From the Illinois Famil Institute:
The Final Week of Session
by David Curtin
Like last year, the Illinois General Assembly finished at 4 a.m. Monday morning.
Like last year, they passed a 3500-page budget no GOP lawmaker had seen until the last day.
Like last year, they raised roughly $800 million in new taxes.
This year, they failed to get a megaprojects, or Bears deal, done.
In other words, it was a fairly typical end to session.
Everybody looks forward to the final week of session because it will end May 31.
At the same time, everybody loathes the final week of session because it’s less about serious lawmaking and more like surviving a storm.
And conservative legislators know that what’s good and right is probably going to be sacrificed at the altar of power and evil.
So the final week was pretty hectic on the budget and the Bears.
For IFI, however, the biggest fights of the week centered on HB 4966 and HB 5295.
HB 4966: Unconstitutional? Let’s pass it anyway
IFI gave Sen. Jil Tracy (R-Quincy) some ammunition for debate on HB 4966, the DCFS SECURE Act.
But the supermajority ignored her warnings on the unconstitutionality of HB 4966 and increasing the plight of these often-traumatized children under DCFS care.
They passed it on a partisan roll call.
Specifically, HB 4966 creates an affirmation-only framework regarding gender identity and sexual orientation within the DCFS system.
If a child says he or she is the opposite sex, then that is the reality and it must be affirmed.
Foster parents, caregivers, caseworkers, service providers, placement decisions, and case plans are all directed through that lens.
There is no actual help for the child.
Luckily for children, though, help comes via the US Constitution.
During Senate debate, Sen. Tracy repeatedly pointed senators to the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent 8-1 decision in Chiles v. Salazar.
In that case, the Court held that government cannot suppress one viewpoint in counseling while permitting another viewpoint.
Even Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor joined the majority.
Tracy’s argument was straightforward.
If Colorado cannot require counselors to affirm one viewpoint regarding gender identity while prohibiting another, how can Illinois require DCFS caregivers, foster parents, and providers to operate under an affirmation-only model?
So even though HB 4966 passed, it will be challenged in court by the Thomas More Society. I just don’t see it surviving a legal challenge.
HB 5295: Another Bill Looking for a Lawsuit
HB 5295 also crossed the finish line during the final hours of session.
HB 5295 mandates that abortion-related and gender-transition-related medical information be hidden from doctors and health care personnel on an electronic health information exchange used all over the country.
The Illinois Hospital Association said HB 5295, if passed, would expose medical professionals to legal liability.
Dr. William Hauter (R-Morton), the only medical doctor in the legislature, was more direct: HB 5295 will kill people because doctors cannot see their patients’ medical history, which is the primary thing doctors look at in treating patients (in-state or out of state).
Those concerns never went away, though unbelievably proponents got the IL Hospital Association to be neutral.
I’m sure it was a straitjacket neutral.
The IHA was pretty hot about the bill and nothing changed to appease their concerns.
I was told MyChart is going to take the state to court over HB 5295. Good for them.
One Final Observation
Last week I wrote about the growing number of prayer efforts taking place around the Capitol. The Wednesday morning prayer gathering. The Thursday Intercessors for America prayer meetings. The Freedom Caucus Bible study. The pastors quietly walking the halls and praying with legislators. Those efforts continue to grow.
Yes, the legislation is discouraging. The direction of much of our culture remains discouraging. Yet I continue to see conversations taking place that would not have happened a few years ago. I continue to see legislators wrestling with questions of faith. I continue to see people willing to speak biblical truth in a building where doing so often comes with a political cost.
God is still at work in Springfield. And unlike the General Assembly, His work does not end when lawmakers finally gavel out at 4 o’clock in the morning.
