Potential new laws authored by the four members of the state Senate representing parts of Lake County will seek to boost children’s health, improve the environment, curb violence, regulate artificial intelligence and more.
State Sen. Adraine Johnson, D-Buffalo Grove, shepherded legislation through both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly during the session that ended May 31 that would require schools to keep a supply of asthma medication on the premises and trained personnel to administer it.
“There are countless asthma-related emergency room visits every year,” Johnson said in a May news release. “By enabling access to emergency medication in locations that students need them most, we are enabling schools to better protect their students.”
Johnson’s bill was done in conjunction with state Rep. Rita Mayfield, D-Gurnee. It passed the state House of Representatives on April 8, the Senate on May 14, and was signed by Pritzker on June 16.
State Sen. May Edly-Allen, D. Grayslake, introduced legislation in January which Pritzker signed on July 6, which is a first of its kind in the country, establishing safety standards and transparency requirements for artificial intelligence (AI).
“This bipartisan law is about putting responsible safeguards in place before a preventable catastrophe occurs,” Edly-Allen said in a news release. “While artificial intelligence holds extraordinary promises from curing disease to transforming scientific research, we have a responsibility to confront the catastrophic risks associated with the systems.”
State Sen. Julie Morrison, D-Lake Forest, introduced a bill with specific provisions to protect healthcare workers in emergency rooms from violence, which cleared the General Assembly on May 21 and was signed by Pritzker on June 26.
“Professionals should not have to worry about violence when working in the health care setting,” Morrison said in a release. “It is reported that health care workers are five times more likely to suffer from a workplace violence injury than workers overall.”
State Sen. Darby Hills, R-Barrington Hills, worked in bipartisan fashion with state Rep. Joyce Mason, D-Gurnee, to pass legislation to ensure that organizations that provide care to children and adults requiring two certified non-administrative staff members rather than one be available to provide a variety of potential life-saving measures.
The required procedures include first aid certification in the Heimlich maneuver and CPR, certified by the American Red Cross or other organizations approved by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
“Children deserve safe environments and caregivers who are prepared to act when emergencies occur,” Hills said in an email. “By requiring at least two staff members to be (properly) trained, (this law) improves emergency readiness and helps protect some of our most vulnerable residents.”
Hills, Morrison, Edly-Allen and Johnson combined to introduce 16 pieces of legislation in the 104th Illinois General Assembly since January in Springfield that have been signed by Pritzker or are sitting on his desk to become law after passing both houses of the legislature.
Along with Hills’ bill, she moved a law through the legislature which improves transparency with the Department of Children and Family Services’ investigations by ensuring people receive clear written notifications of allegations, appeal rights, timelines and access to their records while maintaining strong protection for children, according to the language of the bill.
With one bill signed by Pritzker, Johnson crafted five others awaiting his signature, including laws that will ensure low-income individuals can receive utility bill discounts and ensure policies to protect specific communities from civil rights violations.
Johnson wants to ensure laws appearing neutral at face value will not disproportionately harm protected communities. If they do, she wants people who feel victimized to be able to challenge them under state law.
“Equal opportunity requires us to examine how decisions affect people in the real world, not just how they are written on paper,” Johnson said. “Disparate impact standards promote accountability and help build more equitable institutions.”
Other Johnson legislation creates a policy for an investment pool for not-for-profit organizations, places restrictions on homeowners’ associations requiring a policy for unpaid assessments, and removes barriers to education for incarcerated individuals.
“Education and job training create pathways to independence, stability and successful reentry for individuals with disabilities,” Johnson said in a release. “When we invest in accessible opportunities, we strengthen both lives and communities.”
On the environmental front, Morrison pushed a law through the legislature to strengthen pollution prevention requirements against plastic pellet runoff to help keep the state’s waterways clean.
“This is a positive step forward for our environment in preventing continued plastic pollution in our waterways, especially from continued contributors like industrial facilities,” Morrison said in a release.
Morrison also successfully authored three additional laws awaiting Pritzker’s signature, including two helping people get better insurance coverage. One provides coverage for medically necessary seizure detection devices, and another gives drivers a way to settle disputes with insurers over whether a car should be totaled or repaired.
Along with the two insurance-related laws. Morrison was responsible for ending the state police’s use of the national DNA profile database to notify investigating agencies if a consistent DNA profile was identified.
Adding to her effort to curb potential abuses of AI, Edly-Allen wrote bills on a variety of issues, including help for survivors of sexual assault, support for youth in the juvenile justice system, additional transparency in the workload of college and university professors, and ensuring correctional officers get proper care for on-the-job injuries.
Concerned that victims of sexual assault do not receive sufficient support during the criminal justice process, Edly-Allen said her bill will help remedy the situation. Among other provisions, survivors must be informed that they can choose the gender of an officer interviewing them.
“Survivors of sexual assault deserve to feel safe, respected and fully supported when they are coming forward,” Edly-Allen said in a release. “(This bill) is about making sure survivors know their rights and have some control in a moment where so much has already been taken from them.”
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