage with family members during a pandemic or public health emergency.
The measure passed the Senate Health Committee and now moves to the floor for further consideration.
SPRINGFIELD – A measure sponsored by State Senator Steve Stadelman (D-Rockford) that would create a commission to make a statewide network of new and existing passenger rail lines a reality passed committee on Tuesday.
“This measure would create a commission to help make a statewide network of high-speed rail services a reality,” Stadelman said. “Creating a high-speed rail network would provide a fast, safe and reliable way to travel across the state.”
The measure would create the High-Speed Railway Commission to assist the state and organizations like the High-Speed Rail Alliance, which produced a plan to create a high-speed rail from Chicago to St. Louis within the next 10 years, coordinate.
Read more: Stadelman moves Illinois one step closer to a high-speed rail network
SPRINGFIELD – Legislation sponsored by State Senator John Connor (D-Lockport) to identify and report racial bias in hiring processes that rely on artificial intelligence to determine suitable applicants passed out of Senate committee Tuesday afternoon.
“We work every day to monitor and root out systemic racial bias in our institutions, but we also need to make sure we’re addressing it in our technology,” Connor said. “If companies are using systems that are inadvertently singling out people of color and keeping them from opportunities they deserve, we need to know and we need to put an end to it.”
Read more: Connor takes aim at racial bias in hiring processes that use AI
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