This week's Illinois State Association of Counties (ISACo) News and Views e-newsletter includes an update on actions taken by the Governor last week on legislation of interest to counties, shares an announcement about the pending retirement of Illinois Supreme Court Justice Rita B. Garman, conveys information about another bond upgrade for the state, provides a link for county officials and staff to register for the National Association of Counties (NACo) Annual Conference being held from July 21-24 in Colorado, announces an upcoming NACo webinar opportunity, spotlights ISACo corporate partner Comcast and invites counties to join ISACo.
Governor Bill Actions
The General Assembly has 30 days to transmit a bill approved by both chambers to the Governor. The Governor has 60 days from that point to review and act on the legislation. The following ISACo tracked bills were signed into law by the Governor last week:
HB 1091 - Creates Offense of Organized Retail Crime (P.A. 102-0757) (No Position)
HB 3863 - Law Enforcement Recruitment and Retention Fund (P.A. 102-0755) (No Position)
HB 4736 - Crime Reduction Task Force (P.A. 102-0756) (No Position)
SB 1016 - Water Commission Appointments (P.A. 102-0736) (Support)
SB 1411 - Death Certificates - Service Member (P.A. 102-0739) (No Position)
SB 3011 - Surgical Smoke Evacuation (P.A. 102-0750) (No Position)
SB 3024 - Access to Prescription Monitoring System Data (P.A. 102-0751) (No Position)
SB 3939 - Cybersecurity Liaison Program (P.A. 102-0753) (Support)
ISACo's "Bills of Interest to Counties Approved by Both Chambers in 2022" report is available via this link. County officials and staff are urged to review this report.
Garman Announces Retirement from Illinois Supreme Court
Justice Rita B. Garman announced her retirement from the Illinois Supreme Court effective July 7, 2022. Justice Garman, 78, has served on the Supreme Court since 2001 and will retire as the longest serving judge in Illinois. She served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court from 2013 to 2016.
The Supreme Court, which has the constitutional authority to fill interim judicial vacancies, has appointed Fourth District Appellate Justice Lisa Holder White to fill the remainder of Justice Garman’s term. Justice Holder White, whose term is effective July 8, 2022, through December 2, 2024, will be the first Black woman to serve on the Illinois Supreme Court.
State Receives Another Bond Upgrade
S&P Global Ratings’ announced an upgrade to Illinois bonds on Friday, May 13, 2022. Illinois has now received two-notch bond rating upgrades from the three major credit rating agencies in the last year – making a total of six upgrades in less than a year. S&P last upgraded the state’s bonds in July 2021, and the agency credited stronger-than-forecast tax revenues and transparent reporting both from the Comptroller and the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget aiding in addressing long standing credit weaknesses. Additional information is available via this link.
Registration for NACo Annual Conference
The 2022 National Association of Counties (NACo) Annual Conference will be held in Adams County. Colorado from July 21-24. Participants from counties of all sizes come together to shape NACo's federal policy agenda, share proven practices and strengthen knowledge networks to help improve residents’ lives and the efficiency of county government. ISACo and the United Counties Council of Illinois (UCCI) will co-host a dinner for Illinois attendees. Information about this event will be forthcoming. Registration and information about housing is available via this link.
Upcoming NACo Webinars
NACo has announced the following upcoming webinar opportunities. ISACo is a proud partner with NACo and encourages counties to participate in NACo membership and activities.
County Initiatives for Suicide Prevention
(Monday, May 16, 2022, 2:00-3:00pm CDT)
Counties across the country are taking a proactive approach regarding suicide awareness and prevention. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on many peoples’ mental health and has exacerbated mental illnesses for those previously diagnosed. Join NACo during Mental Health Awareness Month to hear from counties implementing innovative and supportive programming geared toward suicide prevention and the de-stigmatization of mental health.
Click on this link to register for this event.
CORPORATE SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT
This week's corporate partner spotlight highlights ISACo's partnership with Comcast.
Comcast Corporation is a global media and technology company with three primary businesses: Comcast Cable, NBCUniversal, and Sky. Comcast Cable is one of the United States’ largest video, high-speed internet, and phone providers to residential customers under the Xfinity brand, and also provides these services to businesses. It also provides wireless and security and automation services to residential customers under the Xfinity brand. NBCUniversal is global and operates news, entertainment, and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures, and Universal Parks and Resorts. Sky is one of Europe’s leading media and entertainment companies, connecting customers to a broad range of video content through its pay television services. It also provides communications services, including residential high-speed internet, phone, and wireless services. Sky operates the Sky News broadcast network and sports and entertainment networks produce original content and has exclusive content rights.
With more than 6,000 local employees, Comcast’s Greater Chicago Region (https://chicago.comcast.com) serves customers in central and northern Illinois, including the Chicago area, northwest Indiana, and southwest Michigan.
More information about the services provided by Comcast is available via this link.
Click on this link to learn more about the benefits and opportunities available through ISACo's Corporate Partner Program.
Become an ISACo Member!
Is your county a member of ISACo? If not, why not?
ISACo is a statewide association whose mission is to empower county officials to provide excellent service to their residents.
ISACo member counties are comprised of forward-thinking public servants who recognize that the challenges confronting county governments require new and innovative ideas, collaborative solutions and collective advocacy at the state and federal levels of government.
Members of the association will benefit from education and training opportunities, peer-to-peer networking, shared resources and robust representation before policymakers at various levels of government. ISACo creates and connects county officials to these opportunities and successfully equips them to make counties ideal places to live, work and play.
If your county is interested in discussing membership in ISACo, please contact Executive Director Joe McCoy at (217) 679-3368 or jmccoy@isacoil.org. ISACo member counties are listed here. Thank you for your consideration.