In The News
A year after Dobbs ruling, lawmakers reflect on impact
Saturday marks the one-year anniversary of the Supreme Court's landmark decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization - a ruling that overturned the national right to abortion. The decision has sparked a flurry of state legislative efforts, advocacy, litigation and a resurgence of decades-old abortion policies. It has also spurred federal pushes to set national rights to or limits on abortion. Five women in the House and Senate spanning the political spectrum shared both how the … Continue Reading
June 20, 2023
Senators look to establish sustainable aviation fuel standards
A proposed Senate bill would establish standards for the Federal Aviation Administration's definition of Sustainable Aviation Fuels. Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., Deb Fischer, R-Neb., Joni Ernst- R-Iowa, and Amy Klobuchar, D- Minn. introduced the Sustainable Aviation Fuels Accuracy Act June 13. "One of the most important things we can do to make American aviation more sustainable is increase the supply of American-grown, American-made, sustainable aviation fuel," Duckworth says. "I'm proud … Continue Reading
June 17, 2023
Sen. Duckworth commemorates Juneteenth in Carbondale
U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth celebrated the Juneteenth holiday in Carbondale on Saturday, June 17. According to a release from the senator's office, Sen. Duckworth attended a breakfast hosted by Mayor Carolin Harvey at the African American Museum of Southern Illinois. After the breakfast, she joined the Carbondale community for their second annual Juneteenth parade. Sen. Duckworth also visited the city's Juneteenth block party on Friday, June 16. "While Juneteenth became a federal holiday … Continue Reading
June 16, 2023
Senator Duckworth visits Sesser to discuss $750K secured in water infrastructure improvements
U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) visited Sesser, Ill. to meet with the city's leadership and discuss the $750,000 she secured. On June 16, Senator Duckworth discussed the funding she secured through a Fiscal Year 2022 Congressionally Directed Spending Request for City of Sesser for the rehabilitation of its sanitary sewer collection system. The funding will be used to update and renovate Sesser's outdated sewer collection system, addressing a vital public health threat. In 2014, the … Continue Reading
June 16, 2023
Officials break ground on the new Southern Illinois Multimodal Station in Carbondale
SIMMS will be located on the southeast corner of Illinois Avenue and Wall Street. The new building will extend to just outside the north wall of the current Amtrak station. "We are thrilled to have you here to witness the beginning of a significant project that has been in the works since 2010 when the City of Carbondale purchased property just adjacent to where we are standing," said Carbondale Mayor Carolin Harvey. "Nine years ago tomorrow, the city held its first meeting with Amtrak … Continue Reading
May 31, 2023
One Illinois Senator has introduced a bill to improve airline evacuations
Sen. Tammy Duckworth introduced legislation Wednesday to set standards for the Federal Aviation Administration to test how quickly passengers can escape a plane during an emergency. Some lawmakers aren't sure modern planes can be evacuated in 90 seconds, as federal rules require. Duckworth says FAA tests a few years ago were unrealistic because they only used able-bodied adults under 60 - no children, seniors and those with disabilities took … Continue Reading
May 31, 2023
Airplane evacuation tests had major limitations. A key senator wants a redo.
The most recent Federal Aviation Administration tests to determine how long it would take passengers to exit an airliner in the case of an emergency had limitations: The 60 mock passengers were healthy adults and carry-on luggage was nowhere to be found. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), chair of an aviation subcommittee, said the results don't provide a realistic guide to how long it would take people to leave a plane. She is introducing legislation Wednesday that would require the FAA to … Continue Reading
May 22, 2023
Tuberville Draws Fire For Holding Hundreds Of Military Promotions ‘Hostage’ Over Abortion
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) sharply criticized her colleague Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) on Sunday for his continual blockade of military nominations, saying the Alabama Republican is "holding the entire nation's national security hostage." Tuberville has for months refused to support about 200 promotions for military officers over a Pentagon policy that provides travel reimbursements and leave for service members to seek abortions out-of-state, which was updated after the Supreme … Continue Reading
May 19, 2023
Corps of Engineers breaks ground for new Mississippi River lock
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers broke ground Thursday on a new lock chamber adjacent to - and twice as long as - the existing lock at Winfield near Batchtown, Illinois. The lock chamber will be 1,200 feet long and 110 feet wide. It will be constructed next to the current lock chamber built in 1939 that is 600 feet long and 110 feet wide. "[The] groundbreaking was what the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was all about - bringing new life into our existing infrastructure while … Continue Reading
May 14, 2023
First US senator to give birth in office offers heartfelt Mother’s Day message: ‘You’re what keeps this country strong’
Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the first sitting US senator to give birth while in office, offered a heartfelt Mother's Day message on Sunday, celebrating moms nationwide for "growing the next generation for our nation." "Hang in there, sister. We're in this together, and nobody has perfect work-life balance, everybody struggles, and so do the best that you can," the Democrat told CNN's Dana Bash on "State of the Union." "You're what keeps this country strong." Duckworth and her husband, … Continue Reading
