Grettings from Progressive ILLINOIS.

• Author: Albano, Teresa

On the Books

Minimum wage increase, SB 1: Signed into law by Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker on February 19, 2019, this bill provides for a state minimum wage of $15 by 2025. Already, it has brought about two increases, to $9.25 on January 1, 2020, and to $10 on July 1, 2020, with scheduled increases of $1 a year until the goal is met.

Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act, HB 1438: On June 25, 2019, Illinois became the first state to legalize adult-use marijuana through the state legislature and the eleventh state to legalize it for recreational use.

Safety, Accountability, Fairness, and Equity - Today Act (SAFE-T Act), HB 3653: This sweeping criminal justice reform law, signed into law in February, was designed to increase public safety while dismantling systemic racism in policing, pretrial processes, sentencing, and incarceration. This law was the first pillar of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus's Antiracism Agenda.

Education and Workforce Equity Act, HB 2170: Signed into law in March, the second pillar of the Legislative Black Caucus's Antiracism Agenda contains twenty-three provisions to increase equity in early childhood education, K-12 education, higher education, and workforce training.

Economic access, equity, and opportunity, SB 1480, 1608, 1792, and 1980: This package of four bills, signed into law in late March, seeks to remedy workplace inequities and unfair practices, wage equity, workers' rights, and consumer protection. It caps interest rates for payday loans at 36 percent; increases access to housing and jobs for justice-involved individuals; and creates cannabis equity and reparations commissions.

Health Care and Human Services Reform Act, HB 158: This bill, signed into law in late April, is the fourth pillar of the Illinois Legislative...