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The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, which established and appropriated $25 billion for the first round of the Emergency Rental Assistance program (ERA1), directed the U.S. Department of Treasury (Treasury) to recapture and reallocate “excess” ERA1 funds beginning on September 30, 2021. On October 4, Treasury published new guidance outlining how it plans to recoup and redistribute these funds. Click on the title for more information.

On Wednesday, September 15, 2021, Governor Pritzker signed SB 2408 into law as P.A. 102-0662. The new clean energy law is the product of an agreement between environmental groups, labor organizations and other stakeholders. Click on the title of this story for more information.

On August 20, 2021, Governor JB Pritzker extended the state's disaster declaration and re-issued several COVID-19 Executive Orders (EO). Click the title of this story for links to the declaration and most recent EO that includes the extensions to previous EOs.

On Thursday, August 12, 2021, the U.S. Census Bureau released initial 2020 Census results showing local population shifts along with racial and ethnic diversity changes. This information was released in the legacy format, with more user-friendly data expected to be released by September 30, 2021.

On Tuesday, August 10, 2021, the U.S. Senate approved an almost $1 trillion investment in infrastructure. The bill was approved 69-30 and will next be considered by the U.S. House of Representatives. The Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act (IIJA) would provide $973 billion over five years from FY 2022 through FY 2026, including $550 billion in new investments for all modes of transportation, water, power and energy, environmental remediation, public lands, broadband and resilience. The National Association of Counties (NACo) has prepared a summary of the legislation and how it would benefit counties.