DANVILLE – State Senator Scott Bennett (D-Champaign) addressed 13 incarcerated men who received their associates degrees in general studies at Danville Area Community College (DACC) Wednesday.

“These individuals have faced difficulties in the past,” Bennett said. “It’s rewarding to see each of these men apply themselves to the program and make productive use of their time while incarcerated.”

Several studies have shown that recidivism rates are high and prison-based educational programs, like the ones offered at DACC, prepare students for successful job placement and lower the risk of re-offense. Bennett recognizes the value of higher education and life-long learning, and has supported the program by collecting dictionaries to help students succeed in their courses.

SPRINGFIELD – A plan sponsored by State Senator Cristina Castro (D-Elgin) aimed at mitigating the threat of the state’s pension crisis was signed into law Wednesday.

“The number one budget issue legislators have been dealing with for decades is the pension crisis,” Castro said. “We got a victory today with this consolidation plan, but there’s still a lot of work to be done.”

CHICAGO – State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) received TASC’s 2019 Legislative Champion Award at the agency’s annual Leadership Awards Luncheon on Tuesday for her efforts to improve opportunities for substance-use disorder treatment, recovery, and community engagement, especially such opportunities for individuals who have had contact with the criminal legal system.

“Working to create a healthier, more equitable, more just society has been the bedrock of my career. I’m so honored to be recognized for these efforts by an organization equally committed to those values,” Hunter said. “I look forward to continuing this mission alongside groups like TASC to identify and implement new, innovative, and more holistic ways to address health inequities and stop the cycles of substance abuse and drug-related crime in Chicago and communities statewide.”

SPRINGFIELD - State Senator Christopher Belt (D-Centreville) will serve on the Illinois Commission on Equitable Early Childhood Education and Care Funding to improve access to quality early childhood programs for all Illinois families.

“If we expect our children to have successful careers, we need to continue to invest in early childhood education,” Belt said. “This starts with making sure students have an intellectual skill set before entering kindergarten and ensuring the most disadvantaged children have the opportunity to succeed alongside their more advantaged classmates.”

CHICAGO - State Senator Andy Manar (D-Bunker Hill) was today named co-chair of the Governor’s Commission for Equitable Funding for Early Childhood Education and Care by Illinois Governor J.B Pritzker. The commission will make recommendations on how to fund equitable access to high-quality early childhood education and care services for all children birth to age 5.

“Governor Pritzker has demonstrated real commitment to early education, and I’m confident that the commission can find a data-driven early childhood education financing plan that meets that needs of families in every region of the state and enables every child to benefit from a high-quality preschool experience,” Manar said.

Manar, who engineered the state’s historic Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) reform for K-12 schools in 2017, has long advocated equitable funding for early childhood education programs.

HILLSBORO – State Senator Andy Manar (D-Bunker Hill) this week welcomed Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Director Erin Guthrie to Montgomery County to meet with Hillsboro Mayor Brian Sullivan and tour Atlas 46, a Hillsboro-based premium manufacturer of high quality nylon tactical products used by construction workers, law enforcement, military personnel, and similar industries.

Following the closure of the Coffeen Power Plant by Vistra Energy, Atlas 46 has been a leading economic driver for Hillsboro and Montgomery County.

“Given all that has happened, I’m excited for what’s in store for Hillsboro and wanted Director Guthrie to see this resilient community firsthand,” Manar said. “DCEO will play a critical role in many infrastructure and job growth projects that are currently in the works.”

SPRINGFIELD – To help address one of the top problems facing the South Suburbs and communities throughout Illinois, Senator Patrick Joyce (D-Essex) is joining the Property Tax Relief Task Force, which will propose concrete ideas to help reduce residents’ property tax bills.

Joyce has major concerns regarding the high property tax rates Illinoisans pay compared to the rest of the nation.

“I represent communities where the property tax rate is higher than 30%,” Joyce said. “That’s not sustainable or fair to the people who live there.”

Residents of Park Forest paid a 33.62% property tax rate in 2017. In neighboring Will County, according to Tax-Rates.org, residents pay twice the national average in property taxes.

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS – State Senator Ann Gillespie (D-Arlington Heights) will join members of business, education and labor in overseeing an employment grant program, she announced today.

As a member of the 21st Century Employment Grant Program Advisory Board, it will be Gillespie’s duty to help oversee the progress of grant recipients, track gainful-employment rates of participants and monitor industry trends to determine where employment gaps can be filled.

“Equipping people with the professional and technical skills for jobs in their area will revitalize regional industries and uplift thousands of working class people,” Gillespie said. “Adults seeking employment and young people looking for low-cost alternatives to higher education will now have opportunities to receive hands-on training in a variety of fields.”