Stadelman announces over $1.6 million in property tax relief grants for Rockford area school district

• Rockford
• Education

ROCKFORD – State Senator Steve Stadelman announced Harlem School District 122 has received over $1.6 million through the Illinois State Board of Education, to allow the district to reduce property taxes and replace it with state funds.

“Ensuring all students – regardless of ZIP code – have access to high quality education is vital,” said Stadelman (D-Rockford). “The grant awarded to Harlem School District 122 will help lower property taxes for area residents, while increasing funding adequacy for school districts.”

A total of 155 districts applied for this grant, and 32 districts received grants. Harlem School District 122, located in Machesney Park, received over $1.6 million.

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Stadelman legislation would expand criminal stalking to include electronic tracking

• Survivor of Abuse
• Cyberstalking
• SB 2683
• Stalking No Contact Order Act

ROCKFORD – State Senator Steve Stadelman advanced legislation through the Senate Judiciary Committee that keeps victims and survivors safe from their abusers by expanding the definition of stalking to include electronic tracking systems.

"As tracking devices become more popular, people are caught using them for the wrong reasons,” said Stadelman (D-Rockford).

With advances in technology, people are using electronic devices to keep track of their luggage, wallets and other personal belongings. However, people are also using them to stalk others.

Through Senate Bill 2683, Stadelman is working to change the Stalking No Contact Order Act to be consistent with the criminal definition of stalking. The new legislation would change the definition of “course of conduct” of stalking to include the use of an electronic tracking system to determine a person’s location, movement or travel patterns. The legislation would also allow judges to prohibit respondents from using electronic tracking systems and acquiring tracking information in a court order.

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Local Journalism Task Force outlines findings, potential policy changes

• Rockford
• Local Journalism
• Local Journalism Task Force
• Springfield

SPRINGFIELD – Illinois and the nation are in the midst of a local journalism crisis, with news outlets closing or shrinking at an alarming rate. State Senator Steve Stadelman and the members of the Local Journalism Task Force spent the last year studying the decline of local journalism, and outlined its findings and policy recommendations at a news conference Wednesday.

“As local journalism declines so does the checks and balances on democracy. It’s an issue facing newsrooms across both the state and nation – due in large part to dwindling revenue that leads to a dwindling number of reporters,” said Stadelman (D-Rockford). “A disruption in finances is a disruption in talent. It was long past time for us to have serious conversations about the future of journalism and how that affects the future of our communities.”

Stadelman – a former TV news anchor – chaired the Local Journalism Task Force. Representatives from media, academia and government met nearly a dozen times throughout the previous calendar year to study the decline of local media, its impact on democracy, and potential policy changes that could increase revenue to newsrooms across the state.

Hearing from a number of experts from across both the state and nation, the task force saw a common theme: independent local news reporting is vital and the lack of it is dangerous to the health of our democracy.

According to the Medill research, the Chicago area is among the 20 U.S. metro areas with the highest loss of news sources per capita. Yet the decline in rural parts of the state is even worse.

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$250,000 in Stadelman-secured funding increases residential substance abuse treatment for adults

• Substance Abuse
• Roserance

Roserance will add 40 beds for residential substance abuse treatement for adults in part as a result of $250,000 in state funds being delivered for the project by State Senator Steve Stadelman.

The Stadelman-obtained contribution represents a third of the $750,000 project cost and takes Rosecrance to 80 percent of its fundraising goal, Rosecrance President and CEO Dave Gomel announced at a news conference this week where he expressed the nonprofit's "gratitude to the State of Illinois, with special recognition to Senator Stadelman, for their continued support."

Rosecrance is convering space previously used for treatment of teenagers at its Griffin Williamson on University Drive in Rockford to 40 residential beds for adults. Gomel explained that more teens are being treated through outpatient programs, while more adults who lacked adequate early intervention need residential treatment.

"As a society, we're beginning to understand the full cost of untreated mental health and substance-abuse disorders -- the emotional and economic impacts on families and communities," Stadelman said. "Just look at our county jails and the number of inmates who are dealing with mental health issues and substance-abuse disorders. This is why I was so committed to helping Rosecrance meet changing needs."