What’s Happening in the 49th District!

Updates from Representative Hirschauer

Reflection

March was Women’s History month and I spent time reflecting on important contributions that women made throughout our history. I want to share one very special reflection.
I often say that I am who I am because of the strong women who came before me. These two fierce young women – who came after me – also play a huge role in shaping me not only as a mom, but as a leader and legislator. I would like to take time today to honor my daughters, who push me out of my comfort zone, hold my feet to the fire on tough issues, and show me everyday what leadership looks like.
 
“Here’s to strong women. May we know them. May we be them. May we raise them.” – Unknown

In Springfield

March was a busy month for passing legislation through the House. My bill HB5193, a bill to add safe gun storage to the school safety curriculum code passed with bi-partisan support on the house floor and has now passed Committee in the Senate and is headed to the floor. Promoting positive messages about keeping children and communities safe through safe gun storage is a key strategy to reducing unintentional gun injuries and death, death by homicide, and suicide. 

HB4332, a bill that will tackle our ongoing nursing shortage by breaking down barriers and opening pathways to future employment in the nursing sector, also passed the House with bipartisan support. The COVID-19 pandemic has proved to be an opportunity to re-examine the way we do many things here in Illinois. The CNA/MA workforce has provided critical care to our homebound and elderly community during the COVID-19 pandemic and their numbers are waning. This bill will help increase our nursing pipeline and help medical professionals reflect the communities they serve.  The bill has passed the Senate Executive Committee and is headed to the floor.

Reproductive health care is under attack across the country and we cannot count on the Supreme Court to uphold our fundamental right to make personal decisions about our reproductive health. That is why I passed HB1464 to protect qualified Illinois health care providers from attacks on their licensure from extreme politicians in neighboring states. Illinois sits as a beacon of safety for reproductive freedom and we must stand strong behind our providers who are committed to providing safe, accessible reproductive health care. My colleagues and I were proud to pass this bill to protect health care providers and shine our beacon of reproductive freedom a bit brighter.

Finally, we recently took necessary action to address the ongoing issues regarding the unemployment trust fund, which took a hit due to the pandemic. By doing so we made a clear commitment to good government and fiscal responsibility by paying off debts early to yield significant savings for Illinois taxpayers. 
SB2803 dedicates $2.7 billion of ARPA funds to help replenish the unemployment trust fund after a global pandemic forced businesses to shut down. The bill also supplements our current FY22 budget with new payments for pensions, the Prepaid Tuition Fund, and the state’s group insurance plan — yielding more than $1 billion in savings. All told, this is another step toward stronger credit, paying down debt, and developing the financial stability we need to get to work for families.

I am here to listen to the needs of all constituents. Feel free to reach out to my office at 331-465-9661 for any issues or concerns. I am here to serve.

Maura

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