SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) announced a $1.4 million state investment to help maintain and upgrade the Taylorville Municipal Airport on Wednesday.

“The Taylorville Municipal Airport provides good-paying jobs and economic stability to our community,” said Turner. “The new funding will allow for improvements to runway rehabilitation, which is critical in ensuring the safety of our commuters.”

The 96 projects selected for funding will help meet the needs of airports large and small in both urban and rural communities. Projects will include planning, construction, reconstruction, development and improvement of public airports to increase safety and efficiency. Communities also will benefit from increased aviation access, good-paying jobs during construction and long-term opportunities for workforce expansion.

Among the projects to receive funding, the Taylorville Municipal Airport is set to receive $1.4 million for construction to the airport’s runway.

“The Illinois aviation system is one of the largest in the nation,” said Turner. “These funds will help maintain and develop the area to help workers thrive after such a tough year.”

A full list of recipients can be viewed on the Department of Transportation’s website.

SPRINGFIELD – In an effort to support service members overseas, State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) is collecting new and gently used cell phones to be sent to soldiers. 

“I can think of no better way to support those who serve to protect our freedoms than giving them a reliable way to call home,” Turner said. “This is a great program that allows our troops to stay connected to their families during the holiday seasons and beyond.”

The national Cell Phones for Soldiers program collects new and gently used cell phones and tablets for soldiers and their families. People with old cellphones, MP3 players or tablets laying around are encouraged to donate them to be refurbished or recycled. Proceeds from those sales are used to send prepaid international calling cards to troops and to provide emergency funding to veterans. All cell phone donations are tax deductible.

To donate, people can stop by Turner’s Decatur office located at 1210 S. Jasper St. or her Carlinville office located at 130 East Main St. Suite B. Each office will accept donations from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday until Nov. 30.

Turner urges residents with questions or concerns to contact her office at 217-854-4502 or visit www.CellPhonesForSoldiers.com.

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) is encouraging incoming students to take advantage of Common App – a tool to apply for multiple Illinois colleges at once.

“Common App makes college more accessible by making the application process less tedious and stressful,” Turner said. “Illinois’ best and brightest now have a streamlined and simplified process to apply to all public universities in our great state, like the University of Illinois Springfield.”

Incoming students applying to college will now be able to submit applications to any of Illinois’ 12 public universities and dozens of private institutions using just one form on commonapp.org. Once a student makes a Common App account, they will be asked to confirm which schools they’d like to apply to and review the admission requirements for those schools. They’ll then submit their application on the website, where they’ll be able to track its status.

Low-income students and their families can apply for a waiver to help cover the application cost. Over the last two years, more than 470,000 students using Common App across the country were granted a fee waiver.

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) held a press conference Tuesday morning to celebrate the passage of a measure to extend the Enos Park Tax Increment Financing District for another 12 years.

“The Enos Park TIF has been instrumental in revitalizing a Springfield neighborhood and has been a great tool in the expansion of the Mid-Illinois Medical District,” Turner said “Neighborhoods that were once an eyesore and full of blight and despair are now home to young families and home rehabilitation success stories.”

SPRINGFIELD –State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) attended two events in the 48^th district Wednesday where she provided more than 400 meals to community members. 

Turner first attended a senior ministry event at the Salvation Army Clear Lake Corps in Springfield, providing 200 meals alongside members of the Greater All Nations Tabernacle Church of God in Christ Senior Luncheon. She then visited the Boys & Girls Club of Decatur, where she and her staff distributed 200 meals to families dropping off their children.

CARLINVILLE – On Thursday, State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) visited MJM Electric Cooperative in Carlinville. MJM provides power to members in Macoupin, Jersey, and Montgomery Counties.

The new facility is equipped with state-of-the-art technology that can tell the dispatchers at headquarters each utility pole position and its current status in the middle of a significant weather event. If a pole were to fall due to strong winds, the dispatcher can see the update in real time and send a lineman out to fix the pole.

Senator Turner also toured the newly completed community room, equipped with a full kitchen, available for rent to any community organization.

“I enjoyed meeting with Laura and everyone at MJM,” Turner said. “The smartboard technology employed at MJM will cut outage response times dramatically.”

Turner plans additional tours of businesses and facilities throughout the district she represents. Interested organizations can contact her office at 217-782-0228 or by email at www.senatordoristurner.com.

Photo: State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) poses outside with MJM Electric Cooperative CEO, Laura Cutler, Thursday, Sept. 30, 2021.

SPRINGFIELD – Agricultural sciences will now be added as a type of course that may be counted towards the requirement for three years of sciences in order to gain admission to an Illinois public university under a plan backed by State Senator Doris Turner’s (D-Springfield).

“This is simply an effort to highlight the importance of agricultural science,” said Turner. “It is my hope that students are encouraged to work and study in the field now that we’ve expanded our current curricula to include specialized sciences.”