CHICAGO – The Law Office of the County Public Defender is celebrating the passage of five new bills by the Illinois General Assembly during the 2025 spring session.
Developed in partnership with advocacy and community organizations, each new bill supports the office’s mission of ensuring equal access to justice and protecting the constitutional rights of Cook County residents. Among the new legislation is a historic measure to create the first statewide office for trial-level public defense, a bill protecting due process protections for noncitizen Cook County residents, and a bill addressing delays for people detained in county jails while they wait for admission at state facilities for mental health treatment.
The legislature has 30 days from the date of passage to send the bills to Governor J.B. Pritzker, who then has 60 days to sign new legislation into law.
Immigration Representation Protections - HB2436
Sponsors: Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz & Senator Omar Aquino
Since 2022, the Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender has represented nearly 150 clients in Chicago’s immigration court.
However, recent changes in federal immigration policy have made it more likely that detained Cook County residents will be moved out of the Chicago Immigration Court’s jurisdiction or deprived of the ability to see a judge before removal.
House Bill 2436 allows the public defender’s office to represent immigrant Cook County residents even if they are detained outside of the county and regardless of whether they have a pending court case.
Since immigration hearings are held virtually, the Office’s immigration staff are not required to travel to represent its clients. House Bill 2436 was a joint effort with The Resurrection Project and the Defenders for All coalition.
Reducing the Number of Unfit People in County Jails - HB3572
Sponsors: Rep. Maura Hirschauer & Senator Karina Villa
The Office also led the charge on House Bill 3572, which will reduce the number of unfit people languishing in county jails while they wait to be admitted to the Illinois Department of Human Services’ Forensic Treatment Program.
Due to an inadequate number of beds at state facilities, people accused of a crime and found unfit to stand trial often face lengthy detention in county jails while waiting to receive the clinical treatment needed to restore them to fitness.
House Bill 3572 clarifies standards for when someone can receive treatment on an outpatient basis and prioritizes the use of outpatient facilities when appropriate. It also offers more opportunities for people facing the lowest level misdemeanor offenses to access diversion programs and ensure these individuals don’t spending more time in jail than fit people who are convicted of the same offenses by ensuring their maximum time in custody mirrors sentences with good time credit applied.
Finally, House Bill 3582 encourages the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts to create standards for the certification process for court-ordered fitness evaluators and creates a Fitness to Stand Trial Task Force to make further legislative recommendations.
House Bill 3572 was a joint effort with the DuPage County Public Defender’s Office, Equip for Equality and Mental Health America of Illinois.
Making Cook County Traffic Fee Waivers Permanent – SB108 (Public Act 104-0021)
Sponsors: Senator Javier Cervantes & Rep. Kelly Cassidy
Lawmakers have made permanent a successful traffic fee waiver program in Cook County that allows judges to waive certain court assessments for people who cannot afford them.
Since 2021, the Cook County Traffic Fee Wavier Program has allowed judges to evaluate and grant fee waiver applications of up to 50%, helping hundreds of people each year avoid debilitating debt because they lack the ability to pay. The fee wavier program was scheduled to sunset on July 1st, however the passage of Senate Bill 108 now makes the program permanent. Chasing this largely uncollectable court debt wastes county resources. Counties often spend more on trying to collect the debt than they recover. Despite minimal impact on the county, the uncollected debt can damage credit scores, which reduces access to housing and creates more instability for vulnerable households.
Senate Bill 108 was a joint effort with the Illinois Fines and Fees Coalition.
Equal Court Protections for Youth in DCFS Care - SB31
Sponsors: Senator Julie Morrison & Rep. Margaret Croke
A small but important change will ensure youth in the custody of the state’s Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) who also have juvenile delinquency cases are treated equally, regardless of why they were placed in care through the passage of Senate Bill 31.
In 2024, 41 young people under DCFS custody were detained in the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center beyond their release date. In 64% of the cases, young people had to wait in detention more than a month before they were properly placed.
Under Senate Bill 31, the Juvenile Court Act language now includes all young people in DCFS custody, including youth placed in state care because of a delinquency petition. Judges overseeing delinquency cases will now receive the same information and have the same authority to review detention as judges overseeing youth in state care due to a child protection petition.
Senate Bill 31 was a joint effort with the Office of the Cook County Public Guardian.
The FAIR Act - HB3363
Sponsors: Rep. Dave Vella & Senator Robert Peters
Before the passage of the Funded Advocacy and Independent Representation (FAIR) Act, Illinois was one of only five states in the country without a dedicated statewide body to oversee public defense.
By creating the first Office of the State Public Defender, the FAIR Act will ensure that every Illinois resident has access to an independent public defender who can vigorously protect their rights.
Before the FAIR Act, judges outside of Cook County had the right to appoint and remove chief public defenders, leading to the indiscriminate termination of public defenders who were vocal about insufficient resources for their clients. The FAIR Act transfers control to local stakeholders, bringing the state in alignment with national standards and providing greater transparency and state investment to the public defense system.
The new office will also work to evaluate and address the nearly 2:1 funding gap between prosecutors’ and public defenders’ offices to ensure that all public defender clients receive the robust defense to which they are entitled no matter where they live.
The FAIR Act was a joint effort with the Illinois Public Defender Association, the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice, the Illinois Black Advocacy Initiative and many community organizations and court stakeholders.