In This Issue:

• Bill Spotlight: Alex’s Law

• $100,000 Bike Path Grant

• Redistricting Hearings

• Certificate Requests/Suggestions

• Environmental Townhall: Recycling Guide

• April Coffee & Conversation

Dear Friends,

The past two weeks have been especially busy both in Springfield and our district. On the legislative side, all representatives have recently wrapped up one of our main deadlines to move bills out of committees, which included our district’s HB3445, also known as Alex’s Law and the Opioid Overdose Reduction Act. I’ll provide more of the details, below, as well as exciting news on a recently awarded bike path grant and some of the practical takeaways from an environmental townhall that took place earlier this week.

Meanwhile, we’ve started up the redistricting process in earnest, and I’ll share below some of the many ways to participate in that process, as well as other activities and opportunities available to our community. We genuinely appreciate your taking the time to engage with us in all these ways!

Sincerely,

Janet

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Bill Spotlight: Alex’s Law

Last week, I presented House Bill 3445, which aims to save lives by providing protection from prosecution to persons seeking medical assistance for an opioid overdose.

This bill, also known as Alex’s Law, came into fruition after a 25-year-old man from our district tragically passed away after overdosing on fentanyl. In situations like his, had someone remained on the scene and not been afraid of legal consequences to call emergency medical assistance, individuals like Alex could be alive today.

Wisconsin and Minnesota passed similar laws in 2017 following stories similar to Alex’s, which unfortunately are situations that too many families in America face. The CDC reported in 2018, the year Alex died, that nearly 15,000 people died from drug overdoses involving heroin in the United States. This bill could save others experiencing an opioid overdose. The effective date would be August 16, 2021, Alex's birthday.

This bill originated from my predecessor, and I’m honored to be able to work closely with Alex’s family to carry on their work. With the bill’s strong bi-partisan support, we passed it unanimously out of committee, and I look forward to being able to report continued progress in future updates.

$100,000 Bike Path Grant

I was excited to recently announce with Governor JB Pritzker the awarding of a $100,000 grant for our district’s Springbrook Prairie Trail. The funds come from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources’ Bicycle Path Grant Program and will go towards providing safer access to the Springbrook Prairie bike paths. When the project is complete, it will include a new 10-foot-wide, 0.25-mile limestone path along Naperrville-Plainfield Road that connects the sidewalk along the Brighton Ridge subdivision to the forest preserve’s parking lot.

The trails running through Springbrook Prairie afford a unique opportunity to walk, run, and bike amid Illinois’ indigenous grasses and wildlife, and it’s been a welcome respite for many of us during a difficult past year. It’s great to have the State’s investment to improve safe access to the trails and strengthen the link between Springbrook Prairie and its surrounding community.

Redistricting Hearings

The currently occurring once-a-decade redistricting process is vitally important to our democracy, and our office is working to make sure our community’s local voices are heard throughout the process.

The Illinois legislative redistricting site provides a number of resources to learn more and participate. I strongly encourage you to join me and consider providing witness testimony at upcoming hearings that are taking place throughout the state. While you are welcome to attend any of the hearings, two upcoming sessions will be focused on our area:

• April 8, DuPage – West. This is virtual hearing, which you can watch on ILGA.gov.

• April 9, Aurora. This is in person at Aurora City Hall, located at 44 East Downer Place, Aurora.

If you’d like to speak before the committee, you can also submit written testimony any time to RedistrictingCommittee@hds.ilga.gov.

Certificate and Recognition Requests/Suggestions

Do you have a special event or achievement that we should know about and recognize? Perhaps a milestone birthday or anniversary that we should celebrate? Please let us know about them, and our office would love to help honor you, your family, and members of our community.

We’re happy to provide letters, certificates, and potentially floor resolutions to recognize our residents. For example, we’re proud to recognize those achieving Eagle Scout status, sports and academic achievements, and retirements, among many other commendations and well wishes. Please send requests to info@repyangrohr.com, ideally allowing 15 business days for printing and House session scheduling.

April Coffee & Conversation

Please join us on the last Saturday of each month for a district-wide coffee and conversation! During past chats, we’ve talked about legislative updates, how to navigate government services, and community events. We’d love to have you join us!

Environmental Town Hall: Recycling Guide

Thank you to everyone who was able to join us at last week’s environmental town hall. We so appreciate your taking the time to learn about how the legislature has been moving forward your environmental priorities, including the Clean Energy Job Act’s recent passage through the Energy & Environment committee.

The townhall included a wonderful presentation by Kay McKeen of SCARCE, who provided a great tutorial on the right way to recycle. We’ve received many requests for the Curbside Recycle Guide, a snippet of which is below. One of the key takeaways? When in doubt, throw it out.