SPRINGFIELD– Thanks to State Senator Jacqueline Collins (D-Chicago), Illinois will ease the financial and emotional burden of families paying for respectable funeral and burial services with the Funeral and Burial Assistance Act –an initiative she sponsored in honor of Mychal Moultry, Jr. and other children murdered by gun violence.

“We have a responsibility to the families in Illinois who go through the tremendous pain of burying their child after fatal gun incidents,” Collins said. “While we legislators continue to provide resources and opportunities that prevent and reduce the violence in our communities, we must support the victims of these crimes by streamlining the assistance process for those in need.”

The Funeral and Burial Assistance Act was signed into law by the governor Tuesday. Collins, who partnered with the Strength to Love Foundation to make this assistance a reality for qualifying families, has been an unwavering advocate for anti-violence efforts. As a beacon for public safety initiatives, Senator Collins played a critical role in the passage of legislation aimed at providing for families’ basic needs and investing in community-based initiatives that mitigate factors perpetuating criminal activity.

This law gives qualifying families an expedited payment assistance process by way of direct payments to funeral and cemetery establishments. Eligible victims can receive up to $10,000 in assistance, which is slightly more than the national average cost of funeral and burial services.

“This law is especially important for our marginalized populations who experience fatal gun violence at disproportionate rates,” Collins said. “It is extremely unfortunate how often gun violence impacts our communities, and it is even more tragic that low-income families struggle to withstand the hardships of gun violence, which is why I am proud to have carried this measure to completion.”

Qualifying families will be able to take advantage of the Funeral and Burial Assistance Act for help with the costs of fatal gun violence.

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