UPDATE

Thank you to all who filed witness slips yesterday in opposition to HB 5164! Opponents (you) ended up surpassing proponents 733 to 342, and gained the attention from the liberal publication Capitol Fax, who quoted from this page.

Unfortunately, the bill passed 9-4 along party lines and will be voted on today in the Senate. Please take a few minutes to call your state senator in their Springfield office. Click HERE to find their name and Springfield office phone number.

Read below for information on why we strongly oppose HB 5164.

It’s begun.

In keeping with Governor JB Pritzker‘s promise to “Trump-Proof” Illinois, his party is preparing to ram through HB 5164, which has already passed in the Illinois House. The bill will make it almost impossible to find illegal immigrants with a criminal history and/or those who have committed crimes while on American soil, for the purpose of deportation.

If passed and signed into law, HB 5164 would allow people to change their names after living in Illinois for only 3 months (down from 6 months). The bill puts a cap of $25 to file for a name change and can even result in no charge whatsoever. Furthermore, the person changing their name may file a motion to have the documents kept sealed, prohibiting their name change from being made public. This bill will appeal to transgenders, but it appears to be more aimed at making it difficult (if not impossible) to track and apprehend criminal illegal immigrants.

In 2017, Illinois became a sanctuary state, which means that Illinois law enforcement is prohibited from collaborating with federal immigration officials. Illinois has become a safe haven for people who are here illegally who have committed heinous crimes and should be deported back to their country of origin.

Who will benefit from this bill?

• Those who have apprehended the more than 300,000 missing children who have crossed the border;

• Those who have committed rapes and murders who don’t want law enforcement to find them;

• A man who is pretending to be a woman and a woman who is pretending to be a man.

Thomas Hampson, former Air Force Intelligence Analyst and Chief Investigator for the Illinois Legislative Investigating Commission points out:

This will allow pedophiles to change their names and become untraceable when an organization conducts a typical background check. Unless the person is fingerprinted, which most organizations cannot afford to perform, the record will not show up.

Questions that must be answered:

• How would this affect known foreign nationals with MS-13, Tren de Aragua, Surenos or other gang affiliations?

• How would this affect foreign nationals with criminal records?

• Would this give cover to those who are on the terror watch list?

• Would this legislation give cover to agents who may be affiliated with the CCP, ISIS, al-Qaida, Hamas or other designated foreign would-be terrorists and enemies of the United States?

TAKE ACTION: Please CLICK HERE to send an email to your state senator urging them to oppose HB 5164. Remind them that they have sworn to protect Illinoisans, not people who are here illegally.