SPRINGFIELD – A bill sponsored by State Senator Martin A. Sandoval (D-Chicago) that would help protect confidential documents submitted with driver’s license of identification card applications passed the Illinois Senate Wednesday.

“No one should have to fear that the personal information they submit to the state may end up in the wrong hands,” Sandoval said. “This is a simple, common-sense piece of legislation that will help ensure Illinoisans’ confidential information remains protected.”

Senate Bill 1344 prohibits confidential documents submitted to the Secretary of State for driver’s license or ID card applications from being released through the Freedom of Information Act. The measure provides that these confidential documents may only be released to the following parties:

• The individual to whom the driver’s license or ID card was issued
• Officers and employees of the Secretary of State in charge of issuing driver’s licenses and ID cards
• Law enforcement officials for a criminal or civil law investigation
• Any other entity the Secretary has authorized by rule

The measure will now go before the House of Representatives.

­PEORIA – The Subcommittees on Capital for the Senate Transportation and Appropriations II Committees held their fourth hearing at Bradley University in Peoria Monday, hearing from interested groups about capital infrastructure needs in the area.

Representatives from local government, transportation experts, educators, business groups, labor organizations and other interested parties testified before the subcommittees about existing capital and needs that should be addressed in a potential bill to release funding for infrastructure improvements around the state.

“We had a productive meeting today and got a better perspective on what projects are needed in this part of the state,” said State Senator Martin A. Sandoval (D-Chicago), Chair of the Transportation Committee. “It’s clear that there is great need for an infusion of infrastructure funding in the Peoria area, and we’re going to do our best to make sure communities across the state have a chance to rebuild crumbling roads and bridges.”

Illinois has not passed a capital bill in a decade. In 2018, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave Illinois a C- grade, saying the state’s transportation infrastructure shows signs of deterioration and faces increasing vulnerability.

Some groups at the hearing, including the Illinois Municipal League and the Tri-State Development Summit/Highway 34 Coalition, advocated for raising some taxes and fees to pay for construction projects around the state.

“I think we can all agree that it’s become clear that Illinois is in urgent need of a comprehensive plan to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure,” Sandoval said. “These hearings are giving us key insights as to what a construction plan would need to look like to efficiently address the needs we’re seeing throughout the state.”

The subcommittees will hold three more hearings on the following dates:

• Tuesday, April 16 in Chicago – Bilandic Building, 160 N. LaSalle St., Chicago
• Monday, April 22 in Elgin – Gail Borden Public Library, 270 N. Grove Ave., Elgin
• Friday, May 3 in Hainesville – Hainesville Village Hall, 100 Hainesville Rd., Hainesville

­SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Martin A. Sandoval is supporting a renewed commitment to ensuring Illinois’ working-class students can afford college tuition.

“Every Illinois student has a right to pursue a college degree and rising costs are currently creating an unfair barrier that prevents low-income students from doing so,” Sandoval said. “Educational opportunities should be equal for every student in our state, and I’m glad to see the governor commit to help level the playing field.”

Last week, the governor signed House Bill 2505, which allows universities to retain unused scholarship funds from the state’s AIM HIGH – Aspirational Institutional Match Helping Illinois Grow Higher Education – program. The measure also gives institutions greater flexibility in administering the grants.

The governor has proposed increasing funding for the AIM High program by $10 million (40 percent), increasing higher education funding by 5 percent and extending MAP grants to an additional 16,000 low-income students.

“The MAP and AIM HIGH programs are critical to students from working class families in my district who may struggle with rising tuition and fees,” Sandoval (D-Chicago) said. “The students at Illinois’ world-class public colleges and universities faced a brutal four years under the last administration and I’m glad to see that Gov. Pritzker is committed to making Illinois a leader in higher education.”

­SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Martin A. Sandoval (D-Chicago) commended Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s decision Monday to file a brief on behalf of the state of Illinois opposing a citizenship question on the U.S. Census.

“The inclusion of a citizenship question on the Census is a clear effort to deter immigrant and minority populations from participating in the Census,” Sandoval said. “The communities I represent are already undercounted and this policy would even further limit their representation in government.”

Illinois joins a coalition of 18 other states, 16 local governments and the U.S. Conference of Mayors in opposition to the question.

In January 2019, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled in favor of a lawsuit to block the census from gathering citizenship information. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear the case this April.

“I applaud Attorney General Raoul for recognizing the importance of this issue to Illinois’ minority and immigrant communities,” Sandoval said. “The State of Illinois stands in steadfast opposition to this racist policy, and we will do everything in our power to prevent this question from appearing on the Census.”