Full Text of HJR0023 102nd General Assembly
HJ0023 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The Illinois ABLE program is a transformative | 3 | | tool for Illinoisans with disabilities and their families who | 4 | | want to save for additional expenses that come with living | 5 | | with a disability; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Before ABLE, people with disabilities lived with | 7 | | chronic financial insecurity, and only those with means had a | 8 | | real pathway to financial independence and to achieve the | 9 | | promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act to assure | 10 | | equality of opportunity, full participation, independent | 11 | | living, and economic self-sufficiency; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, In 2014, a great bi-partisan victory was achieved | 13 | | when members of Congress joined together to pass the Stephen | 14 | | Beck Jr. Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act, making | 15 | | it possible for people with disabilities to save for | 16 | | disability expenses without losing federal means-tested | 17 | | benefits, and more than 43 states plus the District of | 18 | | Columbia have launched ABLE programs since then; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, The Illinois General Assembly passed ABLE | 20 | | legislation in 2015, and Illinois now leads a 18-state | 21 | | National ABLE Alliance, representing approximately one-quarter | 22 | | of the ABLE eligible population nationwide; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Illinois ABLE was launched by the State | 2 | | Treasurer's Office in January 2017, and four years later, as | 3 | | of January 1, 2021, more than 1,900 Illinois ABLE accounts | 4 | | have been opened; approximately $17 million has been | 5 | | contributed to save for a wide range of qualified disability | 6 | | expenses, such as therapy, adaptive equipment, training, | 7 | | transportation, job coaching, housing, and more; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, Illinois ABLE has created a pathway to greater | 9 | | financial independence for Illinoisans with disabilities and | 10 | | their families, incentivizes employment of people with | 11 | | disabilities, and increases economic self-reliance and | 12 | | person-centered independence for many individuals with | 13 | | disabilities; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, The State Treasurer offers his thanks and | 15 | | heartfelt appreciation for the path that Illinois lawmakers | 16 | | blazed four years ago and acknowledges that we must build upon | 17 | | our progress to keep Illinois ABLE on the path to advancement | 18 | | through cooperation and collaboration with Illinois human | 19 | | services agencies and departments to accomplish the long term | 20 | | goals of the ABLE ACT; and | 21 | | WHEREAS, Illinois human services agencies and departments, | 22 | | including the Illinois Department of Human Services, the |
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| 1 | | Division of Family and Community Services, the Division of | 2 | | Rehabilitation Services, the Division of Mental Health, the | 3 | | Division of Developmental Disabilities, the Division of | 4 | | Substance Use Prevention and Recovery, the Department of | 5 | | Children and Family Services, the Department of Healthcare and | 6 | | Family Services, the Department on Aging, and the Illinois | 7 | | State Board of Education can aid in the identification of | 8 | | ABLE-eligible persons and direct the dissemination of | 9 | | information about ABLE through a direct connection to | 10 | | approximately 300,000 people in the State of Illinois who are | 11 | | ABLE-eligible; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, The State Treasurer recognizes these State | 13 | | agencies and departments for their excellent service to people | 14 | | with disabilities across the State and looks to achieve | 15 | | support from these agencies and departments in helping | 16 | | Illinoisans with disabilities achieve a better life experience | 17 | | through ABLE savings plans as they are essential to the | 18 | | continued success of Illinois ABLE; therefore, be it | 19 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 20 | | HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE | 21 | | SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we encourage these State | 22 | | agencies and departments to continue their efforts to train | 23 | | staff and share information about Illinois ABLE to the | 24 | | beneficiaries they serve; and be it further
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| 1 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 2 | | delivered to the Illinois Department of Human Services, the | 3 | | Division of Family and Community Services, the Division of | 4 | | Rehabilitation Services, the Division of Mental Health, the | 5 | | Division of Developmental Disabilities, the Division of | 6 | | Substance Use Prevention and Recovery, the Department of | 7 | | Children and Family Services, the Department of Healthcare and | 8 | | Family Services, the Department on Aging, the Illinois State | 9 | | Board of Education, and the Treasurer's Office.
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