SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed a measure last month doubling the benefits for families of law enforcement officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty, an initiative supported by State Senator Rachelle Crowe (D-Glen Carbon).

“With the cost of funerals rising, this legislation aims to lift one burden off grieving families’ shoulders,” Crowe said. “These public servants made the ultimate sacrifice and should be honored for doing so.”

House Bill 2028 increases the burial benefit for a firefighter or law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty from $10,000 to $20,000. The increased benefit applies to those individuals killed in the line of duty after June 30, 2018.

Neither the benefit for State Police officers nor the benefit for local law enforcement officers and firefighters has been raised since its creation in the late 1990s.

House Bill 2028 passed the Senate without opposition on May 16 and goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2020.