Chicago City Wire

Yolonda Morris introduced HB3369 in the Illinois House on Feb. 7, 2025, during the general assembly session 104, according to the Illinois General Assembly.

According to the Illinois General Assembly site, the legislature summarized the bill's official text as follows: "Amends the Illinois Aeronautics Act. Requires a carrier or an indirect carrier to provide assistance to an individual with a disability in a safe, dignified, and prompt manner. Provides that whether assistance is prompt shall depend on the totality of the circumstances. Provides that carriers shall provide or ensure the provision of timely assistance requested by or on behalf of an individual with a disability, or offered by carrier or airport operator personnel and accepted by an individual with a disability, in enplaning and deplaning. Provides requirements for deplaning an individual with a disability who is in an aisle chair. Provides that carriers must timely notify an individual with a disability regarding the status of the storage of the individual's assistive device in the cargo compartment. Provides that, if an individual's wheelchair or scooter is mishandled, the carrier must immediately notify the individual of his or her rights to take certain actions. Provides that a carrier shall presume liability for the mishandling of an individual's assistive device unless the carrier can demonstrate that the circumstances that led to the mishandling of the assistive device were outside of the carrier's control. Requires carriers to take certain actions if an individual's checked wheelchair or scooter has been delayed or lost, damaged, or pilfered. Provides that, if an individual with a disability is waiting for his or her mishandled personal wheelchair or scooter to be returned, repaired, or replaced, a carrier must use its best efforts to provide an adequate loaner wheelchair or scooter. Provides that, when conducting training for personnel, a carrier that operates aircraft with 19 or more passenger seats must ensure that the training meets certain requirements for all personnel who interact with the traveling public or who handle individuals' assistive devices as appropriate to the duties of each employee or contractor. Provides training requirements for employees designated as Complaints Resolution Officials."

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, the bill amends the Illinois Aeronautics Act to enhance assistance for individuals with disabilities in air travel. It mandates carriers and indirect carriers to provide safe, dignified, and prompt assistance, with timeliness determined by circumstances. This includes assistance in enplaning and deplaning and ensuring personnel and equipment are available for those needing an aisle chair. Carriers must notify individuals about the status of their assistive devices in cargo and presume liability for any mishandling unless proven otherwise. The bill requires carriers to provide an adequate loaner device if one's wheelchair or scooter is mishandled and outlines specific training requirements for personnel interacting with individuals with disabilities, including hands-on training for those handling assistive devices. It also highlights the responsibilities of Complaints Resolution Officials in adhering to these regulations, effective immediately on enactment.

Yolonda Morris has proposed another five bills since the beginning of the 104th session.

Yolonda Morris is currently serving in the Illinois State House, representing the state's 9th House District. She replaced previous state representative Lakesia Collins in 2023.

Bills in Illinois follow a multi-step legislative process, beginning with introduction in either the House or Senate, followed by committee review, floor debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching the governor for approval or veto. The General Assembly operates on a biennial schedule, and while typically thousands of bills are introduced each session, only a fraction successfully pass through the process to become law.

You can read more about bills and other measures here.

