SPRINGFIELD – To help begin to repair Black and Brown communities after nearly a century of housing discrimination, State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove) has sponsored a measure to give Illinois homeowners a path to remove racist language from their property deeds.

“Restrictive covenants have a long and painful history in the U.S., and it’s time that we finally rid our systems of the remnants of this racist practice,” Johnson said. “The antiquated language contained in many property records can be offensive and even harmful to today’s communities—homeowners should have an avenue to eliminate it once and for all.”

The legislation would allow individuals, condominium associations, unit owners’ associations and other property owners to remove language for unlawful restrictive covenants from recorded property interests, including deeds to property, by submitting a request to the local county recorder.

Under Johnson’s plan, the recorder could charge a fee of no more than $10 for filing a restrictive covenant modification.

Starting in the 1920s and continuing throughout the mid-20th century, the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) actively segregated metropolitan areas, guaranteeing bank loans for the construction and development of suburbs on the condition that the sale of the homes in that suburb be restricted by race. Deeds to these homes also included racial restrictive covenants prohibiting resale of the home to people of a certain race.

In 1948 the Supreme Court deemed all racial restrictive covenants unenforceable. Despite this ruling, developers and realtors continued to include racial restrictive covenants in deeds until 1968, when the FHA outlawed these covenants altogether.

“Racial covenants are no longer enforceable, but the language lingers in many of our property records, potentially encouraging racist sentiments,” Johnson said. “Striking these discriminatory provisions from our records would show we are committed to undoing the historical harms done to Black and Brown communities.”

House Bill 58 passed the Senate Thursday with bipartisan support.

BUFFALO GROVE – The Waukegan community will see nearly $9.5 million in improvements to roads, sidewalks and bridges over the next year, and millions of dollars more will fund projects in surrounding areas, State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove) announced Monday.

“For too long, our infrastructure has suffered from historic underinvestment, threatening the safety and security of our community,” Johnson said. “These funds will go toward revitalizing our roads, creating jobs and boosting growth in the area.”

Residents can expect a number of upgrades in the community, including a $2.8 million project to improve a 2.31-mile stretch of Genesee Street, from Belvidere Road to Buckley Road in Waukegan and North Chicago. In addition to repaving, the repairs will make street crossings safer and easier for people in wheelchairs or who otherwise have limited mobility.

The improvements are part of the Illinois Department of Transportation’s multi-year plan to maintain and expand Illinois’ transportation infrastructure. Other area projects scheduled for the upcoming year include bridge replacements on Belvidere Road and Greenwood Avenue.

IDOT also announced over $7.7 million for improvements in Vernon Hills and $2.8 million for Park City, including a $2.3 million bridge rehabilitation project on Washington Street.

Riverwoods, Beach Park, Mundelein, Long Grove, Gurnee and other surrounding communities are slated for millions of dollars more in improvements by 2027.

“Good infrastructure is key to easier commutes, more tourism opportunities and enhanced economic activity,” Johnson said. “I’m thrilled to see these construction projects begin soon.”

IDOT’s full multi-year plan is available at IDOT.Illinois.gov.

SPRINGFIELD – School districts could move forward from the pandemic without worrying about funding cuts due to temporary low enrollment under a measure sponsored by State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove), which has passed both chambers of the Illinois legislature.

“Our teachers and administrators worked overtime to adapt to remote and hybrid learning during the COVID-19 crisis,” Johnson said. “To cut their funding now would be to pull the rug out from under them just when they are beginning to recover.”

Currently, the school funding formula uses average student enrollment over the previous three school years to determine the amount of money districts receive. To lessen the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on schools’ budgets, Johnson’s legislation would allow school districts to calculate their average student enrollment based on pre-COVID levels.

Under the measure, districts could choose to use attendance records from the 2019-20 or the 2020-21 school year, whichever is greater, in their funding formulas to ensure they don’t lose out on crucial dollars as a result of the temporary drop in attendance some schools experienced during the pandemic.

“For many kids, school was a lifeline to the outside world during the pandemic,” Johnson said. “It’s important that our districts don’t miss out on a single cent as they make the transition back to the classroom.”

Senate Bill 813, an initiative of Waukegan School District #60, passed the Senate in April with bipartisan support and advanced out of the House Thursday with a vote of 75-39.

SPRINGFIELD – In a victory for northern Illinoisans with mental illnesses and their families, a plan proposed by State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove) to eliminate barriers to mental health care access has passed both houses of the Illinois government.

