CHICAGO - August 23, 2011. Governor Pat Quinn today took action on the following bills:  

   

Bill No.: HB 297  

An Act Concerning: State Government  

Requires the Task Force on Inventorying Employment Restrictions submit findings and recommendations concerning employment restrictions that are not reasonably related to public safety.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: HB 1091  

An Act Concerning: State Government  

Creates a Public-Private Partnership ("P3") Act authorizing P3s and establishing a framework for P3 transportation projects.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: HB 1216  

An Act Concerning: Education  

Creates the School District Realignment and Consolidation Commission to study school districts across the state and make recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly on their findings.   

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: HB 1670  

An Act Concerning: Government  

Requires any elected or appointed member of a public body to complete online training conducted by the Attorney General's Public Access Counselor.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: HB 2934  

An Act Concerning: Public Aid  

Permits the state to interfund borrow for the purpose of enhancing Medicaid reimbursements prior to June 30, 2011.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediate  

   

Bill No.: HB 2955  

An Act Concerning: Revenue  

Makes technical changes to statute to make sure that the Illinois Compiled Statutes are consistent with laws that were enacted in the 96^th General Assembly.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: HB 3041  

An Act Concerning: Government  

Adds trust companies to the definition of financial institutions included in the Illinois Notary Public Act.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: HB 3620  

An Act Concerning: Safety  

Requires that structural fill made from coal combustion waste must meet the standards of the American Society of Testing Materials or the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) in order to be considered for beneficial use.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 87  

An Act Concerning: Regulation  

Exempts currency exchanges from the Transmitters of Money Act for the sale, loading, or unloading of stored value cards.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 90  

An Act Concerning: Local Government  

Removes the requirement that Secretary of State driver facilities have deputy registrars and allows driver facilities to be permanent places for voter registration.   

Action: Amendatorily Vetoed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 115  

An Act Concerning: Employment  

Increases the civil penalty to $5,000 when an employer interferes or discourages an individual from exercising their rights under the Equal Pay Act or retaliates against an individual for exercising their rights under the Act.   

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 152  

An Act Concerning: Insurance  

Requires arbitration for smaller automobile insurance damage claims where the amount in dispute involves less than $2,500.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 153  

An Act Concerning: Regulation  

Extends the repeal date of the Massage Licensing Act from Jan. 1, 2012, to Jan. 1, 2022 and makes various substantive and technical changes.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 170  

An Act Concerning: Government  

Designates the Governor authority to appoint superintendents for the Illinois School for the Deaf (ISD) and the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired (ISVI) with advice and consent of the Senate.  

Action: Amendatorily Vetoed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1234  

An Act Concerning: Civil Liabilities  

Allows for more integration between mental health and physical health providers.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1235  

An Act Concerning: State Government  

Eliminates a duplicative child care law.     

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1240  

An Act Concerning: Local Government  

Allows the Emergency Telephone System Board to purchase real property if the purchase occurred before March 16, 2006.     

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1292  

An Act Concerning: Courts  

Broadens a juvenile court's jurisdiction in order to conduct permanency hearings and allows the Department of Juvenile Justice to obtain matching federal funds under Title IV-E.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 1357  

An Act Concerning: Safety  

Allows the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to collect fines for violations of Compliance Commitment Agreements.   

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1364  

An Act Concerning: Local Government  

Allows municipal hospital contract employees to serve on public hospital board.    

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1386  

An Act Concerning: Revenue  

Allows Cook County residents to apply for a refund of excess property taxes between Sept. 1, 2011 and Sept. 1, 2012.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1470  

An Act Concerning: Criminal Law  

Provides that the Prisoner Review Board may schedule a rehearing no later than five (rather than three) years from the date of the parole denial.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 1471  

An Act Concerning: Criminal Law  

Prohibits the Prisoner Review Board from releasing any material containing any information from the victim to the inmate or inmate's attorney unless the victim provides a waiver.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 1553  

An Act Concerning: Insurance  

Amends the filing dates for semi-annual expense reports required from insurance carriers.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 1578  

An Act Concerning: Education  

Grants educational support staff the opportunity to upgrade their skills through professional development institute day attendance.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 1602  