Bill Number	Date Introduced	Short Description
HB3369	02/07/2025	Amends the Illinois Aeronautics Act. Requires a carrier or an indirect carrier to provide assistance to an individual with a disability in a safe, dignified, and prompt manner. Provides that whether assistance is prompt shall depend on the totality of the circumstances. Provides that carriers shall provide or ensure the provision of timely assistance requested by or on behalf of an individual with a disability, or offered by carrier or airport operator personnel and accepted by an individual with a disability, in enplaning and deplaning. Provides requirements for deplaning an individual with a disability who is in an aisle chair. Provides that carriers must timely notify an individual with a disability regarding the status of the storage of the individual's assistive device in the cargo compartment. Provides that, if an individual's wheelchair or scooter is mishandled, the carrier must immediately notify the individual of his or her rights to take certain actions. Provides that a carrier shall presume liability for the mishandling of an individual's assistive device unless the carrier can demonstrate that the circumstances that led to the mishandling of the assistive device were outside of the carrier's control. Requires carriers to take certain actions if an individual's checked wheelchair or scooter has been delayed or lost, damaged, or pilfered. Provides that, if an individual with a disability is waiting for his or her mishandled personal wheelchair or scooter to be returned, repaired, or replaced, a carrier must use its best efforts to provide an adequate loaner wheelchair or scooter. Provides that, when conducting training for personnel, a carrier that operates aircraft with 19 or more passenger seats must ensure that the training meets certain requirements for all personnel who interact with the traveling public or who handle individuals' assistive devices as appropriate to the duties of each employee or contractor. Provides training requirements for employees designated as Complaints Resolution Officials.
HB3171	02/06/2025	Amends the Nursing Home Care Act. In provisions concerning monetary penalties for noncompliance with minimum staffing standards, provides that monetary penalties shall be established based on a formula that calculates on a quarterly basis (instead of a daily basis). Provides that the monetary penalty may not be waived, except where there is no more than a 10% deviation from the staffing requirements, in which case the facility shall not receive a penalty. Makes changes regarding the notice that a facility that has received a notice of violation for a violation of the minimum staffing requirements shall display. Effective immediately.
HB2423	01/31/2025	Amends the Medical Assistance Article of the Illinois Public Aid Code. Requires hospitals and birthing centers to adopt and maintain written policies and procedures authorizing a patient enrolled in the medical assistance program to select an Illinois Medicaid certified and enrolled doula of the patient's choice to accompany the patient within the facility's premises for the purposes of providing support before, during, and after labor and childbirth, and during the patient's entire postpartum stay. Provides that the doula shall be considered part of the patient's care team and shall not be counted as a support person or against any guest quota. Requires hospitals and birthing centers to provide a written copy of their policies and procedures to maternity patients, the facilities' maternity health care providers, and any other person at the patient's request. Requires publication of the written policies on each facility's website. Contains provisions concerning hospital and birthing center liaisons and doulas certification acknowledgment requirements. Permits the Department of Healthcare and Family Services and the Department of Public Health to establish standing recommendations to meet Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services requirements and ensure access to preventive services, including Medicaid-covered maternal and reproductive health supports and services.
HB1706	01/24/2025	Amends the Nurse Practice Act. Ratifies and approves the Nurse Licensure Compact, which allows for the issuance of multistate licenses that allow nurses to practice in their home state and other compact states. Provides that the Compact does not supersede existing State labor laws. Provides that the State may not share with or disclose to the Interstate Commission of Nurse Licensure Compact Administrators or any other state any of the contents of a nationwide criminal history records check conducted for the purpose of multistate licensure under the Nurse Licensure Compact. Provides that an employer who employs nurses, as defined in the Article, shall provide the nurses under its employment with the opportunity to obtain the required continuing education hours. Requires that nurses subject to the Nurse Licensure Compact complete 20 hours of approved continuing education per every 2-year license renewal cycle. Provides that the Nurse Licensure Compact does not apply to an advanced practice registered nurse. Adds provisions concerning employer attestations.
HB1603	01/23/2025	Amends the Landlord and Tenant Act. Prohibits a landlord or lessor from refusing to rent to, deny housing to, or impose conditions on a lessee or tenant based on the breed of a dog or dogs in residential housing that contains more than 3 units of housing. Provides that nothing in the Act affects the ability of a unit of local government to enforce provisions of the Animal Control Act regarding a dangerous dog or vicious dog. Provides that if a lessor or landlord violates these provisions, upon request of the affected lessee or tenant, the Illinois Housing Development Authority must investigate the matter. Provides that if the Authority finds that a lessor or landlord has violated the Act, it must commence an action or proceeding in the circuit court of the county in which the premises are situated to stop the violation either by mandamus or injunction. Provides that the amendatory Act applies to a renewal or modification of residential leases that contain more than 3 units of housing after the effective date of the Act and for new residential leases entered into after that date.
HB1425	01/16/2025	Amends the Probate Act of 1975. Provides that for proceedings seeking a guardianship of a disabled adult, if the proposed guardian is otherwise qualified under the Act, the court must give first consideration to appointing a family member who petitions to be a guardian unless the person alleged to have a disability has designated some other person to be guardian under the Act. Continues to provide that the paramount concern in the selection of the guardian is the best interests and well-being of the person with a disability. Defines "family member" to mean any person related to the person alleged to have a disability.