CICERO – State Senator Javier Cervantes and Nicor Gas hosted a grocery and energy resource fair at Morton College on Thursday, giving over 250 residents the opportunity to learn about their energy rates, sign up for utility bill assistance and receive free groceries.

“We are here to help residents in need and make sure they have the opportunity to find resources that help them at home and save them time and money,” said Cervantes (D-Chicago). “I want to thank our partners from Nicor, CEDA, and other agencies who were here to help residents with their utility bills and facilitate a great event where we could give back to our community.”

Over 250 residents who registered for Thursday’s event at Morton College were able to collect grocery care boxes curated by TopBox. Attendees also connected with Nicor representatives to learn about energy efficiency programs, residential and income-eligible assistance, energy bill assistance programs, job openings and general energy and natural gas education.

CHICAGO — State Senator Javier Loera Cervantes recently announced three adult and family literacy programs in the 1^st Senate District have been awarded $215,000 in grant funding.

“This funding will support students, families and our workforce by strengthening literacy and adult education in our community,” said Cervantes (D-Chicago). “Libraries offer pathways to lifelong learning and growth, and I’m excited for the new opportunities this will open up for families in the 1^st District.”

The grants, awarded by Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, included nearly $22 million for library services and $6 million for literacy programs throughout the state. Three organizations and schools in the district Cervantes represents received funding to enhance literacy programs that promote basic reading, math, writing and English language skills:

CHICAGO — State Senator Javier Loera Cervantes announced that seven school districts across the area will receive more than $6 million in additional funding to help address the financial challenges of recent years.

“Our students deserve a commitment from Illinois to continue to fund schools fairly and equitably,” said Cervantes (D-Chicago). “By using the evidence-based funding formula, we are giving back to the students who need our help the most.”

The funding comes from the 2017 Illinois Senate Democrat-backed evidence-based funding formula — an overhaul of the way the state funds K-12 education. The law made school funding more equitable by calculating the needs of individual school districts and basing its state revenue on those needs. The formula takes into account a district’s total enrollment, poverty rate and number of special education or English language learners, among other factors.

SPRINGFIELD – Clarifying and providing more transparency on criminal possession charges, State Senator Javier Cervantes’ new law will retitle these charges to more accurately reflect the nature of the crimes.  

“By adjusting the naming of the charges, we can give more clarity around criminal conduct which will allow us to support charged individuals, most of whom are minorities disproportionately arrested for these crimes,” said Cervantes (D-Chicago). “Prior to this law, an unlawful use of a weapon charge could seem like a violent action, while in reality it could be a simple possession of a firearm at the time of arrest. As we clarify these charges, we can provide support to residents who have been impacted and give them greater access to support services.”

According to Cabrini Green Legal Aid, more than 86,500 people have been arrested and more than 33,000 were convicted of unlawful use of a weapon in Illinois since 2009. This disproportionately impacts people and communities of color, with Black individuals comprising 69% of all people arrested for UUW, and negatively affects people’s ability to secure housing and employment.