Session Week Bullets in Springfield

Bill Ward, Executive Vice President, HBAI

5-20-20

The Spring Session of the Illinois General Assembly is getting crammed into 3 days this week. I am certain there will be more dates later. Here is some of what is being considered this week besides the Class A Misdemeanor Rule for Governor Pritzker.

• Work Comp

Labor & Business Groups are negotiating language addressing COVID-19. The question is: will it be for all essential businesses and will it be rebuttable? SB471 is the vehicle for this and it is also a bill to mandate paid sick leave.

• Unemployment Insurance

Expanded Unemployment Insurance Benefits will run for another 13 weeks costing an additional $3 Billion. This will all be reimbursable by the federal government.

Unemployment Benefits will also be expanded to cover “education support personnel.” Until now, these workers were deemed seasonal and not covered by U.I.

• Agriculture

Still no word on whether the Illinois State Fair is to be cancelled. The Dept. of Agriculture wants to wait until the last possible moment to decide.

• Banking

Still no word on whether they will run legislation providing Rent & Mortgage Forgiveness. HB5574 is the bill to watch here and it has been assigned to the House Executive Committee.

A bill to allow remote notarization is being considered, no bill number yet.

If you received a PPP loan from the federal government, you will need to file a forgiveness form in order not to repay the loan. These forms should be available from your lending institution.

• Schools

Schools will be closed this year for election day, Tuesday, November 3^rd. Many school buildings are used for polling places and the state wants to minimize this opportunity to spread the COVID-19 virus.

• Revenue

$400 to $500 million has already been lost in Motor Fuel Tax Revenue this year. Since the Stay At Home Order emerged, there has been a 40% drop in automobile travel, and a 10% drop in freight truck travel.

• Transportation

Photo Speed Zones are now abundant and will be heavily used this Memorial Day weekend, especially in construction zones.

• Small Business

SB3811 amends the Secure Choice Savings Program Act. It will lower the threshold to include every employer. Currently, the program is only for employers with fewer than 25 employees. Employers must offer employees the option of participating in this program if they do not offer a pension or a 401-K retirement plan. The funds are secured from employee wages and employers are not required to match their employee contributions.