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Guzmán effort to give assisted living and shared housing residents more autonomy signed into law

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Graciela Guzmán’s legislation to allow authorized electronic monitoring in assisted living and shared housing facilities was signed into law Friday.

“People in assisted living and shared housing deserve safety, dignity and the ability to make informed choices about their own care,” said Guzmán (D-Chicago). “When someone’s daily care is placed in the hands of others, residents and their families deserve peace of mind. This law gives residents another tool to protect themselves, document concerns and help ensure these facilities are free from abuse and neglect.”

House Bill 4517 allows residents in assisted living and shared housing facilities to use authorized electronic monitoring devices in their rooms. Under the law, an electronic monitoring device may include a fixed-position video camera or audio recording device installed in a resident’s room to record or broadcast activity or sounds occurring in that space.

Electronic monitoring can help residents and families identify, prevent and respond to abuse, neglect or mistreatment, whether from staff or others. The law is especially important for residents who may have difficulty reporting concerns on their own or whose families are seeking additional assurance about their care.

The measure also maintains important privacy protections for residents. Roommate consent is required, and residents living in the room may request that the device be turned off at any time.

“Safety and privacy should not be treated as competing values,” Guzmán said. “This law respects resident rights while making sure families have another way to keep their loved ones safe.”

House Bill 4517 has been signed into law and takes effect immediately.

Guzmán bill protecting Illinoisans from losing their homes over medical debt becomes law

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Graciela Guzmán’s bill to protect those burdened by health care debt from having a lien placed on their home during a health care debt collection has been signed into law.

“No one should have to fear losing their home because they got sick,” said Guzmán. “For too long, hospitals have been allowed to use medical debt to threaten the stability of working families. Illinois should never allow that debt to become a tool for taking away someone’s home. Today we put an end to one of the most harmful debt collection practices in our state.”

The legislation was introduced after Representative Amy Briel heard from families whose lives were upended following OSF HealthCare’s acquisition of St. Margaret’s Hospital. Residents described increasingly aggressive debt collection tactics, including placing liens on homes over medical debts as small as $2,000.

Guzmán’s law will prohibit hospitals from placing liens on a person’s home during a health care debt collection action beginning Jan. 1, 2027. According to the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Black and Hispanic adults, women, those with lower incomes, and the uninsured are the most likely to have health care debt. As of 2021, the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services found that over 900,000 Illinoisans are uninsured.

“A home is more than an asset. It’s where children grow up, where families gather, and where people build their futures,” said Guzmán. “No corporation should be able to use a medical bill as leverage to put that stability at risk. This law draws a clear line: getting sick cannot become an excuse to take away someone’s housing security.”

House Bill 4461 has been signed into law and goes into effect Jan. 1, 2027.

Guzmán sees room for improvement in Springfield budget plan, while lauding new revenue

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Graciela Guzmán released the following statement in response to the Senate’s passage of the Fiscal Year 2027 spending plan in Springfield:

“This plan represents the start of a conversation, not the end. The revenue package contains real reform, taxing massive tech corporations while they rake in billions of profit on our data. This is the first step on the path to truly equitable revenue reform. At a time when Illinoisans are struggling to pay for groceries, health care costs and rent, we should be bold and creative in finding ways to support the programs that are vital to keep our communities whole. The rich have taken so much of our economy for themselves and left working people behind to fight for the scraps. Our budget should reflect the urgent need our constituents are facing and move with action, but sadly this proposal is entirely inadequate to tackle the challenges on affordability and sticks with the bare minimum status quo.”

“In this moment, Illinois places a massive burden on working class people while giving handouts to the richest in our state and corporations. We have chosen to bind ourselves to one of the most regressive tax codes in the country. This path is unsustainable in the long term – especially now that the federal government is cutting essential services. Making the rich pay their fair share is the least we can do to build up Illinois as a beacon of equity and civil liberties.”

Read more: Guzmán sees room for improvement in Springfield budget plan, while lauding new revenue

Guzmán advances housing protections package out of Senate

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Graciela Guzmán’s bill to create new protections for renters and prospective renters passed the Senate Sunday.

“When we talk about housing, we are not just talking about buildings or leases, we are talking about safety,” said Guzmán (D-Chicago). “We are talking about dignity. We are talking about whether people have a real chance to rebuild their lives.”

House Bill 4377 combines several impactful measures to protect tenants in Illinois. First, the measure would prohibit federal housing assistance providers from establishing or implementing any rules, policies or procedures that impose time limits or work requirements as a condition of initial or continued eligibility for any rent subsidy or assistance provided to qualifying tenants. This portion of the bill was spearheaded by State Senator Ram Villivalam.

“By implementing protections against rigid work requirements, we are re-affirming basic human rights and ensuring vulnerable Illinoisans don’t have to work unsustainable hours just to have a roof over their head,” said Villivalam (D-Chicago).

In addition, a measure introduced by State Senator Steve Stadelman – which became part of this bill – would prevent landlords from requiring tenants to pay fees to a broker, collect payment at the direction of a landlord and ensures the individual who hires the broker is responsible for the cost.

Read more: Guzmán advances housing protections package out of Senate