An Act Concerning: Regulation  

Makes various changes regarding mobile dental vans in the Illinois Dental Practice Act.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 1607  

An Act Concerning: Insurance  

Attempts to protect seniors from being mislead when purchasing or learning about life insurance policies and amends life insurance provisions concerning both proof of death and payment of proceeds.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1622  

An Act Concerning: Health  

Requires the Department of Human Services to conduct a geographic analysis of support services for persons with developmental disabilities or mental illness and report the findings to the General Assembly.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1623  

An Act Concerning: Health  

Requires the Department of Human Services to report on the progress of implementation of Williams v. Quinn consent decree and propagate a new rule governing community-based residential settings.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1740  

An Act Concerning: Criminal Law  

Requires parole or mandatory supervised release to be written as part of the sentencing order; changes a condition of mandatory supervised release from mandatory to discretionary.   

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 1761  

An Act Concerning: Public Health  

Provides for expanded screening to identify new diseases and disorders in newborns.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1804  

An Act Concerning: Revenue  

Guarantees that a restrictive covenant may not limit a person's right to a notice of public hearing.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1821  

An Act Concerning: Regulation  

Creates the Carbon Dioxide Transportation and Sequestration Act.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 1972  

An Act Concerning: Civil Law  

Requires the purchaser of a property at a foreclosure sale of common interest community unit to pay the court costs incurred by the association in an attempt to collect assessments that are past due.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 1996  

An Act Concerning: Civil Law  

Requires the Department of Public Health to develop a plan regarding the relocation of mobile home and manufactured home residents.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 2007  

An Act Concerning: State Government  

Removes the requirement that the Treasurer's Office publish in Chicago and Springfield newspapers the investment or management policy for the College Savings Pool and the Public Treasurers' Investment Pool.    

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 2040  

An Act Concerning: Criminal Law  

Provides that the Illinois Anti-Piracy Statute comports with Federal law, with respect to sound recordings, and applies only to those that were initially fixed prior to Feb. 15, 1972.        

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 2042  

An Act Concerning: Education  

Removes a reference to reapportionment by the General Assembly for the Lincoln Land Community College District No. 526, and instead provides that Board of Trustee members must be elected by district at the 2013 consolidated election.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 2064  

An Act Concerning: Transportation  

Grants the Secretary of State the ability to suspend a car's registration if it is confirmed that the car was used for gun running.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

   

Bill No.: SB 2082  

An Act Concerning: State Government  

Requires the Secretary of State to publish a report on the number of businesses in Illinois every quarter.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 2170  

An Act Concerning: Local Government  

Makes changes to the School Facility Occupation Tax Law which requires the imposition of a sales tax earmarked for school construction if the voters approve the referendum.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Immediately  

   

Bill No.: SB 2236  

An Act Concerning: Regulation  

Requires applicants for land surveyor-in-training licenses must have a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university program.  

Action: Signed  

Effective Date: Jan. 1  

 

Bill No.: SB 2268

An Act Concerning: Criminal Law

Provides that within 14 days of seizure, the state shall seek a preliminary determination from the circuit court as to whether there is probable cause that the property may be subject to forfeiture.

Action: Signed

Effective Date: Jan. 1

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MOLINE, ILLINOIS - In 1961, black and white students deliberately violated Jim Crow laws in an effort to end segregation in the Deep South. This first group of 'Freedom Riders' were beaten and their bus burned. Should they continue? The answer came from a young civil rights leader from Fisk University. She said "It was clear to me that if we allowed the Freedom Ride to stop at that point, just after so much violence had been inflicted the message would have been sent that all you have to do to stop a nonviolent campaign is inflict massive violence." That young woman was Diane Nash.

The Rock Island Community Foundation has generously donated $2,000 to WQPT to help bring Diane Nash to the Quad Cities to speak at the Martin Luther King Center in Rock Island on October 15^th at 10:00 a.m.  This event is free to the public, though donations are accepted at the door. Seating is on a first come/first served basis. She will also be the keynote speaker at the Illinois NAACP's Freedom Fund Banquet taking place at the i wireless Center that same night.

