This week's Illinois State Association of Counties (ISACo) News and Views e-newsletter celebrates Black History Month, announces County Lobby Day and invites county officials and staff to join the event, provides an update on the pause of certain federal funds, reports on over $30 million awarded to Illinois regional sites across the state for the Regional Site Readiness Program Grant Awards, includes information on funding awarded towards Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) projects, shares grant fund information on the Birth Equity Iniative Program, highlights an upcoming ISACo Webinar opportunity regarding public health goals and vaccine communication strategies for county health departments featuring Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) Director Sameer Vohra, links to articles ISACo staff is reading to stay informed, conveys information about the upcoming National Association of Counties (NACo) Legislative Conference, highlights ISACo corporate partner IPRIME™ and invites counties to join ISACo.
ISACo Celebrates Black History Month
ISACo is proud to recognize and celebrate Black History Month. Please stay tuned for educational content in celebration of Black History in Illinois on our social media pages.
Please email Member Services and Communications Manager Tiffani Homer at thomer@isacoil.org if you wish to share upcoming events, notable leaders or highlights of Black History month in your County to be featured in our weekly e-newsletter and social media pages.
Information on Black History Month is available via this link.
County Lobby Day - Save the Date!
We are pleased to announce that the United Counties Council of Illinois (UCCI) and ISACo will co-host County Lobby Day on March 19, 2025. Planned activities include a Legislative Briefing, an opportunity to advocate for county issues at the Statehouse and a Legislative Reception that evening at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum. Additional details are forthcoming.
Update on the Pause of Certain Federal Funding
ISACo is monitoring events surrounding the Trump administration's pause on the distribution of certain federal grant funding. We published a summary of the pause last week and have updated the content with new developments, particularly ongoing litigation to temporarily forestall the pause. The summary and updates are available via this link.
$31 Million in Regional Site Readiness Program Grant Awards
On Wednesday, January 29, 2025, Governor JB Pritzker joined the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) and local leaders to announce Regional Site Readiness Program awards totaling $31 million to support site readiness activities at 24 sites across the state. The program includes two competitive funding opportunities: Planning grants to support due diligence activities, studies and site plans and Capital Ready grants to support capital infrastructure improvements. Through this funding, 13 Planning grantees and 11 Capital Ready grantees will undertake due diligence and development projects to better prepared sites to attract future investment and new job opportunities in the industrial sector across Illinois' Economic Development Regions.
The link is available via this link.
Over $60 Million in Funding for Illinois Department of Natural (IDNR) Resources Projects
On Friday, January 31, 2025, the Capital Development Board (CDB) announced more than $60 million in investments to address deferred maintenance projects for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR). The funding, made possible by Governor JB Pritzker’s bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital plan, will focus on five areas across Illinois.
The projects aim to address essential repairs, including water and wastewater systems, trail and bridge replacements and site preservation efforts. State parks, such as Starved Rock and Lake Murphysboro, will see improvements that will provide recreational and educational benefits to the public.
The link is available via this link.
$4.5 Million in Grants to Support Birth Equity Efforts Across Illinois
On Wednesday, January 29, 2025, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) announced it awarded $4.5 million to 12 groups across the state funded through Governor JB Pritzker's 2024 Birth Equity Initiative. The grants, ranging from $100,000 to $700,000, were awarded through a competitive process and are designed to support innovative, community-based efforts that have the potential to reduce inequities in populations historically at higher risk for adverse birth outcomes.
The link is available via this link.
IDPH Public Health Goals and Vaccine Strategies
(Tuesday, February 11, 2025, 12:00pm-1:00pm CST)
ISACo's Public Health Policy Committee is sponsoring a webinar featuring Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) Director Sameer Vohra. Director Vohra, a general pediatrician who holds degrees in law and public policy, will discuss the importance of vaccines and effective strategies for counties and local health departments to communicate vaccine messaging to the public. The webinar will also provide an overview of IDPH’s broader public health goals.
