HB 2354, the so-called Reproductive Health and Access Act (a.k.a. the
IL State FOCA) was not heard in committee last Wednesday. We all need to call members of the Committee NOW and ask them to vote NO. Especially Representative Flowers.
We have taken to calling it the state FOCA for all of the bad it seeks
to do: prohibit regulation of abortion; publicly fund abortion;
undermine the Health Care Right of Conscience Act, provide broad
immunity protections to any health care worked involved in abortion, and
mandate comprehensive sex education in all public schools. In short, it
is a really bad bill.
We do expect the bill to come up for a committee vote this week. It will
probably be heard Wednesday morning in the House Human Services
Committee, around 8:00 a.m. This is a tough committee for us, and we
need all the calls/lobbying we can muster to keep it from getting to the
House Floor!!
We need the following member of the committee to vote NO on House
Bill 2354: Representative Flowers (773) 471-5200
Other Committee Members are:
Chairperson: Naomi D. Jakobsson (D)
E-mail: naomi@naomijakobsson.com
206 N. Randolph
Suite 120
Champaign, IL 61820
Phone: (217) 373-5000
Vice-Chairperson: Constance A. Howard (D)
E-mail: staterep-constance-a-howard@comcast.net
8729 S. State Street
Chicago, IL 60619
Phone: (773) 783-8800
Republican Spokesperson: Patricia R. Bellock (R)
E-mail: rep@pbellock.com
1 S. Cass Ave.
Westmont Centre, Suite 205
Westmont, IL 60559
Phone: (630) 852-8633
Member: Sandy Cole (R)
E-mail: Click here (Web Form)
137 South Center
Suite 2
Grayslake, IL 60030
Phone: (847) 543-0062
Member: Annazette Collins (D)
E-mail: collinsar@ilga.gov
259 North Pulaski Road
Chicago, IL 60624
Phone: (773) 533-0010
Member: Mary E. Flowers (D)
E-mail: flowersme@ilga.gov
2525 W. 79th Street
Chicago, IL 60652
Phone: (773) 471-5200
Member: Timothy L. Schmitz (R)
E-mail: info@timschmitz.org
127 Hamilton Street
Suite D
Geneva, IL 60134
Phone: (630) 845-9590
Call these representatives and ask them to vote No on House Bill 2354
because it would prevent any regulation of abortion, provide for public
funding of abortion, force health care workers to abandon their
consciences or lose their job, and mandate comprehensive sex education.
While I agree that a woman and her personal doctor have the right to make a choice about her pregnancy, I do not agree that anyone should be forced to perform such operations in any instance. As for mandating comprehensive sex education, I do agree that there has to be something but at the present, it is being taken care of for each community.