Sen. Rachel Ventura

Amends the Municipal Code. In provisions concerning acquisition of water systems by eminent domain, provides that eminent domain actions undertaken by a municipality under the provisions may be submitted as a referendum to be voted upon by the electors residing within the area in which the affected water system is located. Provides that the petition process for the elections shall be governed by specified procedures of the Election Code. Provides that the acquisition of water systems by eminent domain is declared to be a special use under specified provisions of the Eminent Domain Act.

Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. In a provision concerning the child care assistance program administered by the Department of Human Services, expands the list of families eligible to receive child care assistance to include families that are not TANF recipients but require financial assistance so that a responsible adult within the household can forgo work and care for a newborn child for the child's first 12 weeks of life. Provides that eligibility for cash assistance under the new category is conditioned on the responsible adult being the parent or legal guardian of the newborn child and participating in a Department-approved training program in health, safety, and early childhood development for the entire 12 weeks the family receives assistance. Provides that families eligible for child care assistance under the new category shall receive weekly assistance payments in an amount equal to the full day rate applied to licensed child care providers who provide 17 to 24 hours of care per day; and shall have their child care assistance payment amount adjusted according to the number of newborn children receiving care, up to a maximum of 3 children.

Amends the Survivor Support And Trafficking Prevention Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Extends eligibility for cash assistance and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits to foreign-born victims of trafficking, torture, or other serious crimes who are preparing to file an application for T Nonimmigrant status or other specified nonimmigrant status applications. Removes a provision conditioning such assistance on the availability of funding. Removes a provision excluding from cash assistance and SNAP eligibility foreign-born victims of trafficking, torture, or other serious crimes who are single adults without family members. Removes a provision excluding from SNAP eligibility foreign-born victims of trafficking, torture, or other serious crimes who reside in an institution or other setting that provides the majority of their daily meals. Effective immediately.

Creates the Patient Access to Pharmacy Protection Act. Defines terms. Provides that no person, including a pharmaceutical manufacturer, may deny, restrict, prohibit, condition, or otherwise interfere with, either directly or indirectly, the acquisition of a 340B drug by, or delivery of a 340B drug to, a 340B covered entity or a 340B contract pharmacy authorized to receive 340B drugs on behalf of the 340B covered entity unless such receipt is prohibited by federal law. Provides that no person, including a pharmaceutical manufacturer, may impose any restriction on the ability of a 340B covered entity to contract with or designate a 340B contract pharmacy including restrictions relating to the number, location, ownership, or type of 340B contract pharmacy. Provides that no person, including a pharmaceutical manufacturer, may require or compel a 340B covered entity or 340B contract pharmacy to submit or otherwise provide ingredient cost or pricing data pertinent to 340B drugs unless required by State or federal law; institute requirements in any way relating to how a 340B covered entity manages its inventory of 340B drugs that are not required by a State or federal agency, including requirements relating to the frequency or scope of audits of inventory management systems of a 340B covered entity or a 340B contract pharmacy; or submit data or information that is not required by State or federal law as a condition for a 340B covered entity, its 340B contract pharmacy, or a location otherwise authorized by a 340B covered entity to receive 340B drugs. Sets forth provisions concerning enforcement of this Act; preemption of this Act; and severability of this Act. Effective immediately.

Maddy summarySB 705 makes a technical amendment to the Illinois Banking Act. Specifically, it updates a section related to the short title of the Act.

Amends the Energy Transition Act. Adds electrification industries to clean energy jobs. Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that a gas utility may cease providing service if the Illinois Commerce Commission determines that adequate substitute service is available at a reasonable cost to support the existing end uses of the affected utility customers. Provides for cost-effective energy efficiency measures for natural gas utilities that supersede existing provisions concerning natural gas energy efficiency programs and take effect beginning January 1, 2025. Provides that gas main and gas service extension policies shall be based on the principle that the full incremental cost associated with new development and growth shall be borne by the customers that cause those incremental costs. Provides that, no later than 60 days after the effective date of the amendatory Act, the Commission shall initiate a docketed rulemaking reviewing each gas public utility tariff that provides for gas main and gas service extensions without additional charge to new customers in excess of the default extensions as specified in administrative rule. Adds the Clean Building Heating Law Article to the Act, with provisions concerning emissions standards for heating in buildings, as well as related and other provisions. Adds the 2050 Heat Decarbonization Standard Article to the Act, with provisions concerning options for compliance, measures for customer emission reduction, customer emission reductions, tradable clean heat credits, banking of emission reductions, equity in emission reductions, enforcement, the 2050 Heat Decarbonization Pathways Study, gas infrastructure planning, a study on gas utility financial incentive reform, and reporting requirements. Adds the Statewide Navigator Program Law Article to the Act, with provisions concerning creation of a statewide navigator program, as well as related and other provisions. Effective immediately.