This event is open to all ISACo members. Please contact Member Services and Communications Manager Tiffani Homer at thomer@isacoil.org for the link if you would like to participate in the webinar
IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra
What We're Reading
Illinois House Lawmakers File Almost 1,800 New Bills Only 2 Weeks into Legislative Session (Capitol News Illinois)
Some Simple Ways to Make Government Work Appeal to IT Professionals (Governing)
Illinois Announces $60 Million Investment in State Park Improvements (WICS)
How Our State Stacks Up: New Report Shows How Illinois Compares to Others on Taxes, Spending, Other Metrics (Daily Herald)
Join ISACo's Policy Committees
ISACo policy committees shape the Association's legislative advocacy efforts. Meetings are held virtually, and committees meet four times per year unless committee members desire to meet more frequently. Service on an ISACo Policy Committee is contingent upon the county being a member of ISACo or the applicant being a member of an affiliated association.
Policy Committee opportunities are as follows. Committees with links are already meeting, although there are openings on all policy committees.
Please click on the image below, complete the form and e-mail it to Legislative Advocacy and Research Manager Nekya Hall at nhall@isacoil.org.
NACo Legislative Conference
The NACo Legislative Conference brings together nearly 2,000 elected and appointed county officials to focus on federal policy issues that impact counties and our residents.
This year, the conference will take place from March 1, 2025, to March 4, 2025, in Washington, D.C.
Attendees have the opportunity to engage in second-to-none policy sessions, interact with officials of the new Administration and meet with members of Congress.
This is a one-of-a-kind advocacy opportunity to strengthen our intergovernmental partnerships for years to come.
Click on this link to register for the conference. ISACo and UCCI will hold an Illinois Counties Dinner on the evening of Saturday, March 1. The dinner will be at the National Press Club. NACo Legislative Conference registrants from Illinois will soon receive invitations for this event.
Upcoming NACo Webinars
NACo has announced the following upcoming webinar opportunities. ISACo is a proud partner with NACo and encourages counties to participate in NACo membership and activities.
Chart Your Course: Online Learning Session #1
(Wednesday, February 5, 2025, 1:00pm-2:00pm CST)
Join NACo staff and a trainer as they kickoff their new "Chart Your Course" learning journey. In this online learning session, they'll offer an overview of the program, discuss how to maximize this opportunity, and will walk through several of the NACo identified courses.
Click on this link to register for the webinar.
CORPORATE SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT
This week's corporate partner spotlight highlights ISACo's partnership with Illinois Public Reserves Investment Management Trust™ (IPRIME™), is an investment pool for Municipal Treasurers acting on behalf of counties, townships, cities, towns, villages, libraries, park districts, water supply districts, fire protection districts, sanitary districts, housing authorities and other subdivisions of the State of Illinois.
The IPRIME Investment Shares Series is rated AAAm by Standard & Poor’s.
The Investment Shares Series is comprised of money market instruments having a maximum remaining maturity of one year (except U.S. government obligations that may have remaining maturities of up to two years).
The primary objectives of the Investment Shares Series are to offer the highest possible investment yield, protect principal, preserve liquidity and maintain Standard & Poor’s highest local government investment pool rating of AAAm. In addition, the Fund offers access to PMA Financial Network, LLC’s Fixed Income and Deposit Programs. With the experience and expertise of PMA, the Investment Shares Series grants investors access to a powerful investment management team that functions with a high standard of vision, synergy, and quality.
Click here to visit their website.
Click on this link to learn more about the benefits and opportunities available through ISACo's Corporate Partner Program.
Become an ISACo Member!
Is your county a member of ISACo? If not, why not?
ISACo is a statewide association whose mission is to empower county officials to provide excellent service to their residents.
ISACo member counties are comprised of forward-thinking public servants who recognize that the challenges confronting county governments require new and innovative ideas, collaborative solutions and collective advocacy at the state and federal levels of government.
Members of the association will benefit from education and training opportunities, peer-to-peer networking, shared resources and robust representation before policymakers at various levels of government. ISACo creates and connects county officials to these opportunities and successfully equips them to make counties ideal places to live, work and play.
If your county is interested in discussing membership in ISACo, please contact Member Services and Communication Manager Tiffani Homer at (217) 679-3368 or thomer@isacoil.org. ISACo member counties are listed here. Thank you for your consideration.