ISACo

On July 27, 2021, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) announced it is fully adopting updated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) masking recommendations to protect against COVID-19 and the Delta variant. CDC recommends that everyone, including fully vaccinated individuals, wear a mask in public indoor setting in areas with substantial and high transmission. CDC is also recommending universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status.

On July 27, 2021, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director John J. Kim announced the issuance of a health advisory for Perfluorononanoic Acid (PFNA) in accordance with Illinois groundwater regulations. Health advisories are issued when there is detection of a chemical substance(s) harmful to human health for which no numeric groundwater standard(s) exists, and resampling confirms the presence in a community water supply well (35 Ill. Adm. Code 620.605).

On Friday, July 23, 2021, Governor JB Pritzker extended the Disaster Proclamation through August 21. Of note, while the Proclamation did not include the remote meeting authority provision found within previous Proclamations, there may still be authority to hold remote meetings pursuant to P.A. 101-0640. ISACo recommends that counties consult with their state's attorney to clarify what is or is not permitted.

On Wednesday, June 16, 2021, Governor JB Pritzker signed legislation declaring June 19, Juneteenth, an official state holiday. To commemorate the abolition of slavery throughout the United States and its territories in 1865, Juneteenth will be recognized as National Freedom Day in Illinois.

Governor Pritzker released the provisions of his most recent energy legislation in a June 10, 2021, memo to the Energy Legislation Working Group. The text of the memo is available by clicking on the title to this story. The General Assembly is set to return to Springfield next Tuesday and Wednesday to debate and vote on energy legislation following the inability to reach agreement prior to the adjournment of the spring legislative session last week. Now that the June 30 deadline has passed, it will require a three-fifths vote of each chamber to approve legislation and send it to the Governor. Key sticking points in the debate over an energy bill concern the amount of the subsidy offered to Exelon for its nuclear fleet and whether or not to exempt coal plants owned by municipal utilities from closure. It has also been reported that a second version of energy legislation has surfaced. Of primary concern to counties is whether an approved energy bill includes provisions restricting local control over siting wind and solar facilities. ISACo opposes such restrictions.