May 05, 2023
Duckworth: DoD needs to think ahead in the Indo-Pacific
As worries about Chinese aggression toward Taiwan increase, Sen. TAMMY DUCKWORTH (D-Ill.) wants the Defense Department to do what it hasn't always done well enough in the past: coordinate with allies so that everyone is prepared for global conflicts. "I am deeply, deeply concerned about our logistics capabilities and that we often don't plan enough," Duckworth, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told NatSec Daily. On Wednesday, she … Continue Reading
April 25, 2023
Cook County Health to receive over $860,000 to help premature babies at Stroger Hospital
CHICAGO (CBS) - Some big money is coming for some of Cook County Health's tiniest patients. On Monday, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth announced $863,000 in federal funding to help premature babies at Stroger Hospital. "We need to make sure that these babies have everything that they need initially to be healthy and to grow and it should not be dependent on your income level, the neighborhood you live in or the color of your skin," Duckworth said. The funding will be spent on high-tech equipment … Continue Reading
April 25, 2023
IVF would be covered for federal employees under proposed bipartisan bill
One in every eight couples face challenges while conceiving, according to survey data from Resolve, the National Fertility Association. With more than 9 million people eligible, the Federal Employees Health Benefit (FEHB) Program, administered by the government, is the largest employer-sponsored health insurance program in the world. Yet, there is not a single FEHB carrier that offers a nationwide plan covering assisted reproductive technology, which includes all fertility treatments in which … Continue Reading
April 12, 2023
How Chicago Landed the 2024 Democratic National Convention
It's an event nearly 30 years in the making: After hosting the Democratic National Convention in 1996, the event will return to the city of Chicago in 2024, officials on Tuesday confirmed. "The DNC is returning to the Midwest," a news release from the Democratic National Committee read. "A critical Democratic stronghold: Illinois along with Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota - part of the "blue wall" - were crucial to the 2020 victory of President Biden and Vice President Harris and to … Continue Reading
April 10, 2023
Long Covid Help Gets Funding Push From Biden HHS, Lawmakers
Hundreds of millions of dollars would go toward efforts to diagnose and treat people suffering long-term Covid symptoms under funding plans put forth by the Biden administration and lawmakers. The proposals would aid Americans still struggling with fatigue, brain fog, and other ailments of long Covid, and come as the health system prepares to exit the pandemic state. Health and policy experts say long Covid is still a daily burden for an estimated 10 million to 35 million working-age adults, … Continue Reading
April 05, 2023
'Historic' $6.5 Billion funding for Drinking Water Infrastructure Upgrades Across the Country
Tuesday in Rockford, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan announced $6.5 billion in funding for drinking water infrastructure upgrades throughout the country. The spending represents the largest federal investment in water infrastructure in the nation's history. The money will be available to states, Tribes and territories. Regan says $3 billion is dedicated to lead service line replacement across the U.S. "Getting the lead out of drinking water is a top priority … Continue Reading
April 04, 2023
Japan to increase access to U.S. ethanol
A rule proposed by the Japanese government could open the gate for more imports of American ethanol, according to U.S. officials. Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on March 30 released proposed language related to its Act on Sophisticated Methods of Energy Supply Structures that calls for improving the carbon-intensity score of corn ethanol produced in the U.S. If approved, the rule would remain in place through 2028 and largely allow the U.S. ethanol industry to fully access … Continue Reading
April 04, 2023
U.S. EPA, Congressional Leaders Visit Rockford To Announce Funding For Drinking Water Improvements
ROCKFORD - The head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and congressional leaders stopped in the city Tuesday to announce more than $332 million in funding to improve water infrastructure in Illinois and ensure access to safe drinking water. That funding, in part, will help replace lead service lines to prevent the toxic metal from filtering into the water system. When consumed in large quantities, lead can cause kidney and cardiovascular issues and otherwise harm the nervous system. … Continue Reading
March 31, 2023
Duckworth introduces bill to build out ‘imperative’ tech skills in military
WASHINGTON - A new bill introduced by a key lawmaker on the Senate Armed Services Committee aims to build out the Defense Department's "human capital infrastructure" in tech and cyber operations by formalizing how the military organizes and takes advantage of service members' technical skills, from coding to artificial intelligence. "Absent strategy implementation and investment, the Department of Defense and each of the military departments currently lack the human capital infrastructure to … Continue Reading
March 30, 2023
Sen. Duckworth secures $750K for Sesser sewer improvements
Sesser is getting $750,000 from the U.S Environmental Protection Agency to help the community rehabilitate its aging sanitary sewer system. The funds were secured by Sen. Tammy Duckworth as part of Congressionally Directed Spending funding allocations within the federal infrastructure bill. Mayor Jason Ashmore said he expects to receive the funds in the coming weeks and added that his goal is to have the project completed by the end of the year. He said the project will allow the … Continue Reading
