CALUMET CITY, Ill. – State Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, is working to improve health care by backing proposed legislation that will limit the number of patients nurses can be assigned, easing workloads while improving and focusing patient care.

“We should have the backs of all the nurses who play a big role in our health care system, and treat them with the respect they earn every day,” Jones said. “The contributions nurses make to the medical community help countless people, and we can’t underestimate how important it is not to overwork them. Right now, we burden nurses with too many patients, which lowers the quality of all our health care, and can even put lives at risk. It’s time for legislation to change that.”

Jones is backing House Bill 2604, or the Safe Patients Limits Act, which limits the patient assignments to a maximum of four in most situations, although special circumstances can change that. The National Campaign for Safe RN-to-Patient Staffing Ratios states that staffing requirements like those included in the bill increase the quality of health care hospitals can provide, lower overall costs and even save lives. The Illinois Nurses Association is a strong supporter of the bill.

“Providing high-quality, affordable medical care is critical to building a stronger Illinois,” Jones said. “That starts with putting our health care professionals in a fair and focused environment where they can give every patient the attention they deserve. I’m confident this legislation will create a safer, more efficient medical system that works better for all Illinoisans.”

CALUMET CITY, Ill. – State Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, is calling attention to a recent expansion of Illinois’ Child Care Assistance Program, which will help more families receive safe, affordable daycare.

“Every family deserves access to affordable daycare,” Jones said. “Many working parents, especially single parents, depend on child care professionals to keep their children safe and help them learn. Unfortunately, sometimes that costs way too much money for a low-income family. I encourage every working parent or guardian to look into this new program to see if they are eligible for assistance, because our kids deserve the best.”

Jones is supporting an expansion of Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) program which grants child care assistance money to families making 200% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) or less. This income level is an expansion of 15% from the previous 185% of the FPL. Jones has backed many initiatives like this to ensure that critical services are available for low-income families.

“Child care isn’t a luxury, it’s the first step in a long-term investment in better education, a productive economy and a stronger Illinois,” Jones said. “Kids who get full-time care when they are growing up are much more likely to develop the skills they need to do well in school and eventually get a job as a productive member of society. I will keep working hard to ensure that all working families get the resources they need.”

CALUMET CITY, Ill. – Students and their families will have easier access to college education under a new law supported by state Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, establishing the Illinois Higher Education Saving Program.

“Every kid in our community deserves the opportunity to go to college, not just those lucky enough to be born wealthy,” Jones said. “Higher education and economic opportunity will always be tightly connected; restricting one is restricting the other. If children in poorer families can’t go to a good college, some job prospects that are closed to them. I’m committed to breaking down barriers to higher education because that education is necessary for a better, more economically secure life, and a stronger Illinois.”

Jones passed House Bill 2237 to establish the Illinois Higher Education Saving Program. This program will facilitate saving for college for all children born after December 31, 2020 by opening an omnibus account to hold all contributions to higher education savings, all interest earned on those contributions and $50 in seed money for each participating child. All children born to parents who are residents of Illinois are eligible for the program. The bill was recently signed into law.

“This law is necessary to help middle-class families as well,” Jones said. “Many of the students who end up in a four-year college or university are graduating into decades of debt because they’ve had to take out huge loans. Our kids deserve lives full of potential, not lives where they are tagged with restrictive loan payments that keep them from building a future.”

​CALUMET CITY, Ill. – State Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, is informing local taxpayers of a new tax amnesty program which will ease the financial burden on working and middle-class families by offering an opportunity to pay off back taxes without interest or late fees.

“Late fees and extra costs can make back taxes impossible to pay off, but right now, taxpayers have an opportunity to pay down back taxes without any extra costs,” Jones said. “Our working families don’t have to live with the stress of old debts hanging over their head.”

Jones helped pass Senate Bill 689, which creates an opportunity for any taxpayer who owes back taxes from July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2018, to pay back their full debt without any late fees or interest payments. More information on the program is available on Illinois Department of Revenue’s website, tax.illinois.gov.

“Many honest, hardworking people can have a hard time keeping up with taxes, including a lot of self-employed professionals and small business owners in our community,” Jones said. “I’m working to ease the burden by creating property tax refunds for people who need it most, or making the rich pay their fair share in income taxes.”