"After we aired 'Freedom Riders' in May and held public viewings of the film for junior high and high school students we wanted to expand the reach of the project," said WQPT General Manager, Rick Best. Original Freedom Riders who spoke at the April events were Joan Trumpauer-Mulholland and Dion Diamond.  "Having Ms. Nash appear to speak is especially important because of her role as a leader in the civil rights movement," Mr. Best said. Ms. Nash is prominently featured in the film and was a guest on Oprah in April when she aired a special on the 50^thAnniversary Freedom Rides.

"As the school year starts WQPT has made available to 100 area schools a DVD of the film and a study guide for teachers. Earlier in the year we conducted teaching seminars to help prepare instructors to teach this part of our civil rights history," said Ana Kehoe, WQPT Educational Outreach Director.  "The response to our April event was remarkable and the WQPT Freedom Riders committee, made up of area educators and civil rights leaders, felt that we should continue our efforts."  WQPT will also be airing an interview with Ms. Nash on "The Cities with Jim Mertens" on October 20^th at 6:30 p.m.

WQPT is a public media service of Western Illinois University located in Moline, Illinois.

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Bettendorf ? Going back to school can be such a drag for a kid, that's why the Family Museum is holding one last kid-hurrah: a Back-to-School Bash with the puck-rock band The Boogers! Kids can dance 'til they drop one last time this summer, and parents can rock for joy because the kids are going back to school. The concert will be held outdoors at the Family Museum on Saturday, August 27 from 6:30-7:30 PM. The concert is free for everybody!

The Family Museum is excited to welcome back the puck-rock band The Boogers. This kid-friendly group appeared last year at the Family Museum's Market Music Fest and was a huge hit with parents and kids alike. Their Ramones-type songs include such popular hits as "This Song Is about Transportation" and "I like Bananas" along with some old classics like "The Wheels on the Bus" and "The Itsy Bitsy Spider." So bring a blanket or some chairs and join Crusty, Sticky, and Greenie as they rock the stage and wake the neighbors at this all-ages rock show!

For more information about The Boogers and to listen to samples of their music, please visit their website: http://www.meet-the-boogers.com/index.html

Images: Crusty Booger playing guitar at the Family Museum's Market Music Fest 2010

Greenie Booger playing bass and Sticky Booger playing drums at the Family Museum's Market Music Fest 2010.

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LAKE JACKSON, Texas - The Ron Paul 2012 Presidential Campaign announced today that constitutional and international law expert Bruce Fein will join the campaign as senior advisor on legal matters.

"Bruce Fein's participation adds to our campaign's already intellectual heft, enabling us to more broadly engage the conversation about constitutionality, civil liberties and the dangers to national security of an increasingly interventionist foreign policy," said Ron Paul 2012 Campaign Chairman Jesse Benton.

Mr. Fein served as associate deputy attorney and general counsel to the Federal Communications Commission under President Ronald Reagan.  He served as Research Director for Republicans on the Joint Congressional Committee on Covert Arms Sales to Iran, and on the American Bar Associations Committee on Presidential Signing Statements.  He has been a Visiting Fellow for Constitutional Studies at the Heritage Foundation and an adjunct scholar at American Enterprise Institute.  He has advised numerous countries on constitutional reform, including South Africa, Hungary and Russia.

Mr. Fein graduated from Harvard Law School with honors in 1972.  He has worked in and out of government in Washington, D.C. for 39 years, and penned a weekly column for The Washington Times for more than two decades.  He is a frequent witness before Congress.

Mr. Fein is the founding member of Bruce Fein & Associates, Inc., and is a principal of a public advocacy organization, The Lichfield Group.

He is the author of Constitutional Peril:  The Life and Death Struggle for our Constitution and Democracy, andAmerican Empire Before The Fall.

About his appointment, Mr. Fein stated:  "I am honored to advance the Republican presidential aspirations of Ron Paul.  He is the only candidate in the field who understands and practices the constitutional principles and philosophy of the Founding Fathers that made this nation a government of the people, by the people, for the people.  He is the only candidate who knows that limited government and war are antonyms, not synonyms.  He is the only candidate who repudiates aimless, endless wars at extravagant expense.  And Dr. Paul is the only candidate that recognizes that the glory of a Republic is liberty, not domination."