Amends the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Administrative Act. Requires the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, in collaboration with the Department of Human Services, to file an amendment to the Home and Community-Based Services Waiver Program for Adults with Developmental Disabilities that shall include an increase in the rate methodology sufficient to provide for a wage rate of 150% of the statewide, regional, or local minimum wage for services delivered on or after January 1, 2026, for all direct support personnel and all other frontline personnel who are not subject to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' average wage increases and who work in residential and community day services settings. Provides that for services delivered on or after January 1, 2026, the rates shall include adjustments to employment-related expenses as defined by rule by the Department of Human Services. Requires the Department of Human Services to adopt rules, including emergency rules, to implement the rate increases. Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Requires the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to submit a Title XIX State Plan amendment to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that shall include an increase in the rate methodology sufficient to provide for a wage rate of 150% of the statewide, regional, or local minimum wage for services delivered on or after January 1, 2026, for all direct support personnel and all other frontline personnel at ID/DD and MC/DD facilities. Provides that the State Plan amendment shall provide wage increases for all residential non-executive direct care staff. Effective immediately.

Amends the School Code. Provides that, subject to appropriation, beginning with the 2025-2026 school year, the State Board of Education shall award grant money in the form of a voucher of $125,000 to a school district that submits a grant application to the State Board to be applied on the total purchase price of an electric school bus to effectively lower the purchase price of the electric school bus to the school district. Sets forth eligibility requirements for a school district to receive a grant. Provides that the State Board of Education shall annually disseminate a request for applications for grants towards the purchase of a electric school bus grant and applications shall be accepted on an annual basis. Provides that if the appropriation for grants under this Section for a given fiscal year is less than the amount required to fund all applications for grants, the State Board of Education shall give priority to school districts designated as Tier 1 or Tier 2 that do not have any electric school buses. Sets forth the application requirements. Allows the State Board of Education to adopt any rules necessary for the implementation of the provisions. Effective immediately.

Creates the Utility Data Access Act. Requires the Illinois Commerce Commission to enact the following procedures: (1) a utility shall retain all consumption data for a period of not less than 2 years; (2) a qualified utility shall retain monthly consumption data used for billing for a period of not less than 15 years; (3) a utility shall honor an account holder's request to transmit the account holder's covered usage data held by the utility to any entity designated by the account holder; (4) a qualified data recipient with respect to a qualified building or qualified property may request that a qualified utility provide aggregated usage data for the qualified building or qualified property; (5) a utility shall deliver requested data on a schedule set by the Commission; and (6) the account holder request process and utility delivery of requested data shall be convenient and secure. Establishes requirements for: the Commission's participation in a stakeholder process; the form and timeline in which covered usage data is provided to the data recipient; entry of data into the benchmarking tool; and the provision of covered usage data to recipients upon account holder authorization. Provides that, except in cases where the utility has not followed processes established by the Act or the utility is grossly negligent, the utility shall be held harmless for third-party misuse of data shared under the Act and no cause of action may be initiated against the utility for such subsequent misuse. Provides that prior to filing for cost recovery, a qualified utility must first demonstrate good faith efforts to secure federal, State, or other relevant funding options. Sets forth provisions regarding funding for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities under the Act and the Commission selecting and engaging outside consultants with experience in benchmarking and utility data access. States findings. Defines terms.

Amends the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Administrative Act. Requires the Department of Human Services to establish reimbursement rates that build toward livable wages for front-line personnel in residential and day programs and service coordination agencies serving persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Provides that for community-based providers serving persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities, subject to federal approval, the rates taking effect for services delivered on or after July 1, 2025 shall be increased sufficiently to: (i) provide a minimum $2.00 per hour wage increase over the wages in effect on June 30, 2025 for front-line personnel; and (ii) provide wages for all other residential non-executive direct care staff, excluding direct support professionals, at the U.S. Department of Labor's average wage as defined, by rule, by the Department. Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that for ID/DD facilities and MC/DD facilities, the rates taking effect for services delivered on or after July 1, 2025, shall be increased sufficiently to: (i) provide a minimum $2.00 per hour wage increase over the wages in effect on June 30, 2025 for front-line personnel; and (ii) provide wages for all other residential non-executive direct care staff, excluding direct support professionals, at the U.S. Department of Labor's average wage as defined, by rule, by the Department. Requires the same increase for front-line personnel employed at community-based providers serving persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Amends the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. Grants the Departments of Human Services and Healthcare and Family Services emergency rulemaking authority. Effective immediately.