SPRINGFIELD – To reduce light pollution in Illinois’ dark skies, State Senator Laura Ellman sponsored a law to advance responsible outdoor lighting standards.

“Light pollution is not as often discussed as other forms of environmental contamination, but excess artificial light poses serious health threats to animals, insects and humans,” said Ellman (D-Naperville). “Working with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources brings us closer to making Illinois dark sky compliant, and I look forward to expanding these standards.”

Light pollution refers to the brightening of the night sky by man-made light sources, including street lights and buildings. Excessive light in our night sky causes a variety of issues, such as interfering with bird migration, nocturnal insects and our optical health.

SPRINGFIELD – To extend privacy to families with adult children with disabilities, State Senator Laura Ellman led a law that provides new occupancy standards for elderly parents with a disabled adult child of the opposite sex.

“I was contacted by an elderly mother living in public housing who shares a single bedroom with her disabled adult son, and I received earlier reports of residents concerned about family members of the opposite sex in this living situation,” said Ellman (D-Naperville). “Individuals should feel safe and have dignity living in their homes. This law ensures these families are able to live in a space that meets their unique circumstances.”

This law provides that an elderly parent and an adult child with disabilities of the opposite sex are not required to occupy subsidized housing with only one bedroom. The law also requires the local housing authority to make exceptions to their occupancy standards in these situations, as long as all other eligibility requirements are met.

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Laura Ellman released the following statement after the Senate passed the Fiscal Year 2025 budget with continued investments in K-12 education and mental health care services:

“We continue to fulfill our commitments, such as evidence based K-12 funding and pension payments, and I'm glad we’ve passed a balanced budget, and even added to our Rainy Day Fund,” said Ellman, “yet there are areas that concern me about sustaining a narrow surplus like this long term, or resiliency through an economic downturn.”

SPRINGFIELD – At the start of the 2025-2026 school year, all students in grades six through 12 would be required to learn about the dangers of fentanyl under a measure sponsored by State Senator Laura Ellman.

“Our youth represent our future, but also make up one of our most vulnerable populations,” said Ellman (D-Naperville). “We need to educate students sooner rather than later on the prevalence of fentanyl in our communities and the severe, long-term detriment it has on perpetuating the ongoing opioid epidemic.”

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, a lethal dose of fentanyl is smaller than a drop of water. Opioids, including fentanyl, heroin and other drugs, are involved in 70% of fatal drug overdoses.