“According to Jennifer Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, its senate sponsor, Michael Hastings (D–19), plans to discuss elements of the bill with her organization, the AFL-CIO, and the IMA over the summer, which suggests it may be reintroduced the next legislative session in a revised form…Its passage would mean that “if a protestor trespasses onto a facility just to put up a sign, or blockade a road, they would go from a night in jail to a one- to three-year jail sentence,” Walling says. Damaging or tampering with critical infrastructure equipment could have resulted in a felony charge, prison time, and fines up to $100,000.”
October 29, 2026