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1
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, A displaced homemaker is an individual who has
3 been providing unpaid services to family members in the home,
4 has been dependent on the income of another family member but
5 is no longer supported by that income, and is currently
6 unemployed or underemployed and experiencing difficulty in
7 obtaining or upgrading employment; and
 
8     WHEREAS, Displaced homemakers are often disproportionately
9 poor when compared to the rest of the population; and
 
10     WHEREAS, Displaced homemakers must enter the workforce to
11 support themselves and their families, but may face significant
12 barriers to economic self-sufficiency due to a limited
13 education, a lack of work experience, and age discrimination in
14 the hiring process and the workplace; and
 
15     WHEREAS, Displaced homemakers may face severe housing
16 problems because they are suddenly left with little or no
17 income and have difficulty finding adequate employment, and
18 because those who are awarded their homes in divorce
19 settlements often cannot afford to maintain the mortgage
20 payments and property taxes; and
 
21     WHEREAS, In fiscal year 2002, 1,758 displaced homemakers
22 were enrolled in the Illinois Displaced Homemaker Program,
23 administered by the Illinois Department of Labor, and 75% of
24 these individuals were considered the sole financial support
25 for children under the age of 18; and
 
26     WHEREAS, As states respond to federal welfare reform and
27 workforce development legislation, it is likely that Illinois
28 will experience changes in the types of services they currently
29 provide; and
 

 

 

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1     WHEREAS, It is important to continue responding to the
2 needs of displaced homemakers and to expand services to reach
3 more displaced homemakers by moving them out of poverty and
4 beyond reliance on State welfare support and into gainful
5 employment so they may become more active participants in the
6 Illinois economy; therefore be it
 
7     RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL
8 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
9 CONCURRING HEREIN, that a Task Force on Displaced Homemakers,
10 comprised of members of the General Assembly, representatives
11 of the Governor, and concerned members of the public, be
12 created to investigate the services currently offered to
13 displaced homemakers in Illinois and to make recommendations
14 for improvements to those services; and be it further
 
15     RESOLVED, That 2 members who are elected members of the
16 House of Representatives or the Senate be appointed by each of
17 the following elected officials: the Speaker of the House, the
18 Minority Leader of the House, the President of the Senate, and
19 the Minority Leader of the Senate; and be it further
 
20     RESOLVED, That 2 members be appointed by the Governor to
21 represent State agencies currently offering services and
22 assistance to the displaced homemaker population in Illinois;
23 and be it further
 
24     RESOLVED, That the members of the General Assembly
25 appointed to the Task Force appoint 2 chairpersons, who shall
26 be members of the Task Force who are members of the General
27 Assembly; and be it further
 
28     RESOLVED, That meetings of the Task Force be held at the
29 call of the chairpersons and that the chairpersons appoint 4
30 members of the public who have adequate expertise on the issue
31 of displaced homemakers and the services and assistance

 

 

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1 provided to them; and be it further
 
2     RESOLVED, That all appointed members of the Task Force
3 shall be considered to be members with voting rights, that a
4 quorum of the Task Force shall consist of a simple majority of
5 the members of the Task Force, and that all actions and
6 recommendations of the Task Force be approved by a simple
7 majority of the members of the Task Force; and be it further
 
8     RESOLVED, That members appointed to the Task Force shall be
9 compensated only for costs that arise out of their official
10 duties with the Task Force and that compensation shall come
11 from an appropriate fund; and be it further
 
12     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
13 delivered to the Governor.