TINLEY PARK- As the budget negotiations in Springfield continue on, State Senator Michael Hastings (D-Tinley Park) offered the following letter to keep constituents updated:

As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I take our state budget very seriously. The State of Illinois provides essential services to the most vulnerable people in our society. Whether that is senior citizens, mentally and developmentally disabled or foster children, investing in treatments and services to these people provides a far better return on investment versus providing no services at all.

Along with my colleagues in the Illinois Senate and House of Representatives, I presented and supported an investment plan that reduced non-essential state spending and focused on investing in areas of education, social services and paying our debt obligations. Unfortunately, the governor refused to sign that budget due to his extreme agenda which has no direct relationship to the budget.

As a measure to keep our state from shutting down, I supported a temporary one month budget which would allow essential state agencies to remain open and prevent credit agencies from further downgrading our state's credit rating. More importantly, ensuring that the hard working state employees who provide services from issuing drivers licenses to caring for the sick from losing their paychecks.

I have said multiple times that I am committed to passing a budget that funds services for the most vulnerable in our population. I refuse to balance by shutting down cornerstones of our community like Governors State University or not providing services to the mentally and developmentally disabled, which the governor has proposed.

As a member of both the Senate Appropriations Committees, I have been heavily involved with deciding how the state finances should be organized and will continue to fight for a budget solution that makes Illinois fiscally sound and competitive again.

Over the next few weeks, I will be sending out more in-depth information regarding the state budget. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact my office at (708) 283-4125 or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. You can also contact me by visiting my website at http://www.senatorhastings.com.

For Illinois,

Michael E. Hastings
Senator 19th District

TINLEY PARK- State Senator Michael Hastings (D-Tinley Park) recently co-sponsored House Bill 1 which takes action to combat the proliferation of heroin overdoses that have plagued the South Suburbs.

"We need to take action collectively to combat this tragic epidemic," Hastings said. "This legislation is one component of the overall solution to stop this problem from spreading further into our communities."
House Bill 1 contains guidelines to be used including:
• Requiring doctors and pharmacies to document when narcotics have been prescribed
• Requiring the State Board of Education to create a heroin and opioid drug prevention program for schools
• Creating a statewide medication take-back program
• Expands pharmacists' ability to dispense lifesaving Narcan to prevent heroin overdoses
• Regulates training for first responders and schools to dispense heroin antidotes
• Requires insurance providers to cover heroin antidotes and addiction treatment services
• Adds Medicaid coverage for alcohol and opioid dependence treatment

The proposal passed with bipartisan support, and now goes to the governor's desk.

TINLEY PARK – Throughout the current session, State Senator Michael Hastings (D-Tinley Park) has fought to keep funding for mental health services intact despite the governor’s frequent budget cuts. Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart and Mental Health America of Illinois recognized Hastings’ efforts and honored him as a local champion of mental health at their 28th annual Gold Bell Gala in Chicago.

“An investment in mental health services will always be a sound investment,” Hastings said. “Facilities and hospitals in my district demonstrate on a daily basis how investments made now can help to avoid more costs down the road and provide for a brighter future for these individuals.”

When mental health programs in his communities were targeted for cuts by the governor, Hastings responded by meeting with executives and recipients from Sertoma Centre and Illinois Mentor to explain his plan to fight the cuts and secure their funding.

Earlier this month, Hastings also voted to close a budget hole that threatened local mental health service providers.

Additionally, he has supported the following pieces of legislation that focus on mental health:

• Senate Bill 1549, which creates an income tax checkoff allowing individuals to make contributions to the Special Olympics in Illinois.

• Senate bill 2129, which provides funding for the home services program administered by the Department of Human Services.

• Senate bill 1249, which requires the governor’s office to identify important mental health services and create a strategy for financing their operations.

TINLEY PARK – As questions mount around the security of our digital data and identity information, State Senator Michael Hastings (D-Tinley Park) has stepped in to support a measure calling for increased security standards.

The legislation requires a company that experiences a data breach to report it to the Attorney General’s office so that the breach may be included on a website that lists data breaches in Illinois.

“Whether it be a senior citizen or young adult, every single person has a wealth of information associated with them,” Sen. Hastings said. “These people need to know when their data could be at risk, and we need to ensure that the authorities know when something happens so that they can work to combat any further damage.”

The legislation also holds businesses accountable by requiring them to establish reasonable security measures to safeguard sensitive personal information and display privacy policies prominently on their websites and apps that collect personal information.

Senate Bill 1833 enables small businesses to notify local media, rather than state-wide media, when breaches occur.

The measure passed the Senate by a 35-13 vote and now moves to the House for consideration.