CALUMET CITY, Ill. – State Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, is co-hosting a hands-on educational tour of an exhibit showcased by Rx Abuse Leadership Initiative of Illinois (RALI-IL) with state Sen. Napoleon Harris. The event is on Monday, Sept. 30 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Monee Village Hall, located at 5130 W. Court St., Monee.

“It’s crucial for people, especially parents, to be aware of the warning signs of serious drug use,” Jones said. “If we want to solve the drug problem, education is a huge first step. Drug abuse increases when there’s a lack of attention and understanding. Well-informed caregivers can help people fight these destructive behaviors before they become an ingrained habit. I’m thankful to RALI-IL for all their hard work in such an important area, and to Senator Harris for joining me in hosting.”

The RALI-IL exhibit is a mock teenage bedroom which includes warning signs of drug use caregivers should be on the lookout for. Experts will guide attendees through the exhibit to explain each warning sign, and to give advice about how to address the problem. The exhibit is geared toward adults over 21 years of age.

What:             Rep. Jones’ Anti-Drug Event Who:               State Rep. Thaddeus Jones                         State Sen. Napoleon Harris                         Rx Abuse Leadership Initiative of Illinois When:            Monday, Sept. 30                         4 to 6 p.m. Where:           Monee Village Hall                         5130 W. Court St.                         Monee

 

 

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Helping build a better Illinois and stronger middle class, state Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, is highlighting a new law that simplifies the application process for Cook County seniors seeking the Senior Homestead Exemption.

“Property tax relief is key for residents in our area, especially seniors who are living on a fixed income,” Jones said. “Seniors in Cook County now do not need to apply for their exemptions each year, which has caused some taxes to accidentally increase on seniors due to the yearly mandate, causing older homeowners to miss out on much-needed savings.”

Jones supported House Bill 833, which institutes a 5-year pilot project for Cook County to allow senior citizens to apply for the senior homestead exemption once instead of having to apply for it annually. The new law will help maintain critical tax exemptions for seniors, preventing a tax hike because seniors did not reapply. The law further requires the Cook County Assessor to list the number of years remaining before a senior must reapply on assessment notices and includes protections to terminate the exemption when a senior citizen passes away. Additionally, the new law requires the Cook County Assessor to perform at least two audits of all claimed senior exemptions and take action to correct erroneously or fraudulently claimed exemptions.

Previously, Cook County seniors had to reapply annually for the Senior Citizens Homestead Exemption while all other counties can choose to allow seniors to have the exemption automatically applied each year.

“Seniors should not be on the hook for annual applications, especially when most counties already have this practice in place,” Jones said. “Making the application process easier for local seniors will cut down on burdensome paperwork mandates, and also help prevent seniors from overpaying on their property taxes.”

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – State Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, is helping combat Illinois’ teacher shortage by ensuring that educators in communities across the state are paid fairly for their important work.

“We need to recognize that teachers fill a vital role in our society and pay them what they deserve,” Jones said. “There are teachers who still have to live with roommates after years of shaping the next generation of Illinois’ kids, and that has to change. A well-funded education system filled with well-payed educators is the foundation for a thriving economy, a brighter future for our children and a stronger Illinois.”

Jones passed House Bill 2078, which sets minimum teacher salaries at $32,076 for the 2020-2021 school year and gradually raises it by about $2,000 every year for four years. The last Illinois law guiding universal teacher pay was passed in 1980 and it set base salaries for teachers with a bachelor’s degree and 120 semester hours at just $10,000 a year. This legislation received strong bipartisan support and is now law.

Illinois is currently tenth in the country in average statewide teacher pay; however, that figure is skewed by extremely high salaries in Chicago suburbs. A 2018 study by the Illinois State Board of Education found that over 500 of Illinois’ 898 school districts statewide started teachers with a bachelor’s degree at salaries less than $40,000, and 167 started them below $35,000. Low starting salaries for teachers has led to rapid turnover, decreasing the quality of education and creating the teacher shortage Illinois now faces.

