OpEd: Senator Patrick Joyce (September 2021)
OpEd: Senator Patrick Joyce (September 2021) – When it was time, we stepped up to get the job done for all those who help keep the lights on every day.
As I have updated you for the past few months, we have been working feverishly on a comprehensive clean energy package in Springfield this summer. These negotiations have been long and complicated, and we all have felt some frustration at times about the lack of progress.
But twice in recent weeks, I stood with my Senate Democratic colleagues to vote for a package that puts Illinois on the right track to protect our environment and fight the devastating effects of climate change, while supporting the communities and families in the 40th District and across Illinois who depend on affordable, reliable electricity and the critical jobs that help create it.
I am proud of the final product that will make Illinois a clean energy leader. We are embracing carbon-free and renewable energy, and the many jobs and environmental benefits that will come with it. We are keeping our nuclear facilities open that provide great careers and lives for so many families, and helping find new roles for the fossil fuel plants in communities that have come to depend upon them.
We are creating new apprenticeship and job training opportunities for all in the energy sector, and new pipelines to promote equity and diversity. And we are doing all of this at a minimal cost to ratepayers, while offering more aid for those who struggle to pay their bills. This is an excellent roadmap for success.
But I’m also proud of how we got this done. Every time we hit a roadblock, our Senate team came together to find a new way forward. Every time environmental or labor advocates couldn’t agree, we pushed them back to the table for more conversations.
We lived up to our commitment to make laws that make a difference in people’s lives. This is why I was elected to serve you.
Our energy package is a major accomplishment this summer. But back home in the district, we have been busy with events and constituent discussions to stay on top of other needs.
We were on hand to provide information and answer questions in University Park recently. We had another great Coffee, Conversation and & Constituent Services event on Sept. 18 in Bourbonnais, where we discussed all we are working on in Springfield and other issues.
From providing much-needed natural gas service to a local community, to lowering trailer fees, to giving our schools relief from the teacher shortage, I was busy at the Capitol passing laws this year to help solve the problems facing our district.
Watch for more opportunities like this free mobile unit event with the Secretary of State we had in Herscher in early September as we work to help provide the services you need around the district.
I urge you to contact me anytime I can help: 708-756-0882, or at http://www.senatorpatrickjoyce.com/. I will continue to share the latest news on my website and on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/senPatrickjoyce40/.
Sen. Patrick Joyce
D-Essex, 40th State Senate District
OpEd: Senator Patrick Joyce (September 2021)
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