Illinois Amendment #1 to SB2899

[Czecher]

This bill was supposed to come up in committee at 2pm on Sunday Jan 6 but they claim it has been put aside for the 97th General Assembly and it will have to wait until the 98th.

There is chatter on the ISRA facebook (https://www.facebook.com/ISRAgroup) page that this may come up again tomorrow at 11am despite what was said today.


As reported earlier, the House version of the Cullerton Gun Grab Bill was supposed to be debated before the House Judiciary Committee I at 2:00 PM today. The Chairman of the committee convened the committee, announced that there would be no gun bills debated for the rest of the session, then adjourned.

This bill is incredibly worrisome and anyone living in this fine state of Illinois should be greatly concerned. Read for yourself the details here. (http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=09700SB2899ham001&GA=97&SessionId=84&DocTypeId=SB&LegID=63457&DocNum=2899&GAID=11&Session)

If it concerns you as much as it did me, get on the phone and call your legislators like I did. Send mail, do whatever it takes. These guys will stop at nothing. We must do the same.

There is a video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bDJW97xBAE) of the bill being set aside but I don't trust them for a minute.

It seems like out collective calling efforts from the weekend were successful in filling every voicemail box in Springfield. I know I had a hard time reaching anyone but the fight isn't over.

Pick up the phones and make the call to save your rights.

While you are at it you'll want to include HB815 and HB1263 in you list of things you want to see voted down. There is a crazy long list of stuff coming our way!!

[Bulldog7972]

It's been pulled due to lack of support. For now anyway. My bad, I missed you link. Sorry.

[Czecher]

I certainly hope that is true. I've been glued to the ISRA site, their related facebook page and Illinois General Assembly site trying to figure out exactly where this thing stands and if it will re-emerge by surprise.



They trying to sneak SB2899 under another Bill HCA1.

Here is the House Judiciary I - Civil Law Committee Hearing Details (http://my.ilga.gov/Hearing/HearingDetail/10414). According to this it goes up at 11am today in another form.

I was mildly optimistic when the announcement came that they would not tackle this bill during the remainder of this session. Like most things though, I'll believe it when I see it.

[Czecher]

Although we survived the 97th General Assembly without the passing of SB2899, HB815 and HB1263, they are still on the table for the 98th GA which was sworn in at noon today. These bills need to be contested with every opportunity we have.

From the Illinois State Board of Elections page (http://www.elections.state.il.us/DistrictLocator/DistrictOfficialSearchByAddress.aspx):


For information surrounding who is currently serving you in the U.S. Congress and Illinois State Legislature, please call the State Board of Elections Springfield office at 217/782-4141.

I made the call earlier this morning to confirm that my address has been re-districted from the 23rd Senate and 46th House to the 24th Senate and 47th House districts.

Take the time to make sure you know exactly who your representatives are today as they may be different from yesterday. They also could be different from your neighbor across the street. Add their contact info to your phone so you can contact them frequently. I just created a new group called Legislators in my gmail account to track everyone that matters...both federal and state.

There is a lot of stuff going down right now and these people need to be reminded that we are here. Don't be silent in Illinois.

Also keep in mind that "witness slips" (http://illinoisreview.typepad.com/illinoisreview/2012/03/file-a-house-committee-witness-slip-online.html) are easy to create to show your position on any upcoming topic. Not only are they easy to file, anyone 13 years or older is eligible to play along. Make sure your FAMILY gets heard as well. It's a free lesson in civics.


The Illinois House launched a new venue for citizens to participate in the legislative process by filing witness slips online. During committee hearings is the only time public opinion is openly incorporated into the Illinois House's decision-making. At that time, public testimony on a particular piece of legislation is allowed. During the hearing on legislation, the committee chairman commonly reads the list of witnesses that have filed slips for or against the proposal.

The Illinois House's new public interaction via the internet allows citizens over age 13 to file witness slips online and provides a way for virtual participation in the House proceedings. The forms are considered official state documentation and information included should be verifiable.

The Illinois House's online witness slip entree is at http://witnessslips.ilga.gov. Select the committee where a particular bill is assigned, and find the bill on the committee's schedule. Fill out and then submit the form provided for the particular bill online.

It's not too late to make another new year resolution and promise to be more vocal about your rights. Follow the IGLA (http://my.ilga.gov/) and get to know your elected officials better than ever!! For those sitting on the sidelines worrying about the future, nobody will know how you feel unless you pick up the phone and tell them.

The new session begins...let's keep an eye on what tomorrow brings.