THE ILLINOIZE: Thursday Free for All
October 28, 2021
The House was in late last night. So late, in fact, that my body forced me to sleep after two hours of shut-eye Tuesday night/Wednesday morning that even 80 oz. of coffee couldn’t save me from.
There’s a congressional map (probably), a PNA repeal (most definitely), a Health Care Right of Conscience change (likely) and who knows what else on this final scheduled day of fall veto session.
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Repeal of abortion parental notification law sent to Pritzker, House advances ban on using moral beliefs for COVID-19 vaccine refusal (Chicago Sun-Times)
A parent or other adult family member would no longer need to be notified before a minor receives an abortion, under the repeal of a decades-old law the Illinois House sent late Wednesday to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk.
The late-night vote on that controversial topic came on the heels of the Illinois House passing another hot-button measure, sending to the state Senate a measure blocking the use of moral beliefs for refusing to comply with workplace COVID-19 vaccine mandates or other mitigations.
That measure aimed at the coronavirus pandemic passed after a heated debate, with one Republican legislator dubbing the proposed amendment “atrocious,” and a few Democrats breaking ranks and declining to support it.
On the issue of abortion, House members voted to repeal the Parental Notice of Abortion Act and pass the Youth Health and Safety Act. It passed in a 62 to 51 vote with three voting present and two not voting.
Barring any legislative maneuvers, the bill now goes to the governor’s desk.
In a spirited pitch for repeal, state Rep. Anna Moeller, D-Elgin, called the notification law “the last anti-abortion law that we have on our books” and said overturning it ensures “we are protecting our most vulnerable young people in Illinois.”
But emotions ran just as high on the other side of the aisle.
In an impassioned speech opposing the bill, state Rep. Avery Bourne, R-Morrisonville, said a vote for the repeal is not just “failing girls — it’s failing good parents.”
“We’re not talking about 17-year-olds exclusively who are months away from being 18, we’re talking about middle schoolers — potentially parents of middle schoolers — not having the right to know that their daughter is going through this and not having the foreknowledge to know what happens afterwards,” Bourne said.
Six Democrats voted against the bill, Rep. Will Davis (D-Homewood), Rep. Anthony DeLuca (D-Chicago Heights), Rep. Sue Scherer (D-Decatur), Rep. Larry Walsh Jr. (D-Elwood), Rep. Lance Yednock (D-Ottawa), and Rep. Mike Zalewski (D-Riverside).
That bill goes to the Governor, who supports it.
The House also made changes to the Health Care Right of Conscience Act, which some folks are using to seek exemption from COVID-19 vaccine mandates. That goes to the Senate.
Huge, huge day in Springfield shaping up today.
Did we mention there’s a new congressional map?
Democrats unveiled their third version of the congressional districts late last night, so here’s a quick update if you’re confused what’s in, what’s out, what’s up or what’s down:
Congressman Sean Casten (D-Downers Grove) and Congresswoman Marie Newman (D-La Grange) are still drawn into a primary in the new 6th District
Congressmen Darin LaHood (R-Peoria) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Channahon) are still drawn into the new 16th District. There’s almost a 0% chance Kinzinger and LaHood end up running against each other. Kinzinger could run against Lauren Underwood in the new 14th, Bill Foster in the new 11th, or for U.S. Senate.
Congressman Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro) and Congresswoman Mary Miller (R-Oakland) are still drawn into the new 12th District. Miller’s home in northern Coles County was just barely pulled from the 15th into the new 12th.
Congressman Rodney Davis (R-Taylorville) has still been drawn out of his current 13th District and into the new 15th District, which is safely Republican. He now has to decide between a run for Governor or choosing a safe, sprawling seat in the 15th.
The new 3rd still appears to be aimed at picking up a second Latino member of Congress. Chicago alderman Gilbert Villegas, Sen. Omar Aquino (D-Chicago), and Sen. Cristina Pacione-Zayas (D-Chicago) have all had their names tied to the new district already.
The Senate Redistricting Committee is set for a 9am hearing on the proposal.
