ROCKFORD –State Senator Steve Stadelman (D-Rockford) wants Rockford area small businesses to know that an expanded state service is available to help them access economic recovery grant programs.

The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity has invested an additional $9 million in its community navigator outreach program, with new partners serving the Rockford area.

“Our local businesses are working hard to rebuild financial stability as we move out of the pandemic,” Stadelman said. “I urge owners and managers to work with a navigator if they need help finding funding to help them return to normalcy.”

This expansion to the existing community navigator program leverages 13 organizations that will provide support for small businesses who require assistance navigating the billions of financial assistance dollars that are available. Community navigators will perform intensive outreach to ensure that small and hard-to-reach businesses are aware of economic relief funds.

DCEO trained 13 new regional partners to facilitate technical assistance for small businesses on a grassroots level. These 13 organizations, which were selected through a competitive process, will work with over 100 community-based organizations based in low-to-moderate-income areas. The American Business Immigrant Coalition and Illinois Public Health Association will coordinate efforts in Winnebago County.

To ensure the smallest and most vulnerable businesses are prioritized, navigator partners will provide small businesses with direct assistance on applications, as well as language assistance, on-the-ground outreach, webinars, technical assistance sessions, and more.

For more information on recovery programs and how to receive support, businesses can visit the DCEO webpage or call the First Stop hotline at 1.800.252.2923.

AURORA — Assistant Majority Leader Linda Holmes (D-Aurora) is pleased to see the state has invested $9 million to boost revitalization among small businesses through the community navigator outreach program. She believes this investment, along with recent news that the state’s fiscal outlook ratings are improving, bode well for the state’s economic recovery.

“The community navigator program helps small businesses navigate billions in available financial assistance from the state and the Small Business Administration through the American Rescue Plan Act,” Holmes said. “The 42^nd District can benefit from economic recovery grants, put employees back to work and continue rebuilding our economy post pandemic.”

Community navigators perform outreach to small, minority and hard-to-reach businesses to make them aware of available relief funds and help them recover from losses suffered during the pandemic.

Holmes said fiscal ratings bumps from Fitch and Moody’s complement this small business investment, and further demonstrate Illinois’ responsible budget decisions to pay back federal borrowing, pay down a backlog of bills, and cut general fund spending by approximately $1 billion since fiscal year 2020.

In the most recent budget, the state increased education funding by $350 million, made its full pension payment, and fully funded local governments.

“If we keep passing responsible, balanced budgets, we’ll earn ratings upgrades and save the taxpayers money,” Holmes said. “The better our rating, the less we have to pay in interest costs when the state borrows money.”

Holmes chairs the Illinois Senate Labor Committee.

DOWNERS GROVE – To help communities get vaccinated, a measure sponsored by State Senator Ann Gillespie (D-Arlington Heights) to increase the Medicaid reimbursement rates for immunizations and expand coverage was signed into law today.

“As communities prepare for a safe reopening this summer, making sure everyone is vaccinated is critical,” Gillespie said. “This measure ensures that families who use Medicaid have the same access to vaccines.”

EAST ST. LOUIS – State Senator Christopher Belt (D-Swansea) is congratulating the East St. Louis Health Transformation Partnership for receiving funding to create community-based programs to reduce health disparities and expand access to quality, affordable health care in the region.

“East St. Louis is the most distressed community in the state,” said Belt, who voted to fund the program. “This funding will ensure that the most vulnerable populations have access to quality and affordable health care.”

The Healthcare Transformation Collaboratives’ goal is to reorient health care in Illinois to reduce inequities, improve health outcomes, address social determinants of health and assist underserved communities with access to quality health care. The Department of Healthcare and Family Services will administer a total of $94.3 million in funding to equity-focused health care collaboratives across Illinois.

East St. Louis Health Transformation Partnership, spearheaded by Touchette Regional Hospital, is one of eight awardees for the first round of funding. The funding will be used to realign the health delivery system and improve the quality of life for those living in the East. St. Louis Metro Area. The participating entities include SIHF Healthcare, SIU School of Medicine, Hoyleton Youth and Family Services, Centene, Memorial Medical Group, ConferMed Weitzman Institute, Washington University, Comprehensive Behavioral Health Center and Zade, Inc.

This project will address the issues of unmet health needs, social barriers, lack of connectivity between organizations, years of disinvestment, limited jobs and inequities in the workforce. These efforts will make the necessary transformations over the next five years to advance the health and well-being of the residents in the Metro East. Major projects include a new health care campus near major highways and transportation hubs, development of an urgent care center and a community health hub in midtown East St. Louis, deployment of community health workers, a new workforce development and job training center in Venice and improvements to public housing throughout the area.