“For many patients, being able to stay connected with loved ones during care can mean a faster recovery and a smoother transition to life after treatment,” Johnson said. “The passage of this measure is great news for northern Illinois residents, who will now be able to receive care at a location that’s more convenient for them and their families.”

The legislation would create the Interstate Contracts for Mental Health Disorder Treatment Act, allowing Illinois and Wisconsin residents who are involuntarily admitted for inpatient treatment of a mental health disorder to be treated at private facilities across state lines.

For residents who live near the border of Illinois and Wisconsin, the closest qualified hospital or facility is often not in their home state. However, current law prohibits residents from being committed for mental health conditions outside the state, meaning that these residents must undergo treatment hours from family and loved ones.

Similar collaborative arrangements have been successfully enacted in Michigan, Iowa and Minnesota, which allow providers in these states to accept patients from Wisconsin for mental health treatment.

“Expanding access to mental health treatment means making it easier for people to receive care that fits their needs,” Johnson said. “Part of that is allowing patients to seek treatment within their own communities.”

Senate Bill 1966 passed the House and Senate with unanimous support.

SPRINGFIELD – To ensure someone’s past doesn’t prevent them from pursuing a brighter future, State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove) has sponsored a measure to prohibit life insurance companies from denying coverage or increasing rates because an individual has undergone treatment for substance abuse.

“Getting help for a substance abuse disorder takes a lot of grit and determination—recovery should be celebrated,” Johnson said. “If you’ve put in the hard work to get clean, your insurance company shouldn’t hold that against you.”

Johnson’s plan would prohibit a life insurance company from denying or limiting coverage or charging higher rates based solely on whether an individual has participated in a substance use treatment or recovery support program more than five years prior to application.

SPRINGFIELD – State agencies would have the data they need to take a more proactive approach to public health issues under legislation sponsored by State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove).

“The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need for more comprehensive data on community health,” Johnson said. “It’s time to reach out to residents in the overlooked corners of the state so we can craft more effective policy to improve health outcomes across all demographics.”

Johnson’s legislation would require the Illinois Department of Public Health to administer a comprehensive Healthy Illinois Survey every year to study public health and health equity in Illinois.

The survey would gather input from Illinois residents in urban, suburban and rural areas across the state. Survey questions would cover a range of topics, including access to health services, chronic health conditions, diet, mental health, physical activity, substance abuse and more.

Following the survey, the department would be required to make the results available to cities, communities, local health departments and hospitals, and to publish the data on its website broken down by race, ethnicity, gender, age and geography.

The idea for the Healthy Illinois Survey stems from the successful Healthy Chicago Survey, which collects data identifying health concerns in Chicago communities to inform the city’s public health policy.

“Understanding a problem is the first step toward solving it,” Johnson said. “We need a fuller picture of the barriers our communities are facing to health and wellness.”

House Bill 3504 passed the Senate Healthcare Access and Availability Committee Tuesday and now heads to the Senate floor.

SPRINGFIELD – Older adults in Illinois who receive home-delivered meal services would have critical—and even life-saving—information at their fingertips under legislation proposed by State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove).

“Many of our older neighbors might not have easy access to the internet. As a result, they might find it difficult to connect with programs and resources available to them,” Johnson said. “By providing them a hard copy of toll-free phone numbers and other helpful information, we’re putting these important services within reach.”

BUFFALO GROVE – Lake County residents will soon enjoy safer, smoother travel thanks to a combined $7.7 million in Rebuild Illinois infrastructure grants, State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove) announced Monday.

“Many communities in the area have suffered from historic underinvestment, and our infrastructure shows it,” Johnson said. “The Rebuild Illinois program is a significant step toward restoring the neighborhoods that have gone unsupported for too long.”

The funding is being distributed in an effort to ensure that local governments have the necessary resources to repair and maintain infrastructure, as well as create jobs and boost the economy on a local level. Cities and municipalities may choose to use the grant for road and bridge improvements, traffic signal upgrades, new storm sewers and bike paths, sidewalk replacements and other long-term maintenance needs, with financial oversight from the Illinois Department of Transportation.

“These funds will enable our local governments to make crucial repairs to roads, bridges and sidewalks in our community, creating jobs and making travel easier, safer and more enjoyable for everyone,” Johnson said.

This funding comes as the fourth of six rounds of $1.5 billion in grants through the Rebuild Illinois program. A complete list of awards is available here.