103 rd Illinois General Assembly:
The Illinois General Assembly stands adjourned until the two-week November Veto Session.
The House Appropriations-Higher Education Committee will hold a hearing on September 23 at 10:00 am in the Bilandic Building in Chicago to discuss Illinois’ universities and colleges.
The Senate Transportation will discuss how transit mitigates climate impact at a hearing on September 19 at 8:30 am. The hearing will take place at the Lake County Central Permit Facility 2nd floor conference room in Libertyville.
Meanwhile, the House Revenue and Finance Committee will hold a hearing on September 26 at 2:00 pm in the Bilandic Building to discuss property tax issues, senior freeze issues and pending legislation.
GOVERNOR’S HIGHLIGHTS:
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency: Governor Pritzker appointed James Jennings as the next director of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. James Jennings, an environmental and policy expert, began serving as Interim Director in July.
IDOT Long-Range Planning: The Illinois Department of Transportation announced the next phase of public input for Move Illinois: 2024 Long-Range Transportation Plan, which aims to advance the state’s mobility landscape by strategically outlining goals, objectives and strategies for the next 20 to 30 years. The public is invited to review and provide feedback at www.moveil2024lrtp.com. Read more here.
Teacher Recruitment and Retention Study: The Illinois State Board of Education and the Illinois Workforce and Education Research Collaborative released early results from a $45 million state investment that show improved recruitment and retention in the state’s most understaffed school districts. The Teacher Vacancy Grant Pilot Program, which was launched in the 2023-24 school year, provided 170 school districts with the greatest teacher shortages with state funds to invest in initiatives to recruit and license new hires and support the retention of current educators.
Data is still being collected to assess the full impact of the funding, but ISBE and IWERC reported this week that school districts participating in the Teacher Vacancy Grant Pilot Program have hired nearly 5,400 new teachers and retained approximately 11,000 additional educators with the funds so far. The districts receiving the Teacher Vacancy Grant collectively serve approximately 870,000 students. The study is here.
Stewardship Program Grants Awarded: The Illinois Department of Natural Resources awarded approximately $1 million in grants to support 14 stewardship programs managed by land trusts on land protected by the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission. The grants are part of the Illinois Natural Areas Stewardship Grant program, which aims to increase the delivery of much-needed land and water stewardship activities to natural areas permanently protected within the INPC system. The grant program funds projects that help land trusts expand staff and purchase equipment for these activities. Read more here.
OTHER NEWS:
Illinois Supreme Court Cannabis Ruling: The Illinois Supreme Court ruled that the smell of burnt cannabis alone is insufficient to justify a warrantless police search of an automobile. Read more about the case here. Read the decision here.