“I’m proud to see funding being spent on communities that have been in desperate need of access to health care for far too long,” Belt said. “We will continue to break down the inequalities present in our health care system and work towards quality health care for all.”

More information is available on the Healthcare Transformation Collaboratives website.

MARYVILLE – Felicity Guttman, a recent graduate of Edwardsville High School, was one of just five students statewide selected by the Illinois Conservation Foundation to receive the Conservation Achievement Scholarship, State Senator Rachelle Aud Crowe (D-Glen Carbon) announced Tuesday.

Guttman was chosen for the scholarship because of her work to reduce pollution in farming.

“It’s encouraging to see our state recognize students who make an effort to preserve and protect our natural resources,” Crowe said. “The Metro East community is fortunate to have Felicity promoting sustainable practices in the agriculture industry and representing local environmental interests.”

Last year, Guttman began raising chickens and found a creative way to reduce waste: she composted chicken manure to use as fertilizer in her garden beds.

Guttman is also passionate about keeping her neighborhood clean and always carries a bag on walks to pick up trash along the way.

According to ICF, awardees must be Illinois high school seniors who demonstrate efforts to enhance and promote Illinois' natural resources. All five scholarship recipients will receive $2,000 to use for college expenses.

Guttman plans to study crop and soil science while pursuing a degree in agronomy at the University of Missouri in Columbia.

“Caring for the environment should be inherent in us,” Crowe said. “I applaud the scholarship recipients for taking an active role in promoting sustainable practices, as well as all other young people working to care for our planet.”

More information on the scholarship program and a list of other recipients can be found on ICF’s website.

BUFFALO GROVE – To make it even more convenient for residents to ask questions and get assistance with state services, State Senator Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove) is hosting mobile office hours throughout the summer in locations across the 30^th District.

“One of the most important parts of public service is being accessible,” Johnson said. “Not every resident has the time or transportation to visit my office—so I’m bringing my office to them.”

The first mobile office hours event will be held Tuesday, July 13 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Buffalo Grove Park District’s Alcott Center, located at 530 Bernard Drive.

For those who are unable to make the July 13 session, Johnson will also host evening office hours on Monday, July 26 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Vernon Hills Park District’s Sullivan Center, located at 635 N. Aspen Drive.

Johnson invites residents to stop by either event for help with unemployment cases and state services, or simply to discuss issues facing the community.

“Parents and residents who work long hours often find it difficult to schedule a visit during the workday,” Johnson said. “I want to offer everyone the opportunity to talk with me.”

Future mobile office hours events will be announced on Johnson’s Facebook and Twitter pages, as well as on her website, www.SenatorAdrianeJohnson.com.

Residents can also contact Johnson’s office for assistance at 847-672-6201 or www.SenatorAdrianeJohnson.com/contact-us.

GLENVIEW – Starting this month, unemployed Illinoisans in need of health insurance through the ACA Marketplace are eligible for financial assistance, State Senator Laura Fine (D-Glenview) announced Tuesday.

“Every Illinoisan deserves access to quality, affordable health care, and I’m pleased to see President Biden’s American Rescue Plan paving the way for many families to be able to afford health insurance,” Senator Fine said. “Individuals struggling to find employment should take advantage of this special enrollment period to prevent a possible lapse in insurance coverage.”

Thanks to new tax credits made possible by the federal American Rescue Plan, Illinoisans who received, or are approved to receive, unemployment compensation in 2021 may be able to find lower-cost plans and reduce out-of-pocket health insurance premiums when purchasing plans through the ACA Marketplace.

To maximize savings, individuals are encouraged to enroll in coverage on HealthCare.gov before the current special enrollment period closes on Aug. 15. Illinoisans can receive enrollment assistance at GetCoveredIllinois.gov.

“Anyone who has received unemployment income in 2021 should submit a new application or update their existing one,” said Illinois Department of Insurance Acting Director Dana Popish Severinghaus. “You may find that with the advanced premium tax credits, your monthly premium could average $10 or less per month, or even $0.”

More information on the 2021 Special Enrollment Period in Response to COVID-19 for the ACA Marketplace and the American Rescue Plan can be found here.

CHICAGO – Last week, Gov. JB Pritzker announced funding for equity-focused health care collaboratives across Illinois. The Chicago North Side Collaborative will help increase health care equity for lower-income and BIPOC residents in the area – particularly in the LGBTQ and Asian American communities.

“This initiative should help provide more 7th District residents with a pathway to specialty care who otherwise have been very poorly served by our healthcare system,” said State Senator Mike Simmons, who represents much of the collaborative’s coverage area. “This collaborative is intended to help ensure more residents get the full scope of care that they need. I look forward to seeing how these partnerships work over the coming months and years to start closing the gaps in access to specialty care for our residents who need much better and more comprehensive treatment than they have received.”