SPRINGFIELD – As businesses struggle to recover from pandemic-related financial hardship, State Senator Suzy Glowiak Hilton (D-Western Springs) advanced a measure through the Senate Thursday with bipartisan support to help ease the burden.

“When making plans for economic recovery after the pandemic, local governments are capable of deciding what is best for the community’s financial future,” Glowiak Hilton said. “To provide support where it’s needed most, this measure allows units of local government to determine where waiving fees would be beneficial to a struggling business.”

The proposal creates an option for counties and municipalities to waive licensing, permitting or registration fees for local businesses and services. To qualify, businesses must demonstrate financial need from the pandemic.

SPRINGFIELD – To help protect the lives of young children with food allergies, State Senator Julie Morrison (D-Lake Forest) championed a measure in the Senate that would create an anaphylactic policy for schools and day cares.

“Children spend most of their day at school, and both they and their parents deserve the peace of mind that comes with knowing that schools are well-equipped to assist when a student is having an allergic reaction,” Morrison said. “Creating a plan and training more employees on what to do if a student is having a reaction will save lives.”

SHOREWOOD – Legislation that would end the practice of burdening family members of deceased utility customers with early termination fees unanimously passed the Senate Wednesday.

State Senator Meg Loughran Cappel (D-Shorewood) is the lead Senate sponsor of the measure.

“Grieving families have enough on their plate without having to worry about being saddled with wrongful utility fees,” Loughran Cappel said. “Ending the practice of charging next of kin in the event of an untimely death is a simple solution that I am proud to support.”

House Bill 122 would end early termination fees for utility customers who die before the end of a contract.

SPRINGFIELD – Following a recommendation by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force to lower the recommended age to start screening for colon and rectal cancers, the Illinois Senate approved legislation sponsored by State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove) to require insurance companies to cover medically necessary colonoscopies.

“Preparing for a colonoscopy can be nerve-wracking, but it’s worth the stress: A colonoscopy can detect, or even prevent, cancer,” Johnson said. “Cost shouldn’t be a barrier to anyone who needs this potentially life-saving procedure.”

The legislation would require health insurance companies to cover the cost of a colonoscopy that has been deemed medically necessary after an initial screening. Patients would not be charged a deductible, coinsurance, copayment or other cost-sharing requirement for the procedure.

SPRINGFIELD – Legislation sponsored by State Senator Laura Ellman (D-Naperville) that would allow students to use 529 college savings accounts for other education-related purposes without additional taxation passed the General Assembly on Thursday.

“This legislation would allow college savings plans to be used in more ways to reflect the realities of modern-day higher education,” Ellman said. “Students need and should be able to use their savings plans to pay for loans or job-training programs.”

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Robert Martwick (D-Chicago) passed legislation out of the Illinois Senate Thursday to ensure the mental health needs of school children are met.

House Bill 576 gives students the opportunity to take days off school to focus on their mental health without facing disciplinary action. The proposal comes as suicidal thoughts and mental health struggles among teens continues to rise. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, rates of suicide in young people increased 56% from 2007 to 2017. 

“Students experiencing mental health struggles need to know that they will not be disciplined for attending to their mental health.” Martwick said. “Giving students the opportunity to make up their work allows them to stay on track and not feel the pressure of falling behind.”

SPRINGFIELD – To combat social isolation for residents of long-term care facilities, State Senator Tom Cullerton (D-Villa Park) passed a measure to require these facilities to help connect residents to loved ones when a disaster is declared.

“The COVID-19 pandemic put an unprecedented amount of stress on people, especially those in long-term care facilities,” Cullerton said. “A simple phone or video call could do a lot for these residents who are isolated from their loved ones.”

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.

SHOREWOOD –  A piece of bipartisan legislation, led by State Senator Meg Loughran Cappel (D-Shorewood) and State Representative Mark Batinick, that would expand the period of time in which school zone speed limits are active passed the Senate unanimously Wednesday.

“Prioritizing the safety and wellbeing of our students is a choice,” Loughran Cappel said. “I am proud my colleagues in the General Assembly took it upon themselves to give our kids the additional protections they deserve.”

Under current school speed zone rules, children are to be assumed present between the hours of 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. However, Plainfield-area high schools begin classes at 7:05 and students arrive during a timeframe when school zone rules are not yet active. Additionally, numerous students arrive before 7 a.m. to attend before school programs, tutoring or other extracurricular activities.