Full Text of SB3592 103rd General Assembly
SB3592sam001 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY | Sen. Steve Stadelman Filed: 4/5/2024 | | 10300SB3592sam001 | | LRB103 38956 SPS 71693 a |
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| 1 | | AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 3592
| 2 | | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 3592 by replacing | 3 | | everything after the enacting clause with the following: | 4 | | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 | | Strengthening Community Media Act. | 6 | | Section 5. Findings. | 7 | | (a) Illinois benefits from robust local news services that | 8 | | provide trusted and essential information to the community | 9 | | that limits corruption, encourages citizen participation, | 10 | | helps combat misinformation, and mitigates community and | 11 | | individual alienation. | 12 | | (b) Local news in Illinois and throughout the country is | 13 | | struggling with newspaper advertising dropping 82% nationally | 14 | | since 2000, contributing to a 57% drop in the number of | 15 | | reporters at newspapers and thousands of closures. | 16 | | (c) Local news outlets are trusted sources of information |
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| 1 | | for communities throughout Illinois and advertising spending | 2 | | with these outlets carries a substantial benefit for the | 3 | | effective dissemination of important government information to | 4 | | the communities it serves. | 5 | | (d) Government initiatives to increase spending on local | 6 | | news advertising has been manifestly successful in both | 7 | | supporting local news outlets and improving the information | 8 | | diet of communities in several major cities. | 9 | | (e) Illinois can and will implement such an initiative | 10 | | while preserving the editorial independence of local news | 11 | | outlets selling advertising space under this Act, and | 12 | | recognizes that any diversion of advertising spending that has | 13 | | the effect or appearance of an attempt to influence the | 14 | | editorial content of a local news organization violates the | 15 | | federal and State guarantees of freedom of the press and | 16 | | freedom of speech. | 17 | | Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act: | 18 | | "Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic | 19 | | Opportunity. | 20 | | "Local news organization" means an entity that: | 21 | | (1) engages professionals to create, edit, produce, | 22 | | and distribute original content concerning matters of | 23 | | public interest, through reporting activities, including | 24 | | conducting interviews, observing current events, or | 25 | | analyzing documents or other information; |
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| 1 | | (2) has at least one employee employed full-time for | 2 | | 30 hours a week or more dedicated to providing coverage of | 3 | | Illinois or local Illinois community news and living | 4 | | within 50 miles of the coverage area, who gathers, | 5 | | prepares, collects, photographs, writes, edits, reports, | 6 | | or publishes original local or State community news for | 7 | | dissemination to the local or State community; | 8 | | (3) in the case of print publications, has published | 9 | | at least one print publication per month over the previous | 10 | | 12 months, and either holds a valid United States Postal | 11 | | Service periodical permit or has at least 25% of its | 12 | | content dedicated to local news; | 13 | | (4) in the case of digital-only entities, has | 14 | | published one piece about the community per week over the | 15 | | previous 12 months and has at least 33% of its digital | 16 | | audience in Illinois, averaged over a 12-month period; | 17 | | (5) in the case of hybrid entities that that have both | 18 | | print and digital outlets, meets the requirements in | 19 | | either paragraph (3) or (4) of this definition; | 20 | | (6) has disclosed in its print publication or on its | 21 | | website its beneficial ownership or, in the case of a | 22 | | not-for-profit entity, its board of directors; | 23 | | (7) in the case of an entity that maintains tax status | 24 | | under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal Revenue | 25 | | Code, has declared the coverage of local or State news as | 26 | | the stated mission in its filings with the Internal |
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| 1 | | Revenue Service; and | 2 | | (8) has not received more than 50% of its gross | 3 | | receipts for the previous year from political action | 4 | | committees or other entities described in Section 527 of | 5 | | the federal Internal Revenue Code, or from an organization | 6 | | that maintains Section 501(c)(4) or 501(c)(6) status under | 7 | | the federal Internal Revenue Code. | 8 | | Section 15. Notice of sale of a local news organization. A | 9 | | local news organization shall not be sold to a company without | 10 | | giving written notice 120 days before the sales occurs to the | 11 | | following: | 12 | | (1) affected employees and representatives of affected | 13 | | employees; | 14 | | (2) the Department and the county government in which | 15 | | the local news organization is located; and | 16 | | (3) any in-State nonprofit organization in the | 17 | | business of buying local news organizations. | 18 | | Section 90. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is | 19 | | amended by adding Section 65.125 as follows: | 20 | | (110 ILCS 947/65.125 new) | 21 | | Sec. 65.125. Journalism Student Scholarship Program. | 22 | | (a) As used in this Section, "local news organization" has | 23 | | the meaning given to that term in the Strengthening Community |
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| 1 | | Media Act. | 2 | | (b) In order to encourage academically talented Illinois | 3 | | students to pursue careers in journalism, especially in | 4 | | underserved areas of the State, and to provide those students | 5 | | with financial assistance to increase the likelihood that they | 6 | | will complete their full academic commitment and elect to | 7 | | remain in Illinois to pursue a career in journalism, subject | 8 | | to appropriation, the Commission shall implement and | 9 | | administer the Journalism Student Scholarship Program. The | 10 | | Commission shall annually award scholarships to persons | 11 | | preparing to work in Illinois, with preference given to those | 12 | | preparing to work in underserved areas. These scholarships | 13 | | shall be awarded to individuals who make application to the | 14 | | Commission and agree to sign an agreement under which the | 15 | | recipient pledges that, within the 2-year period following the | 16 | | termination of the academic program for which the recipient | 17 | | was awarded a scholarship, the recipient shall: | 18 | | (1) begin working in journalism in this State for a | 19 | | period of not less than 2 years; | 20 | | (2) fulfill this obligation at local news | 21 | | organization; and | 22 | | (3) upon request of the Commission, provide the | 23 | | Commission with evidence that the recipient is fulfilling | 24 | | or has fulfilled the terms of the teaching agreement | 25 | | provided for in this subsection. | 26 | | (c) An eligible student is a student who meets the |
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| 1 | | following qualifications: | 2 | | (1) is a resident of this State and a citizen or | 3 | | eligible noncitizen of the United States; | 4 | | (2) is a high school graduate or a person who has | 5 | | received an Illinois high school diploma; | 6 | | (3) is enrolled or accepted, on at least a half-time | 7 | | basis, at an institution of higher learning; and | 8 | | (4) is pursuing a postsecondary course of study | 9 | | leading to a career in journalism or a similar field. | 10 | | (d) Each scholarship shall be used by the recipient for | 11 | | the payment of tuition and fees at an institution of higher | 12 | | learning. | 13 | | (e) The Commission shall administer the Program and shall | 14 | | adopt all necessary and proper rules not inconsistent with | 15 | | this Section for its effective implementation. ". |
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