CHICAGO - Last Wednesday, State Senator Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago), who represents some of Chicago'€™s most violence-stricken neighborhoods, standing with colleagues and members of the community called for accountability within the Chicago Police Department. Van Pelt is sponsoring legislation a series a legislative initiatives directly targeting that lack of accountability: SB 2210, SB 2231 and SB 2233.

The package of bills pertains to creating an independent police review board, retention of police misconduct records and FOIA requests detailing police misconduct.

"Accountability has been a major issue throughout the City of Chicago, specifically as it relates to policing. Introducing and passing these measures are a strong step in the right direct," Sen. Van Pelt said.

In the past year, Illinois has seen numerous efforts from the General Assembly to pass measures for policing reform. Most notably, Senate Bill 1304, a measure signed into law by the governor after passing both chambers, establishes wide-ranging rules for body cameras, largely prohibits chokeholds, introduces bias-free policing and demands more data collection on arrests.

Senator Patricia Van Pelt will sponsor an Environmental Town Hall with the Illinois Sierra Club, Faith in Place and the Environmental Law and Policy Center.

This is an opportunity to hear Illinois’ top environmental leaders give their up-to-the-minute analysis of environmental and   conservation issues, including the status of legislation that would create 32,000 new jobs a year in energy efficiency and clean  power. Come explore issues that have an impact on the health of your family, as well as on the health of the natural world.

 Monday, October 26, 2015 from 6pm to 7:30 pm.

The Garfield Park Conservatory, 300 North Central Park Avenue, Chicago, IL 60624

For more information, call (312) 251-1680.
    

Directions:

By car: Take the Eisenhower Expressway (I-290). Exit at Independence Boulevard (Exit 26A) and travel north. Turn right (east) onto Washington Boulevard. Turn left (north) onto Central Park Avenue (3600W). Travel two blocks north past the Garfield Park Golden Dome field house and the Lake Street public transit line. The Conservatory is on the west side of the street at 300 N. Central Park Ave.

By train: Take the Green Line to the “Conservatory” exit.

CHICAGO - The Illinois Housing Development Authority is currently accepting applications for Round 2 of the Blight Reduction Program.

For more information, please visit the Authority website.

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago) is pleased to have had the opportunity to vote in support of an Illinois General Assembly bill that approved federal appropriations for a variety of state programs, totaling over $7.65 billion.

Senate Bill 2042 allows the state government to spend federal money on an assortment of programs. Included in the federal funding are dollars for community block grants for municipalities, family and community services including the WIC program, as well as funds to help homeless veterans, continue with breast and cervical cancer screenings, and home-delivered meals for the Department on Aging.

“With the passage of this legislation, a large portion of our state budget will be funded. Many of these important programs were in danger of closing due to the current budget impasse. I’m proud to have been in Springfield to vote for this legislation and I’m very pleased it has passed the Illinois Senate,” Senator Van Pelt said.

The legislation comes as the Illinois General Assembly and the governor’s office continue negotiations on a new state budget. The governor vetoed the appropriations legislation sent to him by the General Assembly in May that would have avoided the current stalemate.

Senate Bill 2042 will now head to the House of Representatives for consideration.

“I urge my colleagues in the House to pass this legislation to help keep these valuable state services continuing and also urge the Governor to sign the bill into law once it gets to his office,” Van Pelt said.