“If teachers are paid what they’re worth, more new teachers will stick with their careers after the first few years,” Jones said. “Ensuring our children have access to the best education is not only critical to helping tomorrow’s leaders succeed, but an important step toward strengthening our economy and growing our state.”

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – State Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, is combatting religiously-motivated hate crimes by enacting a new law strengthening punishments for criminals who target people in places of worship.

“Hate groups are growing increasingly bold and we need to take a stand against the violence they bring to our communities,” Jones said. “More and more, people in houses of worship do not feel secure. When parents are going to church and they have to know where the exits are in case the worst happens, the only solution is to crack down on the violent, prejudicial actions that these criminals are committing.”

Jones backed House Bill 38, which strengthens sentences for a murder committed in a church, mosque, synagogue or other place of worship. Additionally, injuring a person in a religious institution will now carry a punishment of up to 15 years in prison, and carrying a gun or other weapon into a house of worship with the goal of harming someone will carry a punishment of up to seven years in prison. The bill received strong bipartisan support, and was recently signed into law by the governor.

“This hateful attitude has been growing in recent years, and the source is clear; Donald Trump consistently advocates for the mistreatment of religious and minority communities. His rhetoric that people unlike him are somehow less than him emboldens the worst among us to carry out terrible acts of violence,” Jones said. “This legislation should send a message. Our communities will not continue to bear the threat of violence just for believing in God. Anyone who attempts to scare us away from our faith with violence will face swift and lasting retribution.”

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – State Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, is applauding the enactment of vital property tax relief efforts to help homeowners save money and a new task force to offer solutions to lower taxes.

“Families across the South Suburbs have seen declining home values with skyrocketing taxes and little to no relief offered to them,” Jones said. “It is a critical step toward relief with these new policies in place. Overtime, homeowners will receive rebates to offset their taxes, and the task force will propose other ideas to lower property tax burdens further.”

Jones supported Senate Bill 1932, which creates the Property Tax Relief Task Force. The governor signed the measure into law, and the task force will produce a report outlining structural and legislative reforms that will provide both short- and long-term relief for homeowners. 

Jones also supported Senate Bill 39, which establishes the Illinois Property Tax Relief Fund. The fund will provide homeowners with annual rebates to lower their property taxes.

Jones is calling on Pritzker to remove the burdensome annual application requirement Cook County seniors currently face in order to receive the Senior Citizen Homestead Exemption, by signing House Bill 833. The measure would allow local seniors to keep their exemption without reapplying. Cook County is currently the only county in Illinois where seniors are legally mandated to complete and submit paperwork annually just to apply for the exemption.

Earlier this year, Jones passed House Resolution 56, which details his plan to revitalize the economy for the area and also foster more job growth. Included in his five-point plan to revitalize the local economy, property tax relief was a priority so homeowners could not only keep more of their money but help stimulate local businesses and job growth.

“Building a stronger Illinois will take a lot of work, but finding new ways to ease the burden of property taxes will be good for the middle class,” Jones said. “I look forward to the new efforts to lower taxes for middle-class families, and I will be a strong voice for our community in Springfield.”

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – State Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, is working to combat mental health problems with a new law requiring the Department of Human Services (DHS) to coordinate delivery of mental health resources for troubled teens.

“Kids should never have to face mental health problems on their own,” Jones said. “We will make sure that people in a position to help – teachers, parents, friends – have the resources and knowhow they need. Far too often, we end up reacting to a tragedy. It’s time to stop looking back and considering what we could have done and start stepping in so children dealing with their disease have someone by their side. For that to work, people need to be informed.”

Jones supported House Bill 907, which requires DHS to make a database of information on mental health treatment options available on their website for parents, teachers, school social workers and any others who might be able to help. The goal is to create an environment of information sharing and understanding about the underlying causes and treatments for bullying, depression and other problems which can lead to school shootings and suicide. Gov. J.B. Pritzker recently signed this legislation into law.

“We are lucky to have a school system full of committed teachers, social workers and other educational professionals who already provide kids with so much, but we can do more,” Jones said. “This legislation will help kids who are having a difficult time get support. I’m committed to building a stronger Illinois, and that means making sure that people who need health care can get it.”