To help tenants who rent small properties like houses and duplex homes, State Senator Steve Stadelman passed legislation on Thursday to provide greater transparency for renters.

“Currently, there are no security deposit protections for renters of small properties with five or fewer units,” said Stadelman (D-Rockford). “This legislation would expand the current ways renters are protected to include those renting smaller properties with five or fewer units.”

Under the current law, landlords can withhold security deposits for tenants in buildings with five units or more as long as they provide an itemized statement of damages within 30 days after a tenant moves out. For those living in a building with five or fewer units, a withheld security deposit does not require a statement explaining why and listing the damages incurred.

Senate Bill 1741 would remove this limitation and require all landlords to provide an itemized statement of damages before withholding a security deposit from any tenant, regardless of the number of units in the property.

ROCKFORD -- A task force appointed to study the decline of local journalism in Illinois and recommend ways to revive the industry meets for the first time Monday, March 27.

The task force is being led by State Senator Steve Stadelman, who passed legislation to establish the panel of frontline journalists and academics and who worked 25 years as an award-winning television reporter and news anchor before his election to the Illinois General Assembly in 2012.

"Newsrooms across the nation are shrinking, especially in smaller and more rural areas, and an alarming number have closed in the last decade," Stadelman said. "When people don't know what's happening on their town councils and school boards, they can't make educated decisions or hold public officials accountable."

Stadelman's legislation charges the 23-member task force with studying Illinois communities underserved by the news media, proposing public policy to strengthen local journalism and recommending ways to support private-sector or non-profit operating models. Members of the task force represent higher education including the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, news media including the Illinois Public Broadcasting Council and Illinois Press Association and government including the Illinois Municipal League.

ROCKFORD – The Illinois Emergency Management Agency announced $20 million in grant funding will go to non-profit organizations around the state and State Senator Steve Stadelman is happy to announce that three non-profit organizations in Rockford are receiving $749,000 in grants to support and strengthen efforts to protect against public safety and security threats.

“There have been several attacks on religious institutions over the past couple of years and it’s good to see these organizations getting support,” said Stadelman (D-Rockford). “Being a member of a religious institution should not subject someone to acts of violence against their beliefs, and these grants will add more protections for these organizations.”

Many of the grantees are places of worship, reproductive health providers, cultural institutions and education centers who were deemed at high risk of a terrorist attack. Funds must be used for target-hardening activities, which include active shooter trainings, the purchase and installation of security equipment on property owned or leased by the not-for-profit organization, and the hiring of contracted security personnel.

ROCKFORD – With an announcement Wednesday by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, local park and recreation projects throughout Illinois are being awarded grants and State Senator Steve Stadelman is pleased to share that the Villages of New Milford and Machesney Park are receiving more than $500,000 each for land acquisition and recreational development.

“Revitalizing our parks and recreational spaces means making big investments in our green spaces and ensuring equitable access to the luxuries they provide,” said Stadelman (D-Rockford). “I look forward to the investments in New Milford and Machesney Park and am excited to see these new additions coming to our local parks.”

The grants represent the largest round of Open Space Land Acquisition and Development grants in the 36-year history of the program. In addition, for the first time in the history of the program, funding will cover 10 percent of eligible projects located in economically distressed communities, resulting in 22 underserved locations receiving OSLAD grants.