Rep. Ann Williams

Amends the State Finance Act. Provides that the State shall not expend or invest any public funds in any organization, nonprofit organization, religious organization, or any other entity that performs conversion therapy. Provides that any public funds owed by the State to an organization performing conversion therapy shall be withheld from such organization, and any contract between the State and that organization shall be void.

Creates the Homicide Victims' Families' Rights Act. Provides for the review of the case file of a first degree or second degree murder committed more than 3 years prior to the date of the application, for which all probative investigative leads have been exhausted, and for which no likely perpetrator has been identified, upon written application by an immediate family member to determine whether a full reinvestigation would result in probative investigative leads. Provides that the person or persons performing the review shall not have previously investigated the murder at issue. Provides that only one case review shall be undertaken at any one time with respect to the same murder victim. Provides that each law enforcement agency shall develop a written application to be used for persons to request a case file review. Provides that the applicable agency shall conduct a full reinvestigation of the murder at issue if the review of the case file concludes that a full reinvestigation of the murder would result in probative investigative leads. Provides for the compilation and publication of specified information and statistics regarding cold case murders by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority. Amends the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Act to make conforming changes.

Declares the month of September 2023 as River Clean Up Month. Encourages chambers of commerce, convention and visitors bureaus, local economic development organizations, area groups and associations, and local schools and colleges to organize and coordinate local cleanup activities along portions of rivers and waterways in their area. Encourages the State of Illinois to promote September as River Clean Up Month.

Declare's March 8, 2023 as International Women's Day. Reaffirms the State's commitment to pursue strategies that guarantee the basic human rights of women and girls, to promote meaningful and significant participation of women in all aspects of our society, to encourage equitable access to and healthcare for all women and girls, and to support policy initiatives that seek to achieve gender parity and empower all women.

Amends the Chicago School District Article of the School Code. Provides that the board shall create an educator pipeline development program. Provides that the program shall seek to develop a licensed practical nurse seeking to become a health service nurse, a paraprofessional and related service personnel seeking to become a licensed teacher, or a multilingual staff employee seeking to become a licensed bilingual teacher. Provides that the program shall support up to 120 people per school year. Provides that the program shall partner with Chicago State University, Northeastern Illinois University, and the City Colleges of Chicago. Provides that members of the pipeline program shall complete necessary collegiate course work to attain the members' additional licensure. Provides that program members shall continue to work normally until required student teaching or clinical experiences are required. Provides that members of the program will work with cooperating instructors from the member's affiliate institution toward the successful completion of the member's required work experience. Provides that members of the program will have 3 years to complete the member's coursework and required work experience. Provides that members of the program who successfully complete the member's training will be placed, to the extent practicable, in the school where they completed the member's required work experience. Provides that those members who were unable to be placed at the school where the member completed the work experience shall be placed elsewhere in the school district. Provides that, subject to appropriation, the State Board of Education and the board shall split the costs of the program equally.

Congratulates Evelyn Lust, a sixth grader from John C. Coonley Elementary School, on her outstanding accomplishment in the 2023 Chicago Public Schools Citywide Spelling Bee Championship.

Amends the Department of Professional Regulation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Requires health care professionals who have continuing education requirements to complete cultural competency training, which shall include information on sensitivity relating to and best practices for providing affirming care to people in the person's preferred language, people with disabilities, documented or undocumented immigrants, people who are intersex, people living with HIV, and people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities. Provides that for every license or registration renewal occurring on or after the effective date of the amendatory Act, a health care professional who has continuing education requirements must complete at least 5 hours in cultural competency training. Provides that for every license or registration renewal occurring on or after the effective date of the amendatory Act, a person licensed or registered by the Department under the Medical Practice Act of 1987 and who has continuing education requirements must complete at least 10 hours in cultural competency training. Provides that these continuing education hours may count toward meeting the minimum credit hours required for continuing education. Provides for rulemaking. Effective January 1, 2024.

Creates the Carbon Dioxide Transport and Storage Protections Act. Provides that a sequestration operator may not exercise any authority to take or acquire any easement or title to any pore space or any portion of an area of review pursuant to the Eminent Domain Act. Provides that the sequestration operator is solely liable for any and all damage caused by the carbon dioxide transported to the sequestration facility for injection or sequestration, or otherwise under the sequestration operator's control, including damage caused by carbon dioxide released from the sequestration facility, regardless of who holds title to the carbon dioxide, the pore space, or the surface estate. Provides that in addition to any permit fees required by the Environmental Protection Act, sequestration operators and pipeline operators who transport or sequester carbon dioxide in the State must pay a fee each year to the State for deposit in the Carbon Transportation and Sequestration Readiness Fund established by this Act. Creates the Carbon Transportation and Sequestration Readiness Fund and makes a corresponding change to the State Finance Act. Provides for: training for carbon dioxide emergencies for emergency responders, medical personnel, residents, businesses, and other local entities. Makes a corresponding change to the Illinois Power Agency Act and the Public Utilities Act. Amends the Environmental Protection Act. Provides for: setbacks from carbon dioxide pipelines; permitting required for carbon dioxide capture; prohibition of conducting any carbon sequestration operation without a permit; and permitting required for carbon sequestration. Provides that if the Environmental Protection Agency grants or denies a permit for capture of carbon dioxide or a permit for sequestration of carbon dioxide, any person may petition the Pollution Control Board within 35 days from the date of issuance of the Agency's decision for a hearing to contest the decision of the Agency. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.

Mourns the passing of Erich Himmel.

Amends the Environmental Protection Act. Provides that the filing fees for specified petitions shall be $250 (rather than $75).