David Curtin, IFI lobbyist, explains why witness slips are so important. I hope this encourages you to spend the time to make your voice known in our state capitol.
Witness slips are the best way to make our voices heard in Springfield. Phone calls, emails, and letters are good, but they aren’t read or tabulated like they used to be by the secretaries on important issues. So witness slips are the gold standard, other than descending on the Capitol, to show how much we oppose or support a bill.
Witness slips are viewed by everyone — the committee members who decide if they are going to oppose or support a bill; the media; other interest groups; and of course all of the other members of the legislature. Importantly, it must be announced by the chair of the committee how many opponents and proponents are against or for a bill before the bill is addressed in committee. Every filed slip is entered into the permanent record. When you have almost 10,000 bills in the legislature, this is important to signal a good or bad bill. It makes a big difference, even if the supermajority passes it. It makes the biggest difference when I lobby on the bills if there are a lot of witness slips.
Finally, witness slips are so effective that the far-left is trying to find ways to mitigate them. They can’t get rid of them, though they’d like to. That’s because they don’t want to see so many people opposing (or supporting) initiatives. It kind of freaks them out. So they continue talking about ways to dilute their power.
Many of the bills listed were from previous weeks, but were not yet called in their assigned committee for a hearing. Because of this week’s deadline to get House-originated bills out of committee, there are a much larger number of bills than normal below. We have them listed according to the day of the hearing.
Thank you for your critically important and very much appreciated time and effort!
Witness Slip Instructions
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- Click on the witness slip link for each bill.
- Fill out your personal information.
- Under Firm/Business/Agency, Title, Representation, type “self” or “NA” if you are not representing an organization and do not have a title.
- Under Position – Add Legislation, select Original Bill, unless otherwise noted.
- Under Add Position, select Oppose, or in one case, Support. Then click Add Position. (Your position will then appear in the box to the right with a red circle and an x inside of it.)
- Select Record of Appearance Only.
- Check that you agree to the ILGA Terms of Agreement.
- Check that you aren’t a robot.
- Click Submit Witness Slip.
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HB 4966 – Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago): huge expansion of DCFS. Youth can have a say-so of where they’re placed based on the youth’s needs and characteristics as defined under the Illinois Human Rights Act (i.e. sexual orientation, gender identity, etc.). Prohibits counseling those under DCFS care who struggle with unwanted same-sex attraction or gender confusion. Expands out-of-state placements. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24th at 2:00 PM in the Adoption & Child Welfare Committee, Room 122 Capitol.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 4966.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 4966.
HB 5022 – Sonya Harper (D-Chicago): allows abortion providers operate inside of birthing centers, expands who can perform abortions and loosens restrictions on midwives. It also removes child-neglect triggers of drug-exposed newborns and reporting of test results. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24th at 4:00 PM in the Health Care Availability & Accessibility Committee, Room C-1 Stratton.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 5022.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 5022.
HB 2 – La Shawn Ford (D-Chicago): gives prisoners the ability to vote while still in prison. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24th at 2:00 PM in the Ethics & Elections Committee, Room D-1 Stratton.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 2.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 2.
HB 1442 – Nabeela Syed (D-Palatine): changes curbside voting from optional to mandatory statewide. More potential for fraud. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24th at 2:00 PM in the Ethics & Elections Committee, Room D-1 Stratton.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 1442. Note: when you select Add Legislation, click on HCA 1.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 1442.
HB 3355 – Carol Ammons (D-Urbana): allows election officials to send vote-by-mail election ballots to everyone — no application required. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24th at 2:00 PM in the Ethics & Elections Committee, Room D-1 Stratton.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 3355.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB3355.
HB 2400 – Michael Kelly (D-Chicago):: adds 5 extra years to certain aggravated sexual assault sentences and increases minimum sentencing for crimes involving children. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24th at 4:00 PM in the Judiciary Criminal Committee, Room D-1 Stratton.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in SUPPORT of HB 2400.
Click HERE to email your state representative to SUPPORT HB 2400.
SB 2991 – Steve McClure (R-Litchfield): requires a minimum one-year expulsion for students who commit sexual assault or attempted assault in school. Defines “force” broadly and shifts schools toward automatic discipline, though superintendents can tweak outcomes case-by-case. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24th at 2:00 PM in the Senate Education Committee, Room 212 Capitol.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in SUPPORT of SB 2991.