These were all published before the new map was released around 10:30 last night, but they’re still interesting reading:
Plan to radically reshape 6th Congressional District is drawing criticism (Daily Herald)
Represented by two-term Democrat Sean Casten of Downers Grove, the current 6th District includes parts of the Northwest and West suburbs. It comprises chunks of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and McHenry counties.
The latest proposal for the 6th eliminates the portions of Lake, McHenry, Kane counties now in the district, as well as portions of northwestern DuPage and northwestern Cook counties. Conversely, it expands east to include more of southwestern Cook County.
It would have much of the West and Southwest suburbs within its boundaries, including Downers Grove, Lombard, Villa Park, Lisle, Westmont, Darien, LaGrange, Hickory Hills, Orland Park, Oak Lawn, Chicago Ridge and Tinley Park.
It also would move 3rd District U.S. Rep. Marie Newman, a first-term Democrat from La Grange, into the proposed 6th District, possibly setting up a Democratic primary with Casten. Newman also could seek reelection in the 3rd District, as members of Congress are not required to live in the district they represent.
The nonpartisan Princeton Gerrymandering Project examined the proposed map for partisan fairness, competitiveness and geographic features and said it "gets F's across the board."
The group criticized mapmakers for creating boundaries that give Democratic incumbents "significant" advantage, " for creating districts that aren't compact and for splitting counties more than usual.
All 17 of Illinois' proposed congressional seats, including the 6th District's, are "outside of the competitive zone," the group said on Twitter.
Related: Editorial: Remaps should empower citizens. They’re empowering the powerful instead. (Chicago Tribune)
Opinion: Ammons says bill establishing sub-circuit judges about 'diversity' (Champaign News-Gazette)
Opinion: How Illinois Became a One-Party State (Chicago Magazine)
Pritzker's EV incentive bill stumbling in Springfield (Crain’s Chicago Business)
Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s much ballyhooed plan to offer big incentives to lure electric-vehicle producers and suppliers to the state is teetering on a cliff in Springfield, with lots of hopes but no firm indication that potentially fatal labor opposition has lifted.
With just a day and a half to go until the General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn its fall veto session, Pritzker aides said they’re making progress and still expect approval. “I have confidence this bill will be on the governor’s desk after this veto session,” said one aide.
Pritzker has said his package, which is aimed at not only luring battery producer Samsung to build a huge factory in downstate Normal, but also at getting Ford and Stellantis to convert their gasoline-car facilities in Chicago and Belvidere to electric, is critical to the state’s economic future. Time is of the essence, he’s argued, as big players in the electric-vehicle industry begin to place billions of dollars of bets in the form of new facilities all around the country.
Not having this bill done during veto session is not a killer in these discussions. It was a big haul to go from an idea to law in two weeks with everything else floating around the last couple of weeks.
CPS enrollment continues to plummet: ‘I would have never imagined seeing this steep of a decline’ (Chicago Tribune)
Chicago Public Schools enrollment has dropped again, this time to 330,411 students, about 10,000 fewer kids than last year, according to numbers the district released Wednesday.
“When I was in CPS my first year, in 2003, we were just under 440,000 students. Even then I was seeing declines of about 3,000 students or so. I would have never imagined seeing this steep of a decline,” new CPS CEO Pedro Martinez told reporters.
Enrollment is down 3% compared to the 340,658 students counted in the last school year — when the COVID-19 pandemic was well underway — and 7% versus the 355,156 students in the 2019-20 year. The figures cover more than 600 schools, which include district-run, charter, contract and SAFE schools.
CPS noted declines in prekindergarten and elementary school enrollment and in communities such as Pilsen, Little Village and Lincoln Park. Individual school numbers are expected to be released soon, with Martinez vowing to conduct a neighborhood-by-neighborhood analysis of program offerings.
Related: Transfers to private schools, suburban districts, homeschooling spur latest CPS enrollment drop (Chicago Sun-Times)
Enrollment drops at all but one of the Chicago community colleges (Crain’s Chicago Business)
SOME TOP LINKS FROM THE WEEK SO FAR
Lake County Judge Shanes May Give GOP Shot at Supreme Court Majority
East St. Louis Redistricting Lawsuit Folded Into Existing Case
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