| Plummer Recognized for Support of Small Business In recognition of his continued support of the business community in the Illinois General Assembly, State Senator Jason Plummer (R-Edwardsville) has been recognized by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) with a 100% rating from the organization. “It’s an honor to be recognized again for my support of our small business community,” said State Senator Plummer (R-Edwardsville). “If we want to grow our economy and create new good-paying jobs, we have to put forward pro-growth policies that help our businesses succeed.” Rankings are based on legislator voting records on eight individual bills from the 103rd General Assembly (2023-2024) that affect small businesses in the state. Click here to read a summary of the bills included in the rankings. NFIB is the voice of small business, advocating on behalf of America’s small and independent business owners, both in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 states. NFIB is nonprofit and nonpartisan. “Small-business owners appreciate Senator Plummer’s stance on the issues,” said NFIB Illinois State Director Noah Finley. “This past legislative session, Senator Plummer earned a 100% small-business voting record. Due to his business background, he understands that small-business job-creators are vital to our local communities, and he has consistently stood up against governmental mandates and red-tape that make it harder to run a business in Illinois” To learn more about the National Federation of Independent Business and to view every Illinois legislator’s voting record on the NFIB ranking bills, please visit https://strgnfibcom.blob.core.windows.net/nfibcom/IL-Voting-Record-05.pdf. |
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| New Laws Focused on “Justice Impacted Individuals” and Free State IDs for Inmates Highlight Illinois Democrats’ Misplaced Priorities on Crime Legislation changing “offender” to “justice-impacted individual” in some state statutes and providing free state IDs to individuals being released from Illinois jails became law during the week, highlighting the misplaced priorities of Illinois Democrats when it comes to combatting crime. Senator Plummer says these new laws, along with previous measures, like the SAFE-T Act, demonstrate how misplaced Illinois Democrats’ priorities are when it comes to keeping Illinois families safe. In recent years, crime has surged as Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker and his allies in the legislature have pushed dangerous “catch and release” policies. As of July 2024, Major crimes in Chicago have increased by nearly 60% compared to 2019 and 18% since 2022. During the 4th of July Weekend alone, more than 100 people – the equivalent of two CTA buses – were shot in Chicago. Senator Plummer says the legislation signed this week will do nothing to reduce crime in Illinois and prioritize the rights of criminals over everyday citizens. Senate Bill 2803 expands an existing pilot program across Illinois, which offers free state IDs to individuals being released from state prisons, to also include individuals being released from federal prisons and county jails. Also recently signed into law was House Bill 4409, a controversial proposal that generated negative headlines and significant public pushback because it changes references to certain “offenders” in state statutes by requiring them to be called “justice-impacted individuals.” House Bill 4409 was signed into law on August 2, while Senate Bill 2803 received the Governor’s stamp of approval on August 6. |
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| Illinois Enacts Update to Biometric Privacy Law Significant changes to the state’s controversial Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) took effect during the week. The law was originally proposed to protect Illinois residents’ biometric data, but it created substantial unintended consequences, including multi-billion-dollar damage awards for situations that were never intended to be targets of the act. Legislation was recently signed into law that amends the controversial BIPA statute, designed to reform digital privacy regulations and clarify the collection and use of biometric data in the state. This reform follows a suggestion from the Illinois Supreme Court in the spring of 2023 to address oversights in the original BIPA legislation. While proponents argue that the new law intends to balance the protection of individual privacy rights with the need to reduce the legal and financial burdens on businesses, Senator Plummer, who voted against the measure when it came before the Senate earlier this year, contends that the new law doesn’t do enough to address the shortcomings and ambiguities within BIPA. Senator Plummer noted that rather than putting a Band-Aid on the issue, lawmakers should work together to reform BIPA to ensure that it protects citizens’ privacy while also ensuring businesses aren’t overly vulnerable or exposed to costly ambiguous interpretation. Senate Bill 2979 was signed into law on August 2. | |
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| Illinois State Fair Underway The 2024 edition of the Illinois State Fair officially opened on August 8. In the morning, there was a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony, followed by the annual Twilight Parade in the evening. One of the event’s longstanding traditions is the construction and unveiling of the butter cow, a full-size sculpture made of roughly 500 pounds of unsalted butter on display in the Dairy Building. The daily schedule for the Fair includes Agriculture Day on the first Friday, followed by Kids Day on Saturday, then Veterans and Gold Star Families Day, Senior & Scout Day, “Twosday,” Governor’s Day, Republican Day, First Responder & Healthcare Heroes Day, and then finally wrapping up the closing weekend with Park District Conservation Day followed by Family Day. Grandstand concerts throughout the Fair duration include Keith Urban, Motley Crue, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, Jordan Davis, Lil Wayne, the Jonas Brothers, Miranda Lambert, and Shaboozey. There will also be USAC and ARCA racing at the Grandstand during the final weekend. For more information, visit https://statefair.illinois.gov/. |
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| Illinois Students Lagging in Recovery from Pandemic Disruptions as Federal Relief Nears End A recent study from the University of Illinois System reveals that many Illinois students are still struggling to recover from the learning disruptions caused by pandemic school closures. Despite efforts to lessen the impact, the findings indicate that only a quarter of public-school students have returned to their pre-pandemic academic levels in English language arts, with even fewer achieving the same in math. This underscores the ongoing challenges in educational recovery. Since the pandemic, Illinois has experienced a decline of nearly 60,000 students in statewide enrollment. Additionally, there has been a significant rise in chronic absenteeism, further complicating the learning loss being experienced in the school system. These troubling trends highlight the extensive impact of the pandemic on student attendance and engagement. These challenges come as billions in federal relief funds, which have been critical for educational support, are set to expire this year. As these funds run dry, schools will need to seek alternative funding to maintain essential programs and continue addressing the learning gaps. | |