Click HERE to email your state representative to SUPPORT SB 2991.
HB 2960 – Laura Faver Dias (D-Grayslake): requires schools to teach mental health as part of health class with state-defined topics and materials. This bill should alarm all parents! The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25th at 8:00 AM in the Education Policy Committee, Room 122 Capitol.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 2960. Note: when you select Add Legislation, click on HFA 2.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 2960.
HB4855 – Janet Yang Rohr (D-Naperville): forces schools to provide social-emotional learning instruction at least 4 times a year in grades K-12. Social-emotional learning is about manipulating and conditioning America’s youth to hold the values and beliefs that the education establishment wants to instill in them. It should be crystal clear that there is a sinister agenda to train your children to think and act the way secular humanists want them to think and act. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25th at 8:00 AM in the Education Policy Committee, Room 122 Capitol.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 4855.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 4855.
HB 4425 – Anne Stava (D-Downers Grove): prohibits hospitals and medical personnel from sharing information about minors receiving gender transition therapy, creating a legal conflict with investigating agencies. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25th at 8:00 AM in the Human Services Committee, Room C-1 Stratton.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 4425.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 4425.
HB 5408 – Anna Moeller (D-Elgin): creates the Abortion Access Fund Grant Program to pay for abortions, for which federal funds are prohibited, for uninsured and underinsured women. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25th at 8:00 AM in the Human Services Committee, Room C-1 Stratton.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 5408. Note: when you select Add Legislation, click on HCA 1.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 5408.
HB 4370 – Anne Stava (D-Downers Grove): obsessed with gender identity ideology, this bill creates a confidential process for change of name on the basis of gender identity. Violating the confidentiality provisions can trigger lawsuits. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25th at 8:00 AM in the Judiciary Civil Committee, Room 114 Capitol.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 4370.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 4370.
HB 4825 – Dagmara Avelar (D-Romeoville): allows minors to obtain birth control with zero parental involvement, treating minors as legally equivalent to adults. It cuts parents out completely from a major medical issue. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25th at 10:00 AM in the Executive Committee, Room 118 Capitol.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 4825.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 4825.
HB 1269 – John Cabello (R-Machesney Park): requires written parental consent before a school can ask a child sensitive personal questions. Requires schools to allow parents to see the questions in advance. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25th at 2:00 PM in the Elementary & Secondary Education (Admin/Licensing) Committee, Room 115 Capitol.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in SUPPORT of HB 1269.
Click HERE to email your state representative to SUPPORT HB 1269.
HB 5095 – Mary Beth Canty (D-Arlington Heights): expands gender designation policies in state systems by allowing people to choose “X” instead of male/female on IDs and allows updates to gender via a simple form. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 25th at 2:00 PM in the State Government Admin Committee, Room C-1 Stratton.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 5095. Note: when you select Add Legislation, click on HCA 1.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 5095.
HB 4596 – Dave Vella (D-Loves Park): dubbed the “Health Misinformation Act,” HB 4596 will empower government agencies to police speech, recruit and train “trusted messengers,” and potentially impose civil or criminal penalties for statements officials deem “misinformation.” Violations would violate the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act and could result in fines up to $2,500, and for subsequent violations, up to $25K and 5 years in prison. The hearing is scheduled for Thursday, March 26th at 8:00 AM in the Public Health Committee, Room 122 Capitol.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 4596.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 4596.
HB 4192 – Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago):: gives free college tuition to dishonorably discharged service members who lost federal aid due to Trump’s reversal of transgender military policies. The hearing is scheduled for Thursday, March 26th at 8:00 AM in the Appropriations (Higher Ed) Committee, Room 118 Capitol.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 4192.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE HB 4192.
HB 2929 – La Shawn Ford (D-Chicago):: creates pilot sites where people can consume pre-purchased drugs and obtain needles, syringes, snorting and smoking kits to use on site under supervision. The hearing is scheduled for Thursday, March 26th at 10:00 AM in the Mental Health & Addiction Committee, Room 413 Stratton.
Click HERE to file a witness slip in OPPOSITION to HB 2929 which creates pilot sites PLUS grants immunity from prosecution while at one of these state-operated drug houses. Note: when you select Add Legislation, click on both HFA3 and also HFA4 as an opponent of both.
Click HERE to email your state representative to OPPOSE state-operated drug houses – HB 2929.
THANK YOU!
