Dear Friends and Neighbors:
Happy New Year!
I hope your holiday season was warm and wonderful.
2019 was a busy year for the Illinois legislature, as you’ve certainly heard by now. One of the highlights of my legislative agenda was the passage of a law to require comprehensive consent to be included in Illinois’ sex education curriculum. I worked hard to pass the Reproductive Health Act, which establishes a foundational right to access safe and legal abortion in Illinois. Additionally, I served as the House sponsor of a comprehensive, bicameral and bipartisan initiative to prevent and address all forms of harassment and bullying in the workplace. Back in the District, my staff and I spent time meeting with constituents, advocacy organizations, visiting street festivals, going to local school walk-a-thons, and attending community meetings.
With the new year comes a new set of laws, passed last Spring and effective January 1st, 2020. Examples include the legalization of recreational marijuana, the phasing in of a minimum wage increase, heightened fees for violating “Scott’s Law” or failing to stop for emergency vehicles, DCFS reforms, and others. Click here for highlights of some of the new laws going into effect and how they might impact you. Please consider my office a resource should you have questions or concerns as to how these laws might affect you and your family. You can reach us by phone at (773) 880-9082 or email me directly at ann@repannwilliams.com.
I will be traveling back to Springfield later this month for the beginning of the 2020 Spring legislative session. This session, I plan to focus on passing the Clean Energy Jobs Act, working on omnibus legislation to address the issue of single-use plastics, supporting ethics reforms, fighting for our neighborhood schools, restoring Illinois’ fiscal stability, and much more.
For more information on the upcoming legislative session, please join me for my “2020 Legislative Preview” at 10am on Saturday, January 25th at the Lincoln-Belmont Library, 1659 W. Melrose. The event will take place in the community room. Please RSVP here to attend the meeting.
As always, your feedback is critical in order for me to effectively represent you in Springfield. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me any time to share your priorities, or with questions, concerns or comments.
I look forward to the progress that 2020 will bring. Wishing you and your family a happy and peaceful New Year.
Ann M. Williams
State Representative – 11th District