SPRINGFIELD — Schools across the state will soon be incentivized to expand dual language programs in grade schools at no cost to their school districts, thanks to a new law sponsored by State Senator Graciela Guzmán and State Representative Abdelnassar Rashid.

“Research shows how impactful dual language instruction can be to young people’s future careers, for developing interpersonal relationships and forming deeper connections with other cultures,” said Guzmán (D-Chicago). “This measure will encourage more schools to implement dual language programs, setting students up for future success and creating a more welcoming, multicultural space for young people to learn.”

Recognizing the importance of dual language education for young people, the Illinois Advisory Council for Bilingual Education – formed in 2023 – began to research how to incentivize, improve and expand dual language instruction in schools. After extensive stakeholder engagement, expert consultation, and data collection, the council released a report to the General Assembly in October 2024 with their recommendations. Their proposals were divided into three buckets – those with high costs to implement, those with low costs and those with no prospective costs.

SPRINGFIELD — To better prepare for the displacement of thousands of people as a result of climate change, State Senator Graciela Guzmán helped create a task force to study its potential impact on Illinois, and develop a plan to deal with our uncertain future.

“As a land-locked state, Illinois may be receiving thousands of folks who are displaced from environmental disasters, such as flooding or extreme hurricanes,” said Guzmán (D-Chicago). “This task force will help our state develop a welcome plan for new arrivals while not disrupting the lives of long-term Illinoisans.”

Climate displacement is the forced or voluntary migrations of people due to climate change or environmental degradation. With rising global water levels and more extreme weather events, Midwestern states like Illinois will see an increase in the number of people trying to escape these situations, both from other states and other nations. Without a plan in place to support the displaced individuals, there may be destabilizing impacts on the state’s infrastructure.

SPRINGFIELD — State Senator Graciela Guzmán’s initiative to protect employees from employers backing out of good faith negotiations was signed into law on Friday.

“The right to collectively bargain has been established in Illinois for decades,” said Guzmán (D-Chicago). “This measure simply expands this protection to ensure employers who withdraw from good faith negotiations face consequences for these unjust actions.”

The Public Labor Relations Act, which went into effect in 1984, established many protections for Illinois workers, including the right for employees to approach their employer to negotiate their contracts, health and safety policies, hours, and more. According to the law, employers must meet with them in good faith before working on an agreement.

SPRINGFIELD —More people will soon have the opportunity to become homeowners through community land trusts, thanks to an initiative led by State Senator Graciela Guzmán that was signed into law on Friday.

“As the American dream of homeownership seems farther and farther away for many working Illinoisans, community land trusts have proven to be an effective solution for folks to purchase their first home and build generational wealth,” said Guzmán (D-Chicago). “I am strongly in favor of this people-first model to become more common throughout Illinois and our country, and believe this law will help them become more common.”

Community land trusts, or CLTs, are community-based, nonprofit organizations that manage a parcel of land to preserve long-term affordability of homes created through subsidies. CLTs sell homes on the land they manage at affordable prices to a qualifying homebuyer. Oftentimes, they place limits on the incomes of people looking to purchase homes to ensure affordable housing is going to people in the most financial need. Driven by constituents, for constituents, this model aims to keep folks in the community that may otherwise be priced out by corporate rent and mortgage rates.